(RNS) — The Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilos III, met with President Donald Trump last week in the White House and awarded him one of the highest honors in the church, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.
In return, Theophilos came out of the meeting with an honor of his own, the suggestion of becoming a peacemaker in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, apparently backed by Trump, Israeli media reported.
The news left many observers scratching their heads. In the constellation of Orthodox Church leaders, Theophilos is seen as solidly in Russia’s camp. The patriarch is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow later this month.
The Ukraine-Russia war is the largest conflict affecting the world’s Orthodox Christians today, with majorities of both Russia and Ukraine’s population identifying with Orthodox churches.
The conflict has divided the wider Orthodox world too, after the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople granted autocephaly to a Ukrainian Orthodox Church independent of the Moscow Patriarchate, prompting Moscow to break communion with Constantinople and forcing many of the Eastern Orthodox churches to pick sides. The result has been the largest schism in the church since the break with Rome in 1054.
Though the Jerusalem Patriarchate does not acknowledge the legitimacy of the independent Ukrainian church, Theophilos is one of the leaders who — in some respects — straddles the divide. As a native Greek, he maintains ties wit …