Celebration of 20th anniversary of episcopal consecration of Metropolitan Korniliy of Tallinn and All Estonia

On 15 September 2010, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriachate's Department for External Church Relations, currently on a visit to Estonia with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, concelebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky in Tallinn. The liturgy was celebrated to mark the 20th anniversary of the episcopal consecration of Metropolitan Korniliy of Tallinn and Estonia.

Concelebrating with Metropolitan Korniliy and Metropolitan Hilarion were Bishop Merkury of Zaraisk, chairman of the Synodal Department for Religious Education and Catechizations; Bishop Lazar of Narva, a vicar of the Estonian Metropolia; archimandrite Tikhon (Sekretarev), abbot of the Pskov Dormition Monastery of the Caves; hegumen Mitrofan (Shkurin), abbot of the Monastery of the Dormition in Lipetsk; Rev. Dimitry Ageyev and hierodeacon Ioann (Kopeikin), assistants to the DECR chairman; clergymen of the Estonian Metropolia, and guests from other dioceses. Praying at the Liturgy was Bishop Alexander of Daugavpils, a vicar of the Riga Metropolia.

Archbishop Andreas Pyder of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church and Ambassador Yu. Merzlyakov of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Estonia were also present and congratulated Metropolitan Korniliy.

After the Liturgy Metropolitan Hilarion read out a congratulatory address from His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia to Metropolitan Korniliy and handed over to him a panagia - a gift from His Holiness, and an icon of the Most Holy Mother of God called "Do not weep for Me, O Mother" from himself.

Bishop Lazar of Narva congratulated Metropolitan Korniliy on behalf of the clergymen and laymen of the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate; Bishop Alexander of Daugavpils - on behalf of Metropolitan Alexander of Riga and All Latvia and on his own behalf; archimandrite Tikhon - on behalf of Metropolitan Yevseviy of Pskov and Velikiye Luki and the Pskov Monastery of the Caves. A sister from the Pühtica Convent read out greeting to Metropolitan Korniliy from Hegumeness Varvara.

Metropolitan Korniliy thanked His Holiness the Patriarch, Metropolitan Hilarion, his brothers archpastors, clerics and laymen for their greetings and prayers.

Source: www.mospat.ru