The Russian Orthodox church hopes that with Theophilus III on the throne of the church of Jerusalem its relations with the Moscow Patriarchate will improve.
The Russian Orthodox church hopes that with Theophilus III on the throne of the church of Jerusalem its relations with the Moscow Patriarchate will improve.
‘The unanimous election of Your Beatitude to the patriarchal throne gives us hope that God’s work in the Holy Land will be advanced under your wise leadership and that relations between the Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Moscow Patriarchate will be heartfelt and fraternal’, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad said at his meeting with Theophilus III on Monday.
‘We would like to express our love and assure you of our support’, metropolitan said in Jerusalem, where he arrived for the enthronement ceremony of Theophilus III.
The primate of the church of Jerusalem said that it had gone through the period of trials that affected its relations with the Russian church.
He paid special attention to the role of the Moscow Patriarchate in overcoming the crisis in the church of Jerusalem. While speaking about his work in Moscow as a representative of the Patriarch of Jerusalem with Patriarch Alexy, Theophilus noted that he had found many friends and had a chance to learn more about Russian culture and spiritual traditions.
‘I am confident that all misunderstandings that clouded the relations between the Orthodox Churches of Jerusalem and Russia have become a thing of the past. We assure Your Eminence and His Holiness Patriarch Alexy that fraternal relations between the two Churches will be strengthened henceforth’, Theophilus underscored.
Representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate visited the Trinity Cathedral of the Russian ecclesiastical mission, where Metropolitan Kirill conducted a prayer service to Archangel Michael. Members of the delegation proceeded to Bethlehem and venerated the place of the Nativity of Christ and also a hostel for pilgrims built by the Russian Church.
