Yeltsin Worried About Orthodox Church In Estonia

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     TALLINN, Feb 29 (ETA) - Estonian President Lennart Meri on Thursday
received Russian Ambassador in Estonia Aleksandr Trofimov who delivered a
letter from Russian President Boris Yeltsin expressing his worry about the
situation of the Apostolic Orthodox Church in Estonia.
     President Lennart Meri explained to the Ambassador that unfortunately
only one view on the issue had been distributed to the public.
     The Constantinople Mother Church last Thursday recognized the Estonian
Apostolic Orthodox Church as the rightful Orthodox Church in Estonia,
turning down the claim of the Russian Orthodox Church in Estonia.
     The decision sparked harsh criticism from the centre of the Russian
Orthodox Church in Moscow.
     Estonian Constitution guarantees equal rights to all religious
groupings in Estonia. The claims that members of the Russian Orthodox Church
might lose their right for conducting services are groundless, Meri said.
     The solution to the matter has to be found by the Churches themselves,
not by statesmen or politicians, Meri told Trofimov. ETA 2902 - 19 JB



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