Cardinal Koch excluded from Pope's meeting with Archbishop Hilarion

While Francis met with Hilarion, the Russian Orthodox Metropolitan of Budapest, on 29 April, Cardinal Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, was not present. He was not even invited to the trip. The reason was probably Koch's comments against Moscow Patriarch Kirill, whom he accused of being a "state cleric" in April 2022. Ironically, as Bishop of Basel (1995-2010), Koch was himself a state cleric. His election - without any Vatican influence - was also decided by the state and required state approval. His salary (CHF 180,000 = over $200,000 per year) also came from the state.

In olden days.

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