Orthodox Churches

Patriarch Kirill meets with Chairman of the People’s Republic of China, Mr. Xi Jinping

On May 10, 2013, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, who is on a visit to China, met with the Chairman of the People’s Republic of China, Mr. Xi Jinping, in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Participating in the meeting were Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, Bishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s administrative secretariat, Mr. V. Legoida, head of the Synodal Information Department, Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, DECR vice-chairman, and Mr. D. Petrovsky, a DECR staff member.

Seychelles: The Orthodox Christian community celebrates Easter

"Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!" was the greeting between the Orthodox faithful as they gathered to celebrate the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ on Sunday 5th May, in a service at the conference room in Berjaya Beau Vallon hotel. In the Orthodox calendar, this year Easter is celebrated much later date to the Western churches, as the Orthodox follow the Julian calendar.

Letter to Secretary of State John Kerry on Kidnapped Syrian Bishops

The Honorable John Kerry
United States Secretary of State

Dear Secretary Kerry,

We, the Members of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America, kindly bring to your attention the urgent and very serious plight of the Greek Orthodox and Syriac Orthodox Archbishops of Aleppo, Paul Yazigi and Yohanna Ibrahim, who were abducted this past week by “a terrorist group” in the village of Kfar Dael as they were carrying out humanitarian work.

His All-Holiness in Imvros for Holy Week and Pascha

On Saturday, April 27, 2013, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew arrived in his native island of Imvros, where he will celebrate Holy Week and Pascha for the first time in fifty years. He is accompanied by His Eminence Metropolitan Athenagoras of Kydonies and Archdeacon Maximos Vgenopoulos. His Eminence Metropolitan Stephanos of Kallioupolis and Madytos is serving as Patriarchal Vicar at the Patriarchal Church of St. George at the Phanar.

Church building granted to Orthodox community in Palermo

The municipal authorities of the city of Palermo have resolved to grant use of a former church building to the Russian Orthodox Church in Palermo. The church is dedicated to St. Alexander, but for the past ten years has been used to house an art academy for religious art restoration.

The final agreement is scheduled to be signed in June, 2013, stated Alexander Lvovich Korotkov, General Consul of the Russian Federation in Palermo on Friday.