On Wednesday, Pope Francis appeared to implicitly criticise the Russian invasion of Ukraine while addressing the Russian Orthodox hierarchy and other faith leaders at an interfaith conference in former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan. This was also seen as a jibe against Patriarch Kirill, bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, who was scheduled to attend the conference, but has since boycotted the event.

The Seventh&nbsp;Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions is a meeting that brings together Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and other faiths. This year, it was attended by 80 imams, patriarchs, rabbis and muftis, among which was Metropolitan Anthony, in charge of foreign relations for the Russian Orthodox Church.

Anthony in line with the head of the church has repeatedly backed the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Speaking at the round table at Independence Palace, the Pope said, “God is peace. He guides us always in the way of peace, never that of war.” This was the pope’s second day in Kazakhstan, amid his official three-day state visit, to the Kazakh capital of Nur-Sultan to meet with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.&nbsp;

The remarks made on Wednesday were in line with Francis’s plea made a day prior asking the delegates present from various countries to put an end to Russia’s “senseless and tragic war” in Ukraine. On September 13, Francis spoke upon his arrival to the government officials, and diplomats with nearly 100 delegations of Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Shinto and other faith groups from 50 countries. He also went on to praise Kazakhstan’s commitment to diversity and dialogue and its progress from decades of Stalinist repression.

“I have come to echo the plea of all those who cry out for peace, which is the essential path to development for our globalised world,” said the Pope on Tuesday. On the other hand, Russian Patriarch Kirill called the invasion a “metaphysical” war with the West and blessed soldiers from Moscow for going into war. He has also asserted that Russians and Ukrainians are one people. While the pope did not mention Moscow or Kyiv while speaking, on September 14, he called upon the faith leaders to promote a culture of peace.&nbsp; 
 
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“If the creator, to whom we have devoted our lives, is the author of human life, how can we who call ourselves believers consent to the destruction of that life?” the Pope questioned. He added, that while being mindful of the errors of the past, they should move forward to ensure the “Almighty will never again be held hostage to the human thirst for power.”&nbsp; 
 
“May we never justify violence. May we never allow the sacred to be exploited by the profane. The sacred must never be a prop for power, nor power a prop for the sacred!” said the Pope during the meeting.&nbsp;

Earlier this year, the Pope also publicly criticised Kirill asking him not to be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “altar boy”, as he enthusiastically backed the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Patriarch’s stance has also reportedly not only caused a rift with the Vatican but some other local Orthodox Churches have since cut ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. 
&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

On Wednesday, Pope Francis appeared to implicitly criticise the Russian invasion of Ukraine while addressing the Russian Orthodox hierarchy and other faith leaders at an interfaith conference in former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan.

On Wednesday, Pope Francis appeared to implicitly criticise the Russian invasion of Ukraine while addressing the Russian Orthodox hierarchy and other faith leaders at an interfaith conference in former Soviet republic of Kazakhstan. This was also seen as a jibe against Patriarch Kirill, bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, who was scheduled to attend the conference, but has since boycotted the event. The Seventh Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions is a meeting that brings together Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and other faiths. This year, it was attended by 80 imams, patriarchs, rabbis and muftis, among which was Metropolitan Anthony, in charge of foreign relations for the Russian Orthodox Church. Anthony in line with the head of the church has repeatedly backed the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Speaking at the round table at Independence Palace, the Pope said, “God is peace. He guides us always in the way of peace, never that of war.” This was the pope’s second day in Kazakhstan, amid his official three-day state visit, to the Kazakh capital of Nur-Sultan to meet with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The remarks made on Wednesday were in line with Francis’s plea made a day prior asking the delegates present from various countries to put an end to Russia’s “senseless and tragic war” in Ukraine. On September 13, Francis spoke upon his arrival to the government officials, and diplomats with nearly 100 delegations of Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Shinto and other faith groups from 50 countries. He also went on to praise Kazakhstan’s commitment to diversity and dialogue and its progress from decades of Stalinist repression. “I have come to echo the plea of all those who cry out for peace, which is the essential path to development for our globalised world,” said the Pope on Tuesday. On the other hand, Russian Patriarch Kirill called the invasion a “metaphysical” war with the West and blessed soldiers from Moscow for going into war. He has also asserted that Russians and Ukrainians are one people. While the pope did not mention Moscow or Kyiv while speaking, on September 14, he called upon the faith leaders to promote a culture of peace. ALSO READ | Pope Francis says he wants to go to Moscow to meet Vladimir Putin over Ukraine crisis - Report “If the creator, to whom we have devoted our lives, is the author of human life, how can we who call ourselves believers consent to the destruction of that life?” the Pope questioned. He added, that while being mindful of the errors of the past, they should move forward to ensure the “Almighty will never again be held hostage to the human thirst for power.” “May we never justify violence. May we never allow the sacred to be exploited by the profane. The sacred must never be a prop for power, nor power a prop for the sacred!” said the Pope during the meeting. Earlier this year, the Pope also publicly criticised Kirill asking him not to be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “altar boy”, as he enthusiastically backed the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Patriarch’s stance has also reportedly not only caused a rift with the Vatican but some other local Orthodox Churches have since cut ties with the Russian Orthodox Church. (With inputs from agencies)

