Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency

Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency Интервью митрополита Волоколамского Илариона Болгарскому телеграфному агентству print version October 11, 2019 16:19 The chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk , who is in Bulgaria with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, gave an interview to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency . - Your Eminence, welcome to Bulgaria. What is the purpose of your current visit? - I am glad, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, to visit Bulgaria again to once again witness the inviolability of the fraternal bonds that have linked our Orthodox Church Sisters for centuries. One of the goals of this trip is to participate in an international conference held by Velikotyrnovsk State University. - You met with the Patriarch of the Bulgarian Neophyte . What issues are relevant for the Russian and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches now? - Our fraternal Churches have an extensive agenda for bilateral relations. We cooperate in various fields - educational, scientific and theological, pilgrimage and many others. In addition, important issues related to inter-Orthodox relations are on the agenda. Now all the Local Orthodox Churches, first of all, are concerned about the issue of maintaining the unity of world Orthodoxy. We need to think together about how to confront the dangers of separation. - Please tell us about the conference in Veliko Tarnovo. - A forum on the topic “History of the Bulgarian and Russian Orthodox Churches as a subject of academic study in the theological educational institutions of Russia and Bulgaria at the present stage” united church scholars. Within the framework of the General Church Graduate School and Doctoral Studies (OCAD), which I have been leading for more than ten years, a number of master's and candidate works on the history of relations between the Russian and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches in 1940-1950 have been defended in recent years. In 2012, at the Department of External Church Relations and Social Sciences of the OECR, a corresponding scientific direction began to take shape. In 2016-2019, several works on the history of relations between the Russian Orthodox and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches were defended. An associate professor of the department, who was the supervisor of two candidate dissertations, as well as one of the undergraduates who successfully defended the work on the history of the Bulgarian Church, arrived with me in Bulgaria. We paid great attention to the preparation of the work of our Bulgarian applicants. In 2015, in the OCAD, the master's thesis of the Bulgarian clergyman Archimandrite Isaac (Boyadzhiysky), who studied with us since 2011, was defended. The work of Isaac's father was devoted to the topic “Patriarchate of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church”. In 2017, the dissertation of the Secretary General of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Bishop Gerasim of Melnisch “Compounds of Local Orthodox Churches in Moscow” was brilliantly defended; This work aroused considerable interest and received high marks from specialists. Both of our Bulgarian brothers lived the life of our theological school all the years of study, often served me in the temples of the OKAD. I am glad that Bishop Belogorodsky Sylvester , rector of the Kiev Theological Schools , came to the conference, who talked about how Bulgarian students studied at the Kiev Theological Academy before the revolution. Representatives of the faculty of the Orthodox Theological Faculty of Velikotyrnovsky University showed great interest in the forum. - What is the current situation of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine in the context of recent events and Filaret Denisenko’s statement about the rejection of the Tomos given by Patriarch Bartholomew ? - An attempt to legalize the Ukrainian schism through the creation of a new structure from schismatics and providing it with a “tomos” in 2018, as well as the collapse of this structure soon after that, has nothing to do with the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, led by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and all Ukraine . As you know, the Ukrainian schism arose in the 90s under the influence of political factors and in its development followed the rules of politics, and not the logic of church life. In this regard, it is very similar to the split that occurred around the same time in the Bulgarian Patriarchate. However, in 2018, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, with the support of President Poroshenko, under the slogan “Unification of Ukrainian Orthodoxy” tried to legitimize schismatics. This was done again, for political reasons: by the beginning of the election campaign, Petro Poroshenko was required to quickly and costlessly demonstrate to the voters the high-profile achievements of his presidency. On the eve of the election, the leaders of the so-called “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” traveled with Poroshenko and the “Tomos” to the regions of Ukraine, which many perceived as part of the election campaign of the President. However, this campaign ended in complete collapse: Ukrainian voters did not approve of speculation in religion and attempts to use the Church for political purposes. The violence against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church did not lead to anything. Despite the seizures of the churches with the support of the authorities, the beatings of the clergy and believers, mass searches and criminal cases against the clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, she did not give up the canonical principles of her life and refused to follow the politicians' lead. Now, after the change of power and political agenda in Ukraine, the Ukrainian split is predictably breaking up. He is not even able to maintain his own unity - not to unite Ukrainian Orthodoxy. And the canonical Church of Ukraine, which experienced real persecution under Poroshenko, still unites more than 12,000 communities and remains the largest religious denomination in Ukraine, recognized by all world Orthodoxy. I think this is largely due to the wise position of her hierarchy, which refused to exchange the internal independence of church life for momentary political bonuses. And believers praised this. More and more people are coming to the annual religious procession in Kiev, held on the occasion of the Baptism of Russia: last July, up to 300 thousand people took part in the prayer procession. Let's hope that the new government of Ukraine will listen to the voice of its people. “Recently, Jehovah's Witnesses called our house early in the morning asking if we believe in God.” How to protect yourself from sects and schisms? - The best defense against sects and schisms is a deep study of Christian doctrine, as well as participation in the Sacraments of the Church. It will be much more difficult to deceive a person who regularly reads the Holy Scripture, who is versed in Orthodox dogmas and familiar with the history of the Church, than a bearer of a secular or near-Christian worldview. Often, it is precisely ignorance by people of their own faith that recruiters of various sects use. All this, of course, emphasizes the high importance of religious education, thanks to which people in a certain sense strengthen their anti-sectarian immunity. Since the revival of spiritual life in Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church has been developing religious and theological education in state and church educational institutions of the country. I can state with satisfaction that in this area we have achieved a lot. At the same time, in Russia the Church does not have access to schools, and we lose a lot because of this. It is at the level of children's consciousness that the basic value paradigms are laid, and it is at this age that it is most easy to vaccinate against sectarian false teachings. - As the head of the Scientific and Educational Theological Association, you congratulated students of theological and secular educational institutions on the beginning of the new school year, wishing them, first of all, to learn how to read the Holy Scriptures. How can the younger generation be taught to read the Bible in secular schools today? - Young people tend to be critical of any attempts to impose an authoritative opinion on them. Therefore, it makes no sense to simply encourage them to study the scriptures or to say that Bible knowledge is essential for everyone. Two things need to be said. First: The Bible provides answers to questions that concern modern people. Second: the Bible itself contains many questions and puzzles, the answer to which is expected from us. Yes, this is exactly so: God not only teaches us and answers our questions, but also awaits our answers; through scripture, He enters into dialogue with the readers of this Eternal Book. The Bible is revealed to man in a new way throughout his life. These topics I touch on in my book about Jesus Christ . It is often pretended to Christians that the Gospels contain mutual contradictions. However, if you compare these “contradictions” over and over again, then completely incredible facets of the sacred text are revealed. While working on the book, I did not hide, but rather sharpened these paradoxes precisely because I knew: each time new discoveries await me and the readers. If we can show young people that the Holy Scripture captures an attentive reader no less than a computer game, thriller or intellectual novel, I’m sure that students who turn to the Bible will find in it something that will turn their minds around. The following should be noted. Many biblical texts are quite difficult to understand, and we need specialists who can, firstly, engage in its deep scientific study, and, secondly, bring knowledge about it to a wide audience. Fortunately, the training opportunities for such specialists are growing. Since 2017, the Bachelor's program “Bible Studies and the History of Ancient Israel” has been successfully operating at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. This year, we opened the Master's program “Christian Sources” at the Church Graduate and Doctoral School named after Saints Cyril and Methodius , whose students received a unique opportunity to study the scriptures and texts of the patristic tradition in the original languages. Biblical departments exist in all leading Orthodox theological universities. I sincerely hope that all these areas of our work will bear fruit, and we will see a generation of people for whom the Bible has become a challenge and a guide. - What other parting words could you give the modern young generation? - Now, when we live in an environment extremely rich in information, many people are in the world of myths and ideas composed by someone else. I would like to urge young people not to live by stereotypes and to check how objective our opinions are. For example, it is customary to perceive the Church either as a repository of dust-covered traditions that are not relevant in our time, or as a “bureau of ritual services”, where you should go only occasionally if necessary - to baptize a newborn, to sing the deceased. A false but familiar stereotype can also be called the idea of ​​churches filled with old people, where the young have nothing to do, or the Church as an authority that prohibits all the joys of life. After all, if you take a closer look, it turns out that the "prohibitions" that scare non-church people are, in fact, simply the "rules of a healthy lifestyle" for the soul, which help not to stain it in the dirt, not to hurt with serious sins, and not overgrown with bark egoism, but to retain the ability to enjoy the peace bestowed by God and relationships with others. As for the age of those who come to the Church, it can be noted that indeed, with life experience, after various difficult situations, and sometimes tragedies associated with the loss of loved ones, a person is more inclined to think that his life is not limited to the usual bustle, that she there should be a deeper meaning than just satisfying needs. However, very often it is young people with their characteristic maximalism that pose questions of eternal life and its highest meaning. And this can be seen, for example, in the churches of the Russian Orthodox Church, where young men and women, as well as young families with children, now make up a significant part of the parishioners who are going to worship and participating in the social service of the parish community. The vocation and purpose of the Church is not just to keep traditions or “satisfy religious needs”, but to change the world and people for the better. Those people who do not touch the Church superficially, but go deep into its being, understand that the Church is able to give them happiness, to fill their life with content. At the same time, the traditions and canons that are preserved in the Church are not crutches that impede the development of life, but the standard, referring to which, you can find out that you are going the right way. I wish young people not to live by other people's stereotypes, but to find for themselves the right landmark on the road of life. And the best reference point is Jesus Christ. And the most important thing that the Church can give to a young man, and indeed to every person, is the living Christ, who is present in His Church. We teach the people of Christ not only through preaching, but above all through the sacrament. I note that in contrast to Bulgaria, where it is customary to partake of the Holy Communion, in Russia believers often receive Communion — every Sunday, and some at every Liturgy. When the incarnated God Himself enters the flesh and blood of man, this is the most complete union with God that is only possible in earthly life. And I wish the Bulgarian youth to experience first hand this amazing state of union with God, which is incomparable with any earthly pleasures or acquisitions.

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk took part in the celebrations on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the beginning of the service of St. Raphael of Brooklyn in America

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk took part in the celebrations on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the beginning of the service of St. Raphael of Brooklyn in America Митрополит Волоколамский Иларион принял участие в торжествах по случаю 125-летия начала служения святителя Рафаила Бруклинского в Америке print version October 21, 2019 12:11 On October 19-20, 2019 in New York, celebrations took place on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the beginning of the service of St. Raphael of Brooklyn on the North American continent and the 100th anniversary of the Cathedral of the Antioch Archdiocese of North America in Brooklyn. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill and at the invitation of the head of the Antioch Archbishopric in the USA, the Archbishop of New York, Metropolitan Joseph of North America, Metropolitan Hilarion, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, took part in the festivities. On October 20, Pentecost Week 18, Metropolitan Joseph and Metropolitan Hilarion led the Divine Liturgy at the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Brooklyn. The bishops of the Mid-American Basil, the bishop of the Mid-Atlantic Thomas, the bishop of the New English John, the bishop of the Mid-West American Anthony and the bishop of Southeast Nikolai served the hierarchs. Among the clergymen who served together were the rector of the St. Nicholas Cathedral, the general vicar of the Antioch Archdiocese, Archpriest Thomas Zayn, the chancellor of St. Vladimir’s Theological Seminary of the Orthodox Church in America, Archpriest Chad Hatfield, the clergy of the St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral of New York, hegumen Nikodim Nikonov (priest) Golubov. The temple was attended by Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations Vladimir Safronkov, clergy of the Antioch Archbishopric from different cities of the United States, numerous parishioners and guests of the parish. The service was performed in Syriac, Church Slavonic, Greek and English. After reading the Gospel, Metropolitan Hilarion delivered a sermon. At the end of the Divine Liturgy, Metropolitan Joseph congratulated those present on the anniversary dates. Welcoming Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, he said, in particular: “We remember with love our visit to the Russian Orthodox Church this summer and our prayer fellowship with His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and Your Eminence. A large delegation of the clergy and laity of the Archbishopric of Antioch visited many holy places of the Russian Church, which gave spiritual education, upbringing and ordination to the future Saint Brooklyn Raphael, who became archpastor for all immigrants from Antioch to the United States. For us, Saint Raphael is a great gift of the Russian Orthodox Church not only to all ethnic Antiochs, but also to all Orthodox Christians in America. A particle of the holy relics of St. Raphael of Brooklyn is in each of more than three hundred anti-minis at all the parishes of our archbishopric. ” Metropolitan Joseph asked to convey the words of pure gratitude to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and in his person the fullness of the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as the leadership of Russia and the entire Russian people for the continued support of the Antiochian Orthodox Church and the entire Syrian people in the trials that have befallen them in recent years. In memory of his participation in the celebrations, Metropolitan Joseph donated to Metropolitan Hilarion a collection of the writings of St. Raphael of Brooklyn in Syriac. In response, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk noted with gratitude the history of fraternal interaction between the Antioch and Russian Churches in North America: “The spiritual mission of the Valaam monks on the North American continent, which began more than two hundred years ago, brought abundant spiritual fruit by the beginning of the 20th century, under the omophorion of the Russian Orthodox Church in The USA and Canada found a place for all Orthodox Christians of different nationalities. For spiritual feeding of the large Syrian flock, with the blessing of the Hierarchy of the Russian Church, Archimandrite Rafail (Havavini), associate and co-worker of the Archbishop of North America, was placed in the Bishop of Brooklyn. Given the peculiarity of the mission of Orthodoxy in North America among indigenous peoples and Gentiles, as well as feeling a pure responsibility for the spiritual care of an increasing number of immigrants from traditionally Orthodox countries, the future Patriarch of Moscow, St. Tikhon, made a unique proposal: to organize as part of the North American Diocese of Russia Diocese churches not on a territorial basis (“one bishop in one city”), but on an ethnic basis, thus creating for all heads of national e Archias of Corinth equal rights and opportunities. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, including in connection with the beginning of the persecution of the Russian Church in the Fatherland, this plan of St. Tikhon was not implemented. " As a gift to the head of the Archbishopric of Antioch, Metropolitan Hilarion presented a commemorative panagia cameo, skillfully executed by Russian masters. The communication of the hierarchs, clergy and believers continued at a fraternal meal in the parish hall of the cathedral.

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: Break with Constantinople did not hurt either the Russian or Ukrainian Church

