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ENGLISH VERSION: Jehovah's Witness criminal cases in Russia - list

Full list of 116 Jehovah's Witnesses known to have been charged or named as suspects for "extremism"-related "crimes" as of 19 February 2019. Of these, 26 are in detention, 28 under house arrest and 42 under travel restrictions....

Опубликовано: 20.02.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia - "6-year jail sentence for believing in God"

After 74 hearings over one year, an Oryol court jailed Jehovah's Witness Dennis Christensen for six years for organising a "banned extremist organisation", the first Jehovah's Witness in post-Soviet Russia sentenced to imprisonment. "We will continue to fight...

Опубликовано: 06.02.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Joint statement on the freedom to religion or belief in Russia (by the members of the NGO coalition Civic Solidarity Platform)

We, the members of the NGO coalition Civic Solidarity Platform, express our deep concern for the deprivation of the right to freedom of religion or belief towards Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia and the persecution of the Community members....

Опубликовано: 29.01.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Crimea: Four years' jail for mosque meetings

Crimea's Supreme Court jailed 49-year-old Muslim Renat Suleimanov for four years for meeting with others in mosques to discuss their faith. Three others were given suspended sentences. All were accused of membership of the Tabligh Jamaat missionary movement,...

Опубликовано: 25.01.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: IOTA’s Inaugural Conference is the largest International Gathering of Orthodox Scholars in Modern History. Press release

The Holy and Great Council of Crete in 2016 demonstrated that pan-Orthodox gatherings are possible in our time. In response to the call of the conciliar spirit, and with the blessing of the Church leadership, the International Orthodox...

Опубликовано: 15.01.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Nativity Encyclical of Metropolitan Gregory (Babunashvili) of Boston, the First-Hierarch of HOCNA

“Tell us, O Joseph, how is it thou bringest to Bethlehem, great with child, her whom thou hast received from the temple as a virgin? I have searched the Prophets, saith he, and have been instructed by an...

Опубликовано: 07.01.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Jehovah’s Witnesses Most Persecuted Religious Denomination In Russia In 2018. The Credo Portal analyzing

Moscow increased its repression of various religious groups at odds with the four traditional faiths of Russia, but the most persecuted in Russia in 2018 by far have been the Jehovah’s Witnesses, against whom at least 62 criminal...

Опубликовано: 05.01.2019

ENGLISH VERSION: Belarus: Order not to register new religious communities?

"We want to comply with the law and gather for religious meetings without fear of raids, fines or detentions," says Pastor Vyacheslav Novakovsky of Your Will Be Done Church. A Minsk official involved in the four registration rejections...

Опубликовано: 12.12.2018

Российское Палестинское общество открывает отделение в Стамбуле, не считаясь с мнением Патриарха Варфоломея

Императорское православное палестинское общество (ИППО) (РФ) собирается учредить свое отделение в Стамбуле, несмотря на отказ Константинопольского Патриарха Варфоломея благословить это начинание, сообщает 7 декабря "Интерфакс" со ссылкой на главу ИППО Сергея Степашина. "Мы будем продолжать по линии ИППО...

Опубликовано: 07.12.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Communique of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (November 29, 2018)

The Holy and Sacred Synod convened under the chairmanship of His All-Holiness for its regular sessions from Tuesday, November 27, to Thursday, November 29, 2018. During its sessions, it examined all of the items on the agenda, upon...

Опубликовано: 29.11.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Uzbekistan: Military raids Baptists, Church ordered closed

For the first time Uzbekistan's military has raided Tashkent Baptists meeting for worship. Asked why the military were involved, officials said "it is a special operation". Police threatened Baptists they "will come every Sunday and disrupt the Church...

Опубликовано: 29.11.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Donbas - Donetsk: Jehovah's Witnesses banned

On 26 September, the Supreme Court of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, an unrecognised entity in eastern Ukraine, banned Jehovah's Witnesses entirely. The ban - which cannot be challenged - followed several Supreme Court decisions declaring their literature and international website "extremist"....

Опубликовано: 09.11.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Filaret: Part of the solution or source of the problem? Comment by Andreas Loudaros

History has shown that all visionaries share a common trait. On most occasions, they have sacrificed themselves in order to see their vision, their dream, become a reality. Looking now at Metropolitan Filaret—who just recently had a heavy...

