Orthodox News and Events
| updated
07/14/2008 |
"Remember not O Lord, the sins of my youth"
(Psalms 25:7) |
MOSCOW: June 26, 2008
Metropolitan Hilarion
Delivers a Speech at the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox
Church
Your Holiness, Your Eminences, Your Graces!
The Act of Canonical Communion of the Russian Orthodox Church,
signed only a year ago, finally, by the mercy of God, lay down the
foundation for a new and proper relationship between the Russian
Church in Russia and abroad. And now, we bishops from abroad, greet
our brothers in the historic homeland of our Church. We are
participating in the Council of Bishops in Moscow for the first
time. We hope that our participation is fruitful. We have come here
with the hope that joint work will strengthen our unity on ecclesio-canonical,
and also on personal levels.
Much here will be new, and maybe even strange, for us. The family of
the episcopate of the Church Abroad is small today, but not so many
years ago we also had no more than 20 bishops. Naturally, in such a
close circle one could discuss various matters in church life with
greater substance and depth than is possible amid a host of some 200
bishops. Yet we will try to become accustomed to the situation we
face here and participate constructively, recognizing our
responsibility before God and His Church.
Throughout the years of the existence of the Church Abroad, our
forefathers, and then we ourselves, paid close attention to the life
of the Church in the homeland. Our view of various aspects of church
life differed from attitudes here, and at times this difference was
sharp, but one can state confidently that it always stemmed from
fervent love and empathy with the faithful people of Russia.
Naturally, in our small episcopal family, we were influenced by the
people around us. Bishops who served in America, Australia and
Europe viewed events in Russia, and sensed their proximity to her,
differently. Still, with all this, there always existed the
understanding in the Church Abroad that we are part of the one great
Russian Church.
Despite all the differences of our paths and our experience, now,
after the unification of the two parts of the Russian Church, we can
share our experiences of all these decades. I will recall a few
areas of church life in which our experiences abroad might be
usefully applied in Russia and the “near abroad.”
Over the 90 years of the separate existence of our Church, we could
not but coexist and deal with the most wide-ranging forms of
government structures. In the 1920’s, the Synod Abroad, for
instance, had to separate the German Diocese from the Western
European Diocese, because the Church saw the danger of ruling a
diocese located on the territories of two constantly hostile and
warring governments, Germany and France. In some countries, the
Church Abroad enjoyed complete freedom under democracies, while at
the same time in other countries it had to minister to its flock
under one form of dictatorship or another. In the Far East, we have
even had to face a heathen government which demanded worship of the
Sun.
A similar variety of conditions, we think, can be seen in the
various regions of the former Russian Empire. In countries where the
Church plays a role in a society which is oriented on the Western
European norms of democracy, but whose customs it has not adopted,
the experience of the Church Abroad, accumulated over the past
century under such law-based governments may be useful. The main
principle of the ministry of the Church in democratic societies is
achieving or preserving maximum freedom from interference by the
state in its life.
The function of government is based on establishing or preserving
necessary conditions for the free existence of the Church. Every
century has seen a particular temptation for the state: to attempt
to influence the Church in its interests, which are not always good.
Having survived various totalitarian systems, our Church recognizes
the need to defend her Divinely-granted freedom under any regime,
the need to rise above fickle political circumstances.
Unfortunately, Church figures at various times fell victim to
temptation—to use the government to “protect” or “strengthen,” or as
it is sometimes unfortunately put, to “save” the Church.
Today many speak of the “symphony” or the Church and state,
forgetting that this concept, introduced and theoretically developed
by pious Byzantine emperors, firstly involved an understanding of
symphony (that is, resonance, accord), of an Orthodox sovereignty
(and not any form of government) and an Orthodox patriarch, and
secondly, that it remained unmanifested as an ideal in reality. The
history of Byzantium and the history of Russia attest to the fact
that the desired symphony often resulted in a fatal cacophony. We
cannot forget that the state and the Church of Christ are not at all
“equal partners,” since the temporal and the eternal, the earthly
and heavenly, are not equals. The spheres of duty and challenges of
the Church and the state are different. The Church is called upon to
lead her flock to salvation, to the heavenly fatherland, while the
State must to the best of its abilities care for the well-being,
peace, good order and floourishing of its citizens.
Yet this does not mean that the Church must always distance herself
from all social phenomena or movements. The Church must speak
clearly on matters that directly concern her flock. In the “Basic
Social Concept” adopted by the Council of Bishops of 2000, we see a
worthy example of the expression by the Church of its positions on
the matters of, for instance, civil obedience, euthanasia, abortion,
organ transplantation, etc. But in these matters, the Church must
always be on guard, for laws and legislation change, so in
discussing these topics in social forums, the full voice of the
Church must always be heard.
In many countries, our Church has the status as a legal entity. This
allows her to lead its internal life independently and at the same
time gives her a voice in social problems. Without a doubt, the
Church must achieve this status both in Russia and in the countries
of the “near and far abroad.”
In almost all the Western governments, clergymen are not subject to
military service. In many countries this extends down the
ecclesiastical levels to the rank of subdeacon. In our opinion, in
this area the Russian Church does not enjoy enough rights in
contemporary, post-Soviet society.
Our Church has her own priests in the military on par with ministers
of other faiths. Our priests in most of the Western world can freely
visit those in prison, they minister to Orthodox believers in
hospitals, universities and schools, even teach of the Law of God as
a subject accepted by the state. It is not shameful to take
advantage of these and similar fruits of democracy in the interests
of the Church and to the glory of God.
