Abp Elpidophoros: Ukraine will shape the future of inter-Orthodox relations

Archbishop Elpidophoros at the Leadership 100 conference. Photo: Orthodox Observer

Archbishop Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis), head of the Archdiocese of America of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, said that the future fate of inter-Orthodox relations depends to a significant extent on how events in Ukraine unfold. Orthodox Observer reported this.

Speaking at the annual Leadership 100 conference in Phoenix, Arizona, he answered a question about the strained relationship with the Russian Orthodox Church. Archbishop Elpidophoros emphasized that tensions between the Churches affect Orthodox unity, including in the United States.

According to him, the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States continues working to preserve ecclesial unity within the country. The archbishop expressed hope that a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Ukraine would open a path to reconciliation between the Russian and Constantinopolitan Churches.

Elpidophoros referred to a principle articulated by Patriarch Photios the Great to the effect that ecclesiastical matters tend to follow political developments. He noted that the terms of any peace agreement in Ukraine would shape the ecclesiastical map of World Orthodoxy.

As the UOJ reported, a prayer service was held in a church of the Phanar’s Archdiocese in the U.S. together with an LGBT “bishopess.”

Read also