A meeting devoted to the 15th anniversary of the Russian Culture Foundation takes place in the Church Councils Hall of the Church of Christ the Savior

A MEETING DEVOTED TO THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE RUSSIAN CULTURE FOUNDATION TAKES PLACE IN THE CHURCH COUNCILS HALL OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST THE SAVIOR

On December 20, 2001, a meeting devoted to the 15th anniversary of the Russian Culture Foundation took place in Moscow. Present in the Church Councils Hall of the Christ the Savior’s were His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia, USSR Ex-President Mikhail Gorbachov, Russian Minister for Culture Mikhail Shvydkoy, government officials and representatives of public organizations as well as Russian regional leaders, prominent politicians, artists and cultural figures.

Nikita Mikhalkov, President of the Russian Culture Foundation, highlighted in his speech the tasks of the Foundation to preserve Russian cultural and spiritual legacy and revive the notion of Lesser Homeland. Addressing the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, he said that in his opinion the reconstruction of the Church of Christ the Savior, which has become a symbol of Russia’s fall and rebirth, was the main cultural event in the last decade.

He handed over to His Holiness a restored piece of the iconostasis of the 18th century from an army field church. “It is a shrine of our military glory, because Generalissimo Alexander Suvorov and our Russian warriors prayed for victory before it and it is bound up with the victory of the Russian arms,” His Holiness the Patriarch said thanking the Russian Culture Foundation for this precious gift.

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church awarded a Patriarchal Diploma to the Foundation for its work for gathering the Russian cultural legacy dispersed around the world.