| Metropolitan Hilarion: In Today’s Society the Voice of the Church Often Becomes a Voice Crying in the Wilderness Source: DECR We believe that Christian Churches should have a right to voice their point of view, including in the public space. It grieves us to see the adoption of laws which contradict not only the Christian moral teaching but the traditional morality altogether, on which people’s life has been built for centuries, for instance, to see the attempts to equalize same-sex unions with marriages. In fact it is conscious and systemic dismantling of traditional family values. Before the beginning of the 4th Orthodox-Catholic Forum on Religion and Cultural Diversity: Challenges for the Christian Churches in Europe to take place from June 2 to 5, 2014, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations, answered questions from Byelorussian journalists. – The forum is to deal with challenges facing the Christian Churches in Europe. What primary problems and challenges would you bring out? – The processes taking place in Western Europe are of much concern for us because what actually happens is a conscious rejection of the Christian heritage by many European states. What do we see when we take a walk in the most famous streets in Europe? First of all, we see Christian churches: Notre Dame in Paris, Westminster Abbey in London, St. Peter’s in Rome. Even the appearance of European cities shows that Europe was a Christian continent. Of course, in Europe there have always lived people of other religions, but Christianity was a dominant religion and remains such because most of Europeans still preserve to a greater or lesser extent their links with the Christian roots. But at present a situation has developed in Europe in which it is atheism that has become a dominant ideology, or the form of pluralism which presupposes that religion should have no place in public space and that religion can exist only in the private life of individuals. |
| Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: Primacy and Synodality from an Orthodox Perspective Source: DECR Paper presented by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk at St Vladimir’s Theological Seminary on 8 November 2014 on the occasion of conferring an honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. Your Beatitude, Your Eminences and Graces, dear fathers, brothers and sisters, distinguished guests! First of all I would like to express my profound gratitude to St Vladimir’s Theological Seminary for awarding me the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. It has been a great privilege for me to have been a friend of the Seminary for many years, to have known its deans and chancellors, beginning with Fr John Meyendorff of blessed memory, to having had my books published by the Seminary press and to have served on the Seminary’s board. At a time when relations between Russia and America are once again strained, I find it particularly important to develop strong relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and American Orthodoxy. I believe that St Vladimir’s Seminary with its broad inter-Orthodox outreach may play a crucial role in the restoration of trust between different parts of the globe. Today I would like to speak on the issue of synodality and primacy. This topic has acquired particular importance in recent years owing to the work of the International Joint Commission on the Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. This matter is also relevant to Inter-Orthodox relations, especially in the context of preparations for the Great and Holy Council of the Orthodox Church. More particularly, it is relevant because of the way that primacy is exercised currently in the Orthodox Church at the universal level, whereby hierarchs and theologians from the Orthodox Church in America participate neither in the Catholic-Orthodox dialogue nor in the preparations for the pan-Orthodox Council. Let me begin with clarifying the meaning of the terms. The term synodality, or conciliarity, is a translation of the Russian sobornost’, itself coined by nineteenth-century Slavophiles such as Kireevsky and Khomyakov to designate the communion of all believers throughout the globe within the bosom of one Church. This communion included both the living and the dead. According to Kireevsky, ‘the sum total of all Christians of all ages, past and present, comprise one indivisible, eternal living assembly of the faithful, held together just as much by the unity of consciousness as through the communion of prayer’¹. |
| Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: War against terrorism is a war in the spiritual field Source: DECR On November 20, 2015, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations (DECR), addressed the united session of the Federation Council and the State Duma devoted to problems involved in the struggle against terrorism. Please find below the full text of the address. Esteemed Participants in the Session, Brothers and Sisters: On behalf of His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, and on behalf of the whole Russian Orthodox Church I would like once again to expressed deep, heartfelt and sincere condolences to all those who have lost their loved ones in the plane crash over the Sinai. War has been declared on Russia. It has been declared by a criminal terror grouping which names itself ‘Islamic State’ and which has been notorious for its monstrous evil deeds throughout