Hegumeness of the Ferapontov Monastery mother Seraphim

Hegumeness of the Ferapontov Monastery mother Seraphim  Orthodox life On May 29, 1918, the God-fighting government looted the Ferapontov Monastery, which is twenty kilometers from the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. They took everything: all the edibles, the flour did not leave a pinch, and also everything that they considered valuable. Over sisters mocked. It is monstrous that the locals took part in this atrocity. The sisters were ordered to move out of the monastery. A few months later (September 15), the abbess of the monastery was shot by Seraphim's mother ... Преподобномученица Серафи́ма (Сулимова), Ферапонтовская и Леушинская, игумения In the first days after the February Revolution of 1917, the province’s connection with the capital was almost broken. Only scanty and fragmentary information about extraordinary events in the country came to Novgorod from St. Petersburg. Started fermentation in the army, there were anarchic sentiments in the rear. The October coup was the beginning of the destruction of Orthodox Russia. The incident that took place in the Ferapontov Monastery in May 1918 served as a push to the massacre in the Kirillov district. This episode was described in detail in a local Bolshevik newspaper. But more reliably he himself stated abbess of the Seraphim in his report, sent to the name of the Novgorod Metropolitan Arseny. She was supplemented by a local deanie priest Alexander Fomin, rector of the neighboring Ilyinskaya church in the Tsypinsky churchyard, with his report. What happened in 1918? In early May, the Kirillovsky executive committee decided to make an inventory of all the church property of the monasteries. The arrival of the commission was expected in Ferapontov too. However, unlike other Belozero cloisters, Ferapontovskaya was founded on the basis of the parish, and all property was divided into parish and monastic, and, moreover, the church property belonged to the parish. This meant that without members of the parish council, that is, the peasants, it was impossible to produce a new inventory. The peasants were aggressively disposed, and when the commission members arrived, they met them with hostility, and only the persuasions of the priest John Ivanov did not allow bloodshed. The crowd sent the commissioned members of the commission, threatening them with violence. Two days later, Father John was arrested by the Red Army men for “inciting” the peasants. At the same time he was summoned to the investigative commission of the abbess of the Seraphim. She had to stay in Kirillov at the monastery compound under house arrest. Mother was deprived of the right to leave the city before the investigation, as if for complicity in resisting the commission’s actions. And Father John “for pogrom propaganda against the Soviet government and against the commission on registration of the monasteries of Kirillov district” was imprisoned. “On the eve of my departure to Kirillov for interrogation, that is, on May 11, writes Abbess Seraphim in a report, about 40 people from the closest two villages came to me and demanded the keys to all the monastery's pantries to inspect all food supplies. I obeyed their request, gave them all the keys, and they went to inspect and search in the presence of the commissioner; and almost everything that was found was taken away. ” On the second day a huge crowd of people, a man, a woman, and even children, appeared. They made a real pogrom: "We went to the sisters' cells, attics, penetrated everywhere, cracked chests, broke breakdowns and abducted everything that came to hand ... Threatened to disperse all sisters, causing them various insults." Because of the unrest, some sisters began to go home. The parish council began to persuade the sisters to remain in their places, promising not to cause any more insults and harassment. The Kirillov executive committee sent two Red Army soldiers to guard. Ферапонтов монастырь From May 11, Mother Seraphim continued to be under house arrest in Kirillov, and her father John was transferred to the Cherepovets prison in June, from where he had not returned. Divine services in the Ferapontov Monastery stopped because there was no one to serve. The priest sat in the dungeons, only deacon Michael Tsvetaev remained. The sisters visited the abbess Seraphim, but in order to manage the abode in such anxious days they especially did not have mother. The senior nuns, including the nun Nina, sister of the abbess, as well as the novice Alexander Samoilova, the clerk, were temporarily in charge of the affairs. From the stories of the sisters, the abbess in the farmstead was visited by the Bishop of Cyril Varsonofy (Lebedev). Once during a meeting, when he was told about the possibility of a currently tragic outcome, he remarked: “I’m not afraid of violent death, but I don’t dare to think that the Lord would find me worthy of a martyr's death.” The case of the murder of a communist In the fall of September 11, a Communist Kostyunichev was killed by unknown persons in the village of Sosunovo. Andrei Iudovich Kostyunichev was the chairman of the Council of the poor, he organized a surplus in the county. Late in the evening, when he was at home, a gun shot rang out the window from the street, from which he fell dead. Who shot, remains unknown. Three Kostyunich relatives and two namesakes from the same village were arrested on suspicion. Two trials took place. The first court adopted a resolution on the need to investigate the case, since there was not enough evidence against the arrested. And the second court, without conducting any additional investigations, sentenced all three to death. But, taking into account that the defendants are “irresponsible peasants”, the tribunal found it possible to soften the sentence, subjecting them to 15 years of forced labor at the Cherepovets concentration camp. The hastiness of the court, the rigging of the testimony and the speeches of the “public prosecutor from the party”, everything was adjusted to one plan. There was a letter from the Cherepovets provincial committee of the party that the case concerns a party member, then it must have a political tinge, that is, that there was a conspiracy “as a communist”. While the fate of the suspects was being decided, meanwhile, reprisals were being committed against people who had nothing to do with the case. The assassination and the subsequent trial were typical provocations of the time to launch repression against the clergy. For human logic, the system of payment for other people's atrocities hostages is absolutely unbelievable, but it didn’t fit into revolutionary logic: those suspected of murder are still alive and the investigation continues, and innocent people are taken hostage by the arbitrariness of the enemies and executed on the 4th day. Shooting The provocative shot was followed by the decision of the Revtribunal: “To respond to the murder of communist Andrei Kostyunichev with a red terror, namely: apart from impudent murderers and conspirators, to put to death from among 52 hostages ... 37 people.” The local newspaper, Izvestia of Workers', Peasants and Red Army Deputies, posted a note about Kostyunichev’s funeral, concluding in ominous words: “For every head of an honest fighter, thousands of your heads will be torn down”. On the day of the communist's funeral, on September 15, a bloody sacrifice was offered. The night before, on the way from the Goritsky Monastery, Bishop of Kirillov Varsonof was arrested. For Abbess Seraphim in Ferapontov monastery sent a cart with a guard. At one in the morning mother was taken to prison, and at 5 o'clock they were all taken to execution. Together with Vladyka and Abbess, four hostages were led to execution: two citizens and two peasants. Walked along the old Goritsa road. Mother limped, walked with a wand. At the second milestone, the punishers were ordered to turn to the right, where there was a training shooting range on the Zolotukha hill. Vladyka Varsonofy, who was ahead, glancing at the steep mountainside, said: - Here is our Calvary. Преподобномученица Серафи́ма (Сулимова), Ферапонтовская и Леушинская, игумения Hegumeness Seraphim shaken. She believed that the arrested were being led to the Goritsky quay in order to be put on a steamer and taken to the Cherepovets prison, where they sent priest John. She did not quite believe that they would be executed without trial. The bishop extended his hand, supported her, and said: - Mother, cheer up! You are a spiritual person, we have to go to death without fear, as if to a wedding feast, with joy. The time will come when you and I will be jealous. The weakness passed, and the abbess calmly, with peace of soul, went to the place of execution. Put face to the mountain, his back to the executioners. Turning to the murderers, mother said, as she told the sisters of the monastery every day after the evening prayers: - Forgive me, damned. It was heard to the punishers that she called them cursed, and they shot at the mother, got in the face. Another five volleys burst out. All fell, but they could not get to the Bishop while he was reading prayers on the outcome of the soul. He was last executed when he finished praying and lowered his hands. They put all the executed martyrs in the same grave, which they forced to dig the hostages-merchants, the next victims of the revolution. Of the 52 persons identified in the Kirillovskaya Cheka county as hostages, 15 were left under arrest in prison until the next “counterrevolutionary” case. The pit was dug at the foot of Mount Zolotukha at a distance of about 50 fathoms from the road. It was not done above this common grave of a common knoll, and the Cross was not set, only a caring hand of someone decorated the grave with flowers. This is how the member of the Diocesan Council, VN, sent from Novgorod described the place of execution. Dates Laity-martyrs Together with Vladyka and the Abbess, four laity were martyred. They were among the 37 "White Guards" sentenced to death by the Kirillovsky Cheka. Who was the rest and what their fate is unknown. The names of those executed on Zolotukha were called by the editorial of the newspaper of the Kirillov sovdep in the “Announcements” section. In more detail the Cherepovets newspaper “Izvestia of the Cherepovets provincial and district Soviets of workers, peasants and Red Army deputies” informed the citizens about the events in Kirilov: “ The names of those executed in Kirillov : 1. Bishop of Kirillov Varsonofy, 48 years old. In the world, Vasily Pavlovich Lebedev, Borovichsky district, Novgorod province, Belavinskaya volost, Pogost of Starukhino. The aristocratic French bomb was found at the Bishop during the arrest. 2. Hegumeness of the Ferapontov Monastery Seraphim, 60 years old, in the world Elizaveta Nikolaevna Sulimova, a citizen of Ustyuzhna, Cherepovetsky district. 3. Nikolai Ignatievich Burlakov, 29 years old, a citizen of the city of Kirillov, a former public official of the Cyril city council, a trainee technician. Immediately implicated in a conspiracy against Kostyunichev. 4. Anatoly Andreevich Barashkov, 48 years old, a citizen of the parish of Ferapontovsky, Gridino village, Kirillov district, village fist. 5. Mikhail Dormidontovich Trubnikov, 63 years old, a former nobleman, a retired captain of the 2nd rank, a former magistrate judge, Zemsky head. Immediately implicated in a conspiracy against Kostyunichev. 6. Philip Kirillovich Maryshev, 54 years old, a citizen of the Kirillov volost, the village of Malino, a trader ”. The mention in the newspaper of the involvement of Nikolai Burlakov and Mikhail Trubnikov in the killing of Kostyunichev is an obvious fiction. And the postscript of a French-style bomb allegedly found during the arrest of Vladyka looks completely ridiculous. This misunderstanding is revealed in the following phrase in the newspaper, where the executed are compared with the sharks of Anglo-Franco-American imperialism. A little later, in the memoirs of the Chairman of the Kirillovskaya Cheka, E.A. Volkov will be a story about a cache with 125 rifles, allegedly found in the chambers of Bishop Varsonophia along with a list of 125 activists. About the general atmosphere of those days in the Kirillov district, A.I. Anisimov, the witness of those events and the companion of Vladyka Varsonofy in his last trip before the arrest. In a letter to the famous restorer I.E. Alexander Ivanovich Grabar wrote: “Life here, and earlier unhappy, turned into a nightmare: you feel locked up in a cramped menagerie, where you are forced to experience all the horrors of a neighborhood with creatures that have no name.” The communist’s funeral on the day of the execution of the martyrs turned into an ominous triumph. Instead of a quiet grief about the dead peasant Kostyunichev, there was a call to shed new blood of the enemies of the revolution. As at the demonstration, there was an agitated crowd with posters and banners, the salute of the Red Army guard sounded. Above the grave was given an oath of bloody revenge. The executioners not only outraged the bodies of their victims, not allowing them to be buried according to the Christian rite, but also mocked two days, tearing and burying the grave, not allowing them to perform the funeral service according to the appointed order. And in the Bolshevik newspaper published a blasphemous epitaph on Mikhail Trubnikov. Although materials that reveal the role of lay martyrs have not been found yet, one can be sure that what happened was not an accident, that it was martyrdom for the faith. It is noteworthy that in 1879 the Novgorod Diocesan Gazette reported that the Kirillovsk district police officer Dorimedont Trubnikov, the father of the murdered Mikhail Trubnikov, built a wooden chapel in his estate with his own money, for which he received the Bishop's blessing. The day of execution on September 15, 1918 (September 2, old style) was on Sunday, when the Orthodox Church commemorates the third century martyrs Mamant, his father Theodotus and mother Rufina, who died in prison for confessing the Christian faith. In prison and born Mamant, who followed his parents in the feat of martyrdom. The lad was cruelly tortured in the eyes of thousands of circus spectators. On the same day, another 3,628 martyrs of the 3rd-4th centuries, who arrived in Nicomedia with their wives and children, are commemorated in order to testify their unshakable faith in Christ to the persecutor of Christians. In the 20th century, persecution of believers took place differently, they were not thrown to the lions and they were not fried alive on the fire, but they also dealt with Christians mercilessly. However, Christians are not of this world. And where, seemingly, an irreparable tragedy happens and evil triumphs, a completely opposite in its deep meaning occurs. Sadness turns to joy. In 1918, the townspeople Kirillov and two monasteries lost their spiritual mentors, but we acquired new prayer books. They sacrificed themselves for the sins of men, and thus became like Christ himself. They followed the Gospel image of the grain thrown into the ground: “if the wheat grain, falling into the ground, does not die, then there will be one; but if it dies, it will bear much fruit ”(The Gospel of John, chapter 12, verse 24).

