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_WORLD WATCH______________________________
______________________UKRAINE____________________
Good signs and bad
Patriarch’s greetings followed by harsh criticism
Patriarch Aleksei II sent a personal Christmas message to Pope John Paul II, in a move that Vatican-watchers see as potentially a positive sign for Catholic-Orthodox relations.
The Italian daily newspaper Avennire, which is published by the Italian bishops’ conference, broke the story of the Patriarch’s message in its December 27 edition. This was the first edition of the newspaper to be published after a Christmas break. The Russian prelate told the Pope that he wished him “all the grace of God and eternal love in Christ.”
Immediately after Christmas, however, Aleksei again lashed out at Catholics, criticizing the Church for seeking converts in the former Soviet Union.
“If they consider Orthodoxy to be just as beneficial and capable of salvation as Catholicism, then what is the sense of this constant effort to draw people into the other faith?” the patriarch was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency. He accused Catholics of converting people in parts of Ukraine, where he said Ukrainian Catholics were attempting to take back churches confiscated by the Soviets in 1945 and given to Orthodox parishes.
Acknowledging that many people in former Soviet Republics had been stripped of any religious heritage by the Communists, Aleksei added in an interview with Interfax that the Orthodox and Catholic churches should work together to bring about a moral rebirth. But he repeated his refusal to meet Pope John Paul II unless relations improved.
“Between the two churches there stand serious problems that are not at all the fault of Orthodox Christians,” Aleksei said. “The future of our relations with the Catholic Church, including the level of our contacts, depends on overcoming these difficulties.”
Back to Catholic World Report February 2001 Table of Contents