The patriarch of Moscow and all Russia Kirill on Friday arrived to Daphne's Greek port and began the pilgrim visit to the monastic republic, having gone to the capital of Athos Carew's city.
In port it were met by the secular governor of the Sacred mountain Aristos Kazmiroglu, representatives Sacred film that Athos - monks of monasteries Ksiropotam and Simonopetra, and also the chairman of the working group at the president of Russia on the organization of celebration of the 1000 anniversary of the Russian presence on the Sacred mountain Dmitry Beglov, transfers RIA Novosti news agency .
The patriarch went to the capital of Athos Carew's city where took part in a solemn public prayer in the main temple of the Pro-Tat - governing body of the Sacred mountain.
"All last centuries the Sacred mountain spiritually supported the Russian monkhood. For all people of historical Russia this spiritual bond has paramount value. I ask all svyatogorets to pray for our church", - the patriarch of Moscow and all Russia told, addressing to clergy.
"Representing a modern Russian monkhood, these days here with me there arrived abbots and deputies of the major monasteries of the Russian church to thank God for marvelous trade about the Russian monkhood, to honor memory of svyatogorets, within ten centuries keeping multinational way of the Sacred mountain. The modern world, torn apart protivorechiyamiya the conflicts, is in great need in an example of a consent and the pacification found through renunciation of self-love and indulgence to a sin. The Svyatogorsky monastic tradition is this example", - the patriarch continued.
"Consign to the past times when for political or other reasons access of representatives of the different orthodox people on the Sacred mountain was complicated. And today, as well as in the last centuries, many children of the Russian church direct here, and some remain on it forever", - the head of the Russian church concluded.
Let's remind, arrival to Athos the president of Russia Vladimir Putin is expected also.
Putin together with the president of Greece Prokopis Pavlopoulos will meet with Sacred Film volume – cathedral governing body of Mount Athos into which representatives of all 20 Athos monasteries enter, will visit the temple of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, and also will be present together with the patriarch of Moscow and all Russia Kirill at a ceremony to anniversary of the Russian monastic presence on Athos. The head of Russian Orthodox Church patriarch Kirill will be on Athos from May 27 to May 29. The short public prayer and greeting will take place from monks of a monastery.
The abbot of a monastery skhiarkhimandrit Jeremiah (Alyokhin) to whom in October of last year 100 years were executed will accept the president of Russia.
At the beginning of April the official representative of the Greek government Olga Gerovasili invited Putin to visit the republic.