New Martyrs of the Serbian Golgotha

New Martyrs of the Serbian Golgotha Orthodox life Jasenovac (Croatian. Jasenovac) - a system of death camps, created by the Ustashes (Croatian fascists) in August 1941. It was located on the territory of the Independent Croatian State, which cooperated with Nazi Germany, 60 km from Zagreb. Вукашин из старинного рода Мандрап Vukashin from the old Mandrap family Even the Nazis were terrified of the brutal treatment of prisoners. The new martyrs Yasenovatsky are Orthodox prisoners in Croatia, who were martyred in 1941-1944. According to various testimonies, during the Second World War, thousands of Orthodox Serbs were killed in the dungeons of Jasenovac, many of whom died for loyalty to Orthodoxy. The Bishops' Council of the Serbian Orthodox Church glorified the Cathedral of the New Martyrs of Jasenovac. Their names are included in the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church with the establishment of the celebration of their memory on August 31 (September 13). Vuksan-Vukan-Vuk is an Orthodox Serb from the Serbian Herzegovina, the village of Klepatz, located on the eastern bank of the Neretva River. In Kleptsa, there was an old church, the beginning of the 16th century, the church of the Holy Apostle Luke - the well-known Serbian church builder Miloradovic, and the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord (to the ground, just like the village itself, destroyed by the Croats in 1992). Elder Vukashin came from the Mandrap clan, was probably born at the end of the 19th century, grew up in his native village, matured, and went to work in the capital of Bosnia - Sarajevo. With the advent of the new government - the Independent State of Croatia, Vuk was forced to return to his native village, but Croatian ustashi, Roman Catholics got to those parts, the whole Vukashin family suffered from their terrible violence over Serbian lands, as well as many other Orthodox Serbian families , and he himself, along with the other surviving Serbs, was hijacked into the famous concentration camp for the Serbs - Jasenovac. In January 1943, Vukashin was brutally murdered by Ustashsky executioner Zhila Fryganovich. The murderer, noticing an old peasant who with some incomprehensible, wise calmness watched the atrocities of the executioners, decided to crush this inexplicable peace, he took him aside, put him on the edge of a freshly dug pit into which disfigured half-dead people were dumped, and demanded to shout: “Long live Pavelic!” (Head of NDH - approx. Lane.). The old man was quietly silent, then the brutal murderer grabbed a knife, cut off both ears and nose to him, then again demanded to give praise to Pavelic, threatening to pull Vukashin’s heart alive if he were silent. Казнь в лагере Ясеновац Execution in the Jasenovac camp The blessed martyr, calmly glancing at his tormentor, quietly but distinctly said: “Do your child, child”. Such an answer and heavenly peace, reflected on the face of the holy martyr, brought the killer into a frenzy: beside himself with anger, he cut out his heart, put out his eyes, cut his throat ... Until his last breath, Vukashin kept the world in Christ’s soul, his last movement was the sign of the cross, for which the executioner cut off his arm, and himself, in a frenzy by throwing a knife, fell already into the pit while he was alive. The frescoes depicting the new martyr are located in the monastery of St. Archangel Gabriel in Zemun, in the center of Belgrade, in the St. John the Baptist monastery of Ostrog monastery (Jovan Dol), his face is depicted among the most honored saints of the Zakhum-Herzegovina diocese on the icon, written for the 780th anniversary of the diocese. The testimony of the executioner (recorded by Dr. Nedo Zetsem) ... Ustash, telling me this story, again fell silent; then, having finished a glass of raki, he continued: - Remember, then, in August, there was a large influx of prisoners in the camp? Then Jere Maricic sent about three thousand prisoners to the extermination, and we - Pero Brzitsa, Zrinushich, Shipka and I - argued who would interrupt more in the night. The slaughter began, after an hour by the number of those killed, I noticeably detached from the others. That night I was on the rise, it seemed to me that I seemed to be taken off the ground, that I was in heaven: I had never felt such bliss before. Within a few hours, I killed more than a thousand people, while my rivals stabbed no more than 300-400. And then, at the moment of supreme ecstasy, my gaze fell on an elderly peasant, he stood with some inexplicable calm and silently watched me kill the victim for the victim and how they die in terrible agony. His gaze seemed to paralyze me, I seemed to have turned to stone, for a few seconds I could not move. Then, I pulled myself together and approached him to find out who he was. He said that his name was Vukashin, a native of the village of Klepatz, that all his relatives died from the Ustasha, and he himself was sent to Yasenovac. He spoke about this with the same calm that shocked me much more than the terrible screams and groans of people dying around us. When I listened to the old man, looking into his sky-clean eyes, an indomitable desire suddenly flashed in me with the most cruel, hellish torture to destroy this inner peace beyond my comprehension, so that his suffering, moans and agony would return his former rapture with blood and pain. I put him out of action, first put him on a stump and ordered him to shout: “Long live Pavelic!”, Threatening to cut off his ear in case of disobedience. Vukashin was silent. Мучение святого Вукашина Ясеновацкого I cut off his ear. He did not utter a word. I again ordered him to shout: “Long live Pavelic!”, Threatening to cut off the second ear. He was silent. I cut off his other ear. “Shout:“ Long live Pavelic! ”Or lose your nose!”. The old man was silent. For the fourth time, I ordered him to shout the same words under the threat of cutting out a living heart from his chest. He looked, as if looking through me, into some kind of infinity, and quietly but distinctly said: “Child, do your work!”. From these words, I was completely distraught, rushed at him, gouged out my eyes, cut out my heart, cut my throat, and shoved my legs into a hole. And then something seemed to break in me. I could no longer kill. Perot Brzitsa won the argument by killing 1,350 prisoners, I silently paid him a loss. Since then, there is no rest for me. I began to drink, more and more, but alcohol gives oblivion for a while, and even intoxicated, I hear this voice: “Child, do your work!”. And then I, bumping into the walls of houses, running through the streets, shouting and crushing and beating everything that comes my way, throwing myself at anyone. There is no sleep at night, only oblivion will come, I again see the old man’s clear gaze and hear this unbearable: “Child, do your work!”. I turned into a bundle of horror and pain, I am powerless before this nightmare. Day and night I am haunted by the bright, serene face of Vukashin from Klepts. Drzava Hrvatska is independent - fascism on the Serbian land The future martyr happened to live in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH - Nezavisna Drzhava Hrvatska). It was a Nazi formation, formed with the help of Hitler's Germany and Italy Mussolini, with the blessing of Pope Pius XII, on the territory of Yugoslavia - Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina - immediately after the capture of Yugoslavia by the Nazi troops. NDH entered the history of unprecedented atrocities committed by Croats against the Serbs, Jews and Gypsies. During the Second World War, about 2 million Serbs were killed in NDH. In NDH, the Serbs were outlawed - with the help of the Catholic Church, under the leadership of Archbishop Aloysius Stepinets, whom Pope John Paul II later counted as saints, the planned policy of extermination of Serbs was monstrous in scale: they could be killed, tortured, expelled from houses, take away property ... Of the numerous concentration camps, the most famous was Jasenovac, in which 700,000 people died. Vukashin from the old Mandrap family Vukashin was descended from the Herzegovian clan Mandrap, which had its branch in Sarajevo (the capital of Bosnia), the ancient beautiful Mandrap mansion on Milos Obilic street is well known. Mandrapa - an ancient wealthy merchant Sarajevo genus. They became famous as benefactors and defenders of church estates and the church of the holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel, the so-called 15th century Serbian Orthodox Church, and was the oldest building in Sarajevo. The sons of the old Chicha Mandrapa - Chedo and Dobrilo, twenty and twenty-five years old, from April - May 1941, were associated with "forests", that is, with armed folk detachments defending Serbian villages and those places in which Serbs were hiding from Ustashsky terror and genocide, which began in May 1941 in the vicinity of Sarajevo. Both of them suffered in Yasenovtsa, in the same place where their uncle is Saint Vukashin. Until the 70s, only Mandrapa’s son Bogdan survived, a severely disabled person and Slavka’s daughter, a teacher. Her son, grandson of Chicha Mandrapa in the eighties, worked as a librarian in the People’s (University) Library - “Venitsa”, which would later be filmed and shown in world media reports as “an object turned into ruins by Serbian grenades from Trebevich”, but in fact burned down in a fire, it was burned to destroy a huge accusatory archive about the past of Sarajevo and about the coexistence of three religious communities (that is, four, including the Jewish). особняк Мандрапа на улице Милоша Обилича Mandrap's mansion on Milos Obilic street is a vivid example of urban architecture of 18-19 centuries. (it resembles the Manaka house in Belgrade, and even more the house in which the “Sign of Question” cafe is now located, opposite the cathedral in Belgrade), was to become a monument of ethnic culture and be under state protection. In this house he lived and worked (doing business) and the future holy martyr. He was highly respected as a zealous defender of the possessions of the Serbian Orthodox Church on Bash-Charshiya (a large well-known district of Sarajevo), and therefore this temple and all Serbian Sarajevo have good reasons to glorify Saint Vukashin, the servant of God and servant of the Archangels as his heavenly protector and patron. Together with him, in the old church, Chedo, Dobro and other members of the Mandrap family served as singers and readers. And may the Lord grant that today the temple and the Serbian Sarajevo should be preserved by the icon and the faith of St. Vukashin of Yasesenovka, Klepatsky, Herzegovina, Sarajevo, Serbian and Pan-Orthodox! Until the last breath, he preserved the peace of Christ in his soul, and his last movement was “the sign of the cross of the cross” (criss one three prstas), for which the executioner and cut off his hand ... Let this sign of the cross of Saint Vukashin Yasenovatsky hover over this tormented people as a blessing and peace, peace of Christ, for only "this you shall conquer"! Conspiracy of silence The saint remained in Sarajevo until about June (possibly July) of 1941, when many other famous people had already begun to leave the city, who went to Serbia, where there was no genocide, who fled to the “forest”! Saint Vukashin took refuge in the "forests", in Herzegovina (but of course, not among the partisans, then they were simply not there yet). Since then, the relatives of the saint have lost contact with him and did not know anything about him. The first news of his martyrdom, the greatness of his testimony of Christ, came to Sarajevo only after the war from Dr. Nedelko Nedo Zec. Dr. Zec brought the message to the house of the surviving members of the Mandrap family (Bogdan and Slavka) when he came to them to the Cross Glory in 1946 . Thanks to this meeting, the news of the saint appears around 1946, and not only in Sarajevo, but also in Mostar and Chaplin. The whole family, the entire Mandrapov clan was considered martyr, and, knowing the atrocious crimes of the NDH over the Serbs and Jews, the Titovian police in Sarajevo did not dare touch the house of the Mandrapas, but the holy Vukashin was not spoken aloud, just like Yasenitsa himself - an unhealed wound of thousands Sarajevo families (and thousands of families throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina). Immediately after the war in Sarajevo met the surviving prisoners - "prisoners" Yasenovtsa. They were either Yasesenovka “artisans” who were in a separate part of the camp and were carrying out handicraft work for the nearest Ustash garrison, or prisoners who were “lucky” that the Germans took them from the Ustashi, and they were briefly delayed in Yasenovtsa on the way to Germany. The purpose of the surviving prisoners was to compile general memories of Jasenovc in order to confirm the facts of torture as far as possible. Camp look at the Serbian history We, the former prisoners of Yasenovts, understood in the fortieth war years that for our enemies we are all “campers”, a camp nation. Our military "allies" will show us in 1944 and 1989–1999 that for them we are a people whose history is characterized by a camp, and not by liberation uprisings and military victories. Лагерь Ясеновац Camp Jasenovac Therefore, for the Serbian history, along with the partisan, military and liberation experience, it is necessary to study and highlight the experience of the camp, so that it becomes part of our faith, our soul, a sign of the vitality of the people! Holy Elder Vukashin of Klepts is the camp consciousness of Serbian history, our living faith, our Witness and Protector before the Lord Christ. With him, we will always remember that “This world is a tyrant for a tyrant, and even more so for noble souls!” political decisions. The village of Klepatz was destroyed by the Croats in 1992, together with the Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Memorial Day of the martyr Wu Kasha of Klepts - May 29th . Troparion, voice 8: New Serbian Passion Tear, Vukashin Hercegovatsky, Christ's sake in Jasenovac camp. When the torturer with your knife tormented you, Humbly answer thou art to him: "Do, child, your work!". For the sake of life, eternal torment, Pray, martyr, Christ of God, our Savior Save us and our kind of Orthodox.

