Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations; Archbishop Sigitas Tamkevičius of Kaunas, president of the Lithuanian Episcopal Conference; and G. Demidov, representative of the Department for Religious Education and Catechization of the Russian Orthodox Church answered questions of the journalists.

Metropolitan Hilarion greeted representatives of mass media who came to the press conference given on the occasion of the completion of the 2^nd talks between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church of Lithuania on current problems in teaching religion in the secular school.

The DECR chairman noted substantial progress in the matter: on 28 January 2012, the Government decreed that the teaching of “The Basics of Religious Cultures and Secular Ethics” will be compulsory for all schools. “We consider this as a very important move,” he said.

Archbishop Tamkevičius said that religion was taught in all schools in Lithuania. The Government pays for one lesson in a week, whereas the Church pays for more lessons in private schools. The teachers are trained at three universities, mostly at the faculty of theology in Kaunas.  Priests and laymen are given the right to teach religion in Lithuania.

G. Demidov noted certain difficulties in the freedom of choice, training of teachers and methodology.

Metropolitan Hilarion believes that the number of religious lessons in Russian schools is not sufficient. “We welcome the first step, but we will work for increasing this number. I am sure that religious lessons once a week during all school years interest children in Lithuania.”

Metropolitan Hilarion spoke of his experience of teaching religion in a Russian school near the Kaunas cathedral in which he served in the early 90s. He gave a “trial” lesson, bur children took a lively interest in the subject, and the future DECR chairman taught religion three days a week in all grades. “Teachers from another school asked me to teach their children, and I understood that I was becoming a school teacher rather than rector of the cathedral church. I gathered the most capable parishioners, taught them, and they began to teach religious lessons to many children in some Russian schools.”

This experience shows that the teaching of religion to children in all grades is “topical and important.” Religion will be taught in the fourth grade, but “I believe that the first-form boys and girls and senior school students should learn about religion,” Metropolitan Hilarion said. He hopes to continue dialogue with the state on a possibility of teaching “The Basics of Religious Cultures and Secular Ethics” in all grades.

Archbishop Tamkevičius spoke of the results of teaching religious subjects in Lithuanian schools. While the number of parishioners in the country is the same, their “quality” improves. One can see much more young people in churches. Besides, confessions show that young people are even wiser that those advanced in years.

The hierarch underscored that the Lithuanian model of the separation of the Church from the State differs from the Russian and French ones. “The Church and the State do not interfere in each other’s affairs, but they both care for people. Some 80% of the citizens of Lithuania are Catholics, and it goes without saying that the State should help them live out of their motives and convictions,” he said.

Metropolitan Hilarion told the journalists that in 1983 Archbishop Tamkevičius (then a priest) was a prisoner of conscience. He was arrested and tried on charges of anti-Soviet propaganda and spent several years in camps. Another Catholic priest from Lithuania was imprisoned several times for the same “crime”: he told children about religion. Metropolitan Hilarion reminded the audience that the teaching of religion was never interrupted in Lithuania: in Soviet time it was done in parishes.

Archbishop Tamkevičius called the years of his imprisonment “the gift of God.” He said that prisons had been the second theological seminary for me. “All subjects are theoretical in seminary, while in a prison a Christian can practice his faith,” he added.

Answering the question about relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania, Archbishop Tamkevičius called them very good.

The talks were a follow-up of the Symposium on Christians in Face of the Challenge to the Institution of Family organized in January 2011 in Kaunas by the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference with the participation of the Russian Orthodox Church.

In his report, Metropolitan Hilarion underscored the importance of developing dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania as it makes it possible to discuss together pressing problems of today’s society and to find ways of inter-church cooperation in this area. The teaching of religion in the secular school is one of the most pressing problems for both Churches as it directly concerns the problem of preserving Christian identity in Europe today. Speaking about the situation in Russia, Metropolitan Hilarion noted that in the process of consultations with governmental bodies and public organizations and considering the experience gained in other countries, a conclusion was made about the need to re-qualify the subject of religion as inter-disciplinary and culturological. In Russian society, debates continue between proponents of the separate and optional teaching of religious culture in the secondary school and opponents of such teaching. By the Russian Federation Government Decree of January 28, 2012, the teaching of this subject as compulsory for all general education schools of the country will be introduced from the 2012/2013 academic year.

Metropolitan Hilarion expressed the conviction that the real fruits and positive results of the teaching of religious culture and ethics in the secular school will become noticeable after a few years when passions will subside and the society will come to appreciate the positive pedagogical effect of religious education in the task of preserving the national identity and improving the moral climate in Russian society.

The representative of the Russian Orthodox Church’s Department for Religious Education and Catechism in his report on ‘Cooperation between church and state educational structures in teaching Basic Orthodox Culture in school’ introduced the participants to the implementation of this project in various regions of the Russian Federation.

In his remarks, Archbishop Sigitas Tamkjavichus presented the situation with regard to the teaching of religious disciplines in secular schools. The president of the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference informed the participants that in Lithuania there is no state religion but the traditional religious organizations are given the right to teach religion in general education schools and this teaching is financed by the state. The religious and moral education of children is an inalienable constitutional right of Lithuanian citizens. The development of curricular and text-books on religious disciplines as well as the training and certification of teachers belong to the competence of the Church’s authorities. The archbishop stressed that the principle of separation of the Church from the state does not prevent them from cooperation including in the area of education, for the benefit of all citizens.

