By Thanos Thanopoulos
Patriarch Ioannis of Antioch arrived in Moscow in order to participate in the 10th anniversary of the enthronement of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus’.
At the meeting between the two Primates that was held yesterday, Tuesday January 29, Patriarch Ioannis appealed to the Orthodox Churches to openly express their position on the Ukrainian schism.
Also, the Patriarch of Antioch referred to the recent decision of the Holy Synod, in which all of its Members referred to the need to maintain unity.
“We keep on asking the Ecumenical Patriarch and the other Primates to resolve controversial issues, including the issue with the Orthodox Church of Russia, through dialogue and negotiation,” the Patriarch of Antioch said.
Patriarch Ioannis also took a stand against the unilateral approach to resolving controversial issues in the Orthodox world, while stressing that the principle of unanimity remains one of the cornerstones.
“We consider that the need for recourse to the principle of unanimity, the cornerstone for solving controversial issues, is a guarantee for the unity of the Orthodox Church,” Patriarch Ioannis stressed.
Finally, the Primate of the Church of Antioch thanked the Patriarch of Moscow for providing humanitarian aid in Syria.
