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In the evening of January 7, the Day of the Nativity of Our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia celebrated Great Compline at the Cathedral Church of Christ the Saviour in Moscow.

His Holiness was assisted by a great assembly of bishops and clergy. Among them were representatives of Local Orthodox Churches to the Patriarchal See of Moscow from the Orthodox Churches of Alexandria, Antioch, Serbia, Jerusalem, Bulgaria and the Czech Lends and Slovakia.

Among the numerous worshippers were mothers superior of Patriarchal convents, Moscow clergy, members of parish councils of Moscow churches, and staff members of synodal departments.

The service was broadcast live by the TV Center and Soyuz TV channels.

Patriarch Kirill read the beginning of the Gospel from the old altar-Gospel of the time of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, which is brought out of the Church of Christ the Savour’s altar twice a year: during the Christmas and Easter Great Compline.

After the service, Metropolitan Juvenaly of Krutitsy and Kolomna extended greetings to His Holiness on behalf of the plenitude of the Russian Orthodox Church. He spoke about new Christian martyrs who spilt blood in the last century of the Russian Orthodox Church, ‘And we can see that the Christian blood and prayers of new martyrs have proved to be capable of restoring the Russian Orthodox Church to her former magnificence’. He also praised Patriarch Kirill for his missionary efforts, saying, ‘We see the fruit of your missionary work in the Russian land, because since you became the Primate of the Russian land you have tirelessly repeated that our love, education and mission work should be addressed in the first place to the youth. May the Lord bless your Primatial ministry with many good years for the sake of the prosperity of the Russian Orthodox Church and our beloved Motherland’.

Maria Antipova, student of Moscow State University, and Mikhail Kotelnikov, chief conductor of the Youth Synodal Choir, brought greetings to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill on behalf of the Orthodox youth in Moscow.

Then His Holiness addressed himself to the congregation with a primatial homily. This was followed by traditional greetings extended to the patriarch by bishops, clergy and laity.

Patriarchal Press Service

DECR Communication Service