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Article: Split widens between Orthodox, WCC. (Russian Orthodox Church; World Council of Churches)
- Article from:
- The Christian Century
- Article date:
- October 8, 1997
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 The Christian Century Foundation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Russian Orthodox Church leaders revealed September 16 that Patriarch Alexsy, angered about the direction of the World Council of Churches, is likely to sever ties with the WCC before its eighth general assembly in Zimbabwe next year. The withdrawal would represent a severe blow to the ecumenical organization that for 50 years has prided itself on being an honest broker among some 330 Christian churches.
"I see no reason why we would continue," commented Viktor Petliuchenko, a Russian Orthodox priest and a member of the WCC Central Committee, which met in Geneva recently to draft an organizational blueprint that will be the subject of next year's conference. "We ...