Russian President Praises Old Believer Hierarch for Service to Church, Society

Russian President Vladimir V. Putin has praised the first hierarch of the main Old Believer ('Belokrinitsy') accord in Eastern Europe, Metropolitan Cornelius () of Moscow, on the occasion of the latter's birthday for "[his] fruitful work as primate of the Russian Orthodox [Old Ritualist] Church," noting his service to his church as particularly valuable in its "contribution to the maintenance of time-honored spiritual traditions, the preservation of the rich cultural and historical legacy of our people, [and] the strengthening of peace and harmony and the moral climate in [Russian] society." More here.

Alexandrian Orthodox Pope Visiting Russia

Pope Theodore II (Horeftakis) of Alexandria has begun a visit to Russia at the invitation of the Russian Orthodox Church. After meeting with Patriarch Cyril (Gundyayev) of Moscow prior to the latter's departure for Ukraine the pope will travel to southern Russia to visit the communities of the Russian Orthodox Church in that region. More here.

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Visits Katyn Memorial

Patriarch Cyril (Gundyayev) of Moscow has visited the Katyn Memorial in Russia's Smolensk region to pay his respects to the memory of the many thousands of Russians and Poles executed there by the Soviet government. As part of his visit to the memorial the patriarch celebrated the Sunday Liturgy in the memorial Church of the Resurrection. More here and here.

Cyprus Appeals for Russian Financial Assistance

The Cypriot government has officially requested €5 billion in financial assistance from Russia to offset losses caused by the economic crisis in nearby Greece. Cyprus chose to appeal to Russia rather than the European Union because of the lower interest rates offered by the Russian government. More here.

Prayers Requested for Flood Victims in Krasnodar Territory

During the festal services celebrated by Metropolitan Isidore (Kirichenko) of Yekaterinodar and Bishop Herman (Kamalov) of Yeysk this morning in honor of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist at the Cathedral of St. Catherine in Yekaterinodar, Russia, special petitions were included for the victims victims of the recent flooding in southern Russia's Krasnodar Territory, which so far have claimed ninety-nine lives. Per Metropolitan Isidore's request please keep the Krasnodar Territory and its residents in your prayers as they continue to deal with the damage caused by the flooding. More here and in Russian here.

Romanov Memorial Cross Vandalized

The memorial cross at the site of the discovery of the remains of the last Russian imperial family near Yekaterinburg has been vandalized. It is unknown whether the vandalism was a random act or an indirect attack on the Russian Orthodox Church. More here.

Head of Romanov Dynasty Repents for Tsars' Sins

In an address to the Russian nation on the 400th anniversary of the end of the Time of Troubles the head of the House of Romanov, Grand Duchess Mariya Vladimirovna, has recognized the failings of her dynasty during its rule of Russia, saying that "we repent before God for [the dynasty's] mistakes and sins, and we ask forgiveness of the Russian people—both for myself and on behalf of my ancestors."

The grand duchess, who described the period since the February and October Revolutions as a second Time of Troubles for Russia, went on to call on the Russian people to contribute to funding worthy celebrations of the anniversary by giving to causes that would assist those in need, to "erect monuments...not only on the streets and squares of our cities, but first and foremost in the hearts of the people."

Grand Duchess Mariya Vladimirovna's full address with its appeal can be found here.

French Court in Nice Orders Transfer of Cathedral Keys

A French court in Nice has ordered the city's parish of the Russian Orthodox Exarchate of Western Europe to hand over the keys of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas to the parish established under the Moscow Patriarchate's Diocese of Korsun following the cathedral's transfer to the ownership of the Russian government. The parish has been given 7 days to turn over the keys, with fines of €6,000 to be levied for each additional day taken. More here.