In the course of the talks, the sides expressed a shared conviction that students of general education public schools have the right to receive valid knowledge about religion, which does not contradict the principle of the secular nature of education. For the younger generation, it is important to have a valid knowledge of both its own religious tradition and the basics of other religions. It is a necessary element of the moral and spiritual education of the personality.

The experience accumulated in recent years in Russia and Lithuania shows that the teaching of religious disciplines in the secular school does not at all generate inter-religious conflicts but, on the contrary, helps to consolidate the inter-confessional peace and accord in society.

The participants in the 2^nd talks between representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania underscored the importance of continued bilateral dialogue and regular meetings on particular issues.

The theme of the 2^nd talks was ‘Current problems in teaching religion in the secular school’.

From the Russian Orthodox Church, key reports were made by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the department for external church relations, and G. Demidov, head of the Basic Orthodox Culture section of the department for religious education and catechism. The Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania was represented by Archbishop Sigitas Tamkjavichus of Kaunas, president of the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference, and Bishop Jonas Ivanauskas, Vicar General of Kaunas.

In his report, Metropolitan Hilarion underscored the importance of joint discussions on the pressing problems of the society today and possible ways of inter-church cooperation in this area. Thus, the theme of teaching religion in the secular school is one of the most pressing for both Churches as it directly concerns the problem of preservation of Christian identity in Europe today. The Orthodox hierarch was convinced that in a few years’ time when passions raised by the debate on this issue subsided in Russia, the society would come to appreciate the positive pedagogic effect of religious education in the task of preserving national identity and improving the moral climate in Russian society.

Mr. Demidov, in his report, spoke about the cooperation maintained by church and state educational structures in teaching the Basic Orthodox Culture in school.

Archbishop Sigitas Tamkjavichus spoke about the practice of teaching religious disciplines in Lithuanian secular schools. He stressed that the religious and moral education of children is an inalienable constitutional right of Lithuanian citizens. Therefore, the traditional religious organizations are given the right to teach religion in general education schools and this teaching is financed by the state.

The participants in the talks stated that the implementation of the rights of schoolchildren in general education public schools to receive knowledge about religion does not contradict the principle of the secular nature of education. A study of both children’s own religious tradition and basics of other religions constitutes a necessary element of moral and spiritual education of the personality and helps to consolidate inter-confessional peace and accord in society.

The participants pointed out the importance of continued bilateral dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church in Lithuania and regular meetings on specific issues.

The meeting summed up their discussion in a communique.

DECR Communication Service

Q. Your Holiness, as you know, Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija have recently appealed to President Medvedev to grant them Russian citizenship, and his answer is already known. The Serbs appealed to you as well, and their desire was dictated by despair and helplessness in the situation in which they have been caught. The recent initiatives of Serbs in Kosovo for Russian citizenship have given a powerful signal that should be heard not only in Russia but throughout Europe.

Your words have always been a great moral support for our people and country. What message could you convey to all the Serbian citizens, especially Orthodox faithful, and encourage them in this grave period of history?

A. The Serbs who live in Kosovo and Metohija have become hostages in a major political game. Given the indifferent attitude of many states, they are forced to stay in closed enclaves, experiencing everyday anxiety because of the hostile people around who are aware of their impunity. Our brothers in faith have a great courage not to abandon their much-suffering land and holy places and have to live like concentration camp inmates who are denied even the basic right to life. Here we see a glaring injustice, double standards and lies of the policy declaring commitment to the ideal of humanism and human rights protection while shutting its eye to the hell created by extremists with support from their foreign sponsors.

The Lord says to St. Paul, ‘My power is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Cor. 12:9). When all the human resources are exhausted, when there seem to be no hope, then we see the help of God about which the Lord told to his apostle. In Russian history we see many examples when the country was on the verge of enslavement and destruction – in the Time of Trouble in 1612, and during the Polish intervention, in 1812 when Napoleon’s army invaded the country, and in 1941 when the Hitler’s armadas advanced with lightning speed in the territory of the Soviet Union. Not once the enemy was close to his aim but contrary to the logical development, Russia hurled back those invasions and rose from ruins and ashes. In this the believer sees God’s providence and His help.

I have no right to give any political advice to the Kosovo Serbs but will offer a counsel relevant in all times: turn to the Lord God with sincere prayer for help. And your brothers and sisters in faith in Russia will lift up their prayers together with you, and I believe the whole Universal Church will do the same. In the Gospel, our Lord Jesus Christ repeats these words: ‘Do not be afraid!’ The fear of dangers and threats is a natural human feeling. But the Lord is always with us and He says to the Serbs in Kosovo today: ‘Do not be afraid!’

I am deeply thankful to the Kosovo Serbs for their letter to me and to the Russian state leaders, to ‘the Russian people and brothers’. Scores of thousands of people put their signatures under this letter. It has left no one of those who read it indifferent. Our hearts are deeply moved by the trust and love for Russia manifested in this letter. In response I would like to say: the Russian Church, the Orthodox Russian people will never turn away from you. No earthly gains, no changes in the current political situation will make us forget about our ages-old spiritual kinship.

Q. Russia, within her diplomatic and political resources, has given support to the Kosovo Serbs who have been caught in a difficult situation in all respects, socio-economic, legal, psychological. What support can the Serbs from Kosovo expect from the Russian Orthodox Church?

