DECR chairman Metropolitan Hilarion begins his working visit to the USA

On 28 August 2010, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, arrived on a short working visit to the USA with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and at the invitation of His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah of All America and Canada.

That same day in the evening His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah gave dinner in honour of his high guest. Present were the chancellor of the Orthodox Church in America archpriest Alexander Garklavs and the head of the Office of External Affairs and Interchurch Relations of the Orthodox Church in America archpriest Leonid Kishkovsky.

The programme of Metropolitan Hilarion’s visit in New York includes his meetings with His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, hierarchs of the Orthodox Church in America, the president of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York, the head of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in America Archbishop Demetrius, as well as with the dean of St. Vladimir’s Theological seminary archpriest John Behr and chancellor of the seminary archpriest Chad Hatfield.