The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church made this address on his birthday

Patriarch Kirill announced the imminent end of the world, predicted in the Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse). At the same time, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church reacted to the end of the world with horror, and not with joy - as to the accession of the Kingdom of God.

According to Kirill, as cited by Interfax. the approach of the last times is already noticeable with the naked eye. One must be blind not to see the approach of the terrible moments of history, which the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian spoke about in his Revelation.”

Because of this, Kirill called for every effort to try to delay this moment: “to slow down our slide into the abyss of the end of history,” thereby, if not canceling, but delaying the second coming of Christ as much as possible. According to Kirill, the end of the world can be prevented through joint efforts, and public people have a special responsibility here.

The fact is, the patriarch explained, that “today sin is demonstrated in the most attractive way - through cinema, through theater... And art, which is designed to cultivate the human personality, enrich it, raise it to the sky, becomes a weight that does not allow a person to take off.” The intelligentsia especially indulges in this, which in this way can lead the country to another revolution.

Now, against the backdrop of the threat of the end of the world, “this is not the time to rock the boat of human passions - today is the time to unite all healthy forces, and the church, and art, and culture, our writers, scientists, all those people who love the Motherland, must be together today because we are entering a critical period in the development of human civilization.”

Let us recall that earlier the head of the Constitutional Court, Valery Zorkin, spoke about the approaching end of history: he warned about the growing “mystery of lawlessness” in the world, predicted by the Apostle Paul. At the same time, the apostle’s discovery of the “mystery of lawlessness” was associated with the coming of the Antichrist into the world and, as a consequence, the inevitably coming end of the world.

Let us remind you that today Patriarch Kirill turns 71 years old. Russian President Vladimir Putin wished him “to work less” on this occasion.

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MOSCOW, November 21 – RIA Novosti. Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Kirill predicted the approaching end of the world. He announced this on his 71st birthday after the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

According to the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, humanity is entering a “critical period of development,” so all people who value their homeland must unite. The Patriarch said that the naked eye can see how the “terrible moments of history” described in the Revelation of the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian are approaching.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church also recalled that, according to Christian doctrine, the time of the decline of humanity depends on the people themselves. In addition, in his opinion, Russians must realize their responsibility for their country and the entire human race and stop “sliding into the abyss of the end of history.”

In addition, the patriarch told how sin seeps into a person’s life - through art. He expressed confidence that if theater and cinema are not aimed at enriching the individual, they ultimately turn into a “weight” that prevents a person from “flying up.”

"I do not mean all art, but that which is last years declares a certain special role of his, about special rights to bring temptation and sin to the people, to confuse people,” the head of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasized.

The patriarch also said that many representatives of the intelligentsia are repeating the mistakes of their predecessors, who, in his opinion, “brought the country to the ruin of the revolutionary events of 1917.” The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church called on “not to rock the boat of human passions,” since people are constantly being subjected to harmful influences that “destroy spiritual life.”

In addition, the patriarch presented a collection of his thoughts and reasoning, covering 80 topics - from church structure to postmodernity and Ukraine. In his opinion, the book will be useful to everyone.

Restriction of human freedom

Patriarch Kirill explained why the Church advocates conscious restrictions on human freedom.

"The liberal interpretation of freedom and human rights presupposes the absolutization of the sovereignty of the individual and his rights outside the moral context. From the point of view of Christianity, the mistake of secular humanism is that it does not take into account the factor of the distorted nature of man, his tendency to sin, the possibility of using freedom for evil both for the person himself and for the whole society,” said the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.

In his opinion, such an understanding of rights and freedoms is unacceptable, since it is used to establish in society ideas about admissibility as social norm"such sinful examples as abortion, homosexuality and euthanasia."

"Legalization of Sin"

Earlier, Patriarch Kirill called Russian authorities and society to resist the tendency to “legitimize sin.”

“Today we see what is happening in the world when terrible sins are implanted by the force of the law, the power of government, and people who want to resist this sin, simply expressing their disagreement with sinfulness, can be repressed,” said the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The Patriarch recalled that Rus' has been called Holy Russia since ancient times, because for its people “holiness was an absolute moral ideal,” which neither the 1917 revolution nor the repressions that followed could eradicate.

