An image of Ecumenical Patriarch, His All Holiness Bartholomew I, on Wednesday lighting a candle and praying outside the permanently closed entrance of the Patriarchical Church of St. George was widely circulated around the world. The entrance, welded shut in 1821, is the place where Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory V was hanged immediately after celebrating the…

A Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations (DECR), met with Germany’s ex-president Christian Wulff, at the DECR. Participating in the meeting from the German side were also Germany’s Ambassador to Russia Rudiger von Fritsch, Mr. Peter Kettner, director of the German ex-president’s secretariat, and Mr. Joachim Knodt,…

Finally, a special feature is posted today on the Orthodoxια Νews Αgency’s web pages on the catacombs on the Cyclades island of Milos. The catacombs on the popular holiday island during antiquity and the Middle Ages served as both a cemetery and places of worships.

The Archbishop of Warsaw and Metropolitan of All Poland, Metropolitan Savvas, last week visited the Monastery of the Annunciation, in Supraśl, Poland, on the occasion of the Great Feast Day.

The Russian Orthodox Church’s Metropolitan of Volokolamsk, His Eminence Hilarion, spoke this week on the Church’s youth initiatives. Among others, the Russian Church’s hierarch said the Moscow Patriarchate is particularly sensitive to youth issues, while promoting actions to support young people and prevent a so-called “brain drain”.

The historic monastery of Panaghia Soumela in NE Anatolia will soon open its doors after three years of restoration works. Nearly 4,000 tons of rubble and earth have been removed from surrounding cliffs. Additionally, a 300-meter foot-path has been rebuilt, along with a centuries-old cistern and the monastery’s main entry.

The biggest ecclesiastical complex in Moscow, which will include a seminary, begins construction in May. The nearly 17,000-square-meter complex is dedicated to St. Dmitry Ivanovich Donskoy, a 14th century prince of Moscow.

Christians in Africa continue to express their faith and convictions in one of the most difficult areas in the world for believers. In parts of Africa, priests, missionaries and laymen continue to hold baptisms, often in secret, at lakes and rivers, while maintaining various types of charity works. For instance, the Metropolitan of Kenya, His…

Construction work on the church of Saints Constantine-Helena and Nicholas Romanian Orthodox parish has resumed in Nice. Due to lack of funds, work had been interrupted. To mark their resumption, Metropolitan Joseph of Western and Southern Europe (Patriarchate of Romania) went to visit the place on March 20th. On this occasion, he celebrated the service…