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» 10/11/2008 14:34 TURKEYBartholomew I: Orthodox summit for "the unity of the Church"NAT da PolisFollowing the example of the apostle Paul, the ecumenical patriarch launches an appeal "to unity" to resolve today's challenges. For the first time, leaders and representatives of the entire Orthodox world are meeting together. Istanbul (AsiaNews) - With a strong and heartfelt appeal for "the unity of the Church," the only way "to address the problems of the modern world," work began yesterday at the pan-Orthodox meeting in Fanar. The summit was organized by the ecumenical patriarchate, to celebrate the Pauline year, and is characterized by...

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 6, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI sent a personal message to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II saying that modern times call for a hastening of the journey toward Christian unity. The Sept. 22 message was hand-delivered to Alexy II by the archbishop of Naples, Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, on an official visit to Moscow at the invitation of the patriarch. The cardinal gave the message to the patriarch in a meeting that lasted a little more than an hour last Thursday. "I have a deep affection for all the Orthodox brethren, and I am particularly close to them in...

OLYMPICS PART THREE: CHINA–LET THE GAMES BEGIN, BUT WHY THERE? Published July 24th, 2008 If all the hype about the meaning and reasoning behind the Olympics ever meant anything, (See Part One), why, just a few generations after the inception of the modern Olympiad, was Hitler’s Germany awarded the 1936 Games? Why were the 1980 Olympics held in the U.S.S.R., a nation which had an obscene record of terror, international intrigue, militarism, and repression in Eastern Europe, and which had invaded Afghanistan less than a year earlier. And why in the name of God were this summer’s Olympics bestowed upon...

Vatican City, May 30, 2008 / 10:09 am (CNA).- During his visit to Russia, Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity met with Holiness Alexis II, Patriarch of Moscow, and delivered a message from the Holy Father.  In his letter, Pope Benedict highlighted the similarities of the two Christian religions and expressed gratitude for the dialogue between the two churches.The Pope writes that Cardinal Kasper’s visit to Russia provides a timely opportunity for the Pontiff to extend his greetings to the Russian Orthodox Church, “to express my esteem for your ministry in the Russian Orthodox...

VATICAN CITY, MAY 21, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Cardinal Walter Kasper left for Moscow today to take a message from Benedict XVI to Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia. Cardinal Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, will be in Russia through May 30. The trip was undertaken at the invitation of Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the president of the Department of External Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, reported the pontifical council. The program of the visit includes an inaugural celebration for the feast of Corpus Christi at the Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese...

MarkChapter 16 1 1 When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. 2 Very early when the sun had risen, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb. 3 They were saying to one another, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back; it was very large. 5 On entering the tomb they saw a young man sitting on...

If you look up the verb “proselytism” in most dictionaries, you’ll find it defined as any effort to persuade a person to give up one point of view in favor of another. The word is sometimes used in a political sense, but most often it is used religiously. The most common synonym for “proselytize” is “convert”. This will come as a surprise to Catholics, and it requires clarification. For Catholics, who have a highly developed spiritual vocabulary, the standard definition is not adequate. In the Church's lexicon, proselytism typically refers to conversion efforts that fail to respect the prospective convert’s...

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Communist leader of the Soviet Union, has acknowledged his Christian faith for the first time, paying a surprise visit to pray at the tomb of St Francis of Assisi.   Giotto’s fresco of St Francis and St Clair Accompanied by his daughter Irina, Mr Gorbachev spent half an hour on his knees in silent prayer at the tomb.His arrival in Assisi was described as "spiritual perestroika" by La Stampa, the Italian newspaper."St Francis is, for me, the alter Christus, the other Christ," said Mr Gorbachev. "His story fascinates me and has played a fundamental role in...