God does not support war, says Pope in an apparent criticism of Russian patriarch

The Russian Orthodox Church on Thursday dismissed sanctions against its leader, Patriarch&nbsp;Kirill, imposed by Britain for his support of Moscow's military intervention in Ukraine.&nbsp;

"Attempts to intimidate the primate of the Russian Church with something or to force him to renounce his views are senseless, absurd and unpromising," church spokesman Vladimir Legoyda said on Telegram.&nbsp;

"The church -- now especially -- is the last bridge, a means of communication, which they are trying to destroy for some reason," Legoyda said.

"This may be necessary only for those political forces that have the escalation of conflict and the alienation of peace as their important goal," he added.

"There is no other way I can explain such absurd and counterproductive measures, which contribute to only one thing -- breaking the already severely damaged communication between the European community and Russia," he said.&nbsp;

Britain on Thursday sanctioned the 75-year-old cleric and ally of President Vladimir Putin two weeks after the EU dropped him from their own sanctions list after opposition from Hungary.

The new UK list also includes Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian children's rights commissioner, for allegedly overseeing the forced adoption in Russia of some 2,000 Ukrainian children.

The Russian Orthodox Church on Thursday dismissed sanctions against its leader, Patriarch Kirill, imposed by Britain for his support of Moscow's military intervention in Ukraine.

The Russian Orthodox Church on Thursday dismissed sanctions against its leader, Patriarch Kirill, imposed by Britain for his support of Moscow's military intervention in Ukraine. "Attempts to intimidate the primate of the Russian Church with something or to force him to renounce his views are senseless, absurd and unpromising," church spokesman Vladimir Legoyda said on Telegram. "The church -- now especially -- is the last bridge, a means of communication, which they are trying to destroy for some reason," Legoyda said. "This may be necessary only for those political forces that have the escalation of conflict and the alienation of peace as their important goal," he added. "There is no other way I can explain such absurd and counterproductive measures, which contribute to only one thing -- breaking the already severely damaged communication between the European community and Russia," he said. Britain on Thursday sanctioned the 75-year-old cleric and ally of President Vladimir Putin two weeks after the EU dropped him from their own sanctions list after opposition from Hungary. The new UK list also includes Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian children's rights commissioner, for allegedly overseeing the forced adoption in Russia of some 2,000 Ukrainian children.

UK sanctions on Russia's Patriarch Kirill 'absurd': Church

Russian Orthodox church in Amsterdam has announced a split with Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.

“The clergy unanimously announced that it is no longer possible for them to function within the Moscow patriarchate and provide a spiritually safe environment for our faithful,” the clergy said in a statement.

“This decision is extremely painful and difficult for all concerned.”

