In his nearly two decades at the head of the world’s largest Orthodox Church, Patriarch Alexy II oversaw a religious revival in Russia and healed a major church rift, but his death leaves a long-running dispute with the Vatican unresolved.
Alexy’s death on Friday at age 79 deprives the Russian Orthodox Church of its dominant figure, whose stern, bearded mien gave him an almost medieval aura of inflexible righteousness. He often complained that Roman Catholics were poaching adherents among a people who traditionally would have been Orthodox if atheistic Soviet rule had not impeded them.
Yet he and the church held many discussions with the Vatican, aiming to reach an agreement that would allow the church to accept a papal visit to Russia.
PHOTO: AP
Without Alexy at the helm, the church’s initiatives on that question may go dormant for several months. The Church’s Holy Synod is to choose a placeholder leader yesterday, but election of a new patriarch is likely to take six months. Metropolitan Kirill, the church’s foreign relations chief who has had extensive contact with the Vatican, appears to be one of the top candidates.
The Moscow Patriarchate said Alexy died at his residence outside Moscow, but did not give a cause of death. Alexy had long suffered from a heart ailment, although on Thursday he had appeared comparatively well while conducting services.
His funeral was tentatively set for Tuesday, said Russian news agency Interfax, which cited his spokesman Vladimir Vigilyansky.
Alexy became leader of the church in 1990, as the officially atheist Soviet Union was loosening its restrictions on religion.
After the Soviet Union collapsed the following year, the church’s popularity surged. Church domes that had been stripped of their gold under the Soviets were regilded, churches that had been converted into warehouses or left to rot in neglect were painstakingly restored, and hours-long services on major religious holidays were broadcast live on national TV.
By the time of Alexy’s death, the church’s flock was estimated to include about two-thirds of Russia’s 142 million people, making it the world’s largest Orthodox church.
ON THE MOVE: Trump unexpectedly cut short a trip to return to the White House, while the State Department warned Americans to avoid travel to the Middle East The US on Saturday warned that hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Iran-backed Houthis could “escalate rapidly” after a missile attack targeted Riyadh for the first time since the Yemen conflict resumed. US President Donald Trump on Saturday cut short a weekend at Camp David, a secluded presidential complex in rural Maryland, to return unexpectedly to the White House. The White House gave no explanation for the early return, which comes as a new threshold was crossed in the conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, who control a large part of Yemen and are fighting government forces backed by a coalition led
World leaders gather in New York this week for the UN General Assembly, bracing for US President Donald Trump’s return to the rostrum for a second year running, with talks centering on the widening conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine and the risks of artificial intelligence (AI). Nearly 130 heads of state meet with the post-World War II order under strain and with the UN itself struggling to remain relevant and weathering attacks from Trump, who has slashed the US’ contributions and withdrawn from dozens of UN bodies. Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), who last addressed the diplomatic jamboree via video
Typhoon Dujuan forced the cancellation of at least 275 flights in Japan today and prompted warnings of potentially record-breaking rainfall as the storm nears Tokyo. The typhoon, which is accompanied by high winds, has also led to the early closure in Tokyo of one the world’s biggest video game trade fairs and knocked out power for thousands. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) warned yesterday that rain and winds were expected to intensify even before the typhoon’s arrival. “The total rainfall through Tuesday could exceed the average monthly rainfall for September, resulting in record-breaking heavy rain,” the agency said. The typhoon’s wind speeds were at
BAD TIMING: The disclosure of the incident, which is under investigation by at least two congressional committees, comes as Xi was to meet with Trump The Pentagon is investigating how parts of the US’ most advanced fighter jet ended up in Hong Kong, with a news outlet on Wednesday reporting that China has obtained the F-35 equipment. The F-35 Joint Program Office said in a statement that it and the US Department of Defense are aware of “a shipment issue” with F-35 components. “We are actively working with US authorities and industry partners to retrieve these components, investigate the incident and place safeguards to avoid a future occurrence,” the office said. UPS was shipping a cockpit canopy and weapons-bay door from an Australian military F-35 that was being
RSS