Vienna, May. 22, 2007 (CWNews.com) - Orthodox Bishop Hilarion of Vienna is pressing the government of Austria to grant official legal status to his Russian Orthodox diocese.
In a meeting with Australian parliamentary speaker Barbara Prammer, Bishop Hilarion noted that the absence of formal recognition hampers the Russian Orthodox Church in efforts to set up new parishes. Although the government recognizes several Orthodox groups, Austrian law currently offers full legal status only to the representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
In Eastern Europe, representatives of the Moscow patriarchate have frequently complained about efforts by Catholics to make inroads in societies that are traditionally Orthodox.