The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, will meet with Pope Francis. ..The meeting, according to the Vatican's press service, will take place on February 12 in Cuba, at the international airport. ..Jose Marti in Havana. ..

At least that this is the first time in history when the Moscow Patriarch meets the Pope. ..There are many historical differences between the Orthodox and Catholic Churches. ..Nevertheless, the primates of other Orthodox churches sometimes meet with the Pope, and the Russian Orthodox Church never.

Yes, unlike the Roman Catholic, the Orthodox Church is not centralized - there are 15 local Orthodox churches in the world. ..Each local Orthodox Church itself determines the nature and extent of relations with other churches, including the Catholic one. ..Therefore, for example, the Church of Constantinople has regular contacts with Rome, and the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Pope meet quite often. ..

Yes. ..And this is significant. ..The Pope's meetings with the heads of other local Orthodox churches do not take place on neutral territory, but at home at one of the parties. ..For example, the meeting of the pontiff with the Patriarch of Constantinople in December 2014 took place in Istanbul - ancient Constantinople. ..They also met in Rome and Jerusalem, common shrines for all Christians. ..Apparently, the Russian Orthodox Church does not want to exaggerate the importance of the meeting between Patriarch Kirill and the Pope for fear of causing discontent on the part of conservative circles in the church. ..Catholics in these circles are considered to be heretics, so there can be no friendship with them. ..

The Russian Orthodox Church has traditionally refrained from bilateral meetings at this level. ..Pope John Paul II dreamed of meeting the former patriarch of Moscow Alexy II, but he always shied away. ..As now, the main reason was the position of the radical "conservatives". ..

No. ..Until the 11th century, they constituted one Christian church, which was undivided. ..Then, due to some theological differences, as well as because of the aggravated political, social and cultural differences between the West and the East, they stopped communicating with each other. ..And this communication has not yet been restored, despite the fact that many of the differences of the past are gone.

Now the main difference between Catholicism and Orthodoxy is the question of the role of the leading bishop in the church and the nature of his primacy. ..For the Catholic Church, this is the Bishop of Rome (Pope), whose primacy, according to the teachings of this church, is of divine origin. ..For the Orthodox, this interpretation of primacy is unacceptable. ..They are ready to return to the understanding of the Roman primacy that existed in the first millennium. ..At that time, the Eastern Church interpreted this primacy as one that the churches agreed among themselves to make it easier for them to coordinate their activities, but not as a divine institution. ..This issue cannot yet be resolved even within the framework of a bilateral dialogue.

Yes. ..For example, the question about the method of the procession of the Holy Spirit in the Holy Trinity. ..The Orthodox believe that the Holy Spirit comes only from the Father, but not from the Son. ..And Catholics - as from the Father and from the Son. ..In the Middle Ages, this issue caused intense controversy. ..Now both sides are ready to reach agreement on it. ..For example, the Catholic side is ready to accept the Orthodox wording.

They differ. ..What a person who comes from the street sees in Catholic and Orthodox churches, as a rule, is similar: both there and there are icons hanging, the relics of saints, in the main place is the altar where the liturgy is performed. ..But there are also differences. ..For example, since the middle of the 20th century, divine services in the Catholic Church have been performed in national, not sacred languages. everyone who is in it usually takes part in singing in the church. ..The Orthodox divine service is longer, more magnificent, only the choir sings, the parishioners in most cases stand, not sit.

With others too. ..Theological differences with the Catholic Church affect all Orthodox Churches equally. ..But many of them have better bilateral contacts with Rome than the Russian Orthodox Church - in any case, the existing disagreements do not prevent the parties from meeting at the highest level.

Hardly. ..Meeting at the airport will hardly solve any theological issues and not the fact that they will even be raised during the discussion. ..However, it is better to meet than not to meet, and there remains the hope that as a result the Orthodox and Catholic Churches will nevertheless take one more step towards each other.