Pope: New meeting with Russian Orthodox patriarch possible

By NICOLE WINFIELD
Associated Press

ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (AP) — Pope Francis says there are plans for a possible second meeting with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. That would come after their historic 2016 encounter in Cuba became a landmark in mending relations severed by the 1,000-year-old schism that divided Christianity. Speaking to reporters Monday while traveling home from Greece, Francis said he planned to meet next week with the Russian church’s foreign envoy “to agree on a possible meeting” with Patriarch Kirill. He noted that Kirill is due to travel in the coming weeks but also said he was “ready to go to Moscow” even if diplomatic protocols weren’t yet in place.