BARCELONA, Spain, FEB. 13, 2008 (Zenit.org).- A donation from Spanish religious congregations of more than 5,000 books to the Orthodox Academy of Moscow has been received as "another sign of the good relations" between the two Churches. That is how Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the president of the Department of External Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, described the donation. Jesuit Father Emilio Benedetti told ZENIT how the donation came about: "During the entire month of October 2007, I had the satisfaction of helping Father Dionisyos Shlenov, professor of the Orthodox Theological Academy of Moscow, and Father Valeri, archivist...

- In an apparent move by Taiwan to appease the U.S., the Taiwanese President stated that Washington would be notified in advance of any attack on China.

Ted Galen Carpenter, vice president for defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute, is the author of seven books on international affairs, including America's Coming War with China: A Collision Course over Taiwan (2006). The People's Republic of China continues to send worrisome signals about its security strategy. As the tone of cross-straits relations grows increasingly strident, China's latest military reshuffle and ongoing lack of transparency about its military budget are creating new tensions with both the United States and its neighbors in East Asia. In the lead-up to the opening of the Communists' 17th National Party Congress...

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A KGB master agent who ran some of Moscow's most damaging Cold War spies in the West -- Klaus Fuchs and the Rosenbergs -- died on Friday after a lifetime of espionage that helped the Soviet Union acquire the nuclear bomb. Alexander Feklisov, who also played a key role as a mediator in the Cuban Missile Crisis, was 93, a spokesman for Russia's foreign intelligence service (SVR) said. He arrived in New York in 1941 and began running Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, a married couple who supplied the Soviet Union with top secret information on the U.S....

RAVENNA, Italy, OCT. 15, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The Catholic-Orthodox panel that met to discuss the sacramental nature of the Church approved a joint document, but their meeting was marked by the withdrawal of the Moscow patriarchate from the discussions. The week long 10th plenary assembly of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox ended Sunday. The group studied the "ecclesiological and canonical consequences of the sacramental nature of the Church -- conciliarity and synodality in the Church" and agreed upon a joint document, the Vatican reported today. A communiqué from the panel affirmed that "the document offers...

Don't back down to China's overt military threats By Joseph Farah Dear Andrés, As I understand it, you and President Bush believe it is in America's best interest to help China expand its economy through partnerships, sharing technology, Import-Export Bank loans, investment and relaxed trade requirements and allowing them to buy U.S. companies of strategic importance -- like 3Com. I disagree. What China needs to do to improve the plight of its people is to abandon the failed experiment with command-and-control socialism that has created a nightmare world of totalitarianism for more than 1 billion people. President Reagan rejected similar...

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Faced with a threatening military buildup by China, an increasingly outgunned Taiwan is quietly pushing ahead with plans to develop missiles that could strike the mainland, defense and security experts say. Taiwan successfully tested its first cruise missile with that kind of range this year, one that could send a nearly 900-pound warhead more than 600 miles, to targets as distant as Shanghai, military analysts said. Some Taiwanese military specialists have argued for decades that Taiwan should develop offensive weapons, including missiles, as a deterrent to the mainland, which has threatened to attack the self-governing island if...

MND continues series of `open' military exercises By Jimmy Chuang STAFF REPORTER Monday, Sep 17, 2007, Page 2 A Kidd-class destroyer opened its doors to the media on Wednesday, offering visitors a display of its might during a live-fire exercise at sea. The flagship Tsoying was accompanied by the Perry-class frigate Tzuyi and the Knox-class frigate Fengyang during the exercise in Tsoying, Kaohsiung. Replenishment-at-sea and anti-submarine exercises were also held that day. "What you are witnessing are drills that we hold on a routine basis," said Vice Admiral Chiang Lung-an (姜�安), deputy commander of the Fleet Command Headquarters. Lieutenant Chuang...

US Said to Put Off Planned F-16 Sale to Taiwan (Source: compiled by defense-aerospace.com; posted Sept. 17, 2007) PARIS --- The U.S.-Taiwan Business Council, a US business lobby group, has accused the Bush administration of jeopardizing Taiwan’s security by indefinitely putting off the pending sale of 66 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D fighters. The sale is valued at $4.9 billion. The group says that the US is delaying the sale, which was due to pass a contractual milestone next month, to show its displeasure with the policies of Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian. On June 15, Taiwan's parliament passed the 2007 defense budget...

