Topic: Church and state equal partners 'for the first time in history' - Russian Patriarch Kirill

[YoNews]

Church and state equal partners 'for the first time in history' - Russian Patriarch Kirill

On February 1, 2009, Patriarch Kirill officially became Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus and Primate of the Orthodox Church. The Russian Orthodox Church builds equal dialogue and shares common goals with the Russian state, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia stated on Thursday during a ceremony held at the State Kremlin Palace and timed to the tenth anniversary of his enthronement. "We are offered the opportunity to discuss various issues that concern our people, our society, and, of course, our Church," the patriarch said. "And I would even dare say that for the first time in Russia's history, such a relationship has established itself between the Church and the state. Because even in the times of the Russian Empire, the church did not have an equal partner in the face of the government. It had always been subordinate to certain government institutes," he added.
Source: Church and state equal partners 'for the first time in history' - Russian Patriarch Kirill