Investigation Concludes Romanovs' Remains Authentic

A Russian investigative committee has determined that the bodies identified as belonging to Tsar St. Nicholas II and his family are in fact their remains. The identity of the bodies, most of which are buried in St. Petersburg's Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul on Hare Island, is contentious in Russia due to the Russian Orthodox Church's refusal to recognize their identities despite the findings of several investigations. The House of Romanov will not accept or reject the findings until the Moscow Patriarchate recognizes them as being the relics of the last imperial family. More here.

70 Pre-Revolutionary Icons Returned to Russia

A Russian businessman, Sergey A. Shmakov, has donated 70 icons worth over $1 million to the Russian Orthodox Church. The icons had all been removed from the former Russian Empire after the Bolshevik Revolution and were purchased at various art auctions and stores abroad for return to Russia. More here.

300,000 Venerate Sash in St. Petersburg

Since the arrival of the Sash of the Mother of God in St. Petersburg earlier this month over 300,000 people have venerated it despite the waiting line, which is generally 10 to 15 hours long. The Sash is due to remain in St. Petersburg until 19 November, after which it will be transferred to Moscow before its return to Mount Athos on 23 November. More here.

New Russian Law Limits Abortions

The Russian Parliament has passed legislation restriction abortions in Russia. The high rate of abortions in the country has become increasingly alarming as the overall population has been shrinking annual for a number of years now. The new law would limit abortions to the first twelve weeks of pregnancy except in the case of financially struggling women. More here.

Russian Orthodox Exarchate Maintains Parish Occupation of Cathedral in Nice

The Russian Orthodox Exarchate of Western Europe is appealing the efforts of the Russian Orthodox Eparchy of Korsun to expel its parish in Nice on the grounds that the change in ownership of St. Nicholas' Cathedral in Nice should not mandate a change in the jurisdictional affiliation of the parish. More here.

Sash of the Mother of God Visiting Russia

The Sash of the Mother of God has left Mount Athos to make its first visit to Russia. The sash normally leaves the Holy Mountain once a year to visit different cities in Greece, but this year the abbot of the Vatopedi Monastery where it is kept blessed the request of the Russian Orthodox Church to have the relic visit Russia for the next month. More here.

Russian Orthodox Holy Synod Creates 10 Regional Metropolias, 13 New Dioceses

This is a little dated, but as I couldn't find any specifics on the recent fall session of the Holy Synod I thought I would post some here.

At the fall session of the Russian Orthodox Holy Synod earlier this month the Holy Synod decided to create a number of new eparchies for the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia and Kazakhstan. In European Russia the Holy Synod established the Eparchies of Balashov, Buzuluk, Kasimov, Orsk, Pokrovsk-Engels, and Skopin; in Siberia the Eparchies of the Amur (with its seat at Komsomolsk-na-Amure in Khabarovsk Territory), Bratsk, Kyzyl (for the Orthodox Church in Tyva), and Sayansk; and in Kazakhstan the Eparchies of Kokshetau, Petropavlovsk, and Ust-Kamenogorsk. In addition to the thirteen new eparchies it established the Holy Synod also approved the creation of ten regional metropolitanates for the Orthodox Church in Mordovia, the Irkutsk, Orenburg, Rostov-na-Donu, Ryazan, Saratov, and Sverdlovsk Regions, and the Khabarovsk, Krasnoyarsk, and Primorye Territories.

