His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople welcomes guests from Russia

On 24 March 2010, the eve of the feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Mother of God according to the new style, His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople celebrated the evening service at the Annunciation Church in Dolapdere district of Istanbul. Attending the service were the Revd. Georgy Kirindas, chief of the protocol section of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for external church relations; DECR staff member D. Petrovsky: deputy executive director of the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity Foundation I. Lapshin: and assistant to the artistic director of the Moscow Synodal Choir A. Mayorov.

After the divine service, the Primate of the Church of Constantinople warmly greeted the guests from Russia who have arrived in Istanbul to complete preparations for the concert due to take place at the Hagia Irene church on March 26. The Synodal Choir and the Russian National Orchestra will perform ‘St. Matthew Passion’ Oratorio composed by Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk. His Holiness noted the importance of the event, invited the worshippers to attend the concert, and said that he was looking forward to his visit to the Russian Orthodox Church at the invitation of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia later next May.