Вестник Екатеринбургской духовной семинарии (Jul 2024)
RUSSIAN AND ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX CHURCHES: RELATIONS IN THE 1980s
Abstract
The article examines the relationships between the two local Orthodox Churches — Russian and Antiochian — in the last quarter of the 20th century, on the basis of the documents from the State Archive of the Russian Federation introduced in the academic circulation for the first time. For decades, since the visit of Patriarch Alexy of Moscow and All Russia to the Antiochian Patriarchate in 1945, friendly and fraternal relations have been maintained and developed between the Churches. In the 1980s they have also been developing in a spirit of friendship and mutual understanding at the level of heads of the Churches, in the process of joint work of representatives of the Patriarchates in various international Christian organizations, theological and peacemaking conferences, as well as at the level of the activities of the representative offices of both Churches. Personal relations were formed between Patriarch Pimen of Moscow and Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch and All the East elected in 1979. The Antioch Patriarch visited the Russian Orthodox Church on official visits and personally participated in the celebrations in Moscow dedicated to the millennium of the Christianization of Rus’. Patriarch Ignatius’ support of the Moscow Patriarchate’s efforts to resolve the situation in Ukraine in the late 1980s was of great importance for inter-church relations. In the 1980s, the external church activity of the Russian Orthodox Church was headed by Metropolitan Filaret of Minsk and Belorussia who became Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate in 1981. Under him, attention to the problem of personnel for the external work of the Moscow Patriarchate intensified. The Moscow Theological Academy suggested postgraduate training for church diplomats and clerics, who after their studies were sent to serve abroad. The Metropolitan paid great attention to relations with the Antiochian Church, making numerous visits to Syria and Lebanon during this decade. The article emphasizes that the preservation of friendly relations between the Churches was facilitated by interstate relations. The Syrian government, officially positioning its political path as a path of socialist orientation, needed help of the USSR. Confronting the Western powers in the Middle East, the Soviet Union, for its part, regarded Syria led by President Hafez al-Assad as an ally. The main task of developing bilateral relations fell to the representation of the Moscow Patriarchate in Damascus, the Beirut metochion and the representation of the Antioch Church in Moscow, whose rector for many years was Archimandrite (and since 1988 Bishop) Nifon (Saikali), a friend of Russia and the Russian Church. The representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate in the Antioch Church had to carry out their mission in a difficult political situation, especially in the territory of Lebanon, where the Beirut metochion was repeatedly subjected to shelling and armed attacks during these years. On the basis of such unique sources as reports of representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, the article analyzes the eventful representative and pastoral activities of the Russian Orthodox Church in Syria and Lebanon, and also examines the forms of interaction and mutual assistance between representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church, clergy of the Antiochian Church, employees of the Soviet Embassy, and members of the Russian community. The celebration of the millennium of Christening of Rus’ in the Antioch Church was the decade’s final event. Despite the ongoing hostilities, it was held in Damascus and Beirut with the participation of Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch and the clergy of the Antioch Church, Metropolitan Filaret, the Head of the Department for External Church Relations, as well as clergy of various Christian communities, Soviet diplomats, and representatives of the Syrian and Lebanese authorities.
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