In what year is Patriarch Kirill. Patriarch Kirill - biography, photo, religious activities, personal life

Patriarch Kirill is a well-known personality modern Russia, whose abundant activity commands respect throughout the world. In addition to his main responsibilities, the head of the Orthodox Church contributes to the development of Russia, delves deeply into the country’s foreign policy activities and leads an active charity program.

Patriarch Kirill (in the world Gundyaev Vladimir Mikhailovich) was born in the cultural capital of Russia on November 20, 1946 in the family of a priest. The father of the future Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' was ordained a priest of the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God at the time of his son’s birth, and his mother Raisa Kuchina worked as a German language teacher at a local school. Vladimir Mikhailovich was the middle child in the family; he has an older brother, Nikolai, and a younger sister, Elena, whose activities are also closely related to religion.

Patriarch Kirill's childhood passed like that of ordinary children - he completed eight classes of secondary school, after which he entered the Leningrad Theological Seminary, and upon graduation, the Theological Academy. In 1969, he was tonsured a monk, where he was given the name Kirill.

In 1970, the future head of the Orthodox Church graduated with honors from the Theological Academy and received a candidate's degree in theology. From that moment, the church activity of the priest began, who reached the religious pinnacle and became the first Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' in history to be born in the Soviet Union.

Bishopric

The religious activity of Patriarch Kirill developed rapidly from its very beginnings. During the first year after graduating from the theological academy and monastic tonsure the priest was elevated to the highest rank several times, and was also appointed representative of the Moscow Patriarchate at the Geneva World Council of Churches. Three years later, he was appointed to the post of rector of the Theological Seminary and Academy of Leningrad and headed the diocesan council of the Leningrad Metropolis.

In March 1976, Father Kirill received ordination to the rank of bishop and became a member of the commission on inter-church relations and Christian unity in the Synod. In 1977, the Bishop of Vyborg was elevated to the rank of archbishop, and a year later he already ruled the patriarchal parishes in Finland. In 1978, Archbishop Kirill became deputy head of the Department for External Church Relations and began teaching at the Moscow Theological Academy.

In 1984, the future head of the Orthodox Church was appointed Archbishop of Vyazemsk and Smolensk, and in 1986 he became the manager of Orthodox parishes in the Kaliningrad region. Having demonstrated remarkable hard work and a desire to serve God, Patriarch Kirill in 1989 was appointed a permanent member of the Synod, where he actively participated in the development of laws on religion and religious freedoms. In February 1991, Archbishop Kirill was elevated to the rank of metropolitan.

During the period of the collapse of the USSR and political upheavals in Russia, he took a clear peacekeeping position, which earned him trust and respect among the population. At the same time, the Metropolitan made a significant contribution to the preservation and strengthening of peace, for which he was awarded the honorary Loviya Prize three times.

In the mid-90s, the Moscow Patriarchate significantly showed its political activity, and the future head of the Orthodox Church became a kind of “prime minister of the Russian church.” Thanks to him, the Russian Orthodox Church was reunited with parishes abroad, and relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Vatican were stabilized.

Patriarchate

Metropolitan Kirill came to the patriarchal throne thanks to his active social and political activities. Since 1995, he has carried out fruitful work with the government of the Russian Federation and widely covered spiritual and educational issues on television in the “Word of the Shepherd” program. Then he managed to create the concept of the Russian Orthodox Church in the field of church-state relations, and already in 2000 the Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church were adopted.

In 2008, after the death of Alexy II, Metropolitan Kirill became the locum tenens of the patriarchal throne, who in 2009 was elected Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' in a local vote, gaining 507 votes and 677 possible. Metropolitan Kirill's enthronement took place on February 1, 2009. The ceremony was attended by top officials of the country's political elite, namely the then-current President of Russia and his wife, the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, the wife of the ex-president of the country and the head of Moldova, Vladimir Voronin. The Russian leadership then expressed hope for further cooperation between the Russian Orthodox Church and the state.

Patriarch Kirill still bears the patriarchal cross. He regularly makes visits abroad, where he is considered a person of fundamental knowledge, broad erudition and high intelligence. His meetings with Western religious figures significantly strengthened the position of the Russian Orthodox Church and expanded the boundaries of cooperation between Russia and foreign countries.

Scandals

Despite opinion polls confirming that Patriarch Kirill is supported by about 99% of the population, he has repeatedly become involved in high-profile scandals that are widely discussed in society. He was criticized for his participation in organizing the import of tobacco and alcohol products into Russia and the illegal use of tax benefits. Then the majority of religious leaders called this action a provocation of the head of the Orthodox Church and an intention to tarnish the name of a religious person.

After this, they tried to convict the clergyman of material weaknesses, to which, according to church laws, he has no right. Foreign media “calculated” that Patriarch Kirill’s fortune reached $4 billion. At the same time, the possessions of the head of the Patriarchate “included” an expensive penthouse, a gold Breguet watch worth 30 thousand euros, yachts, planes and expensive cars.

Patriarch Kirill made categorical denials of all the scandals associated with his person and stated that the funds of the Moscow Patriarchate are used for the intended purpose and go to the development of churches and charity. The head of the Orthodox Church considers all such statements to be attempts to humiliate and undermine his authority in the Russian Orthodox Church, and calls on people who “criticize the church” to spiritual healing.

Personal life

The personal life of Patriarch Kirill consists of serving people and God. According to church laws, he is not allowed to have a secular family. The children of Patriarch Kirill are his large flock. The head of the Orthodox Church pays special attention to charity and care for children who have lost parental care.

In addition, he deeply delves into the political processes of Russia, is active in foreign policy and boldly expresses his opinion, even if it runs counter to the ideology of the political elite of the Russian Federation.

Scientific and educational activities occupy a special place in the life of Patriarch Kirill. He is the author of a number of books and articles on the history of the Christian church and Orthodox unity. In addition, he is an honorary member of Russian and foreign theological academies and is a member of the Commission for State Prizes in the field of literature.

Photo from Yandex.Images search

When people buy what they don’t need, acquire for the sake of acquiring, when they don’t know what to think of to console their flesh, they demand more and more for their own pleasure - that’s when sin occurs.

From the memoirs of Patriarch Kirill:

My childhood was spent in poverty. Five people lived in one room in a communal apartment, they lived very poorly, so at the age of 15 I was forced to leave home to earn a living. Worked, studied.

All my life I remember this experience of poverty, and, probably, I would not have understood much in life if I had not gone through this experience

Those in difficult life situation man there are two ways. One way is to come to terms with what is, but this way will not lead to a good result. There is another way - to tell yourself: this should not be in my life, I must get out of this state. And this is exactly the place where you can make such a decision. e.

Father Mikhail Gundyaev, son Volodya - the future His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, abbess of the Pukhtitsa Monastery Angelina (Afanasyeva), daughter Lena, mother Raisa. 1950s (Photo from the site http://zvon80.ucoz.ru/news/patriarkh_kiril_i_ego_rodstvennikov_foto/2016-11-22-2379)

Vladimir Gundyaev did not serve in the army. For what reason is unknown. In the spring of 1969 he was tonsured a monk and received a new name - Kirill. He first graduated from the Leningrad Theological Seminary, then entered the Theological Academy, where he received a candidate of theology degree.

From that time on, he did not leave his “career” as a clergyman. Gradually climbed the steps of power. At the age of 28 he became a teacher.

Kirill made his first attempts to do business in the late 80s. The business did not bring any serious dividends, but the clergyman did not give up trying.

Years later, Patriarch Kirill will justify his participation in this matter this way:

The people who were doing this didn’t know what to do: burn these cigarettes or send them back? We turned to the government, and it made a decision: to recognize this as a humanitarian cargo and provide the opportunity to implement it.

Patriarch Kirill (photo from Yandex.Images search)

Another business of Gundyaev that brings in a solid income is oil export. The scheme is the same here - the Government exempted him from duties, allowing him to occupy a privileged position among competitors. Money flowed like a river.

In the early 2000s, Kirill entered the market as the owner of a company for catching Kamchatka seafood. A little later he went into automobile business in Kaliningrad.

On January 27, 2009, Vladimir Gundyaev became Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. The exact amount of personal wealth is not known (it ranges from $1.5-4 billion, not counting real estate and other luxury attributes). Nothing is known about any cases of charity on his part.

Patriarch Kirill to parishioners:

It is very important to learn Christian asceticism... Asceticism is the ability to regulate one's consumption... This is a person's victory over lust, over passions, over instinct. And it is important that both rich and poor possess this quality

The Pope has already renounced the cross,
and Patriarch Kirill improved it!

Earlier we already noticed the strange gesture of Pope Francis... who replaced his Cross with Jesus... with a certain shepherd of the Flock (cattle?)

http://cont.ws/post/212570

However, an equally “strange” fact from the biography of Patriarch Kirill became known - it turns out that he Mom had a maiden name Vekselman! And this means that our patriarch is from the Russian Orthodox Church... - halakhic Jew (!) Well, this then explains a lot (his servile “meeting” with Pope Francis, in particular!)... as well as the “improved” cross on the Head of the Patriarch, as well as the lack of general education and a MORE THAN STRANGE attraction to ecumenism.

Quote: “... Let us at least remember the speech on September 21, 2010 by Metropolitan Kirill - Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyaev, who publicly called the Slavs beasts. And this becomes understandable and explainable if you know the maiden name of Kirill’s mother - Vekselman. Everything comes primarily from the human gene pool. If a person is half-animal by nature, he will behave accordingly...”

http://cont.ws/post/215239

Vladimir Gundyaev - Bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church (Stages of the Great Path!)

1) BEFORE you start your church activities graduated from eight grades of high school. He also tried himself in geology - from 1962 he worked as a cartographic technician in the Leningrad Geological Expedition. After three years of fruitful work, he entered the theological seminary, and upon graduation, the theological academy of the city of Leningrad.

In 1969, Vladimir was tonsured a monk and named Kirill. A year later, he graduated from the academy with honors, having a candidate's degree in theology. In 1971, Hieromonk Kirill was elevated to the rank of archimandrite. Great achievement his path was the appointment of Kirill as the representative of the Moscow Patriarch in Geneva, where the World Council of Churches is taking place. (more than a strange and dizzying career in 2 years from a simple monk to an archimandrite!!!)

One of the first scandals that arose with the mention of the name of Metropolitan Kirill was the case of the use of tax breaks on the import of alcohol and tobacco products in the early 90s. Novaya Gazeta published an article that spoke of the Metropolitan’s personal interest in transactions for the import of excisable goods. However, the vast majority of religious leaders said that this was nothing more than a provocation; a planned campaign that aims to tarnish the name of an honest man.

Metropolitan Kirill was also accused of having connections with the KGB. In 2003, the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin received a letter that directly stated that Kirill was a KGB agent. The author of the letter was a priest of the Moscow Helsinki Group, but his provocation did not bring any results.

In 2012, a new scandal arose with the name of Patriarch Kirill related to the apartment he owned. His second cousin, registered with the Patriarch, sued her neighbor because, according to her, construction dust from his apartment contained harmful substances and was hazardous to health. The total amount of damage was about 20 million rubles. The Patriarch himself, in response to thorny questions about the vow of non-covetousness replied that he personally had nothing to do with his sister’s lawsuit. He considers all the noise raised on this issue aimed at undermining his authority and humiliating the Russian Orthodox Church as a whole.

The rich biography of Patriarch Kirill Gundyaev interests many Orthodox people. The head of the Russian church has written a large number of books and articles and is an active reader of Internet pages and publications. He appeared on television in a series of programs called “The Word of the Shepherd.” He is the first patriarch born in the USSR. Before taking the rank he was Metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad.

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus'

Biography of Patriarch Kirill

Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyaev was born on November 20, 1946 in the city of Leningrad. There is an opinion that the patriarch’s ancestors come from a village called Obrochnoe, which today is part of Mordovia.

• His father Mikhail was the chief mechanic of the plant, and later became a priest and archpriest. He studied theology courses, served in the Soviet Army for two years, and then graduated from technical school and entered a local institute. He was convicted of political disloyalty and served a three-year sentence in Kolyma. In 1947, Father Kirill was ordained a deacon, and soon to the rank of priest.
• The grandfather of the future patriarch lived in prison for 30 years and is considered one of the first to serve time in the Solovetsky special purpose camp. He worked as a railway driver and was convicted of opposing Orthodox renewal (attempts to modernize the church by the Communists).
• The mother of the future patriarch was born in 1909 and worked as a school teacher of German.

Vladimir graduated from 8 classes of secondary school and entered a geological organization, where he worked as a cartographic technician. For religious reasons, he refused to become a pioneer. In 1965, Vladimir entered the theological seminary, and later the academy, from which he graduated with excellent grades. After defending his dissertation, he remained a teacher of theology and a special assistant to the inspector.

On a note! During his student years, Vladimir Gundyaev was an energetic activist. He participated in the congress on the theme of universal Christianity and was the permanent chairman of the youth commission.

Priesthood period

In 1969, Vladimir Gundyaev was tonsured a monk and given his second name - Kirill. Within two months he received the ranks of hierodeacon and hieromonk. Two years later, Kirill was ordained to the rank of church archimandrite. At a religious council held in Geneva, he was appointed representative of the patriarchy in the capital.

