It’s more a question of the center of Orthodox Christianity. From the Orthodox POV, Old Rome fell into schism and heresy over time and the primacy devolved to Constantinople per the canons of the Ecumenical Councils. With the fall of the Roman Empire in 1453 Russia became the largest Orthodox land not under hostile occupation by either the Turks or Catholics. Thus the myth of the Third Rome was born.
I think it is a bunch of baloney, but all countries have their nationalist mythologies. That said, the good father really needs to be reminded that Phyletism is a condemned heresy.
Im interested in your take on this. Do you have an opinion as to how much, if any, of the historic Euro/Russo strife is sectarian? Roman Catholic dislike of Orthodoxy?
I don’t think that Phyletism was a really issue in what Putin did, in that all the Orthodox churches were invited to Moscow as equals to conclave with each other. Even what this Archpriest said was that, in effect, Europe has fallen away from Christianity and faces destruction because of it.
Thus, it is not so much an issue of nationalism, than a statement of where Christian civilization resides, its seat, vs. a continent reclaimed by pagans and atheists.