Moscow, Russia, Jan 12, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Although there are none officially planned, the Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II laid down what he sees as “conditions” for the Holy Father to make a future visit to Russia.
According to an Associated Press story, the Russian Patriarch stated that such a visit may only occur if the Vatican renounced its efforts to “expand Rome-affiliated churches in traditional Christian-Orthodox areas.”
The criticism revolves around Eastern-rite Catholic churches which continue to grow in traditionally Orthodox areas.
Patriarch Alexy told the Associated Press that these churches, which have grown since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, “only deepen the divisions between Orthodox and Catholics.”