The Fund for Assistance to the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of
Russia is prepared to review projects aimed at strengthening Russian
Orthodox spiritual values and to work together with ecclesiastical
and cultural-educational organizations in Russia for the development
of pilgrimages, artistic, spiritual and practical gatherings, to
develop ties with the Russian emigration on the basis of
representing Russian regions abroad; to receive local delegations of
bishops and clergymen, government and municipal representatives, and
cultural, business and social representatives.
Let us touch upon a matter painful for many of us: the matter of the
continuing participation of the Russian Church in the ecumenical
movement.
Of course, we view the problem of the relationship between Orthodox
and the heterodox or those of other religions differently than it is
viewed in Russia. We face these problems every day in our life to a
degree possible in only a few dioceses of Russia. On the other hand,
many members of our flock come from mixed families, and so feel a
special responsibility before their spouses, parents or children of
different faiths. But even here, we feel, much which seemed normal
and natural in the 19th century cannot be transferred automatically
into the 20th or 21st centuries.
Our brethren in Russia, doubtless, know that some clergymen,
parishes and monasteries have left the Church Abroad into various
schismatic groups before and during the signing of the Act of
Canonical Communion of the unity of the Russian Church last year.
This is a bleeding wound on the body of the Church. We understand
that this wound occurred as a result of ignorance. But people have
reason to fear that the call of the IV All-Diaspora Council to the
clergymen of the Church in Russia—that they reconsider their
participation in the World Council of Churches—would remain
unheeded. Moreover, one may get the impression that this involvement
not only did not abate, but in fact increased after the signing of
the Act. In our now-unified Church, to this day, a great deal is
occurring which demands explanation to those who cannot by their
convictions or due to the lack of information understand what is
happening.
Each one of us must take care not to cause temptation to the “little
of the flock,” remembering the Lord’s words of warning to those who
cause temptation in this world. In many cases, certainly, one must
rethink one’s positions and actions within the framework of
ecumenical activities (if for some reason they cannot be abandoned
completely), so that the guiding principles in this area outlined,
for example, in the Basic Social Concept, would not simply be words
on paper, but words brought to life.
Even if we have relations with those of other religions solely for
the aim of persuading them of the rightness of Orthodoxy, but
thereby we lead our own faithful into temptation and watch as they
depart into schism, it is our duty to reevaluate our positions,
because first of all we are connected to our flock with fatherly and
brotherly bonds of love. Our experiences abroad shows that one can
defend one’s faith and preserve one’s traditions while living in
peace and civilized interaction with the local population of other
confessions or religions. As an example one of the local ministries
of culture in Germany, consulting with our local diocese, even
included a list of Orthodox holidays as legal holidays for Orthodox
Christians. In America, some published lay calendars include
Orthodox Pascha and indicate that January 7 is Christmas according
to the Julian calendar.
We have in recent times been troubled and pained by the situation of
the Church in Ukraine. One cannot but be horrified by the
fragmentation of the Orthodox Church in this most ancient of
territories of Orthodoxy in the Fatherland. We ourselves have lived
in division for decades, and only a year ago we reestablished
Eucharistic and canonical unity within the fullness of the Russian
Orthodox Church. Still, living separately, we always viewed this as
an ailment needing healing, and never abandoned the ideal of
salvific unity.
If there are people today who rush to premature autocephaly (even
with the consequence of Unia with the Catholics), or hurry to
separate from the Russian Church in some other way, we can only pray
that the Lord restore them to the correct path. Church unity cannot
be played as a political card. Let us set aside problems of national
identity and statehood to politicians. Let us ponder something else:
is ecclesiastical autocephaly needed for the people of the Church?
Can we not live together and be saved within one church bosom—Little
Russians, Belarussians, Great Russians and the multitude of other
nationalities which were for centuries in one Russian Church, which
was founded on the territory of today’s Ukraine? No one denies the
distinctiveness of the three Eastern Slavic peoples. But from the
moment of our baptism, they were bound by love and mutual respect
within one Church. The rending of her seamless garment will do no
one any good.
In the diaspora, we cannot break our dioceses down by Little
Russians, Belarussians and Great Russians, Moldovans, for instance,
who have found work abroad, attend our churches (as do, by the way,
Greeks, Serbs, Georgians and other Orthodox Christians). Why cause
new divisions, which abroad are even more fatal than in the
homeland? We pray to God and we hope that we do not fall to such
temptation and that our brethren always gratefully and carefully
preserve the great gift of the unity of the Church, the unity of the
people of God, among whom there is neither Hellene, nor Jew, nor
anything else to separate us.
Having now entered the membership of one Russian Church, we, the
bishops of the Church Abroad, earnestly wish to participate in
church life in Russia and the “near abroad,” and hope for such
participation by our Russian brethren in our lives. May the Lord
help us and may the One, Undivided Sovereign Most-Holy and
Life-Giving Trinity strengthen our newly-restored unity. Amen.
Official website of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside of Russia
Belarusian president invites the Pope to visit
By YURAS KARMANAU – Jun 20, 2008
MINSK, Belarus (AP) — Belarus' authoritarian president invited Pope Benedict XVI
to the mostly Orthodox former Soviet republic, the presidential press service
said in a statement Friday.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko made the offer the same day he met with
Vatican's No. 2 official, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who is in the country to
preside at the weekend consecration of the first Catholic church to be built in
the capital city, Minsk, since 1910.
The Orthodox church, which includes about 80 percent of the population, wields
significant clout in Belarus through a 2003 agreement it signed with the
government.