Опубликовано: 01.11.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Joint Statement of the Serbian and Antiochian Orthodox Patriarchates

This historical visit, the first since Antiochian Orthodox Patriarch THEODOSIOS VI (Abou-Rjaili) visited Belgrade, was made in the context of the difficult and painful circumstances that are facing the Antiochian Orthodox Church in Syria, Lebanon and the Middle...

Опубликовано: 22.10.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: What Really Happened in Constantinople Last Week - by fr. Cyril Hovorun

Last week Ukraine’s Orthodox Church got confirmation that it will likely receive the independence from Moscow that it has long sought. The issue is complex, and the terminology foreign to most readers. The issue of the Ukrainian church...

Опубликовано: 18.10.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Announcement from the Ecumenical Patriarchate

Presided by His All-Holiness, the Ecumenical Patriarch, the Holy and Sacred Synod convened for its regular session from October 9 to 11, 2018, in order to examine and discuss items on its agenda. The Holy Synod discussed in...

Опубликовано: 11.10.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Regarding the granting of autocephaly to the Church of Ukraine. Press release from the Press-Office of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

At its formal session on April 20, 2018, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople voted to proceed with taking the necessary steps for granting autocephaly to the...

Опубликовано: 29.09.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Archbishop Job (Getcha) of Telmessos. "Ukraine Has Always Been the Canonical Territory of the Ecumenical Patriarchate"

The dialogue regarding the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople granting autocephaly to the Ukrainian Church and the appointment of its exarchs to Ukraine for this purpose, has resulted in opposition from the Moscow Patriarchate and their break in concelebrating...

Опубликовано: 29.09.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Preparations for independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church cause tensions

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church seems on the verge of achieving independent status, a development straining ties between the Patriarchs of Constantinople and Moscow. Earlier this month, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople dispatched two envoys to meet with...

Опубликовано: 27.09.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: "The Ecumenical Patriarchate has appointed as its Exarchs in Kiev Archbishop Daniel of Pamphilon and Bishop Ilarion of Edmonton. Statement of the Chief Secretariat of the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate

Within the framework of the preparations for the granting of autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has appointed as its Exarchs in Kiev His Excellency Archbishop Daniel of Pamphilon from the United States, and...

Опубликовано: 07.09.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia: 53 Jehovah`s Witnesses facing criminal prosecution - list

More than 50 Jehovah's Witnesses are now facing criminal prosecution for exercising their right to freedom of religion and belief. Law enforcement agencies carried out yet more armed raids, searches, and arrests in a further five Russian regions...

Опубликовано: 12.07.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia: longest known prison term for religious study

A Muslim in Dagestan has received the longest yet known prison term for meeting to read the works of late Turkish theologian Said Nursi. Ilgar Aliyev was sentenced on 28 May to six years' jail and two following...

Опубликовано: 08.06.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: "Especially the Ukrainian Orthodox Nation...". Communique of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumanical Patriarchate, April 22

The Holy and Sacred Synod, under the chairmanship of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, concluded its regular session, which took place between Thursday, April 19th, and Friday, April 20th. All the items on the agenda were reviewed and...

Опубликовано: 22.04.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Metropolatan Hilarion proposed as bishop for Moscow Patriarchate Old Believers

Executive Director of the St. Gregory the Theologian Foundation and permanent member of the Committee for Old Believer Parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate Leonid Sevastianov has proposed Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Volokolamsk, the Chairman of the Department for...

Опубликовано: 02.02.2018

ENGLISH VERSION: Reply to a defamatory article against the Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church (ROAC) and Holy Orthodox Church in North America

On December 11, 2017, "Vladimirskie Vedomosti," the official publication of the Administration and the Legislative Assembly of Vladimir Province in Russia, published a defamatory article entitled, rather confusedly, "A Lie about True Orthodoxy", against the Russian Orthodox Autonomous...

Опубликовано: 22.12.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: “The rejection of heresy is not done by ignoring it, but by condemning it". Interview with the First Hierarch of the Holy Orthodox Church in North America (HOCNA), Metropolitan Gregory of Boston

"Portal-Credo.Ru": Please briefly tell us about the Holy Orthodox Church in North America. How many parishes are under it now, how many bishops and priests does it have, and what is it like in its external aspect? Metropolitan...

Опубликовано: 12.12.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: An Appeal From Portal-Credo.Ru to Its Readers

Dear Readers, Our website recently marked its fifteenth birthday. Its design, which has hardly changed over these years, has become outdated. Reading it on mobile devices is not easy. Our software, which now runs with major errors, is...

