News

Metropolitan Kirill to consecrate an Orthodox church in Tokyo

A new Russian Orthodox church of St. Alexander of Neva was built in the district of Meguro in Tokyo. "The church has a new iconostasis and is being prepared for the consecration which is to take place on September 12 on the patronal festival," the secretariat for inter-Orthodox relations of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations told Interfax-Religion.

Metropolitan Herman scheduled for back surgery September 9

His Beatitude, Metropolitan Herman, is scheduled for lumbar spine surgery on September 9, 2008, at Shady Side Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA. After his surgery, Metropolitan Herman will have a short hospital stay and will continue his recovery at home. The clergy and faithful of the Orthodox Church in America are asked to pray that His Beatitude's surgery is successful and for a quick recovery.

Source: OCA Communications

Alexy II congratulates the Georgian Patriarch on the 45th anniversary of his bishopric ministry

Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia congratulated Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of All Georgia on the 45th anniversary of his bishopric ministry.

"On behalf of the Holy Synod and the entire plenitude of the Russian Orthodox Church please accept heartfelt congratulations on the forty-fifth anniversary of your bishopric consecration," Alexy II's message cited by the Moscow Patriarchate official website reads.

The oldest bishop of Russian Orthodox Church died

On Tuesday, August 26, at 94 years old, died the oldest hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, vicar of Moscow diocese, Archbishop Nikolay Ramensky (Sayama).

Archbishop Nikolay (Sayama Dayroku) was born on November 22, 1914. In
1941, he graduated from the Tokyo Theological Seminary, and in 1954
entered the St. Vladimir's Theological Seminary in the United States. Here
in October 1956, he was consecrated to the diaconate, and in November he
was ordained to the priesthood.

Joint Dialogue Commission Meets to Continue Discussion on Unity

The Joint Dialogue Commission of the Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America and the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese in the Americas met at St. George Cathedral in Southfield, Michigan on Tuesday, August 12, 2008. With the blessing of the Hierarchs, and as directed by their respective Congresses, the Commission met to continue its work on the proposal to establish a Romanian Orthodox Metropolitanate in North America. Three major topics were discussed: (1) the deliberation and decisions of the respective Congresses; (2) reactions to certain public statements made following the Congresses; and (3) the refinement of the Proposal text.

Following the direction of the Congresses, the Commission made further refinements to the text of the Proposal. This, along with the findings of various working committees appointed by our Hierarchs, will form the basis for expanding discussion on the practical aspects of unity.

Master iconographer Miloje Milinkovic to complete St. Sava

Working on a scaffold that rises toward the chapel's ceiling, his brush strokes play gently in the singular light. Above him, below him - in stunning colors and searing hues - his frescos create a union between the undying past and visions of infinity. Miloje Milinkovic is painting heaven on Earth.

Milinkovic is one of the top Serbo-Byzantanic iconographers working today. His skills as a painter have taken him from monasteries in the Ukraine and Greece, to the largest Serbian churches in Chicago, Detroit and Washington D.C. Yet in 1995, in the midst of working on his grand national projects, he also began a relatively small but incredibly important mission - to turn the very first Serbian Orthodox Church in all of North America into a breathtaking work of art. After 12 years of visiting Jackson, his labors within the dazzling sanctuary of St. Sava are nearly complete.