Vladimir Rozanskij

The clergy of the patriarchal cathedral subjected to medical controls: the protodiacon Yevgeny Trofimov has died, after the parish priest Aleksandr Agejkin. Days earlier they had concelebrated the liturgy with Patriarch Kirill and other bishops and priests. The spread of the infection in the Lavra of St Sergius, in the Kiev Caves. For some faithful this is a "punishment from God"; for others, the dead are martyrs.

Foreign ministers of the two countries forced to virtual video meetings. Video-conferences solve delicate travel and meeting issues in neutral territories, which take a lot of time in terms of agreement, organization and come at considerable expense. Emphasis given to the importance of strict compliance with the ceasefire, and abstention from any provocative action in current conditions. Overcoming the pandemic together and boosting the peaceful development of the region.

Aleksandr Agejkin was 49 years old. He lost consciousness suddenly on April 20 around midnight, and on the morning of April 21 he passed away. His illness and death increase the health concerns for the patriarch himself, a friend of Fr. Alexandr. In Moscow, 31 priests test positive. In the country, cases of infection have risen to 50 thousand. The population is panicking.

Not all churches throughout Russia were empty: at the Lavra of the SS. Trinity of St. Sergius 70 km from Moscow, there was a large number of faithful. Varying stance among Russia’s more than 300 bishops (for 200 dioceses and 800 monasteries). "Virtual prayer" communities independent of the ecclesiastical hierarchy also born.

Petr Mansurov, Orthodox bishop of Kalachinsk, graduated in biology in Moscow. He calls on the faithful to accept isolation measures during Orthodox Easter. He cites past examples, like the blessed Admiral Fyodor Ushakov, who fought the plague in Crimea; and Patriarch Pimen, who acted to curb a cholera epidemic in southern USSR. For the prelate, "Nobody is attacking our faith"; the current lockdown of churches is not like church closing during the Soviet era.

Easter Sunday will be April 19th. Meanwhile, virus-positive cases (25 thousand) and deaths (200) are growing. In Moscow, 15 priests are infected, including some collaborators of the patriarch. Criticism of Kirill, isolated in a residence outside Moscow, in the village of Peredelkino. In Russia efforts are being made to stream the liturgy. Special prayers to bless the Easter Cakes (kulichy), other desserts and colored eggs at home.

According to President Aleksandr Lukashenko, "the virus attacks only the weak". In the country no type of isolation or quarantine; schools, churches, offices, shops and even sports championships are open. But people organize themselves independently. In Minsk, the Easter Mass presided by Msgr. Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, with the presence of the faithful.

Moscow's mayor: "We're not even close to the peak" of infections. All celebrations take place in empty churches, streamed live. Msgr. Pezzi. "It is the time of narrow paths and personal encounter." Msgr. Clemens Pickel of Saratov is well and has tested negative to the virus. The Pilgrimage Year of the icon of Our Lady of Fatima of St. Petersburg as Mother of the Word.

In Ashgabat, a large sports festival was held with bike races, horses, gymnastics, acrobatic performances, judo and boxing. But the capital is surrounded by checkpoints. In Dushanbe protective masks have been handed out. In Kazakhstan prisons are affected by a viral outbreak. The liturgy of the "sacred fire" in Jerusalem has changed for Orthodox Christians.

Patriarch Kirill organizes a "cleansing procession" aboard a limousine, sprinkling the streets of the capital with holy water. Only a few churches remain open. The veneration of icons does not stop in Vologda. There is a lot of trust in prayer to drive the evil one out of the body and soul. Catholics and Protestants are more cautious. Archbishop Paolo Pezzi: The coronavirus is not a curse from God, but a way in which God reminds us how fragile we are.

According to a TV station, an Abkhazian woman came to Georgia carrying the virus. Abkhazian authorities reject the claim. Tbilisi strengthens border controls. Georgia has more than a hundred coronavirus cases with 5,000 people in quarantine.

Only 150 infections in the country. People attribute the low number to the properties of isryk, the Syrian rue made from the harmala seed, already used as a sacred drink in the Aryan (Vedas) and Zoroastrian rites. But for the ministry of health "there is no scientific evidence" on the good effects of smoking the rue. The "Mongolian triangle", which also includes Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, is however one of the areas least affected by the pandemic.