Patriarch Kirill in his youth

• When Cyril turned 28 years old, the saint received the position of rector at the theological seminary. The future patriarch also created a special class for believing girls who would become mothers in the future.
• In 1976, the archimandrite was consecrated to the high rank of Bishop of Vyborg. The ordination took place within the walls of the Trinity Cathedral. The metropolitans of Leningrad, Kyiv, Tula and many other high-ranking priests came to praise the new bishop.
• For two years, Kirill served as deputy to Metropolitan Nikodim. He soon became an archbishop, and six months later he was appointed manager of the Finnish patriarchal parish.
• Since 1983, Kirill has been working as a teacher at a theological seminary located in Moscow. At the end of December 1984, the holy father was appointed archbishop of Smolensk and Vyazma.
• The future patriarch refused to vote against the resolution, which criticized military actions in Afghanistan.
• In 1989, Kirill was accepted as a permanent member of the Holy Synod.
• In 1991, the saint became metropolitan thanks to a special decree of Alexy II.
• In the period from 93 to 95. he receives many leadership positions in religious conferences. In 1994, Kirill began conducting an educational religious program called “The Word of the Shepherd.”
• Until 2000, Kirill worked as chairman of a group that found solutions to society's problems. The saint is entrusted with leadership in developing special concepts for the Orthodox tradition.

Read also about Saint Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow:

According to church canons, the saint has no right to marry, but he loves children very much. The patriarch devotes a large amount of time to charitable activities and is extremely concerned about orphans. Kirill has an active political position and is not afraid to express his own opinion.

Election of the head of the Church

The secret vote held to select a new patriarch took place in early February 2008, immediately after the death of St. Alexy II. Saint Cyril was chosen as temporary patriarch, and at the end of the ritual of the all-night vigil, he led the funeral service.

• Five days later he became the head of the commission for the special preparation of Councils, which included three dozen monks and two laymen. At the end of the month, Kirill announced a categorical refusal of any innovations in the Church. In a conversation with students of the theological seminary, he noted: “Pre-revolutionary Orthodoxy always lacked a strong religious intelligentsia.”
• At the beginning of 2009, Kirill officially congratulated Barack Obama on receiving the US presidency.

Kirill (Patriarch of Moscow)

• A week later, Kirill, who received 75% of the votes, was elected Patriarch of Rus'. President D. Medvedev congratulated him on his elevation to the church throne, who wished for the development of friendly relations between the government and the Church. V. Putin and Pope Benedict XVI, as well as many other secular and religious personalities, showed special attention to this fact.
• The official enthronement to the patriarchal rank took place in early February 2009 at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

Church activities of Kirill in the rank of patriarch

In February 2009, the saint appeared before the president in the Kremlin and spoke about his own vision of the ideal relationship between the government of the Russian Federation and the Orthodox Church.

• In March of this year, he criticized radical Christian preachers who seek to limit the faith of other faiths. However, this speech caused bewilderment among a number of Orthodox people. Soon, Patriarch Kirill urgently called for an increase in moral standards, and not simply an increase in the number of parishioners in churches.
• In April 2009, the saint met with Yu. Timoshenko and insisted that Kyiv is a real Constantinople and spiritual center for Orthodoxy. In July he made his first visit abroad and was favorably received in Turkey. Kirill discussed establishing relations between the churches of the two countries.
• His “pastoral” visit to Ukraine was accompanied by minor street riots in Kyiv, some non-canonical organizations staged protest demonstrations. Speaking in the main temple of Kyiv, Kirill criticized the ideas of the Renaissance and the philosophy of liberalism, which negatively influenced Western Christianity.
• In September 2009, the patriarch visited friendly Belarus and had a conversation with A. Lukashenko. Issues of strengthening relations between fraternal countries were discussed at the meeting. He announced to the people that the Moscow Church was not going to limit Orthodoxy to the borders formed after the collapse of the USSR.

About the church life of a Christian:

Subsequent periods of the patriarchate

In 2010, Kirill, in his own report, spoke about improving relations with Catholicism. The Orthodox Patriarch noted that the positions of the churches converge on many points.

Meeting of Patriarch Kirill with Pope Francis

In the same month, he performed a prayer service within the walls of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra, addressing the new president of Ukraine with religious parting words.

• Patriarch Kirill calmed the discontent of Kaliningrad Catholics, who protested against the transfer of their cathedrals to the ownership of the Russian Orthodox Church.
• In 2012, the saint publicly made a statement that the Church was under powerful pressure from information and anti-religious corporations. The most impudent protest against Orthodoxy was the scandalous Pussy Riot project.
• In 2012, Kirill made a church and, at the same time, political visit to Catholic Poland. The dialogue was the first step leading to the settlement of religious relations between the two countries. The Vatican showed official approval of these actions, which culminated in the signing of the Message to the Slavic peoples on reconciliation.
• In June 2013, the head of the Russian church visited the Holy Trinity Cathedral under construction in the capital of Greece, and in September the patriarch was in Transnistria, where he was accompanied by a large delegation of bishops from other countries.
• In 2016, Kirill met with Francis in Havana, Cuba. As a result of this fateful meeting a joint agreement was signed. In September, the saint supported the legislative initiative of citizens to abolish abortion in the Russian Federation.

Social activity

In 1995, Kirill received membership in the council considering the situation in Chechnya. In May of the same year, he became an employee of the commission that issues prizes in literary fields. Over the years the saint received membership in various organizations cultural and religious order.

• In 2005, Kirill supported Yu. Luzhkov in his reluctance to hold a parade of homosexuals on the streets of Moscow. However, he stated that the Orthodox Church does not intend to persecute sexual minorities.
• In May 2009, as patriarch, he opened a council that examined the causes of moral decline in the Russian Federation and possible ways to overcome it.
• In 2010, Kirill expressed regret about the large number of deaths on the roads and stated that modern people are unable to rationally use the forces of mechanics and not cause great harm yourself and others.
• In 2011, at the Assumption Cathedral, he officially announced the tasks of the Orthodox Church: it must educate a believer who is not afraid to make sacrifices and deeds. The priesthood is obliged to pray, and around them it is necessary to create appropriate public field(education, abundance of work and order in populated areas).

The saint wrote several educational books, the very first of which dates back to 1971. In his writings, he examines the problems of church dogmas, the attitude of modernity to the Church, and also describes his personal activities in the patriarchal rank.

On a note! St. Cyril was accused several times by certain individuals. In the late 90s, he was credited with illegally using tax returns for secret imports of alcohol and tobacco products. Bishop Diomede called the saint one who feeds from the Vatican and profits from Western-sponsored banks. In 2003, St. Cyril was publicly accused of having connections with the KGB. However, complete evidence was never provided.

At a celebration in the Church of Christ the Savior, the Patriarch noted the enormous role of Orthodox printing in the development of true religiosity. He remembered that our ancestors were brought up on the Sacred Texts and the lives of venerable people. The head of the church urged his contemporaries to read religious books in order to distinguish morality from criminal sinfulness.

“Life in Service” Film for the 65th anniversary of Patriarch Kirill

KIRILL (in the world Vladimir Mikhailovich GUNDYAEV) Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' (2009-), former Metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, Head of the World Russian People's Council.

Grandfather - Priest Vasily Stepanovich Gundyaev - a railway mechanic by profession, one of the active fighters against renovationism in the Nizhny Novgorod region under the leadership of Metropolitan Sergius (Stargorodsky, later Patriarch), was arrested in 1922, served time in Solovki; Having returned from prison, he became a priest in the mid-50s.

Father - Gundyaev Mikhail Vasilyevich (January 18, 1907 - October 13, 1974), priest. In 1933 he graduated from the Mechanical College and entered the Leningrad Industrial Institute; was arrested, accused of political disloyalty, and on February 25, 1934, sentenced to 3 years in a labor camp (in Kolyma). On March 9, 1947 he was ordained a deacon, on March 16 of the same year - a priest by Metropolitan Grigory (Chukov) of Leningrad, assigned to the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God on Vasilyevsky Island. In 1951, he was transferred to the Transfiguration Cathedral, where he soon began to serve as assistant rector for liturgical affairs. In 1960, he was transferred to the position of rector of the Alexander Nevsky Church in Krasnoye Selo; subsequently of the Seraphim Church, in 1972 - rector of the St. Nicholas Church on Bolshaya Okhta.

Mother - Raisa Vladimirovna Gundyaeva (November 7, 1909 - November 2, 1984; nee Kuchina), a German language teacher at school, in the last years of her life she was a housewife.

Both parents are buried at the Bolsheokhtinsky cemetery in St. Petersburg.

Brother, Archpriest Nikolai Mikhailovich Gundyaev, since 1977, rector of the Transfiguration Cathedral in St. Petersburg, professor of St. Petersburg Academy of Arts.

The younger sister Elena is the director of an Orthodox gymnasium.

After graduating from the 8th grade of high school, Vladimir Gundyaev joined the Leningrad Complex Geological Expedition of the North-Western Geological Directorate, where he worked from 1962 to 1965 as a cartographic technician, combining work with studying at high school.

After graduating from high school in 1965, he entered the Leningrad Theological Seminary, and then the Leningrad Theological Academy, from which he graduated with honors in 1970.

On April 3, 1969, Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad and Novgorod was tonsured a monk with the name Kirill. On April 7 he was ordained a hierodeacon, and on June 1 of the same year - a hieromonk.

After graduating from the academy, he remained at the LDA as a professorial fellow, teacher of dogmatic theology and assistant inspector of the LDA and S.

Since 1970 - Candidate of Theology at the Leningrad Theological Academy.

In 1970-1971 - teacher of dogmatic theology and assistant inspector of Leningrad theological schools; at the same time - personal secretary of Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) of Leningrad and Novgorod, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations (DECR), and class teacher of the 1st class of the seminary.

In 1971, he represented the theological schools of the Russian Orthodox Church at the General Assembly of the world Orthodox youth organization SINDESMOS (at this assembly the theological schools of the Russian Orthodox Church became members of SINDESMOS) and was elected a member of its executive committee.

In 1972, he accompanied Patriarch Pimen on his trip to the countries of the Middle East, as well as to Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Greece and Romania.

In 1971-1974. - representative of the Moscow Patriarchate at the World Council of Churches in Geneva, rector of the parish of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

From December 26, 1974 to December 26, 1984 - rector of the Leningrad Theological Academy and Seminary. In 1974-1984. - Associate Professor of the Department of Patrolology of the Leningrad Theological Academy.

From November 18, 1976 to October 12, 1978 - Deputy Patriarchal Exarch of Western Europe (according to the report dated November 4, 1976, Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov), ​​Patriarchal Exarch of Western Europe, on the need, in connection with the fifth heart attack, to appoint a deputy to him - with the proposal of the candidacy of Kirill).

Since 1986 - manager of parishes in the Kaliningrad region.

Since 1988 - Archbishop of Smolensk and Kaliningrad.

From November 13, 1989 to 2009 - Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations (since August 2000 - Department for External Church Relations), permanent member of the Holy Synod.

Over the 19 years of leading the Department for External Church Relations, Metropolitan Kirill turned it, according to experts, into one of the most efficient management structures of the Russian Orthodox Church. Without his “ministry,” virtually no important issue is resolved. In recent years, since talk began about the possible resignation of Patriarch Alexy, Bishop Kirill has been called one of the main contenders for the patriarchal throne.

At the beginning of 1993, with the sanction of Patriarch Alexy II, he joined the International Preparatory Committee for the convening of the World Russian Council in Moscow (which was initiated by the “World Russian Congress” of Igor Kolchenko, the RAU-Corporation of Alexei Podberezkin, the “Roman-Gazeta” of Valery Ganichev, as well as magazines "Our Contemporary" and "Moscow"). Having become one of the five co-chairs of the preparatory committee, he held the First World Russian Council on May 26-28, 1993 at the St. Danilov Monastery.

On December 6, 2008, the day after the death of Patriarch Alexy II, at a meeting of the Holy Synod chaired by Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga Vladimir (Kotlyarov), he was elected Patriarchal Locum Tenens by secret ballot.

On the same day, at the end of the all-night vigil in the Moscow Cathedral of Christ the Savior, he led a memorial service for Patriarch Alexy II, co-served by bishops - permanent members of the Holy Synod.

To discuss candidates for the Patriarchal Throne, the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church met in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior on January 25, to which 198 delegates from 202 bishops of the Russian Church arrived (four bishops - Archbishop of Chicago and Detroit Alipius (ROCOR), Bishop Daniel of Iria (ROCOR), Metropolitan Nikodim of Kharkov and Bogodukhov and Bishop of Kirovograd and Novomirgorod Panteleimon were absent from the Council).

During the counting of votes, one ballot was declared invalid. Following the meeting, the Council of Bishops proposed to the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church the candidacies of three bishops who received the largest number of votes: Kirill (Gundyaev), Metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne; Clement (Kapalin), Metropolitan of Kaluga and Borovsk, manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate; Filaret (Vakhromeev), Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus. Metropolitan Kirill received 97 votes, Metropolitan Clement - 32 votes, Metropolitan Philaret - 16 votes.

On January 27, the Local Council met in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior to elect the 16th Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. At 12 o'clock the first plenary meeting of the Council began, at which the election of the Presidium of the Local Council, the announcement of greetings to the Council, and the presentation of the Patriarchal Locum Tenens with a report took place. At the meeting, a welcoming message from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was read out.

At the second plenary meeting, which began at 15:30, the approval of the agenda, program and regulations of the meetings of the Local Council, the election of the working bodies of the Local Council, and the approval of the procedure for electing the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' took place. At the meeting, one of the three candidates, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus, Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk Filaret, withdrew his candidacy for the election of Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', calling for votes for Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad. Metropolitan Kirill in his response said that he bows his head to Metropolitan Philaret, whom he deeply reveres, and recalls with deep satisfaction the two decades during which they worked together as part of the Holy Synod under the leadership of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy. After Metropolitan Philaret withdrew his candidacy, Bishop of Polotsk and Glubokoe Theodosius (Bilchenko) proposed electing the Patriarch by lot. However, his proposal did not find support from other bishops. The Council did not approve other candidates for participation in the voting. As a result, the participants of the Local Council chose a new Primate from two candidates by secret ballot.

At 17.30 the third plenary session began, at which voting took place, after which the counting of votes began. At 10 p.m., members of the counting commission came to the participants of the Council, and the chairman of the commission, Metropolitan Isidor of Krasnodar and Kuban, announced the voting results. According to the protocol, 702 delegates of the Council took part in the secret ballot. The number of ballots after voting was 700, of which 677 were valid ballots, 23 were invalid. Of the 677 votes, 508 cathedral members voted for Metropolitan Kirill, and 169 for Metropolitan Clement.

On January 27, 2009, the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church elected Metropolitan Kirill as the 16th Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. To the question of Metropolitan Vladimir of Kyiv whether Metropolitan Kirill accepted his election as Primate of the Church, Bishop Kirill replied: “I accept the election of me as Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', I thank him and not at all contrary to the verb” and bowed.

On February 1, 2009, the enthronement of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill took place in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior (Moscow).

Since 1990 - Chairman of the Holy Synod Commission for the Revival of Religious and Moral Education and Charity, member of the Synodal Biblical Commission.

In 1991 he was elevated to the rank of metropolitan. Since 1993 - co-chairman, since 1995 - deputy head of the World Russian People's Council.

In February 1995 he led the Second World Russian Council. Shortly before this, President Yeltsin, during an informal conversation with Kirill, promised him to return to the Church the lands confiscated from it after the revolution, and then (under pressure from Anatoly Chubais) took the promise back. At the Council, Kirill made thinly veiled criticism of the authorities for their immoral and anti-national policies. The establishment of the “World Russian Council” was declared as a “permanent supra-party forum” under the auspices of the Church, and four co-chairs of the Council were elected (Metropolitan Kirill, I. Kolchenko, V. Ganichev, Natalya Narochnitskaya). Under the influence of radicals (Mikhail Astafiev, Ksenia Myalo, N. Narochnitskaya, I. Kolchenko), the Council adopted a number of purely political rather radical anti-Western declarations, the adoption of which by the church hierarchy led by Kirill did not interfere.

Between February and December 1995, Kirill moderated the opposition of the “supra-party forum” he headed, and at the Third World Russian Council in early December 1995, he did not allow any harsh political statements to be made. The organization was renamed the World Russian People's Council, the Head of which was unanimously elected Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy II, and Metropolitan Kirill was one of his deputies.

Since 1994 - Honorary President of the World Conference on Religion and Peace and member of the Synodal Theological Commission.

Since 1994, he has been the host of the spiritual and educational program “The Word of the Shepherd” on Channel One. In 1995 - 2000 was the chairman of the Synodal working group to develop the concept of the Russian Orthodox Church on issues of church-state relations and problems of modern society.

Since 1995 - member of the Public Council under the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation on issues of resolving the situation in the Chechen Republic, member of the presidium of the Commission under the President of the Russian Federation for State Prizes of the Russian Federation in the field of literature and art.

Since August 2, 1995 until 2009 - Member of the Council for Interaction with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation (reappointed to the council in 1996, 2001 and 2004).

In 1996 - member of the Joint Commission of the Constantinople and Moscow Patriarchates on the “Estonian issue”.

Since June 6, 1996 - Chairman of the working group of the Holy Synod to develop a draft concept reflecting a church-wide view on issues of church-state relations and problems of modern society as a whole.

In 1996, he joined the board of directors of Peresvet Bank.

Since 1996 - member of the board of the Russian State Maritime Historical and Cultural Center (Maritime Center).

Since 1998 - member of the Russian Organizing Committee for preparations for the meeting of the third millennium and the celebration of the 2000th anniversary of Christianity

Fulfilling the obediences of the Hierarchy, His Eminence Kirill was:

from 1975 to 1982 - Chairman of the Diocesan Council of the Leningrad Metropolis;

from 1975 to 1998 - Member of the Central Committee and the Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches;

(in November 1975, at the ecumenical assembly in Nairobi, he condemned the letter of Father Gleb Yakunin about the persecution of believers in the USSR and denied the facts of violation of the rights of believers).

from 1976 to 1978 - Deputy Patriarchal Exarch of Western Europe;

from 1976 to 1984 - Member of the Holy Synod Commission on Christian Unity;

from 1978 to 1984 - Manager of the Patriarchal parishes in Finland;

from 1978 to 1984 — Deputy Chairman of the branch of the Department for External Church Relations in Leningrad;

from 1980 to 1988 — member of the commission for the preparation and holding of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus';

in 1990 - member of the commission for the preparation of the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church;

in 1990 - member of the commission to promote efforts to overcome the consequences of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant;

from 1989 to 1996 - manager of the Orthodox Hungarian deanery;

from 1990 to 1991 — temporary administrator of the Hague-Netherlands diocese;

from 1990 to 1993 - temporary manager of the Korsun diocese;

from 1990 to 1993 - Chairman of the Holy Synod Commission for the Revival of Religious and Moral Education and Charity;

from 1990 to 2000 - Chairman of the Holy Synod commission on amending the Charter on the governance of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Charter was adopted at the Jubilee Council of Bishops in 2000;

from 1994 to 2002 — Member of the Public Council for the Revival of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow;

from 1994 to 1996 — Member of the Foreign Policy Council of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs;

from 1995 to 2000 - Chairman of the Synodal Working Group for the development of the Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church on issues of church-state relations and problems of modern society as a whole;

from 1995 to 1999 - Member of the Russian Organizing Committee for the preparation and holding of events in connection with the celebration of memorable dates of the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945;

from 1996 to 2000 - Member of the Supervisory Board of the 50th Anniversary of the Victory Foundation.

At the time of his election to the Patriarchal Throne, Metropolitan Kirill appeared:

permanent member of the Holy Synod (since 1989);

Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations (since 1989);

manager of the Patriarchal parishes in Finland (since 1990);

member of the Patriarchal and Synodal Biblical Commission (since 1990);

co-chairman (since 1993) and deputy head (since 1995) of the World Russian People's Council, chairman of the Smolensk (since 1996) and Kaliningrad (since 1997) branches of the VRNS;

member of the Council of the Zemstvo Movement (since 1993);

member of the Russian Palestinian Society;

honorary president of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (since 1994);

member of the Council for Interaction with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation (since 1995);

member of the Commission under the President of the Russian Federation for State Prizes in the field of literature and art (since 1995);

honorary member of the Moscow Intellectual and Business Club (since 1995);

co-chairman of the Christian Interfaith Advisory Committee (since 1996);

member of the presidium of the Interreligious Council of Russia (since 1998);

editor-in-chief of the magazines “Church and Time” (since 1991), “Smolensk Diocesan Gazette” (since 1993), “Orthodox Pilgrim” (since 2001);

Member of the Church Scientific Council for the publication " Orthodox Encyclopedia"(since 1999);

member of the Supervisory Board of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow (since 2002);

co-chairman of the Council of European Religious Leaders (since 2002);

chairman of the exhibition organizing committee " Orthodox Rus'"(since 2003);

co-chairman of the Working Group on interaction of the Russian Orthodox Church with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia (since 2003);

Chairman of the Executive Committee of the CIS Interreligious Council (since 2004);

member of the presidium of the CIS Interreligious Council (since 2004);

member of the Council for Interaction with Religious Associations under the President of the Russian Federation (since 2004);

Chairman of the Commission for the Affairs of Old Believer Parishes and for Interaction with the Old Believers (since 2005);

chairman of the working group to draw up a conceptual document outlining the position of the Russian Orthodox Church in the field of interreligious relations (since 2005);

Chairman of the working group for the preparation of a document expressing the position of the Russian Orthodox Church on the problems of globalization (since 2005);

member of the Joint Commission on National Policy and Relations between the State and Religious Associations (since 2006);

co-chairman of the World Conference of Religions for Peace (since 2006);

head of the working group for the development of the “Fundamentals of the teaching of the Russian Orthodox Church on dignity, freedom and human rights”;

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill has the following academic degrees and titles:

since 1986 - honorary member of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy;

since 1987 - honorary doctor of theology from the Theological Academy in Budapest;

since 1992 - member of the Academy of Creativity;

since 1994 - honorary member of the International Academy of Eurasia;

since 1996 - honorary professor of the Military Academy (now University) of Air Defense Ground Forces;

since 1997 - full member of the Academy of Russian Literature;

since 2002 - full member of the Academy of Social Sciences and Humanities (since 2003 - Public Russian Academy of Social Sciences);

since 2002 - Honorary Doctor of Political Science from the State University of Perugia (Italy);

since 2004 - honorary doctor of theology from the Christian Academy of Warsaw (Poland);

since 2004 - honorary professor of Smolensk Humanitarian University;

since 2005 - honorary professor at Astrakhan University;

since 2005 - honorary doctor of the Russian State Social University;

since 2006 - honorary professor at the Baltic Naval Institute named after Admiral Fyodor Ushakov;

since 2007 - honorary president of the Academy of Russian Literature;

since 2007 - honorary doctor of the St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University;

since 2009 - honorary doctor of theology of the Kyiv Theological Academy;

since 2009 - honorary doctor of theology from the Institute of Theology. St. Methodius and Cyril of Belarus state university;

since 2009 - honorary doctor of theology of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy;

since 2009 - honorary member of the Russian Academy of Education;

since 2009 - honorary doctor of the Russian Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of the National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI";

since 2010 - honorary professor at the Military Academy of the Strategic Missile Forces named after Peter the Great;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of Petrozavodsk State University;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of Yerevan State University;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of the Odessa National Law Academy;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of Dnepropetrovsk National University. Olesya Gonchar;

since 2010 - honorary doctor of theology of the Moscow Theological Academy;

since 2011 - honorary doctor of the Pridnestrovian State University named after. T.G. Shevchenko;

since 2011 - honorary doctor of Voronezh State University;

since 2011 - honorary doctor of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov;

since 2012 - honorary doctor of the Sofia University of Cultural Heritage;

since 2012 - honorary doctor of the Orthodox St. Tikhon's Humanitarian University.

As a metropolitan, he was invited to give lectures in Rome (1972), at the University of Helsinki, at the Abu Academy in Turku, at the Orthodox Seminary in Kuopio (Finland, 1975), at the Ecumenical Institute in Bosse (Switzerland, 1972, 1973), to the University of Münster (Germany, 1988), to the University of Udine (Italy, 1988), to the State University of Perugia (Italy, 2002), to the Christian Academy of Warsaw (Poland, 2004) . He has made presentations at many Russian and foreign conferences, symposiums and forums.

Formation and development church hierarchy and the teaching of the Orthodox Church about its gracious character. - L.: 1971;

Challenges of modern civilization. How does the Orthodox Church respond to them? - M.: 2002;

Word of the Shepherd. God and man. The story of salvation. - M.: 2004;

L'Evangile et la liberte. Les valeurs de la Tradition dans la société laique. — Paris: 2006;

Freedom and responsibility: in search of harmony. - M.: 2008;

Patriarch and youth: conversation without diplomacy. - M.: 2009;

Holy Rus' - together or apart? Patriarch in Ukraine. - M.: 2009;

Vanguard of the Church. — Tver: 2009;

Words. Sermons. Performances. — Kyiv: 2009;

Be faithful to God. Book of conversations with His Holiness Patriarch Kirill. — Minsk: 2009;

The strength of a nation lies in the strength of its spirit. — Minsk: 2009;

The Church calls for unity. — Minsk: 2010;

Sermons 2009-2010. — Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, 2010;

Keep faith in your hearts. — Minsk: 2011;

Sermons 2010-2011. — Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, 2012;

The mystery of repentance. Lenten sermons (2001-2011). - M.: 2012;

Word of the Primate. Collection of works. Series I. T. 1 (2009-2011). - M.: 2012;

The word of the shepherd. Collection of works. Series II. T. 1 (1991-2011). - M.: 2013;

Overcoming turmoil. // Series “Word of His Holiness the Patriarch”. - M.: 2013. - Issue. 1;

The word of the shepherd. Collection of works. Series II. T. 2 (1991-2011). - M.: 2014;

Holy Land. // Series “Word of His Holiness the Patriarch”. - M.: 2014. - Issue. 2,

as well as about 2340 publications, including in domestic and foreign periodicals (data as of March 2013).

A series of television programs with speeches by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill have been published: “The Word of the Shepherd” - Introduction to Orthodox doctrine; “Word-Sacrament-Church” - History of the early Christian Church and teaching about the Church; “Anniversary Council of Bishops” - Fundamentals of the social concept - Charter of the Russian Orthodox Church - Acts on canonization, “Attitude towards heterodoxy”; “The Word of the Shepherd” - Church, state, politics (part 1), Church, personality, society (part 2), About faith and salvation (part 3), Does Russia have a future (part 4).

Dozens of videos have been created and released on discs, dedicated to life and the activities of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, the election and enthronement of His Holiness, with records of divine services, sermons, meetings and speeches in live, which took place during visits to Russian dioceses, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia and Armenia, as well as speeches by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill on Russian television. Series of sermons by His Holiness and recordings of a number of meetings with young people have also been published on audio media.

Interaction with Local Orthodox Churches

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill has worked and is working in the field of inter-Orthodox relations. He was the first representative of the Russian Orthodox Church in Syndesmos - the World Brotherhood of Orthodox youth organizations. From 1971 to 1977 - Member of the Syndesmos Executive Committee; participant of the VIII (Boston, 1971), IX (Geneva, 1977), X (Finland, 1980) and XIV (Moscow, 1992) General Assemblies of this organization; participant of the first Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference (Chambesy, 1976) and the Inter-Orthodox Commission for the preparation of the Holy and Great Council of the Eastern Orthodox Church (Chambesy, 1993, 1999); main speaker at the Orthodox consultation “Common Understanding and Vision of the WCC” (Chambesy, 1995); participant in the Pan-Orthodox Consultation on Ecumenism (Thessaloniki, 1998) and the Meeting of the Heads of Local Orthodox Churches on healing the Bulgarian church schism (Sofia, 1998); participant of the Pan-Orthodox celebration of 2000 years of Christianity in Bethlehem on January 7, 2000; participant in negotiations between the Moscow and Constantinople Patriarchates (Istanbul, 1977, Geneva, 1978, Istanbul 1990, Moscow, 1991, Istanbul, 1993) and regular consultations on current problems between the two Churches; conducted negotiations with the Orthodox Church of Constantinople on Estonia and with the Romanian Orthodox Church on the problem of the Bessarabian Metropolis in Moldova (twice in 1997 in Geneva, Chisinau, 1999).

In 2005, as the head of the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church, he took part in the enthronement of Patriarch Theophilus III of Jerusalem.

As chairman of the DECR, as part of official delegations, he visited all Local Orthodox Churches, including accompanying His Holiness Patriarch Pimen and His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II on their trips abroad.

As the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, he officially visited the Local Orthodox Churches: Constantinople (2009), Alexandria (2010), Antioch (2011), Jerusalem (2012), Bulgarian (2012), Cyprus (2012) g.), Polish (2012), Hellas (2013).

Inter-Christian relations and cooperation

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill took part in the work of inter-Christian organizations. As a delegate, he participated in the IV (Uppsala, Sweden, 1968), V (Nairobi, Kenya, 1975), VI (Vancouver, Canada, 1983) and VII (Canberra, Australia, 1991) General Assemblies of the WCC and as a guest of honor at the IX General Assembly of the WCC (Porto Alegre, Brazil, 2006); at the World Missionary Conference "Salvation Today" (Bangkok, 1973); was president of the World Conference on Faith, Science and the Future (Boston, 1979) and the World Convocation on Peace, Justice and Integrity of Creation (Seoul, 1990); participated in the assemblies of the Commission “Faith and Order” of the WCC in Accra (Ghana, 1974), in Lima (Peru, 1982), in Budapest (Hungary, 1989). Was the keynote speaker at the World Missionary Conference in San Salvador, Brazil, November 1996.

He was a delegate to the XI General Assembly of the Conference of European Churches (Stirling, Scotland, 1986) and the XII General Assembly of the CEC (Prague, 1992), as well as one of the main speakers at the European Assembly of the CEC “Peace and Justice” (Basel, 6- May 21, 1989).

He was a participant in the Second European Assembly of the CEC in Graz, Austria (23-29 June 1997) and the Third in Sibiu, Romania (5-9 September 2007).

He took part in four rounds of bilateral interviews between theologians of the Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches (Leningrad, 1967, Bari, Italy, 1969, Zagorsk, 1972, Trento, Italy, 1975).

Since 1977 - Secretary of the International Technical Commission for the Preparation of Dialogue between the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches. Since 1980 - member of the International Theological Commission for Orthodox-Catholic Dialogue. In this capacity, he took part in four plenary meetings of this commission: (Patmos-Rhodes, Greece, 1980; Munich, Germany, 1982; Crete, 1984; Valaam, Finland, 1988) and in the work of its Coordination Committee committee.

He was a co-chairman of the second round of the Orthodox-Reformed dialogue (Debrecen II) in 1976 in Leningrad and a participant in the Evangelical Kirchentags in Wittenberg (GDR, 1983) in Dortmund (1991) in Hamburg (1995).

Participant in dialogue with the delegation of the Old Catholic Church in connection with the 100th anniversary of the Rotterdam-Petersburg Commission, Moscow, 1996.

As Chairman of the DECR, on behalf of the Hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church, he took part in contacts with the Churches of the USA, Japan, East Germany, Germany, Finland, Italy, Switzerland, Great Britain, Belgium, Holland, France, Spain, Norway, Iceland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ethiopia, Australia, New Zealand, India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Laos, Jamaica, Canada, Congo, Zaire, Argentina, Chile, Cyprus, China, South Africa, Greece.

As the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, he held a number of meetings with the heads and representatives of non-Orthodox Churches and Christian organizations.

In 2012, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Chairman of the Polish Catholic Episcopal Conference signed a Joint Message to the peoples of Russia and Poland.

Participation in Councils of the Russian Orthodox Church

He was a member of the Local Jubilee Council of the Russian Orthodox Church (June 1988, Zagorsk), chairman of its Editorial Commission and the author of the draft Charter of the Russian Orthodox Church, adopted by the Jubilee Council.

He was a participant in the Council of Bishops dedicated to the 400th anniversary of the restoration of the Patriarchate (October 1989) and the extraordinary Council of Bishops on January 30-31, 1990, as well as the Local Council on June 6-10, 1990, and the Council of Bishops on October 25-26, 1991. ; March 31 - April 4, 1992; June 11, 1992; November 29 - December 2, 1994; February 18-23, 1997; August 13-16, 2000; October 3-6, 2004, June 24-29, 2008

He presided at the Bishops' Councils (2009, 2011, 2013) and Local Councils (2009), and at the other indicated Councils of the Russian Orthodox Church he was the chairman of the Editorial Commission.

As chairman of the DECR, he made reports on the work of the DECR. At the Jubilee Council in 2000, as chairman of the relevant Synodal Working Group and Synodal Commission, he presented the Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Charter of the Russian Orthodox Church.

At the Council of Bishops on October 3-6, 2004, he also made a report “On the relationship with the Russian Church Abroad and the Old Believers.”

Management of the Smolensk-Kaliningrad diocese (1984-2009)

During the stay of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill at the Smolensk-Kaliningrad See, 166 parishes were opened (94 in Smolensk and the region, 72 in Kaliningrad and the region). 52 Orthodox churches were restored and 71 were rebuilt.

In 1989, the Smolensk Theological School was opened, which was transformed in 1995 into the Smolensk Theological Seminary.

Since 1998, the Interdiocesan Theological School has been operating, training church choir directors, catechists, icon painters and sisters of mercy. Most parishes in the diocese operate Sunday schools. There are Orthodox gymnasiums and kindergartens.

Since 1992, the Fundamentals of Orthodox Culture have been taught in public schools in the Smolensk and Kaliningrad regions.

Serving as DECR Chairman (1989-2009)

Represented the Russian Orthodox Church in the commissions for the development of the USSR Law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations” dated October 1, 1990, the RSFSR Law “On Freedom of Religion” dated October 25, 1990, and the Federal Law of the Russian Federation “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Organizations”. associations" dated September 26, 1997.

As chairman of the DECR, he took part in many international public and peacekeeping initiatives.

He took part in developing the church position and peacekeeping actions during the events of August 1991 and October 1993.

He was one of the initiators of the creation of the World Russian People's Council in 1993. He took part and delivered keynote speeches at the Councils (1993-2008). Since his election to the Patriarchal Throne, he has been the Chairman of the VRNS (since 2009).

As chairman of the Holy Synod's Commission for the Revival of Religious and Moral Education and Charity, he initiated the creation of synodal departments for religious education, social service and charity, and interaction with the armed forces and law enforcement agencies. He was the author of the Concept for the revival of charity and religious education, adopted by the Holy Synod on January 30, 1991.

Developed and submitted for approval to the Holy Synod the “Concept of interaction of the Russian Orthodox Church with the armed forces” in 1994.

From 1996 to 2000 — led the development and presented to the Anniversary Council of Bishops in 2000 “Fundamentals of the social concept of the Russian Orthodox Church.”

He took an active part in normalizing the church situation in Estonia. In this regard, he visited the Patriarchates of Antioch and Jerusalem (trips to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Israel in 1996), and also participated in negotiations with representatives of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Zurich (Switzerland) in March and twice in April 1996. , in Thessaloniki, Tallinn and Athens (1996), in Odessa (1997), in Geneva (1998), in Moscow, Geneva and Zurich (2000), in Vienna, Berlin and Zurich (2001 .), in Moscow and Istanbul (2003); He also visited Estonia several times, where he negotiated with government representatives, members of parliament and the business community of this country.

He took an active part in peacekeeping actions in Yugoslavia. Repeatedly during the war he visited Belgrade, negotiated with the leadership of this country, initiated the creation of an informal international Christian peacekeeping group on Yugoslavia (Vienna, May 1999) and the convening of an international inter-Christian conference on the topic: “Europe after the Kosovo crisis: further actions of the Churches” in Oslo (Norway) in November 1999.

He was the main speaker at the Parliamentary hearings on the “Fundamentals of the social concept of the Russian Orthodox Church” (Moscow, 2001), and the topics “Religion and Health” (Moscow, 2003), “Improving legislation on freedom of conscience and on religious organizations: practice of application, problems and solutions" (Moscow, 2004).

He initiated a dialogue with European organizations in Brussels and the creation in 2002 of the Representative Office of the Russian Orthodox Church at European international organizations.

As DECR Chairman, he visited Estonia (multiple), Switzerland (multiple), France (multiple), Spain (multiple), Italy (multiple), Belgium (multiple), Holland (multiple), Germany (multiple), Israel (multiple), Finland (multiple), Ukraine (multiple), Japan (multiple), Canada (multiple), China (multiple), Hungary (multiple), Moldova (multiple), Norway (multiple), Lebanon and Syria (multiple), Serbia (multiple) ), USA (multiple), Turkey (multiple), Brazil (multiple), Australia (1991), Austria (multiple), Latvia (1992), Chile (1992), Bulgaria (1994, 1998, 2005 gg.), Czech Republic (1996, 2004, 2007), Slovakia (1996), Iran (1996), Lithuania (1997), Denmark (1997), Morocco (1997), Argentina (1997, 2006), Mexico (1998), Panama (1998), Peru (1998), Cuba (1998, 2004, 2008), Luxembourg (1999), Nepal ( 2000), Slovenia (2001), Malta (2001), Tunisia (2001), Mongolia (2001), Croatia (2001), Vietnam (2001), Kampuchea (2001) ), Thailand (2001), Ireland (2001), Iraq (2002), Liechtenstein (2002), Philippines (2002), special areas of the PRC - Hong Kong (2001, 2002). ), Macau (2002), South Africa (2003, 2008), Malaysia (2003), Indonesia (2003), Singapore (2003), UAE (2004), Poland (2004 .), the Netherlands (2004), the Dominican Republic (2004), Yemen (2005), North Korea (2006), India (2006), Romania (2007), Turkmenistan (2008). ), Costa Rica (2008), Venezuela (2008), Colombia (2008), Ecuador (2008), Angola (2008), Namibia (2008). He made official visits to Hungary, Mongolia, Slovenia, Iran, Iraq and Yemen at the invitation of the governments of these countries.

Patriarchal service. Administration of the Russian Orthodox Church

In 2009, a reform of the central bodies of church government was undertaken. The activities of the Administrative Office of the Moscow Patriarchate were fundamentally reorganized, the scope of activity of the Department for External Church Relations was clarified, new synodal departments were created, the functions of the Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Publishing House of the Moscow Patriarchate were separated, analytical work was carried out to formulate the necessary changes in the structure of the Educational Committee at the Holy Synod and in general in the system of spiritual education. The activities of the All-Church Court have been intensified.

In 2010, the charter of the Synodal Department for Church Charity and Social Service was updated, the powers and structures of the Administration of the Moscow Patriarchate and the Synodal Commission for Monasteries were clarified, the Secretariat for Foreign Institutions was transformed into the Administration of the Moscow Patriarchate. The activities of the Metropolitan District in the Republic of Kazakhstan have been intensified: its Charter and Internal Regulations have been adopted, and new dioceses have been formed in this country.

In 2011, the Central Asian Metropolitan District was formed. A number of documents have been adopted on social, missionary work, religious, educational and catechetical service in the Russian Orthodox Church. The meeting of heads of synodal institutions was transformed into the Supreme Church Council with the subordination of this body to the Patriarch and the Holy Synod. To coordinate the activities of dioceses located in the same subject of the Russian Federation, metropolises were formed. Vicariates have been created in the Moscow diocese.

In 2012-2013 The formation of metropolises and the increase in the number of bishops and dioceses continue. The implementation of the instructions of the Bishops' Councils of 2011 and 2013 is monitored. Based on the adopted documents on social, missionary, youth work, religious-educational and catechetical service in the Russian Orthodox Church, a detailed database of documents was developed, as well as partially provisions regulating special training ministers in these areas. Transformations are spreading from the central apparatus of the Church to the level of dioceses. The subject “Fundamentals of Orthodox Culture” is included in the curriculum of secondary schools in all regions of Russia.

