Estonian Orthodox Local Synod Meets

The Local Synod of the self-governing Church of Estonia under the Moscow Patriarchate has met under Metropolitan Cornelius (Jakobs) of Tallinn to discuss issues in the life of the Estonian Orthodox Church, among them the amendment of the Church's charter in the aftermath of the creation of its second diocese, the the Eparchy of Narva, and the ramifications of a newly enacted Estonian law on cemeteries. More (in Russian) here.

Estonian Apostolic Church Adopts Revised Julian Calendar

The Estonian Apostolic Church of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a breakaway from the Estonian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate, has switched from the Julian calendar to the 'revised Julian' calendar. The change will take place in 2012, but will not include parishes near the Russian border that desire to remain on the church calendar. The mainstream Orthodox Church in Estonia remains on the Julian calendar. More (in French) here.

Metropolitan Hilarion Visits Estonia

Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Volokolamsk has begun a visit to Estonia. As part of his visit he concelebrated the Paschal Divine Liturgy in honor of the Life-giving Spring in Tallinn's Cathedral of St. Alexander of the Neva with Metropolitan Korniliy (Yakobs), who leads the Russian Orthodox Church in Estonia. More (in Russian) here and here.

Abbess of Estonian Monastery Reposes

The Abbess of the Pühtitsa Monastery of the Dormition, Schmemanun Barbara (Trofimov), fell asleep yesterday at the age of 80. More here. Вечная память! May her memory be eternal!

Russian Orthodox Bishops' Council Meets in Moscow

The Moscow Patriarchate has submitted a number of reports as part of the ongoing Bishops' Council of the Church of Rus'. Among other things Patriarch Kirill (Gundyayev) of Moscow spoke very positively about the Russian Orthodox Church's dialogues with the Coptic and Armenian Orthodox Churches. More on that here. He also described the Church's increasingly warm relations with the Greek-controlled Churches of Constantinople and Alexandria, calling for cooperation with them and not competition, as well as the Church's especially strong ties with the Czechoslovak and American Orthodox Churches. More on his report on inter-Orthodox relations can be found here.

In describing the current state of the Russian Orthodox Church on its canonical territories in the former USSR Patriarch Kirill noted positively the recent statements of Patriarch Bartholomew (Arhontonis) of Constantinople on the Ukraine and the freedom of the Church outside Russia in Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Latvia, but spoke with concern about the limitations on its work in Estonia, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. In particular in Estonia the state only returns church properties on lease and with the approval of the schismatic Estonian Apostolic Church of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. More on that here and here.

The Bishops' Council was organized to coincide with the 2nd anniversary of Patriarch Kirill's enthronement in Moscow and is being attended by 217 hierarchs of the Church of Rus'. More here.

Controversy Over New Church in Tallinn

The controversy in Estonia over the construction of a new Orthodox church in a largely Russian-speaking district of the capital, Tallinn, is ongoing as the Estonian Security Police have criticized the city's mayor for allowing donations to the church from a Russia-based foundation, the Foundation of St. Andrew the First-Called. The Foundation has responded by questioning the police's accusations that the new church represents an extension of Russian political influence, especially as the Estonian government recently contributed to the renovation of an Estonian Lutheran church in St. Petersburg and this action was not seen in either Russia or Estonia as an aggressive extension of influence on Estonia's part. More here.