Metropolitan Hilarion, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, stated that His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, will take part in the Pan-Orthodox Council in Jordan, reports RIA news agency.
“I think that the Russian Orthodox Church will be represented on behalf of the Primate of the Church,” said Metropolitan Hilarion.
He specified that the Russian Church is going to participate in the event initiated by Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem even if Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople also chooses to take part in it.
“So far, the Patriarch of Constantinople shows no desire to solve the problem he has created. He’s just trying to persuade everyone to recognize his lawless decision,” noted Metropolitan Hilarion.
According to the metropolitan, the meeting will be held in Amman around February 20.
The head of Phanar opted out of participating in this event and stated that only he had the right to convene such a synaxis of Primates, Metropolitan Hilarion said.
“But the fact is that the Patriarch of Jerusalem did not convene any official meeting. As he himself wrote in his letter, it will be a fraternal meeting to discuss the current problems,” the metropolitan emphasized.
Earlier it became known that the Primate of the Albanian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Anastasios (Yannulatos) had refused to come to the Pan-Orthodox Council. In his opinion, this event may “aggravate the situation.”
