Metropolitan Kirill meets a delegation from the Hungarian Republic

METROPOLITAN KIRILL MEETS A DELEGATION FROM THE HUNGARIAN REPUBLIC

On 29 March 2001 Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, met a delegation from the Hungarian Republic. The delegation included Dr.Zsolt Semien, state secretary of the Ministry of National Cultural Heritage, Mr.Zoltan Balot, senior counsellor of the Prime Minister of the Hungarian Republic, Dr.Erne Keskes, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Hungarian Republic in the Russian Federation, and Bishop Karoly Toth.

Taking part in the talk was Archbishop Paul of Vienna and Austria and Archpriest Nicholas Balashov, acting secretary of the DECR for Inter-Orthodox Relations and Institutions of the Russian Orthodox Church located abroad.

Discussed were issues of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of Christian statehood of Hungary and a possibility for the Russian Orthodox Church to take part in them, as well as the situation with the Hungarian Orthodox diocese of the Moscow Patriarchate.

The talk was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere. The sides agreed to continue the dialogue.

On March 30, members of the Hungarian delegation accompanied by Archbishop Paul attended Divine service celebrated by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy of Moscow and All Russia in the Church dedicated to the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God. After the Divine service the guests were invited to festive meal, during which Dr.Zsolt Semien handed His Holiness Patriarch Alexy an invitation of Prime Minister Victor Urban to visit Hungary and take part in the jubilee celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Hungarian state.