U.S. eyes $2.2 bln aircraft, missile sale to Taiwan Thu Sep 13, 2007 4:04AM IST By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon announced tentative plans on Wednesday to sell surplus P-3C Orion submarine-hunting aircraft and air-defense missiles to Taiwan in deals potentially worth more than $2.23 billion, including related gear and services. Taiwan is seeking to buy 12 surplus P-3C maritime patrol aircraft with T-56 turboprop engines, data terminals and a mobile operation command center in a deal that could be worth $1.96 billion, the Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a notice to Congress. It said in...

MND budget proves new cruise missile is in development By Hsu Shao-hsuen STAFF REPORTER Sunday, Sep 02, 2007, Page 1 Next year's budget request submitted by the Ministry of Defense (MND) to the Legislature yesterday officially revealed for the first time that the nation is developing the Hsiung Feng 3, (雄風三型) or Brave Wind 3 anti-ship missile. In addition,the MND's Missile Command's increasing expenditure is being seen as an important indicator that large numbers of cruise missile,code-named Hsiung Feng-IIE ,will start production and deployment next year. Although the defense budget has reached 3 percent of Taiwan's GDP, the military still...

US officials confirm diesel submarine sale will go ahead By Nadia Tsao Staff Reporter in Washington Monday, Aug 20, 2007, Page 3 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Shuai Hua-min (帥化民) said on Saturday US officials have told a delegation of Taiwanese legislators that Washington will go ahead with the sale of diesel-powered submarines to Taiwan even if the Democrats win next year's US presidential election. The delegation was also told that four US companies that intend to participate in the bid have found European manufacturers to cooperate with, Shuai said. In a visit arranged by the Ministry of Defense, Shuai,...

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Taiwan has submitted its first formal application to join the United Nations, a government spokesman has said.He said an application signed by President Chen Shui-bian had been delivered to the UN Secretary General. The Chinese foreign ministry immediately dismissed the move, saying it was "doomed to failure". Taiwan has long campaigned to join the UN but all such attempts have been blocked by China which regards the island as a breakaway province. The government in Taipei held the UN seat for China until 1971 when it was replaced by Beijing. This was the first time the country launched a...

ANALYSIS-Taiwan air force loses ground to rival China 29 May 2007 07:20:59 GMT Source: Reuters By Richard Dobson TAIPEI, May 29 (Reuters) - The military balance across the Taiwan Strait is continuing to shift in China's favour, with Taiwan fast losing ground to its diplomatic rival in its last remaining area of dominance -- in the air. The Pentagon's annual report on China released last week highlighted Beijing's efforts to modernise its air force and navy, aimed largely at military contingencies against Taiwan, but also further afield. Communist China has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since the end of the civil...

China's military buildup is moving beyond countering Taiwan to global operations from the Middle East through Southeast Asia, according to the Pentagon's annual assessment of Chinese military power. "China's military acquisitions and strategic thinking suggests Beijing is also generating capabilities for other regional contingencies, such as conflict over resources or territory," the report to Congress said. The statement, released yesterday, contradicts assessments of some pro-China analysts and intelligence officials who have said the nation's military buildup is relatively benign and limited to resolving the sovereignty issue of Taiwan, which was separated from China in 1949 during a civil war. China...

The motorway was closed to traffic for four hours during the drill They came before dawn - gathering with anticipation in groups along the narrow country roads, in the rice paddy fields and on the rooftops of farms and warehouses.Some had brought their young children with them, a few had binoculars, many more had cameras and they were all eagerly looking towards a stretch of one of Taiwan's main freeways, connecting the north to the south of the island. Soon, the large crowd numbering more than 1,000 would hear the ferocious roar of jets and witness six combat fighters...

