World Orthodox leaders meet despite Russia’s absence

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The leaders of the world's Orthodox Christian churches have gathered on the Greek island of Crete for a landmark meeting, despite a boycott by the Russian church — the most populous in a religion of some 300 million people — and three other churches.
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew led prayers attended by other church leaders Sunday to mark the start of the weeklong summit — the first of its kind in more than 1,200 years.