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On 15 January 2010, Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for external church relations, arrived in the Penza diocese with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.

Archbishop Hilarion was met by Bishop Veniamin of Lubertsy, administrator ad interim of the diocese, and by representatives of the regional government: the vice-governor V.Satin and the head of the Department for external policy A.Yelitontsev.

On January 16, Archbishop Hilarion had a talk with the Governor of the Penza region V. Bochkarev. They were joined in the talk by Bishop Veniamin, vice-chairman of the Penza region government V. Savin, and minister of education S. Kopeshkina. Discussed were prospects of religious and ethical education in the schools of the province. Archbishop Hilarion underscored that moral education in modern society was a common cause of the Church and the State. He believes that both the Church and the State are called to enhance the level of citizens’ well-being. It is the Church that can give society the guidelines for true values and bring a meaning to human life.

Archbishop Hilarion emphasized the importance of building new churches in Penza’s “dormitory areas” and of the reconstruction of the Cathedral of the Saviour in the Sura territory capital. Speaking of ancient European cathedrals as an example, he noted that a cathedral was the face of a city, its spiritual and architectural dominant.

The DECR chairman gave his book “Patriarch Kirill. His Life and World Outlook.” to V. Bochkarev as a keepsake of their meeting.