THE FIRST MEETING IN 2015 OF THE SUPREME CHURCH COUNCIL OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH OPENS UNDER CHAIRMANSHIP OF HIS HOLINESS PATRIARCH KIRILL
On February 17, the first in 2015 meeting of the Supreme Church Council of the Russian Orthodox Church began its work at the Hall of the Supreme Church Council at the Church of Christ the Saviour in Moscow under the chairmanship of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
His Holiness opened the meeting and delivered an introductory address, in which he expressed his support to the reconciliation in Ukraine.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church informed the participants that the agenda of the meeting includes the adoption of documents on the implementation of the reform of theological education and consideration of the environmental activity of the Russian Orthodox Church. Also discussed will be Christmas Readings of 2016.
The Supreme Church Council chaired by His Holiness the Patriarch consists of:
Metropolitan Varsonofy of St. Petersburg and Ladoga, chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchate
Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations
Metropolitan Clement of Kaluga and Borovsk, chairman of the ROC Publishing Council
Archbishop Ioann of Belgorod and Stary Oskol, chairman of the Synodal Department for Mission
Metropolitan Merkury of Rostov and Novocherkassk, chairman of the Synodal Department for Education and Catechization
Metropolitan Kirill of Stavropol and Nevinnomysk, chairman of the Synodal Department for Relations with the Cossacks
Archbishop Yevgeny of Vereya, chairman of the Holy Synod’s Education Committee
Archbishop Feognost of Sergiev Posad, chairman of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism
Archbishop Mark of Yegorievsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Finance and Economic Administration and head of the Administration of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Institutions Abroad
Bishop Sergy of Solnechnogorsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Administrative Secretariat
Bishop Irinarkh of Krasnogorsk, head of the Synodal Department for Prison Ministry
Bishop Ignaty of Vyborg and Priozersk, chairman of the Synodal Department for Youth Affairs
Bishop Panteleimon of Orekhovo-Zuevo, chairman of the Synodal Department for Charity and Social Service
Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov), executive secretary of the Patriarchal Council for Culture
Archpriest Sergy Privalov, acting chairman of the Synodal Department for Cooperation with the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies
Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov, chairman of the Patriarchal Commission for Family, Protection of Motherhood and Childhood
Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, head of the Synodal Department for Church-Society Relations
Mr. Vladimir Legoida, chairman of the Synodal Information Department.
Invited to attend the meeting were Metropolitan Arseny of Istra, the first Patriarchal vicar for Moscow; archimandrite Philaret (Bulekov), vice-chairman of the Department for External Church Relations; archpriest Maxim Kozlov, first deputy chairman of the Education Committee; archpriest Vladimir Vorobyev, rector of the St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Humanitarian University; and archimandrite Savva (Tutunov), deputy chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchate.
