PATRIARCH
KIRILL DISAPPOINTED WITH DIALOGUE OF ORTHODOX AND PROTESTANTS
The
dialogue with protestant churches has hit a dead end, but the
Russian Orthodox Church hopes for cooperation with them in the
humanitarian sphere, the patriarch of Moscow and all-Rus
declared in an interview with Bulgarian news media.
Patriarch
of Moscow and all-Rus Kirill will visit Bulgaria on 2 to 4 March
and participate in the celebration of the 140th anniversary of
the liberation of the country from the Ottoman yoke. Within the
framework of the visit the patriarch will participate in
commemorative events, honor the memory of troops that fell in
the liberation of Bulgaria in the Russo-Turkish War of
1877-1878, and conduct a prayer service in the memorial church
of the Nativity of Christ in Shipka.
"Protestant
churches
have always gone along the channels of secular thought and have
been susceptible to the influence of secular authority. And
today the liberal tendencies in their theology are the result of
the pressures of secular conceptions, human rights, and liberty,
which presuppose both change in the attitude toward the sexes
and support for same-sex unions. Therefore, unfortunately, on
the theological level we now have a halt. I do not see real
movement forward in the near future, and the Orthodox are not to
blame for this," the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church
said.
He
recalled that conversation on these topics has been conducted
continuously, but Russia sees in Western Christians a lack of
freedom and capacity "to say 'no' to the powers of this world."
"Unfortunately, the capitulation of fundamental Christian ideas
before liberal philosophical approaches to human personality is
obvious," the patriarch emphasized.
At
the same time, the primate noted that a dialogue of the Russian
church, Catholic communities, and protestant organizations in
providing aid to Christians in the Near East is bringing
tangible benefit. Similarly, he said, although the prospect of
achieving agreements in the area of theology is lost as of now,
"there remain other areas." In particular, religions have always
played an important role in inter-cultural dialogue.
"And so today such a dialogue through religious organizations and churches would be able also to facilitate the establishment of great mutual understanding among people. Therefore I see that there remains space for joint actions in humanitarian and cultural spheres," the first hierarch concluded. (tr. by PDS, posted 1 March 2018)
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