Meeting of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church with the King of Jordan

February 15, 2018 in the Throne Room of the Patriarchal Chambers of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior was the meeting of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia with King of Jordan Abdullah II bin al-Hussein. The meeting was attended by: the Jordanian side - the King's chief adviser on religious and cultural affairs, the personal envoy of Prince Gazi bin Mohammed, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Jordan Ayman Al Safadi, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Jordan to Russia Amjad O. Adayle, the Director of the Political Department of Manar Dabbas, I.O. director of the media and communications Gais Al-Taravne; From the side of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia - Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Jordan B.F. Bolotin. From the side of the Russian Orthodox Church, the participants of the event were also Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk , the head of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for Foreign Institutions, Archbishop Anthony of Vienna and Budapest , Archbishop Filaret (Bulekov) , deputy chairman of the DECR, and archpriest Sergiy DECR secretary for the Far Abroad Zvonarev. Turning to the high-ranking guest with words of greeting, His Holiness the Patriarch emphasized: "The Russian Orthodox Church attaches great importance to the dialogue that has been established with the leadership of Jordan, primarily with your Majesty." The uneasy history in the 20th century and the previous centuries has prompted the Russian people to take to heart the tragedies of other nations, stated His Holiness. In his opinion, terrorism is a huge challenge for all people of goodwill in modern conditions. "From the way terrorists act, it becomes clear that this is a global threat," said the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. "First and foremost, this is a threat to the Middle East with its multicultural, multinational and multi-religious component, but terrorism also threatens virtually all countries of the world." His Holiness stated: the position of the Russian Orthodox Church in the face of this phenomenon lies in the fact that all countries must find the strength to overcome the ideological, cultural, political factors that separate them in order to be able to create a common front for the fight against terrorism. "After the events of September 11, 2001 in Manhattan, it became clear to many that this phenomenon should be fought together. Unfortunately, we do not see progress in this respect now, and the main countries that could deal a crushing blow to terrorism can not organize common actions. Some suspect that the reason is someone's attempts to use terrorism for their own political purposes. This is not just an erroneous, but very dangerous policy, and we already know what happened in this regard in a number of countries. " The Russian Orthodox Church, which is the Church of the Majority in a multinational state, attaches great importance to the development of interstate and interreligious dialogue to create a common front for the fight against terrorism, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill recalled. "We hoped that such a front would be created during the military operations in Syria against terrorists, but, unfortunately, this did not happen," stated His Holiness. "The Russian military and space forces, together with the government troops, have been doing their job and, as you know, very successfully. But other countries, having united in a coalition, did some kind of their work. The mere presence of two powerful armed groups in this territory that did not have the general coordination was an enormous challenge. There was a risk of large-scale military actions, any mistake could lead to a direct clash of representatives of nuclear powers. When I sensed this danger, I suggested to Pope Francis to meet immediately, although never in the whole history of the Patriarch of Moscow did he meet with the Pope ". His Holiness pointed out that during the meeting held in Havana, it was possible to agree on very important positions. "First of all, we drew attention to the dangerous situation that prevailed in Syria," the Patriarch emphasized. "Our common understanding is that those who are against terror should fight terrorism together, coordinating actions. From the fire of terrorism, you can not carry coals in your favor - this is a very dangerous and completely erroneous approach. " His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia mentioned that he recalled with gratitude the conversation with King Abdullah II of Jordan, held in 2012 shortly before the tragic events that subsequently broke out in Syria and Iraq. "I recall your story about interreligious relations in the territory of Jordan, about the peaceful coexistence of religions there," continued the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. - I was happy to see all this personally. In your country, both Orthodox and Muslims feel at home and on an equal footing, equal opportunities are open to them. " His Holiness also touched upon the current topic of the agenda for the reconstruction of the victims of the armed confrontation between Syria and Iraq, informing the interlocutor that the Russian Orthodox Church, together with the Russian Orthodox public organizations, rendered considerable humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people during the hostilities. "Since in Russia the Orthodox have very good relations with Muslims and Jews, we proposed that at the current stage this assistance be implemented jointly, so that Orthodox, Muslims, Jews, and representatives of other faiths can participate in these actions, which initially carried out only one Russian Church. And you can see that this expands the possibilities of rendering assistance and evokes in people more confidence in the organized actions, "said His Holiness Patriarch Kirill. His Holiness expressed hope that the process, initiated by the Congress of the Syrian National Dialogue in Sochi, is being implemented into concrete decisions. "We pray for the process to be successful, but we also understand that not everything is finished in terms of fighting terrorism in Syria and Iraq. There are events that are alarming, for example, unexpected shelling, including attempts to shell religious buildings. We are deeply convinced that the hardest stage of confrontation is behind us; now there is a lot to do to settle the situation in Syria and Iraq peacefully, "the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church said, thanking the monarch for his position on the issues raised. His Holiness noted the high level of interreligious dialogue and cooperation in Jordan, efforts to maintain it on the part of King Abdullah II, which follows the tradition of his parent, King Hussein. "You have not only strengthened this remarkable tradition, but have also developed very much already with reference to the challenges and problems of today," he said. Patriarch Kirill also shared his memories of visiting Jordan and meeting with King Hussein. Thanking His Holiness the Patriarch for the warm greeting, Jordan King Abdullah II said: "I was glad to hear your position regarding the challenges we face. To overcome them, we must join forces. Today's meeting gives me an opportunity to see again the confirmation of how strong the position of the Russian Orthodox Church is not only here, in Russia, but also in the world. Given the challenges that you mentioned, it's time for all of us to stand shoulder to shoulder and talk about what unites us, stressing that the covenant of loving your Lord and your neighbor are the principles that unite us all, "the high guest . "Now your voice is needed more than ever in our part of the world," said King Abdullah II, addressing the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. "As you rightly pointed out, we are now fighting the terrible challenge that has hit the world - with international terrorism," the monarch continued. - As far as I understand, Russia started this fight much earlier than any of us. I must say that now this problem, this global challenge applies not only to the whole world, but, in particular, to the Christian communities in our region, in particular, in Palestine, and especially in Jerusalem. " "Orthodox Christianity was part of our past, is part of our present and must be preserved as part of our future. If we fail to achieve this, we will all have to pay a high price, "the King of Jordan stressed. He highly appreciated the role that the Russian Orthodox Church plays in Syria, helping the victims of the war and all the oppressed and weak. "We in Jordan also host our Christian brothers from Iraq and Syria who are fleeing from the threat of violence," the high guest noted, noting that his country not only helps forced people to leave their homes for Christians, but also helps to create conditions for the return of refugees back to their homes, communities that have many centuries of history. In particular, King Abdullah II mentioned that Jordan and Russia have managed to establish close cooperation in the matter of supporting the process of restoring peace and stability in Syria. "To paraphrase the old saying, one can say: in order for evil to triumph, it is enough that good people do nothing," stressed the monarch. "We must unite and overcome together the problems that we faced." At the end of the meeting, the parties exchanged souvenirs.