the world. We must clearly realize that it is not a war of one religious confession against another. The very notion of ‘religious terrorism’ can only lead us astray. There is no religious terrorism whatsoever. Those who have unleashed this war do not deserve to be called the faithful. They are Satanists because they do the will of the Devil, bringing to people grief, death and destruction. They are cursed by both religious leaders of all confessions and ordinary people – believers and non-believers alike throughout the world. And the only way to cope with them is to destroy them systematically and purposefully, tracking them down wherever they are hiding and eliminating them collectively and individually, for each of them poses a threat to tens, hundreds and thousands of lives. The whole world community must unite in the struggle against terrorism. The events of recent weeks have pointed to the acute need to create without delay a real mechanism for opposing terrorism on the global level. Actions are needed, not words. And contradictions among states and differences on political issues should be sidelined. |
| Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk: “Today Christians of various confessions should unite around the very simple common human values” Source: DECR Speech by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk at the Forum of representatives of the Russia – USA Forum of Christian leaders. Dear Mr. Graham, Dear Participants in the Forum: Our meeting today has gathered around a single table representatives of Christian Churches in the United States of America and members of Christian Churches from Russia. For the Russian Orthodox Church, the present Forum is important from the perspective of development of its relations with those Christian confessions in the American continent which adhere to traditional ethical principles. These relations have a long history, beginning in the 18th century with the arrival of the monks of the Valamo Monastery, Herman and Juvenaly, to the shores of America and the subsequent establishment of a diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church in the United States. The establishment of the first contacts with American Christians goes back to the second part of the 19th century. Through the efforts of Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) of North America and Alaska – later the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia – by the beginning of the 20th century relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and American Anglicans and people of other Protestant Churches in the USA had become truly fraternal. After a certain interval between the two World Wars, we entered a new, ever more intensive stage of our cooperation. From 1963, the Moscow Patriarchate resumed its relations with the Episcopal Church in the USA. There were several rounds of joint theological discussions. In 1989, a bilateral Coordinating Committee was set up. It held sixteen meetings in the subsequent decade. The Russian Orthodox Church did not hold dialogue with other Christian confessions at such a high level than in this instance. We appreciated greatly our relations with the United Methodist Church in the USA, which developed both on a bilateral level and in our joint work in ecumenical organizations. Being the largest confessions represented in the World Council of Churches, during the meetings of the WCC Central Committee, we invariably arranged a special joint dinner to discuss the current agenda and often reached a common standpoint on particular issues. |
| Conference in Austria Devoted to 2nd Anniversary of Havana Meeting Between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill Source: DECR On February 12, 2018, the second anniversary of the Havana meeting between Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and Pope Francis of Rome, an international conference devoted to the situation of Christians in the Middle East took place in Vienna. Organized with the participation of the Catholic diocese of Austria, the forum took place at the Episcopal Palace of Vienna. Its co-organizers included the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations (DECR), the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christians Unity, the Russian Federation Ministry of Culture and the Russian embassy in Austria. The event was attended by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, DECR chairman; Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christians Unity; Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, Archbishop of Vienna; Metropolitan Ignatius of Paris (Orthodox Church of Antioch); Archbishop Antoniy of Vienna and Budapest, head of the Moscow Patriarchate office for institutions abroad; Metropolitan Issa Gurbus of Switzerland and Austria (Syriac Jacobite Church); Bishop Armash Nalbandian, head of the diocese of Damascus of the Armenian Apostolic Church (Exarchate of Echmiadzin); Bishop Joseph Mouawad (Maronite Church). Among the participants in the forum were Russian ambassador to Austria D. Lyublinsky; Archbishop Peter Stephen Zubriggen, Apostolic Nuncio in Austria; Archpriest Vladimir Tyschuk, rector of the St. Nicholas’s in Vienna; Protodeacon Victor Shilovsky, secretary of the diocese of Vienna and Austria; diocesan clergy; numerous representatives of the diplomatic corps, Orthodox and Catholic clergy, monastic communities, charitable organizations and laity. The delegation who accompanied Metropolitan Hilarion included Hieromonk Stephen (Igumnov), DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations; Hieromonk Ioann (Kopeikin), pro-rector of the Ss Cyril and Methodius Institute of Post-Graduate Studies; and I. Kashitsyn, DECR secretariat for interreligious relations. |