A. The Russian Federation has really given a considerable support to the Kosovo Serbs. For instance, by the decision of the Russian authorities, funds have been allocated through UNESCO for the restoration of ruined churches in Kosovo. This initiative deserves every encouragement. Other actions are taken as well to relieve the situation of our Serbian brothers who live in Kosovo, including the supply of humanitarian aid.

The Moscow Patriarchate has invariably supported the position taken by the Serbian Church with regard of the status of Kosovo. On the international arena, much was done for the protection of the Serbian population of the region by my predecessor, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II. In particular, he devoted to this problem a considerable part of his address to the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly in 2007. I, too, will never stop making efforts for defending the Serbian brothers in their struggle to live in the land of their fathers.

It is very important that the holy places in Kosovo should not be abandoned. It would be a real spiritual catastrophe and would do a serious damage to Europe’s Orthodox heritage. Priceless are the monuments created by the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, and they are alive as long as prayers are lifted up in churches and the feat of monasticism is performed in monastery cells. I have approved the action program which will be implemented in 2012.

I have been to Kosovo several times and talked with local people and could see their difficult situation with my own eyes. What I saw made a strong impression on me. The Russian Orthodox Church was and will be in solidarity with the Kosovo Serbs. Our compatriots empathize with them and lift up ardent prayers for a speedy regulation of life in the Kosovo region. There is my voice too among these numerous voices of prayer.

Q. How do you assess the new calls of some Montenegro politicians to divide the Serbian Orthodox Church? The former prime minister of Montenegro, Milo Jukanovic, has recently stated the history will show the validity of his call to divide the Serbian Church.

A. History shows that attempts of particular political forces to put pressure on the Church in order to change her canonical order lead to nothing good.

Fortunately, in Montenegro there are many reasonable political leaders who share this point of view. In February 2009, I met with Montenegrin President Philip Vujanovic. I remember that during that meeting Mr. Vujanovic said that for him the Metropolia of Montenegro and Primorje was the only Orthodox canonical institution in Montenegro and pointed to the importance of the Metropolia’s taking pastoral care of the Serbs and Montenegrins.

All the Local Orthodox Churches consider Montenegro to be part of the canonical territory of the Serbian Patriarchate and this generally-shared Orthodox conviction should be respected.

Q. We know that representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church in their talks with representatives of the Vatican paid attention to the fact that it would be good for the Pope to voice and openly demand the protection of monuments and Christians themselves in Kosovo. The then Pope did not listen to the wise advice from Moscow. Is the situation changing in this respect with the coming of a new Pope?

A. When the discussion on the Kosovo problem began, the Pope Benedict XVI of Rome, as is known, took a well-considered stand on this problem. The Holy See still refrains from an official recognition of this part of Serbia as an independent state. Moreover, on the eve of the declaration of the independence of Kosovo, the Pope called the international community not to hurry to make the final decision on the status of that territory, emphasizing that the Orthodox monasteries there have a special historical and spiritual significance for the Serbs.

Exactly four days after the declaration of Kosovo’s independence in February 2008, Benedict XVI received in audience the Serbian ambassador to the Holy See. In the course of the meeting, the Pope underscored that the Serbs suffered much in the conflicts of the last decades and expressed concern for their situation in Kosovo. Since then he has repeatedly spoken for the protection of the rights of the Serbian minority.

Q. How will you explain the fact that Western Christians, that is, Catholics, did not show desire to defend old Orthodox, that is Christian, churches in Kosovo? These churches were burnt down and destroyed exactly at the time when Western peace-makers came in Kosovo?

A. Regrettably, the Western world, during the intervention of the NATO troops in the territory of former Yugoslavia, was subjected to a massive information attack and, to a considerable extent, was mislead. For long months, the Western mass media played up deliberately distorted information about ‘the atrocity of Milosevic’s regime’ committed against Kosovo Serbs, grossly exaggerating the number of victims of ‘ethnic cleansings’ carried out by the Serbian police in the region.

However, the hostilities themselves in Kosovo provoked in the Western Christian world a reaction far from unequivocal. Many Christians in the West were outraged by the inscription ‘Happy Easter!’ on bombs made by the American military.

Nevertheless, a number of Catholic bishops did come out in support of Kosovo’s automony, motivated by hopes for an improvement in the life of the Catholic community in the region, which were not to become true.

Other representatives of Western Christian churches and communities have repeatedly expressed concern for the vandalism of NATO’s military and for Albanian militants with their extremist attitude to the old shrines in Kosovo. Therefore, I believe, the Western Christians as a whole should not be blamed for the actions of the military. These actions were not dictated by religious beliefs.

Q. Many newspapers have recently reported on your possible meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. Do you still insist that all the disputed questions should be resolved first, because otherwise this meeting is meaningless?

A. Yes, I still believe that for this meeting to be a success it is necessary, if not settle the conflict problems in full, but at least to try to settle them more energetically.

The mass media have stressed only the sensational aspect of a possible meeting, but I do not like it at all to be reduced to sensational. To make it really beneficial for the further development of relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church it is necessary to radically improve the atmosphere of these relations through joint efforts for settling the problems existing in our relations.

Q. Under the former Pope, representatives of the Vatican often said they could not influence the Greek Catholics in Ukraine who captured Orthodox churches. Has the situation changed now or things have remained the same?