“We believe that, having gone through the difficult path of the 20th century, having experienced persecution and trials, we have developed in ourselves a certain immunity, a certain insensitivity to the devil’s temptations and temptations,” the patriarch noted.

"Mercy for Sinners"

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church called on priests to be merciful to people and to be more careful in their statements and assessments, otherwise such representatives of the clergy may be punished.

The Patriarch commented on cases where priests tell families who have lost young children that the loss of a child is retribution “for sins.”

“If someone says “for sins,” then such a priest should be immediately banned from the priesthood. How can this be? I don’t know what kind of heart and what kind of head a priest can have to say that to an unfortunate mother or father,” - said the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The patriarch also noted that much depends on the personal state of the priest’s soul.

“If the soul is callous, then the answers will be absolutely lifeless, callous, unconvincing. And if the priest passes through himself the problems with which people turn to him, then he develops the ability to formulate the correct answers to the questions asked. Because without such internal empathy our words will never be convincing,” he said.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasized that his words apply to all “spiritual practice,” including delivering sermons. The Patriarch stated that if the priest himself does not experience what he preaches, then this immediately becomes noticeable, and the sermon will not be able to “reach the soul.”

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church also added that the priest should say what “is the fruit of his experiences, backing up his words with strong faith and love for people.”

Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Kirill predicted the approaching end of the world. He announced this on his 71st birthday after the Divine Liturgy in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

According to the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, humanity is entering a “critical period of development,” so all people who value their homeland must unite. The Patriarch said that the naked eye can see how the “terrible moments of history” described in the Revelation of the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian are approaching.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church also recalled that, according to Christian doctrine, the time of the decline of humanity depends on the people themselves. In addition, in his opinion, Russians must realize their responsibility for their country and the entire human race and stop “sliding into the abyss of the end of history.”

In addition, the patriarch told how sin seeps into a person’s life - through art. He expressed confidence that if theater and cinema are not aimed at enriching the individual, they ultimately turn into a “weight” that prevents a person from “flying up.”

“I don’t mean all art, but that which in recent years has declared a certain special role, special rights to bring temptation and sin to the people, to confuse people,” the head of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasized.

The patriarch also said that many representatives of the intelligentsia are repeating the mistakes of their predecessors, who, in his opinion, “brought the country to the ruin of the revolutionary events of 1917.” The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church called on “not to rock the boat of human passions,” since people are constantly being subjected to harmful influences that “destroy spiritual life.”

In addition, the patriarch presented a collection of his thoughts and reasoning, covering 80 topics - from church structure to postmodernity and Ukraine. In his opinion, the book will be useful to everyone.

Restriction of human freedom

Patriarch Kirill explained why the Church advocates conscious restrictions on human freedom.

"The liberal interpretation of freedom and human rights presupposes the absolutization of the sovereignty of the individual and his rights outside the moral context. From the point of view of Christianity, the mistake of secular humanism is that it does not take into account the factor of the distorted nature of man, his tendency to sin, the possibility of using freedom for evil both for the person himself and for the whole society,” said the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.

In his opinion, such an understanding of rights and freedoms is unacceptable, since it is used to establish in society ideas about the acceptability as a social norm of “such sinful examples as abortion, homosexuality and euthanasia.”

"Legalization of Sin"

Earlier, Patriarch Kirill called on the Russian authorities and society to resist the tendency to “legitimize sin.”

“Today we see what is happening in the world when terrible sins are implanted by the force of the law, the power of government, and people who want to resist this sin, simply expressing their disagreement with sinfulness, can be repressed,” said the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The Patriarch recalled that Rus' has been called Holy Russia since ancient times, because for its people “holiness was an absolute moral ideal,” which neither the 1917 revolution nor the repressions that followed could eradicate.

“We believe that, having gone through the difficult path of the 20th century, having experienced persecution and trials, we have developed in ourselves a certain immunity, a certain insensitivity to the devil’s temptations and temptations,” the patriarch noted.

