“I was surprised that they even listened to me,” said Rev. Martina Viktorie Kopecká. “I am quite young and a woman. I wore a white stole. They are not pushing me away.”

“We live in a world of competition, where you have to be the best. This pressure comes even from the families, from society,” said Brother Alois Löser.

The Russian Orthodox Church decided Monday to sever ties with the leader of the worldwide Orthodox community after his decision to grant Ukrainian clerics independence from the Moscow Patriarchate.

“Walking, praying and working together: This is the great path that we are called to follow.”

The W.C.C. general secretary described Francis’ visit as “a strong signal of recognition by the Catholic world.”

“Our continuing participation could result in me advocating for two different, and even contradictory, positions,” Bishop Deeley wrote.