Priest-martyr Alexander (Petrovsky), Archbishop of Kharkov brooklyn - church.org

Holy Martyr Alexander Archbishop of Kharkov  Education Priest-martyr Alexander (Petrovsky), Archbishop of Kharkov Priest-martyr Alexander (Petrovsky), Archbishop of Kharkov Alexander Feofanovich Petrovsky was born on August 23, 1851 in the city of Lutsk, Volyn Province (formerly Poland) in the family of a deacon. After graduating from the 4th grade of the Volyn seminary, he entered the law faculty of the university, where he received an excellent secular education. He lived with his mother, whom he loved very much. After her death, the young man received complete freedom and some means. Spree. He led a life that often came home at three or four in the morning. Then one day, returning home, he lay down in his room. Only one curtain separated his room from the room of his late mother, where everything remained as it was. And he sees: the curtain opens, his mother enters and says to him: “Leave it all and go to the monastery!” This vision influenced the young man so much that he drastically changed his way of life, and soon, in 1900, he really took the veil in the Moscow Donskoy Monastery, where he was ordained a hieromonk. Later he was appointed governor of the Donskoy Monastery and elevated to the rank of archimandrite. Since 1903, performing the housekeeper and treasurer of the Turkestan episcopal home, he was a member of the Turkestan Teachers Council, the Consistory and the Imperial Palestinian Society. In 1906, Archimandrite Alexander accepted an appointment as treasurer of the Zhirovitsky Assumption Monastery, and in 1910 became the prior of the Lubensky Monastery. In 1911, after the glorification of St. Ioasaf of Belgorod, he organized a procession from the Lubensky monastery to Belgorod, in which several hundred people participated. From 1917 for two years, he reigned at the Pskovo-Pechersky Monastery, and in 1919 became the head of the skete church of the former Kozelschansk nunnery on the River Psel in the Poltava province. A skete was formed when the Kozelschansky monastery itself and all the temples nearby were closed. 12 priests served in the skete who found refuge here after the closure of their churches. There were wonderful people among them - devotees, singers, preachers. When the church existed printing house, icon-painting workshop. The headman with great difficulty managed to defend the monastery, and in fact a lot of people gathered here from the whole area. The service was performed fervently, according to the statute, the vigil lasted for at least four hours and passed with great enthusiasm. Father Alexander was especially concerned with the improvement of folk singing. “Sing it all!” He addressed the people, and all those praying along with the choir sang the famous prayers of the all-night vigil or the Liturgy. The father himself possessed an excellent tenor, loved singing and knew how to inspire people. The witness writes that it is impossible to forget how an akathist served in the hermitage of the Life-Giving Tomb of Christ the Savior. The chorus resounded in a powerful chorus: "Rejoice, Life-giving Tomb, from which Christ is risen!" In 1932, after the temple was closed, Fr. Alexander went to Kiev, where on October 30 he was consecrated as bishop of Uman, vicar of the Kiev diocese, and on August 25, 1933 he was appointed Bishop of Vinnitsa. In 1934, he was a member of the Temporary Patriarchal Holy Synod under the Deputy Patriarchal Locum Tenens Metropolitan Sergius (Stragorodsky). On May 20, 1937, Metropolitan Konstantin (Dyakov) entrusted Vladyka Alexander to administer the Kharkov Diocese. Here he quickly gained universal love. He was a man unusually lively, sociable and affectionate, he knew how to combine his resilience with an amazing endurance, which was manifested in everything. So, for example, he was not satisfied with the routine he found in Kharkov. He was used to inspired solemn service, but did not break anything, and once, at Easter, he gave a demonstration lesson. On the first and second day they served, as usual, and on the third service they did not expect it - everyone was at work. Vladyka appealed to the people and the choir not to depart from the holy custom established by the Church — to celebrate the festive services all three days: “Let us rejoice in the Lord.” Despite the working day, the church turned out to be overcrowded with people. The festive service began, but the chorus, as usual, began to sing quickly, did not repeat all the festive chants. Vladyka addressed the people: “Sing it all!” - and all the people began to sing the Easter canon. And the choir, at first being taken aback, picked up the singing and began to lead it, so that the service passed with such a prayer enthusiasm as never before. After the service, Vladyka especially thanked the choir members, and those (some with 30 years of experience) later said that there had never been such a blessed service in their lives and never the bishop expressed gratitude to them so warmly. ... One after another began to close the church in Kharkov. Finally, only the Nicholas Church on Cold Mountain remained open to the entire Kharkiv region. She was on the outskirts of the city, people everywhere going there without much concern. Vladyka himself came by cab from the other end of the city 5 km away. Once, the order of the authorities to divide the church with renovationists came to the St. Nicholas Church, where Bishop Alexander served, so that the Orthodox bishop served with the clergy on one Sunday, the renovationists to another. The flock was strongly opposed. At the end of the messengers they decided to give one of the aisles to the renovationists, separating it with a wall from the rest of the church. After 2 weeks, the wall was erected, despite the outrage and prohibition of the authorities. No more than 40 people attended the “church-living” services - the organizers of this parish, although there were clergy and an excellent choir who received a decent salary. And there were so many people in the Nicholas church itself that the communion lasted several hours, and before the beginning of the vigil it was necessary to perform many baptisms (up to one hundred and twenty). People came from distant places and patiently idle long services. Vladyka often talked about singing during the pleading litany: “You will not even ask a person so that he will give, does it ask so coldly? Sing everything: “Lord, give me a hand!” And when the thousandth crowd with one mouth, with one heart, began to sing, such a prayer was heard in the temple, about which they now have little idea. Sociability, liveliness of character, heart gentleness were combined in the saint with wisdom, ability to easily resolve conflicts, reconcile and inspire people. The common fate of the adherents for the truth of the Church and Vladyka Alexander did not pass. He felt this and asked his spiritual children not to lose heart: “No matter what further, hold on, keep on holding yourself.” He told his friends that he was the last bishop in southern Russia. On June 20, 1938, Archbishop Alexander was arrested by the UNKVD on charges of counter-revolutionary propaganda and agitation, and on July 17, 1939, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison in Kholodnogorsk prison by a military tribunal of the Kharkov Military District. This was a great event for the prison when they brought him in - a tall, handsome old man. He was met with respect by the prisoners. But here he stayed for a short time: on May 24, 1940, at the age of 89, his life ended. How? God alone knows. From among the prison staff said he was strangled. The documents show that in May 1940, the old body of an old man’s corpse with the number on its leg and a document with the name Petrovsky, with the order to bury, was brought from the incurable hospital of the NKVD to the morgue of Kharkov. A former subdeacon of lord and doorkeeper who later became a priest (Archpriest Joachim Orekhov) who had worked in the morgue, immediately identified Archbishop Alexander. He was shaven and shaved, but his majestic look set him apart from hundreds of corpses miserable in his nakedness. But suddenly a prescription was received from the prison: the body of Petrovsky should be returned immediately, as it was sent by mistake. Having tied the number from the body of the Lord to the body of one of the rootless ones, they sent the latter with Petrovsky's documents to prison. At night, the monks and close devotees of the martyr clothed him in his bishop robe and performed a funeral service. The coffin was taken out in the early morning, but the whole street was crowded with people, mostly flashing white kerchiefs of the sisters of Kozelschansk monastery. With crying, with the sign of the cross, dropping to her knees, met the crowd with a coffin cart. The driver quickly drove the horses. Vladyka was buried behind the Cold Mountain in the cemetery of the village Zelutina. For many years, the tomb of the saint was a place of prayer and pilgrimage ... After the arrest and death of the Lord of the service continued. On Palm Sunday, the spring of 1941 was the last service. Already for the service of Lent imposed a tax