Print This Post

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations, congratulated His Holiness Patriarch Irinej of the Serbian Orthodox Church on the fifth anniversary of his enthronement. The text of the message is given below.

Your Holiness:

Please accept my cordial congratulations on the remarkable date – the fifth anniversary of your election to the Serbian Patriarchal Throne.

Primatial labours of Your Holiness continue the selfless ministry of your predecessors, Patriarchs Dimitrije and Varnava, Gavrilo and Vicentije, Pavle and all wise in God Primates who have been building the spiritual house of Orthodoxy in Serbia for centuries. Millions of Orthodox Serbs living in the Balkans and elsewhere in the world respect you as their spiritual father and teacher as you are teaching your flock to keep faithfulness to the holy faith of the fathers and historical memory of the Serbian Orthodox people by your words of Primate and by the example of your life.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia highly appreciates Your Holiness’ contribution to the development of relations between our Churches. The recent irenical visit of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Serbian Patriarchate served to their strengthening.

I join the prayers being offered up for your health on the anniversary of your enthronement and wish you peace, gracious strengthening of your health and the inexhaustible help from the above for many and good years of your Patriarchal ministry.

With respectful love in the Lord,

+ Hilarion

Metropolitan of Volokolamsk

Chairman

Department for External Church Relations

Moscow Patriarchate