Orthodox residents of Kosovo hope for Russian support

Deputy head of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations Archpriest Nikolay Balashov who has recently visited the enthronement of new Serbian Patriarch Irinej says Kosovo residents lay special hopes for support of Russians. "Russia's support, spiritual unity with Orthodox people of the Holy Rus' inspires hope in Orthodox people in Kosovo," Father Nikolay said on Wednesday in his interview to Interfax-Religion.

The priest also said that when Metropolitan Hilarion read out Patriarch Kirill's message and said the words that "prayers of millions of the faithful of the Russian Orthodox Church" would "always accompany" new Serbian Primate in his work loud applause of all believers interrupted the reading.

Besides, according to Fr. Nikolay, members of the Russian Church delegation "at every step" felt "special attitude of the Serbian Orthodox Church and organizers of the patriarchal enthronement."

He is convinced that Russians and Serbs "are strongly connected with one faith and centuries-old history and this mutual attraction exceeds all fluctuations of political conjuncture." "Love to Serbian people and their Church is in our blood. I think Serbs feel the same as Mother-Russia for them is not only a country of the world community," Fr. Nikolay said.

Source: Interfax religion