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: Break with Constantinople did not hurt either the Russian or Ukrainian Church Митрополит Волоколамский Иларион: Разрыв с Константинополем не повредил ни Русской, ни Украинской Церкви print version October 15, 2019 17:41 Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, gave an interview to the TASS news agency . - About the Bishops' Council of the Hellenic Church , which was held on Saturday, the most conflicting information comes, mainly from anonymous sources. Perhaps you could explain what decisions were made on it, and how the Russian Church evaluates them? “For the time being, we will learn about what the Church of Greece decided at its Council, from the press.” A communiqué of the Cathedral was published; a speech by Archbishop Jerome was published. All this, of course, requires careful analysis before we can draw any conclusions. A reaction to this event will follow, and this reaction will be formulated by the Holy Synod of our Church, which will convene in the near future and consider this and other issues. - In the 10 years that you headed the Department for External Church Relations, much has changed in the relations of the Russian Church with non-Orthodox Christians, with other Orthodox Churches, and with foreign states. What tasks did “church diplomacy” face 10 years ago, and what do you see them now? What is the difference between building the Church’s dialogue with the world and secular diplomacy? - The tasks facing the DECR are always the same. But since the surrounding world is changing, the situation is changing, there are some events that cannot be left unresponsive, so the emphasis in the activities of the Department is shifting accordingly. For example, a significant part of our time and attention was devoted to the preparation of the Pan-Orthodox Council. We expected that it would be a truly pan-Orthodox Council, that important issues for the Orthodox Church would be solved there, but since a number of churches refused to participate in the cathedral, we also had to refuse. After this, events in the Orthodox world began to develop rapidly, and develop, unfortunately, in a negative direction. At the end of the past - the beginning of this year, events took place that actually meant a split in the family of the Orthodox Churches. What happened on Saturday in Athens is a deepening of this split. How far this can go is hard to say now. When the papal legates arrived in Constantinople in 1054 to sort things out with the Patriarch of Constantinople, and sorting out the relationship broke the Eucharistic communion between the Roman Church and the Church of Constantinople , no one could have foreseen that this division would last a thousand years and what dire consequences it would have. . I think it’s very important now to try to look ahead. Among those who play chess, there are people who are able to calculate the situation only one move ahead, and there are those who are able to calculate it many moves ahead. We now need to determine what our next steps will be and what risks they entail. In any case, we should not act emotionally, under the influence of feelings of indignation and bewilderment - we must carefully and calmly weigh everything and prayerfully make that decision, for which we will then be responsible. - Breaking the prayer dialogue with the Patriarchate of Constantinople was a difficult decision for the Church. How did it affect the situation of Orthodox Christians in Ukraine? Is there still hope for a reunion of the divided Church, and what is the main obstacle for him? - I have to say that the break with Constantinople had no effect on the internal life of the Russian Orthodox Church, including its self-governing part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church . As we lived, we continue to live, as we served - we continue to serve, as we celebrated Easter and other great holidays - we continue to celebrate. We did not feel any damage resulting from this gap. The Patriarchate of Constantinople made a big mistake, and he continues to insist on this mistake, demanding the recognition of the so-called Orthodox Church of Ukraine from other Local Churches. But we see that the PCU did not take place as a church. It was originally composed of two schismatic groups, within a few months of its existence, it managed to split into two parts, and the church people did not follow this group. Patriarch Bartholomew assumed that the episcopate of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church would join this group as soon as she received a tomos of autocephaly. The tomos was received, but the episcopate remains united around His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry , the bishops of the Ukrainian Church declared their desire to maintain unity with the Russian Orthodox Church, and that they are fully satisfied with the current status of the Church. It is quite obvious that the schism has not been overcome, but, on the contrary, the schism is deepening. - Unity with Constantinople has become impossible for the Russian Church, not only because of the dispute over whose jurisdiction Ukraine belongs to, but also because of the views on the powers of the Patriarch of Constantinople. In that case, will the recall of the Tomos issued by the PTsU about autocephaly be sufficient to restore it, and if not, what will happen? Can unity now be restored at all? “It can hardly be expected that Constantinople will recall the tomos that he issued.” Of course, the Patriarch of Constantinople withdrew the decision of one of his predecessors three hundred years ago, but we do not take such actions seriously, and consider them insignificant from the canonical point of view. I think it’s premature to talk about any improvement in the situation and healing the wound. It seems that some time will pass before the Orthodox Churches together find a solution to the current situation. - Apparently, this will require the Pan-Orthodox Conference, which has already been held, or the Council? In what format can it be found? - It’s hard for me to talk about the format now, because I don’t see the readiness of Constantinople to conduct a dialogue at all. We see only actions aimed at ensuring that this hastily committed act is recognized by other Orthodox Churches, and this is a dead end path, because anyway a significant part of the Churches will not recognize it, and accordingly, these confessions can only deepen the split that has already formed. - Recently , Archbishop John (Renneto) and the clergy and laity of the Archbishopric of the parishes of the Russian tradition in Western Europe were accepted into prayer fellowship. In what form will the former Archdiocese of the Patriarchate of Constantinople exist in the Russian Church and how will it be associated with the Patriarchal Exarchate of Western Europe ? Which of the features of its worship and parish life that have developed over the decades of the existence of the Archdiocese can be preserved? - Those parishes that serve in a new style will continue to serve in a new style. Those congregations that serve in French, German, or another language will continue to serve in the language they are used to. The archbishopric will exist as a single and integral structure led by its archbishop in the bosom of the Russian Orthodox Church. It will not be a part of the West European exarchate, nor a part of the Russian Church Abroad — it will have its own structure, the very one that it has developed, and will retain its traditions. - Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill called this reunion the closure of the theme of the separation of the Russian Church and the Russian diaspora abroad. Does this mean that the catechetical tasks and directions of the missionary work of the Russian Church abroad will change? Could, for example, a service appear in languages ​​other than Church Slavonic? - We already have missionary work in different countries, and worship is conducted in different languages. For example, I headed the Hungarian diocese of our Church for six years, and there in most parishes divine services are performed in Hungarian. And in the Japanese Autonomous Orthodox Church, worship is performed in Japanese, in Moldova - in Moldavian. In parishes of far abroad countries, the practice is different: where the majority of the parishioners are Russian, the Church Slavonic language is used, and the sermon sounds in Russian. Where the majority of parishioners belong to the local population, there, respectively, worship and preaching are performed in the local language. So this practice already exists with us. Our missionary strategy in far abroad countries is based on two basic principles. One principle is that we feed our flock, that is, those people who already belong to our Church. And another principle is that we are open to representatives of other traditions who want to join our Church - regardless of their nationality, their language, we accept them with love. At the same time, we do not engage in proselytism - we do not go to churches of other faiths and do not say that our faith is true, and yours is not. But when people come to us, we, of course, open the doors to them and do not hide the fact that we consider our faith to be true, and not some other. - How are the Patriarchal Exarchates of Western Europe and Southeast Asia, created at the end of last year, developing? - Speaking of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Southeast Asia , it was created in response to the needs and aspirations of our people, and it is developing very dynamically. I visited the Philippines not so long ago and participated in a worship service in which there were many Filipino parishioners and Filipino clergy. And, of course, not only Russian people, and not only Russian-speaking people are ordained in the dioceses of our Church - we have many clergymen who speak only their native language and serve in their native language. The patriarchal exarchate of Western Europe is also developing dynamically, new parishes are opening - literally at every or almost every meeting of the Synod, we decide to open new parishes. And all this is due to the fact that interest in the Church is not decreasing, but increasing - we are observing this both in our Fatherland and beyond. - In the Philippines, the situation is especially interesting - President Rodrigo Duterte, who invited Orthodox missionaries to the country at the Valdai Forum in Sochi, in some statements positioned himself as an atheist, there were even certain conflicts between the authorities and the Catholic Church. Did this apply to local Orthodox? - Missionary activity is developing actively - in the Philippines there are already more than 30 parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church. The difficulties that the Catholic Church has had or are having with local authorities do not affect our missionary work. Moreover, the Catholic Church treats our presence in the Philippines very favorably - I had the opportunity to see this when I met with the Archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Tagle, who leads the Catholic Church of the Philippines. - Did the representatives of the first wave of emigration remain in the Philippines: those who got there from China in the 1940s? - Those parishes that are now in the Philippines - their parishioners are either emigrants of the last wave, or local residents who are interested in Orthodoxy and accept Orthodoxy. Now there is nothing left of the pre-war emigration in the Philippines, because the Philippines turned out to be a transit point for it. Indeed, at some time there was a large group of Russians there, for some time there was Saint John of Shanghai, but then they all went on, and most of them ended up in Australia, and some in America. - Are there any conflicts with the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which considers the canonical territory included in the Patriarchal exarchates of the country? - The Patriarchate of Constantinople has been developing the theory since the 1920s, according to which the so-called diaspora should have only the presence of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and not the parallel presence of different Orthodox Churches. But the Local Orthodox Churches, which have dioceses and parishes in the diaspora - the Church of Antioch , the Russian, the Georgian , the Serbian , the Romanian , and the Bulgarian - do not agree with this theory - they all have parishes in the so-called diaspora. In general, the very concept of “diaspora” is very controversial, and in the Orthodox world it does not have a single interpretation. Historically, the parishes and dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church appeared where Russian people or members of our Orthodox Church, belonging to other nationalities, appeared. In total, our Church has more than 800 parishes in the so-called diaspora, and their number is constantly growing. We have no reason to believe that all these parishes and all this flock should go to the Patriarch of Constantinople, especially since we see how much attention he pays to our flock. For example, in Turkey, where until recently the Russian Church was not present at all, since we perceive Turkey as the canonical territory of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, no serious pastoral work was conducted with our believers. There were episodic services, people felt abandoned, abandoned. They appealed to us, but we could not answer these appeals, because we believed that the Patriarchate of Constantinople should deal with the pastoral care of these people. We repeatedly suggested that the Patriarchate of Constantinople send Russian priests there, and we would have given these priests to his jurisdiction, but he categorically refused this. And now the situation has developed in such a way that our believers can no longer receive communion in the parishes of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, therefore, priests of the Russian Orthodox Church perform services in Turkey and are engaged in pastoral care for the parishioners. - Several years have passed since the meeting between the Patriarch of Moscow and the Pope in Havana. How is the dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church going now, and is there a need for repeated meetings of the Primates - for example, in Russia, about the desire to visit which Pope Francis has repeatedly said, or in the Vatican? - The meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Cyril was of a historical nature, and this meeting opened up a very wide space for interaction in all areas. We are now working to implement what the Pope and the Patriarch agreed on. So far I have not heard of any new meetings that would be outlined. We are working to help Christians in the Middle East. This assistance is provided in many ways, primarily political support, but also humanitarian actions aimed at improving the situation of those Christians who remain in Syria and other countries of the Middle East who need help. The Catholic Church has long been carrying out its charitable work in the Middle East, but recently we began to coordinate our efforts, and we already see some fruits of this coordination. I think that we will increase our cooperation in this area, as well as in other areas in which this interaction will be in demand. We have a working group on cooperation between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church, this group is led by me and Cardinal Koch, and we discuss various projects that are carried out in the cultural sphere, as well as in the field of charity and social service. As for the assistance that comes from the Russian Orthodox Church together with representatives of other religious faiths in Russia, there have already been several deliveries of entire batches of humanitarian aid, once it was 77 tons , and this aid is distributed among the people of Syria regardless of their confessional accessories. - Theology has recently been introduced into the system of scientific specialties in Russia. Has a Russian academic community of theologians and theologians already formed? How much is the specialty demanded by students of secular educational institutions who do not plan to become clergy in the future? - Such a community is in the process of formation. From the moment that theology has been legalized as a scientific specialty, to the moment when we have a community of theologians in the secular educational space, a certain time must pass. Suffice it to say that when we created the first state-recognized dissertation council on theology, it included more than 20 doctors of science, but none of them was a doctor of theology - for the simple reason that theology as a recognized science in the Russian educational space existed. But now dissertations are being defended in this theological council, there were several such defenses, and it can be assumed that in a few years we will have a sufficient number of certified theologians, from whom, in turn, it will be possible to make new dissertation councils. The development of theological science in the secular educational space is the command of the times. I observe a great interest among the rectors of our leading educational institutions in this area of ​​scientific research, and I really hope that theology will develop not only in denominational theological schools, but also in secular educational space. Interviewed by Pavel Skrylnikov