During the Patriarchal ministry the following were formed:

— Inter-conciliar presence of the Russian Orthodox Church (2009)

— Church executive authorities:

Supreme Church Council of the Russian Orthodox Church (2011)

Synodal Department for Relations between Church and Society (2009)

Synodal Information Department (2009)

Financial and economic management (2009)

Synodal Committee for Interaction with the Cossacks (2010)

Synodal Department on Prison Ministry (2010)

Patriarchal Council for Culture (2010)

Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism (2012), transformed from the Synodal Commission for Monasteries (2010)

— Church-wide collegial bodies:

Patriarchal Commission for Family Issues and Motherhood Protection (2012), former name - Patriarchal Council for Family Issues and Motherhood Protection (2011)

— Church-wide postgraduate and doctoral studies named after Saints Cyril and Methodius (2009)

— Interdepartmental coordination group for teaching theology in universities (2012)

— Church and Public Council under the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' for perpetuating the memory of new martyrs and confessors of the Russian Church (2013), former name — Church and Public Council for perpetuating the memory of new martyrs and confessors of the Russian Church (2012)

As the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, in 2009-2013. visited the countries: Azerbaijan (2009, 2010), Armenia (2010, 2011), Belarus (2009, 2012, 2013), Bulgaria (2012), Greece (2013 d.) Egypt (2010), Israel (2012), Jordan (2012), Kazakhstan (2010, 2012), Cyprus (2012), China (2013), Lebanon (2011), Moldova (2011, 2013), Palestinian Authority (2012), Poland (2012), Syria (2011), Serbia (2013), Turkey (2009) .), Ukraine (2009, 2010 - 3 times, 2011 - 5 times, 2012, 2013), Montenegro (2013), Estonia (2013), Japan (2012 .).

By February 2014, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill made 124 trips to 67 dioceses, 156 trips to 26 stauropegic monasteries, 21 of them more than once. Visited 7 farmsteads of stauropegial monasteries. Made 432 trips to 105 churches in Moscow (data as of January 31, 2014).

During the ministry of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill the following were formed:

46 metropolises of the Russian Orthodox Church;

113 dioceses, including 95 dioceses in Russia*;

Central Asian Metropolitan District (2011);

vicariate in the Moscow diocese (2011).

The number of dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church increased from 159 at the beginning of 2009 to 273 at the beginning of 2014 (in Russia - from 69 to 164).

At the beginning of 2009, there were 200 bishops in the Russian Orthodox Church, at the beginning of 2014 - 312 (as of 02/01/2014)..

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill led 109 episcopal consecrations, including: in 2009 - 5; in 2010 - 9; in 2011 - 31; in 2012 - 41; in 2013 - 22; in 2014 - 1 (as of 02/01/2014).

Also, during the 5 years of Patriarchal service, he performed 144 ordinations as deacon and presbyter (18 as deacon and 126 as presbyter)*.

Awards of the Russian Orthodox Church

Church-wide awards

1973 - Order of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Duke Vladimir (II degree)

1986 - Order St. Sergius Radonezhsky (II degree)

1996 - Order of the Holy Blessed Prince Daniel of Moscow (I degree)

2001 - Order of St. Innocent, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna (II degree)

2004 - Order of St. Sergius of Radonezh (I degree)

2006 - Order of St. Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Rus' (II degree)

Orders of Self-Governing and Autonomous Churches of the Russian Orthodox Church

2006 - Order of Saints Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk (I degree) (Ukrainian Orthodox Church)

2006 - Order of “Blessed Governor Stephen the Great and Holy” (II degree) (Orthodox Church of Moldova)

2009 - Order of the Hieromartyr Isidore Yuryevsky (I degree) (Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate)

2009 - Order in honor of the 450th anniversary of the bringing of the Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God to the land of Volyn (Ukrainian Orthodox Church)

2011 - Order of St. Theodosius of Chernigov (Ukrainian Orthodox Church)

Awards of Local Orthodox Churches

2007 - Order of St. Sava the Sanctified (II degree) (Alexandrian Orthodox Church)

2009 - St. Innocent Gold Medal (Orthodox Church in America)

2010 — Commemorative medal of St. Vladimir’s Theological Seminary (Orthodox Church in America)

2010 - Grand Cross of the Order of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark (Alexandrian Orthodox Church)

2011 - Order of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul (I degree) (Antiochian Orthodox Church)

2012 - Order of the Holy Tsar Boris (Bulgarian Orthodox Church)

2012 - Golden Order of the Apostle Barnabas (Cypriot Orthodox Church)

2012 - Order of St. Mary Magdalene Equal-to-the-Apostles (I degree) (Polish Orthodox Church)

2012 - Order of the Life-Giving Sepulcher “Grand Cross of the Holy Sepulcher Brotherhood” (Jerusalem Orthodox Church)

Awards from other religious organizations and Christian denominations

2006 - Order of St. Gregory of Parumal (Malankara Church, India)

2010 - Order of St. Gregory the Illuminator (Armenian Apostolic Church)

2011 - Order of “Sheikh-ul-Islam” (Office of Caucasian Muslims)

2012 - Order for services to the Ummah, 1st degree (Coordination Center for Muslims of the North Caucasus)

State awards of the Russian Federation

1988 - Order of Friendship of Peoples

1995 - Order of Friendship

1996 — Jubilee medal “300 years of the Russian Navy”

1997 - Medal “In memory of the 850th anniversary of Moscow”

2001 - Order of Merit for the Fatherland (III degree)

2006 - Order of Merit for the Fatherland (II degree)

2011 - Order of Alexander Nevsky

He was also awarded the medals “In Memory of the 850th Anniversary of Moscow” and “300 Years of the Russian Fleet.”

State awards of foreign countries

2009 - Order of Friendship of Peoples (Republic of Belarus)

2010 — Medal “65 years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.” (Transnistrian Moldavian Republic)

2010 - Order of “Sharaf” (Republic of Azerbaijan)

2011 - Order of the Republic (“OrdinulRepublicii”) (Republic of Moldova)

2011 - Order of St. Mesrop Mashtots (Republic of Armenia)

2012 - Order of the Star of Bethlehem (Palestinian National Authority)

The departmental and public insignia of Metropolitan Kirill testify to the great “secular” attention paid to this religious figure. In particular, he was awarded:

Medal of the Soviet Peace Foundation (1988);

A certificate certifying participation in a test flight on a MIG-29 aircraft and a watch from the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation; medal and memorial sign of the Department of Execution of Punishments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia; certificate of honor Ministry of Science and Technology of the Russian Federation (all - 1999);

Medal "150 years of formation of the Transbaikal Cossack Army" (2001);

Medal "200 years of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia"; insignia of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation "Chief Marshal of Artillery Nedelin", departmental medal of the Railway Troops of the Russian Federation "For Distinction in Service" (2002);

Order "For Merit in the Development of the Olympic Movement in Russia" from the Executive Committee of the Russian Olympic Committee; Order of Kuzbass "Key of Friendship"; Order of the World Sambo Federation; badge "300 years of the Baltic Fleet" (2003);

Order of M.V. Lomonosov and the Order of Peter the Great, 1st degree ("for outstanding services and great personal contribution to the development and strengthening of the Russian State") from Russian Academy security, defense and law and order; medal named after Marshal of Aviation, three times Hero of the Soviet Union I. N. Kozhedub from the Foundation for Assistance to Aviators and Cosmonauts, the General Staff of the Russian Air Force, the Russian Cosmonautics Federation, the Association of Heroes of the Soviet Union; honorary badge "For contribution to international cooperation" from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation; insignia "For impeccable service to the city of Moscow. 20 years" of the Moscow city administration (2004);

Medal of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation "300 years of the Baltic Fleet"; award cross of the "Holy Righteous Theodore Ushakov - Admiral of the Russian Fleet" II degree for long service, conscientious activity in the revival of the Cossacks (2005);

Honorary badge "Submariner of the Navy"; The gold medal of Academician A. N. Bakulev is the highest award of the Scientific Center for Cardiovascular Surgery named after. A. N. Bakuleva RAMS; medal "For Merit in Strengthening International Security" of the Security Council of the Russian Federation; the title of hereditary nobleman - from the head of the Russian Imperial House Vel. Book Maria Vladimirovna (2006);

Badge of honor and certificate of honor "For services to the development of the Dynamo movement"; silver medal of the St. Petersburg Society for the Protection of Russian Culture "From Understanding to Unity"; diploma "For real spiritual help to talented children" from the All-Russian social movement"Gifted children are the future of Russia"; medal "60 years of Miner's Day" from the administration of the Kemerovo region (2007).

This is not a complete list of non-ecclesiastical insignia received by Metropolitan Kirill over the past 20 years. Moreover, the wave of awards grew as rumors intensified that it was Cyril who would become Alexy II’s successor.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill was also awarded a number of other federal, departmental and regional state awards; has more than 120 awards from Russian and foreign public organizations; is an honorary citizen of the cities of Smolensk, Kaliningrad, Neman (Kaliningrad region), Murom (Vladimir region), Smolensk, Kaliningrad, Kemerovo region, Republic of Mordovia and other regions and settlements Russian Federation.

He was the first of the church hierarchs to enter into a dialogue with the media. One of the themes he constantly raised at that time was the need for democratization of the Church, its greater openness to society. Metropolitan Kirill became the creator and host of the weekly television program “The Word of the Shepherd” (ORT television channel), which has been airing since the early 2000s, and took part in the creation of a number of other religious and educational television programs.

It was he who was the first in the Russian Orthodox Church to begin to build new relations with secular authorities in all its guises. In 1994-1996 was a member of the Foreign Policy Council of the Russian Foreign Ministry. He also came up with the idea of ​​organizing a department in the Russian Orthodox Church for interaction with the Ministry of Defense and law enforcement agencies. In 1994, Bishop Kirill developed and submitted for approval to the Holy Synod the “Concept of interaction of the Russian Orthodox Church with the armed forces.” Among the numerous academic degrees and titles of the Metropolitan, there are the following: honorary professor of the Military Academy (now University) of the Air Defense of the Ground Forces, full member of the Academy of Security and Law and Order of the Russian Federation, honorary professor of the Baltic Naval Institute named after Admiral Fyodor Ushakov.

He established himself as a successful lobbyist for church interests. One of the striking results of this lobbying policy was the adoption in 1997 of a new law “On Freedom of Conscience.” Others are customs benefits, which the Metropolitan managed to achieve in the first half of the 90s. This allowed the Russian Orthodox Church to trade alcohol and tobacco received in the form of humanitarian aid for a long time with great profit. True, then a loud scandal broke out in the press about church tobacco and alcohol commerce and the benefits were eliminated.

Among the main intra-church “organizational” achievements of Metropolitan Kirill is the reunification of the Russian Orthodox Church with the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad on the conditions that were formulated by the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, as well as the rapid growth in the number of parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in foreign countries.

The head of the DECR is known as a principled “statist” and a promoter of the idea of ​​active participation of the Church in solving problems facing society. Over the course of four years, he developed the “Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church” and, after the approval of the “Fundamentals” by the Council of Bishops, he initiated Parliamentary hearings dedicated to this document (2001). In 2003, he was the main speaker at another “social” Parliamentary hearing - “Religion and Health”.

For many years, he has consistently pursued the idea that Orthodoxy, as the largest denomination in Russia, should become the state religion.

On his initiative, the World Russian People's Council was created in 1993. It was planned that he would oppose the then rising wave of obscurantist nationalism with a more civilized power. True, the idea was not crowned with great success. Liberals criticized the Council for being openly nationalistic, nationalists for insufficient nationalism; no historical decisions were made at the Council.

In June 2008, the Council of Bishops adopted the “Fundamentals of the Teaching of the Russian Orthodox Church on Dignity, Freedom and Human Rights,” developed under the leadership of Metropolitan Kirill.

According to the “Fundamentals”, it is recognized as “unacceptable and dangerous the interpretation of human rights as the highest and universal basis public life, to which religious views and practice must be subject." In addition, the Russian Orthodox Church "sees a huge danger in the legislative and public support of various vices - for example, sexual promiscuity and perversion, the cult of profit and violence." From this thesis, absolutely practical statements were made in the "Fundamentals" conclusions: "...it is unacceptable to normalize immoral and inhumane actions towards humans, such as abortion, euthanasia, the use of human embryos in medicine, experiments that change human nature, and the like." "No references to freedom of speech and creativity can be justified desecration in the public sphere of objects, symbols or concepts that are revered by believers,” the document also says.

Proclamation of Supremacy" religious views and practices" over human rights caused loud protests from human rights activists. After this, the deputy chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, had to explain himself to the press. “We cannot and should not impose on the secular world the understanding of human rights that exists in the Church, but we offer this understanding for discussion,” he said conciliatoryly at a press conference.

In May 1992, the American priest of the ROCOR, Fr. Viktor Potapov, in his brochure “God is Betrayed in Silence,” for the first time publicly accused Kirill of direct collaboration in Soviet times with the KGB and called his operational pseudonym “Mikhailov” (“At a meeting of students of Moscow State University, the head of the department External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad (aka agent “Mikhailov”) stated that the fact of the meeting of the clergy with representatives of the KGB “is morally indifferent” (Bulletin “Straight Path”, No. 1-2, 1992).

