| Dr. Anca-Maria Cernea, Doctor at the Center for Diagnosis and Treatment-Victor Babes and President of the Association of Catholic Doctors of Bucharest (Romania) made the following presentation to Pope Francis and the Synod bishops on Friday: Your Holiness, Synod Fathers, Brothers and Sisters, I represent the Association of Catholic Doctors from Bucharest. I am from the Romanian Greek Catholic Church. My father was a Christian political leader, who was imprisoned by the communists for 17 years. My parents were engaged to marry, but their wedding took place 17 years later. My mother waited all those years for my father, although she didn’t even know if he was still alive. They have been heroically faithful to God and to their engagement. Their example shows that God’s grace can overcame terrible social circumstances and material poverty. We, as Catholic doctors, defending life and family, can see this is, first of all, a spiritual battle. Material poverty and consumerism are not the primary cause of the family crisis. The primary cause of the sexual and cultural revolution is ideological. Our Lady of Fatima has said that Russia’s errors would spread all over the world. It was first done under a violent form, classical Marxism, by killing tens of millions. Now it’s being done mostly by cultural Marxism. There is continuity from Lenin’s sex revolution, through Gramsci and the Frankfurt school, to the current-day gay-rights and gender ideology. Classical Marxism pretended to redesign society, through violent take-over of property. Now the revolution goes deeper; it pretends to redefine family, sex identity and human nature. This ideology calls itself progressive. But it is nothing else than the ancient serpent’s offer, for man to take control, to replace God, to arrange salvation here, in this world. It’s an error of religious nature, it’s Gnosticism. It’s the task of the shepherds to recognize it, and warn the flock against this danger. “Seek ye therefore first the Kingdom of God, and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you.” |
| An Angel of the Church: In Remembrance of Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine, Part I His rich spiritual experience, special wisdom, gift of foresight, and total dedication to God and the Church are so essential for us today. By his example, he inspires us to the zealous service of God and people. On July 5, 2014, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine, head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) reposed in the Lord. In his memory we will offer five brief tributes – one each day – by fellow hierarchs of the Ukrainian Church. I. Archbishop Mitrophan of Bila Tserkva and Bohuslav, Chief Administrator of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church By God’s mercy and with the blessing of His Beatitude, Metropolitan Vladimir, for nearly seven years I have been Vicar of the Kiev Metropolia and chief administrator of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Election and consecration as a bishop is always a very exciting and touching moment in the life of anyone whom the Lord has called to the high apostolic calling. I consider it God’s special good pleasure for myself that my episcopal consecration was headed by His Beatitude Vladimir – an outstanding modern hierarch, Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, a Man with a capital letter, a mentor, and a loving father. It was with his blessing that I, having completed the Christian Theological Academy in Warsaw, was accepted as a teacher at the Kiev Theological Academy and Seminary and into the brotherhood of the Kiev-Caves Lavra. I have travelled this entire path from teacher to bishop under His Beatitude’s wise leadership. And now, working under his direct authority, I thank God that in these days, so difficult for our Church, He has sent us just such a Primate. His rich spiritual experience, special wisdom, gift of foresight, and total dedication to God and the Church are so essential for us today. By his example, he inspires us to the zealous service of God and people. In his public pronouncements and person conversations, His Beatitude constantly reminds us of our responsibility before God for the obedience that each of us carries out in his place. This especially concerns pastors of Christ’s Church. His Beatitude’s words, with which he admonished me at my archiepiscopal service, will always remain in my memory: “Be attentive and fight for every human soul, that it would not succumb to temptation and perish for eternity.” |
| Diveevo Opens Its Virtual Museum The Holy Trinity - St. Seraphim Diveevo Convent. Photo: Mikhail Grishechko/foto.patriarchia.ru The first virtual museum dedicated to the history of the village of Diveevo in the Nizhny Novgorod region, where the Holy Trinity – St. Seraphim Diveevo Convent is located, opens. The Diveevo Yesterday virtual museum publishes historical photographs of the 19th and 20th centuries from the life of the village and the convent. Today, the exposition features more than 200 exhibits – single shots, series of photos, as well as digitized newsreels and video recordings, reports the website of the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod region. The creator of the virtual museum is a local journalist, Pavel Sushkov, in whose vaults, in his own words, there is still a huge amount of unsorted and undescribed material. “The museum collection began with photographs of my father taken