Statement of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church

Statement of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church Заявление Священного Синода Русской Православной Церкви print version October 17, 2019 15:28 On October 17, 2019, at a meeting of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church, a statement was adopted on the situation in the Greek Orthodox Church after the Extraordinary Bishops' Council on October 12, 2019 on the Ukrainian church issue ( Journal No. 125 ). The members of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church got acquainted with the documents published in the media of the extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy of the Hellas Orthodox Church of October 12, 2019, in particular, with the communiqué of the Council and the report of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome of Athens and All Greece “Autocephaly of the Church of Ukraine”, in which It is proposed to "recognize ... the autocephaly of the Orthodox Church of the independent Ukrainian Republic." Since the self-governing Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and all Ukraine, uniting 95 bishops, more than 12 thousand parishes, more than 250 monasteries and tens of millions of believers, is in canonical unity with the Russian Orthodox Church and has not addressed anyone for autocephaly, it is obvious that it is about the recognition of schismatic communities in this country. Earlier, Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople repeatedly declared that Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine was recognized as the only canonical Primate of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine (the last such statement was made publicly on the Synaxis of Princes of the Local Orthodox Churches in January 2016). However, at the end of 2018, Patriarch Bartholomew changed his previous statements and, having no canonical authority, “restored to dignity” without repentance and renunciation of schism those who were expelled from him, anathematized or never had any canonical ordination, nor even a formal apostolic succession. The head of the newly created structure was a man who received his “ordination” from a former metropolitan of Kiev Filaret, who was erupted from the dignity and excommunicated from the Church. The latter was also “restored” in “bishop's dignity” by the Patriarch of Constantinople, but soon after that he left the newly established “church” and announced the restoration of his former schismatic community, which he calls the “Kiev Patriarchate”. About the difficult situation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church after the anti-canonical legalization of the Ukrainian schism by Constantinople, about the violence and persecution against its faithful children, unfolded by the former authorities of Ukraine, the Russian Orthodox Church has repeatedly informed the Hierarchy of the Greek Orthodox Church. On October 9, 2019 - a few days before the said extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy of the Hellas Church - Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill addressed His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens and All Hellas Jerome with a fraternal message containing a call to refrain from unilateral actions and not to make “hasty decisions until then until the Holy Spirit gathers the Primate of all the Holy Churches of God and wise them together on behalf of the whole Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church to find a solution that will suit everyone and will serve to overcome the current crisis. ” It is sad that the need for a hasty and unilateral recognition of the non-canonical schismatic community, His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome, based on a series of erroneous and false arguments, repeatedly refuted not only by hierarchs, scholars and theologians of the Russian Orthodox Church, but also by many prominent archpastors, pastors and theologians of the Greek Orthodox. The statement of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome that "the Orthodox Church of Ukraine ... always remained in the canonical church jurisdiction of the Mother Church - Ecumenical Patriarchate" does not correspond to reality. In 1686, by letters of honor of His Holiness the Patriarch of Constantinople Dionysius and the Holy Synod of the Church of Constantinople, the Kiev Metropolis was transferred to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. For over 300 years, the canonical jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate over the Kiev Metropolitanate has been recognized by the entire Orthodox world, including the Greek Orthodox Church. Moreover, according to the holy canons of the Church, disputes about territorial jurisdiction have a limitation period of not more than thirty years (VI All. 25). All these facts were ignored by the two commissions of the Greek Orthodox Church, which were entrusted with the study of the Ukrainian church issue. In their conclusions, these commissions, according to Metropolitan Kifirsky and Antikyphira Seraphim, “lose sight of the more than three hundred-year-old living tradition of the dependence of the metropolitanate of Kiev and all Ukraine on the Moscow Patriarchate. And these realities were reflected in all the calendars of the Greek Church until this year. Perhaps they also lose sight of the fact that the present Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew recognized the canonical jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate over the Kiev Metropolitanate with his patriarchal letters of 1992 and 1997 and respected the canonical penalties imposed on the cleansed and restored schismatic clergymen. ” The statement of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome does not correspond to reality that “due to the absence of the Moscow Patriarchate” at the Cretan Council in 2016 “there was no opportunity to discuss the issue of granting autocephaly”. In fact, the topic of autocephaly was excluded from the agenda of the Council much earlier, at the insistence of Patriarch Bartholomew. Now the reason for this is becoming apparent. Indeed, at meetings of the Inter-Orthodox Preparatory Commission in 1993 and 2009, representatives of all the Local Orthodox Churches agreed on the procedure for granting autocephaly, which implies a) the consent of the Local Council of the Mother Church of the Cyriarchal Church so that part of it receives autocephaly; b) revealing by the Ecumenical Patriarch of the consensus of all Local Orthodox Churches, expressed by the unanimity of their Councils; c) on the basis of the consent of the Mother Church and the pan-Orthodox consensus, the official declaration of autocephaly through the publication of the Tomos, which "is signed by the Ecumenical Patriarch and is testified by the signatures in it of the Most Beatiful Primate of the Holy Autocephalous Churches invited for this by the Ecumenical Patriarch." Regarding the last paragraph, only the procedure for signing the Tomos was not fully agreed upon, but this fact does not cancel the agreements reached on the remaining paragraphs. At the Synaxis of the Primate of 2014 and 2016, the delegation of the Moscow Patriarchate, along with representatives of several other fraternal Churches, insisted on the inclusion of autocephaly on the agenda of the Council. The Russian Church finally agreed to exclude this topic from the agenda of the Council only after Patriarch Bartholomew in January 2016, in the presence of other Primate, assured that the Holy Church of Constantinople has no intentions to carry out any actions related to church life in Ukraine , neither at the Holy and Great Council, nor after the Council. The arguments cited in the report of His Beatitude Archbishop Jerome and repeatedly refuted arguments follow exactly the position of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. However, doubts arise whether the fullness of the Greek Orthodox Church shares them. The absence of unanimity between the hierarchs of the Church of Greece on this issue and the fact that the voices of those who disagree with the recognition of the Ukrainian schism were ignored is evidenced by Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifir: “First, the white-haired gray-haired and very respectable metropolitans Karist Seraphim and Iliysky German, who with great wisdom and reasoned about this burning problem, recognizing that yes, the Ecumenical Patriarch has the canonical right to grant autocephaly on certain conditions, but the current situation I am very critical, and therefore requires extraordinary prudence and in-depth study and research of this whole complex problem without any haste. In the same vein, the speeches of the Most Reverend Metropolitans of Caesarianius of Daniel, Mesogeos Nicholas, Piraeus Seraphim ... and mine were sustained. The Bishops Metropolitans of Dryinopolsky Andrei and Aetolian Cosmas did not take the word, but joined the previously speaking Bishops. The Metropolitans Novosmirnsky Simeon and Nektariy of absent but written in writing stated their position with the same sensitivity and from the same point of view approached this serious Ukrainian question. ” Metropolitan Simeon of Novosmirn in his letter addressed to the Council of the Hierarchy and His Beatitude Chairman, notes that the provision of autocephaly to Ukraine under the conditions in which it was granted “has nothing to do with other autocephaly that was previously provided” by the Patriarchate of Constantinople. He emphasizes that "hasty recognition ... of schismatics and the so-called" sanctuaries "bypassing the canonical local Church, but also of the Moscow Patriarchate, which condemned the schismatics - and the provision of autocephaly to the new church structure raises legitimate questions and provokes opposition." He also points to the canonically unacceptable fact of the existence of “two parallel local Churches” in Ukraine and the re-split already occurred within the “new church structure that received autocephaly”. He directly mentions the interest of large geopolitical forces in hastily providing "autocephaly" to schismatics. Comparing the current situation of Orthodoxy with the events of the Great schism of 1054, he calls on the hierarchy "not to rush to take a position." “A violent and hasty approach to resolving the issue,” says Metropolitan Simeon, “will make us vulnerable and put our Church at risk.” It would be a mistake to consider that such an approach to the issue will serve as support to the Ecumenical Patriarchate. ” Metropolitan Nektarios of Kerkyra, who did not have the opportunity to attend the extraordinary Council of the hierarchy of his Church, addressed the Council with a letter calling for “to postpone the decision." He notes that the present “time is inappropriate to make a decision on this pressing issue, including for the reason that geopolitical conditions in the widest space are far from the norm, and as a result, whatever solution is likely, it will create difficulties to our motherland. ” He also calls on the Church of Greece to "assume the role of mediator" in order to start a dialogue between the Patriarchates of Constantinople and Moscow. Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus, known as a specialist in church and canon law, not only presented the Council with a comprehensive study, which convincingly refuted the argument presented in the report of the Primate of the Church of Greece, but also sharply criticized the so-called “unifying council” of schismatics in his oral speeches. . He emphasized that "the so-called" unification council "has no force, since it consisted of lay people, and the provision of autocephalous status to this non-existent" church "structure also turns out to be invalid." He further noted that all attempts to justify this “canonical lawlessness” by anomalous canonical practice, “with reference to the Ottoman capture of the Church” and the difficult period when a number of Local Churches depended directly on the Patriarch of Constantinople, “hush up the canonical church order of the Holy Ecumenical Councils." “I demanded,” says Metropolitan Seraphim, “from the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece to convene the Pan-Orthodox Council to resolve this difficult issue, which, unfortunately, is mixed with geopolitics, or even geostrategy, which affects all Primate of the Autocephalous Orthodox Churches. At the same time, I put on the face of the Synodal Commission on Inter-Orthodox and Inter-Christian Relations that it did not submit to the Permanent Holy Synod, His Beatitude Chairman of the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece, neither any report on the opinions on this issue of other Autocephalous Orthodox Churches, nor an assessment of the possible consequences for the unity of the Church in in the event of a breakdown in communication between the Russian Church and its recognition of the old calendarists in Greece. At the same time, I replied to the Chairman of the Church and Canonical Affairs Commission that Metropolitan Onufry had no opportunity to take part in the so-called “unification council”, as His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens could not have participated with the self-proclaimed “Archbishop of Athens”, Parthenius Vezireas - Deacon Church of Greece, erupted from the dignity. " The Communiqué of the Extraordinary Council of the Hierarchy reported on the decision taken following the discussion of this report. But who exactly made this decision and in what form remains unclear. A number of authoritative hierarchs drew the attention of the Council to the critical situation of world Orthodoxy, to the need for extreme caution and in-depth study of the problem - without any rush and pressure from outside. Several metropolitans, including those absent from the Council, wrote in writing to the Council with an appeal to postpone the resolution of the issue. Decisions of the Council of Hierarchy in the Church of Greece are made by voting of all participants. However, neither on the issue of recognition of Ukrainian non-canonical communities, nor on the issue of approving the decisions of the Permanent Holy Synod of the Hellenic Orthodox Church in Ukraine, the episcopate did not vote. This, in particular, was stated by Metropolitan Seraphim of Kifir: “As you know, decisions in our Church are made by voting: either by show of hands, either openly or secretly, or by interviewing all participants in the meeting. Perhaps a sufficient number of votes would have been cast in favor of autocephaly, but there would be a lot of those who hold the opposite point of view, as well as those who, with their silence, would join the second. ” There is no public access to the official document signed by the Greek archpastors, which could be considered evidence of a single conciliar decision of the Local Church. Moreover, news was quickly spread that the Greek Orthodox Church recognized Ukrainian autocephaly, which does not correspond either to the text of the communiqué or to the position of many participants in the Council. Serious fears arise that the conciliar decision-making method, sanctified by the words of the holy apostles: “It is pleasing to the Holy Spirit and us” (Acts 15:28), and the thousand-year history of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, was violated in this case. If the Ukrainian schism is truly recognized by the Hellenic Orthodox Church or its Primate - in the form of joint service, liturgical commemoration of the schism leader or sending him official letters - this will be sad evidence of the deepening of the separation in the family of the Local Orthodox Churches. The full responsibility for this division will fall, first of all, on the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew and on those external political forces in whose interests the Ukrainian split was “legalized”. Instead of acknowledging the mistake made and trying to correct it through pan-Orthodox discussion, Patriarch Bartholomew blocked any negotiation initiatives in this direction and, according to many testimonies, exerted unprecedented pressure on the hierarchs of the Church of Greece, demanding that they recognize the schismatics. He repeatedly stated that the Greek Church recognized the non-canonical false hierarchs of Ukraine as a matter resolved, as if it was not an independent decision by the autocephalous Orthodox Church. The position of the Greek Church, which is significantly limited in its autocephalous structure, is complicated by the double jurisdiction of a significant part of its episcopate, canonically dependent on Constantinople: for example, circulars from the Patriarchate of Constantinople were sent to these hierarchs with the requirement to immediately recognize the newly created pseudo-church structure. Those who found the courage to openly expose the errors of the Patriarch of Constantinople and enter into a discussion with him were threatened, they were required to take disciplinary measures, they were accused of betrayal and lack of patriotism. It is sad that in this way the historical merits of the Greek people in the spread of Orthodoxy are exchanged for momentary political benefits and support for geopolitical interests alien to the Church. But these speculations on national sentiments will not succeed. They cannot undermine the unity of our faith, bought by the blood of the new martyrs and confessors of our Churches. They will not interrupt the unity of our ascetic tradition, built up by the exploits of many reverend fathers and ascetics. They will not destroy the centuries-old friendship of the Greek and Slavic peoples, paid for by the blood of Russian soldiers and tempered in the common struggle for the freedom of the fraternal Greek people. We cherish the prayer communion with our brethren in the Greek Orthodox Church and will maintain a lively prayer, canonical and Eucharistic relationship with it - through all those archpastors and pastors who have already opposed or will oppose the recognition of the Ukrainian schism, who will not tarnish themselves with congregation with schismatic false hierarchs, but he will set an example of Christian courage and firm standing for the truth of Christ. May the Lord strengthen them in the confession of arms, with the prayers of the saints Mark of Ephesus and Gregory Palamas, the Monk Maximus the Confessor and all those Greek saints whom they venerated and are honored with us in Holy Russia. At the same time, we remember that the sacred canons of the Church condemn those who enter into prayerful communion and ministry with those who are erupted from the dignity and excommunicated (Apost. 10, 11, 12; I Ephesians 5; Antioch. 2, etc.). In this regard, we stop the prayer and Eucharistic communion with those bishops of the Church of Greece who have entered into or will enter into such communion with representatives of Ukrainian non-canonical schismatic communities. We also do not bless pilgrimage trips to the dioceses controlled by the designated bishops. Relevant information will be widely distributed among the pilgrimage and tourism organizations of the countries that make up the canonical territory of our Church. The Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church authorizes His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill to stop commemorating the name of His Beatitude Archbishop of Athens and all of Hellas in diptychs if the Primate of the Church of Greece begins to commemorate the head of one of the Ukrainian schismatic groups, recognizing and undertaking them Ukrainian church schism.

