Finnish Primate visits OCA Moscow Representation Church

MOSCOW, RUSSIA [OCA/St. Catherine Church]

His Eminence, Archbishop Leo of Karelia and All Finland, Primate of the Autonomous Orthodox Church of Finland, visited the Orthodox Church in America’s Representation Church of Saint Catherine the Great Martyr here on Tuesday, July 13, 2010.

Archimandrite Zacchaeus, parish dean and OCA Representative to the Russian Orthodox Church, greeted Archbishop Leo at the entrance to the church, after which a Service of Thanksgiving in honor of Saint Catherine was celebrated.

After formally welcoming Archbishop Leo on behalf of the Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, Father Zacchaeus recalled the many bonds that unite the Orthodox Church in America with the Finnish Orthodox Church, ranging from common saints—especially Saint Herman of Alaska—to student exchanges at the Churches’ respective theological schools.

In response, Archbishop Leo expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome he had received, the icon of Saint Catherine with which he had been presented, and most importantly, the possibility to pray together during the Service of Thanksgiving, at which prayers were offered for Primates of the Russian, American, and Finnish Churches.

After blessing the clergy and the faithful, Archbishop Leo was hosted at a luncheon in the parish hall.

According to the web site of the Church of Finland—

href="http://www.ort.fi/en/">www.ort.fi—it was after Finland gained its independence as a consequence of the Russian Revolution that the Orthodox Church acquired the status of a national Church alongside the Lutheran Church. In 1921, Saint Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow granted autonomy to the Finnish Church. In view of the political turmoil in the Soviet Union and the difficulties of maintaining contacts in that direction, however, the Orthodox Synod of Finland applied to be taken under the protection of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. On July 6, 1923, the Ecumenical Patriarchate issued a Tomos recognizing the Finnish Church as an autonomous archbishopric of the Patriarchate of Constantinople.

A full report and gallery of Archbishop Leo’s visit may be found on the web site of Saint Catherine Church at www.st-catherine.ru/index.php?lang=eng&sitepartid=9&id=1929&level=0.