Bishop, Russian Church suffer nasty breakup

Canwest News Service
Published: yesterday 2:04 am

MOSCOW - A bishop banned by the Russian Orthodox Church declared its leader, Patriarch Alexy II, a "heretic" Thursday and announced he and his followers would split from the church amid fears of a schism.

A spokesman for the church contacted by Agence France-Presse said the bishop had lost his mind, adding that the declaration was "religiously and historically ignorant," and that the bishop was "carrying out the will of the devil."

An Orthodox council last month ordered Bishop Diomid of Anadyr and Chukotka to stop holding services and to repent after he criticized senior clerics for their wealthy lifestyles and urged the church to cut ties with the state.

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