President Hu (l) met honorary KMT head Lien Chan (r) at the forum Chinese President Hu Jintao has called for closer economic and cultural exchanges between China and Taiwan. Mr Hu was speaking at a China-Taiwan forum in Beijing, aimed at improving ties between the two rival neighbours. More than 30 MPs from Taiwan's main opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), are taking part in the two-day event. It comes just days after Taiwan, seen by China as part of its territory, rejected Beijing's plan for the Olympic torch to pass through the island. President Hu told some 500 participants...

Taiwan says it would win war with China By Annie Huang, Associated Press Writer | April 24, 2007 TAIPEI, Taiwan --A computer simulation projected that China could land forces on rival Taiwan, but they would be repulsed after two weeks of fierce fighting and harsh losses to both sides, Taiwan's military said Tuesday. The complex simulation involved a scenario of China invading the island, 100 miles off its coast, in 2012. Taiwan and China split amid civil war in 1949, but Beijing considers Taiwan Chinese territory. The computer scenario was based on China's repeated threats to attack if Taiwan ever...

VIENNA, Austria, APRIL 7, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a reflection on Easter written by Russian Orthodox Bishop Hilarion Alfeev of Vienna and Austria. He is the representative of the Russian Orthodox Church of Moscow to the European Community. He has shared this meditation with ZENIT to mark that the date of Easter is shared this year by both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. * * * The Resurrection of Christ went by just as unnoticed as his birth, for nobody saw Christ leaving the tomb. And from the very first days after the resurrection, doubt took hold of many people,...

Kuomintang heavyweights and supporters yesterday marked the 32nd death anniversary of President Chiang Kai-shek at venues that could no longer be dedicated to their late leader by next year. KMT Honorary Chairman Lien Chan led incumbent and former party officials, including former party chief Ma Ying-jeou, to pay tribute at Chiang's mausoleum in Taoyuan. While the ceremony in Taoyuan was more like an annual routine, another KMT group performed in Taipei an elaborate ritual in defense of Chiang's name against what they considered a government campaign to deny his contribution to the nation. The group, including former Premier Hau Pei-tsun,...

As many as 62 percent of university students in Taiwan think former Chairman Ma Ying-jeou of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) will win the 2008 presidential race and 67.5 percent of them oppose dismantling the walls surrounding the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Park in Taipei. These are among the major findings of the latest poll of students attending higher learning institutions on the island conducted by the World Leadership Education Foundation in Taiwan and the Leadership Education Society at the National Taiwan University. Ma currently enjoys a sizable lead over all other presidential hopefuls as shown in most other major public opinion...

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Pope Benedict XVI met Tuesday for the highest-level Kremlin-Vatican talks in more than three years, focusing on easing tension between Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians and finding common ground in denouncing intolerance and extremism.A Vatican statement issued after the meeting — which included 25 minutes of private talks — made no mention of an invitation by Putin for the pope to visit Russia. Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said a visit had not come up.Still, the talks appeared to have met Vatican expectations, with the statement saying they were held in a "very positive...

Washington called President Chen Shui-bian's pledge to push for independence "unhelpful" Monday and reiterated its stance against independence for the island Beijing regards as a renegade province. "As it is well-established, the U.S. does not support independence for Taiwan," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. "President (George W.) Bush has repeatedly underscored his opposition to unilateral changes to the status quo by either Taipei or Beijing because this threatens regional peace and stability, U.S. national interests and Taiwan's own welfare," McCormack said. He reminded that Chen had pledged in his 2000 and 2004 inaugurations to not declare independence, change the...

Mr Chen set out a "four wants" policy for Taiwanese independence China has hit out at Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian after he made a strongly pro-independence speech on Sunday.Mr Chen said Taiwan should pursue independence, write a new constitution and change its official name from "Republic of China" to Taiwan. China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said anyone wanting to split Taiwan from the mainland was a "criminal". The row came as China opened its annual session of parliament and announced a hike in defence spending. Mr Chen, in a speech to a pro-independence group on Sunday, said: "Taiwan should...

