Russian patriarch Kirill to visit Poland in August

The Associated Press
16/7/2012

WARSAW, Poland — Polish Catholic church is preparing to welcome the head of the Russian Orthodox Church to Poland in August, a visit church leaders describe as a crucial step toward healing historic wounds between Russians and Poles.

The two Slavic nations have been divided for centuries by religion, with Poles predominantly Roman Catholic and Russians largely Orthodox. Wars and occupations going back centuries have also left a legacy that still causes bitterness in political relations between the two countries.

The key moment in Patriarch Kirill’s four-day visit, from Aug. 16-19, visit will be the signing of a document appealing to Poles and Russians to forgive each other for past wrongs and injustices.

“We hope it will gradually lead to reconciliation between our nations,” said Rev. Jozef Kloch, a spokesman for the Roman Catholic church in Poland.

Officials said the document will be signed by Patriarch Kirill and Archbishop Jozef Michalik, the head of Poland’s conference of bishops, on Aug. 17 in Warsaw’s Royal Castle.

Kloch said it is almost certainly the first such document signed by the two churches.

A Russian church spokesman, Rev. Vsevolod Chaplin, said in March that discussions between church leaders in Poland will include the recent and centuries-old tensions between Catholic and Orthodox Christians.

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