Just as the Duma elections were taking place, hundreds of thousands of worshippers queued for hours outside the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour to venerate the relic of the hand of Saint Spyridon, the miracle-working bishop who, according to tradition, denounced the heresy of Arius at the Council of Nicaea.
The Patriarch Emeritus of Kiev has passed away at the age of 98. He had long been described as “the most Soviet of the metropolitans”, but in 1990 he was bypassed by Alexy in Moscow following the death of Pimen. In 1992, he was the first to break communion with the Russians, taking a large part of the clergy with him. Until, during the turbulent negotiations under President Poroshenko, it was Kirill who rejected an agreement, thinking (wrongly) that he could render it irrelevant in Ukraine.
On the day of Pope Leo XIV's arrival in Turkey, AsiaNews publishes a reflection by Metropolitan Job. The theological dialogue between Orthodox and Catholics does not seek compromise. On the contrary, it produces fruits and agreements on the path towards visible Christian unity. The common condemnation of Uniatism as a method and the interdependence of primacy and synodality.
As has been the case in Kiev for some time, there is also conflict in Chişinău between the Orthodox Church of Moldova – linked to the Moscow Patriarchate – and the Metropolis of Bessarabia, which belongs to the Romanian-speaking Church. The Patriarchate of Bucharest itself accuses pro-Russian hierarchs of interfering in the country's electoral processes. A dispute that brings to the surface the troubled area between the Danube and the Dniester.
Faced with the resurgence of the so-called rodnovery, or “native believers”, Kirill formed a special commission led by Russian-French Archbishop Savva, the rising star of his team, to counter this new challenge. But according to Professor Šiženskij, one of Russia's leading religious scholars, the only real answer is missionary work that goes beyond ideological assessments.
Speaking to the State Duma Committee on Development of Civil Society, Issues of Public Associations and Religious Organisations, Abbess Xenia, head of the Moscow Patriarchate's legal department, said that the most fervent senior officers and generals who adhere to traditional religions should be promoted to command positions in the military. She also called for an explicit ban on “atheism”, deemed “unworthy and immoral”, diametrically reversing the principles of Soviet censorship against religion.
The exhibition opened in early August with the blessing of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. It was organised by the Sovereign Order of Malta and the charity foundation Kirche im Not. Minister Balaeva: ‘A testimony to the spiritual growth of humanity as a whole.’ A unique relic that has attracted interest since ancient times.
One of the most popular figures in the Orthodox Church, he died at the age of 65. A writer and poet, he was among those who championed Putin and the war in Ukraine, but was disliked by Patriarch Kirill. Pitirim became bishop of the capital of Komi in 1995, at the age of 34. His style was very popular for its informal communication, especially with young people. His odes were examples of Russia's “obedience to destiny”.
First established in Poland in 1885, the “new convent” eventually found a home in Normandy in 1950 after a long wandering. Its history and profile attract many Russians abroad, who intend to preserve their tradition without involvement in the war-patriotic initiatives of Patriarch Kirill and other Russian Orthodox hierarchs.
Moscow recently marked the 1,700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council when the profession of faith was drafted. Coincidentally, Putin and Pope Leo XIV spoke on the phone, providing an opportunity to renew the dialogue between the Church of Rome and the Russian Orthodox Church. Like in the 4th century AD, after the end of the persecutions, the challenge today for the bishops of the East and West is to show modern emperors a truth greater than any claim to dominion.
The Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church has again avoided taking a position on autocephaly. Among the bishops, the influence of Metropolitan Feodosiy of Cherkassk, who backs “fidelity in submission to the Mother Church of Moscow", is growing. Despite losing numerous parishes to Filaret’s Orthodox Church (recognised as an autonomous by Constantinople), it is hard to know which of the two Churches really has primacy among the faithful.
"The work of God knows how to transform even the most senseless human actions into something good," said Patriarch Kirill in recent days, during the celebration of the feast of Saint Nicholas, who traditionally in May is associated with the promise of a good harvest for the agricultural season. And never more than today is such a blessing needed, as people hope for a new season of peace for the fields and lands ravaged by war.
The fall of the regime in Damascus has also led to a backlash against the Orthodox patriarchate heir to one of the most important seats of ancient Christianity by a mysterious movement sympathetic to the new Islamist regime which - amid accusations of collaborationism and old scores - is calling for the resignation of Ioann X. In the background are relations with Moscow with which this Church remains linked, though without having broken with Constantinople.
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