in 1990. When the residents of Diveevo found out about the idea, they began to offer me their own photos and films from family archives. As a result, all this grew into a large project “Diveevo. Living History,” said Pavel Sushkov. It is noted that in 2022 the project “Diveevo. Living History” received a Presidential Grant for the Development of Civil Society, which made it possible to purchase equipment and pay for services to create new content. Later, the administration of the Diveevo district also joined the project, thanks to which it was possible to start digitizing the films from the archive of the regional newspaper, Udarnik . In turn, local entrepreneurs paid for the development of a website for posting photos. You can follow Pravmir.com on Twitter , Facebook Instagram , or Telegram . we are experiencing some issue with adding posts on our official page on Facebook. Our IT specialists are working on solving this issue at the moment. Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. |
| Kiev Monastery of the Caves. Photo by Michele Ursino, from www.flickr.com The Kiev Pechersk Lavra (Kiev Monastery of the Caves) and the Holy Dormition Pochayev Lavra (monastery, the Ternopol Region of Ukraine) are owned by Ukraine as a state and have been leased out to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) for 50 years, the Ukrainian Culture Ministry said. However, if it turns out that some irregularities occurred in concluding the leasing agreements, the Ukrainian government might revise them, the ministry said. “The lavras are owned by the state. Such national heritage sites are not transferred to anyone’s ownership. The lower part of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra and the Pochayev Lavra have been leased out to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) for 50 years,” Andrey Yurash, the director of the Ukrainian Culture Ministry’s department of religions and interethnic relations, said in an interview with the online publication Glavkom. Asked whether the terms of this lease can be terminated through a court if it is proven, for instance, that the Pochayev Lavra was leased out in violation of the law, Yurash said, “There are no grounds for court hearings here.” “The state granted the lease, and it is within the government bodies’ purview to decide on its future. That is, if it becomes clear that there were irregularities in leasing the lavra our, this could serve as grounds for revising the agreement. This issue is within the cabinet of ministers’ jurisdiction,” Yurash said. Earlier in September, the Ukrainian government website posted a petition saying that the Kiev Pechersk Lavra and the Holy Dormition Pochayev Lavra must be taken away from the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Moreover, Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod and Chernobyl, the father superior of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra, said the monastery had received threats. Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. |
| Meeting between Patriarch of Moscow and Pope of Rome discussed at Chatham House in London Source: DECR Moscow, February 9 – Mr. Vladimir Legoida, head of the Synodal Department for Church-Society Relations and the Mass Media, speaking at Chatham House, the British Royal Institute of International Affairs, in London, answered questions from the British public, diplomats and the mass media concerning the meeting between Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and Pope Francis of Rome to be held on February 12. Vladimir Legoyda He said that the forthcoming historic meeting is called for by the need to exert joint efforts in giving help to Christian communities in the Middle East countries. ‘Although many problems in relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church remain unresolved, the protection of Christians in the Middle East against the genocide is a challenge that requires urgent united efforts’, Vladimir Legoida stated, adding, ‘The exodus of Christians from the Middle East and North Africa countries is a catastrophe for the whole world. He also pointed out that the Russian state authorities did not participate in the negotiations for arranging the forthcoming meeting of the Patriarch and the Pope in Cuba. He reminded the audience that Christians had lived in the Middle East since the time of the Roman Empire. They survived the times of the Islamic Caliphate and the age of Crusades, ‘but in our time declared an age of the protection of human rights and interreligious harmony, they have to leave their homes’, he said. ‘His Holiness the Patriarch and the Holy Father will discuss common challenges faced by the Christendom in the modern world’, Mr. Legoida said in conclusion. Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. |
| Metropolitan Hilarion: The hard time of military conflicts makes ever more urgent our common task to search for Christians ways for stopping war Source: DECR On September 3, 2014, the 2nd International Symposium on Orthodox Spirituality began its work in the Catholic monastic community of Bose under the theme “Blessed are peacemakers”. It is attended by prominent representatives of Local Orthodox Churches, the Roman Catholic Church and Protestant communities. With a blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Churches is headed by Bishop Clement of Krasnoslobodsk and Temnikov. It includes Hegumen Arseny (Sokolov), representative of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia to Patriarch of Antioch, and Rev. Alexy Dikarev, Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations. The DECR chairman, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, sent the following message of greetings to the organizers and participants of the symposium: Reverend and Honourable Father Bianchi, Esteemed Organizers and Participants of the Symposium: On behalf of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, I would like to wholeheartedly greet the participants in the 22nd International Symposium on Orthodox Spirituality organized by the Monastic Community of Bose on the theme “Blessed are peacemakers”. Peacemaking belongs to the very essence of Christian message and in all times the Church of Christ has believed it to be her duty to bring to people the word of peace and love. Metropolitan Platon of Moscow, an outstanding hierarch of the Russian Church (1737-1812), said in one of his sermons: “Peace be to you! O the sweetest word! O the nicest word! O the precious union of the human race and the foundation of its wellbeing! Without it no good thing can either exist or assert itself. Where there is no peace, there is nothing good, only confusion. That is why the Church believes it necessary in all her prayers and actions”. The problem of achieving a lasting peace between religions, countries and peoples has always occupied an important place in the service of Churches and in inter-Christian dialogue. However, the hard time of military conflicts that we are experiencing in the Middle East, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Iraq and other countries makes ever more urgent our common task to search for Christians ways for stopping war which brings enmity, death and destruction. As His Holiness Patriarch Kirill reminds us, “in an intestine strife there is no winner or political gain that can be more precious than a human life” (From the Message to the Plenitude of the Russian Orthodox Church, 17 June 2014). The supreme authority of the Russian Church is tirelessly calling for peace, mutual forgiveness and search for compromise, exerting practical efforts to help those who suffer and to establish cooperation with all people of good will who sincerely wish peace. |
| On January 24, 2016, the Primates of Local Orthodox Churches celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the church of St. Paul in Chambesy, Switzerland. The liturgy was celebrated by His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, His Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros II of Alexandria, His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, His Holiness and Beatitude Catholicos-Patriarch Iliya II of All Georgia, His Holiness Patriarch Irenaeus of Serbia, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel of Romania, His Holiness Patriarch Neophyte of Bulgaria, His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostomos II of Cyprus, His Beatitude Archbishop Anastasios of Tirana and All Albania, His Beatitude Metropolitan Rostislav of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, as well as Metropolitan Hermanos of Ilia (Greek Orthodox Church) and Bishop Georges of Siemiatycze (Polish Orthodox Church). Worshipping in the church were the delegations of the Local Orthodox Churches. After the Reading of the Gospel, His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew addressed the congregation, saying in particular, " It is a special joy for us to have an opportunity to testify to our unity and mutual love through the common Cup of Life, when we offer the Bloodless Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of the Lord so that we may carry out the highly important and the most complicated work of the Syntaxes and fulfil our church service in general. " According to Patriarch Bartholomew, the Synaxis of the Primate of the Most Holy Orthodox Churches, which is taking place these days, " as one body is another testimony to the unity of the Orthodox Church and confirmation of the words of St. Paul the Apostle of the Gentiles, who said: There is one body and one Spirit… one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all (Eph. 4:406). " The liturgical exclamations of the primate were voiced in Greek, Arabic and Church Slavonic. The liturgical hymns were sung in Greek and French. DECR Communication Service |
| This ascetic’s fate is unusual. We are accustomed to his works being studied amongst the other works of the Latin Fathers of the Church. We call him “the Roman,” although in antiquity he was called “the Scythian.” He labored much in the Christian West, although of crucial importance for him was the Christian East, including the monasteries of Egypt and the Holy Land. Therefore, he can be called an Eastern Father who wrote in the West and in Latin. In the Christian East he is recognized as a saint, but in the West they consider him a Semi-Pelagian. There was a heresy, Pelagianism, which St. Augustine of Hippo , the most famous theologian, fought against. The dispute was about salvation. The subject of the Pelagian debates is complex, and I am obliged to present it in a highly-simplified form. What power saves a man? Pelagius placed man’s effort at the forefront, diminishing the role of God’s power. Pelagius believed that God’s acts give man an inspirational example for correcting his life, beyond which nothing more is needed. St. Augustine was a stranger to such an underestimation of sin, understanding