Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. Since August 30, 1970, he was a personal secretary to Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov), Metroplitan of Leningrad. Kirill was made a bishop at the age of 30 from within that section, explains professor Antoine Nivire, a specialist inRussian cultural and religious history at Frances University of Lorraine. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow - Wikimedia Commons Since 1978, he has been the manager of the "Patriarch's parishes in Finland " (the name of the structures of the Russian Orthodox Church in Finland). Updates? From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. In a country where more than 71% of people identify as Russian Orthodox, Kirill is a powerful religious and political figure who has consistently refused to acknowledge the destruction, dislocation and growing death toll of the war in his frequent public statements. On April 3, 1969, Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad and Novgorod tonsured him with the name of Kirill. Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' - Wikipedia "We have entered into a struggle that has not a physical, but a metaphysical significance," he said. In a sense, the Russian Orthodox Church was successful, because the Kremlin at some point adopted the political language of the church, which became known as the ideology of the Russian world. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia (secular name Vladimir M. Gundyaev) was born on November 20, 1946, in Leningrad. He has a real proximity to Vladimir Putin, even if it is not a personal sort of relationship, saysBret. On January 5, Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow called for a ceasefire along the front line between Russian and Ukrainian forces in Ukraine so that opposing forces could celebrate Orthodox Christmas on January 6-7. However, it is unclear how much agency Kirill has to denounce the war. France 24 - International breaking news, top stories and headlines. For people who retain a KGB mentality, like Putin, he is one of them. Kirill is part of the Putinian system and the Russian establishment for having made many pledges to them and for having rendered good and loyal services to the state.. Pope and several priests appeal to the Russian Orthodox Church leader after he endorsed the Ukraine invasion. The patriarch also insisted on the importance of the education of seminarians in the various diocesan institutions, where together with studies and various spiritual exercises "we must teach them to be ready, at least theoretically, to face the problems of family life". Despite being a monk, as all Orthodox bishops are, he does not have that reputation for asceticism contrary to Pope Francis, for example.. Patriarch Kirill has a background in theology. Right-wing politicians in America that are manipulating these same issues for their advantage are singing from the same choir as Vladimir Putin and Kirill, he said. FRANCE 24 takesa look at Russia's influentialPatriarch Kirilland the role he plays behind the scenes at the Kremlin. The same day, Ukrainian authorities accused Russian forces of bombing an art school where more than 400 people had sought shelter. Media related to Patriarch Kirill I at Wikimedia Commons, 21st-century primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Patriarch_Kirill_of_Moscow&oldid=8854768. He is the author of the Concept for Reviving Charity and Religious Education adopted by the Holy Synod on January 30, 1991. Gundyaev took the monastic name Kirill in 1969 while a seminarian. Moscow. France 24 is not responsible for the content of external websites. However, it helps millions of people to see Orthodoxy from various viewpoints and also to come to feel the beauty and power of Orthodoxy. After the liturgy, the requiem service was held for Patriarch Alexy II, It was led by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. Is the extreme weather from coast to coast a new abnormal? Since 1988, functioning there has been an Inter-diocesan Theological College, which trains church choir conductors, catechists, icon-painters and nurses. It is impossible to remain silent at such a moment when a bloody fratricidal special operation is unleashed, he said. Kirill set off a scandal a few years after becoming patriarch when he was photographed wearing a $30,000 watch that was subsequently photoshopped out of an official image put out by the church. During Metropolitan Kirills service at the See of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, 166 parishes were opened (94 in Smolensk and 72 in Kaliningrad and its region), 52 Orthodox churches were restored and 71 churches were built. Kirill, a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, had already refrained from criticizing the Russian invasion alienating many in the Ukrainian Orthodox churches who had previously stayed loyal to the Moscow patriarch during a schism in their country. At the same time he was a personal assistant to Metropolitan Nikodim of Leningrad and Novgorod and a form-master of the first-year seminarians. English: Patriarch Kirill of Moscow. 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On January 27, 2009, by a Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, he was elected as Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church takes part in a religious service in Bucharest, Romania, in October 2017. Someone must pray for our united people, Kirill said, holding a gilded staff symbolizing his role as spiritual shepherd of the more than 90 million members of his church. Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, listens to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow during a reception commemorating the 1,000th anniversary of the death of Grand Prince Vladimir I, at . Early life and career Kirill was born Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev in Leningrad (present-day Saint Petersburg) on 20 November 1946. And today, His Holiness the Patriarch standing before the face of God can say that he has left to us quite a different Church. Patriarch Kirill has powerfully contributed to Russian state media propaganda and public discourse in which Ukrainian civilians are depicted as corrupt "accomplices to the Nazi regime". The head of the Russian Church has insisted on the importance that priests live the family dimension fully, without being justified by pastoral commitments, which force them to be often absent from home. He has given several sermons along these lines, giving his blessing to Russian troops while denouncing Ukrainian authorities. Could unarmed civilians help stop nuclear disaster in Ukraine? The church also tried to influence the Kremlin. Moscow Patriarch gets call from World Council of Churches head to In U.S. politics, religious institutions are profoundly important, but they are autonomous actors. The icy dip was a brazen display of manhood and an Orthodox Christian ritual to mark the Feast of the Epiphany. The World Council of Churches must act with courage and expel Kirill From 1988, he was Archbishop of Smolensk and Kaliningrad. However, in a recent statement Metropolitan Kyrill stated that there could be no doctrinal compromise with the Roman Catholic Church, and that discussions with them did not have the goal of seeking unification.[3]. It involves great responsibility. During the whole period between the death of Patriarch Alexy II and the election of Metropolitan Kirill to the Patriarchal See, the mass media held a lively discussion about candidates. The very Church bears this Cross together with the Patriarch. He took an active part in normalizing the church situation in Estonia. So he staged his own murder, Few U.S. adults support full abortion bans, even in states that have them, poll finds, The House is in chaos again, but its just another week for Kevin McCarthy, FDA approves nations first over-the-counter birth control pill, Mass grave with at least 87 bodies found in Sudans West Darfur, U.N. says, Kevin Spacey testifies in his own defense at sexual assault trial in London. On February 25, 1991, he was elevated to the rank of metropolitan. Since the end of Soviet atheist rule, religion has made a comeback and more than 70 percent of Russians now identify as Orthodox, though considerably fewer are regular churchgoers. Among those who participated in the service were Primates of the Georgian, Romanian, Greek, Albanian Churches and the Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia and representatives of all the Local Orthodox Churches, hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church, numerous honorary guests, among them Russian President D. A. Medvedev and Chairman of the Russian Federation Government V. V. Putin, as well as Presidents of Byelorussia, Moldavia, Armenia, and heads of diplomatic missions from dozens of states. The case of Father Sergij and Oksana fits into a rather worrying picture for the families of Orthodox priests. Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev entered seminary in Leningrad (now St.Petersburg) at the age of 19 and was ordained a monk at 23. Patriarch Kirill has close ties to government circles, particularly with the conservative branch of the United Russia presidential party. It was agreed to set up an Interreligious Council in Russia with a standing secretariat. After the war, the Russian Orthodox Church will probably lose a large share of its faithful in Ukraine, as they feel betrayed by the Patriarch, he added. The war is shattering that loyalty for some, however. In addition to Vladimir, a boy Nikolai and a girl Elena were born in the Gundyaev family. in Carousel Front Page, Patriarchate of Moscow. Theres no need to interrupt this natural life with bullets or shrapnel.. This gesture also allows him to show that hes not the warmonger he has been described as over the past several months.. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow - Wikipedia As such, he is extremely influential in Russia, but not only. Once upon a time there was also talk in our churches of holy war or just war, the pope said, according to the Vatican press office. Kirill focused virtually all of his talk about the war on Donbas with no mention of Russia's widespread invasion and its bombardment of civilian targets. And many priests, monks and faithful had remained loyal to Kirill even with the formation of a more nationalist, Kyiv-based Orthodox Church of Ukraine, in 2018 and 2019. These principles defined the manifold theological and church diplomacy of the DECR and its chairman in dialogues with the non-Orthodox world both in the form of bilateral relations and in the work of inter-Christian organizations. "But this will be a sea change. Wife and Family Patriarch Kirill's wife, Yelena Shumilova, is a retired judge who now dedicates her time to charity work. In 1977, he became Archbishop. He is not the spiritual guide of the regime. Ioan Sauca at the Patriarchal Residence in St. Daniel's Monastery, in Moscow, Russia, on Oct. 17, 2022 . As Bret points out, Kirill supported the governments family policy as well as Russias military campaign in Syria from 2015. These elements all lead to a strong suspicion of ties between the KGB and a Russian Church that was, during that period, very much under control and surveillance, says Nivire. On April 3, 1969, Metropolitan Nikodim tonsured Vladimir with the name given in honour of Kirill Equal-to-the-Apostle, the Enlightener of the Slavs. The Kremlin has embraced traditional values as an ideology, passing laws against the propaganda of same-sex relationships. to Russian Schismatics, Vatican Promotes a Schismatic-Catholic Consecration. The clergymen working in the section had to make full reports whenever they return from travels abroad and after any contact with foreign delegations, says Nivire. The way this narrative unfolds, there is an organic wholeness between the relation of the Russian and Ukrainian people, and if Ukrainians see it differently, it is only because they have been led astray and corrupted by the West, said Victoria Smolkin, a scholar of communism and the Cold War at Wesleyan University. Patriarch Kirill denounces the lack of education of seminarians in marriage. This article has been translatedfrom the original in French. The priest said signatories of the letter have come under pressure from ecclesiastical authorities and state bodies. It became his first diplomatic task. Kirill has declared