Moscow, October 22, 2021
Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr
The Russian Orthodox Church is currently holding its IX International Faith and Word Festival near Moscow, which ends today. The main international event, a panel discussion on “The Phanar’s Actions in Ukraine: Reflection in the Media Space,” was held on Wednesday.
Among the many participants was journalist Peggy Doku from Rhodes, Greece, who commented on the Greek media’s treatment of Patriarch Bartholomew, and on the character of the Patriarch himself, reports the Russian Church’s Synodal Department for Interaction with Society and the Media.
According to Doku, most of the media in Greece simply takes Pat. Bartholomew’s side, without any interest in understanding what is actually happening in Ukraine.
As Doku notes, hailing from Rhodes, she is under the jurisdiction of Constantinople, and in her opinion, Pat. Bartholomew will not change his decision about Ukraine, and is unwilling to even discuss it:
He doesn't believe in dialogue; everyone should understand that. We must be prepared for the fact that he will create many new problems. He doesn’t want to accept the fact that he makes mistakes. And the Russian Church should, first of all, influence public opinion on this issue, since the created schism has also created problems between Russia and Greece in many issues.
It is well known that the entire Orthodox world has called for a council to deal with the Ukrainian issue, but only Pat. Bartholomew refuses to meet with his brother hierarchs, as His Eminence Metropolitan Nektarios of Corfu of the Church of Greece and others have pointed out.
Commenting on the Greek journalist’s words, His Grace Bishop Viktor of Baryshevka of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church emphasizes that Pat. Bartholomew is more interested in dialoguing with Catholics than with other Orthodox bishops.
For the Patriarch of Constantinople, “’unity’ in his understanding means only one thing—unconditional agreement with his decisions,” the Ukrainian hierarch rightly notes.
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