WASHINGTON, March 2 (AFP) Mar 02, 2007 The United States rejected a Chinese protest Friday over plans to sell hundreds of US missiles to rival Taiwan. "The United States assists Taiwan in meeting its legitimate self-defense needs," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, arguing that the missile sale fell within US legislation governing US-Taiwan relations. "The Bush administration remains fully committed to fulfilling the security and arms sales provisions of the Taiwan Relations Act," he said. Under the act, passed when Washington switched its political recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, the United States is committed to providing Taiwan...

VATICAN CITY, FEB. 1, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Benedict XVI delivered today to the members of the Catholic-Orthodox Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue. * * * Dear Brothers in Christ, It is with great joy that I welcome you, the members of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, on the occasion of your fourth plenary meeting. Through you, I gladly extend fraternal greetings to my Venerable Brothers, the Heads of the Oriental Orthodox Churches: His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, His Holiness Patriarch Zakka I Iwas, His Holiness...

The Early Church Fathers taught that those outside of the Church had no hope of salvation. However, they made allowance for those who didn’t know any better or had no means to comply. Ignatius of AntiochBe not deceived, my brethren: If anyone follows a maker of schism [i.e., is a schismatic], he does not inherit the kingdom of God; if anyone walks in strange doctrine [i.e., is a heretic], he has no part in the Passion [of Christ]. Take care, then, to use one Eucharist, so that whatever you do, you do according to God: For there is one flesh...

The Early Fathers believed that authentic teaching and authority came through apostolic succession.Clement of RomeOur Apostles knew through our Lord Jesus Christ that there would be strife for the office of bishop. For this reason, therefore, having received perfect foreknowledge, they appointed those who have already been mentioned, and afterwards added the further provision that, if they should die, other approved men should succeed to their ministry (Letter to the Corinthians 44:1 [A.D. 95]). Ignatius of AntiochYou must all follow the bishop as Jesus Christ follows the Father, and the presbytery as you would the Apostles. Reverence the deacons as...

The Early Church Fathers recognized Oral Tradition (as taught by the Church) as being equally authoritative as written Tradition (Scripture) because they both came from the same God through the same Church. Papias Whenever anyone came my way, who had been a follower of my seniors, I would ask for the accounts of our seniors: What did Andrew or Peter say? Or Phillip or Thomas or James or John or Matthew, or any of the Lord’s disciples? I also asked: What did Aristion and John the Presbyter, disciples of the Lord say. For, as I see it, it is not...

VATICAN CITY — In what theologians are describing as a highly significant gesture, Pope Benedict XVI and the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople are considering a proposal to attend the next round of joint Catholic-Orthodox theological discussions in 2007. According to sources at the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the two leaders are examining the possibility of personally opening the next session of the Catholic-Orthodox Joint International Theological Commission, expected to be held in Ravenna, Italy. The panel of 60 experts has become the focus for improved Catholic-Orthodox relations after a successful meeting in Belgrade in September — the first time members...

Interview With Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev VIENNA, Austria, NOV. 6, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox can be fruitful, though many hurdles still exist on the road to Eucharistic communion, says a leading prelate. Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev of Vienna and Austria, representative of the Russian Orthodox Church to the European Institutions, commented in this interview on Benedict XVI's forthcoming visit to Turkey, as well as on other topics. Part 2 of this interview will appear Tuesday. Q: Soon Pope Benedict XVI will visit Turkey, because he wants to strengthen the bonds between Rome and Constantinople. What is the significance of...

...or at least threaten it in response to China's diluting the enforcement action against North Korea.

