Patriarch Kirill’s Christmas greetings to heads of states
His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia has sent the following Christmas greetings to heads of states belonging to the Orthodox tradition in far abroad. He greeted in particular Presidents Rosen Plevneliev of Bulgaria, Nicos Anastasiadis of Cyprus, Gjogre Ivanov of Macedonia, Klaus Iohannis of Romania, Tomislav Nicolic of Serbia, and Philip Vujanovic of Montenegro:
I wholeheartedly greet you on the occasion of the great and joyful feast of the Nativity of Christ and on the New Year.
The entire life of our Saviour was dedicated to helping people and tireless preaching of love and self-sacrifice. The example given by Christ inspires us also today, after two thousand years, to follow the eternal values of the Gospel in our life and social work.
It is especially important today to remember that all Christians and people of good will have the mission to strengthen peace, harmony and mutual understanding in society. It is my conviction that it is possible to achieve this goal only through common efforts based on the sincere and firm faith.
I wish you God’s help and success in your lofty service.
Respectfully,
+ KIRILL
Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia