Patriarch Cyril confirmed a great harmony with Benedict XVI in the
report he presented Feb. 2, 2010, to his bishops on the occasion of the
first anniversary of his enthronement.
In regard to the various
questions that are at the heart of Catholics and Orthodox, "Benedict
took positions very close to those of the Orthodox," said Cyril.
These words underscore something of the visit's significance,
Medvedev's first after the establishment of full diplomatic relations
between the Holy See and Russia. It was at their first meeting in
December 2009 that the president and Pope agreed to upgrade existing
ties to the level of full diplomatic relations.
The customary press release from the Vatican's press office described
Thursday's meeting in positive terms: "In the course of the cordial
discussions," the brief note says, "the parties expressed their pleasure
at the good state of bilateral relations and highlighted their desire
to strengthen them, also in the wake of the establishment of full
diplomatic relations."
"The broad-ranging collaboration," the note continues, "between the
Holy See and the Russian Federation was recognized, both in the
promotion of specifically human and Christian values, and in the
cultural and social field. Subsequently, emphasis was given to the
positive contribution interreligious dialogue can make to society."
The press release reflects the extraordinary process of building ties
between the geographically largest country in the world and the
smallest -- a process that began on Dec. 1, 1989, with the historic
visit to Pope John Paul II by the secretary-general of the Soviet
Union's Communist party, Mikhail Gorbachev, the man of "perestroika" and
"glasnost."
This process culminated last summer with the exchange of
ambassadors.
Thorny friendship
But while the first meeting between a Russian head of state and a
Roman Pontiff occurred already more than 20 years ago, one between the
leader of the Catholic Church and the leader of the Russian Orthodox
Church has yet to take place.
Indeed, under the previous patriarch of
Moscow and All Russia, Alexy II, the relations between Rome and Moscow
were at times cool.
The great dream of John Paul II to be able to meet
Alexy II -- even on "neutral" territory if it were necessary -- never
happened because of the patriarch's "no."
Alexy II, a native of Tallinn, Estonia, distrusted the first Slavic
Pontiff in history and was extremely critical of "Catholic proselytism"
in the regions of the ex-Soviet Union.
Pope Wojtyla contributed to the
dissolution of that in his own way.In an interview published in
September 2002 in the Italian weekly "Famiglia Cristiana," Alexy II
called the Holy See's move to transform apostolic administrations into
dioceses an "unpleasant decision" and "only one of the manifestations of
the vast expansionist strategy of the Church of Rome."
"The Catholics always note the presence in Russia of an enormous
quantity of 'non-believers' who are supposed to constitute a kind of
propitious terrain for missionary work, a mass of people that stands in
perennial expectation of Catholic 'workers,' sowers and harvesters. It
is an unacceptable idea for the Orthodox Church," the patriarch said.
Another thorn in the side of the Moscow patriarchate was the
developments in Ukraine, where the fall of the USSR permitted the
rebirth of the Greek-Catholic Church.
What made the Orthodox world
especially furious was the plan to elevate the Ukrainian Greek Catholic
Church to the status of a patriarchate.
On Nov. 1, 2003, Ecumenical
Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I finally sent a letter directly
to John Paul II to express his strong disagreement and irritation.
Changing tides
A first positive change occurred with the election of Benedict XVI to
the Throne of Peter, under whose leadership there has been no more talk
of a new patriarchate.
In an interview published at the end of April
2008 in the daily Russian newspaper "Kommersant," Alexy II praised the
new German Pontiff for his "powerful intellect."
"The whole Christian world," he said, "including the Orthodox world,
respects him. Without a doubt there are theological differences. But in
what regards the view of modern society, of secularization and moral
relativism, of the dangerous erosion of Christian doctrine and on many
contemporary problems our perspectives are very close."
After the death of Alexy II in December 2008, the election of the
metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, Cyril, as patriarch of Moscow,
was a second turn.
As the chairman of the Moscow patriarchate's foreign
relations department, Cyril already had met Benedict XVI in the Vatican
on three occasions.
The last time was that same December during the
patronal feast of the Russian Orthodox parish of St. Catherine of
Alexandria in Rome.
Interviewed by L'Osservatore Romano after that meeting, Cyril
described as "very positive" the state of relations between the
patriarchate of Moscow and the Catholic Church.
"There were so many
important topics on our agenda," he said. "I am thinking of the
promotion of fundamental values for the life of the person, which today
concerns the whole of humanity and not just Russia."
"We need one another," he continued. "We must not forget that Jesus
Christ called for the unity of his disciples. We are one family. In
fact, we share the same values."
Allies
These are very significant words. Just as the Kremlin recognizes in
the Orthodox Church a partner to re-launch post-Soviet Russia, faced
with phenomena such as a fall in the birth rate and the scourge of
alcoholism, this statement illustrates how in turn the patriarchate sees
the Catholic Church as an ally in the battle against the crisis of
values.
Cyril confirmed a great harmony with Benedict XVI in the report he
presented Feb. 2, 2010, to his bishops on the occasion of the first
anniversary of his enthronement.
In regard to the various questions that
are at the heart of Catholics and Orthodox, "Benedict took positions
very close to those of the Orthodox," said Cyril.
"And this is
demonstrated in his addresses, in his messages as well as in the
opinions of other representatives of the Roman Catholic Church with whom
we have contacts" (L'Osservatore Romano, Feb. 4, 2010).
Hence, the times seem more than ever ripe for a meeting between
Benedict XVI and Cyril I.
But this does not mean it will happen soon.
"Perhaps in two years time," one Russia-Vatican scholar, Robert
Moynihan, told ZENIT a few days ago.
"But there are many forces opposed
to this developing alliance, so there are likely to be many potholes and
obstacles on the road toward truly effective and culture-changing
Russian-Vatican collaboration."
We'll let you know
The first to temper the enthusiasm was the present number two of the
foreign relations department of the Moscow Patriarchate, Archpriest
Nikolay Balashov.
Speaking with the Interfax agency the day of
Medvedev's Vatican visit, Balashov said that a Patriarch-Pope meeting
will happen when "the time comes" and that such an event should not be
linked to the president's stop in Rome.
"The Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church maintain a
regime of constant communication and consultations at various levels,"
the priest stated.
"And when, in the view of both parties, the time
comes for the meeting between the leaders of two Churches, we will
notify the international community."