Following its decisions on the diocesan structures of the Church the Holy Synod transferred Archbishops Panteleimon of Orlov to the Eparchy of Krasnoyarsk, Anthony of Krasnoyarsk to the Eparchy of Orlov, and Gabriel of Blagoveshchensk to the Eparchy of Ust-Kamenogorsk and Bishop Guriy of Magadan to the Eparchy of Petropavlovsk. It also elected Archimandrite Lukian (Kutsenko) as Bishop of Lodeynoye Pole and auxiliary of the Eparchy of St. Petersburg, Archimandrite Ioann (Pavlikhin) as Bishop of Magadan, Igumen Veniamin (Kirillov) as Bishop of Ardatov, Igumen Feofan (Kim) as Bishop of Kyzyl and Tyva, Igumen Ireney (Tafun) as Bishop of Orsk, Igumen Stefan (Gordeyev) as Bishop of Alatyr and auxiliary of the Eparchy of Cheboksary, Igumen Feodosiy (Gazh) as Bishop of Bishkek and Kyrgyzstan, Igumen Dionisiy (Poruba) as Bishop of Kasimov, Igumen Taras (Vladimirov) as Bishop of Balashov, Igumen Pakhomiy (Bruskov) as Bishop of Pokrovsk, Igumen Artisarkh (Yatsurin) as Bishop of the Amur, Igumen Yefraim (Prosyanka) as Bishop of Nikolayev and auxiliary of the Eparchy of Khabarovsk, Igumen Maksimilian (Klyuyev) as Bishop of Bratsk, Hieromonk Nikolai (Pogrebnyak) as Bishop of Balashikha and auxiliary of the Eparchy of Moscow, Hieromonk Guriy (Fedorov) as Bishop of Arsenev, and Hieromonk Vladimir (Samokhin) as Bishop of Skopin.

Lastly, in addition to dealing with other matters the Holy Synod also resolved to petition the next session of the Hierarchical Council of the Russian Orthodox Church (consisting of all the metropolitans, archbishops, and bishops of the Church) to designate the Metropolitans of Astana and Tashkent as permanent members of the Holy Synod due to their leadership of the Orthodox Churches in Kazakhstan and Central Asia respectively.

A full account of the Holy Synod's recent session can be found here.

Paris Exarchate Rejects Attempts to Change Nice Parish Affiliation

The Russian Orthodox Exarchate of Western Europe has released a French-language response to the efforts of the Russian government to have of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas in Nice, France, transferred to the care of the patriarchal Russian Orthodox diocese in France, the Eparchy of Korsun. The response notes in part the long association of the parish in Nice with the Exarchate and rejects the right of the Russian government, which now owns the cathedral, to expel the Exarchate's parish association. The full release (in French) can be found here.

Interestingly enough, when the Exarchate was first organized by Patriarch Photius II of Constantinople it was established as a "provisional exarchate" to provide a "provisional canonical settlement" for the Russian Orthodox parishes in Western Europe led by Metropolitan Eulogius of Paris, with a reference at the close of its organizing tomos to Patriarch Photius' hope for an end to the disunity of the Russian Orthodox Church, presumably so that the provisional arrangements that had been made would be just that.

Memorial Church, Mosque to be Built for Sunken Volga Ship

It has been announced that a memorial chapel and mosque will be built in the Tatarstani village of Syukeyevo in honor of the victims of the sinking of the Bulgaria, which sank near Syukeyevo on the Volga. The foundation stone for the chapel was laid at a ceremony yesterday by Archbishop Anastasiy of Kazan' in the presence of Tatarstani officials and local Tatar Muslim clergymen. More (in Russian) here.

Submarine Victims Commemorated in Russia

Memorials for the victims of the sinking of the Kursk submarine were held across Russia today to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the disaster. The memorial in the city of Kursk itself, where a monument has been erected to the dead, was led by Archbishop Herman (Moralin) of Kursk. More (in Russian) here.

South Ossetia, Abkhazia Free to Join Russian Federation

In a televised interview with Russia Today on the 2008 Ossetian War Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev has stated that there are no standing preconditions preventing South Ossetia or Abkhazia from joining the Russian Federation. Although the Russian government recognizes the independence of both Abkhazia and South Ossetia it has also allowed Abkhazian and South Ossetian citizens to become Russian citizens due to the limited international recognize of the South Ossetian government. More here.

Russian Authorities Resettle Bolivian Old Believers in Primorye

A resettlement program launched by the Russian government to resettle Old Believers living abroad in Siberia has moved a group of Old Believers living in Bolivia to Primorye in the Russian Far East. Their are also discussions underway between the Russian government's immigration authorities and Old Believers in Bolivia and in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay concerning their resettlement in Siberia as well. More here.