them to be in schism. Numerous bishops in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have authorized their priests not to commemorate Patriarch Kirill in their prayers during public worship services a symbolically important statement in Orthodox tradition, which puts a premium on the faithful being in communion with their divinely ordained hierarchy. Patriarch Kirill is the leader of the Moscow-based church that asserts exclusive canonical jurisdiction over all Eastern Orthodox Christians that live in the erstwhile republics of the Soviet Union, apart from Georgia, and more recently Ukraine. From December 26 1984, he was Archbishop of Smolensk and Vyazma. Most of the diocesan parishes run Sunday schools. The schism between the two countries is not just geopolitical; it has played out in the church as well. The United States and other Western nations have also seen ties between political and religious leaders. Talks for a second meeting between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia after their encounter in 2016 have been ongoing since before the war in Ukraine. In 2006, The Moscow News estimated Kirill's net worth at $4 billion. Putins war relies on an ultranationalist ideology pushed by far-right Russian thinkers who see Ukrainian nationhood as a fiction. Orthodoxy. There are those who, although they agree with the content of the letter, did not sign it: some of them are shackled by fear, some are afraid of losing their position as rector, some are worried about their career. The clerics currently distancing themselves from Kirill could be "risking their very future," Burgess said. Ukraine military doctors draw on faith and nature to heal wounds of war, Cardinal Zuppi heads to Ukraine on behalf of pope in pursuit of 'just peace'. Explained: Who is Patriarch Kirill, the religious leader facing threat Mikhail Gundyaev, died in 1974. Pope Francis and Russia's Patriarch Kirill have video call and express During Francisco Francos rule in Spain, the Roman Catholic Church was granted legal status and other financial benefits while colluding with the fascist dictatorship. His Holiness Patriarch Kirill presides over Holy Synod meeting, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill lays awreath atthe Tomb ofthe Unknown Soldier onthe eveof Victory Day, Metropolitan Anthonys address atclosing session ofthe 7thCongress ofLeaders ofWorld andTraditional Religions, Presentation ofthe DECR Chairman atthe interreligious meeting onReligion andEducation. But whether this represents a true spiritual awakening by Putin, or political theater, is hard to say. What they are after is salvation, Smolkin said. In 1989, a Smolensk Theological College was opened and in 1995 it was transformed into the Smolensk Theological Seminary. He leads the largest Christian Orthodox community in the world and the richest Orthodox clergy in the world. Some Russian Orthodox priests suffered persecution under communist rule for refusing commemorate a patriarch they deemed too compromising with the Bolshevik government. He took monastic vows April 3, 1969, and April 7 of the same year was ordained hierodeacon and June 1 - hieromonk. 2023 Copyright France 24 - All rights reserved. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. ", Archbishop Daniel of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA said Patriarch Kirill's latest comments were "incomprehensible.". Category: Patriarch Kirill I. In the Russian Church, seminaries are widespread, but many are still underdeveloped, and family issues are left to the personal experience of priests. Corrections? Kirill has failed disastrously to defend the integrity of the Russian Orthodox Church, and that has all kinds of ramifications for the splintering of the church, Batalden said. Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill discuss Ukraine war for first time Several of these former loyalists are now snubbing Kirill in their public prayers, with some demanding independence from the Moscow church even as their country's political independence is imperiled. Primates bear it because together with them it is borne by archpastors, pastors and the people of God. It is hard to see the Russian Orthodox Church as a fully autonomous actor independent of the Russian state.. And for her, her Vanya or Magomed it doesnt matter he is the best. And God grant that we all preserve unity, regardless of any external pressures and any efforts alien to the church, to destroy the spiritual unity of our peoples.. [1], On December 29, 2008, when talking to journalists, he said he was "categorically opposed to any reforms" of a liturgical or doctrinal nature in the Church. Others who signed the letter, in Russia and abroad, were reluctant to give further statements when contacted by Al Jazeera. His Holiness was aware that the Russian Orthodox Church is the only one that preserves the traditions, memory and values of Holy Rus. Vladimir Mikhailovich, Gundyaev, or his Holiness Patriarch Kirill was born on November 20, 1946. Without in any way rejecting prayer as such, it should be noted that we will definitely answer for such silence later, the priest said. Since Russias invasion of Ukraine, Patriarch Kirill has fervently supported the Russian presidents choices. On February 1, 2009, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill was enthroned. Patriarch Kirill is someone who is very intelligent, brilliant, capable. Let's enjoy the church's feast. He lives in a parallel universe, said UC Riverside professor Georg Michels, who specializes in Russian and Ukrainian history. In a special tribute to religions in the post-Soviet era . "Even if he (Kirill) understands what is going on in Ukraine with the war, even if he wants to speak up and name things by their proper name, he can't," said Hovorun, author of several books about Orthodoxy in Ukraine and beyond. In 1971 Kirill was appointed representative of the Russian Orthodox Church at the World Council of Churches in Geneva. On March 14, 1976, he was consecrated Bishop of Vyborg. Metropolitan Kirill put in much effort to the development of bilateral contacts of the Russian Orthodox Church with each of the Local Orthodox Churches.
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