But the Vatican under Benedict has been pursuing a goal of outreach to the
world's 250 million Orthodox Christians. A trip to Belarus by Benedict could
move the Vatican and Russian Orthodox Church one step closer to a meeting — and
the ultimate goal of healing the nearly 1,000-year schism between the two main
branches of Christianity.
Lukashenko is also desperate to boost his reputation ahead of September's
parliamentary elections — including hiring a British public relations firm in
March to package his policies in for Western consumption.
Lukashenko met Friday with Bertone, the Holy See's secretary of state, when the
president indicated approval of an agreement between Belarus and the Holy See
that would give the Catholic Church the legal right to work with government
institutions in promoting its values.
"Our co-operation answers all the demands of our society, its values and
orientations," Lukashenko said, according to Friday's statement from the
presidential press service. It was unclear when the agreement would be signed.
Bertone said the Vatican would help Belarus "find its place in the world."
"The Catholic Church will try to ensure that Belarus has a significant place in
the international arena," Bertone said Friday in comments shown on state TV.
Bertone is the Vatican's highest-ranked official ever to visit Belarus.
Minsk-based political analyst Yaroslav Romanchuk said Friday's developments were
the upshot of successful bargaining.
"The Vatican is realizing a long-held strategy of expanding throughout Belarus
and getting access to state structures," Romanchuk said.
Lukashenko, for his part, will use the Vatican to "lobby for his type of
politics" using its sway within the European Union and the United States, he
said. Furthermore, the Vatican will uphold the sovereignty of Belarus, which
Lukashenko fears may eventually fall into Russia's hands, Romanchuk said.
Catholic-Orthodox relations in the former Soviet Union have been particularly
thorny following the demise of the Soviet Union, with the Orthodox accusing the
Vatican of trying to poach for converts. The Vatican insists it is just looking
after the welfare of its tiny flock there.
The tensions have prevented a meeting between the Russian Patriarch Alexy II and
the pope.
Property disputes have aggravated attempts to improve relations between
Catholics and Orthodox in the former Soviet Union, and were one of the reasons
John Paul II, a Slav, never realized his dream of making a papal pilgrimage to
Russia.
Source: AP
Greek Orthodox archbishop to visit MoscowArchbishop Demetrios of america will travel to
Russia to meet Patriach Alexy II of Moscow. Together
they will celebrate Slavic Letters Day on May 24 in
commemoration of SS. Cyril and Methodios - Apostles to
the Slavs.
According to a press release
from the
Greek Orthodox Church in the
US, Archbishop Demetrios of
America will travel to Russia on
May 21, leading a delegation
from the Archdiocese on an
official visit to the
Patriarchate of Moscow. This
first official visit of an
Archbishop of America to the
Church of Russia comes after the
invitation of Patriarch Alexy
II, conveyed both in person by
His Grace Bishop Mercurius of
Zaraisk, the Administrator of
the Parishes of the Moscow
Patriarchate in the United
States, and in writing by His
Eminence Metropolitan Kirill of
Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the
Head of External Relations of
the Moscow Patriarchate.
Accompanying the Archbishop on
the seven day visit will be two
Members of the Holy Eparchial
Synod, Metropolitan Methodios of
Boston and Metropolitan Alexios
of Atlanta, as well as the
Chancellor of the Archdiocese,
Bishop Savas of Troas, Mr.
Michael Jaharis, the Vice
Chairman of the Archdiocesan
Council, representatives of
major Church organizations, and
accompanying staff.
The visit comes at a time of
important developments in the
Russian Orthodox Church in
America, especially the
reunification of the Moscow
Patriarchate and
the Russian Orthodox Church
Outside of Russia (ROCOR).
The visit also comes during an
important and auspicious
celebration in the Russian
Federation, that of Slavic
Letters Day; the only Holiday of
both a national and religious
character.The celebration of
Slavic Letters Day on May 24th
(May 11th on the Old or Julian
Calendar) commemorates Sts.
Cyril and Methodios, the
apostles to the Slavs who were
blood brothers from Thessaloniki,
sent by
Patriarch Photios the Great
of Constantinople to evangelize
the Slavic lands in the ninth
century. It is a day when the
faith, linguistic, and ethnic
heritage of the Russian people
is commemorated by both the
State and the Church. On that
day, Archbishop Demetrios and
the accompanying Hierarchs will
serve
Divine Liturgy with
Patriarch Alexy II in the world
renown Cathedral of the
Dormition inside the walls of
the Kremlin, and will
participate in special
commemorative festivities for
the occasion. Commenting on this
unique opportunity Archbishop
Demetrios said:
"For me, a son of Thessaloniki -
the city of Saints Cyril and
Methodios, and as Exarch of the
same Ecumenical Patriarchate of
Constantinople that sent them on
their apostolic mission of
evangelization to share the Good
News of the Gospel - this is a
distinct honor and a remarkable
opportunity to express the unity
of our
Orthodox Faith, our
historical roots and
connections, and to amplify our
continuing dialogue of fraternal
love and mutual respect."
Some of the highlights of the
schedule are described below,
and there will be daily postings
on the website of the
Archdiocese (http://www.goarch.org)
that will update the faithful on
the activities and events as
they occur.
Trans-substantiation and
metstoicheiosis -
difficult words to
describe the difficult
idea of Eucharist - to
become what we eat.
Thursday May 22 - Arrival and
official welcome of the
Archbishop and Hierarchs by
Hierarchs of the Russian
Orthodox Church.