of 125 thousand. Have paid. But in the "fifty," which was responsible for the church fell thieves and enemies of the Church. Announced that due to illness the service will not be. The priests were, but had no right to serve, besides who was officially assigned to the temple. They collected a new tax of 120 thousand for Passion Week. But, apparently, the money did not reach the destination. There was no service, but it was announced that there would be a service of the passions of the Lord on Thursday. An enormous crowd of eight thousand gathered. Police arrived. But the order was not broken. The church was closed. There was a service for live stockings, but there was no one there except the "forgings", none of those who had gathered went there. And now the full service of the twelve Gospels on the square was performed - secretly. Ahead stood numerous priests without vestments, surrounded by a close crowd of worshipers. They read the relevant Gospels about themselves, and then they heard: “Glory to Your passion, Lord,” and all the chants were sung by the people themselves. The voices were made to one another, the blessing was given in secret. People stood with candles. The weather was wonderful, quiet ... “Go home,” was said after the end of the service. It was immediately promised that the service would be at Easter. More people gathered, it was also outside the temple. There were no more services before the Trinity. During this time, managed to throw out of the fifty pests at a general meeting in the presence of the authorities. The old priest disappeared without a trace. He agreed to go one priest, who served as an accountant, long pulled with his postscript. The first service took place on the third day of the Trinity. Although it was a working day, mass pilgrims gathered again. But this priest was mobilized and taken to the army. Before the arrival of the Germans, there were no more services ... Priest-martyr Alexander Petrovsky Priest-martyr Alexander Petrovsky February 10, 1993, Archbishop Alexander (Petrovsky) was rehabilitated. In the memory of Orthodox Kharkiv, Archbishop Alexander remained a zealous archpastor and defender of the Holy Orthodox Church. His grave is esteemed especially, it is always decorated with fresh flowers. At the Jubilee Council of Bishops of 2000, the general church glorification of the martyr Alexander was held. His holy name, along with the names of thousands of new martyrs and confessors of our land, was communicated to the Primates of the Local Churches for inclusion in the month. With the blessing of Metropolitan of Kharkov and Bogodukhov of Nicodemus, the Holy Martyr Alexander was declared patron of Kharkov and its inhabitants, and a beautiful temple was erected in his honor on Kosior Ave., which reminds us not only of the life of Holy Martyr Alexander, but also of the eternal truth of God, for which he suffered! The memory of St. Alexander is celebrated on May 11/24 , the transfer of the relics on October 30 / November 12 - the veneration of the holy relics of St. Alexander acquired is timed to the celebration of the Ocerean Icon of the Mother of God - October 30 (November 12), they are transferred to the Holy Annunciation Cathedral in Kharkov, where rest in a special cancer. Also, his memory is honored on June 1 - along with all the martyrs of the Sloboda region.

Word of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill after the Liturgy in the Church of the Holy Martyr Lydia in Kaliningrad mp

Word of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill after the Liturgy in the Church of the Holy Martyr Lydia in Kaliningrad Слово Святейшего Патриарха Кирилла после Литургии в храме святой мученицы Лидии в Калининграде print version November 25, 2018 23:41 On November 25, 2018, on Week 26 of Pentecost, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia celebrated Divine Liturgy in the Church of the Holy Martyr Lydia in Kaliningrad. At the end of the service, the Primate of the Russian Church addressed the believers with a sermon. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost! Today, on the 26th Sunday after Trinity, we, according to the church regulations, read a small passage from the Gospel telling about the merciful Samaritan — about how he helped a person who was attacked by robbers and who needed help (Luke 10: 25-37 ). The Lord told this story in response to the question “who is my neighbor?”, And when His story reached the ears of the listeners, the answer to the counter question “who do you think was your neighbor for the one whom the robbers attacked?” Was obvious. Those who heard the Lord and the Savior answered: "Of course, the one who showed mercy to him." “Middle” is a very important concept. Usually we distribute it to the closest, dear people - this is the father, mother, brothers, sisters, husband, wife, children ... But in fact the concept of "neighbor" is much broader, and it should include not only relatives and friends, but also other people. And now the question arises: “Whom should we include in this narrow circle, called our neighbors?” Of course, everyone acts according to his own understanding, and often people create the appearance that this or that person is a neighbor for them. This is done for the sake of career, material gain, corporate relations, but in reality, at the heart level, there is no closeness between people. This is quite understandable, because a person can only allow close to himself the one to whom he has a cordial relationship. When a person becomes really close, it is even more than trust, and in such a relationship has its own logic and its own sensible sense. But the Lord offers us to expand the boundaries of the circle of those to whom the concept of “neighbor” extends, and connects the expansion of these boundaries with our ability to do good. And St. John Chrysostom says that the neighbor for us is the one to whom we do good, to whom we go to meet. What is the matter? Why the neighbor can be the one to whom we do good? And because, by doing good, we never forget the one to whom we did it. Our good is a part of us. Whether it is material assistance, moral support, just kind words spoken in a difficult moment, this is part of our nature, our consciousness, our will, our feelings. By extending our own "I" to others, we, naturally, include them in the orbit of our life, so that they become our neighbors. And the good Samaritan, a foreigner, became, undoubtedly, very close to the one whom the robbers attacked. After all, it was the Samaritan who got out of the way, seeing a bloody, battered traveler, poured wine on his wounds, and anointed him with oil, put him on an ass, and drove it to the hotel, and gave the money to the hotel owner, saying: if you spend more, on the way back I will reimburse everything to you. ” Of course, this man remembered the Samaritan, who did good to him, as the Samaritan remembered this traveler forever. It is no coincidence that the Lord tells us this story. He invites us to do the same to have close people. To have loved ones, you need to do good, and this good really connects people. It is more than political solidarity, more than utilitarian solidarity associated with the achievement of some corporate interests. When we do each other good, we become neighbors. The words of the Holy Gospel that are addressed to us today must really reach our consciousness. For in the word of God there is not a single empty or superfluous word. And if we fulfill all that God teaches us, we will first of all become happy people, because the salvation of the human soul and happiness are synonymous. There can be no one without the other. There can be no happiness without the salvation of the soul, and there can be no salvation of the soul without happiness, because Divine mercy, His love, a reflection of the Divine Kingdom is reflected in human happiness. And in order to become the owners of all this riches of grace and the grace of God, we must remember that doing good deeds is something very important both for those to whom we pay these things and, perhaps, first of all, for us themselves. Today, many need our help. The help of wealthy people need the poor. Helping healthy people need the sick. The help of strong people is needed by the weak. And by providing such help and support, we not only establish a special kind of interpersonal relations, but also increase the level of solidarity of the whole society. How important it is for society to be united! And solidarity is manifested in mutual assistance. Solidarity was our people in the terrible years of World War II. And as a result - the Great Victory, which could never be achieved if the society, the people did not unite in the name of a common goal and did not bear upon each other. And we, living in a relatively calm and prosperous time, should not forget about the fundamental Divine commandments that make a person happy. Let the wisdom that we perceive from the word of God be translated into our thoughts and our deeds, changing us and the whole world around for the better. We all hope for this, for the sake of this we perform divine services, we pray, we preach the word of God, so that we all and the world may become better. Amen.

