This week, both Russian and Italian media reported that Pope Leo XIV is set to meet Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk. Russian Orthodox Church on Saturday, July 26th.
The Metropolitan is a prominent bishop within the Russian Orthodox Church. Metropolitan Anthony, Anton Yurievich Sebruk has been leading the Russian Orthodox Bureau of External Church Relations since 2022.
He previously met with Pope Leo’s predecessor, the late Pope Francis, during a meeting in the Vatican in July 2024. This happened not long after the Pope expressed deep sorrow regarding the Russian attacks on a children’s hospital in Kiev.
Pope Francis has long desired to engage with Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. This meeting is an effort to follow up on a historic gathering in Cuba back in 2016, although another meeting was hampered by the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The initial announcement came from RIA, a Russian state news agency. They reported that the meeting between Pope Leo and Metropolitan Anthony is scheduled to occur at the Vatican on Saturday. The Italian news agency ANSA confirmed this on Tuesday.
Reportedly, Pope Leo mentioned, “I would like to restart the dialogue with Moscow’s patriarchy following the tensions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
According to reports from Kyiv Independent, it seems he wasn’t particularly optimistic about the prospects. On Tuesday, the Pope found himself caught in a Russian narrative, expressing concerns that Ukrainians might accuse him of religious intolerance.
In a phone call on June 4 with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin encouraged the Vatican to “take a more proactive stance” regarding what it called Ukrainian religious freedom, especially for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
Russia has consistently claimed that Ukraine is suppressing religious freedom due to the ban on activities linked to the Moscow church. It’s important to differentiate this from the self-governing (autonomous) Orthodox Church in Ukraine.
“The Orthodox Church in Russia is seen as closely aligned with the Russian government, and Patriarch Kirill has publicly supported Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine,” noted Kyiv Independent, which is stirring interest.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Pope Leo met with Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky to discuss the war. The Vatican stated that the Pope “expressed sorrow for the war’s victims” and “encouraged efforts aimed at freeing prisoners and reuniting families.”
Pope Leo has reiterated his invitation to facilitate discussions between representatives from Ukraine and Russia at the Vatican, although Moscow has dismissed the Vatican’s role, citing its NATO membership and Italy’s stance against the invasion.
“From Russia’s perspective, the Vatican is not viewed as a serious player capable of resolving these complex issues,” a senior Russian official commented back in May.