In September 1996, the Moscow News newspaper (N34) published a report that the DECR, headed by Metropolitan Kirill, in 1994-96. organized in 1994-96 the import of excisable goods (primarily cigarettes) bypassing customs duties, under the guise of humanitarian aid, in amounts of tens of millions of dollars and in quantities of tens of thousands of tons. The accusations were supported by other popular secular newspapers (in particular, Moskovsky Komsomolets - journalist Sergei Bychkov). It is believed that the secret initiator of these accusations was the then manager of the affairs of the MP, Archbishop of Solnechnogorsk Sergius (Fomin). To investigate these messages, an internal church commission was created headed by Archbishop Sergius (Fomin).

However, the position of Metropolitan Kirill, who denied the deliberate importation of cigarettes into the country and said that the church could not refuse the gift imposed on it, was supported by the 1997 Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church.

He actively participated in the preparation of the law “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations,” approved by President Yeltsin on September 26, 1997.

In March 2001, he made a proposal to transfer part of the income tax of Russians to the budget of religious organizations, including the Russian Orthodox Church.

In May 2001, Moskovsky Komsomolets journalist Sergei Bychkov published an article “Metropolitan from a Snuffbox,” in which he repeated previous accusations against Metropolitan Kirill regarding the import of tobacco, and also for the first time publicly identified Kirill with the WCC figure “agent Mikhailov”, mentioned earlier published materials of the Supreme Council commission (“Yakunin-Ponomarev commission”) on connections between the KGB and the Russian Orthodox Church in Soviet times.

Sergey Bychkov:

In 1992, the Council of Bishops formed its own commission, headed by Bishop Alexander of Kostroma and Galich. While priest Gleb Yakunin and Lev Ponomarev, then deputies of the Supreme Council, were sorting out nicknames and tasks, Bishop Gundyaev (nickname - agent Mikhailov) showed remarkable ingenuity and began buying up archival documents. Having concentrated a powerful base of incriminating evidence, including on the patriarch, over the past 10 years he has been cleverly manipulating documents, silencing overzealous bishops. When the patriarch tries to reason with him, suddenly some papers appear in the media, tarnishing the reputation of His Holiness. Unfortunately, the work of the deputy commission ended in nothing. And the Synodal did not start work at all.

http://www.mk.ru/blogs/idmk/2001/05/25/mk-daily/34819/

In 1992, a former KGB officer named Shushpanov admitted that most employees of the Department for External Church Relations were agents, and were required to report contacts with foreigners, both at home and abroad.

In 2003, a member of the Moscow Helsinki Group, priest Yuri Edelstein, sent a letter to Russian President V.V. Putin, where he also accused Metropolitan Kirill of having connections with the KGB.

According to " Novaya Gazeta", the import of tobacco products was carried out by the financial and trading group "Nika", the vice-president of which was Archpriest Vladimir Veriga, commercial director of the Department of External Church Relations, which was headed by Kirill. According to the newspaper, Sergei Bychkov published a number of articles about this commercial activity.

According to The New Times:

“In 1996, DECR, through its Nika Fund, under the guise of humanitarian aid (without customs duties), imported more than 8 billion cigarettes into Russia, ousting importers who paid duties from the market. The first to unearth this story was a soon-closed and forgotten small business newspaper, and then there was a whole wave of publications in Moskovsky Komsomolets and Moskovskie Novosti.
Actually, the tobacco kings began the first campaign to expose what they considered an unscrupulous competitor. On nicotine, the media and evil tongues in the Church itself claimed, Kirill made up his starting capital - several hundred million dollars, after which financial scandals poured on him like from a cornucopia. He was involved in duty-free oil exports, Kamchatka crab fishing, Ural gem mining, the establishment of banks, and the purchase of shares and real estate. Specific (with a touch of “pastoralism”) connections in the political leadership and business community quickly brought Kirill to first place in terms of personal assets among the hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church MP. In 2004, Nikolai Mitrokhin, a researcher at the Center for Shadow Economy Research at the Russian State University for the Humanities, published a monograph on the shadow economic activities of the Russian Orthodox Church. The fortune of Metropolitan Kirill was estimated in this work at $1.5 billion. Two years later, journalists from Moscow News tried to count the assets of the head of the Church Ministry of Foreign Affairs and came to the conclusion that they already totaled $4 billion. Neither the Metropolitan himself nor the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church commented on these data "

Metropolitan Kirill, indirectly admitting the fact of import transactions on behalf of the DECR, repeatedly denied accusations of personal interest; during an online conversation with the public, he called such publications “a very specific political order”, which is carried out “with tenacity worthy of other uses,” and “not newspapers, but one newspaper” write about it. He noted that “unfortunately, in our society it is very common to use the press to settle personal scores or achieve political, career and other goals. In this case, we are dealing with a custom campaign aimed at achieving at least one or two of the above-mentioned goals.”

Alexander Pochinok, who was the head of the Russian tax service in 1999-2000, stated on the eve of the Local Council in 2009:

“...the government decided to help by allocating quotas to the Russian Orthodox Church for the import of excisable goods, providing appropriate permission through the government commission for humanitarian aid for their import. At the same time, the Russian Orthodox Church—more precisely, companies close to it—was exempt from paying customs duties. “All this ended sadly for everyone - both for those importers, because many of them suffered, and for the budget.”

Hobby: alpine skiing.

Lives in the official residence of the DECR in Serebryany Bor (Moscow).

In 2002, I bought a penthouse in a House on the embankment overlooking the Cathedral of Christ the Savior (the apartment is registered to Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyaev, “about which there is a corresponding entry in the cadastral register” (The New Times. No. 50 of December 15, 2008). Appeared in the media " information about the Metropolitan’s purchase of a villa in Switzerland." (ibid.).

At the beginning of 2012, the situation around a court case regarding compensation for damage to an apartment belonging to the patriarch, in which the defendant was Yuriy Shevchenko, who lived next door, received wide public attention. According to the position of plaintiff Lidia Leonova, registered and living in the patriarch’s apartment, and the court decision, based on an examination performed by experts from the Institute of Social Economy, dust from renovations in Shevchenko’s apartment contained components hazardous to health, including nanoparticles, and caused damage to the patriarch’s apartment, furniture and collection of almost 1,600 books. The total amount of the claim was about 19.7 million rubles. The amount of the claim and Leonova’s unclear status have caused numerous critical discussions in the media and blogosphere. In a conversation with journalist V. Solovyov, the patriarch explained that he has nothing to do with the lawsuit filed by his second cousin Leonova, registered in the patriarch’s apartment. At the same time, Kirill assured journalist Solovyov that the money that ex-Minister of Health Shevchenko paid Leonova according to the lawsuit would be used to clean the library and charity.

According to the journalist of the radio station “Echo of Moscow” Saken Aimurzaev, which was repeated by a number of publications, the very fact of owning an apartment contradicts the vow of non-covetousness that every monk takes when taking monastic vows. Lawyers interviewed by Rosbalt news agency (Vladimir Zherebenkov, Maxim Stolyarov, Igor Trunov) confirmed that, in their opinion, for the first time in Russian practice, contamination of an apartment with nanoparticles was declared as the basis for compensation for damage, and also announced an unprecedented amount recovered for causing damage to one apartment. According to Trunov, there was a bias of the court, and according to Zherebenkov, there were possibly elements of lobbying. Lawyers interviewed by RAPSI expressed different opinions regarding the amount of the claim and do not point to lobbying: lawyer Konstantin Trapaidze believes that the plaintiff won the trial justifiably, as she was well prepared for the upcoming process. Lawyer Natalya Salnikova called the amount colossal, but justified, since antique furniture and valuable property were damaged as a result of the incident, and lawyer Oleg Frolov expressed the opinion that the cost of the apartment and the items in it could have led to the high cost of damage.

In response to criticism in connection with this, as well as a number of other scandalous cases, the Moscow Patriarchate, the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation and some politicians announced an organized campaign to discredit the Patriarch and the Russian Orthodox Church. On June 16, 2012, Patriarch Kirill himself, on the air of the “Word of the Shepherd” program on Channel One, called people “who criticize the church” “demanding spiritual healing.”

Dossier

CONDUCTOR OF THE SYMPHONY OF POWERS
At the meeting of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church at the end of last year, it can be said that the issue of the next patriarch was finally resolved. The church “vertical of power” is already subordinate to Metropolitan Kirill. Who is he - the next most likely primate of the Russian Orthodox Church?

The image of Metropolitan Kirill is very contradictory, and it is impossible to choose just one color for him. Cyril's inconsistency is not the fruit of his complex character and peculiarities of worldview - several historical eras ground the bright and strong personality of the metropolitan in their millstones.

On the one hand, Kirill is the most scandalous figure in the Russian Orthodox Church of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. On the other hand, his authority is recognized, or at least his strength and power is respected by everyone in the Church: liberals, conservatives, modernists, and orthodoxies. “High” justifications are found for his “weaknesses”: for example, his passion for business, which until recently shocked the church community, is now declared to be the only way to preserve the independence of the Church in the conditions of building a rigid “vertical of power” that seeks to embrace and subjugate all public institutions. modern Russia. However, it is not only Kirill’s flock that shows flexibility - the metropolitan himself is constantly “restructuring himself on the march”: he is either a zealous ecumenist, or a notorious fighter against globalization; sometimes a liberal-Westerner, sometimes a leavened patriot-soiler; sometimes a supporter of Voloshin and the oligarchs, sometimes the confessor of the “siloviki”. Almost according to the words of the Apostle Paul, he tries to “be all things to everyone,” but not in order to “save at least some,” but in order to be unsinkable with any changes in “environmental parameters.” Someone will say that this is normal: the Church must survive in any conditions, for, according to the word of Christ, it will endure “until the end of the age.” Someone will see in Cyril's flexibility the apotheosis of Sergianism - a policy of limitless church opportunism and conformism, guaranteeing the preservation of legal church administration even under the reign of the Antichrist.

Who is this man - sharp, impetuous, passionate, but dressed in a cassock and a monastic hood? How is Metropolitan Kirill useful and dangerous to the Church and secular society? Is he really the only candidate for the patriarchal throne?

Volodya Gundyaev - that was his name in his short worldly life - was born during late Stalinism and grew up during the “thaw” in the family of a priest. True, his parent is Fr. Mikhail was not rich and often fell into disgrace with his church authorities. Despite this, he was a convinced Sergianist: he believed that the Church must be saved at any cost and that the hierarchs have no other way but meek submission to the “godless authorities.” This line of his father was rejected by young Volodya - his choleric temperament, coupled with constant clashes with “militant atheism” at school, led to the fact that Volodya was not accepted into the 9th grade of high school, and he got a job on a geological expedition.

At that time, a bright star rose on the church horizon of Leningrad, which illuminated the entire further life path of the believing young man - Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov), ​​who in a few years made a sparkling church career and by the middle of his forties held key church positions. Subsequently - albeit not so quickly - Kirill himself will repeat the path of his teacher. In one of his interviews, he will share his memories of how he initially greeted Nikodim’s appointment to St. Petersburg with hostility, seeing in the successful church careerist an obvious protege of the authorities. Who would have known that from the radical rejection of Nicodemus to the enthusiastic admiration of him, the young man was only one step away. Volodya made it when he crossed the threshold of Nikodim’s office in 1965 to receive his blessing to enter the seminary. Nicodemus was very sensitive to talent and immediately brought Volodya closer to him, who thanks to this, in less than five years, completed an eight-year course at the seminary and academy.

At the age of 21, he accepted monasticism from the hands of Nicodemus with the name Cyril and became a hieromonk. Then his “external church activity” begins - in the retinue of Nicodemus he travels to Prague. At the age of 23, Kirill graduated from the academy, became a candidate of theology and began teaching dogmatics to students who were older than him. At the age of 24, he was already an archimandrite and representative of the Russian Orthodox Church at the World Council of Churches in Geneva (this position was held before him by the venerable protopresbyter Vitaly Borovoy). At the age of 27, Kirill was returned to St. Petersburg and made rector of the Leningrad Theological Academy - the youngest in the entire 200-year history of this educational institution. Joining the Soviet elite, the “beautiful life,” and constant trips abroad corrected the simultaneously romantic and ascetic ideal that young Volodya probably aspired to when taking monasticism. None of his official biographies will ever include the story of his acquaintance with Lydia Mikhailovna Leonova, the young and pretty daughter of the cook of the Leningrad Regional Committee of the CPSU. For 30 years now, they have had the warmest relations, which, by the way, gave rise to some Western journalists, poorly versed in Orthodox canons, to call Bishop Kirill an “exemplary family man.” They say that now a number of commercial enterprises are registered at Lidia Mikhailovna’s home address in Smolensk, one way or another connected with the business of the metropolitan himself.

At the age of 29, Kirill becomes the Bishop of Vyborg, although according to Orthodox canons, even the rank of priest can be received only at 30. The next year he is elevated to the rank of archbishop, at the same time he holds many different positions in international religious organizations. What kind of trust did a young man in the mid-Brezhnev 70s have to enjoy from the party and government in order to reach such heights and almost continuously travel abroad, and even to the “capital countries”! The first reports to the KGB date back to that period, signed under the pseudonym “Mikhailov,” which, as the Yakunin-Ponomarev parliamentary commission found out, was taken by Bishop Kirill, thus perpetuating the name of his parent, Fr. Mikhail.