Moscow Delegation to Monasteries in Africa

On May 6-13, 2019, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill and at the invitation of Patriarch Coptic Tavadros II, Egypt was visited by a delegation of teachers, staff and students of the Moscow Theological Academy to develop inter-church cooperation in the academic sphere, as well as making pilgrimages to ancient Christian Christian shrines Of Egypt. The trip took place in the context of the development of the dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Coptic Church in the framework of the activities of the relevant bilateral Commission . The delegation was headed by Archbishop Ambrose of Verey , rector of the Moscow Theological Schools. It also included: Hieromonk Stefan (Igumnov), Secretary for Inter-Christian Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations ; Hegumen Gerasim (Dyachkov), deputy rector for economic work; hieromonk Vyacheslav (Sorokin), senior assistant to the vice-rector for educational work; Hieromonk Dometian (Kurlans), sacristan of the Pokrovsky Academic Temple; Hieromonk Theodore (Yulaev), teacher; Hieromonk Apollinarius (Panin), assistant vice-rector for educational work; students of the academy M. Bykov, S. Moroz, K. Babak, N. Goyuk, S. Paliy, S. Konstantinov, A. Cherepenin, D. Leskov, S. Boldenkov, N. Saveliev; MDA videographer K. Shnurov. The delegation was accompanied by a resident of the monastery of St. Anthony the Great, hieromonk Daoud al-Anthony (Coptic Church), currently undergoing training in Moscow theological schools. During the visit, the delegation of the Moscow Patriarchate visited the monasteries of the Romans (al-Baramus), Syrians (al-Suriani), Rev. Paisius the Great (Anba Bishoi), Rev. Macarius the Great (Anba Makarios) and East Lavra, founded in the IV-V centuries in the Nitrian desert. (Arabian) desert - the abode of St. Anthony the Great and St. Paul of Thebes. In these ancient monasteries, guests from Russia talked with their inhabitants and worshiped great shrines associated with the history of the emergence of Christian monasticism. In Cairo, the delegation visited the historic Christian center of the city, visited the women's monasteries of St. George the Victorious (Mar Girgis), Theodore Stratelates (Amir Tadrus) and Mercury Philopatra (Abu Seifen), the Coptic "Hanging Church" (Muallyaka), the temple in the name of the martyrs Sergius and Bacchus with the grotto under it, where, according to legend, the Holy Family once stopped, the churches of St. George the Victorious and the Martyr Barbara, the Cathedral in the name of the Holy Apostle and the Evangelist Mark, the Church of the Holy Apostle Peter. On May 10, the delegation visited the seminary of the Coptic Church and the Institute of Coptic Studies. Then a round table was held to discuss the prospects for further development of cooperation in the academic sphere between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Coptic Church. The parties agreed on a number of joint proposals to be submitted to the bilateral Dialogue Commission and to the approval of the hierarchy. On the same day , the delegation met with the Primate of the Coptic Church, Patriarch Tavadros II, who warmly welcomed the guests and asked to convey cordial greetings to His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Kirill. The parties discussed the current state of relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Coptic Church, noting their dynamic development in recent years thanks to the activities of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and His Holiness Patriarch Tavadros II of the Bilateral Dialogue Commission. His Holiness Patriarch Tavadros II welcomed the ideas that were agreed during the round table on academic cooperation. On May 12, Archbishop Ambrose and Hieromonk Stefan (Igumnov) visited Alexandria, where they were warmly received by His Beatitude Patriarch Alexandria and All Africa Theodore II . The meeting was also attended by a representative of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia under the Patriarch of Alexandria and the whole of Africa, priest Viktor Kulaga and the inhabitant of the monastery of St. Anthony the Great, hieromonk Daoud al-Anthony (Coptic Church). The guests prayed along with His Beatitude Theodore II, Patriarch of Alexandria and all of Africa in the monastery of Saint Sava in the church in the name of the holy Apostle Mark, visited the Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Mother of God and the residence of the Patriarchs located there.

Схиархим. Гавриил (Бунге): Я молюсь, чтобы новый президент Украины дистанцировался от церковных вопросов

Siarchim Gabriel (Bunge): I pray that the new president of Ukraine would distance himself from church issues About the true causes of the split in world Orthodoxy, the true choice of the Ukrainian people, the new president, the full churches and the independent Church - schechiarchimandrite Gabriel (Bunge), an outstanding Swiss theologian and patrologist in an interview for Orthodox Life. - The reasons for the split - in the spiritual plane. Behind such divisions, splits always stand various human passions. And it is obvious. The passion that “inspired” some heads of the Church, and in particular the ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, to this step, above all, is a thirst for power, lust for power. I would call it a joke "apostolic passion." Apostles James and John, not knowing what they were asking for, wanted to sit on the right and on the left hand of Christ: “Let us sit down in Your glory, one on the right hand of You, the other on the left hand!”, But the Lord answered them: “ It does not depend on Me, but to whom is prepared by My Father ”(Matt. 20:21). Man does not change. From century to century - the same thing. We assure ourselves that we are doing something for the glory of God, and in fact we are doing it for our own benefit in order to increase our own importance, influence, and come to power. The substrate of all these processes is spiritual. We can talk a lot about historical reasons, facts, brandish documents. But understand: we all read in different ways, each sees his own and treats in his own way. For your benefit. But not all of this is decisive in the end. In my opinion, not the patriarchs, the metropolitan and the bishops, even the clergy should predetermine the fate of the people. This issue should be addressed by the believers themselves. And, as I understand it, they have already decided it. Ukrainian authorities constantly talk about freedom of conscience, freedom of choice, democracy, etc. But the Ukrainian people have already made their choice - to remain in the canonical Church. Absolute majority. We are talking only about believers. So what's the problem? If believers wanted something else, then in 20 years, since Ukraine became independent, they would have shown this desire and realized it. If they wanted to, they would go to the schismatic Church. But this is not. The temples of the canonical church are filled, and the schismatic are empty. In my opinion, this is a very important aspect and the main argument. Both politicians and heads of churches should take this fact into account. I hope that the new president will want to distance himself from church affairs, and not delve into them. And the issue will be resolved quickly. Everything will fall into place: people will again be free to make their choice. The law and the courts will start to work according to the law, impartially examine the appeals and finally state that the transfer of churches to the schismatics is illegal. The state should deal with state affairs: the fight against corruption, the safety of its citizens, and the improvement of people's lives. He should not address church issues. Where there is interference, problems arise. Without the support of the president, the creation of a new divisive organization would not have happened. But I repeat once again that the choice of believers, those who go to church, is important and decisive. And the president should take into account and make this choice. And how many monks live in monasteries! Incidentally, I have never heard of monasteries that would have gone to schism. It is possible to talk for a long time about various aspects that led to the current situation in world Orthodoxy: economic, historical, and dogmatic. But there is no need to talk about it, others have already spoken a lot. Claims of Constantinople are not new. For a hundred years now, Constantinople has been claiming a kind of papacy. We know about historical circumstances that give him reason to believe that he should do this. Constantinople has only a title, but there is no territory, no congregation. Since there is nothing of his own, he tries to conquer more and more new territories for himself, thus recreating himself. Constantinople accuses Moscow of interfering with other Churches, but he constantly intervenes in the Greek Church, for example. Constantinople is trying to penetrate into other churches, to seize them in various ways. Declare that Ukrainian believers want to have an independent church government. But all this was provided by Moscow to the Ukrainian Church for a long time. There are conditional spiritual connections. And what did Constantinople give to the dissenters today? Hardly half of what the UOC has. No one disputes that the Ukrainian people have the right to their church and independent church government. As I understand it, being neither Ukrainian nor Russian, the believing people of Ukraine do not want to cut off ties with the Russian Church, only politicians want this. Believers want to be spiritually, prayerfully with the Church, which has the same history, the same origin. I have Ukrainian friends who want to work in Russian monasteries, because this is not another Church, but a sister Church. Here everything is clear and familiar. And this is not the same thing as going to a Greek monastery. But politicians, especially the outgoing president, want to chop off