Style of Theophan the Recluse

On the features of the style of spiritual works of St. Theophan the Recluse Об особенностях стиля духовных произведений святителя Феофана Затворника print version October 17, 2019 10:12 XIII Feofanov readings devoted to the life path of Saint Theophan the Recluse were held in Moscow. The head of the Research Projects and Special Programs of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, Priest Stefan Danilenko , spoke about what work is being done today to study the spiritual heritage of this Christian ascetic, “Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate” . - Father Stefan, what is the relevance of Theophan the Recluse's heritage to our time? - The literary works of the holy man bear the imprint of his spiritual experience. Therefore, for a Christian, the spiritual creation of saints will always be relevant. Many of the questions that worried St. Theophanes sound quite modern: free-thinking, the impoverishment of faith, the spread of non-Christian and even occult teachings, the need for spiritual enlightenment of people. Of course, Theophan the Recluse was engaged not only in thoughts about the social disorder of the 19th century. The main volume of his works is devoted to purely Christian topics - morality, Christian anthropology, the interpretation of the Holy Scriptures, translations of the Holy Fathers, the edification of the Christian in spiritual life. All this vast literary heritage of St. Theophanes allows us to touch his spiritual path and feel the need for spiritual work, to which he tirelessly called. - What is the peculiarity of the style of his spiritual works? - Saint Theophanes wrote mainly spiritual and moral works. Their content is dedicated to the salvation of man and his transformation for the kingdom of God. After that, works of a polemical, accusatory character and the scientific works of the saint come to mind. It is known that in his literary activity he was guided by the principle of “what will be more useful now”, therefore all his writings in a simple and understandable form convey the truths of Christianity to their readers: they are full of images, analogies and examples from everyday life that are understandable to those who listen and read. Often the saint uses the results of the natural scientific discoveries of his time to illustrate certain laws of spiritual life. Often, he neglects the literality in his translated works in order to simplify a complex text and convey to the reader the very essence of the thought of the translated holy father. In his epistolary writings, we often find brief but concise words. For example, “soap bubbles” - this is how St. Theophanes spoke of the sectarians of his time. - What is the work of the Publishing Council for the study of Theophan the Recluse's heritage? - Every year we hold conferences and readings on his life path. And also we are preparing for the publication “Chronicle of the life and works of St. Theophanes”, which contains documents related to his personality and era. "Chronicle ..." includes archival materials, letters, memoirs. Collected in chronological order, they allow you to very accurately restore the outline of the life of Vyshensky Recluse: from birth to death. Currently, the project is being implemented by the staff of the Publishing Council under the leadership of Metropolitan Clement of Kaluga and Borovsky . However, at various stages in this work, scientific bishops and clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church, secular scholars, archival and textual groups, the genealogical group, who made a significant contribution to finding materials that make up the volume of the Chronicle, took part in this work. Considerable scientific work that helps in compiling the volumes of the Chronicle ... is being conducted at scientific forums dedicated to St. Theophanes, which take place in the Publishing Council, as well as in the Vyshensky Monastery and on Tambov Land. - What are the plans and next steps for the implementation of the Feofanovsky project? - The bulk of the work on finding materials that make up the text of the volumes of the Chronicle ... has already been done: archives and libraries have been examined, manuscripts and periodicals of the XIX-XX centuries have been reviewed. However, it is impossible to find all references to the saint, so the search and research work continues and brings certain results. For example, recently in the Central State Archive of the Republic of Mordovia the previously unknown correspondence of St. Theophanes with the builder of the Sarov Desert Hieromonk Serafim (Pestov) was discovered, the identities of many previously unknown correspondents of the saint were established. Now prepared for publication the 4th volume of the Chronicle ..., which includes documents related to the arrival of St. Theophanes at the Vyshensky Monastery and the beginning of its shutter. After the publication of the 4th volume, our group will begin to prepare for printing the remaining volumes of the "Chronicle ..." In total, this series involves the publication of 6 volumes. In addition, we are considering the possibility of publishing an additional 7th volume, which will cover the public’s reaction to the life and work of the saint after his righteous death. Theophan the Recluse (Govorov) (1815-1894) - bishop of the Russian Church, theologian, publicist, glorified in the person of saints. Since 1866 he stayed at the Vyshensky monastery. Since 1872 he was in the bolt. Author of works: “Letters on the Christian Life”, “Philosophy of Love”, “Interpretations on the Epistles of St. Apostle Paul "and others. The Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church is implementing the Feofanov project to study the works of the Vyshensky Recluse.