But here came thunder from a clear sky. Under mysterious circumstances, in the arms of Pope John Paul I (who reigned for only a month and also died mysteriously), the still relatively young Metropolitan Nicodemus dies. The career rise of Archbishop Kirill slowed down slightly, and in 1984 he was transferred to the provincial See of Smolensk. Formally, he still occupies it, although, of course, he spends much more time in Moscow and on all sorts of foreign trips.

The administrative revolution, which Metropolitan Kirill carried out last year, is directly related to the illness of Patriarch Alexy II; this illness was its indispensable condition. In the fall of 2002, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, struck by a mysterious illness, was forced to retire for a long time. Within nine months, the shaky “system of checks and balances” in the highest church administration that he had created in the early 1990s collapsed. The mystery of the patriarchal illness will only increase if we remember that the gradual replacement of important departments of the Russian Orthodox Church by people of Metropolitan Kirill began just on the eve of this illness.

But even a year ago, in January 2003, when the patriarch had not appeared in public for three months, in addition to Kirill, Metropolitans Sergius (Fomina) and Methodius (Nemtsov) were expected to be his successors. Moreover, it was believed that their chances were approximately equal. Sergius held the key position of managing the affairs of the patriarchate, and Methodius headed the richest - Voronezh - diocese, led a number of church projects in Moscow and was a member of the Presidential Administration. It is not yet known for certain what political and administrative levers Metropolitan Kirill used in the period from January to May, but already at the first meeting of the Synod, which was headed by the recovering patriarch, on May 7, a completely sensational decision was made: to release Metropolitan Methodius from the management of the Voronezh diocese and from all positions in Moscow and sent to distant Kazakhstan, and appointed Metropolitan Sergius to replace Methodius, in Voronezh, having previously separated from the Voronezh diocese its main financial appendage - the Lipetsk region. So, overnight, Methodius lost his real chance of becoming a patriarch, and Sergius was removed from Moscow and deprived of a financial base, which also significantly weakened his position. However, the final move of this personnel gambit was still ahead: at the Synod meeting on December 26, Sergius was relieved of the post of manager of the patriarchate, which was taken by Kirill’s long-time first deputy.

Only the commercial activity of Metropolitan Kirill formed his scandalous reputation in the media. The hierarch discovered the corresponding talents back in the early 90s, at the dawn of market reforms in Russia. However, his business reached a serious level only in 1994. Through his Department, the Metropolitan became the founder of the commercial bank "Peresvet", the charitable foundation "Nika", JSC "International Economic Cooperation" (IEC), JSC "Free People's Television" (SNT) and a number of other structures. “Nika,” which was originally created by Sergius, after coming under the control of Kirill, began actively selling cigarettes, imported into Russia by the DECR MP under the guise of humanitarian aid and therefore exempt from customs duties. Metropolitan Kirill's tobacco business had reached completely outrageous proportions, so it was impossible to avoid a scandal. In just 8 months of 1996, the DECR MP imported approximately 8 billion duty-free cigarettes into Russia (these data were published by the Russian Government Commission on International Humanitarian and Technical Assistance), which amounted to 10% of the tobacco market and brought in profits of several hundred million dollars. Kirill was “surrendered”, in all likelihood, by alarmed competitors, for whom the metropolitan suddenly entered the market on a white horse of duty-free trade and confused all the cards.

When the “tobacco scandal” burst into full force, Kirill tried to shift responsibility to the government. In one of his interviews, he stated: “The people who were doing this (that is, Kirill himself and his wards - Archbishop Clement and Archpriest Vladimir Veriga - A.S.) did not know what to do: burn these cigarettes or send them back? We turned to the government, and it made a decision: recognize this as a humanitarian cargo and provide the opportunity to implement it.” The government, of course, was offended by Kirill, because it was he who convinced the authorities of the “humanitarian” nature of the deadly product, and not the other way around, for which there is a lot of documentary evidence. But the Metropolitan already realized that he would have to end the tobacco business, and therefore did not particularly care about his reputation in tobacco circles.

Oil has become a new and more promising business - this time, naturally, not import, but export. Bishop Victor (Pyankov), close to Metropolitan Kirill, who has now moved to the United States, was on the Board of Directors of JSC MES, which in the mid-90s exported several million tons of oil per year from Russia. The company's annual turnover was about $2 billion. At times, MES was forced to act under the cover of the patriarch himself, whose signature on petitions to the government for exemption from duties on the next hundreds of thousands of tons of exported oil was apparently worth a lot, given the volume of financial flows in this business.

Any business of Kirill began with an appeal to the authorities - sometimes signed by the patriarch - which spoke of “destroyed” churches and some abstract “revival programs”, for the financing of which tax benefits, customs duties, etc. .P. Among the oddities is the Metropolitan’s attempt to penetrate the market of marine biological resources - the relevant government structures allocated huge quotas for catching Kamchatka crab and shrimp to the company founded by Kirill (JSC Region) in 2000 (total volume - more than 4 thousand tons). The profit from this enterprise is estimated at $17 million. Crab meat went mainly to the USA, since half of the company's shares belonged to American partners. Now in his interviews, Metropolitan Kirill speaks with an ironic grin about how his ill-wishers became so mad that they even tried to accuse him of trying to destroy several valuable species crab The breadth of the hierarch’s “commercial interests” is also evidenced by his participation in an automobile joint venture in Kaliningrad, in a cheese production plant in the Ryazan region, in the creation of a supermarket on the outskirts of Moscow... Kirill’s close-knit business team, in addition to the already mentioned Archbishop Clement and Archpriest Vladimir, includes and other people: for example, a former KGB general who personally heads a number of affiliated commercial structures.

Kirill even tried to create his own influential media, but Free People's Television, which laid claim to the 11-decimeter channel in Moscow, owing a lot of money, sank into oblivion without ever appearing on the air. The “Orthodox Information Television Agency” is working at its best, producing the “Word of the Shepherd” program on Saturdays and distributing it on video cassettes.

Meanwhile, in the foreign policy of our church, for which Kirill is responsible, not everything is good. Church policy failed in Estonia, where half of the parishes went to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, in Ukraine, where the Moscow Patriarchate is squeezed by Greek Catholics and Orthodox independents, in Abkhazia, which found itself between the Georgian and Russian churches in an “ownerless” situation, in the far abroad. The most striking church foreign policy project of the past year - the unification of the Russian Orthodox Church with the Russian Church Abroad - was developed and partly implemented not by Metropolitan Kirill, but by Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov), who is called the unofficial confessor of President Putin.

Under Metropolitan Kirill, a radical rethinking of the DECR role in church life took place. Previously, it was believed that this Department should deal only with relations with foreign countries. According to the Metropolitan, “external relations” are generally all contacts of the Russian Orthodox Church with the outside world: political, economic, cultural. When some forces took the initiative to create a Ministry of Religious Affairs, Kirill began an irreconcilable fight against this idea. Following a tradition dating back to Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov) and based on Catholic experience, Kirill believes that secular power and ecclesiastical power should have approximately equal weight in society and respect each other’s interests. The ideological basis for this theory of a “new symphony of powers” ​​is the doctrine developed by Kirill of “Orthodox by birth,” to which 85-90% of the country’s population supposedly belongs. The essence of the theory is that a person may not go to church, not believe in God, be unbaptized, but since he is Russian or even because he was born in an “Orthodox cultural environment,” he is “Orthodox by birth,” that is, regardless of his beliefs, but only for some genetic and demographic reasons was “assigned” to the Russian Orthodox Church. One far-reaching conclusion follows from this essentially materialistic doctrine. I will quote it as edited by Kirill himself: “We should completely forget this common term: “multi-religious country.” Russia is an Orthodox country with national and religious minorities.” The Constitution is at rest!

The teaching of Metropolitan Kirill is the theory of “priesthood above the kingdom” set out in the materialistic language of modern times, which Patriarch Nikon preached to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. And if Kirill is destined to become a patriarch, then the current acting tsar will also have to hear a lot of interesting things: that the Constitution is a fiction; and that the Russian state was created by the Russian Orthodox Church, the head of which should be its co-governor; and that the Church is completely economically independent of the state, and therefore may not particularly take into account the “royal will.” This is the political ideal of Metropolitan Kirill. It seems that this ideal is aimed at strengthening the Russian state, but in reality it turns out that its goal is a new redistribution of power (and the resources behind it).

Does modern Russia need all this?

Alexander SOLDATOV, ogoniok.com

On the website of the Russian Orthodox Church, the photo with Patriarch Kirill’s watch was “blurred out”, but its reflection remained

After Patriarch Kirill’s statement about edited photographs in which he was allegedly given a Breguet watch worth $30 thousand, bloggers found a photo on the Russian Orthodox Church website where there is no watch on the patriarch’s hand, but it is reflected on a lacquered table, Gazeta.Ru writes.

“What a disgrace. This is the campaign against the patriarch,” wrote blogger Alexei Navalny on Wednesday, posting a link to the Patriarchia.Ru website with a photo.

About an hour after the discussion began on the Internet, the opportunity to view an enlarged version of the photo was removed from the Russian Orthodox Church website, but Gazeta.Ru still had a screenshot of it.

As explained on the Russian Orthodox Church website, the photo was taken on July 3, 2009 during a meeting with Russian Minister of Justice Alexander Konovalov.

Also on Wednesday, bloggers drew attention to a photo from the state agency RIA Novosti from the February meeting of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin with representatives of religious denominations. In this photo, the patriarch is sitting next to Putin, and the primate is wearing a Breguet watch.

Last week, Patriarch Kirill, in a conversation with TV journalist Vladimir Solovyov, called resonant photographs of the patriarch wearing an expensive Breguet watch on his right hand a “collage.” The Patriarch explained that in the patriarchal attire for service, in which he is in the photo, “it is impossible to wear a watch.”

At the same time, the patriarch explained that he actually has Breguets worth $30 thousand, but they are among the boxes with gifts for the patriarch, and he has never worn them. The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church added that he wears a watch that was given to him by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev - “Russian, inexpensive.”

A scandal surrounding the patriarch's watch broke out last year in Ukraine, where the patriarch came on a visit. Local journalists took photographs of the patriarch with a Breguet watch. And on one of the photographs, which Kirill called a “collage,” the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in patriarchal attire carefully examines his wrist, on which a watch is visible.

zvezda.ru, 04.04.2012

The Church has explained itself about the “anti-vampire watch” on the wrist of Patriarch Kirill: this is a “ridiculous mistake”

The press service of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' issued an official statement regarding photographs of His Holiness with an expensive watch on his hand. The fact that in the photos posted on the website of the Moscow Patriarchate, the clock disappears and appears, was called a “mistake” by the Russian Orthodox Church.

“The press service’s photo editors made an absurd mistake when working with the photo archive posted on the website,” reads a statement from the press service, which was received by NEWSru.com. The original photograph has now been returned to its original location. The cache memory of the site server has been cleared of the processed photo, the press service reported. However, another photo, from which the watch was removed, still remains on the site.

The photo on the website of the Russian Orthodox Church, which shows the reflection of the watch on the patriarch’s hand, but there is no watch itself, was processed by a 24-year-old inexperienced employee, a girl “secular, not a nun,” the deputy head of the press service of the Patriarchate told the Russian News Service. “The person showed a stupid, unjustified initiative that was not coordinated with the management. It is clear that this is a misunderstanding. We do not want to hide anything, we have nothing to be ashamed of,” the press service emphasized.

“We value our employees, and even when they make mistakes, we strive first of all to correct them, to explain them to the person,” a representative of the Patriarchate told RSN. At the same time, the press service said in a statement that “the perpetrators will be severely punished.”

Meanwhile, journalists asked not to punish the build editor of the Patriarchate website, believing that he was not to blame for what happened. As Slon.ru reminds, if you believe the beliefs, any evil spirits like vampires are not reflected in the mirror, so the opposite situation is very logical - it turns out that the patriarch’s watch in the picture is “anti-vampire”.

Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin also commented indirectly on the situation, not failing to hint that the scandal surrounding the patriarch’s watch was apparently overblown. “I have never been interested in what kind of watch he has, moreover, I don’t really remember what kind of watch I have on my wrist, I need to look. This side of life interests me little,” Chaplin told Slon.ru.

The head of the patriarch's press service, Archpriest Vladimir Vigilyansky, spoke more sharply the day before. “I think it is indecent, shameful to look at items of personal clothing or gifts, or other things that another person wears,” he said in an interview with the Kommersant FM radio station. “Regardless of whether it is a patriarch, or a journalist, or some other person.” "Some kind of public figure. I think this is indecent. There is some personal territory of a person, entering into which is considered complete lack of culture. Therefore, of course, I will not comment on this."

"Miracle" with a clock

The day before, a heated discussion took place in the blogosphere about a mysterious phenomenon, which bloggers dubbed nothing less than a “miracle.” Having carefully looked at the photographs posted on the official website of the Moscow Patriarchate, where the head of the Russian Orthodox Church is captured together with the Minister of Justice Alexander Konovalov, bloggers discovered that there was no watch on the patriarch’s hand, but there was a reflection of it on the shiny surface of the table.

It’s not easy to determine from this photo what kind of watch the clergyman is wearing, but it doesn’t look too much like the “small, neat” watch with the coat of arms donated by Dmitry Medvedev. Let us recall that on the sixth day, journalist Vladimir Solovyov published excerpts from his interview with Kirill, in which the patriarch, in particular, explained the long-standing scandal with Breguet watches, photographed by Ukrainian journalists.

