Primates of Russian and Serbian Orthodox Churches hold talks

On 15 November 2014, the Primates of the Russian and the Serbian Orthodox Churches held talks after celebrating the Litia at the Monastery of Racovica.

Addressing His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, His Holiness Patriarch Irinej emphasized the importance of such meetings. “I am glad that you are visiting holy places of our Church and that our people see you and receive your blessing. It strengthens our centuries-old ties even more,” the Primate of the Serbian Church said.

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church thanked His Holiness Patriarch Irinej for his warm brotherly words and said, in particular, “Bilateral talks are an essential element of irenical visits of the Primates of Churches, as participants in such meetings analyze together their bilateral relations, sum up what has been done and outline plans for the future. During such talks the attention is also paid to the pan-Orthodox agenda, because the Orthodox Churches, being autocephalous and independent, together constitute one body of the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Orthodox Church. Each Church might have her own understanding of certain issues, that is why it is essential for the Churches to find out each other’s views during the bilateral talks, bring those views closer together and thus make their contribution to the pan-Orthodox unity.”

The participants in the meeting discussed bilateral and pan-Orthodox cooperation, including the preparation for the Pan-Orthodox Council, and noted that the two fraternal Orthodox Churches had the same approach to the discussed issues.