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: It is important not to rush into unilateral decisions that can only aggravate the division that has arisen

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: It is important not to rush into unilateral decisions that can only aggravate the division that has arisen Митрополит Волоколамский Иларион: Важно не спешить с односторонними решениями, которые могут лишь усугубить возникшее разделение print version October 10, 2019 14:45 Two main topics are discussed in recent days throughout the Orthodox world. This reunion of the Archdiocese of Western European parishes of Russian tradition with the Moscow Patriarchate is an accomplished historical event, as well as an extraordinary meeting of the hierarchs of the Church of Greece scheduled for October 12, at which it is expected to consider the sensitive topic of the recognition or non-recognition of Ukrainian schismatics. Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk told in an interview with RIA Novosti what these two events mean for world Orthodoxy and what consequences they may have. - Vladyka, with what feelings did you come across the news of the reunification of the Archdiocese of the parishes of Russian tradition in Western Europe with the Moscow Patriarchate? - With a feeling of deep relief and gratitude to God. An important page in the history of our Church has been turned. The process of reunification of the Russian diaspora under the omophorion of the Moscow Patriarch is over. The division that began a hundred years ago after the October Revolution was finally overcome. - In your opinion, what was the reason for the abolition of the Archdiocese of the Patriarch of Constantinople? - The logic of the actions of the Patriarch of Constantinople, starting in the spring of 2018, when he announced his intention to "grant autocephaly to Ukraine," defies explanation. But if, in the case of the legitimization of the Ukrainian schism, the Russian Church was harmed, then in the case of the abolition of the Archdiocese, the Patriarchate of Constantinople dealt a blow to itself. According to the teachings of the Holy Fathers, God turns evil to good consequences. The abolition of the Archdiocese was an evil deed, but it became the impetus for her reunion with the Mother Church. In 1931, she broke away from the Russian Church due to political circumstances, and this retreat was positioned by her head Metropolitan Eulogius as temporary. It was on a temporary basis that it was adopted by the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which then twice abolished it - once in 1965, the second time in 2018. - How did the Archbishopric receive the news of reunification with the Moscow Patriarchate? - In the cathedral on Ryu Darya, when this decision was announced, people greeted each other with the Easter cry “Christ is risen!” There were tears in the eyes of many. And in the remaining parishes following Archbishop John, this decision was perceived as joyful and long-awaited. “And how many priests did not follow him?” “You can compare photographs of two meetings that took place almost simultaneously.” One depicts the supporters of Constantinople, assembled by Metropolitan Emmanuel. They are all turned with their backs to the lens, and it’s difficult to calculate the exact number of people in the armchairs: in any case, there are not more than ten of them. And in another photo - the participants in the meeting, which decided to join the Moscow Patriarchate. They stand facing the lens, joy on their faces. There are about fifty clerics. According to the communiqué of the Archdiocese, 51 clergy from the participants in this meeting and another 37 clergy who were absent expressed a desire to join the Moscow Patriarchate. Total 84 clergymen. So we are talking about an absolute majority. - In a few days, the Greek Church will decide on the recognition or non-recognition of the structure created by Constantinople in Ukraine. What is your forecast, what are the fears and hopes? - The Greek Church is autocephalous, and I hope that it will make a responsible decision, corresponding to the spirit and letter of the church canons, without pressure from outside. The Church of Greece knows that the Ukrainian pseudo-church structure, which received a tomos from Constantinople, consists of people who do not have canonical ordinations. Part of its “hierarchs” comes from an impostor - a deacon who posed as either an Orthodox bishop or an Anglican priest and ended up behind bars. The other part comes from a former metropolitan anathematized. Can good water flow from rotten springs? Issuing a tomos of autocephaly to this group was a mistake on the part of Constantinople. But Patriarch Bartholomew was misinformed by the then Ukrainian authorities and his own experts on Ukrainian affairs. He was told that Poroshenko would remain in power and bring the liquidation of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church to an end, while Poroshenko shamefully failed in the election and left the political arena. The patriarch was told that after the granting of the tomos, almost all canonical bishops would join the new structure, but only two out of ninety joined. The patriarch was told that Moscow was holding Kiev in its arms, but it turned out that this was not so either: the Ukrainian Orthodox themselves overwhelmingly did not want a break with the Russian Church. Finally, the Patriarch was told that the tomos would unite all Ukrainian Orthodox. But he could not unite even the schismatics themselves. It is no coincidence that only a few months after the “unification council”, in which two schismatic structures were merged into one, a division reappeared within the split. And now the very founder of the schism, restored in the "rank" by the Patriarch of Constantinople, announced the withdrawal from the "PCU" and the re-establishment of the "Kiev Patriarchate". It is quite natural for a split that it is divided into parts. Once in Greece there was one old-style schism, but how many are there now? I am deeply convinced that time will put everything in its place. Now it’s important not to rush into unilateral decisions that can only aggravate the division that has arisen. Let's better wait for that blessed day when all Local Churches, moved by the Holy Spirit, will be able to come together and decide at the pan-Orthodox level the future of Ukrainian Orthodoxy. There are precedents for healing splits, including in the recent past. It is enough to recall the church cathedral in Sofia, convened to overcome the schism in the Bulgarian Church. It was chaired by Patriarch Bartholomew, with the participation of the heads and representatives of other Local Churches, and its result was the return of schismatics to the fold of the Church. In the case of Ukraine, another scenario was chosen, and therefore the result was just the opposite. There are many hierarchs in the Greek Church who are well aware of the real situation in Ukraine. They know that the vast majority of the Orthodox flock remains united around Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine . These are 12 thousand parishes, more than 200 monasteries and millions of believers. These believers know who the schismatics are, and they will never follow them. They will never exchange the life-giving currents of blessed water for rotten water. - Some Greek hierarchs are already threatening the Russian Church with isolation ... “Those who recognize the split will be in isolation.” We in the Russian Church feel the strong support of the Local Orthodox Churches. Some Churches have openly expressed their disagreement with the legitimization of the Ukrainian schism, while others tacitly disagree with it. I am sure that the vast majority of Local Churches both did not recognize and will not recognize this act in the future. So - sooner or later - you still have to return to this issue at the pan-Orthodox level. - How will the Russian Church behave if the Greek Church nevertheless recognizes the PCU? - And how would the Church of Greece behave if the Russian Church recognized one of the old-school schisms? I think the answer is obvious. When Constantinople granted the tomos of autocephaly to Ukrainian schismatics, we had no choice but to break the Eucharistic communion. Many Greek hierarchs did not understand this, found our reaction too harsh, leaving no room for dialogue. But let those who criticize us put themselves in our place. We are open to dialogue and hope for dialogue. We have repeatedly called for such a dialogue between the Patriarch of Constantinople. And now we are calling for issues of such importance to be resolved at the pan-Orthodox level, and not through unilateral decisions of individual Local Churches. If we cannot now resolve the issue without prejudice to church unity, let's take a break. We will give the Holy Spirit the opportunity to help us figure out what is difficult for us to figure out without His help. At every Divine Liturgy, we offer prayers for the unity of the Orthodox Church. We believe that this unity will be preserved, and the necessary decisions will be prompted over time to the All-Church Council by the Holy Spirit Himself, who will never leave our Church, for it is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic, and the gates of hell will not prevail over it (Matthew 16:18) .

Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency

Interview with Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency Интервью митрополита Волоколамского Илариона Болгарскому телеграфному агентству print version October 11, 2019 16:19 The chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk , who is in Bulgaria with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, gave an interview to the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency . - Your Eminence, welcome to Bulgaria. What is the purpose of your current visit? - I am glad, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, to visit Bulgaria again to once again witness the inviolability of the fraternal bonds that have linked our Orthodox Church Sisters for centuries. One of the goals of this trip is to participate in an international conference held by Velikotyrnovsk State University. - You met with the Patriarch of the Bulgarian Neophyte . What issues are relevant for the Russian and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches now? - Our fraternal Churches have an extensive agenda for bilateral relations. We cooperate in various fields - educational, scientific and theological, pilgrimage and many others. In addition, important issues related to inter-Orthodox relations are on the agenda. Now all the Local Orthodox Churches, first of all, are concerned about the issue of maintaining the unity of world Orthodoxy. We need to think together about how to confront the dangers of separation. - Please tell us about the conference in Veliko Tarnovo. - A forum on the topic “History of the Bulgarian and Russian Orthodox Churches as a subject of academic study in the theological educational institutions of Russia and Bulgaria at the present stage” united church scholars. Within the walls of the General Church Graduate School and Doctoral Studies (OCAD), which I have been leading for more than ten years, in recent years a number of master's and candidate works devoted to the history of relations between the Russian and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches in 1940-1950 have been defended. In 2012, at the Department of External Church Relations and Social Sciences of the OECR, a corresponding scientific direction began to take shape. In 2016-2019, several works on the history of relations between the Russian Orthodox and Bulgarian Orthodox Churches were defended. An associate professor of the department came to Bulgaria with me, who was the supervisor of two candidate dissertations, as well as one of the undergraduates who successfully defended the work on the history of the Bulgarian Church. We paid great attention to the preparation of the work of our Bulgarian applicants. In 2015, in the OCAD, a master's thesis was defended by the Bulgarian clergyman Archimandrite Isaac (Boyadzhiysky), who studied with us since 2011. The work of Isaac's father was devoted to the topic “Patriarchate of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church”. In 2017, the dissertation of the Secretary-General of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Bishop Gerasim of Melnisch “Compounds of Local Orthodox Churches in Moscow” was brilliantly defended; This work aroused considerable interest and received high marks from specialists. Both of our Bulgarian brothers lived the life of our theological school all the years of study, often served me in the temples of the OKAD. I am glad that Bishop Belogorodsky Sylvester , rector of the Kiev Theological Schools , came to the conference, who talked about how Bulgarian students studied at the Kiev Theological Academy before the revolution. Representatives of the faculty of the Orthodox Theological Faculty of Velikotyrnovsky University showed great interest in the forum. - What is the current situation of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine in the context of recent events and Filaret Denisenko’s statement about the rejection of the tomos given by Patriarch Bartholomew ? - An attempt to legalize the Ukrainian schism through the creation of a new structure from schismatics and providing it with a “tomos” in 2018, as well as the collapse of this structure soon after that, has nothing to do with the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, led by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and all Ukraine . As you know, the Ukrainian schism arose in the 90s under the influence of political factors and in its development followed the rules of politics, and not the logic of church life. In this regard, it is very similar to the split that occurred around the same time in the Bulgarian Patriarchate. However, in 2018, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, with the support of President Poroshenko, under the slogan “Unification of Ukrainian Orthodoxy” tried to legitimize schismatics. This was done again, for political reasons: by the beginning of the election campaign, Petro Poroshenko was required to quickly and costlessly demonstrate to the voters the high-profile achievements of his presidency. On the eve of the election, the leaders of the so-called “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” traveled with Poroshenko and the “Tomos” to the regions of Ukraine, which many perceived as part of the election campaign of the President. However, this campaign ended in complete collapse: Ukrainian voters did not approve of speculation in religion and attempts to use the Church for political purposes. The violence against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church did not lead to anything. Despite the seizures of the churches with the support of the authorities, the beatings of the clergy and believers, mass searches and criminal cases against the clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, she did not give up the canonical principles of her life and refused to follow the politicians' lead. Now, after the change of power and political agenda in Ukraine, the Ukrainian split is predictably breaking up. He is not even able to maintain his own unity - not to unite Ukrainian Orthodoxy. And the canonical Church of Ukraine, which experienced real persecution under Poroshenko, still unites more than 12,000 communities and remains the largest religious denomination in Ukraine, recognized by all world Orthodoxy. I think this is largely due to the wise position of her hierarchy, which refused to exchange the internal independence of church life for momentary political bonuses. And believers praised this. More and more people are coming to the annual religious procession in Kiev, held on the occasion of the Baptism of Russia: last July, up to 300 thousand people took part in the prayer procession. Let's hope that the new government of Ukraine will listen to the voice of its people. “Recently, Jehovah's Witnesses called our house early in the morning asking if we believe in God.” How to protect yourself from sects and schisms? - The best defense against sects and schisms is a deep study of Christian doctrine, as well as participation in the Sacraments of the Church. It will be much more difficult to deceive a person who regularly reads the Holy Scripture, who is versed in Orthodox dogmas and familiar with the history of the Church, than a bearer of a secular or near-Christian worldview. Often, it is precisely ignorance by people of their own faith that recruiters of various sects use. All this, of course, emphasizes the high importance of religious education, thanks to which people in a certain sense strengthen their anti-sectarian immunity. Since the revival of spiritual life in Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church has been developing religious and theological education in state and church educational institutions of the country. I can state with satisfaction that in this area we have achieved a lot. At the same time, in Russia the Church does not have access to schools, and we lose a lot because of this. It is at the level of children's consciousness that the basic value paradigms are laid, and it is at this age that it is most easy to vaccinate against sectarian false teachings. - As the head of the Scientific and Educational Theological Association, you congratulated students of theological and secular educational institutions on the beginning of the new school year, wishing them, first of all, to learn how to read the Holy Scriptures. How can the younger generation be taught to read the Bible in secular schools today? - Young people tend to be critical of any attempts to impose an authoritative opinion on them. Therefore, it makes no sense to simply encourage them to study the scriptures or to say that Bible knowledge is essential for everyone. Two things need to be said. First: The Bible provides answers to questions that concern modern people. Second: the Bible itself contains many questions and puzzles, the answer to which is expected from us. Yes, this is exactly so: God not only teaches us and answers our questions, but also awaits our answers; through scripture, He enters into dialogue with the readers of this Eternal Book. The Bible is revealed to man in a new way throughout his life. These topics I touch on in my book about Jesus Christ . It is often pretended to Christians that the Gospels contain mutual contradictions. However, if you compare these “contradictions” over and over again, then completely incredible facets of the sacred text are revealed. While working on the book, I did not hide, but rather sharpened these paradoxes precisely because I knew: each time new discoveries await me and the readers. If we can show young people that the Holy Scripture captures an attentive reader no less than a computer game, thriller or intellectual novel, I’m sure that students who turn to the Bible will find in it something that will turn their minds around. The following should be noted. Many biblical texts are quite difficult to understand, and we need specialists who can, firstly, engage in its deep scientific study, and, secondly, bring knowledge about it to a wide audience. Fortunately, the training opportunities for such specialists are growing. Since 2017, the Bachelor's program “Bible Studies and the History of Ancient Israel” has been successfully operating at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow. This year, we opened the Master's program “Christian Sources” at the Church Graduate and Doctoral School named after Saints Cyril and Methodius , whose students received a unique opportunity to study the scriptures and texts of the patristic tradition in the original languages. Biblical departments exist in all leading Orthodox theological universities. I sincerely hope that all these areas of our work will bear fruit, and we will see a generation of people for whom the Bible has become a challenge and a guide. - What other parting words could you give the modern young generation? - Now, when we live in an environment extremely rich in information, many people are in the world of myths and ideas composed by someone else. I would like to urge young people not to live by stereotypes and to check how objective our opinions are. For example, it is customary to perceive the Church either as a repository of dust-covered traditions that are not relevant in our time, or as a “bureau of ritual services”, where you should go only occasionally if necessary - to baptize a newborn, to sing the deceased. A false but familiar stereotype can also be called the idea of ​​churches filled with old people, where the young have nothing to do, or the Church as an authority that prohibits all the joys of life. After all, if you take a closer look, it turns out that the "prohibitions" that scare non-church people are, in fact, simply the "rules of a healthy lifestyle" for the soul, which help not to stain it in the dirt, not to hurt with serious sins, and not overgrown with bark egoism, but to retain the ability to enjoy the peace bestowed by God and relationships with others. As for the age of those who come to the Church, it can be noted that indeed, with life experience, after various difficult situations, and sometimes tragedies associated with the loss of loved ones, a person is more inclined to think that his life is not limited to the usual bustle, that she there should be a deeper meaning than just satisfying needs. However, very often it is young people with their characteristic maximalism that pose questions of eternal life and its highest meaning. And this can be seen, for example, in the churches of the Russian Orthodox Church, where young men and women, as well as young families with children, now make up a significant part of the parishioners who are going to worship and participating in the social service of the parish community. The vocation and purpose of the Church is not just to keep traditions or “satisfy religious needs”, but to change the world and people for the better. Those people who do not touch the Church superficially, but go deep into its being, understand that the Church is able to give them happiness, to fill their life with content. At the same time, the traditions and canons that are preserved in the Church are not crutches that impede the development of life, but the standard, referring to which, you can find out that you are going the right way. I wish young people not to live by other people's stereotypes, but to find for themselves the right landmark on the road of life. And the best reference point is Jesus Christ. And the most important thing that the Church can give to a young man, and indeed to every person, is the living Christ, who is present in His Church. We teach the people of Christ not only through preaching, but above all through the sacrament. I note that in contrast to Bulgaria, where it is customary to partake of the Holy Communion, in Russia believers often receive Communion — every Sunday, and some at every Liturgy. When the incarnated God Himself enters the flesh and blood of man, this is the most complete union with God that is only possible in earthly life. And I wish the Bulgarian youth to experience first hand this amazing state of union with God, which is incomparable with any earthly pleasures or acquisitions.