“When we put on clothes for service, it is impossible to put on a watch, it is impossible to wear a watch. And I looked at this photograph and suddenly realized - but this is a collage! - the patriarch said to Solovyov. - Yes, I wear a watch. Dmitry gave me this watch Anatolyevich. This is our Russian watch, an inexpensive watch with a coat of arms - a small, neat watch."

“One of the main principles of our work is the fundamental refusal to use photo editing programs to change the appearance of images. Photo processing always concerns only color and other technical indicators. On what basis in this situation there was a gross violation of our internal ethics is a question that will be examined very carefully, the perpetrators will be severely punished,” the patriarch’s press service said in a statement today.

The press service apologized to all site users for the “technical oversight.” The scale of the oversight is truly impressive. The fact is that from the website of the Moscow Patriarchate, not only the original photo with the watch was initially removed, but also a number of other photographs in which the patriarch was depicted with the watch, notes the Ukrainian portal “Glavnoe”.

For example, at a meeting with the former US Ambassador, Kirill wore the same watch, and at a meeting with the Turkish Ambassador, and during a rendezvous with the Minister of Defense. True, these photographs are now again present on the Patriarchate website in the list of illustrations for relevant news (meeting with the US Ambassador, the Turkish Ambassador, the Minister of Defense).

NEWSru.com, April 5, 2012

Housing response from Patriarch Kirill

Representatives of Vladimir Gundyaev, the owner of an apartment in the famous Moscow "House on the Embankment", secured the seizure of the apartment of his neighbor below.

Twenty million rubles; This is exactly the amount, according to the decision of the Moscow courts, that the former Minister of Health of the Russian Federation, cardiologist and priest Yuri Shevchenko must pay to compensate for the damage caused to the home of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Kirill in the “House on the Embankment” (Moscow, Serafimovicha Street, 2). 15 million rubles; That’s how much, according to the judicial authorities, the apartment owned by Shevchenko in the “House on the Embankment” costs (the market value of living space in the famous building fluctuates around 50 million rubles). The seizure of living space belonging to the Shevchenko family is a measure aimed at securing claims.

The communal history associated with the patriarchal monastery began in 2010. A certain Lydia Leonova, registered in the apartment of Vladimir Gundyaev, accused Yuri Shevchenko, a neighbor below, of the fact that construction dust from the renovation that was going on in the doctor’s apartment damaged the primate’s property. The claims, according to the Rosbalt agency, included: “transportation of items from the apartment and back - 376 thousand rubles, renovation of the apartment - 7.3 million rubles, rental of similar living space during the renovation - 2.1 million rubles, damaged furniture and interior items - 2.6 million rubles, special cleaning of 970 books - 6.3 million rubles, cleaning of property - 151 thousand rubles." Vladimir Gundyaev himself did not take part in either the conflict or attempts to resolve it.

And Patriarch Kirill did not file any lawsuits either,” emphasizes Alexander Soldatov, editor-in-chief of the independent network resource Portal-Credo.Ru. - The plaintiff is a certain Mrs. Lydia Leonova, who in Lately the press presents her as the sister of the patriarch. But we do not know for sure to what degree of relationship she is with him. We only know that it is registered in this apartment, and the sole owner of the living space is Vladimir Gundyaev, aka Patriarch Kirill. This data is publicly available, in cadastral records of various kinds: he bought this apartment about 7-8 years ago.

Publicist Vladimir Golyshev in his blog provides links to the official biography of the patriarch: he has a sister, but her name is Elena, she strives in the spiritual field - she is the director of an Orthodox gymnasium. Sister Lydia is not listed in the available materials.

The name of Lydia Leonova first surfaced in the late 90s - when it turned out that several commercial structures were registered in her name in Smolensk, where the current Patriarch Kirill was the diocesan bishop. These structures, in particular, were involved in the notorious tobacco business - they controlled some kind of tobacco trade there and were involved in various types of investments. There is reason to believe that Lydia Leonova, whom the future patriarch brought with him to Smolensk from Leningrad, is his financial agent of some kind, at least and a fairly close person, since they live in the same apartment.

This story became known because the lawyers of Mr. Shevchenko - the former Minister of Health of Russia, who is also a priest of the Moscow Patriarchate for several years - attracted the attention of the press to this situation after two courts, the district and the Moscow City Court, made completely inadequate decisions. In the absence of Ms. Leonova having any powers of attorney from the owner of this apartment - and this despite the fact that Leonova’s lawyer did not have the proper documents to represent their interests - these absurd decisions were made to recover 20 million rubles from Mr. Shevchenko. At the same time, I note that Patriarch Kirill’s apartment, where Leonova lives, is located on a floor higher than Shevchenko’s apartment. And the claim is that when Shevchenko was renovating his apartment, the dust flew not down, but up and caused such enormous damage to the patriarch’s property. In fact, in church circles they say that this apartment has simply become too cramped for two such important people - it is only 144 square meters. m., so they decided to make it two-level. Why is it necessary to evict Mr. Shevchenko, who lives exactly under Patriarch Kirill, at any cost?

But since Yuri Shevchenko is also a priest of the Russian Orthodox Church, was it not possible to somehow resolve the issue in line with church subordination, without involving a secular court?

That is, to deprive him of his dignity and send him to a monastery? Any radical disciplinary measures?

No, why? Something like this: “Here’s an apartment in another place, let’s make an agreement.”

No, it’s not interesting to look at an apartment anywhere else. This apartment has a view of the Kremlin and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Therefore, the patriarch will not leave there for any reason.

Actually, I’m not talking about him, but about Mr. Shevchenko.

But Mr. Shevchenko has a more complicated situation. Yuri Shevchenko's priesthood is not as simple as that of other clerics. The fact is that the late Alexy II advised him to become a priest. Mr. Shevchenko graduated from the Tashkent Seminary while living in Moscow, and was ordained in Kyiv as part of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. Therefore, Shevchenko does not seem to be a cleric directly subordinate to Kirill.

And what will happen to him now?

Since the court ordered Shevchenko to vacate one of the two apartments that he owns in this building, plus pay compensation, it is possible that some kind of enforcement proceedings will soon follow, during which he will be forcibly evicted from there. It should be noted that in his absence and in the absence of his relatives, local authorities and law enforcement agencies already broke into his apartment once, which is a gross violation of the law. But the court did not take this into account. And as a result of this invasion, the fact of repairs was recorded, which was considered in court.

Let us add that the document distributed by the lawyers, with which they are going to go to the Supreme Court, states that the patriarch cannot possess such property. In particular, the document states: “the owner of the apartment, V. M. Gundyaev, who was not involved in the case, being His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' and at the same time a monk, according to the Charter of Basil the Great, in accordance with the 6th rule of the Double Council and the Charter of the Russian Orthodox Church may not own any property."

It is believed that all the bishop's property belongs to the church. Any bishop, including the patriarch, when dying, cannot bequeath this property to any specific individuals. It all goes into the general church treasury. This is the canonical law. Therefore, the very fact that the patriarch owns such an apartment contradicts the canonical rules. But let me note once again that formally it is not the patriarch who is involved in the case, but Mrs. Leonova, whose status is not entirely clear.

The option with the sister was discussed above. Is there a more or less official explanation of who Lidia Leonova is related to monk Kirill? Except for the communal neighbor, of course.

Official historiography is silent about Mrs. Leonova. Therefore, its status is unclear to us: so we could at least refer to some official document. There is an unofficial historiography that dates back to the publication of the German magazine Stern around 1993-1994, where Metropolitan Kirill is described as an “exemplary family man.” And it is even stated that he has children. Further, our portal, with reference to various sources - in particular to Sergei Bychkov from Moskovsky Komsomolets, who conducted various investigations concerning the life of the future patriarch - wrote for several years that this Mrs. Leonova is the daughter of a certain official from the Leningrad regional party committee. The future patriarch met her back in the early 70s, when he was a student at the Leningrad Theological Academy. And supposedly, ever since then, she has accompanied him everywhere - she lived in Smolensk, and now in Moscow. Therefore, the word “sister” should perhaps be understood in a spiritual sense, and not in a physiological one.

Vladimir Gundyaev is the first person in the post of Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' who owns this kind of property? Or did Kirill’s predecessors in office also differ in something similar?

Some predecessors were different, although Kirill's property probably exceeds that of any other patriarch in the entire post-revolutionary Russian history. For example, Patriarch Alexy I did not have any personal property. He lived at a dacha in Peredelkino or in Odessa, or in Chisty Lane in general church premises, where he was simply provided with free housing. Patriarch Alexy II already had some personal property - for example, an apartment in the Golden Keys residential complex in the Matveevskoye district. In the 70s, at the request of the Council for Religious Affairs, the highest hierarchs were allocated apartments in a cooperative building near the Yugo-Zapadnaya metro station. But there was a cooperative form of ownership. Perhaps these apartments were privatized. For example, Metropolitan Yuvenaly still lives there - who once described in his official journal how some criminals with a knife attacked him on the staircase near his apartment and seriously injured him...

Alexy II had property in Switzerland. There is even a short film on YouTube about how he visits his cottage, his foreign residence. But it seems that Patriarch Kirill has much more such property. They say that he has houses in Switzerland, Spain, and somewhere else. All this is quite difficult to investigate. Some of the property is registered in the name of other persons. But this apartment in the House on the Embankment - in one of the most expensive buildings in Moscow - is officially registered in the name of Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyaev. So we can talk about her. It, of course, is significantly more expensive than the apartment that belonged to Alexy II. Kirill is not the founder of this tradition, but he reached the maximum heights of acquisition.

What does the congregation think about this? Riches are riches, but "House on the Embankment" is a bit of a show.

It is probably no secret to anyone that among his flock and ordinary clergy, Kirill evokes various painful emotions. Over the past 3 years, how many collective or private letters of protest, denunciations, and something else have appeared? Even before the election of the patriarch, in 2008-2009, a lot was said about the fact that Kirill was too worldly, too political, that he did not fit in with the traditional benevolent image of the Russian patriarch. If you remember, during this campaign, Clement and Kirill, the two main candidates, were opposed on the principle of “prayer man and manager.” Kirill's supporters especially emphasized that he has unique administrative abilities, including the ability to raise money and invest it. This is exactly the kind of patriarch the church needs in this period of such wild state capitalism.

For greater independence of the church?

Perhaps, yes, in order to bargain more or less equally with the authorities. Because Clement, being a non-covetous man and a man of prayer, would be forced to mechanically and stupidly carry out all the orders of the authorities. And Kirill, who has some kind of power of his own, including financial, can demand a more respectful attitude towards himself, so that the church is perceived as some kind of equal subject in political life, in economic life, etc. Indeed, the majority of the flock and clergy of the Moscow Patriarchate Kirill is not perceived as a traditional patriarch; he evokes a lot of negative emotions, and there is criticism within the church. But the vertical structure there is too rigid. It provides very little opportunity for effective criticism. There are no conciliar institutions like the church parliament, where there could be factions, criticism, and something else. There are no control or audit bodies. There is no normal functioning of the church court. All this mute discontent cannot acquire any organized forms. Therefore, for now it remains somewhat suppressed and appears on the sly. When, over time, perhaps some tools will appear competition inside the church - then all this will spill out. But so far all this is in such a depressed state.

And even information about such an act of acquisitiveness is not able to change the situation, to upset the balance of this kind?

I wouldn't talk about balance. This is still a kind of forced depression. The energy of a very large protest force is accumulating in the Moscow Patriarchate. At the slightest weakening of the political bonds and guarantors that ensure the unity of the Moscow Patriarchate, all this power will spill out - in a very, perhaps, bright form. At least in Moscow, most clergy knew that the patriarch had this apartment and that he also owned a number of expensive real estate properties. This confuses some and causes a dull murmur, while others, on the contrary, see in this proof that Kirill is a truly effective manager, that he can acquire property and manage it: “if he did this for himself, then so will the church.” it might fall over." Let's take the program for the construction of 200 new churches in Moscow. After all, Moscow clergy are claiming that, thanks to these churches, they will occupy some new places and find a new flock. So, there is some overlap between the interests of the patriarch himself and part of the Moscow clergy.

However, with the departure of Yuri Luzhkov, they began to talk about this program much less.

Just the day before yesterday there was a meeting of the board of trustees. In fact, the program was taken over by Mr. Resin, Luzhkov’s closest assistant. We can say that through Vladimir Resin there was a certain translation of the situation that existed under Luzhkov into current realities. Resin, being officially a Judaist, became the patriarch's assistant on the construction of new temples. And he acts with his characteristic pressure and strength in order to obtain more and more new sites for this construction. True, this year construction will begin on only 11 sites, which can, of course, be considered somewhat of a defeat for Kirill. However, Resin guarantees that he will continue to push for new areas and seek their allocation...

But that’s not what we’re talking about now. And that among the Moscow clergy there is a layer that hopes to replenish its income after these churches appear - and therefore supports the efforts of the patriarch aimed at this. But the provincial clergy mostly complain. We hear groans from everywhere. Collective letters are coming to our editorial office saying that the rural clergy are subject to some kind of exorbitant church taxes, which, by the way, do not have legal status: they are simply unofficial extortions into the black treasury, a tax crime, in fact. However, the bishops mercilessly fire those who do not meet these financial requirements. The amounts have increased significantly compared to what they paid before Patriarch Kirill. Therefore, Cyril’s position within the church is precarious. He holds on as long as his alliance with Vladimir Putin lasts. Putin is the guarantor of the inviolability of Kirill and his property. If something happened to Putin, of course, Kirill would also not be able to resist