"Mercy for Sinners"

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church called on priests to be merciful to people and to be more careful in their statements and assessments, otherwise such representatives of the clergy may be punished.

The Patriarch commented on cases where priests tell families who have lost young children that the loss of a child is retribution “for sins.”

“If someone says “for sins,” then such a priest should be immediately banned from the priesthood. How can this be? I don’t know what kind of heart and what kind of head a priest can have to say that to an unfortunate mother or father,” - said the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. The patriarch also noted that much depends on the personal state of the priest’s soul.

“If the soul is callous, then the answers will be absolutely lifeless, callous, unconvincing. And if the priest passes through himself the problems with which people turn to him, then he develops the ability to formulate the correct answers to the questions asked. Because without such internal empathy our words will never be convincing,” he said.

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasized that his words apply to all “spiritual practice,” including delivering sermons. The Patriarch stated that if the priest himself does not experience what he preaches, then this immediately becomes noticeable, and the sermon will not be able to “reach the soul.”

The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church also added that the priest should say what “is the fruit of his experiences, backing up his words with strong faith and love for people.”

Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Kirill condemned people's desire to live richly and prosperously. According to him, this makes no sense because people will die anyway.

The patriarch made this statement during his sermon at the Savvino-Storozhevsky stauropegic monastery. The text of his speech is provided by the official website of the Moscow Patriarchate.

It is true what they say that each class has its own truth - the well-fed do not understand the hungry.

“There is no wealth for a dead person. Imagine: all his life a person worked only to create a material factor, only to increase his wealth, and what does his end mean then? A complete fiasco. What you created has disappeared, it is no longer yours, you have nothing to do with it,” said Kirill.

In the same sermon, the patriarch also condemned excessive consumption.

“When people acquire what they do not need, acquire for the sake of acquiring, when they do not know what to invent in order to console their flesh, which requires more and more for its satisfaction, then sin comes,” he said.

Let us add that Patriarch Kirill himself can hardly be called an ascetic: he has an apartment in the very center of Moscow, he travels in a motorcade of several representative foreign cars (and sometimes on yachts) and wears a Swiss watch. sources

In the Church of the Intercession Holy Mother of God, located on the territory of the prison complex, the Primate spoke with staff and prisoners, and also addressed the clergy serving in pre-trial detention centers in Moscow. He thanked them for their work, noted the difficulty of such obedience and called on the priests to be merciful to those who broke the law.

“For us, anyone who commits a sin, who transgresses God’s law, is a criminal. If a person violates human law, he is put in prison, but if he violates God’s law, he walks the earth, sometimes holds high positions, and teaches others. Therefore, the view on crime, on those who have violated human laws, from the point of view of the Church is different from that of secular people. And therefore, for you, first of all, all those with whom you deal, all whom you pastorally care for, are the children of God, these are our brothers and sisters. It’s not our business to judge these people, our business is to help them, who are in the most difficult life situation, reform, if possible, get out of prison, start new life“, don’t lose hope,” said Patriarch Kirill.

The head of the Russian Church wished the clergy serving in Moscow prisons, with God’s help, “to maintain a pastoral feeling and a sense of love, respect for people who have broken the law, and to maintain the desire to help them, including bearing the burden of those difficult circumstances with which imprisonment is associated.” .

Photo: Press service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

Patriarch Kirill especially blessed the female prisoners, whom he wished not to lose their fortitude during this difficult period for them.

“You will all come out and live in peace, work, labor, have or start families. So may the Lord protect you!” - the Head of the Russian Orthodox Church addressed the prisoners.

Photo: Press service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

The High Hierarch blessed one of the prisoners Yaroslav and his bride Maria for the wedding, and also handed over an icon to the parish St. Seraphim Sarovsky, employees - icons of the Resurrection of Christ, and prisoners - icons of the Savior Not Made by Hands.

Photo: Press service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'

Patriarch Kirill addressed greetings to those prisoners who watched the event near the church from their cell windows. After that, he went to talk with prisoners in punishment cells and cells. In a special block for special purposes, he talked in a cell with life-sentenced Alexander Vasilchenko.