A. While stressing their loyalty to the see of Rome, the Ukrainian Greek Catholics have insisted on their own autonomy. When in 1990 a quadruple commission was set up including the Vatican, Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in order to settle the situation in western Ukraine, the Greek Catholics actually wrecked its work. We have recently suggested that this commission be resumed but the Catholic side has been perfectly indifferent to our proposal.

In the course of regular contacts with leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, we have continually raised the question concerning the need to resolve the situation with regard to Orthodox churches in western Ukraine. Both the Pope of Rome and heads of respective Vatican congregations have expressed appreciation of our concern but the problem remains unresolved.

Q. The Russian Patriarch and the Pope were supposed to meet in 1997 in Graz, Austria. Ten days before the meeting, they in the Vatican deleted the part of the document to be signed concerning the harm of proselytism and conflict between the Orthodox and the Uniates in Ukraine. Since the 90s, Catholic churches have been opened in more than 200 Russian cities. Have the positions of Moscow and the Vatican become closer when proselytism is discussed now, or everything has remained the same?

A. It should be noted that the situation in the Orthodox-Catholic relations in Russia have noticeably improved in the last 10 years. The problem of proselytism is not as acute now as it was in the 90s when Catholic missionaries came to Russia to carry out their active work here. A positive role has been played by the Joint Group for Considering Problems in Relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church in Russia, which was set up in 2004. It has become a good platform for an open and honest discussion between representatives of the two Churches on concrete complicated problems and for a joint work to make recommendations for their solution.

It is necessary to develop cooperation between the Orthodox and the Catholics who have been guardians of the Christian tradition and who have similar views of personal and social ethics, scientific and technological progress, bioethics and other issues of today. Among the problems which have become increasingly relevant is Christianophobia, the persecution of Christians for their faith. In the area of the protection of the rights of Christians, I believe close Orthodox-Catholic cooperation to be promising, important and timely.

On January 14, 2012, the liturgical singers of the Abbey of Sylvanes, France, conducted by Fr. Andre Gusa gave a concert at the International House of Music in Moscow as part of the 2nd Christmas Festival. They sang Gregorian chorals, old French folk songs and author compositions.

The artistic director of the team is a Dominican priest and composer who has served in the Sylvanes Abbey for over 35 years. He welcomed the audience in the Svetlanov Hall, singling out Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, who marked on that day the 10th anniversary of his episcopal consecration. Among the audience were also guests from Local Orthodox Churches who had come to Moscow for Metropolitan Hilarion’s celebrations.

‘Today’s event is a great joy for us’, Fr. Andre Gusa said, describing the concert as an expression of good and friendly attitude to the Russian people. He spoke about his abbey, which is one of the centres of Western church music, pointing to the importance of Russian spirituality. ‘To be closer to the Russian people, we have built a wooden church in Russian traditions. And we pray and sing in it’, he said.

The event took place with the support of the French Embassy and the French Institute in Moscow.

The next concert of the 2nd Christmas Festival will take place on January 17. The Greek choir ‘Ergastiri Psaltikis’ will perform.

DECR Communication Service

His Excellency Mr. Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan
President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

Your Excellency:
Together with the people of Nigeria I mourn dozens of innocent people who fell victims of barbaric terrorist attacks near Christian churches on the day when Christmas divine services were celebrated.
The killings and persecution of Christians, and destruction of churches and the houses of believers have become systematic. Such crimes have cost the people of Nigeria dozens of human lives last year.
Violence against believers is aimed at the sowing of religious enmity among people who have lived as neighbours for centuries in the territory of many countries. I do hope that the state and religious leaders will be united in their desire to give the resolute rebuff to the evil that encroaches upon peaceful life of the Nigerians.
I express my sincere condolences to the families of the innocent victims and pray for the relief of their sufferings.
With deep condolences,

/+KIRILL/
PATRIARCH OF MOSCOW AND ALL RUSSIA

His Excellency Felix Alaba Adeosin Job
Archbishop of Ibadan
President of the Nigerian Conference of Catholic Bishops

Your Excellency:
It is with a feeling of profound sorrow that I learnt of the appalling atrocities at Christian churches in the capital of your country on the feast of the Nativity of Christ. It was on the day, on which Christians rejoice at the coming into the world of the Lord Jesus Christ who has given us hope of the triumph of good and love, that the forces of evil and hatred committed a crime killing many innocent people.
I would like to express my sincere condolences to you, the clergymen and all Christians in Nigeria, to the relatives and near and dear of the victims.
The terrorist attacks in Nigeria on Christmas are not only a crime against Christian believers, but frustrate hope of intereligious dialogue and civil peace in the region. I wish to believe that reason will prevail in political life of Nigerian society, and people of good will, no matter which religion they profess, will manage to stop the continuing acts of lawlessness.
May God, who “so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life” (Jn 3:16), rest the souls of the innocent victims, console their near and dear and bestow peace and his blessings on the long-suffering land of Nigeria.
With love in the Lord,

/+ Hilarion/
Metropolitan of Volokolamsk
Chairman
Moscow Patriarchate’s
Department for External Church Relations

The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Archbishop Sviatoslav (Shevchuk) often speaks of the need for dialogue with the Russian Orthodox Church and a possible meeting with Patriarch Kirill. Who is the initiator of this dialogue? Under what conditions is it possible and what would be its aims?

Immediately after the election of Archbishop Sviatoslav (Shevchuk) as the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church I sent a letter of congratulations to him and expressed the hope that relations between the Orthodox of the Moscow Patriarchate and Greek Catholics in Ukraine would improve. We were uplifted by certain optimism when Archbishop Sviatoslav responded with the desire to solve jointly the problems which exist between the Moscow Patriarchate and the UGCC.
At the same time we cannot but be concerned by the declaration of the new head of the UGCC that believers belonging to the ‘Kievan Patriarchate’ are the ‘main Orthodox brothers’ of the Ukrainian Greek Catholics. The close contacts and even concelebration of Archbishop Sviatoslav (Shevchuk) with representatives of this schismatic structure, not recognized by any of the other Orthodox Churches, unfortunately demonstrates a willingness to ignore the official position of the Moscow Patriarchate and disrespect for the canonical rules of the Orthodox Church.

I am deeply convinced that genuine mutual understanding and reconciliation between our Churches is impossible to achieve without mutual respect, including respect in the field of canonical order.

We have recently received alarming reports of instances of proselytism by Greek Catholics among the Orthodox on the territories of Central and Eastern Ukraine. This type of thing can only make worse the problems that already exist in inter-church relations, while at the same time we would prefer words about the desire for dialogue to be in accord with real deeds.

The appearance of a representative of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church at the enthronement of the new head of the UGCC has been regarded as symbolic. In one of his comments His Holiness Patriarch Kirill noted a ‘recent improvement in relations between the Orthodox and Greek Catholic Churches in Ukraine.’ What did he have in mind?

After the election of the new archbishop of the UGCC official contacts were instituted between the Greek Catholics and the Orthodox of the Moscow Patriarchate for practically the first time. You mentioned the presence of a representative of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church at the enthronement of Archbishop Sviatoslav (Shevchuk). There was then a meeting between His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine and the head of the UGCC. This meeting took place in an atmosphere of good will, and during it agreement was reached on co-operation between places of learning of the two Churches. It is these positive events that His Holiness had in mind when he spoke of an ‘improvement in relations between the Orthodox and Greek Catholic Churches in Ukraine’.
The Patriarch’s words, however, do not mean that all the problems in relations between the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church have now been regulated. There still remain unresolved questions concerning the building of Orthodox churches in Western Ukraine, and representatives of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church express concern with regard to the mission of Greek Catholics in Eastern Ukraine.

The UGCC has a strategic goal in Ukraine – to obtain from the Vatican recognition of Patriarchal status for its organizational structure. In November and December of this year the UGCC created in Ukraine three new metropolias: Lvov, Ivano-Frankovsk and Ternopil and Zboriv. Now the UGCC has seven metropolias, including the metropolia of Przemyśl and Warsaw in Poland, the metropolia of Philadelphia in the USA and the metropolia of Winnipeg in Canada. Does the strengthening of the position of the UGCC on the canonical territory of the Moscow Patriarchate influence the development of relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the UGCC?

The transformation of the Greek Catholic dioceses in Western Europe into metropolias is primarily the internal business of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. At the same time this administrative reform has been made with the aim of obtaining form the Vatican recognition for the UGCC the status of patriarchate, as the Greek Catholic bishops themselves openly admit. It is well known that not only the Moscow Patriarchate, but also the other Local Orthodox Churches view negatively the possibility that the UGCC may be recognized as a patriarchate. Such recognition would be an indirect affirmation of Archbishop Sviatoslav’s declaration that the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is the sole legitimate heir of the ancient Kievan Metropolia.

Moreover, the status of patriarchate would give to the UGCC the character of an all-Ukrainian Church. However, Central and Eastern Ukraine has always traditionally been Orthodox territory where there never have been any Greek Catholic structures. Of course, the Orthodox are alarmed at the UGCC’s aim to spread its mission to the East by creating new dioceses and exarchates there.

At the beginning of November in Kazan there was a joint procession of the cross between believers of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. Educated Orthodox youth are attracted by Catholicism in other countries, while Catholic ecumenists come here. For example, to mark the New Year there will be a youth meeting of Taizé in Berlin attended by a large inter-confessional delegation from Ukraine. Is there not a danger for Orthodox Christians in this type of communion? What sort of communion is permitted and what is not?

Orthodox youth, including that of the Russian Church, for many years now has participated in youth meetings organized by the monastic community of Taizé in various European cities. I am glad that young Christians have the chance to meet and share their experience of life and ministry in the Church as this type of communion can lay the foundations for the building of a more just and human society.

Although between the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church there is no unity in the faith and communion in the sacraments, nevertheless the Orthodox and Catholics hold positions close to each other on many questions of contemporary life, primarily in the social sphere and sphere of ethics. Orthodox-Catholic co-operation is developing today in various forms. This may be joint cultural projects, public acts, and active mutual engagement at the level of international organizations. Positive examples of such co-operation already exist, and youth meetings are one of them.

May I cordially congratulate you on the great feast of the Nativity of Christ.

During these days the Church hymns the ineffable greatness of God’s mercy, dominion and might. As St. Gregory the Theologian says, ‘this is the feast which we celebrate today: the coming of God to people so that we may come to God… so that we, once clothed in the old person, may now be arrayed in the new, and as we have died in Adam so too we may find life in Christ, be born and be risen with him…’

I prayerfully wish you the joy of a radiant Nativity feast, good health and God’s help in your lofty ministry.

