On June 21, a meeting took place with head of the NGO “Public Advocacy” and Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Theophilos III. In the course of the meeting the parties discussed the violations of the rights of the Jerusalem Patriarchate, which had been reported by the NGO “Public Advocacy” at the 37th regular session of the UN Human Rights Council. Another issue the parties touched upon was the aggravation of the situation in the relations between the religious denominations of Israel and the government in terms of taxation of religious buildings.
The Patriarch of Jerusalem stressed the need to use international procedures to protect the rights of Orthodox Christians in various countries and to look for effective ways to handle ongoing conflicts.
Particular attention was paid to the need of uniting the efforts of Orthodox denominations in their pursuit to affirm Orthodoxy in the world, taking into account contemporary challenges.
Theophilos III gave his blessing to head of NGO “Public Advocacy” Denysov Оleh for further work in protecting the rights of Orthodox believers and organizations.