<P> In May 2011, Hilarion Alfeyev, the Metropolitan of Volokolamsk and head of external relations for the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church, stated that Orthodox and Evangelical Christians share the same positions on "such issues as abortion, the family, and marriage" and desires "vigorous grassroots engagement" between the two Christian communions on such issues . </P> <P> The Metropolitan also believes in the possibility of peaceful coexistence between Islam and Christianity as the two religions have never had religious wars in Russia . Alfeyev stated that the Russian Orthodox Church "disagrees with atheist secularism in some areas very strongly" and "believes that it destroys something very essential about human life ." </P> <P> The Russian Orthodox Church today has ecclesiastical missions in Jerusalem and some other countries around the world . </P> <P> The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world . Including all the autocephalous churches under its supervision, its adherents number more than 150 million worldwide--about half of the 300 million estimated adherents of the Eastern Orthodox Church . Among Christian churches, the Russian Orthodox Church is second only to the Roman Catholic Church in terms of numbers of followers . Within Russia the results of a 2007 VTsIOM poll indicated that about 75% of the population considered themselves Orthodox Christians . Up to 65% of ethnic Russians as well as Russian - speakers belonging to other ethnic groups from Russia (Ossetians, Caucasus Greeks etc .) and a similar percentage of Belarusians and Ukrainians identify themselves as "Orthodox". However, according to a poll published by the church related website Pravmir.com (ru) in December 2012, only 41% of the Russian population identified itself with the Russian Orthodox Church . Pravmir.com also published a 2012 poll by the respected Levada organization VTsIOM indicating that 74% of Russians considered themselves Orthodox . </P>

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