With love in the Lord,

/+Hilarion/

Metropolitan of Volokolamsk

Chairman

Department for External Church Relations

Moscow Patriarchate

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Italian President Giorgio Napolitano were initiators of the exhibition which is being held under the auspices of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in the framework of the Year of Russian Culture and Language in Italy and of Italian Culture and Language in the Russia.

The exhibition is a result of the unique cooperation between Italian and Russian experts. The Tretyakov Gallery exhibits rare monuments of Old Russian art at the Cathedral in Florence. They include “Hodegetria” Icon of the Mother of God from Pskov (13^th c.), “The Ascension of the Lord’ icon from the iconostasis of the Vladimir Cathedral of the Dormition (dated 1408 and attributed to Andrei Rublev school), and the Crucifixion of Christ by Dionysius (1500).)

Exhibited at the Tretyakov Gallery for the first time are pieces by Giotto di Bondone (1267-1337): ‘Madonna and Child (late 13^th c.) from San Giorgio alla Costa and polyptych (c. 1305) from the Church of Santa Reparata.

The third part of the project is the catalogue “In Christo. Exchange of artistic and spiritual masterpieces between Russian and Italy” published in the Russian and Italian languages. Heads of the two states wrote introductions, while the theological part of the catalogue presents an article on the theology of icon in the Orthodox Church by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk.

Greeting were delivered by Dmitry Kozak, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia and chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Tretyakov Gallery; H.E. Antonio Dzanardi Landi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to the Russian Federation; Russian Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev; Archbishop Giuseppe Betori of Florence, and Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk.

The DECR chairman noted that close cooperation between the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations and the Roman Catholic Archbishopric of Florence has played a great part in the realization of the project. ‘The exchange of the masterpieces of iconography has not only cultural, but also spiritual dimension. A wonderful opportunity is afforded to Orthodox Christians in Russia and Catholic Christians in Italy for seeing the best pieces of religious art created in spiritual traditions of Eastern and Western Christianity,’ he said.

Ensemble San Felice from Florence performed medieval hymns from the archives of Santa Maria del Fiore, including hymns in Latin sung at divine services and hymns in Italian sung during people’s processions.

Participating in the meeting from the Moscow Patriarchate were Archbishop Feofan of Berlin and Germany, Archbishop Philip of Poltava and Mirgorod, Bishop Seraphim of Bobruisk and Bykhov, Archpriest Dimitry Sizonenko, DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations, and Rev. Alexander Vasyutin and Deacon Alexey Dikarev, DECR staff members. The German Bishops’ Conference was represented by Bishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller of Regensburg, Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg, Auxiliary Bishop Nikolaus Schwerdtfeger of the diocese of Hildesheim, Professors A.-P. Rethman, J. Freitag, E. Schockenhoff, and C.-G. Justenhofen.

His Holiness welcomed the guests and gave the floor to Bishop Gerhard L. Muller of Regensburg. ‘I am in this church for the third time already’, he said, ‘I first came for the funeral of your predecessor, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, and the second time for your enthronement’, he said. The participants in the talk were presented with Patriarch Kirill’s book ‘A Pastor’s Word’ in German, which deals with important problems of the Church’s life in history and in the modern world.

He also stated that participants in the 7^th theological talks devoted to the theme ‘Christian Understanding of Human Rights’ set themselves as their aim to search for ways of bringing the positions of various confessions on human dignity in its religious dimension ever closer together. The most important thing in the Christian understanding of human rights, he said, was the fact that ‘we all are children of God and Christ is the head of the Church, who unites us with each other’.

Bishop Muller presented Patriarch Kirill with an Icon of Our Saviour, which has a considerable historical value. Before the 1917 Revolution, this icon, which dates back approximately to the 17^th-18^th century, belonged to the entrepreneur and benefactor S. Ryabushinsky who had collected icons to become one of the largest collections in Russia. After the revolution, the icon together with a large part of Ryabushinsky’s collection found itself at the Tretyakov Gallery and later was sold at an auction in Europe. In the mid-20^th century, it came to the family of the Bishop of Regensburg who had preserved it and handed it over to Patriarch Kirill, saying, ‘As an icon should not be in a museum but in a church, I ask Your Holiness to accept this icon of our Saviour whose image unites all Christians’.

Patriarch Kirill thanked the Bishop of Regensburg for the gift. He said he was pleased with the fact of holding in Moscow the 7^th theological talks between the Russian Orthodox Church and the German Bishops’ Conference. He stressed that dialogue with other Christian confessions on the level of both bilateral and multilateral relations was aimed to draw nearer together their positions and to overcome disagreements between Churches, saying, ‘Whatever we may be engaged in, our agenda always implicitly contains this desire to overcome differences. This effort of Churches and Christian communities aimed to overcome the existing Christian divisions can and must make a positive impact on the state of today’s society’.

‘The subject of human rights is an anthropological theme’, he continued. ‘And anthropology has become a point of division today, including between bearers of Eastern and Western cultures, in the broadest sense of this word, not only in the sense of religious culture. If we speak of the moods including in the Russian society, a considerable part of the criticism levelled against the Western society has to do precisely with the sphere of anthropology, just as, I believe, the critical view of Western people with regard to Russia and the East’.

According to His Holiness, the positions taken by the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Churches on problems of modern anthropology and its interpretation are rather close and even unanimous – which is a very positive and optimistic signal. In this sense, ‘the two Churches can and must be a bridge helping, among other things, to overcome cultural differences between our societies’, he said.

