Two-hundred-fourteen clerics from around Russia this week participated in an online seminar on the subject of providing pastoral care to patients with Covid-19. One of the most prominent segments of the seminar dealt with health precautions that clerics should follow when ministering to a patient.

A particularly disturbing news item from the central Greece port city of Volos emerged this week, when the municipality reported that a manger scene erected in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral of St. Nicholas has been torched. In an announcement, the municipality referred to well-known but unnamed hoodlums who for years have plagued the local…

On the occasion of today’s International Day of Disabled Persons, its noteworthy to remind that the Church remains at the forefront of efforts to support and assist people with disabilities. A total of seven institutions operated by the Church of Greece have been established for the care of people with special needs, including the Archdiocese…

French interior minister Gérald Darmanin on Wednesday announced what he called an unprecedented operation by French law enforcement “…against separatism”, an operation targeting 76 mosques in the country. In a post on his Twitter account, the French minister wrote that “…Following my instructions, the state services will launch an unprecedented mass operation against separatism.” Sixteen…

The Holy Synod of the Church of Serbia this week announced that the process for the election of a new Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church will soon be unveiled, following the repose last month of Patriarch Irinej. Based on the Serbian Orthodox Church’s charter, the election of a new Patriarch must come before Feb….

The Archbishop of Canada, His Eminence Sotirios, urged the bishops and priests of the Archdiocese to officiate at more Divine Liturgies during the week. In a letter sent ahead of Christmas, the hierarch said “…Officiate in the morning and save the Holy Communion…Invite Christians by families to come and commune. Set day and time so…

Greek defense minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos on Thursday began an official three-day visit to Egypt. In Cairo, the Greek minister will be received by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and then by his Egyptian counterpart, Gen. Mohamed Zaki. On Friday, the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, His Most Divine Beatitude Theodoros II, will…

A partial nationwide lockdown in Greece – imposed due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic – will be extended until Monday, Dec. 14, a relevant government spokesman announced on Thursday, something widely expected, given that a now nearly four-week lockdown has not significantly reduced coronavirus figures, such as daily confirmed infections, related fatalities and the number…

The Church today venerates the memory of the Holy Prophet Sophonias, or Zephaniah, as well as St. Theodoulos.