Moscow, Oct. 03 (CWNews.com) - Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi (bio - news) of Milan has agreed to make a church in that city available for use by the Russian Orthodox Church, the Interfax news service reports. Cardinal Tettamanzi, who is in Moscow this week for visits with Orthodox leaders, made the announcement during a meeting with Patriarch Alexei II. The Italian cardinal said that the parish church of St. Anthony, in downtown Milan, will be offered for occasional use by the Russian Orthodox community there, until a parish church is turned over permanently to the Orthodox.

Moscow, Oct. 03, 2006 (CNA) - A positive step was made this week in relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church during a meeting between Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, Archbishop of Milan, and Alexy II, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. The two churches’ positions on key contemporary issues coincide, and there are many avenues for cooperation, the patriarch said. According to a report by Interfax, Alexy II said he is "convinced that good relations and mutual support will contribute to the further development of cooperation on key modern issues between the Russian Orthodox Church and the...

John Paul I with Nikodim and Cardinal Willebrands, 5 September 1978 On the morning of 5 September 28 years ago the Metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox Church, Nikodim of Petersburg, died suddenly in the arms of Pope Albino Luciani. He was only 49 years old. In him died one of the most brilliant personalities in Orthodoxy but above all one of the most significant figures in the history of ecumenism. His was an ecumenic sensibility that had led him to intensify contacts with the Catholic Church and to cross the threshold of the Vatican several times to meet the...

"The United States has agreed to sell Taiwan 66 advanced fighter jets to counter China's continued arms build-up..."

MOSCOW (Interfax) – Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and all Russia hopes for considerable rapprochement with the Roman Catholic Church, noting the positive role being played by Pope Benedict XVI. ”The key of our relations has changed with the new pontificate,” the patriarch said. “In his first address Benedict XVI said that the improvement of relations with the Orthodox churches was a priority of his ministry,” Alexy II said in an interview with the Russian television station, Pervyi canal. He also expressed his hope for the problems that have complicated interchurch relations to be solved under the new...

MOSCOW, JULY 21, 2006 (Zenit.org).- A meeting of the Russian Orthodox Church ruled in favor of continuing dialogue with the Vatican. The Ordinary Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, presided over by the Patriarch of Moscow, Alexy II, was held July 17-19 in the Monastery of the Trinity and St. Sergius According to reports of the Russian news agency Interfax, the key topic of the synod was dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox, and in particular the common ground shared between the two Churches. "These problems were discussed personally in May," reported Interfax, in a meeting between Benedict XVI and the...

EXCLUSIVE-US clears two-stage path to Taiwan submarine deal By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON, July 14 (Reuters) - The Pentagon has cleared Taiwan to take a two-stage approach to buying up to eight diesel submarines in a move that could revive the long-stalled potential multibillion-dollar deal. In a letter to Taiwan's defense minister, obtained on Friday by Reuters, the Pentagon's point man for Asia, Richard Lawless, said separating the design and construction phases was "legally permissible and administratively feasible." Lawless, deputy undersecretary of defense for Asia and the Pacific, estimated the cost of the design phase at $360 million. He did not...

The World Religious Summit ended today. Its final message, which calls for the respect of ethnic and religious minorities, was also signed by countries that do not practice such respect. Participants want to see a more humane international economic order. Moscow (AsiaNews) – Religious leaders attending the World Religious Summit want to use religion as a foundation for peace and dialogue between civilisations rather than as a source of conflicts. Their goal is laid out in a message that was even signed by delegations representing countries like China and Iran that are unfamiliar with religious freedom.“We state the importance...

MOSCOW, JULY 4, 2006 (Zenit.org).- A Russian Orthodox Church official called for a "global union" in the world that respects various traditions, especially religious ones. Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, president of the Foreign Relations Department of the Moscow Patriarchate, made that comment at the historic meeting of some 200 leaders of the world's religions. The leaders, from 40 countries, are meeting for three days in the Russian capital to discuss their positions on the problems that afflict contemporary society. The objective of the meeting was to influence politicians' decisions favorably and to favor a general change in the...