Patriarch Kirill
The World Council of Churches must act with courage and expel Kirill, Russian Orthodox Church
By Rob Schenck — March 28, 2022
(RNS) — Supporters of the effort to oust Kirill from the WCC believe he has disqualified the ecclesial entity he embodies by effectively endorsing Putin's military campaign.
Pope’s peace prayer for Ukraine recalls ancient prophesy
By Nicole Winfield — March 25, 2022
ROME (AP) — To hammer home its universal nature, the Vatican translated the text of the prayer into three dozen languages.
When Putin says Russia and Ukraine share one faith, he’s leaving out a lot of the story
By Kathryn David — March 25, 2022
(The Conversation) — Religion plays an important role in expansive views of Russian nationhood. But faith has played a role in Ukrainian nationalism, too.
Why is Russia’s church backing Putin’s war? Church-state history gives a clue
By Scott Kenworthy — March 23, 2022
(The Conversation) — The war in Ukraine is just the latest chapter in a long, tangled relationship between the Kremlin and the Russian Orthodox Church.
Russian talking point: Blaming US for Ukraine church split
By Peter Smith — March 23, 2022
(AP) — “You cannot call it a religious war, but it has a religious dimension,” said the Rev. Cyril Hovorun.
Franklin Graham, Russia and the ‘Moralist International’
By Mark Silk — March 21, 2022
(RNS) — The war in Ukraine has made strange bedfellows of the international religious right.
Ukraine offers a middle path between just war and pacifism
By Mark Silk — March 14, 2022
(RNS) — Not that Moscow wants anything to do with it.
US Christian leaders ask Kirill to speak out, ‘reconsider’ comments on Ukraine
By Jack Jenkins — March 11, 2022
(RNS) — 'We ask you to prayerfully reconsider the support you have given to this war because of the horrendous human suffering it has unleashed,' the letter read.
Among Russian Orthodox, glimmers of dissent against the invasion of Ukraine
By Jack Jenkins — March 4, 2022
(RNS) — The spiritual dissent exists on a spectrum, ranging from calls for peace to threats of breaking away from the Russian Orthodox Church.
‘There is still time.’ The Vatican assesses its influence as war breaks out in Ukraine.
By Claire Giangravé — February 24, 2022
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — When it comes to the Vatican’s diplomatic arsenal to promote peace in Ukraine, there are two main channels: diplomacy and ecumenism.
Pope Francis decries ‘folly’ of war as tensions grow in Ukraine
By Claire Giangravé — February 23, 2022
VATICAN CITY (RNS) — As war looms in Europe, Pope Francis called for a global day of fasting and prayer on Ash Wednesday.
Plans move forward for 2022 pope, Russian patriarch meeting
By Nicole Winfield and Vladimir Isachenkov — December 22, 2021
ROME (AP) — Metropolitan Hilarion, foreign relations chief of the Russian Orthodox Church, met for about an hour with Francis on Wednesday morning at the Vatican.
Pope: New meeting with Russian Orthodox patriarch possible
By Nicole Winfield — December 6, 2021
(AP) — Francis said he planned to meet next week with the Russian church’s foreign envoy 'to agree on a possible meeting' with Patriarch Kirill.
Pope Francis’ encyclical now available in Russian thanks to Muslim translators
By Claire Giangravé — March 3, 2021
(RNS) — It is not uncommon for papal encyclicals to be translated into multiple languages, including Russian, but they are rarely recognized officially by the Vatican.
Disputes loom as émigré church leader switches loyalty to Moscow
By Tom Heneghan — September 16, 2019
PARIS (RNS) — The fate of 118 parishes scattered across Europe is part of a larger struggle between the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul and the far larger and richer Moscow Patriarchate, whose power is linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
