In a report late in the evening of January 7 (the Nativity of Christ on the Julian calendar), the pro-Russian Union of Orthodox Journalists confirmed the inclusion of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow in the diptychs chanted by Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv at the Great Entrance during the Primatial Divine Liturgy. This begins at 1:04 in the video above.

Although the UOJ used scare quotes around several key words in a juvenile effort to delegitimize everything pertaining to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine—including the “Nativity Liturgy”—their report and accompanying video attest very movingly to the fact that the newly autocephalous Church of Ukraine considers herself in communion with the Moscow Patriarchate and the entire Russian Orthodox Church. Read More

St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery, Kyiv. See of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.

Two very brief reports relevant to the newly recognized autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) appeared earlier today at UkrInform. 

In the first, Archbishop Daniel (Zelinsky) of Pamphilon, one of two exarchs of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to Ukraine and a hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the United States of America, summarizes the manner in which the Orthodox Church of Ukraine could be designated a Patriarchate, with a Primate styled “Patriarch.”

In the second, we read that—in one region alone—seventeen Ukrainian parishes have already left the Moscow Patriarchate (MP) for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. These rapidly growing numbers suggest that, appropriately, canonicity matters as much to Ukrainian Orthodox believers as their political and ecclesiastical independence from Moscow. Read More

With extreme gratitude to all of you (and in near disbelief!) we announce the news of this amazing milestone: ¼-million views in the seventeen short months since we set out as virtual unknowns in service to the Holy Orthodox Church of Christ.

This would have been impossible without the hard work of some 240 talented writers and tens and tens of thousands of loyal readers from nearly every country on the planet.

We thank you for your support, your kind words, your sincere criticisms, your harsh condemnations (these are spiritually beneficial, too), your engagement in debates far and wide, your prayers, and especially your forgiveness for the many ways in which we err both knowingly and unknowingly. 

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Patriarch Kirill of Moscow

On January 8, 2019 the BBC reported that Patriarch Kirill of Moscow—formerly known as KGB agent Mikhailov (see Paul A. Goble’s article of November 6, 2018 among other sources)—warned his flock that their use of smartphones could hasten the advent of the Antichrist. Co-authors Anastasia Clark and Chris Bell write:

Speaking to Russian state TV, Patriarch Kirill said smartphone users should be careful when using the “worldwide web of gadgets” because it represented “an opportunity to gain global control over mankind”.

“The Antichrist is the person who will be at the head of the worldwide web, controlling all of humankind,” he said.

Speaking to Russian state TV, Patriarch Kirill said smartphone users should be careful when using the “worldwide web of gadgets” because it represented “an opportunity to gain global control over mankind”.

“Every time you use your gadget, whether you like it or not, whether you turn on your location or not, somebody can find out exactly where you are, exactly what your interests are and exactly what you are scared of,” Patriarch Kirill told Rossiya 1.

“If not today, then tomorrow methods and technology could appear that will not just provide access to all information but will also allow the use of this information. Read More