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Article: Orthodox church denounces creation of dioceses in Russia
- Article from:
- The Pantagraph Bloomington, IL
- Article date:
- February 12, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2002 The Pantagraph Bloomington, IL. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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VATICAN CITY - The Vatican announced the formation Monday of
dioceses in Russia, raising the profile of the Roman Catholic Church
there and drawing a swift rebuke from the Russian Orthodox Church,
which threatened to sever all contacts.
Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls described the creation of
the four dioceses as normal administration prompted by "the need to
improve the pastoral assistance to the Catholics present in that vast
region, as they have insistently requested."
"With today's decision the Holy See has done nothing but equate
the organization of the Catholic community in Russia with that
present in other parts of the world, as foreseen by church law,"
Navarro-Valls said.
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