| Photo: mospat.ru On September 1, the 11 th Sunday after Pentecost, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, Head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations (DECR) and Rector of the Ss Cyril and Methodius Institute of Post-Graduate Studies (CMI), celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the church of Ss Martyrs and Confessors Michael, Prince of Chernigov and His Boyar Theodore, the Wonderworkers in Moscow. The church is a part of the Patriarchal Chernigov Metochion, which houses the CMI. Among the archpastor’s concelebrants were Hegumen Arseny (Sokolov), representative of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia to the Patriarch of Great Antioch and All the East; Hieromonk Ioann (Kopeikin), CMI pro-rector to development, Hieromonk Pavel (Cherkasov). CMI pro-rector for training; Archpriest Mikhail Nemnonov, CMI pro-rector for educational and social work; Rev. Dimitry Safonov, secretary of the CMI academic council and DECR secretary for inter-religious relations; Rev. Mikolay Scheglov, pro-rector for training, Nikolo-Ugresh Seminary; as well as CMI staff and students in holy orders. Present at the service were His Holiness Catholicos Baselios Marthoma Paulose II, Primate of the Malankara Oriental Orthodox Church (India); Metropolitan Zachariah Mar Nikolovos, head of the Malankara Church department for external church relations; Metropolitan Yuhanon Mar Diascoros, secretary of the Malankara Church Holy Synod; Rev. Abraham Thomas, secretary of the Malankara Church department for external church relations; and Rev. Aswin Zefrin Fernandis, head of the Malankara Catholicos’s protocol service; Rev. Jiss Jonson, personal secretary to His Holiness the Catholicos; Mr. Jacob Mathew, member of the Malankara Church Council; Mr. Kevin George Koshi, head of the communication service of the Malankara Church department for external church relations; and Dr Cherian Eapen, a representative of the Malankara diaspora in Russia. Among the worshippers were CMI staff members, faculty and students. |
| The Life of Holy Hieromartyr Hilarion (Troitsky), Archbishop of Verey One of the most eminent figures of the Russian Orthodox Church in the 1920s was Archbishop Hilarion of Verey, an outstanding theologian and extremely talented individual. Throughout his life he burned with great love for the Church of Christ, right up to his martyric death for her sake. His literary works are distinguished by their strictly ecclesiastical content and his tireless struggle against scholasticism, specifically Latinism, which had been influencing the Russian Church from the time of Metropolitan Peter Moghila [of Kiev]. His ideal was ecclesiastical purity for theological schools and theological studies. His continual reminder was: There is no salvation outside the Church, and there are no Sacraments outside the Church. Archbishop Hilarion (Vladimir Alexeyevich Troitsky in the world) was born on September 13, 1886, to a priest’s family in the village of Lipitsa, in the Kashira district of Tula Province. A longing to learn was awakened in him at an early age. When he was only five years old, he took his three-year-old brother by the hand and left his native village for Moscow to go to school. When his little brother began to cry from fatigue, Vladimir said to him, “Well, then, remain uneducated.” Their parents realized in time that their children had disappeared, and quickly brought them home. Vladimir was soon sent to theology school, and then to seminary. After completing the full seminary course, he entered the Moscow Theological Academy, and graduated with honors in 1910 with a Candidate degree in Theology. He remained at the Academy with a professorial scholarship. It is worth noting that Vladimir was an excellent student from the beginning of theology school to the completion of the Theological Academy. He always earned the highest marks in all subjects. In 1913 Vladimir received his master’s degree in theology for his fundamental work, “An Overview of the History of the Dogma of the Church.” |
| Accettare Il sito utilizza i cookie per aiutarvi a visualizzare le informazioni più aggiornate. Continuando ad utilizzare il sito, l " utente acconsente all " uso dei metadati e dei cookie. Gestione dei cookie IL METROPOLITA HILARION PARLA AL SOLE 24 ORE Nell’intervista concessa al Sole 24 Ore, Hilarion mette l’accento sul cammino compiuto dalle due Chiese dopo l’incontro a Cuba, e sulla necessità di collaborare per la soluzione delle grandi crisi in cui si dibatte il mondo, in particolare il dramma dei cristiani in Medio Oriente. Proprio come aveva detto Pietro Parolin nell’intervista pubblicata nel luglio scorso sul Sole 24 Ore : «La questione della pace e della ricerca di soluzione alle varie crisi in corso dovrebbe essere posta al di sopra di qualsiasi interesse nazionale o comunque parziale». Eminenza, il 27 luglio scorso il segretario di Stato Vaticano, cardinale Pietro Parolin, ha detto che la sfida di oggi, mentre vediamo sottolineate le differenze tra Europa occidentale e Russia, tra Russia e Stati Uniti, è «contribuire a una migliore comprensione reciproca», e costruire un dialogo aperto e rispettoso. Qual è il suo pensiero? Come valuta i progressi compiuti nel dialogo tra cattolici e ortodossi? Non si possono non condividere le parole del cardinale Parolin sulla necessità di costruire un dialogo aperto e franco sia tra le Chiese che tra Stati. E sono lieto di far notare che negli ultimi dieci anni è stato realizzato un progresso significativo tra la Chiesa ortodossa russa e la Chiesa cattolica romana, così come tra la Russia e la Santa Sede. La collaborazione bilaterale tra le nostre Chiese si snoda in diversi campi. È divenuta possibile grazie a una consapevolezza sempre maggiore di quanto ci unisce la tradizione spirituale del primo millennio della cristianità. Il richiamo a questa comune tradizione si riflette nella vicinanza tra le due Chiese sulle questioni più attuali del nostro tempo, legate prima di tutto alla crisi dei valori spirituali e all’esclusione della religione dalla sfera della vita sociale nei Paesi occidentali. Negli ultimi anni, purtroppo, è diventato sempre più attuale il problema della persecuzione e discriminazione dei cristiani a opera di estremisti in diverse regioni del mondo. Un problema che preoccupa profondamente tanto la Chiesa ortodossa russa quanto la Santa Sede, e che ci spinge a unire le forze alla ricerca di una soluzione. |
| Metropolit Hilarion: das Gipfeltreffen der Oberhäupter der Kirchen ist in absehbarer Zeit möglich Interview des Vorsitzenden der Abteilung für kirchliche Außenbeziehungen des Moskauer Patriarchats des Metropoliten von Wolokolamsk Hilarion, für RIA Novosti. - Eure Eminenz, gibt es die Pläne das zweite Treffen nach Art von Amman Treffen mit Patriarchen Theophil oder mit irgendjemandem dieses Jahr zu veranstalten und wann gerade? Was wissen Sie von der Tätigkeit und Verhandlungen in dieser Richtung? Ich möchte daran erinnern, dass schon vor einem Jahr die Absicht die brüderlichen Treffen der Vorsteher und Vertreter von den Landeskirchen fortzusetzen alle Delegationen gehegt haben, die am Amman Treffen im Februar des Vorjahres teilgenommen haben. Dann äußerten sie den Wunsch, wie es im Pressekommunique berichtet wird, sich “vorzugsweise bis zu diesem Jahresende zu sammeln. Natürlich wusste damals niemand von uns von der Pandemie, davon, dass es viel nach Plan nicht gelaufen ist. Deshalb ist es nicht zu verwundern, dass nach dem Amman Treffen der Patriarch von Jerusalem Theophil in seinem Brief an die vorgefassten Pläne erinnert. Abgesehen davon, dass der Corona-Risiko in der Welt nach wie vor sehr hoch ist, werden die Corona-Maßnahmen in einigen Ländern allmählich gelockert, weil es gibt immer mehr Leute, die schon gegen diese Krankheit Immunität haben: jemand hat die Krankheit überstanden, jemand hat die Impfung vorgenommen. In diesen Bedingungen ist die Perspektive das Treffen der Vorsteher in absehbarer Zukunft zu veranstalten möglich. Trotzdem ist es voreilig über die konkreten Fristen der Veranstaltung zu sagen, meiner Meinung nach. Wenn Sie sich daran erinnern, war der Initiator des vorjährigen Treffens der Patriarch von Jerusalem Theophil. Ich glaube, dass das neue Treffen, wenn es stattfindet, wurde von ihm als dem Vorsteher der Kirche von Jerusalem- der Mutter von allen Kirchen veranstaltet. Die Russische Kirche, ihrerseits, unterstützt die Veranstaltung solchen Treffen, die sich auf die Suche nach dem Austritt aus der interorthodoxen Krise und der Wiederherstellung der Einheit gerichtet werden. |
| Metropolit Hilarion: den Leuten Christus zu offenbaren ist unsere wichtigste Missionsaufgabe Das Interview des Vorsitzenden der Abteilung für kirchliche Außenbeziehungen des Moskauer Patriarchats des Metropoliten von Wolokolamsk Hilarion der italienischen Zeitschrift Corriere della sera. - Gebieter, im Vorwort zu Ihrem Buch über F.M. Dostojewski schreiben Sie über den russischen Schriftsteller wie über Apostel und Propheten. Ihrer Meinung nach, gibt es etwas Besonderes in Dostojewski’s Werken, was den Orthodoxen und Katholiken hilft sich zu vertragen? - Ich glaube, dass der Wert von Dostojewski für uns, Christen, darin besteht, dass in seinen Werken er immer versucht den Leser zu Christ zu führen. Ich führe das Beispiel an. Vor kurzem habe ich eine der Moskauer Universitäten besucht. Dort gab es ein paar Hundert Professoren und Studenten. Ich fragte: “Wer von euch hat Dostojewski gelesen?” Alle bis auf einen hoben die Hände. Dann fragte ich: “ Und wer von euch hat Evangelium gelesen?” Ungefähr Viertel der Anwesenden hoben die Hände. Viele Leute in der Welt lernen Russland, Orthodoxie, russische Kultur aus den Werken von Dostojewski kennen- er wird auf alle Sprachen übersetzt, auf die es das Schrifttum gibt. Ob Dostojewski es wollte oder nicht, ist er zum Apostel Christi geworden. Er bezeugte Christus sogar in der sowjetischen Zeit, als in der UdSSR die religiöse Literatur verboten wurde. Und den Propheten kann man ihn nennen, weil er vor den künftigen Unglücken warnte. Er war der einzige Kulturschaffender, der in der sozialistischen revolutionären Ideologie ihr höllisches Wesen gesehen hat. Bei uns glaubten viele, dass Sozialismus Kapitalismus abwechselt. Dostojewski hat doch gezeigt, dass Sozialismus Christentum abwechselt. Er hat das antichristliche und höllische Wesen der Ideologie gezeigt, die den Leuten Glück ohne Gott versprach. Er sprach darüber, dass es unmöglich sei Glück ohne Gott aufzubauen, und in der Person Christi sah er das größte moralische Beispiel für die ganze Menschheit. |
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