News

Mission team Chicago benefit - 2009

Mission Team Chicago, an organization promoting Orthodox missions, announced today that His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Chairman of SCOBA (Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas) and Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, will speak at its benefit dinner at 6:30pm on Thursday, February 26, 2009.

The 12th annual dinner, benefiting the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), will take place at The Carlisle in Lombard, Ill. The cost of admission is $75 per person. Reservations are now being accepted for tables of 10 ($600 per table). Table reservations after December 1, 2008, will be $750.

Condolence of WCC

H.E. Metropolitan Kyrill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad
Chairman of the Department of External Church Relations
Russian Orthodox Church
(Moscow Patriarchate)

Geneva, 5 December 2008

Your Eminence,

"Among the spirits of the righteous perfected in faith, give rest, O Saviour, to the soul of Your servant Patriarch Alexy. Bestow upon it the blessed life which is from You, O loving Lord"
(Hymn from the Orthodox Memorial Service).

Meeting in Geneva for our regular encounter, we received the sad news of the passing away of the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, Alexy II.

On behalf of the fellowship of the WCC, in deep sadness we join our voices to those of the Russian and worldwide Orthodox faithful and pray, together with them, for Patriarch Alexy II of blessed memory.

Message from Mr José Manuel Durão Barroso, President of the European Commission, to the Holy Synod of the Russian Church

It is with great sadness that I learned of the death of His Holiness Alexei II, Patriarch of Moscow and of all Russia, and I would like - in my personal name and in the name of the European Commission - to send my condolences.

Metropolitan Kirill elected Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne

At its extraordinary session of 6 December 2008 the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church elected Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad the Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne of the Russian Orthodox Church. Metropolitan Kirill will be the primate of the Moscow Patriarchate until the election of the new Patriarch, which will take place at the Local Council. The latter is due to be scheduled not earlier than 40 days and not later than 6 months after the death of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II.

Session of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church (Decembar 6, 2008)

Session of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church will take place on December 6 to elect Patriarchal Locum Tenens who will chair the Memorial Commission. The Holy Synod will announce the time of the funeral of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia passed away in the Lord

Today on December 5, 2008, early in the morning Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia passed away in the Lord at the Patriarchate residence in Peredelkin outside Moscow.

Patriarch was born as Aleksey Mihajlovich Ridiger in Tallinn,Estonia on February 23, 1929 into the family of Russian emigrants , and he is a descendant of German Baltic noble family ofvon Ridiger which adopted Orthodoxy in 18th century.