31 Jan 2019 13:30

Point of no return in conflict with Constantinople hasn't been passed - Patriarch Kirill

MOSCOW. Jan 31 (Interfax) - Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill says he remains optimistic about the crisis in global Orthodoxy in connection with Constantinople's actions in Ukraine.

"The point of no return is nonbeing. Each of us will have such a point of no return when our physical life ends. But for as long as we live, for as long as the church lives, there should be no point of no return, and I am certain there will not be any," the patriarch told reporters before the 10th anniversary of his enthronement.

One of the Russian translations of the word "crisis" is "judgment," he said.

"In this sense, God judges us all, and primarily those who initiate such crises," Patriarch Kirill said. "One cannot joke with all these life circumstances, one should not cause division, one should not go against God's will, one should not preach one thing while de facto doing exactly the opposite," he said.

"By their fruits ye shall know them," he said. "Division causes malice. We can see it: takeovers of churches, beating up priests. Can God's word and God's truth be spread by violence, deceit, using political forces? Can God's will be spread using a specific political party? Never!" the patriarch said.

Therefore, "one should not be a prophet, one should just look closer at what is happening to us and it will immediately become clear who is right and where the Lord is," he said.

In closing, Patriarch Kirill expressed hope that the church will "leave the path that the Lord has shown so that no temptations lead us to make mistakes that could negatively impact human salvation."