Easter liturgy celebrated in Church Slavonic in Ethiopia for the first time in a century mp

Easter liturgy celebrated in Church Slavonic in Ethiopia for the first time in a century With a blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, Metropolitan Ioann of Chersonese of Western Europe, head of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Western Europe, sent a cleric of the Diocese of Chersonese, Rev. Sergiy Kim, to Ethiopia to celebrate Pascal divine services for the staff members of the Russian Federation embassy in the country. The trip lasted from April 25 to 30, 2019. During his visit the priest was accompanied by the Russian attaché in the Federative Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, K. M. Kluikov. Upon his arrival, Father Sergiy paid a visit to the representative of the Orthodox Church of Alexandria in Ethiopia, Metropolitan Daniel of Aksum, and conveyed to him a greeting from Metropolitan Ioann of Chersonese of Western Europe. In accordance with an agreement with the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations, Metropolitan Daniel handed over to Father Sergiy a corporal for celebrating the Divine Liturgy in the Russian diplomatic mission. A temporary church was arranged in the embassy’s reception hall. In the evening of the Great Thursday, matins was celebrated with the reading of the twelve Passion Gospels, and in the Friday morning – the Royal Hours. On the Great Saturday, the priest celebrated the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great after which the embassy staff brought Easter cakes, cheesecakes and dyed eggs for blessing. On the Easter morning, April 28, a procession with the cross was held in the territory of the Russian embassy, after which the Easter martins and festive Liturgy were celebrated. Father Sergiy congratulated the embassy staff and their families on the Paschal Liturgy celebrated in Church Slavonic for the first time after a hundred-year interruption in Ethiopia. On the Bright Monday, Rev. Sergiy Kim attended the festive Easter reception given by the Ethiopian Patriarchate. He greeted Patriarch Abune Mattias and Patriarch Abune Merkorious and conveyed Easter greetings from Metropolitan Ioann of Chersonese of Western Europe. After the reception, Father Sergiy and Mr. Klyikov met with Rev. Daniel Seifemichael and discussed with him some matters concerning academic and educational cooperation between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Patriarch of Ethiopia. In the evening, a non-formal meeting was held at the Don Bosco Salesian Center with the Catholic priest Hyacinthe Destivelle of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, who was in Ethiopia on a working visit. On Bright Wednesday, April 30, Father Sergiy paid a visit to the newly appointed Russian ambassador to Ethiopia, Ye. Ye. Terekhin. During their warm meeting, they discussed the Orthodox presence in Ethiopia. Later that day, Father Sergiy Kim had a talk with students of the embassy’s Russian school. He told them about Christ, the Church and principles of Christian life in a church community. In the evening of April 30, the priest left Addis Ababa for Paris, website of the Diocese of Chersonese reports.

Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia celebrates divine services in the Exarchate’s churches mp

Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia celebrates divine services in the Exarchate’s churches From 22nd to 27th April 2019, during the Holy Week, Metropolitan Sergy of Singapore, Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia, celebrated the divine services at the Church of the Holy Dormition in Singapore. On Easter night Metropolitan Sergy celebrated the Midnight Office, led the procession with the cross and officiated at the Paschal Matins and Divine Liturgy. Concelebrating with the archpastor were Hieromonk Pitirim (Dondenko), secretary of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia; Rev. Yevgeny (Shmelev), cleric of the Dormition Church in Singapore; and Hierodeacon Yuvenaly (Lapshin), cleric of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Ostankino, Moscow. Prior to the communion of worshippers Metropolitan Sergy read out the Paschal Message of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. A festive repast followed the Liturgy. On 2nd May, Thursday of the Bright Week, commemoration day of Blessed Matrona of Moscow, the Patriarchal Exarch celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh on the Island of Bali, Indonesia, in concelebration with Hieromonk Pitirim (Dondenko). Rev. Iliya Melnichenko, cleric of St. Sergius Parish in Bali; and Hierodeacon Yuvenaly (Lapshin). The Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia also officiated at the Divine Liturgy in the Church of St. Sergius on the commemoration day of the ‘Life-Giving Spring’ Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, and after the service blessed the water. On 4th May Metropolitan Sergy celebrated the All-Night Vigil at the Church of the Holy Prince Vladimir, Equal-to-the-Apostles, in Jakarta, Indonesia. Concelebrating with the Patriarchal Exarch were Hieromonk Pitirm (Dondenko); Hieromonk Ioasaf (Tandibilang), rector of St. Vladimir Church in Jakarta; Rev. Boris Setyawan, rector of the Church of the Holy Apostle Thomas in Jakarta; and Hierodeacon Yuvenaly (Lapshin). Among those praying at the service were clerics of the Indonesia Mission of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. After the All-Night Vigil the archpastor met with the clerics and parishioners. On 5th May, Second Sunday after Easter, the head of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia officiated at the Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Holy Apostle Thomas in Jakarta, which celebrated its patronal feast that day. Concelebrating with Metropolitan Sergy of Singapore and Southeast Asia were Hieromonk Pitirim (Dondenko), Hieromonk Ioasaf (Tandibilang), Rev. Boris Setyawan, as well as clerics of the ROCOR Mission in Indonesia and Hierodeacon Yuvenaly (Lapshin). With the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, Metropolitan Sergy conferred on Rev. Boris Setyawan, rector of the Church of the Holy Apostle Thomas in Jakarta, the right to wear a hypogonation, a kamelaukion and a pectoral cross for his pious and zealous service to the Church. After the Liturgy the Patriarchal Exarch delivered a homily and conveyed to all those present Primatial blessings from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill with wishes of spiritual peace and God’s help. The archpastor also presented Ms. Lyudmila Vorobyeva, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republics of Indonesia, Kiribati, Timor-Leste and the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, with the Order of St. Euphrosyne of Polotsk, 3rd Class. A meeting followed the Liturgy, during which the archpastor answered numerous questions and told about his impressions of the life of Orthodox Christians in Indonesia.

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: Temples are the cultural heritage of all the people MP

