The Russian Orthodox Church has decided to end 50 years of dialogue with the Lutheran Church in Germany as a result of the Lutherans electing Margot Käßmann as their leader for the next six years.
“[I]t appears to be the fact of her being a woman, rather than a divorcee, that the Russians object to.
The leader of the Russian church’s foreign office, Hilarion Alfeyev, Archbishop of Volokolamsk, said the planned celebration of 50 years of dialogue between the two churches, scheduled for late November, would be the last contact between them, according to the Russian daily, Kommersant.
[…]Many conservative Protestants in Russia also supported the decision [of the Russian Orthodox Church]. Alexander Prilutski, the leader of the Protestant church of Ingria – a Christian denomination based around St Petersburg – called Käßmann’s election a ‘sign of crisis in Western society.'”
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It’s an ironic decision in someways for the Russian Orthodox Church. Just this past February their new Patriarch was being warmly welcomed because of his strong ecumenical background. Though it appears that his primary interest at the moment is in developing more formal relations with the Roman Catholic Church.
The Russian Orthodox Church broke off any relations with the Episcopal Church in 2003 because of the election of Gene Robinson as bishop of New Hampshire. Women’s ordination in the seventies presented difficulties but relations continued until 2003.