Orthodox Churches

Coronado: Russian Orthodox Mission in Costa Rica celebrates 20th Anniversary

The clergy and faithful of Costa Rica recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the parish of Our Lady of Vladimir Church. On Wednesday, November 5, the church’s current rector, Archpriest Serge Lukianov, arrived in Coronado. Two days later, Archpriest Daniel McKenzie arrived in the Costa Rican capital of San José, not far from the city the church calls home. Fr. Daniel was the first priest of the parish, and he and Fr. Serge quickly went to work helping with the final preparations for the blessing of the cupolas and the celebration of the parish’s anniversary. 

Church in memory of victims of the Moscow theatre in Dubrovka terrorist attack completed

Construction of the Orthodox Church of Sts. Cyril and Methodius in memory of the victims of the 2002 terrorist attack on the musical theater in Dubrovka (Moscow) have been completed, reported the press service of the State Building Control Committee of Moscow toInterfax on Thursday.

The construction, initiated in 2011, was carried out exclusively on charitable endowments. This is the first church whose foundations were laid within the framework of the program for the construction of 200 Orthodox churches in Moscow. Its foundation stone was blessed in April 2011 by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in the presence of the mayor of Moscow Sergei Sobyanin.

Patriarch of Alexandria meets with Antonis Samaras

On 14th November 2014, His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, met with His Excellency Prime Miniaster Antonis Samaras of Greece at the Maximos Mansion. The meeting took place so that His Beatitude could be briefed on the developments connected with the recent three-day summit between Egypt-Greece-Cyprus in the Egyptian capital.

Biography of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia
as chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate
department for external church relations
from 1989 to 2009

Background

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia (secular name Vladimir M. Gundyaev) was born on November 20, 1946, in Leningrad. His father, Rev. Mikhail V. Gundyaev, died in 1974. His mother, Raisa V. Gundyaeva, a teacher of German, died in 1984. His elder brother, Archpriest Nikolay Gundyaev, is a professor at St. Petersburg Theological Academy and rector of the Holy Transfiguration Cathedral in St. Petersburg. His grandfather, Rev. Vasily S. Gundyaev, a Solovki prisoner, was imprisoned and exiled in the 20s, 30s and 40s for his church activity and struggle against Renovationism.

The mayor of Kiev visits Patriarchate of Jeruselem

On Sunday, the 20^th of October/2^nd of November 2014, the Mayor of the City Kiev, Mr Vitaliy Klychko, an internationally acclaimed boxing champion, visited the Patriarchate. He was accompanied by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Israel, Mr Hennadii Nadolenko, and by Avrum Silman.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill meets with the Grand Mufti of Syria

 On 31 October 20124, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia met with the Grand Mufti of Syria, Sheikh Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun. 

They were joined in the meeting, which took place at the Patriarchal and Synodal residence in St. Daniel’s Monastery, by H.E. Riad Haddam, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Syria to Russia; Mr. Inayatolla Hassoun, the Grand Mufti’s son, interpreter Nofal Kaltum, and archimandrite Philaret (Bulekov), vice-chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations.