Archbishop Job Getcha of the Constantinople Patriarchate made a remark on the reports about "an attempt to poison the Patriarch Bartholomew" during the talks with the delegation of Russia's Patriarch Kirill.
"Stupid fake news. The servant giving drinks is a worker of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. We, at the Ecumenical Patriarchate, do not allow guests to do the service. Greek hospitality forbids!," the Archbishop, a Canadian with Ukrainian roots, who was the official spokesman of the All-Orthodox Council in 2016, commented on Facebook, according to Yevstratii Zorya of the Chernihiv Diocese chief at the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate.
He now represents the Ecumenical Patriarchate at the World Council of Churches.
At the same time, Yevstratii Zorya noted that the real attention in the video in question, released by the Ukrainian Local Orthodox Church Facebook community, should be paid to the moment where the Russian security guard points to Patriarch Kirill the glass he should take that has apparently been checked.
"That is, the Muscovites really believe that their patriarch could be poisoned in the Ecumenical Patriarchate," the cleric wrote. The detail, which well demonstrated the price of Moscow's verbal assurance in 'happy brotherly feelings' the meeting has left. [Patriarch Kirill's] 15 guards, too."
As UNIAN reported earlier, on September 2 meetings (Synaxis) were held of the Hierarchy of the Ecumenical Throne Constantinople (Istanbul), Turkey, to consider the question whether the Church of Constantinople is authorized, without the consent of other churches, to grant autonomy, or autocephaly, to a church that has requested it.
Following the meetings, the answer was positive: "Yes, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is authorized to grant autocephaly without any consent [from other churches]."
