Accepts Official Invitation of Patriarch Alexei to Visit Russia
New York, NY (2008-03-20) – On Tuesday March 18th, Archbishop Demetrios of America welcomed to the Archdiocese headquarters His Grace Bishop Mercurius of Zaraisk, the Administrator of the Parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate in the United States, who was accompanied by the Very Rev. Fr. Alexander Abramov of the Representation of the Moscow Patriarchate. Bishop Mercurius had come to finalize the invitation of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Alexei II, to Archbishop Demetrios to visit Russia as the official guest of the Moscow Patriarchate.
His Eminence opened the meeting by expressing to Bishop Mercurius his personal condolences, those of the Holy Eparchial Synod, and those of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America as a whole, on the repose of Metropolitan Laurus, the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR). Metropolitan Laurus was the Hierarch who led ROCOR through a process of unification with the Moscow Patriarchate that concluded in May of 2007.
The official visit of Archbishop Demetrios to Russia will occur this Spring. In addition to the above visit, Archbishop Demetrios and Bishop Mercurius discussed issues of current and common Orthodox concerns.
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