Already there is much talk about the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church. Between now and June 19, 2016, when the council . . . .

CHR Comment: John Chryssavgis describes the background of the meeting of leaders from the Eastern Orthodox Churches, which is to take place in June, 2016. He explains that they council is unlikely to provide the wealthy of news that westerners are accustom to receiving from Vatican and western ecumenical meetings. The most likely reason that so many Eastern church leaders are coming together is the issues of persecution.

Source: On the Great Council of the Orthodox Church | John Chryssavgis | First Things

The meeting will be the first between a pope and a Russian Orthodox Patriarch in history.

CHR Comment: Western reporters tend to describe the meeting of Francis and Kirill as a potential first step toward reunification between Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. This is a poor assessment of what is actually taking place. The pope and the patriarch both hold authority on behalf of large church bodies. It seems very unlikely that one leader would submit his church body to the authority of the other, which would be the necessary outcome of any reunification according to the doctrine and practice of these hierarchical churches. When one reads deeper into the article, one sees that the leaders are meeting to discuss a common interest: the problem of persecution in Asia and perhaps also to discuss grievances. Nevertheless, this is a precedent setting meeting.

An ecumenical expectation that Roman Catholics and Russian Orthodox Christians will soon reunite into a common church body does not begin to understand the complex history, doctrine, and practice of the two churches. Although a few Asian-based church bodies have reunited with Rome, they did so at moments of desperate need when persecution was threatening to wipe them out. The Russian Orthodox are not in that position at all given their large numbers and their interconnections with the Russian government, which went through painful transitions from the time of the tsars, the Communists, and now the Russian-style representative government that exists today. If anything, the Russian Orthodox Church is on its strongest political footing since the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917.

Source: Pope Francis To Hold Historic Meeting In Cuba With Russian Orthodox Church Leader

http://www.religionnews.com/2016/02/05/historic-meeting-between-pope-russian-patriarch/

“Surprise,” she said. “I’m still alive.” Now he’s in jail.

CHR Comment: An immigrant to Australia ordered the assassination of his wife, but she survived! When the wife was in trouble, she contacted her pastor, who helped her confront the husband who had ordered her assassination. The story illustrates an odd situation a pastor may find himself in as he cares for his flock. It also illustrates how immigrants with a violent past may continue in that violent mindset. Lord, have mercy.

Source: Wife crashes her own funeral, horrifying her husband, who had paid to have her killed – The Washington Post

Brazilian journalist Ana Carolina Caceres tells of her life with microcephaly, the congenital malformation by which babies have abnormally small heads and may suffer from delayed brain development.

CHR Comment: An excellent, short statement about Zika virus, abortion, and life. One may note that Journalist Caceres graduated from a Christian University, which shows up in one of the photographs.

Source: Microcephaly patient Ana Carolina Caceres: ‘I survived’ – BBC News

ROME (RNS) The change of heart by Peter Tatchell, a leading voice on LGBT issues, over a case in Northern Ireland was a surprising turnabout.

CHR Comment: Having the courts force Christians to write messages that support gay “marriage” has grave implications for freedom of speech and right to dissent. The examples of terrorism and Holocaust illustrate the problems of preventing religious persons from dissenting. Tatchell now sees the legal implications more clearly: forcing people to do things against their conscience is fundamentally wrong. In a free society, public discourse and practice of law eventually move toward balance and this appears to be such a move.

Source: Gay rights campaigner reverses course in gay cake dispute – Religion News Service

The meeting seeks to bridge a nearly 1,000-year divide between East and West.

CHR Comment: Although popes have met with Orthodox patriarchs in the past, they have not met with the Russian Orthodox patriarch, which makes this brief, symbolic meeting significant. The article explores the historic lack of relations between the two church bodies and potential reasons for it (one might mention the long virtually physical separation in modern times caused by east-west divide in governance).

Source: Pope and Russian Orthodox leader to hold historic encounter in Cuba – The Washington Post

Australian Anglican and United churches offer sanctuary to asylum seekers who face deportation to Nauru after a High Court ruling.

CHR Comment: The article cites the historic Christian practice of offering asylum to persecuted or untried persons. The custom goes back to the cities of refuge described in the Old Testament where a person accused of a crime could flee for protection from blood feuds. Amazing how modern problems can mirror ancient ones.

Source: Australian churches offer to take in asylum seekers – BBC News