Friday May 23 - The Archbishop
and the delegation will be
hosted at the famous St. Sergios
of Radonezh Monastery outside of
Moscow. The Monastery, among its
many Churches and facilities,
houses the Moscow Spiritual
Academy, the largest Graduate
Theological School in all of
Russia. Archbishop Demetrios
will offer an address to the
Faculty and
Student Body.
Saturday May 24th - The
Celebration of Slavic Letters
Day; Divine Liturgy at the
Dormition Cathedral in the
Kremlin with Patriarch Alexy II;
participation in the State and
Church festivities and a
reception hosted by the
Patriarch.
Sunday May 25th - The Archbishop
and his delegation will be
hosted by Metropolitan Kirill of
Smolensk and Kaliningrad.
Monday May 26th - Visits to
various religious and
philanthropic institutions in
Moscow.
Tuesday, May 27 - The Archbishop
will have a private audience
with Patriarch Alexy II.
Throughout the week, official
talks and dialogues will be
scheduled for the Archbishop
with differing representatives
of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Archbishop returns to the
United States on Wednesday, May
28th.Source: Spero News
NEW YORK: May 12, 2008 Source: ROCOR
Archbishop
Hilarion Is Elected First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church
Outside of RussiaOn May 12, 2008, at 12:00 noon, at
the Synodal Cathedral of Our Lady of the Sign in New York, His
Eminence Archbishop Hilarion of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand
was elected Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of
Russia, and shall be elevated to the rank of Metropolitan. In
accordance with the Act of Canonical Communion signed on May 17,
2007, the Council of Bishops will send the Act of Election, drawn up
by the Counting Committee, to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of
Moscow and All Russia, with a request from the elected First
Hierarch for his blessing to assume the duties placed upon him by
his brother archpastors, and for confirmation by the Holy Synod of
the Moscow Patriarchate of his election.
The Enthronement of His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern
America and New York, Primate-elect of the Russian Orthodox Church
Outside of Russia, will be held on Sunday, May 18, 2008.
The schedule of services relating to the Enthronement of the new
First Hierarch is as follows:
May 17, all-night vigil at 6 pm. At the end of the evening service,
the newly-elected Primate will emerge from the Royal Doors in a
black klobuk [monastic headdress] and a simple episcopal mantle and
will stand on the ambo facing the people. Two senior bishops will
bring the light blue mantle and white klobuk to the Metropolitan,
who will don them with the help of subdeacons. During the vesting of
the mantle and klobuk, the senior bishop will intone "axios" ["he is
worthy"], which will be repeated first by the bishops and clergymen,
then by the choir. Afterwards, the Metropolitan will bless the
clergy and people.
The light blue mantle and white klobuk will first be blessed with
holy water by the senior archbishop during the reading of the first
hour.
May 18, Divine Liturgy at 9:30 am. After the entry prayers are read
and the customary blessing, two senior bishops will lead the new
Metropolitan to the vesting platform and will declare "axios," which
will be repeated first by the bishops and clergy, and then by the
choir.
The newly-elected First Hierarch will then be vested in the middle
of the church, while the other bishops are vested in the altar.
Thereafter, two senior archimandrites or protopriests will bring out
the mitre and will silently present it to the Primate of the Russian
Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.
After the moleben, the senior hierarch will bestow the staff to the
First Hierarch—a gift from the Diocese of Sydney, Australia and New
Zealand, which was blessed upon the relics of St Tikhon, Patriarch
and Confessor of All Russia—and will declare:
"May the Almighty and Life-giving Trinity, Boundless Sovereignty and
Indivisible Kingdom, grant to you this great throne of episcopacy,
to be Metropolitan and Primate of the Russian Church Abroad, through
the election by your brethren, the bishops of the Russian Church
Abroad. And now, lord and brother, accept this pastoral staff, and
ascend the throne of the episcopal seniority, in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ, and beseech His Most-Pure Mother for all Orthodox
Christianity and for the Russian people in the diaspora entrusted to
you and save them as a good pastor will, and may the Lord God grant
you health, well-being and many years."
The Archdeacon will then intone Many Years to the new First Hierarch
of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. The choir will
sing Many Years.
In accordance to the Rite of Enthronement, the newly-elected Primate
will address his brother archpastors with the following words:
"May the Almighty and All-Sovereign Right Hand of the All-Highest
preserve and strengthen us all. May He grant peace and calm to His
Holy Church and save our Fatherland from enemies visible and
invisible, and grant strength to Orthodoxy. And to you, brother
archpastors of the Russian Church Abroad, and to all Russians in the
diaspora, and all Orthodoxy Christians, may He grant health and many
years."
The choir then sings Many Years (without an intonation by the
Archdeacon).
A new stage of Russian
exploration of the Arctic to be anticipated with the
Divine Liturgy
Archbishop Ignaty of Petropavlovsk and
Kamchatka, who was the first to conduct the Divine
Liturgy at the North Pole, shared his impressions with
Interfax-Religion correspondent Yelena Zhosul.
- The North Pole has at all times attracted people.
Nansen tried to reach it, but failed. Robert Peary
sacrificed 20 years of his life on this Arctic ice
altar, and could not reach the Pole. So many people -
scientists, researchers, military men - have been trying
to get to the world's most northern spot by all means,
overcoming thinkable and unthinkable challenges which
were sometimes hazardous to life, and could even result
in death for some venturers.