The new issue of the magazine “Church and Time” was published

The new issue of the magazine “Church and Time” was published Вышел в свет новый номер журнала «Церковь и время» print version July 17, 2019 17:22 On July 17, 2019, the next, second (87) issue of the Church and Time scientific and theological and church-public journal was published. It opens with a publication dedicated to the decade of intronization of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill. The article, which was prepared by the staff of the synodal departments and institutions of the Moscow Patriarchate, describes the main changes and events that have taken place in the field of church administration, the organization of internal church life and the organization of external church relations over the ten-year period that has elapsed since the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, who elected to the Moscow Patriarchal throne the now surviving His Holiness Patriarch Kirill and determined the main directions for the development of the Church in the last guides the years. Statistical information at the beginning of 2019 in comparison with the beginning of 2009 is also presented. In an article by the chairman of the Department for External Church Relations , the chairman of the Synodal Bible and Theological Commission , the rector of the Church Graduate School and Doctoral Studies named after Saints Cyril and Methodius Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, “Demythologization of the New Testament Science”, there are justifiable criticisms of science in the late 18th century. gospel approaches. Breaking away from church tradition, European New Testament science created its own “dogma,” in which the hypotheses of researchers turn into unshakable dogmas that cannot be criticized. The author encourages the scholarly community to consider the gospel text in its totality, exploring it both in a historical context and from a theological point of view. The article “Dialogism in the homiletic heritage of St. Filaret (Drozdov)”, a postgraduate student of the Department of Philology of the Moscow Theological Academy, deacon Daniel Salishchev, discusses dialogicity as a characteristic stylistic feature of the Moscow preacher’s sermons. The author comes to the conclusion that this technique is not so much rhetorical as theological in the oratory of St. Philaret. Professor S.L. Firsov in his extensive work “The Eye of the Sovereign” makes an attempt to draw social and psychological portraits of the chief prosecutors of the Holy Governing Synod during the reign of Emperor Nicholas I. The author shows that the strengthening of the “departmental principle” in church administration depended not so much on the personality of this or that public prosecutor how much was connected with the general direction of the government policy of the autocrat, who believed that he himself controlled the Church. The article concludes with an article by Bishop Mar Av Av Royel, “The History of the Relationship between the Assyrian Church of the East and the Russian Orthodox Church,” preceded by the Secretary of the Commission for Dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Assyrian Church of the East, DECR employee S.G. Alferova. The work is a panoramic overview of the relationship between the two Churches mainly in the last two centuries.

Kursk Theological Seminary began publishing a new scientific and theological journal “Seminarium”

Kursk Theological Seminary began publishing a new scientific and theological journal “Seminarium” Курская духовная семинария начала издавать новый научно-богословский журнал «Seminarium» print version October 11, 2019 16:51 On October 9, 2019, on the day of memory of the Apostle John the Theologian, the first issue of the new scientific and theological journal Seminarium (Proceedings of the Kursk Theological Seminary) was published, the seminary website reports. “A live acting platform of scientific thought is needed by both teachers and students. The print publication allows you to more closely familiarize yourself with the work of a wide variety of authors, and also provides the opportunity to present the results of your research to the scientific community, ”said Archimandrite Simeon (Tomachinsky), editor-in-chief of the journal, in the preface to the first issue. The journal materials are divided into sections: "Theology and Philosophy", "Apologetics", "History and Culture", "Pedagogy and Psychology" and others. The chronicle of the Kursk seminary for the past academic year is presented at the end of the issue and the ranking of the ten best teachers is given with an explanation of the calculation methodology. The first issue of the journal presents articles on various topics, in particular: on the phenomenon of senility, on the traditions of the Russian Hesychasm, on the modern Orthodox community, on digitalization and spiritual security issues, on the protest movement in pre-revolutionary seminaries, on the organization of pilgrimage trips, on “kenosis and therapeutic practice ”and others. The authors are teachers of the Kursk seminary, vice-rector of the Moscow Theological Academy , teachers of the Pittsburgh, Novosibirsk and Barnaul seminaries. Seminarium has been approved and approved by the Synodal Department for Church, Community, and Media Relations . At first, the magazine will be published annually; subsequently it is planned to switch to a quarterly release.

he meeting of the head of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District with the first deputy head of the Presidential Administration of Kazakhstan

The meeting of the head of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District with the first deputy head of the Presidential Administration of Kazakhstan Состоялась встреча главы Казахстанского митрополичьего округа с первым заместителем руководителя Администрации Президента Казахстана print version October 11, 2019 17:14 On October 11, 2019, in the residence of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Akorda) in the city of Nur-Sultan, a meeting was held between Metropolitan of Astana and Kazakhstan Alexander and the First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Kazakhstan D.A. Kaletaev. After exchanging greetings, Metropolitan Alexander told D.A. Kaletaev about the life of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan Okrug , celebrating this year an important historical date - the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the celebration in honor of the Council of New Martyrs and Confessors of Kazakhstan. The head of the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan noted that His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill in connection with this date blessed the bringing of the “Sign” of the miraculous Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God to the Metropolitan District. Vladyka Metropolitan emphasized that archpastors and clergymen of Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Poland, Southeast Asia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and the USA became guests of the festivities, and more than 25 managed to worship the shrine, which was from October 4 to 10, in Alma-Ata thousand believers. The hierarch informed the deputy head of the administration of the head of state about the opening after the full-scale scientific restoration of the Ascension Cathedral of Alma-Ata, which was carried out for more than two years on behalf of the first President of the Republic N.A. Nazarbayev. During the discussion, the activities of Kazakhstan's traditional faiths were discussed in creating an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect in society, strengthening moral principles and countering extremism and terrorism. An exchange of views took place on a wide range of issues concerning the role of traditional religions in the life of Kazakhstan and state-church relations at the republican and regional levels. The meeting was held in a friendly and businesslike atmosphere.

His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry led the celebrations in Odessa on the day of memory of the Monk Kuksha of Odessa

Блаженнейший митрополит Онуфрий возглавил в Одессе торжества в день памяти преподобного Кукши Одесского print version September 30, 2019 16:04 On September 29, 2019, on the 15th Day of Pentecost, on the Exaltation, the feast day of St. Kuksha of Odessa, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Assumption Monastery in Odessa. Before the start of the service at the gates of the monastery, His Beatitude was met by bishops, clergy, monastery inhabitants and thousands of believers who arrived for the holiday. The Liturgy was served by the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church : Metropolitan of Odessa and Izmail Agafangel , Administrator of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Anthony of Boryspil and Brovarsky , Metropolitan Anthony of Khmelnytsky and Starokonstantinovsky , Metropolitan of Krivoy Rog and Nicopolis , Metropolitan Yeropher of Metropolitan Hieromoness Yerophorod of Metropolitan Yeropolith Ananyevsky Alexy , Metropolitan of Sumy and Akhtyr Evlogy , Metropolitan of Kirovograd and Novomirgorod Joasaph , Metr opolit Dzhankoysky and Razdolnensky Alipy , Metropolitan of Lviv and Galitsky Filaret , Metropolitan of Nezhinsky and Pryluksky Clement , Archbishop of Ovidiopolsky Arkady , Archbishop of Yuzhnensky Diodorus , Bishop of Artsyzsky Bishop , Bishop of Bishopric of Belgorod At the small entrance, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry elevated Bishop Victor of Artsyz to the rank of Archbishop and presented liturgical awards to the clergy of the Odessa Diocese . After reading the Holy Gospel, His Beatitude addressed the faithful with a word of preaching. At the end of the Liturgy, clergy, led by the Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, made a procession with the relics of St. Kuksha. His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry led the consecration of the new church of the Assumption Monastery in honor of the Blessed Matrona. After the service, Metropolitan Agafangel addressed His Beatitude with words of gratitude for the visit and donated the Ark with a particle of the relics of St. Kuksha of Odessa as a gift to His Beatitude. The Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church thanked Metropolitan Agafangel for his congratulations and gift, for many years of archpastoral work, fruitful work and the construction of churches. Talking about the life of the Monk Kuksha, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry explained to the flock what the real unity is: “The saints are not only prayer books for us sinners before God - they are for us an example of how a person should live on earth. There is no division between the righteous, there are no nationalities, there is no division according to skin color, according to other human qualities and merits. There all are one in Christ. Today we talk a lot about unity - we talk about the unity of Ukraine, we talk about the unity of the world, because Ukraine is not the only place where peace and unity are needed - the whole world needs it. People are trying to unite on some human principles, laws, common interests. But unity is right and lasting only when it is based on Christ. When everyone unites around Christ, then no one can destroy this unity, this unity passes with man into eternity. " On the same day His Beatitude Vladyka met with the pupils of a boarding school for children with hearing impairments. The primate blessed the children and presented everyone with gifts.