The Pope received an envoy from the Orthodox Church who supports Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine

Pope Francis received Antonio de Volokolamsk, head of international relations of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, at the Vatican this Friday. It is in fact the “chancellor” of the Church close to President Vladimir Putin commanded by Patriarch Kiril (or Cyril), with whom the pontiff could meet next month.

Kiril fervently defended the Russian war and massacre fell in Ukraine. In turn, Francisco was questioned for avoiding naming the Kremlin leader in connection with that conflict.

The pontiff and the metropolitan met for just over a month of the trip that Jorge Bergoglio plans to make in Kazakhstan from 13 to 15 September to participate in an interreligious meeting where he could meet Kiril.

However, a bilateral agreement between the highest Catholic official and the highest Orthodox leader has not yet been confirmed by the Vatican.

“I hope to be able to greet him and talk a little with him as a pastor,” the Pope said in a speech to the Jesuits in June.

Traveling to Ukraine?

While the Vatican is working on a possible flash trip for the Pope to Kiev, perhaps as early as this August, the possible meeting with Kiril on September 14 in Nur-Sultan is seen as a way to facilitate or pave the way for the other great mission that Francis has in mind: the meeting with Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

For the pro-war positions professed by Kiril, at the head of a Church with 200 million faithful, the Pope even asked him not to become a “Putin altar boy” during a videoconference held in March, like the pontiff later. he has declared.

In February 2016, the Pope and Kiril met in Havana in what was the first rapprochement in nearly 1,000 years between the highest Christian and Catholic authorities since the schism of 1054.

A second meeting was scheduled for June in Jerusalem, but in the end they decided to suspend it by mutual agreement due to the war, the Pope said.

In Kazakhstan

Francis will travel to Kazakhstan next month to participate in the seventh edition of a meeting of religious leaders organized by the Nur-Sultan government.

Pending confirmation of a meeting with Kiril, for now on the pope’s provisional agenda to which Télam has agreed, a “private meeting with some religious leaders” appears on Wednesday 14.

Regarding the meeting this Friday in the Vatican, the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Patriarchate of Moscow published a statement indicating that the meeting took place “at the invitation of Pope Francis”, adding that after the “long conversation” gifts are exchanged.

Anthony of Volokolamsk, 37, former personal secretary of Kiril, replaced Metropolitan Hilarion, hitherto head of foreign affairs of the Patriarchate, in June.

This cleric, who since the beginning of the conflict has kept a slight distance from the radicalized pro-conflict positions shown by Kiril, continued to serve as administrator of the Hungarian Orthodox Diocese of Budapest, amid the approach of the Prime Minister of that country, Viktor Orban, to the Russian positions.

Anthony of Volokolamsk, meanwhile, is a cleric of utmost confidence of Kiril, to the point that at the age of 24 he was appointed his private secretary, Vatican sources recall.

A few hours before his meeting with the Pope, the Orthodox leader met his Vatican counterpart, Paul Richard Gallagher.

CB