What kind of huge and powerful drive is rooted in the
souls of these people, and what kind of mighty mechanism
encourages them to face these perils? Certainly, there
should be a lot of answers to this question. Some dream
of becoming famous, others are driven by research
interests; some aspire to self-knowledge and
self-esteem, and others are encouraged by the inherent
deep call of the North, "the white silence", according
to Jack London. There may also be people who follow
their mercantile interests... I can testify that no one
in our team had any of the above motives. What were our
motives? What commitment made us make this trip to the
North Pole?
The main commitment of a priest is his commitment to
God. The main service of the Orthodox Church is the
Divine Liturgy. It is conducted in the Far East, in the
city of apostles Peter and Paul (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
- IF), and in the faraway West, and at the
southernmost location of our planet, Antarctica, which
houses a recently erected church and a community of
monks "fighting a good fight". But this saving divine
sacrament has never before been conducted at the North
Pole. How does the Book of Psalms praise the Apostles'
acts? "Their voice goes out into all the earth, their
words to the end of the world." The Divine Liturgy
should also reach the northernmost spot of our planet.
And the word of God should many a time sound at this
northern location. And many a time should the Holy
Communion announce to the world the great Commandments
of Christ, the great feat of Christ which he committed
through crucifix and great sufferings for the sake of
each and everyone of us, His Holy Resurrection, and the
road to Eternal Life open to every individual. This is
worth any effort and labour. All the more so, a priest
should be a priest everywhere. It is a priest's oath he
gives in ordainment, rather than just pompous words.
We believe that the Holy Spirit shall descend upon this
floating continent. God's Grace shall descend here, upon
this place where brave and courageous Russian people we
met during our expedition work and serve, and devotedly
guard the borders of our Motherland.
A new large-scale stage of Russian Arctic exploration is
under way now, after a long break caused by the
perestroika and the hardships of the reconstruction
period. But let us remember the words of Christ: "For
without me ye can do nothing". It means, that it is
impossible to commence any effort without a prayer to
God, otherwise, it will bring no good results. Such
results may be important for our mortal life, but they
will be lost to our spiritual life. Therefore, to
commence a new research of the "white silence", Russian
scientists needed to raise their prayer, the most
effective prayer of Russian Orthodoxy - the Divine
Liturgy.
I would like to draw special attention, that this
expedition became possible through the support of the
Russian Aviation Department of the Federal Security
Service and personal involvement of its head, Nikolay
Fedorovich Gavrilov, Hero of Russia, a wonderful man, a
warrior, and a committed Christian. This is yet another
evidence of favourable cooperation of the Russian
Orthodox Church and the Russian Army. There was a time
when Russian Orthodoxy, Russian priests blessed warriors
for the battle for faith, their people and Motherland.
And now, Russian warriors help our priests to reach
almost inaccessible locations to bring the word of God
"to the end of the world".
Of cause, I had no chance before to serve the Divine
Liturgy in such environment. We put up our church tent
in cold strong wind, in the snow, and the shining
sunlight. It was twenty five degrees below, and we had
to serve in our full vestments, sing, and hold metal
bowls. But deep in our hearts we believed that
everything would work out well. It was very cold at
first, our hands were frozen. But when it came to the
cherubimic hymn, and we approached the main event of the
liturgy - the transformation of bread and wine into the
Body and Blood of Christ, even the slightest feeling of
cold disappeared. We felt that way to the end of the
Divine Liturgy.
For the first time in history, we performed five
sacraments of the Orthodox Church at the very top of our
planet - baptism, unction, repentance, ordination, and
Eucharist. What a blessing of God! What a great joy to
break new ground. But we were not striving for this. We
only fulfilled the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch.
Source: Interfax-Religion
Eating Well for Moscow’s
Lenten Fast
Posted by Sonia
Kishkovsky in
Moscow,
Something Different,
Food and Drink
rthodox Christians celebrate Easter, called Pascha
in the Orthodox Church, on April 27 this year —
which means devout Russians are still deep into
Great Lent, the period of repentance and fasting
during which believers strive to relive Jesus’
40-day fast in the wilderness before Crucifixion.
Strict Russian Orthodox believers follow monastic
rules, which means abstaining from meat and dairy
products, most seafood and even oils. Some people
eat only once a day and on the strictest days not at
all. A bit of wine is allowed on Sundays and
holidays. Vodka is not, but some people do seek out
loopholes.
The clash, or maybe convergence, of tsarist,
Soviet and capitalist traditions makes for some
colorful post-Soviet Lenten meals and products. With
a host of stores and restaurants offering special
Lenten foods, it hardly feels like a period of
suffering.
Among my favorite Lenten products: Bolshevik
brand Lenten cookies (postnoye pechenye). Yes, the
Bolshevik cookie factory produces a Lenten line. It
has no animal products, of course, and a church is
pictured on the wrapper, directly opposite the
“Bolshevik” logo. The cookies are advertised as
having the blessing of the russian Orthodox Church.
The church is a bit cagier though about other
products advertised as Lenten. Tofu as meat
replacement is seen as a bit of cop out, but in
recent years tofu dishes have been marked as
acceptable fare at Jagannath Express (Ulitsa
Kuznetsky, dom 11, tel. 7-495-628-35-80,
www.jagannath.ru), a vegetarian café with a hippy,
Indian vibe. Lenten dishes there are labeled with a
drawing of Jesus.
Churches are packed in Moscow as Pascha draws
near. But so are reastaurants. The crowds of diners
might be taking to heart the words of St. John
Chrysostom, who warned that an obsession with
abstaining from food should not be the main point of
Lent: ”For what good is it if we abstain from birds
and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers?” he
asked.
