By Sergey Bychkov

On the eve of his recent visit to Russia, Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew effectively stated its purpose and scope: "... our visit will be a sign of brotherly love and solidarity and a means of further strengthening the unity of the Orthodox Church. One of our proposals as Ecumenical Patriarch, which was adopted unanimously by those patriarchs and primates present, for the renewal of the 1993 agreement is inter-Orthodox consultation in order to resolve the pressing issue of the Orthodox Diaspora." The Patriarch knowingly mentioned the Agreement of 1993, which was concluded the same year he visited Russia for the first time. That first visit could not be called a success, because the political situation in the country was messy. The second time he visited Russia, in December 2008, it was for the funeral of Patriarch Alexy II. Things were less pressing this time and his visit lasted 10 full days!

The relationship between the two churches in the past 20 years cannot be called even neighborly. It is worth remembering the suspension of communication in the mid 90's because of the recognition by Constantinople of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church. Moreover, disputes about the primacy of Constantinople in the Orthodox world, the pastoral nourishment of the Russian Diaspora by the Ecumenical Patriarchate and, finally, the question of the de jure recognition of the Ukrainian autocephaly, made the situation precarious. The Ukrainian Question became more complicated since the de facto independence of the Ukrainian Church afforded on June 10, 1990, when Patriarch Alexy II issued the corresponding Tomos. But he did not act with Fanar’s consent. At the same time, Patriarch Bartholomew is well aware that as soon as the split in Ukraine will be overcome, the question of her autocephaly will immediately be faced by both Constantinople and Moscow.

Patriarch Bartholomew intends to hold a Pan-Orthodox Council in the near future. He expects the church to develop a mechanism of "autocephaly on merit" and his Patriarchate to play a considerable role in the process. So far, the situation with the Orthodox Church of America (OCA), to which Moscow had granted autocephaly back in 1971, hasn’t been dealt with. OCA is still not recognized by any other Orthodox Church. Only the Ecumenical Patriarch can issue the corresponding Tomos, granting autocephaly, with prior consent of all the local churches. Regarding Diaspora, Patriarch Bartholomew said: "... the administrative divisions that characterized the status of the so-called Orthodox Diaspora, is often determined by nationalist interests. The fact is that all Orthodox Churches must put first the need for unity, not their national identities.”

Were these pressing issues brought up during the recent visit of Patriarch Bartholomew to Moscow? The answer is no. There was an effort to amaze the Ecumenical Patriarch with large numbers of parishioners expecting him wherever he went, with the wealth of Churches and the splendor of worship. But Patriarch Bartholomew is an experienced politician and even a personal meeting with the President of Russia, as well as an abundance of black caviar, could hardly impress, forget about, confuse him. However, it was of paramount importance that for the first time the Ecumenical Patriarch could comfortably visit Russia, go to shrines and pray together with Russian Christians. For sure, this spiritual experience and prayers will help him to continue guiding the Church ship as carefully and wisely as he has done so far.

Dr. Sergey Bychkov, a journalist, is a historian of the Russian Orthodox Church and author of numerous books on the subject.