‘In a broader context, a search for a common Christian cultural and ethical basis in the life of our societies is a right path and taking it, we can help people overcome the division’, the patriarch said. He expressed the conviction that if Christian values had prevailed today in East and West, it would have removed many problems involved in the division in today’s Europe: ‘The problem is that the social and philosophical development is deviating from Christian values, and we are losing what has always united the European culture’.

Patriarch Kirill believes that given all the religious pluralism, the Eastern and Western societies have no common basis other than Christian. ‘If people in East and West are to see each other as brothers and like-minded people, we should return to common Christian values’, he said.

‘The Catholic and the Orthodox Churches are facing very heavy challenges today, and I pray that these challenges may be overcome by the Churches. Our task is to defend the moral dimension in the life of both the individual and society. To do it today is not an easy task, especially in a civilization which has abandoned the notion of sin and which is blurring the borderline between good and evil. It is a civilization in which the only criterion for defining good and evil is the secular law. We know that a legislative act is not a sufficient criterion because law is based on morality, and if morality is destroyed, law is destroyed as well’.

Patriarch Kirill expressed the profound conviction that the survival of the human civilization depends of the state of morals. ‘Searching for common responses to complicated problems of today, the Orthodox and the Catholics make an essential contribution to the cause of peace and justice and the building of culture and communication between people who belong to different political and cultural systems; they make their own contribution to a better future of our planet’, he said.

Patriarch Kirill presented the Bishop of Regensburg with an Icon of Our Lady of Kazan, and every participant in the meeting received collected articles on the work carried out by the Patriarch this year and a medal coined on the occasion of his enthronement.

DECR Communication Service

Representing the Russian Orthodox Church are Archbishop Feofan of Berlin and Germany (co-chairman), Archbishop Filipp of Poltava and Mirgorod, Archbishop Seraphim of Bobruisk and Bykhov, Rev. Dimitry Sizonenko, DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations, and DECR staff members Rev. Alexander Vasiutin and Rev. Aleksiy Dikarev.

Participating in the talks on behalf of the German Bishops’ Conference are Dr. Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Bishop of Regensburg (co-chairman), Dr. Gerhard Feige, Bishop of Magdeburg, Dr. Nikolaus Schwerdtfeger, Auxiliary Bishop in Hildesheim, Dr. Johannes Oeldemann, professors Dr. Albert-Peter Rethmann, Dr. Josef Freitag, Dr. Eberhard Schockenhoff, and Dr. Heinz-Gerhard Justenhoven.

Hegumen Philaret (Bulekov), DECR vice-chairman, Bishop of Regensburg Dr. Gerhard Ludwig Müller, and Archbishop
Feofan of Berlin and Germany welcomed the participants.

Archbishop Seraphim of Bobruisk and Bykhov made a report on Human Rights in the Tradition of the Russian Orthodox Church; a lively discussion followed by.

Bishop Dr. Nikolaus Schwerdtfeger spoke on Vatican II’s position on Human Dignity. “Dignitatis humanae” Declaration and Its Historical Context.

The Conference will carry on its work on December 7 and 8. Communiqué will be issued on the results of the theological talks.

***

The Moscow Patriarchate initiated theological talks between the Russian Orthodox Church and the German Bishops’ Conference in 1986. The first were held in Moscow that same year and were continued in Munich (1988), Altötting (1992), St. Ottilien (1996), Minsk (1998), the Benedictine Abbey of Weltenburg, Bavaria (2009).

The Russian Orthodox Church was represented by Archimandrite Kirill (Govorun), first deputy head of the ROC Education Committee and pro-rector of the Sts Cyril and Methodius Post-Graduate and Doctoral School, and Fr. Ioann (Guaita) of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations. They held negotiations with Prof. Alberto Melloni, general secretary of the Foundation.

The Foundation unites doctoral candidates and scholars studying various aspects of church history. It is an independent research institution.

The agreement reached provides for an opportunity for doctoral candidates to write together doctoral theses and for cooperation between scholars in Italy and the Russian Orthodox Church.

DECR Communication Service

A Conference on the Freedom of Faith: the Problem of Discrimination and Persecution of Christians opened at the conference hall of “Danilovskaya” hotel in Moscow on 30 November 2011. Taking part in the opening were Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations; Archbishop Edwin Joseph Ender, representative of the Holy See; Mr. Massimo Introvigne, representative of the OSCE on combating racism, xenophobia and discrimination against Christians and members of other religions.

The Russian Orthodox Church has initiated the forum with support of the Christian Interconfessional Committee, the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity Foundation and the International Organization “Aid to the Church in Need.”

Attending the opening of the Conference were representatives of the Patriarchates of Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem and Serbia, of the Orthodox Churches of Cyprus and Greece, of the Roman Catholic Church, the Maronite Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Assyrian Church of the East, the Muslim and Jewish communities, and the international, inter-Christian, interreligious and public organizations.

Citing the data provided by Massimo Introvigne, Metropolitan Hilarion reminded the listeners that every five minutes a Christian is killed for his faith, and one hundred and five thousand Christians come to a violent death in interreligious conflicts every year. Metropolitan Hilarion underscored the necessity of recognizing a simple fact: Christians are the most persecuted religious community in the world. He named Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, North Sudan, Nigeria, Etritrea, Somali, Saudi Arabia, the Maldives, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, and India as countries in which Christians are most persecuted.