Indeed, just about every restaurant in Moscow now
takes it as a point of pride to offer a Lenten menu.
The more exotic, it often seems, the better. The
Moscow edition of Time Out magazine even has a
special Lenten section in its restaurant pages, with
the latest offerings from the city’s chefs. For
example, this week’s edition touts the Asian,
Russian and Italian Lenten dishes by chef Yevgeny
Dyomin at Café Muskat (Ulitsa Novoslobodkaya, dom
11, tel. 7-499-973-51-74). (Moscow restaurants also
take it as a point of pride to offer all three
cuisines at once.) Time Out recommends his carrot,
orange and daikon salad with fragrant Asian spices
for 380 rubles (about $16.20), and as a main dish
vegetable pilaf (plov in these parts) with mushrooms
for 420 rubles (about $17.90).
Somehow I find myself drawn more to Russian
cuisine during Lent. Café Pushkin (Tverskoy bulvar,
dom 26a, tel. 7-495-629-55-90 or 739-00-33), the
legendary recreation of a 19th century aristocratic
mansion near Pushkin Square (just opposite
McDonald’s) has an extensive Lenten menu. The
mushroom pelmeni, or dumplings, are very satisfying,
as they should be at 420 rubles. In fact, I’ve
always preferred them to the non-Lenten meat-filled
variety — which means of course that they’re not
quite in the Lenten spirit. Oh well…
There’s a selection of vegetables marinated in
traditional Russian fashion (all readily available
at street markets as well), but the Café Pushkin
setting give them added charm. The marinated chopped
cabbage (kapusta rublyonnaya, 175 rubles or about
$7.40) was tasty. And in my book, if you order some
traditional Russian cranberry juice, called mors,
you won’t miss the wine or vodka at all (99 rubles
or about $4.20 a glass).
I was charmed by Café Pushkin’s service on Pascha
a few years ago. A friend and I decided to pop in
after the Paschal service – at about 4 a.m (Café
Pushkin is open 24 hours, of course). We were
presented with dyed red hardboiled eggs, which we
used, naturally, for an egg smashing competition,
and our own personal mini kulich, the sweet russian
Easter bread.
Orthodox churches and monasteries have started
opening cafes and restaurants. When the nuns of the
Novo-Tikhvinsky convent in Yekaterinburg decided to
open a restaurant called Pravoslanaya Trapeza, or
Orthodox repast (Yekaterinburg, Ulitsa Zelyonaya
roshcha, dom 1, (343) 345-58-88, trapeza.sestry.ru/content/events/index)
they went on a fact-finding mission to Moscow. Of
the three restaurants they visited – all of the
highest class – one was, naturally, Café Pushkin.
If you still need an Asian fix for Lenten, it’s
available next door to Pushkin, in an even more
luxurious setting, at Turandot (Tverskoy Boulevard,
dom 26-5, 7-495 739-0011), an elaborate recreation
of a Baroque palace in the chinoiserie style. I had
Thai shrimp soup there recently. Who recommended it
to me as a Lenten dish? A russian Orthodox priest.
But not everyone celebrates this way. Last
weekend, the city’s main McDonald’s on Pushkin
Square was teeming with Muscovites chowing down on
Big Macs. Just plain old Big Macs. It doesn’t have a
Lenten menu.
Source: International Herald Tribune
NEW YORK: April 17, 2008
A Joint Service By Clerics
of the Russian Church Abroad and the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA
Will Be Held on Bright Saturday at St Nicholas CathedralOn Bright Saturday, May 3, 2008, a
ceremonial Divine Liturgy will be celebrated jointly by clergymen of
the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and of the Patriarchal
Parishes in the USA at St Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral at 15 East
97th Street, New York, NY. His Grace Bishop Gabriel of Manhattan,
Secretary of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church
Outside of Russia, and His Grace Bishop Merkury, Administrator of
the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, will officiate at the service,
which will also include the participation of a host of clergymen of
the Russian Church Abroad and of the Patriarchal Parishes in the
United States. Before the service, the Miracle-working Kursk-Root
Icon of the Mother of God will be ceremoniously brought to the
Cathedral.
After Liturgy, a joint procession of
the cross will be held with archpastors, clergymen and laypersons. A
greeting from the Russian Ambassador to the United States will be
read by SV Garmonin, Consul General of the Russian Federation in New
York. Representatives of the City of Moscow and officials from the
Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations
will pray at the services.
This service will be the first of its
kind following the signing of the Act of Canonical Communion between
the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and the Russian
Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate in May 2007. Never before
has St Nicholas Cathedral, the main church of the Moscow
Patriarchate in the US, been the site of a joint Paschal service,
and it is expected that over 60 clergymen and hundreds of laypersons
will participate.
Clergymen of the Russian Orthodox
Church Abroad who wish to participate in this event can contact
Protopriest Andrei Sommer at (212) 410-4258.
Source: ROCOR
Reminder of This Year's Church Events (you will leave this website by
clicking on this link)
Russian Orthodox leader calls council for June
Moscow, Apr. 16, 2008 (CWNews.com) - Patriarch Alexei
II of Moscow plans to convene all the bishops of the
Russian Orthodox Church for a council in June, the KAI
news agency reports.
The council-- to be held at the Church of Christ the
Savior in Moscow, June 24- 29-- will focus primarily on
Church unity. The Orthodox bishops will be asked to
confirm an "act of canonical communion" bringing the
Moscow patriarchate together with the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside Russia. Also on the agenda for the June
meeting will be the canonization of new saints.
