After nearly 1,000 years, leaders of Catholic, Russian Orthodox churches to meet

Luke Skywalker · Feb 12, 2016

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In this file photo combination Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, right, serves the Christmas Mass in the Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow, Russia, on Jan. 7, 2016 and Pope Francis prays during an audience at the Vatican on Jan. 30, 2016.(Photo: Ivan Sekretarev, AP)

Despite famine, religious wars, worldwide conflict*and the spread of civilization, the heads of the Roman Catholic and the Russian Orthodox churches haven't spoken since the Great Schism of 1054 shattered Christendom, so they have a lot of catching up to do at their*historic meeting Friday in Cuba.
The split between the two churches nearly 1,000 years has festered over issues such as the primacy of the pope and accusations by the Russian Orthodox Church that the Catholic Church tries to poach converts in Russia.
No pope has ever visited Russia.*En route to the historic visit Friday, journalists asked*Pope Francis if a visit to the*nation*is on his papal bucket list.
“China and Russia, I have them here,” Francis said, pointing to his heart. “Pray.”
Few people expect Friday's*two-hour meeting — which took two years of secret planning to pull off*—*will wipe away centuries of distrust and suspicion in a few hours,*but it will be a groundbreaking step toward Catholic-Orthodox relations.
The pope, en route to a papal visit in*Mexico, and Patriarch Kirill will*hold a "personal conversation" at Havana's José Martí International Airport before*signing a joint declaration.
In announcing the visit last week, both sides issued*a statement*saying it*“will mark an important stage in relations between the two churches."
Ecclesiastical and theological disputes, including issues such*as the communion wafer*and papal supremacy led to a break between the Greek East and Latin West, giving rise to*two separate churches —*Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic*—*after 1054.

Cuban president Raul Castro, welcomes Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Kirill, upon his arrival at Jose Marti International airport in Havana, on Feb. 11, 2016..*(Photo: Yamil Lage, AFP/Getty Images)

Starting in*the 15th century, the Russian Orthodox Church became an increasingly independent church that remains in communion with the Eastern Orthodox but does not report to it.
The Catholic Church claims 1.2 billion faithful worldwide.*About two-thirds of the world’s Orthodox Christians belong to the Russian Orthodox Church, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said.*About 75% of Russia’s 144 million citizens call themselves Russian Orthodox, according to the latest polls, although only a fraction say they are observant.
One important issue drawing*the two churches closer is the rise of Christian persecution in the Middle East and Africa.
Metropolitan Illarion, foreign policy chief of the Russian Orthodox Church, said recently that*the*treatment of Christians by extremists in the Middle East, in northern and central Africa and in other regions requires "immediate action."
“In this tragic situation, we need to put aside internal disagreements and pool efforts to save Christianity in the regions where it is subject to most severe persecution,” Illarion said.
Another factor changing the landscape is the rise of Russia on the world stage, and the growing influence of the Russian Orthodox Church in the country*under President Vladimir Putin and*since the fall of the Soviet Union and collapse of communist rule.
"To have the Roman pope, with his internationally recognized authority, not as a critic but as an ally or at least simply as a neutrally silent figure, is highly attractive to Putin and his associates," said*Yury Avvakumov, assistant professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame.
"The Moscow Patriarchate has always been an instrument of Russian international policy. Today, the Moscow Patriarchate, with its established international ties, remains an effective transmitter worldwide of the political interests of the Russian rulers."

In a 2012 file photo, Russian Orthodox patriarch Kirill chats with Russian President in the St. Daniel Monastery in Moscow.*(Photo: Yana Lapikova, AP)

Under Francis, the Vatican has encouraged continuing ecumenical ties with the Orthodox as well as other Christian denominations.
In November 2014, Francis said he told Kirill: “I’ll go wherever you want. You call me and I’ll go.”
The Vatican has been especially solicitous to*Russia, especially in largely sidestepping*criticism of Moscow's*role in the Ukraine conflict.
The issue is particularly knotty for the Catholic church, as it touches on*the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, the country’s second-largest, which follows eastern church rites but answers to the Holy See. The Russian Orthodox Church has considered western Ukraine its traditional territory and has resented papal influence there.
Cardinal Kurt Koch, the head of the Vatican office that deals with Orthodox relations, said the Ukrainian church will certainly come up in the two-hour private talks between Francis and Kirill, the Associated Press reports.
“I think it would be impossible to meet without discussing such issues,” he told Vatican Radio. But he said the future significance of the meeting could not be overstated.
“It will certainly forge relations within Orthodoxy: We still don’t have contact with a lot of Orthodox patriarchs, and this meeting could help develop intra-Orthodox relations ahead of the pan-Orthodox council,” he said. “Improved understanding between Rome and Moscow will certainly have positive effects on the theological dialogue.”
For his part,*Kirill, since taking the*helm*in 2009, has overseen*closer ties between the church and*Kremlin that critics dismiss as the de facto merging of the state and the church.
Putin has openly courted the church, noting his mother baptized him in secret as a child, even allegedly keeping it from his*father, a low-level Communist*party member at the workshop level.
In a 2013 documentary,*Putin said the baptism "affected me personally and our family." He has also described the church as a vehicle for uniting the Russian people.
"In this sense, the meaning of the church goes beyond the boundaries of the Russian Federation, it helps us to establish good relations with the peoples of other countries, and especially the post-Soviet space, and, of course, the church is performing a very constructive, positive role here,"*Putin*added.
The patriarch, who arrived in Cuba on a formal visit Thursday, was meeting with Cuban President Raul Castro on Friday. It was the fourth meeting between the pair,*according to the Russian statge-owned Tass news agency.
Alexander Volkov, the patriarch’s spokesman, said relations between the two men has been "long and good."

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After nearly 1,000 years, leaders of Catholic, Russian Orthodox churches to meet

Luke Skywalker

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