ID :
162034
Fri, 02/18/2011 - 07:49
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Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/162034
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Russian patriarch plans no visit to Vatican
MOSCOW, February 18 (Itar-Tass) -- The Russian Orthodox Church said on
Thursday it welcomed the meeting of President Dmitry Medvedev with Pope Benedict XVI, but said no visit of Russian Patriarch Kirill to the Vatican is planned.
"No. There are currently no preparations for such a trip," deputy head
of the foreign relations department of the Moscow Patriarchate Nikolai
Balashov told Tass.
"We welcome the relations between the Russian Federation and the
Vatican aimed at strengthening peace and mutual understanding in
international ties, in particular, in the sphere of countering terrorism and extremism. The meeting of the heads of state has no direct relation to inter-church ties that are arranged by authorized representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church," he said.
Balashov added the Thursday meeting between Medvedev and Benedict XVI
"took place on the background of positive dynamic in inter-church
contacts." The Russian church stressed the significance of "Orthodox-
Catholic cooperation in the protection of traditional moral values and in drawing the attention of the public to Christian roots of European civilization."
Meetings between Russian leaders and the Pope have been regular since
post-Soviet times after Pope John Paul the Second met Soviet President
Mikhail Gorbachev in 1990.
First Russian President Boris Yeltsin twice visited the Vatican in
1991 and in 1998. President Vladimir Putin twice met Pope John Paul the Second in 2000 and 2003 and once with Benedict XVI in 2006.
On Thursday Medvedev visited the Vatican for the second time. In 2009
it was decided to raise the status of the Russian diplomatic mission to the Holy See to that of an embassy.
The Vatican said both sides "expressed their pleasure at the good
state of bilateral relations and highlighted their desire to strengthen them." It noted cooperation "in the promotion of specifically human and Christian values, and in the cultural and social field."
The Holy See did not mention in its statement the tensions between
Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, including over property
issues, and Orthodox claims that the Catholics are trying to poach
converts from the Orthodox's ranks. Instead the Vatican stressed the
"positive contribution inter-religious dialogue can make to society."
Thursday it welcomed the meeting of President Dmitry Medvedev with Pope Benedict XVI, but said no visit of Russian Patriarch Kirill to the Vatican is planned.
"No. There are currently no preparations for such a trip," deputy head
of the foreign relations department of the Moscow Patriarchate Nikolai
Balashov told Tass.
"We welcome the relations between the Russian Federation and the
Vatican aimed at strengthening peace and mutual understanding in
international ties, in particular, in the sphere of countering terrorism and extremism. The meeting of the heads of state has no direct relation to inter-church ties that are arranged by authorized representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church," he said.
Balashov added the Thursday meeting between Medvedev and Benedict XVI
"took place on the background of positive dynamic in inter-church
contacts." The Russian church stressed the significance of "Orthodox-
Catholic cooperation in the protection of traditional moral values and in drawing the attention of the public to Christian roots of European civilization."
Meetings between Russian leaders and the Pope have been regular since
post-Soviet times after Pope John Paul the Second met Soviet President
Mikhail Gorbachev in 1990.
First Russian President Boris Yeltsin twice visited the Vatican in
1991 and in 1998. President Vladimir Putin twice met Pope John Paul the Second in 2000 and 2003 and once with Benedict XVI in 2006.
On Thursday Medvedev visited the Vatican for the second time. In 2009
it was decided to raise the status of the Russian diplomatic mission to the Holy See to that of an embassy.
The Vatican said both sides "expressed their pleasure at the good
state of bilateral relations and highlighted their desire to strengthen them." It noted cooperation "in the promotion of specifically human and Christian values, and in the cultural and social field."
The Holy See did not mention in its statement the tensions between
Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, including over property
issues, and Orthodox claims that the Catholics are trying to poach
converts from the Orthodox's ranks. Instead the Vatican stressed the
"positive contribution inter-religious dialogue can make to society."