The canon law of the Russian Orthodox Church dictates
that a council of bishops should be held at least once
every 4 years. The last such council was in 2004.
source: Catholic World News
Source: Aid to the Church in Need
Pope addresses Russia
on TV
Posted by Press release on 17/4/2008, 8:47 am
Message modified by board administrator
17/4/2008, 9:03 am
ACN News,
Thursday 17th April 2008 - RUSSIA
Pope addresses Russia on TV
By John Newton and Eva-Maria Kolmann
FOR the first time in history a Pope yesterday (Wednesday 16th of
April) addressed a message directly to all the Russian people, via a
broadcast on state television.(See below for a translation of the
Pope's address)
Benedict XVI’s message of greeting, which was addressed to the Head
of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Alexei II, and all those
living in Russia, comes at the end of a documentary about the Pope’s
life.
The Pontiff’s message was partly in Russian, and stressed the need
for dialogue among Christians.
The documentary, which was sponsored by the Catholic charity Aid to
the Church in Need, was broadcast by Russia’s state news channel
Vesti on the Pope’s 81st birthday.
The broadcast comes at a time when observers have said that
relationships between the two churches are beginning to “thaw” — a
phrase used independently last October by both Cardinal Walter
Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian
Unity, and Metropolitan Kirill, the head of the External Relations
Department of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Last year, Pope Benedict’s book 'An Introduction to Christianity',
written when he was a university professor, was published in
Russian, complete with a foreword by Metropolitan Kirrill.
Another sign of improving links between the Russian Orthodox Church
and the Catholic Church is that the documentary was introduced by
Archpriest Igor Vyzhanov, the secretary for inter-Christian dialogue
of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow
Patriarchate.
The Patriarchate was also closely involved in the production of the
documentary.
Describing the Pope’s personal involvement in the broadcast as “like
a miracle”, ACN’s Russia expert, Peter Humeniuk, who oversaw the
production of the film, highlighted the importance of the
initiative.
He said that both in Rome and Moscow there was an awareness that the
“film and the Papal message were a beautiful symbol of the process
of rapprochement between the two Churches”.
He added that ACN saw itself as a “catalyst” in this process, as
“although the charity is not a direct partner in the interreligious
dialogue, it does promote many initiatives that serve this end”.
At a private audience in April 2007, Pope Benedict XVI paid tribute
to ACN’s work towards reconciliation between the Catholic Church and
the Russian Orthodox Church.
Mr Humeniuk added that the Pope’s personal address to the Russian
people was “an occasion of great joy and a historic event”.
Among those interviewed were his elder brother, Monsignor Georg
Ratzinger, who rarely gives interviews, but made an exception for
this film.
The documentary was produced in Saint Petersburg by the
inter-denominational Christian media agency Blagovest Media in
collaboration with the Catholic Radio and Television Network (CRTN).
PAPAL SPEECH TO RUSSIAN PEOPLE BROADCAST ON RUSSIAN STATE TELEVISION
Dear citizens of the Russian Federation,
I am grateful for the invitation offered me to extend to you my
cordial greetings and I gladly take this opportunity to express the
esteem, affection and high regard in which the successor of Peter
and the Catholic Church have always held your people and the Russian
Orthodox Church. Russia is truly great, in a variety of different
ways -- in her sheer geographical scale, in her long history, in her
magnificent spirituality, in her multiplicity of artistic
expression. During the past century the horizon of your noble land,
like that of other regions on the European continent, was obscured
by shadows of suffering and violence, shadows that were however
opposed and overcome by the splendid light of so many martyrs --
Orthodox, Catholics and other believers, who perished under the
oppression of ferocious persecutions. The love of Christ even unto
martyrdom, which unites them, reminds us of the urgent need to
restore unity among Christians, a duty to which the Catholic Church
feels herself to be irrevocably committed. Both the Catholic Church
and the Russian Orthodox Church are moving in this direction. I
remember well that a delegation of the Moscow Patriarchate was
present at the Second Vatican Council, and I have followed the
contacts with Russian Orthodoxy that have taken place since then. In
recent years these contacts have been intensifying, especially among
the faithful, the priests and the bishops. What are we to say then
of the interreligious and intercultural dialogue which is another of
the priority commitments of the Catholic Church and also, I believe,
of the Russian Orthodox Church? Conscious of the spiritual gift of
which they are the stewards and while firmly retaining their own
proper identity, Christians are called to meet with the followers of
other religions and to establish with them a fruitful dialogue in
truth and charity. To this end I pray and hope that the millennial
ecclesial experience of Russia may continue to enrich the Christian
horizon in a spirit of sincere service to the Gospel and to the men
of today. And now a greeting in the Russian language:
(Translation from Russian):
I am delighted to be able to address myself, in the Russian
language, to the people and government of this great land of Russia,
so dear to me. I extend my warmest greetings to our beloved Orthodox
brothers and sisters, especially to his Holiness, the Patriarch of
Moscow and all Russia, and also to the Catholic bishops and their
communities. To all of you I wish peace and well-being and a spirit
of mutual love, and I invoke the blessing of God upon you all.
Editor’s Notes:
Directly under the Holy See, Aid to the Church in Need supports the
faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral
need. ACN is a Catholic charity – helping to bring Christ to the
world through prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Fr Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul
II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity”, the organisation is
now at work in about 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including
providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction
of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train
seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 45 million Aid
to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed
worldwide.
