by Thanos Thanopoulos
Patriarch Ioannis of Antioch and All East expressed his opinion that politicians are behind the “schismatic” church in Ukraine.
Patriarch Ioannis, who at the moment is in Russia, spoke at RT TV station, underlining that “Orthodox unity is a red line.”
Regarding the state of the orthodox church in Ukraine, the Patriarch of Antioch stressed that he wanted to express his “regret because these actions have harmed the Orthodox Church.”
Moreover, Patriarch Ioannis said: “We hoped that the procedure would not be so fast in order to take into consideration the opinions of other churches, and a broad agreement could be reached.”
“We do not say that this schism is only a political issue, but it seems that there are various political factors and other invisible ones involved,” added Patriarch Ioannis.
Patriarch Irinej of Serbia said that the Church of Serbia will not recognize the new ecclesiastical polity of Ukraine.
