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On 16 February 2011, Metropolitan Hilarion, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations (DECR), met with the Chair of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic Miroslava Němcová.

They were joined in the meeting by His Beatitude Christopher, Primate of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia; archpriest Josef Gauzar, chancellor of the Czech Metropolia; Rev. Igor Yakimchuk, DECR secretary for Inter-Orthodox relations; hierodeacon Ioann (Kopeikin), assistant to the DECR chairman; and staff of the chancery of the Parliament of the Czech Republic.

Metropolitan Hilarion told Speaker Němcová about fraternal relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia, once a daughter and now a sister of the Russian Church, on the eve of celebrating the 60th anniversary of its autocephalous status.

The relationship between the Russian and Czech people in the twentieth century and the role of totalitarian regimes in the life of the European nations were discussed. Metropolitan Hilarion underscored that the guilt for the suffering of one nation should not be placed on the other nation, the more so that each nation had its executioners and victims alike. The efforts of Christian Churches aimed at reconciliation will help to heal the historical memory of European nations.

His Beatitude Metropolitan Christopher spoke about the participation of the Czech state in the life of Russian emigration after the 1917 Revolution and put forward a proposal to have a conference on this matter under the auspices of the Chair of the Chamber of Deputies.

Metropolitan Hilarion presented Mirosalva Němcová with his book, The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian in the Czech language.