Head of Russian Orthodox Church abroad dies: report

MOSCOW - The head of the Russian Orthodox Church overseas, Metropolitan Laurus, who mended ties with the mother church, died on Sunday near New York at the age of 81.
Father Nikolai Balashov of the Moscow Patriarchate told the Interfax news agency: "It's a great loss for the Russian Orthodox Church."
He said Metropolitan Laurus "had accomplished his life's main task -- the reunification of the Church".
Metropolitan Laurus and Alexy II, Patriarch of Moscow and of all Russia met in May 2007 to sign a deal to reunify the two Russian Orthodox churches after an 80-year rift.
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03/16/2008 20:23 GMT