Reps of Russian Orthodox Church and Chief Rabbinate of Israel Comment on Pope's Decision to Resign

Representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and Jews hope that the relations of their parishioners with the Catholic Church will not deteriorate in connection with the decision of Pope Benedict XVI to resign. “During his term of office, the Catholic Church and the Chief Rabbinate established the best relations ever, and we hope that this tendency will continue” stated Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of Israel Yona Yehiel Metzger today.

A spokesman of the Russian Orthodox Church stated that they do not expect radical changes in the relations between the Vatican and Moscow Patriarchate after the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.

According to the Secretary of the Synodal Department for External Church Relations on inter-Christian relations, Protopriest Dymytrii Syzonenko, in view of the current positive dynamic in the Orthodox-Catholic relations, “it will simply develop under its own inertia,” Korrespondent reported.