On May 4, 2019, in the “Church and the World” program, which is being broadcast on the Russia-24 channel on Saturdays and Sundays, the chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations , Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, answered questions from the leading TV channel Ekaterina Gracheva. E. Gracheva : Hello! This is the “Church and the World” program, in which we talk with the chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, about events in Russia and in the world. Lord, hello! Metropolitan Hilarion : Hello, Catherine! Hello, dear brothers and sisters! E. Gracheva : Vladyka, while all the world media were discussing the outcome of the presidential elections in Ukraine, an almost imperceptible topic was very important for the Church, namely: representatives of several Churches — Alexandria , Antioch , Jerusalem and Cyprus — declared the protection of believers and churches in Ukraine. How did our church diplomacy work in this direction? Does she have to do with this? Metropolitan Hilarion : I think our church diplomacy is related to this, because I personally visited the heads of churches (some of them several times) all last year to explain what is happening in Ukraine. But each Local Church expresses its opinion freely, not under any pressure. In spite of the fact that the Patriarch of Constantinople tried to enlist the support of the Local Orthodox Churches in the deeds he performed on the “Ukrainian front,” he did not receive this support. Four Local Churches, three of which are the ancient Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem, and the fourth is the ancient Cypriot Church, discussed the situation in Ukraine, and agreed that the Archbishop of Cyprus would in the coming months come up with initiatives aimed to resolve the situation. What kind of initiatives are proposed, we do not know. I am not sure that the meeting participants themselves knew. But one can definitely say that the Church of Cyprus is now willing to play the role of a mediator. I think this is a very interesting and in its own way a new alignment. The Patriarch of Constantinople did not do anything to reach an understanding between the Antioch and Jerusalem Churches, and the Archbishop of Cyprus did. Therefore, we can hope that this initiative will be continued. It is very important that all these four Churches unequivocally condemn the lawlessness that is taking place: the seizure of temples, the violent actions that schismatics are taking against the believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church . E. Gracheva : So, very soon we can hear such a term as the “Cyprus Agreement”? There are Minsk negotiations. There will be Cypriot. Metropolitan Hilarion : I cannot exclude this, because the Archbishop of Cyprus has taken such an initiative. Three churches have already supported her. I think that other churches will support her too. We need some kind of platform for negotiations, at least a temporary center of coordination between the Orthodox Churches. It cannot be ruled out that, by agreement of the Churches, Cyprus and the Cyprus Church will become such a center. E. Grachev : Lord, in Paris, a terrible tragedy occurred for the entire Fifth Republic. The main symbol of France, the Notre Dame Cathedral, was partially lost. You have lived in Europe for many years. Do you have any personal memories associated with this cathedral? Metropolitan Hilarion : My strongest memory associated with this cathedral is the visit of the ever-memorable Patriarch Alexy II to France and his presence at the divine service in this cathedral. As you know, this cathedral houses one of the main Christian shrines - the crown of thorns of the Savior. He is taken out to worship believers rarely, but on the occasion of the arrival of Patriarch Alexy, this shrine was taken out, and His Holiness had the opportunity to worship her. Of course, if we talk about the fire at Notre Dame, I think that many share the words that our president said, who said that we all watched with tears at what was happening. And when the cathedral caught fire, many clung to the TV screens and waited, what is it all over. Because, of course, the loss of such a shrine of the whole Christian world, a kind of symbol of the French people - the cathedral, which survived the French Revolution, and many other disasters, would be irreplaceable. Fortunately, the ancient construction of the cathedral has been preserved, and the building is to be restored. Already collected, as far as we know, more than a billion euros for the restoration of this cathedral. Many people immediately responded, including wealthy people. I think the cathedral will be restored. The main shrines and major works of art that were inside the cathedral, as far as can be judged from the preliminary estimates, were not affected. But, of course, the actual amount of damage can be assessed only after relevant studies are conducted there, and it will take many months. E. Gracheva : Unique specialists are also needed to restore the cathedral. Russia made a proposal to provide France with such specialists. Paris is not a foreign city for Russian culture, said Vladimir Medinsky. They promise to send "the best star specialists" for restoration. In this regard, there was a mixed assessment and discussion on the Internet. Many immediately began to upload photos of our Russian abandoned unique architectural monuments. Do you share the opinion of skeptics that you must first establish order with the cultural heritage at home, and then help France? Metropolitan Hilarion : I think one does not interfere. Russia is rich enough to engage in its own cultural heritage and help those in need. But judging by how quickly people from different continents and from different countries began to respond to trouble in Paris, it can be assumed that enough funds will be raised to restore Notre Dame. If we talk about our temples, then literally at the last meeting of the Supreme Church Council, we discussed this topic. And the Metropolitan of Pskov and Porkhovsky Tikhon presented a picture that indicates that about 4,500 Russian churches are in an emergency or ruined state. In an emergency condition, these are temples where services are held, but there is a risk of losing these temples, for example, there are very significant structural defects, restoration of the foundation, restoration of walls, roofs and so on is required. And ruined - these are temples, which are mainly located far from settlements, where once there were villages, and now they are gone, and these temples are in ruins. Although there are in the cities and settlements such temples, which stand in ruins. Moscow Architectural Institute has developed a program that allows in a short time to fully diagnose the condition of the temple building and create a computer model of its restoration, which then will work restorers. The task of restoring and preserving these thousands of temples still stands before the Church, before the state. And even in Moscow there are temples that have not yet been restored and are in disrepair - those that have only recently been returned to the Church and require very serious restoration. E. Gracheva : What do you associate with the fact that Russian people with a relatively low by European standards income are ready to help the restoration of Notre Dame, but at the same time they are often indifferent to those monuments, abandoned temples that are in their village? Metropolitan Hilarion : I do not think that we have such people who are willing to help Notre Dame, but at the same time forget about the temple in their own native village. As a rule, people who are ready to help there also help here. I know wealthy people who have invested a lot of money in, for example, rebuilding or rebuilding a temple in their native village. And now this same businessman helps many other churches and, perhaps, one of these businessmen responded to trouble in Paris. But the restoration of the temples remains relevant. We know that so many temples have been restored. Thirty years ago there were 6 thousand temples in the Russian Orthodox Church, and now there are more than 40 thousand. This means that we have restored or rebuilt every year more than a thousand temples. But in Russia there are many temples that require emergency measures for their salvation. E. Gracheva : Well, if misfortunes occur, as with Notre Dame, when, as a result of fires, unique temples can no longer be saved. For example, recall the temple of the Assumption of the XVIII century in Kondopoga. According to statistics, from 1985 to 2018, 45 such unique architectural monuments burnt down in Russia. Who now finances fire safety systems in temples that are classified as architectural monuments? In your opinion, who should supervise these systems? Is this work actively carried out? Metropolitan Hilarion : As a rule, if the temple is owned by the Church, the parish community is responsible for its fire safety. At the same time, with respect to state-protected monuments of architecture, especially wooden temples, which, in the event of an attack by an intruder, flare up like a match and burn in minutes, particular attention should be paid by the relevant state supervisory authorities. But some objects are more at risk of fire, while others are less. And the ancient wooden temples, of course, must be protected in a special way. I have not heard that after the fire in the Assumption Church of the 18th century in Kondopoga, some new measures were taken to protect such temples from fire and from losing them forever. I would like to believe that such measures will be developed very soon. We should not forget that temples are not only the property of the Church, it is also the cultural property of the whole nation. E. Gracheva : The fire in Notre-Dame was a convenient excuse to talk about the uncomfortable topic of migrants in Europe and of migrants in Paris in particular, who filled this city. And many Russian bloggers wrote: "The cathedral burned down with shame, seeing how the cultural code of the French capital has changed." Someone wrote more sharply that "today's Paris, its inhabitants, Notre Dame do not deserve." When was the last time in Vladyka? And your personal opinion, were the authorities of the Fifth Republic able to enter migrants into the cultural code of the capital, or did this task fail? Metropolitan Hilarion : I was in Paris in early December last year, when the so-called yellow vests were very active there. Many streets were blocked. Somewhere there were demonstrations. But these demonstrations were not related to the topic of migrants. They were connected with another subject - with rising prices, with increasing taxes. If we talk about the so-called integration of immigrants from the third world countries into the society of the country where they came, then, of course, such integration in most cases is not observed. Many people, coming from their own countries, continue to live in France as they lived in their own country. Migrants create a kind of ghetto, entire neighborhoods are inhabited by such immigrants from other countries. When you find yourself in a similar quarter, it seems that you are not in Paris, but in Algeria or in some former colony of France, where immigrants mostly come to this country, because they speak French. Well, those who do not speak French learn to speak this language when they already arrive in France. But cultural transcoding fails. This, of course, creates very serious problems, and therefore the migration policy should not be illegible. It should take into account the cultural code of the country's population and not put at risk the preservation of this cultural code. This is now a lot of debate in Europe. Too liberal migration legislation leads to a change in demographic balances and in the future can lead to very serious internal conflicts. In the second part of the program, Metropolitan Hilarion answered TV viewers questions that came to the website of the Church and Peace program. Question : What are the requirements for those who temporarily fell away from Orthodoxy, in order to carry out the rank of joining them, and why do people kneel during this rank? And what if a person cannot kneel due to illness? Metropolitan Hilarion : This is reminiscent of a question I was asked recently: how to shave a man as a monk if he is bald, if there is nothing to shave? I think that if a person cannot kneel down, then it is not a problem to come to church, to participate in the rite of joining, to participate in church sacraments. Who can not kneel, let him not get up. If a person cannot stand at all, he can sit. If he cannot move, he is brought to the temple in a wheelchair, and he is present at the service and participates in church sacraments. If we talk about the essence of the order of joining, then this order is performed in some temples over those who were previously baptized, was a member of the Church, but then fell away from the Church and dodged into various sects. Unfortunately, there are a lot of such sects now (for example, the sect of Jehovah's Witnesses, which pretends to be the Christian Church, and in fact is a sect aimed at destroying the human person, destroying the family and destroying the psyche). And if people shy away from sects and stay there for a long time, and then they want to reunite with the Church, then they undergo a special order of reunion. In particular, in the temple on Bolshaya Ordynka, where I serve, every six months this order of reunification with the Church takes place. And at various times from 50 to 100 people join the Church through this rank. During the rite of joining, indeed, once or twice the believers kneel, but if someone cannot kneel, it is not an obstacle to reunite with the Church.

Patriarchal meeting about the abudcted Bishops Met of Aleppo Ibrahim and Alexandria Pavel (Yazidji) respectively

On April 18, 2019, at the invitation of His Beatitude, Archbishop Nova Justinana and all of Cyprus, Chrysostomos II, Most Blessed Patriarchs of Alexandria and All Africa, Theodore , Antioch and All East, John X and Jerusalem Theophilus III visited the island of Cyprus. The main topic of the meeting was the problems of inter-Orthodox relations, as well as the situation of Christians in the Middle East. Following the meeting, a joint communiqué was published, stating that the Most Blissful Primates of the Orthodox Churches discussed the problems that had arisen “after the granting of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. After His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostom of Cyprus reported on a mediation initiative that he personally undertook, the three Primates agreed with her that His Beatitude continue to engage her in favor of unity in Christ of the Orthodox Church. ... The Most Blessed and Most Holy Primates, in the spirit of this meeting, called on all parties to cooperate to achieve, on the one hand, the Eucharistic unity, which is the fullness of the Church in Christ Jesus, and on the other, to protect believers, temples and monasteries from attacks and all kinds of violence, whatever the reasons and motives are causing them. ” Also, the Primates of the four Orthodox Churches expressed regret over the “absolute indifference of the states and the mighty of this world regarding the fate” of the Orthodox metropolitan Aleppo and Alexandretta Pavel (Yazidji) abducted in Syria and the Syro-Yakovite Metropolitan Aleppo John (Ibrahim). The sixth anniversary of this abduction is celebrated on April 22, 2019. At the meeting of the Patriarchs of Antioch and all of East John X and Theophilus III of Jerusalem, "with sincerity and fraternal love exchanged views on the problem that occupies two Local Churches, and expressed their intention and good will to immediately overcome these difficulties in order to achieve the desired Eucharistic communion."

