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On September 23, 2019, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations (DECR), while on a visit to the Holy Land with a blessing of His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, met with His Beatitude Theophilos III, Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem and All Palestine.

Taking part in the meeting were also Archimandrite Alexander (Yelisov), head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem (REM), Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk, DECR secretary for inter-Orthodox relations, and Hieromonk Afanasy (Bukin), a cleric of the REM.

Metropolitan Hilarion conveyed His Beatitude fraternal best regards from the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. During their talk, they discussed the development of fraternal relations between the two Local Churches and issues on the pan-Orthodox agenda. His Beatitude Theophilos III told Metropolitan Hilarion about the progress made in the restoration work at the Church of the Lord’s Sepulchre.

In conclusion of the talk, the hierarchs exchanged tokens of the meeting.

After the meeting, His Eminence Hilarion, accompanied by Archbishop Isidoros of Hierapolis, senior guardian of the Holy Sepulchre, venerated the Lord’s Sepulchre and the place of the Crucifixion of the Lord on Golgotha.

DECR Communication Service