wfn.org | Episcopalians: News Briefs

[dmack@episcopalchurch.org]

February 13, 2002

2002-041

Episcopalians: News Briefs

Russian Orthodox Church deplores Vatican decision to form 
dioceses

(ENS) An announcement by the Vatican on February 11 that it 
intended to form four dioceses in Russia has brought a strong 
reaction from the Russian Orthodox Church, further straining the 
relationship between the two churches. 

A statement by Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia said, 
"We see this step as unfriendly and undermining the prospects 
for better relations between the two churches." He said that the 
decision to establish a "church province" in Russia headed by a 
metropolitan "means in fact the establishment of a national 
Catholic Church in Russia having its center in Moscow and 
claiming the Russian people, who are the flock of the Russian 
Orthodox church culturally, spiritually and historically, as its 
flock." 

The patriarch added, "The formation of such a church in Russia 
means in fact a challenge to Orthodoxy which has been rooted in 
the country for centuries. Nothing of this sort has ever 
happened in the history of our country." He pointed out that "in 
taking care of its faithful in Catholic countries, the Russian 
Orthodox Church has never tried to establish church institutions 
parallel to Catholic ones" or to "carry out missionary work 
among the local population. If the Catholic Church worked in 
Russia with the same tact and good will as we do in Catholic 
countries, then no difficulties would arise in our relations." 
He dismissed the Vatican's argument that it was merely restoring 
Catholic structures that existed in Russia before the 1917 
Revolution. 

"Such actions of the Roman Catholic Church, not conditioned by 
any real pastoral needs, expose the missionary purposes of the 
changes made," Alexy charged. The Orthodox are very sensitive to 
what they perceive as attempts to proselytize, especially on 
their "home turf." He cited it as "one of the basic obstacles 
for improving relations." The frosty relationship has led Alexy 
to block Pope John Paul II's interest in visiting Russia, even 
after President Vladimir Putin issued an invitation. 

"The leadership of the Roman Catholic Church is now responsible 
before God and history for a sharp aggravation of our relations, 
for the frustration of the hope for their normalization that has 
just begun to shape," the patriarch concluded. "The Vatican's 
action has put in jeopardy the ability of the Catholic West and 
the Orthodox East to cooperate as two great civilizations for 
the benefit of Europe and the world." 

Peace and Justice networks meet together for overview of their 
ministries

(ENS) Representatives of the Episcopal Church's peace and 
justice networks met at a conference center near San Francisco 
in early January to present overviews of their ministries and 
forge new partnerships. The meeting was convened by the Rev. 
Carmen Guerrero, Jubilee officer for the Episcopal Church. 

"This gathering was in response to an Executive Council 
resolution that commended what used to be the Justice, Peace and 
Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Committee for its contributions," 
said Marge Christie of the Diocese of Newark. "The council 
recommended occasional gatherings so that it could keep track of 
the trends, initiatives and ministries in church and society 
that reflect the church's commitment to issues of peace and 
justice." The council sent a "listening team" to the meeting, 
also attending by staff members of the Church Center. 

Many participants urged better interaction among the peace and 
justice groups to increase the impact of the church's 
ministries. For example, they said, since the AIDS pandemic is 
escalating among ethnic minority youth and heterosexual women, 
the church's ministry with women and youth should be involved. 
While the church's resettlement of refugees is very successful, 
there was dismay over the inability to minister to asylum 
seekers being held in detention centers because there is neither 
funding nor a network to address the issue. "Participants also 
acknowledged the common thread of racism that runs through every 
justice," Christie added. 

Participants expressed their appreciation to representatives 
from Executive Council and the Church Center for their support 
and there was general agreement that more networks should be 
represented at the next consultation, with an emphasis on 
seeking youth involvement. 

Sudan's Supreme Court blocks execution of Christian woman

(ENS) Under intense pressure from the international community, 
Sudan's Supreme Court has overturned a sentence imposed under 
Islamic law on a Christian woman calling for her to be stoned to 
death for adultery. 

Non-governmental agencies, including Human Rights Watch, called 
on Sudan's president and members of the government to save the 
life of Abok Alfa Akok. She is a Christian who is a member of 
the Dinka tribe and was sentenced by a court under Shari'ah law 
imposed by Islamic authorities in Sudan's South Darfur province. 
The law is being applied to all residents in the northern 
states, regardless of their religion. A Nigerian woman is 
appealing a similar sentence imposed by Islamic authorities in 
northern Nigeria after an international outcry. 

