2008-01-14 (cwnews.com) - Six days after the January 7 celebration of Christmas on the Russian Orthodox calendar, the Interfax news service published a translation of the Christmas message by Metropolitan Kirill, the acting head of the Moscow patriarchate.
After emphasizing internal Church unity, the temporary head of the Russian Orthodox Church reflected on the tenure of his predecessor and addressed the current economic crisis. “With the demise of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, a most important period of the history of our Church has come to a close, a time of great social change. Today we live in a completely different society, dissimilar to the society that emerged from the period of godlessness which was imposed upon us.”
“At the same time,” he continued, “today the peoples who are spiritually nourished by the Russian Church are encountering difficulties in the economic and social sphere that have befallen them externally. Many people have been deprived of work and are enduring material hardship. The Church embraces with compassion all those who are now finding it hard. May the Lord strengthen and bring wisdom to all-- those in power, entrepreneurs and simple workers-- so that we, through the common labor of accord, mutual aid and the search for proper solutions, are able to help each other to overcome the current difficulties and emerge from them, preserving ourselves and our beloved ones, and preserving peace and harmony in our communities.”
Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.