For more information, please contact the Sydney office of ACN on
(02) 9679-1929. e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org or write to Aid to the
Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148. Web:www.aidtochurch.org
Source: barentsobserver.com
Orthodox Church looks towards North
Pole
2008-04-08
Russian Orthodoxy at North
Pole
For the first time ever, the Russian Orthodox Church
has held a church service on the North Pole.
The service was headed by Archbishop Ignatii of
Petropavlovsk and Kamchatka. Two other priests assisted
the bishop with service, which was held in a tent on the
very North Pole point. Temperatures in the area were
about minus 25 degrees centigrade.
Fifteen people attended the service, Rosbaltnord.ru
reports.
-Today, after the long 1990s, Russia again turns towards
the North, its strategic region, Archbishop Ignatii said
after the event.
Photo Report: Moscow Patriarchate Clergy & ROCOR Clergy Serve Together at St.
Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in NYC
Photo Report: March 23 Deanery Gathering for the Passion Service, Hosted by St.
Nicholas Cathedral (NYC)
March 22, 2008,
5:43
Head of Russian Orthodox Church Abroad laid to rest
The leader of the Russian Orthodox
Church Abroad, Metropolitan Laurus, has been buried in
New York. The ceremony was attended by a Russian
delegation led by the Minister of Culture and Mass
Communications and Metropolitan Juvenaly, sent by
Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia.
The liturgy drew hundreds to the Holy Trinity
Monastery, some waiting five hours to pay their
respects. Laurus died on Monday at the age of 80. Born in
Czechoslovakia, he moved to New York in the 1940s, where
he spent most of his life.
He will be remembered largely for his role in the 2007
reunification of the two branches of the Russian
Orthodox Church.
In May 2007, Patriarch Alexy II and Metropolitan Laurus
signed the Act of Canonical Communion declaring the
formal merger of the two branches of the Russian
Orthodox Church, which split after the October
revolution of 1917.
Archbishop Hilarion, a student of the late Laurus and a
likely candidate to replace him says, despite the great
loss, the Metropolitan’s legacy will live on:
"It's a very rich
spiritual legacy he leaves behind. It’s a great loss for
the Russian Church but he'll be remembered for his
spiritual leadership," he said.
Source: Russia Today
NEW YORK: March 18, 2008
Protopriest Serafim Gan: "He
Was a Father to Us All"The Personal Secretary of His
Eminence Metropolitan Laurus, Protopriest Serafim Gan, recounts the
final days of Vladyka's life.
"We lost a remarkable person. This
was a living saint with whom we could spend time with. On the other
hand, we gained an intercessor in the other world," said Protopriest
Serafim Gan, the Personal Secretary of the late Primate of the
Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, His Eminence Metropolitan
Laurus of Eastern America and New York, who died in Holy Trinity
Monastery in Jordanville, NY, at the age of 80.
He is certain that the ceremonial
farewell to Metropolitan Laurus, scheduled to be held this Friday in
Jordanville, will be a genuine celebration. "We received news of his
sudden death with sorrow, we are all in shock," admitted the priest.
According to him, Vladyka caught a cold, felt weak during his last
divine service, and began to cough; yet no one expected his death.
"This man was a true man of prayer, and he lived the life of the
Church. He came to church with all the brethren, at 4:30 am, he
would light candles… He inspired us not only by word but by example,
with humility and love," remembered the First Hierarch's Secretary,
who spent a great deal of time with him, especially in the last few
years.
"Metropolitan Laurus spent the first
week of Great Lent in prayer and divine services, reading edifying
writings of the Holy Fathers and Teachers of the Church to the
brethren and pilgrims. Last Friday, his last, he read the teachings
of St Ephraim of Syria on love. "We intend to publish it," said Fr
Serafim.
He was most impressed by the faith
and modesty of Metropolitan Laurus. "He fully entrusted himself to
God and deferred to His will. Everything, good and bad, he accepted
as a gift from God and as directions from God," clarified Fr
Serafim. "Vladyka was very strict with himself, but understanding
with others, with a mere glance he would punish and humble us,"
added Fr Serafim.
He stressed that the late bishop
ordained a great many priests who now serve in the US, Europe and
Australia. "Vladyka knew each of us very well—we all studied here at
the Seminary, within the walls of this monastery, he knew whom to
assign where… He was a father to us all," said the priest of the
Church Abroad. In his words, Metropolitan Laurus was also "an
exceptionally humble person, a monk through and through," and thanks
to this carried enormous authority, and was revered and loved
throughout the Russian emigration. "Without him, it would have been
impossible to even think of holding conversations with the ROC on
reestablishing church unity," noted Fr Serafim. "He was able to
overcome divisions and conflict with love," he added.
"It is, of course, too early" to
speak of canonizing Metropolitan Laurus. "But when we entered the
church yesterday, I had the sense that we were not venerating simply
a dead man, but the relics of a righteous man, who offered the
example of love and humbleness," said Fr Serafim.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside of Russia died very peacefully, quietly, in his
sleep, on the morning of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. One of the monks,
standing beside the bier of Metropolitan Laurus, said Fr Serafim,
spoke the following words: ""Before us lies the Triumph of
Orthodoxy." "And this is true," added Fr Serafim.
The Head of the Press Service of the
Moscow Patriarchate, Priest Vladimir Vigilyansky, answering
questions for RIA Novosti on the possible glorification of
the late Metropolitan Laurus as a saint, also noted that he does not
dismiss this notion out of hand, but that "time must first pass."
"People only confirm whom the Lord chooses as His servants. The
memory of a person must withstand the passage of time, and prayers
to him must be common among the people," stressed Fr Vladimir.
Source:
Official website of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox
Church Outside of Russia