Sudan has been enduring civil war between the northern Muslim 
government in Khartoum and rebels in the mainly Christian and 
animist south since independence in 1956. 

Christians in northern Nigeria face growing hostility

(ENS) Christians in northern Nigeria, which is overwhelmingly 
Muslim, are facing increased hostility, including the possible 
demolition of churches and the dissolution of non-Islamic 
courts, according to a release from the Barnabas Fund, a 
British-based organization that monitors persecution of 
Christians around the world. 

Local authorities in the state of Zamfara are reportedly 
threatening to demolish 14 churches to prevent the growth of 
Christianity and its governor has suggested that he might 
abolish magistrates courts, leaving on the Islamic courts to 
function. 

Zamfara was the first of a dozen Nigerian states to introduce 
full Islamic Shari'ah law in January 2000, but the move was 
intended to affect only Muslims. Christians fear that Muslims 
now intend the law to apply to everyone. 

Authorities in the states of Kano and Jigawa, also with Muslim 
majorities, deployed police and soldiers because of fear of 
reprisals against Christians in the wake of recent riots in 
Lagos in southern Nigeria. Revenge attacks are common against 
minority groups in the country. Christian Yorubas in Kano, for 
example, live in fear that last October's violence against them 
will be repeated. Over 200 were killed when Muslims demonstrated 
in support of Osama bin Laden, causing Yoruba Christians to flee 
for their lives. 

Ecumenical solidarity and action promised in Israeli-Palestinian 
conflict

(WCC) As violence between Palestinians and Israelis in the 
Middle East escalates, representatives of over 40 churches and 
church-related organizations met in Geneva February 1-2 to 
establish the scope and framework of an Ecumenical Accompaniment 
Program in the region. 

The World Council of Churches program may engage in a number of 
tasks, including human rights monitoring, advocacy, support for 
non-violent resistance by local Palestinian and Israeli peace 
groups by "accompanying" them in their efforts. 

Among the objectives for the program are exposing the violence 
of the Israeli occupation; ending brutality, humiliation and 
violence against civilians; building a stronger global advocacy 
network; attempting to influence public opinion on the 
international level and foreign policy in the Middle East to end 
the occupation and create a viable Palestinian state; and 
serving as active witnesses to the possibility of an 
alternative, non-violent struggle for peace and justice. 

The meeting also looked at coordination, training, recruitment 
criteria and communication for those who will be accompanying 
the peace activists. It was not possible, however, to solve the 
immediate problem of funding to implement the program. 

Chinese Christians play a role in the nation's social vision

(ENI) The "extraordinary expansion" of Christianity in China is 
not sufficiently appreciated in the West, according to Caroline 
Fielder, an Anglican who will serve as a specialist on the 
subject for churches that are members of Churches Together in 
Britain and Ireland. 

There now an estimated 17 million Protestants and about six 
million Catholics in China, according to some estimates, 
although statistics are complicated because the number of 
Christians who attend churches not registered with the 
government is unknown. According to some experts, counting those 
Christians could increase the total by 50 percent. 

Fielder, who speaks Mandarin Chinese and taught at a school in 
Jiangxi Province, said that she would visit the country at least 
twice a year because "it is changing incredibly fast" and she 
must keep current on church trends. "For the first time, the 
churches are being seen as part of the social vision for China," 
she said. 

Overseas churches currently support many social projects in 
areas such as health, teaching and rural development through the 
Nanjing-based Amity Foundation, founded by the Chinese with 
strong links to the China Christian Council, the official agency 
for the Protestant churches. 

Chinese authorities have launched occasional crackdowns on 
churches not willing to work with the government, according to 
observers. The situation has gotten worse since the 1980s when 
Christians played a role in the collapse of Communist regimes in 
eastern Europe, leading some Chinese authorities to speculate 
that Christians in China might present a similar challenge. "We 
don't do anything that's not transparent," said Edmond Tang, an 
advisor to the commission on mission for Churches Together. 
"We're not taking sides and we work to promote the 
reconciliation of the official and unofficial churches." 

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