Francis meets representative of the Russian Orthodox Church

On the afternoon of July 11, 2024, Pope Francis received Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, “secretary of state” of the Moscow Patriarchate, the Holy See Press Office announced on July 12. While the Pontiff continues to call weekly for prayers for peace in Ukraine, this was the first official meeting between the Pontiff and a representative of the Moscow Patriarchate in over a year.

The last occasion was on June 16, 2023, the day the Pope was discharged from the Gemelli Polyclinic after 10 days' hospitalization for an intestinal hernia involving a risk of occlusion.

Metropolitan Anthony, Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Ecclesiastical Relations, also met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, and leaders of the Sant'Egidio community, which is known for its experience in mediating conflicts.

The continuation of these annual meetings demonstrates the desire for dialogue between Rome and Moscow, at a time when the war in Ukraine has strained relations between the two Churches. A series of criticisms damaged relations in the spring of 2022, with Pope Francis reportedly warning Patriarch Kirill not to become President Vladimir Putin's "altar boy."

Later, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna, visited Moscow on June 28 and 29 as the Pope's special envoy, and pleaded for the release of prisoners and the return of Ukrainian children displaced by the regime.

During his trip, the Italian cardinal was received by the Patriarch of Moscow, Kirill, who praised the Holy See's "mediation" and assured Rome of his support in the search for "a just peace as soon as possible."

Since this trip, the Holy See has brokered the release of two Ukrainian Greek Catholic priests — thanks to an exchange of prisoners — and enabled the return home of a Ukrainian teenager. At the Angelus on June 29, the Pontiff pleaded for "all the prisoners of this war to return home soon."

Metropolitan Anthony’s predecessor, Hilarion, was removed from the post in 2022 and reassigned as Metropolitan of Budapest and Hungary. The apparent reason was his disagreement with the stance of the Patriarchate of Moscow towards Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Metropolitan Hilarion, who is also a musician, played an important role in the rapprochement between Moscow and Rome before the war in Ukraine.

He had a good relationship with Popes Benedict XVI and Francis, with whom he met on several occasions.