Patriarch Kirill: We will stand up for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill. Photo: foma.ru

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill said in his traditional Christmas interview with the ‘Rossiya’ TV channel that the Russian Orthodox Church would support and stand up for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, reports the official website of the Moscow Patriarchate.

“The anxiety of His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilos is very close to our heart. The background of this situation is well known to us, and we also know about all the difficulties confronting the Church of Jerusalem. We are in solidarity with His Beatitude, we support him and will undoubtedly stand up for the Patriarchate of Jerusalem and for the retaining of its property,” said the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

According to Patriarch Kirill, the ownership by the Patriarchate of Jerusalem of a number of pilgrim houses in the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem is unjustly contested by Jewish radical public organizations. In case these buildings go to the radicals, the millions of Christians coming to Jerusalem every year would be denied access to the so-called pilgrim’s road starting from the Jaffa Gate of the Old City and leading to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher; thus, the pilgrims would no longer have the right of following this route to the greatest shrine.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church noted that radicalism and fanaticism in interfaith relations concern not only the Holy Land but also other regions of the world. Therefore, the Russian Orthodox Church is ready for dialogue with representatives of other religions to find common positions and develop a unified approach to solving interfaith problems.

As reported, an action in defence of Christians from Jewish radicals took place in Jerusalem. The Patriarch of Jerusalem spoke out about attacks on Christians by Zionists.

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