The Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, His Beatitude Theodoros II, has issued a pointed rebuke against the Russian Orthodox Church over what he described as its “uncanonical and unbrotherly” intrusion into Africa, while affirming Egypt’s longstanding commitment to safeguarding the Holy Monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai.
Speaking in an interview with Greek newspaper TA NEA Savvatokyriako, Patriarch Theodoros underscored the historic and spiritual responsibility of the Alexandrian Patriarchate, which has maintained a presence in the Middle East for over two millennia. He stressed that Africa “this vast continent which falls under our Patriarchate’s jurisdiction and ours alone” remains the greatest challenge, both spiritually and geopolitically.
On the current tensions surrounding the Monastery of St. Catherine, the Patriarch called for harmony within the Sinai Brotherhood, urging members to remain united in the face of external pressures. He praised Egypt for consistently respecting the monastery’s centuries-old sacred status and expressed confidence that this recognition would continue.
Turning sharply to the actions of the Moscow Patriarchate, Theodoros criticized the establishment of a parallel ecclesiastical presence in Africa as a “serious canonical, ecclesiological, and intra-Orthodox problem.” He argued that Russia’s justifications for its presence were “baseless and even absurd,” warning that such actions threaten Orthodox unity. Despite these challenges, he expressed optimism that Orthodoxy would “find its harmony again, because it cannot be otherwise.”
Beyond ecclesiastical concerns, the Patriarch also addressed Africa’s migration crisis, noting that poverty, underdevelopment, and mismanagement of natural wealth remain the root causes of mass migration. He urged greater investment in local economies to provide opportunities for people to remain in their homelands.
As Europe, particularly Greece, struggles with migratory pressures, Patriarch Theodoros argued that sustainable solutions lie not in temporary measures but in fostering growth and stability within Africa itself a mission the Patriarchate has sought to champion for decades.