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They had asked Archbishop Elisey, of the Russian Orthodox Church in The Hague, to grant them canonical dismissal and had applied to join the Constantinople Orthodox Church, the statement added.

Russian Patriarch Kirill's full-throated blessing for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine has splintered the worldwide Orthodox Church and unleashed an internal rebellion that experts say is unprecedented.

Kirill, 75, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, sees the war as a bulwark against a West he considers decadent, particularly over the acceptance of homosexuality.

He and Putin share a vision of the "Russkiy Mir", or "Russian World", linking spiritual unity and territorial expansion aimed at parts of the ex-Soviet Union.

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What Putin sees as a political restoration, Kirill sees as a crusade. But the patriarch has sparked a backlash at home as well as among Churches abroad linked to the Moscow Patriarchate.

The Amsterdam branch of the Russian Orthodox Church is not the only one to object to the position taken by the church's leader.

In Russia, nearly 300 Orthodox members of a group called Russian Priests for Peace signed a letter condemning the "murderous orders" carried out in Ukraine.

"The people of Ukraine should make their choice on their own, not at gunpoint, without pressure from the West or the East," it read, referring to millions in Ukraine now split between Moscow and Kyiv.

And the Paris-based Metropolitan Jean de Doubna, who heads up some sixty parishes following the Russian tradition across western Europe, expressed his support for Ukraine in an open letter published on Wednesday.

He also appealed to Patriarch Kirill to intervene to stop the "bloodbath".

Moscow says its action is a "special military operation" designed not to occupy territory but to demilitarise and "de-Nazify" its neighbour.

Of 260 million Orthodox Christians in the world, about 100 million are in Russia itself and some of those abroad are in unity with Moscow.

(With inputs from agencies)

Russian Orthodox church in Amsterdam has announced a split with Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. “The clergy unanimously announced that it is no longer possible for them to function within the Moscow patriarchate and provide a spiritually safe environment for our faithful,” the clergy said in a statement.

Russian Orthodox church in Amsterdam has announced a split with Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. “The clergy unanimously announced that it is no longer possible for them to function within the Moscow patriarchate and provide a spiritually safe environment for our faithful,” the clergy said in a statement. “This decision is extremely painful and difficult for all concerned.” They had asked Archbishop Elisey, of the Russian Orthodox Church in The Hague, to grant them canonical dismissal and had applied to join the Constantinople Orthodox Church, the statement added. Russian Patriarch Kirill's full-throated blessing for Moscow's invasion of Ukraine has splintered the worldwide Orthodox Church and unleashed an internal rebellion that experts say is unprecedented. Kirill, 75, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, sees the war as a bulwark against a West he considers decadent, particularly over the acceptance of homosexuality. He and Putin share a vision of the "Russkiy Mir", or "Russian World", linking spiritual unity and territorial expansion aimed at parts of the ex-Soviet Union. Also read | Russia asked China for weapons and aid, US officials claim What Putin sees as a political restoration, Kirill sees as a crusade. But the patriarch has sparked a backlash at home as well as among Churches abroad linked to the Moscow Patriarchate. The Amsterdam branch of the Russian Orthodox Church is not the only one to object to the position taken by the church's leader. In Russia, nearly 300 Orthodox members of a group called Russian Priests for Peace signed a letter condemning the "murderous orders" carried out in Ukraine. "The people of Ukraine should make their choice on their own, not at gunpoint, without pressure from the West or the East," it read, referring to millions in Ukraine now split between Moscow and Kyiv. And the Paris-based Metropolitan Jean de Doubna, who heads up some sixty parishes following the Russian tradition across western Europe, expressed his support for Ukraine in an open letter published on Wednesday. He also appealed to Patriarch Kirill to intervene to stop the "bloodbath". Moscow says its action is a "special military operation" designed not to occupy territory but to demilitarise and "de-Nazify" its neighbour. Of 260 million Orthodox Christians in the world, about 100 million are in Russia itself and some of those abroad are in unity with Moscow. (With inputs from agencies)

Ukraine invasion: Russian Orthodox church in Amsterdam announces split with Moscow