His Holiness the Patriarch congratulates Metropolitan Kirill on the 25th anniversary of his episcopal consecration

HIS HOLINESS THE PATRIARCH CONGRATULATES METROPOLITAN KIRILL ON THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS EPISCOPAL CONSECRATION

With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, celebrated the Divine Liturgy of the Pre-sanctified Gifts at the cathedral of the Trinity in St. Daniel’s monastery, on March 14. In this prayerful way he marked a memorable day in this life, the 25th anniversary of his service of the Church of Christ as bishop.

Concelebrating with His Eminence Kirill were Bishop Niphon of Filippopole, representative of the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East at the Moscow Patriarchate and a host of clergy. Among the worshippers were Metropolitan Pitirim of Volokolamsk and Yuryev, Bishop Savva of Krasnogorsk, chairman of the Department for the Armed Forces and Law-enforcement Agencies, and Bishop Tikhon of Vidnoye.

In his speech after the service, Metropolitan Pitirim said: “We thank the Lord for having ordained His Eminence Kirill to stand in the episcopal dignity at the Holy Throne. Metropolitan Kirill is serving ‘at the forefront’, on the most complex front lines of Orthodoxy. Begun in the post-war Leningrad, his service continued on the Russian borders in Smolensk and Kaliningrad and in the Department for External Church Relations. I believe, it is not accidental that we prayed today before the miracle-working Icon of Our Lady of Pochaev, an old shrine from Holy Russia’s distant borders, which has been brought over in these days to St. Daniel’s”.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy congratulated Metropolitan Kirill at St. Daniel’s community house, saying: “I would like to offer my cordial congratulations to His Eminence Metropolitan Kirill on the occasion of the ‘silver jubilee’ of his episcopal consecration. According to the calendar, it is 25 years today since he was consecrated as bishop. He has covered a long way in his service of the Church of Christ, fulfilling church obediences in a worthy and responsible way”. The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church also said that “on my visit to the Smolensk diocese I saw the church life reviving there in all its diversity, churches and theological schools opening and the social service of the Church being fulfilled”. His Holiness expressed appreciation of the fruitful work of Metropolitan Kirill as chairman of the Department for External Church Relations and permanent member of the Holy Synod. His Holiness presented the hero of the day with a holy pectoral icon with a dedicatory inscription.

A congratulatory message was received from Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, expressing appreciation of the manifold work that Metropolitan Kirill carried out for 25 years in the vineyard of the Lord, especially in strengthening and developing fraternal relations between the two Churches and in the Orthodox witness before the world. Sharing the joy of the celebration, His Holiness Bartholomew wished Metropolitan Kirill good health and energy to continue his very valuable ministry for many more years for the benefit of the Church and the pious Russian people, for the glory and praise of God, and assured him of profound respect for his efforts and mission.

Among the speakers who offered congratulations to Metropolitan Kirill were Metropolitan Sergius of Solnechnogorsk, chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchate, Archbishop Arsenius of Istra, leaders of Synodal departments, representatives of Local Orthodox Churches and other Christian confessions and traditional religions in Russia.

Vice-chair of the Russian Government Ms. V. Matvienko said in her speech: “You are in the prime of your spiritual and physical life. Your indefatigable work for the benefit of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Fatherland is known both inside and outside Russia. We are well aware of and we appreciate your contribution to the development of church-state relations and your active involvement in the preparation of the Jubilee Bishops’ Council which defined the major strategic tasks of the Church. Your World of a Pastor TV show always leaves a profound impression and brings peace in our society. You are a citizen whj is anxious for the fate of the Fatherland and is doing all that is possible to make it better. Working in Greece and other countries, I learnt about your high international authority not through a hearsay”.

In his message Mr. V. Voloshin, head of the Presidential Staff, said in particular, “I am sincerely grateful to you for the constructive work in the Presidential Council for Cooperation with Religious Organizations. I would like to note with satisfaction that the mutually advantageous cooperation between your department and the Presidential Staff continues to develop in a consistent way. From the bottom of my heart I wish you new achievements in your important service, good health, peace and well-being”.

Mr. A. Avdeyev, first deputy foreign minister, conveyed to Metropolitan Kirill a message from Foreign Minister I. Ivanov. Messages were also received from Moscow Mayor Yu. Luzhkov and others.

The vice-chairman of the Duma committee for international affairs L. Slutsky presented Metropolitan Kirill with the Russian highest public decoration, the Public Recognition Golden Badge, and a diploma signed by the Public Recognition Fund president Ey. Stroev. His Eminence Kirill has been awarded “for his great personal contribution to the deepening and developing of the external relations of the Russian Orthodox Church and his fruitful peacemaking and educational work for peace and harmony”.

For his efforts in religious education Metropolitan Kirill was awarded the Medal of the Academy of the Russian Philology and the European Parliament “To a Zealot of Education in Memory of Pushkin’s 200th Birthday”. According to G. Arutiunov of the Academy, this international public award is given in recognition of one’s outstanding achievements in scholarship, culture and education. “The Presidium of the Academy of Russian Philology has awarded Metropolitan Kirill this medal as a prominent zealot of religious education in Russia and the anchorman of the Word of a Pastor TV show”, Mr. Arutiunov said.

Metropolitan Kirill thanked all those who came to share his joy in the Lord. Marking a jubilee of his archpastoral ministry, he lifted up an ardent prayer for his parents and spiritual instructors. He said in particular, “My parents lived in an atmosphere of not ‘theoretical’ but ‘practical’ Christianity. The example of my family has taught me that Christianity is not a theory but life itself. I felt the need to tell other people that to be a Christian means to be a happy man. Later my spiritual father, Metropolitan Nikodim of eternal memory, restrained my youth’s romanticism with worldly wisdom and experience of church service. And when the Lord called me to an important service of the Church in Moscow, I was given an opportunity to be alongside His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia. Working under the omophorion of His Holiness, I am learning the tact and culture which make His Holiness capable of uniting people around him. The unity of the Synod, episcopate and our whole Church around His Holiness the Patriarch is a guarantee of the unity of our society. Indeed, by her very nature the Church of Christ is called to oppose conflicts and divisions, healing by love the spiritual illness of humanity. I consider it a great honour and responsibility to be a participant in the task that His Holiness and the whole Church perform by reconciling and uniting people”.

This reception was followed by a gathering at the Department for External Church Relation at which Metropolitan Kirill’s anniversary was celebrated by the DECR staff. In his speech Archimandrite Mark (Golovkov), a DECR vice-chairman, said that “the staff of the Synodal department thank God for the opportunity to work under your guidance”. According to A. Buevsky, a long-standing staff member of the department, the Lord called His Eminence Kirill to the archpastoral service of the Church and blessed him with many gifts and talents through one of the founders of the DECR, Metropolitan Nikodim of the blessed memory. Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, DECR acting secretary for inter-Orthodox relations, read out a congratulatory message from Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens and All Greece.

In his response Metropolitan Kirill said: “The 25th anniversary of archpastoral ministry is not just a round date but a biblical anniversary to be celebrated by the will of God. Holy Scripture teaches that such memorable dates should not be used to praise a person marking the anniversary, but to serve the good of the Church”. Metropolitan Kirill spoke on major areas in the work of the DECR and thanked his staff for their efforts, noting the importance of preserving the best traditions of the Department.