that sinfulness limits our possibilities, causing our will to waver. St. Augustine placed the saving power of God at the forefront, but underestimated the importance of human effort in the work of salvation. Thus, the positions of Pelagius and St. Augustine were opposed; they are at opposite extremes. Besides these extreme positions during the Pelagian controversy, a moderate position was delineated, as expressed by the Roman-Scythian himself, St. John Cassian . This middle position diminished neither the value of God’s work nor of human efforts, showing that the work of salvation is completed by God and man—together. How did the controversy end? Pelagianism was justly condemned. In the West, St. Augustine’s position prevailed. If we stand on St. Augustine’s position, then that of St. John Cassian becomes not wholly acceptable, inclining more towards Pelagianism than does St. Augustine’s, although not coinciding with Pelagianism. Western scholars still call St. John “Semi-Pelagian”—that is, a half-heretic. We can in no way agree with this. |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy Delegation of scholars from the Serbian Orthodox Church visits Russia. DECR Communication service, 05.12.2023. As per the decision of the Holy Synod of the Serbian Orthodox Church, a delegation visited Russia fr om 22 nd November to 2 nd December 2023. The delegation was made up of the dean of the faculty of Orthodox theology of Belgrade University protopresbyter Zoran Rankovi, the director of the Library of the Serbian Patriarchate Z. Nedelkovi and colleague of the Library of the Serbian Patriarchate E. Slavkovi. Fr om 22 nd to 27 th November the delegation of the Serbian Orthodox Church visited Saint Petersburg, wh ere on 24 th November an agreement was signed on cooperation between the Russian National Library and the Library of the Serbian patriarchate. During their stay in the northern capital of Russia the guests fr om Serbia visited the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan, the Saint Alexander Nevsky Monastery and the Saint Alexander of Svir Monastery, as well as the chapel of the Blessed Xenia of Saint Petersburg and the grave of Saint John of Kronstadt in the stauropegic Convent of Saint John of Rila on Karpovka River. On 27 th November the delegation arrived in Moscow, wh ere they were met and accompanied by staff member of the secretariat for inter-Orthodox ties of the Department for External Church Relations A. Yu. Khoshev. At the Convent of the Intercession the guests venerated the relics of Blessed Matrona of Moscow and at the Saint Daniel’s Monastery of Moscow they venerated the relics of the holy and right-believing prince Daniel of Moscow and other holy objects of the monastic house. On 29 th November an agreement was signed on cooperation between the Russian State Library and the Library of the Serbian Patriarchate. On the same day the delegation visited the Saint Andrew’s Stauropegic Monastery, wh ere there was a meeting between the director of the Synodal Library of the Russian Orthodox Church archpriest Alexander Troitsky and the vicar abbot of the monastery and director of post-graduate studies at the Moscow Theological Academy Father Dionysius (Shlenov), who acquainted the guests fr om the Serbian Orthodox Church with the contemporary life of Saint Andrew’s Monastery, the Synodal Library and the post-graduate studies department of the Moscow Theological Academy. They discussed the possibilities of cooperation with the faculty of Orthodox theology at Belgrade University and the Library of the Serbian Patriarchate. |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy On commemoration day of St. Sergius of Radonezh Metropolitan Hilarion celebrates Divine Liturgy in St. Sergius monastery’s church of the Holy Spirit On July 18, 2017, when the Church honours the memory of St. Sergius of Radonezh, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles in the St. Sergius Monastery of the Holy Trinity. The archpastor was assisted by Bishop Lazar of Narva and Prichudsk, Bishop Clement of Krasnoslobodsk and Temnikovo, Bishop Mstislav of Tikhvin and Lodeinoye Pole, Bishop Paisiy of Schigry and Manturovo and brethren of the monastery. After the Prayer of Fervent Supplication, Metropolitan Hilarion lifted up a payer for peace in Ukraine. After the service, His Eminence Hilarion addressed himself to the faithful with an archpastoral homily. He said, ‘Your Graces, Dear Fathers, Brothers and Sisters! Today we are celebrating the memory of our honourable and God-bearing Father Sergius, abbot of Radonezh and the Wonderworker of All Russia. Every time we are going to celebrate this feast within the walls of the St. Sergius Laura of the Trinity, we come to think what the significance and meaning of monastic life lie in. Many people who live in the world, especially those who are far from the Church, do not understand what monastic life is and what it is for. Such people would say: Isn’t it unnatural that a person, a man or a woman, should live alone all his or her life without getting married? Didn’t the Lord Himself command: “Be fruitful, and multiply?” (Gen. 1:28). And isn’t it natural for a person to be attracted by nature to the opposite sex? Who is the true progenitor of monastic life? Various names are given: some say it is Pachomius the Great, while others name Anthony the Great. They also recall the founders of Russian monasticism – Ss Anthony and Theodosius of the Caves. |
|
|
