Archbishop George of Cyprus Supported Dialogue with the Russian Orthodox Church

Archbishop George, Primate of the Orthodox Church of Cyprus, expressed his support for Metropolitan Nektarios of Kerkyra’s visit to Russia, emphasizing the need to maintain contact in order to overcome the current crisis in global Orthodoxy. The Primate viewed the transfer of the relics of St. Spyridon to Moscow as an important step toward rapprochement.

In his interview, Archbishop George noted that the Church of Cyprus strives to maintain fraternal relations with the Moscow Patriarchate, despite the existing difficulties. “Perhaps someday this will break the ice,” — the head of the Church expressed his hope, adding that the Cypriot side sends letters of condolence to the Patriarchate during times of shared trials.

Speaking about the current state of affairs, the archbishop emphasized that the Orthodox world must overcome schisms and divisions. According to him, Christians must focus on what unites them in order to effectively confront modern challenges, such as indifference and threats from other religious movements. It is worth noting that Metropolitan Nektarios’s visit had previously drawn criticism from representatives of the OCU, who called on their pilgrims to condemn the Greek hierarch’s actions.

As a reminder, the OCU had previously called on its supporters to publicly criticize Metropolitan Nektarios of Corfu because of his recent visit to Russia.