ROCOR and Antoch of US Meeting MP

In the spiritual and administrative center of the Antioch Patriarchate in the United States of America, a meeting was held between the temporary head of the Patriarchal parishes in the United States, Bishop of Sourozh, Matthew, and the Russian Consul General in New York, S.К. Ovsyannikov with the head of the Archdiocese of Antioch in this country, Metropolitan Joseph. The meeting was also attended by Archpriest Thomas Zayn, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Antioch, Priest Mark Rashkov, Cleric of the Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York, Vice-Consul Alexey Topolsky, and Bishop Matthew Personal Secretary Nikolai Trubnikov. After the exchange of Easter greetings, the hierarchs discussed various issues of interaction between the Antioch Church and the parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate in the United States, and also exchanged views on the recent actions of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which damaged the pan-Orthodox unity. Metropolitan Joseph asked Bishop Matthew and SK Ovsyannikov to convey heartfelt gratitude to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and President of Russia V.V. Putin for the full support given to the people of Syria. The meeting participants also discussed the program of the visit of the representative delegation of the Archdiocese of Antioch in the USA headed by Metropolitan Joseph to the Russian Orthodox Church, scheduled for May of this year. At the end of the conversation, the interlocutors exchanged gifts.

The two-headed hydra of the Ukrainian split and world Orthodoxy MP

May 8, 2019 14:39 The article by the Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, the chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, was published on the Jesus Internet portal . May 6 marks four months since the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew signed the “Tomos” about the autocephaly of the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine”, according to which Epiphanius Dumenko was appointed head of the newly created structure with the title “Metropolitan of Kiev and All Ukraine”. Patriarch Bartholomew sent a letter to the heads of the Local Orthodox Churches demanding to recognize this structure as the canonical Orthodox Church of Ukraine instead of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church , headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufri of Kiev and All Ukraine . Over the past four months, not one Local Orthodox Church has recognized the act of Patriarch Bartholomew, committed in flagrant violation of church canons. A number of Churches officially declared their disagreement with this act, the non-recognition of the legalization of schismatics, and the support of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by Metropolitan Onufry. Other churches took time to study the situation. But none supported the lawlessness. Why? First, we all know that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church unites the majority of Orthodox believers in Ukraine. It includes almost 13 thousand parishes, more than 200 monasteries, its members are millions of believers. It is she, and not a group of schismatics who has now received legitimization by Patriarch Bartholomew, is the only canonical Church of Ukraine, which Patriarch Bartholomew himself, not once, publicly declared, for the last time - in January 2016, on the Sinaxis of Primates of Local Churches. Secondly, it is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church headed by the Most Blessed Metropolitan Onufry that is the national Orthodox Church of Ukraine. This is not the “Russian Church,” as P.A. Poroshenko. Its members are citizens of Ukraine born and raised in their own country, having a Ukrainian passport and loving their homeland. Its administrative center is not in Moscow, but in Kiev. Contrary to Poroshenko’s allegations, prayers in the Ukrainian Church are not raised for the Russian authorities and not for the Russian army, but for the Ukrainian authorities and the Ukrainian army. The self-governing Ukrainian Orthodox Church has all the rights that allow it to be the national church of its country. It is connected with the Moscow Patriarchate by the spiritual and historical unity, dating back to the times of Kievan Rus, but it has no administrative, financial or any other dependence on Moscow. Thirdly, we all know that the schismatic community, now legalized by Patriarch Bartholomew, is a conglomerate of two groups, none of which had canonical hierarchy at the time of recognition by Constantinople. One group, the so-called “Kyiv Patriarchate,” is headed by a man whose excommunication from the Church was recognized by all the Local Churches, including the Constantinople. The other group goes back to the banned in the service of the bishop of the Russian Church and to a person who never had not only a bishop's, but even a priestly ordination. In the people of these people are called "samosvyatami." The recognition of this false hierarchy was accomplished without a proper investigation of its origin and even without formal re-positioning, by a single act of will of Patriarch Bartholomew. Fourthly, even after receiving the “tomos”, the schismatic community continues to demonstrate complete canonical lawlessness, the violation of all church rules. This community, which calls itself the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine,” has two chapters with almost the same title. One is called the “Metropolitan of Kiev and All Ukraine,” the other is the “Patriarch of Kiev and All Russia-Ukraine.” The first exists for external use, the second for internal. It is the second, not the first, that controls the “Kyiv Metropolis”. Here is his recent statement: “The HCV is officially recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarch. But in Ukraine there is the Kiev Patriarchate. Because we are not satisfied with the status of the metropolis. We have existed for more than 25 years as a patriarchy. And the people elected patriarchs. I am the third patriarch. And before me was Patriarch Vladimir, Patriarch Mstislav. The patriarchs were! And so for Ukraine we are a patriarch. And for the outside world, that is, for the Orthodox world, we are the Kiev Metropolis. ” Can such a two-headed hydra recognize at least one Local Orthodox Church? Fifthly, the split demonstrates complete spiritual and canonical inconsistency. The “tomos” positions are subject to ambiguous interpretation and are not executed. For example, in “Tomos” it is stipulated that the “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” cannot include parishes outside Ukraine. However, from the point of view of the false patriarch Filaret Denisenko, these parishes can not leave the so-called “Kyiv Patriarchate”: “We cannot force them, but we cannot reject them either. Since they do not want to move away from us, we consider them as ours. ” A two-headed hydra cannot but have double-entry bookkeeping. For the domestic consumer, there remains the “Kyiv Patriarchate” with a network of foreign “parishes”, and for the external one - the “Kyiv Metropolis” without them. Sixthly, with the support of the authorities, who shamefully lost the election, a campaign was launched — and not yet stopped — to seize the temples of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church by supporters of the schism. This seizure is carried out by force: masked men rush into the temple, beat believers, expel them and the priest from the building, proclaim themselves to be its rightful owners. How should world Orthodoxy respond to this iniquity? Just as it has already responded in the person of Patriarchs of Alexandria Theodore, Antioch John and Jerusalem Theophilus, who gathered in Cyprus and together with the Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostomist "called on all parties to cooperate to achieve, on the one hand, the Eucharistic unity, which is the fullness of the Church in Christ Jesus, and on the other hand, in order to protect believers, temples and monasteries from attacks and all kinds of violence, no matter where they come from and whatever their causes and motives, which cause them. ” Taking an unprecedented decision to legalize the Ukrainian schism, Patriarch Bartholomew counted on the fact that the hierarchs of the canonical Church would join the structure created by him and that this structure would be recognized by the Local Orthodox Churches. Neither the one nor the other, the blitzkrieg failed. Instead of healing the schism, Patriarch Bartholomew only deepened it, causing a fair rejection of his actions in world Orthodoxy. And if earlier, being “the first among equals”, he could play a coordinating and consolidating role in the family of Local Orthodox Churches, now, declaring himself “the first without equals,” he self-destructed as a coordinating center. Therefore, it is quite natural that the Primates of the Local Orthodox Churches begin to look for new formats for interaction. And the first sign is the meeting of the four Primates in Cyprus. The final communiqué of the meeting states: “After His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostom of Cyprus reported on a mediation initiative that he personally undertook, three Primates agreed with her, so that His Bliss continued to engage her in favor of unity in Christ of the Orthodox Church.” What does this mean? The fact that in the absence of a coordinating center in the person of the “first among equals” the Orthodox Churches will try to create a different center of interaction. In the conditions when the first diptych in fact self-removed and self-isolated, the second, and the third, and the fourth, and the tenth can be the coordinator of the general Orthodox efforts to overcome splits and disorder, because the Orthodox Church entrusts this mission to her wisdom and humility, not claiming primacy and domination. When in the 5th century the Patriarch of Nestorius of Constantinople fell into heresy, the Patriarch of Alexandria at the Third Ecumenical Council played a decisive role in condemning this heresy. And when in the 15th century the Patriarch of Constantinople supported the union with Rome, the other Eastern Patriarchs did not recognize this act. Now, when the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew was on the side of a split, world Orthodoxy was by no means decapitated. The head of the Ecumenical Church has never been the Patriarch of Constantinople. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself has always been and remains. And if in the Catholic tradition there was an idea of ​​the Pope as the vicar of Christ, His earthly representative, then in the Orthodox tradition there was never such a view. "Since a person is subject to death and cannot be the permanent head of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, as the Head, holding the helm of the government of the Church, rules it through the Holy Fathers." In 1723, four Eastern Patriarchs signed these words - Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem. And in 1895, responding to the call of Pope Leo XIII, the Synod of the Church of Constantinople declared: “... Addressing the fathers and the Ecumenical Councils of the Church of the first nine centuries, we make sure that the Bishop of Rome was never considered the highest authority and the infallible Head of the Church, and everyone the bishop is the head and head of his private church, submitting only to conciliar decrees and decisions of the catholic church as the only infallible, and in no way was, as church history shows, an exception to this rule Bishop of Rome. The only eternal Head of God and the immortal Head of the Church is our Lord Jesus Christ. ” The current Patriarch of Constantinople, in fact, denied the general Orthodox teaching explicitly expressed in these texts, and imagined himself to be the only infallible head of the Orthodox Church, who has the right to take appeals from any Local Churches, interfere in their lives, judge and adjudicate their cases at their discretion and arbitrariness. But the sad experience of his voluntaristic intervention in the Ukrainian situation showed: with full respect for the existing institutions resulting from the primacy of honor according to the diptych, the fullness of world Orthodoxy rejects such an overrun of the authority of the Constantinople Patriarch, as in the past, she consistently rejected attempts of certain hierarchs to assimilate themselves not their prerogatives. The schism remains a schism, and the Orthodoxy from the endured trials only grows stronger. This shows an example of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which today is following the path of confession, calmly and courageously responding to external and internal challenges. In her feat of standing for truth, she has strong support from the Local Orthodox Churches, and it is this consolidated support that will ultimately help heal the Ukrainian schism.