DECR chairman meets with Serbian delegation

On 8 September 2011, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations (DECR), met with a Serbian delegation that has arrived for consultations on the project of decoration of the Cathedral of St. Sava in Belgrade.

The delegation includes Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro and Primorje, counsellor D. Kirnevich of the minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of Serbia; director N. Kalezic of the international and law department of the Serbian ministry of foreign affairs, and Prof. V. Milovanovic, chief architect of the Cathedral of St. Sava.

Also taking part in the meeting were archpriest Igor Yakimchuk, DECR secretary for inter-Orthodox relations; H. E. Jelica Kurjak, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Serbia to the Russian Federation; and S. Pavlovic, first secretary of the Embassy of Serbia in Moscow.

Participants in the meeting discussed the realization of the project of mosaic decoration of the Cathedral of St. Sava – the largest Orthodox cathedral in Europe. The project is being realized with the participation of the Russian state and the Russian Orthodox Church.

Metropolitan Hilarion and Metropolitan Amfilohije had a private meeting at which they discussed the problems of strengthening bilateral relations between the Russian and Serbian Churches, as well as inter-Orthodox relations.

The delegation from Serbia arrived in Moscow on September 6. Russian-Serbian consultations took place at the Russian Ministry of Culture. The delegation was received by Pavel Khoroshilov, deputy minister of culture of the Russian Federation.

On September 8, the feast day of the Vladimir icon of the Mother of God, Metropolitan Amfilohij and other members of the Serbian delegation prayed in the Sretensky Monastery and visited the Donskoy Monastery where they venerated the relics of St. Tikhon, Patriarch of All Russia.

The delegation leaves for Belgrade on September 9.
 
Source: DECR of the ROC