Archbishop Hilarion acknowledged that the Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia may undergo administrative reform.
Photo: Yury Gripas
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Overseas Church Chooses New Leader
The Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia chose a new leader in an election in New York on Monday. He is Archbishop of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand Hilarion (Kapral). The primate has already stated that he will continue his predecessor Laurus’s policy of reconciliation with the Moscow Patriarchate. He acknowledged, however, that the ROCOR and the Russian Orthodox Church have problems that remain to be solved.
Hilarion is replacing Metropolitan Laurus, who headed the ROCOR for seven years before dying in March. Laurus ended the 80-year schism in the Russian church in May 2007 by signing a canonical act making the ROCOR an indivisible but autonomous part of the Russian Orthodox Church. Hilarion was elected by the 11 hierarchs of the ROCOR in a secret ballot vote. He required two-thirds of the vote but received nine votes out of 11 in a voting process that took half an hour. He ran against Archbishop of Berlin, Germany and Great Britain Mark.
Hilarion has already been confirmed by Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II. Among the issues still dividing the two branches of the Russian church are ROCOR’s participation in interconfessional groups, such as the World Council of Churches and the inclusion of ROCOR congregations in Russia in Russian Orthodox Church parishes. Hilarion officially begins as metropolitan of the ROCOR on May 18, after his enthronement in New York.
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All the Article in Russian as of May 14, 2008
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