After the encroachment on the territory of the Patriarchate of Alexandria, the Russian Orthodox Church has promised to “continue to protect Orthodox Christians who refuse to associate themselves with schism.”
This was stated by Metropolitan Leonid Gorbachev, the Exarch of the Russian Orthodox Church in Africa, in an interview with Interfax, Religiyna Pravda reports.
When asked if he believes that “the annexation of African parishes will open up a movement of joining the Russian Church in other churches that have recognized the OCU, in particular in Cyprus and Greece,” the Exarch replied that the Russian Orthodox Church “will continue to protect the Orthodox.”
“We have stated and we reiterate: the Russian Orthodox Church is not carrying out any sort of expansion. The Patriarch of Constantinople committed a canonical crime by entering into ecclesiastical communion with schismatics. A number of Orthodox Churches supported this illegal decision and concelebrated with people who do not have canonical, that is, legal, ordination, and are not clergymen.
We know that according to the Church's teaching, “one who is united with schismatics becomes a schismatic himself.” We have defended and continue to defend Orthodox Christians who refuse to associate themselves with schism,” Gorbachev said.