Metropolitan Hilarion, who accompanied His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in his visit to Syria and Lebanon in November, expressed his concern about the future of religious minorities, mostly Christians, in Syria, in case the political situation is destabilized and a civil is unleashed.

He underscored that not only Christians, but also representatives of other religious minorities are persecuted, and added that the governments of certain countries do much for establishing harmonious intereligious relations.

The DECR chairman noted in particular the historical role of the European countries and Russia in the protection of Christian minorities. He emphasized, however, that the problem of persecution of Christians has been hushed up in Europe for many years. “The European politicians, being moved by the spirit of political correctness, talked a lot about the inadmissibility of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and other manifestations of religious or ethnic intolerance, but passed over the discrimination of Christians in silence.”

The situation has begun to change only in the recent years, he said, and gave examples of conferences and resolutions on the problem.

While describing the actions of the Russian Orthodox Church in defense of the persecuted Christians, Metropolitan Hilarion emphasized that the Moscow Patriarchate has come out resolutely against any form of xenophobia, religious intolerance and extremism. “It is known that though millions of the followers of different religions have been living in Russia, there were no religious wars in our country. We cannot be indifferent to the persecution of our brothers in the Muslim countries and hope that our Muslim compatriots will extend their support to us. We hope that our fellow believers in other countries share our pain over the suffering Christians and shall seek the ending of persecution and discrimination,” he said. He hopes that the problem of discrimination against Christians will be considered in the context of cooperation among Christians.

The DECR chairman believes that the Pan-Orthodox Council, currently being prepared, will state its opinion on the problem of the persecution of Christians in different regions of the world.

The Conference will continue its work till December the 1^st. A communiqué will be issued.

On November 30, 2011, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, met with Metropolitan Mar Gewargis of Baghdad and Iraq (the Assyrian Church of the East) who came to Moscow to take part in the Conference on the Freedom of Faith: the Problem of Discrimination and Persecution of Christians.

The hierarch of the Assyrian Church of the East thanked the Russian Orthodox Church for her attention to the needs of the Christian community in Iraq. Many Christians, who lived in Iraq for centuries, have left the country in recent years. These are the followers of the Assyrian Church of the East and of other Christian communities.

On behalf of the Russian Orthodox Church the DECR chairman expressed solidarity with the persecuted Christians in Iraq. He informed Metropolitan Mar Gewargis of the recent statement on the growing manifestations of Christianophobia in the world made by the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church. He also told him about the efforts the Moscow Patriarchate makes to draw the attention of politicians and the public to this problem.

The delegation consisted of Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations; Bishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Administrative Secretariat; archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, chairman of the Synodal Department for Church-Society Relations; Mr. Vladimir Legoida, chairman of the Synodal Information Department; and Mr. M. Kuksov, acting head of the Patriarch’s personal secretariat.

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church at “Zvartnots’ airport was seen off by  His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; Bishop Arshak Khachatrian, Chancellor of the Mother See of Etchamiadzin; Patriarchal Vicar Archbishop Navasard Kchoian of the Ararat Diocese; Bishop Ezras Nersisian of the Novo-Nakhichevan and Russian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church; and Mr. Vyacheslav Kovalenko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Armenia.

During his stay in Armenia, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia took part in the meeting of the Presidium of the Interreligious Council of the Commonwealth of Independent States, in the trilateral meeting of religious leaders of Russia and Transcaucasia, met with the Armenian President Serzh Sargsian and visited the Russian church of the Intercession in Yerevan.

Meeting the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church at “Zvartnots’ airport were His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; Bishop Arshak Khachatrian, Chancellor of the Mother See of Etchamiadzin; Patriarchal Vicar Archbishop Navasard Kchoian of the Ararat Diocese; Bishop Ezras Nersisian of the Novo-Nakhichevan and Russian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church; Mr. Shavarsh Kocharian, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia; and Mr. Vyacheslav Kovalenko, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Armenia.

During his stay in Armenia, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia will take part in the meeting of the Presidium of the Interreligious Council of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The programme of the Patriarch’s visit also includes his participation in the trilateral meeting of religious leaders of Russia and Transcaucasia and visit to the Church of the Intercession and the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross under construction in Yerevan.

Among the Orthodox participants were Metropolitan Gennadios of Sassima, Patriarchate of Constantinople; Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations; and Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Messinia, the Greek Orthodox Church. A group of the Catholic participants was led by Cardinal Péter Erdö, president of the Council of the European Bishops’ Conference.

Metropolitan Hilarion, who is currently in Rome as a participant in the meeting of the Coordinating Committee of the Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, conveyed best wishes of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.

On behalf of the participants, Cardinal Erdö delivered the acts of the 2^nd Orthodox-Catholic Forum to Pope Benedict XVI

At the beginning of the meeting, members of the committee decided unanimously to send congratulations to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on his 65^th birthday. The two co-chairmen, His Eminence Metropolitan John of Pergamon, Patriarchate of Constantinople, and Cardinal Kurt Koch signed the message.

In his address, Metropolitan Hilarion reminded the participants that a discussion of the problem of unia was a precondition of the return of the Russian Orthodox Church to the process of the dialogue. This position was espoused by the Orthodox participants in the meeting. The problems of general methodology of elaborating the document on the primacy of the Roman Pontiff were discussed at the suggestion of Metropolitan Hilarion, who believes that the methodology should reflect the centuries-old experience of the Orthodox dispute against papal claims to universal authority in the Church.

The Commission will continue its work till November 25^th.