Опубликовано: 18.07.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: The smallest Orthodox Church in Europe converted into a "test-ground" for Ankara"s political technologies

But anyway, he has no time to relax: the hype in liberal circles about violation of human rights in Turkey grows bigger while the voters are expecting to see the results of the given promises. Supporters (51,4%) want...

Опубликовано: 03.07.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Ten Years of Illegal Detention of Patriarch Abune Antonios of Eritrea

May 2017 marked the tenth year of illegal detention of the Canonical Patriarch Abune Antonios of Eritrea. His Holiness Abune Antonios is the 3rd Patriarch of the ancient Eritrean Orthodox Church. The OCP Secretariat news briefing stated that...

Опубликовано: 14.06.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Resolutions of the Russian Greek-Catholic Church Congress held at San Felice del Benaco, Italy, June 6-9, 2017

Following in the steps of our pioneering and saintly Fathers at the Synod of Petrograd 1917 (the centenary of which falls today), and at the Congresses of 1930, 1933, 1950 and 1970; Heeding the words of Pope Benedict...

Опубликовано: 13.06.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: The Russian Greek Catholic Global Congress. Press Release # 2

The Russian Greek Catholic Global Congress took place in San Felice del Benaco, Italy, from 6th to 9th of June 2017. The Congress marked the centennial anniversary of the first Synod of the Russian Greek Catholic Church in...

Опубликовано: 10.06.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: The Greeting Epistle of Bishop Gregory (Lourie) to the Congress of the Russian Byzantine Catholics in San Felice del Benaco

Dear Co-brothers, In the nineteenth century, when the Russian Catholicism became a significant religious phenomenon, the Orthodox were highly perplexed. However, the main reason of this perplexing was the fact that the Orthodox did not recognise well themselves....

Опубликовано: 07.06.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Congress of the Russian Byzantine Catholic Church is opening. Press Release # 1

The original spelling is preserved Meeting together in plenary session for the first time after 100 years, clergy and laity of the Russian Byzantine Catholic Church from 5 continents join in congress today at the Sanctuario della Madonna...

Опубликовано: 06.06.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Jousting with Jehovah: Russia bans American church. U.S.-based religious organization, which has about 8 million followers worldwide. On April 20, it was labelled an extremist organization by Russia,s Ministry of Justice

Russian authorities never had warm feelings towards Jehovah’s Witnesses. A different interpretation of numerous Scripture passages is one of the things setting them apart from the Russian Orthodox Church. At best, during the past century Jehovah’s Witnesses were...

Опубликовано: 24.04.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew visits deposed Patriarch Irenaios of Jerusalem

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew visited the deposed Patriarch Irenaios of Jerusalem for the first time during his visit to Jerusalem March 22. Bartholomew arrived in Jerusalem to attend the consecration of the newly-renovated Edicule over the Tomb of the...

Опубликовано: 24.03.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia: alleged "missionary activity" prosecutions continue

Prosecutions are continuing across Russia under severe restrictions on sharing beliefs (commonly and misleadingly called the "law on missionary activity") which came into force in July 2016. The first known deportation of a foreigner for allegedly violating the...

Опубликовано: 02.03.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Patriarch Theodoros of Alexandria performs first consecration of deaconesses

On the feast of the Saint and Great Martyr Theodore of Tyre, 17 February 2016, the day on which His Beatitude Theodoros II, Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa celebrates his name day, a festive Divine...

Опубликовано: 23.02.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia: ten years imprisonment for religious meetings? Cases in Blagoveshchensk and in Moscow region

Thirteen months after his December 2015 arrest by the FSB security service, the trial of 42-year-old Muslim Yevgeny Kim began yesterday (25 January) in Blagoveshchensk in the Far Eastern Amur Region, Forum 18 has learned. Kim is charged...

Опубликовано: 26.01.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Kazachstan: new controls on religious travel and literature. "Anti-terrorism" legal amendments signed in December 2016 introduce new controls over religious travel abroad

New restrictions on foreign religious travel and more explicit provisions banning and punishing the production or distribution of literature about religion in Kazakhstan without undergoing the compulsory state censorship come into force in early January, Forum 18 notes....

Опубликовано: 05.01.2017

ENGLISH VERSION: Russia: Inconsistency of "anti-missionary" punishments

As prosecutions continue across Russia under punishments for sharing of beliefs (commonly called the "law on missionary activity") which came into force in July, confusion and inconsistency persist. A wide range of incidents has resulted in charges against...

Опубликовано: 21.12.2016