Communities of the Russian Orthodox Church in different countries of the world pray for victims of terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall
DECR Communication Service, 24.03.2024.
Prayers for those killed in terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk near Moscow and for the health of the injured are offered up at the Representations of the Russian Orthodox Church to the Local Orthodox Churches and in the parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate located in foreign countries on different continents.
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On Saturday, March 23, archimandrite Philip (Vasiltsev), representative of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' to the Patriarchal Throne of Antioch, celebrated the Divine Liturgy and the memorial service in the church of St. Ignatius the God-Bearer – the Representation of the Russian Orthodox Church in Damascus, Syria.
On March 24, parishioners of the Metochion of the Russian Orthodox Church in Lebanon prayed during Matins and the Liturgy at the church of the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary in Jal el Dib. Archimandrite Philip celebrated the office sung on the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy and the memorial service for all the victims of the terrorist attack. Attending the services was Mr. Rodrigue El-Khoury, a representative of the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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On March 23, archimandrite Vassian (Zmeyev), head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem, Israel, celebrated the litany for the innocent victims of the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall on March 22. Concelebrating with him at the mission church of St. Elijah in Haifa were archpriest Miroslav Vitiv, a sacristan, and hieromonk Tikhon (Proyaev) and deacon Makary Petukhov, clergymen of the Mission.
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On March 23, parishioners gathered at the church of the Holy Trinity – the Metochion of the Russian Orthodox Church in Belgrade, Serbia, to pray for those who had lost their lives at the hands of the terrorists at a concert hall in the Moscow region. The requiem service was celebrated by archpriest Vitaly Tarasjev, rector of the church and representative of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' to the Patriarch of Serbia. Archpriest Vitaly called all the worshippers to pray for the killed and injured innocent people.
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On March 23, the commemoration day of the Holy Great Martyr Theodore Tyron, prayers for the victims of the terrorist attack were offered up during Divine Liturgy at the litany for the dead celebrated at the Metochion of the Russian Orthodox Church in Sofia, Bulgaria.
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On March 24, the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, Patriarchal Exarch of Southeast Asia celebrated the Liturgy at St. Vladimir’s church in Bekasi, Indonesia. During the service, the archpastor said special prayers for the recovery of the injured and for the repose of the innocents killed in terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk.
Fervent supplications were offered up in all the churches in the Diocese of Singapore that includes Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia.
At the end of the service, the office of the Triumph of Orthodoxy was celebrated.
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On March 23, Metropolitan Nestor of Chersonesus and Western Europe, Patriarchal Exarch of Western Europe and administrator of the Spanish-Portuguese diocese, celebrated the litany for the dead at the Cathedral of St. Mary Magdalene in Madrid, Spain, in commemoration of all the innocents killed in monstrous terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall.
On the same day, the Divine Liturgy and memorial service were celebrated at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Paris, France, after which clergy and parishioners offered special prayers for the repose of all those tragically killed in terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk near Moscow and for the recovery of the injured.
Also, Metropolitan Nestor gave his blessing to the archpastors and clergy of the Patriarchal Exarchate of Western Europe to celebrate memorial services for the victims of the terrorist attack in all churches and parishes of the Exarchate on March 23 or 24. “Compassion, mercy, our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, who has suffered for us and is suffering with us, and our common prayer is the answer to this truly satanic and needless cruelty and inhuman barbarism,” Metropolitan Nestor said.
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On March 24, special prayers and petitions were offered up during the Sunday Divine Liturgy in all parishes of the Diocese of Sourozh for the health of “all victims of the terrorist attack in Krasnogorsk and for the repose of the innocent servants of God.” According to the diocesan website, “Bishop Matthew of Sourozh shares with the plenitude of the Russian Orthodox Church the grief of the relatives and friends of the innocent victims and offers up special prayers for the health of all injured at the Crocus City Hall on March 22.”
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On Saturday, March 23, Metropolitan Hilarion of Budapest and Hungary celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the church of the Holy Martyr Alexandra in Üröm, Hungary, during which he offered up prayers for the victims of the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall. At the end of the service, the archpastor expressed condolences over victims of this horrific crime and called for augmented prayers for the repose of the dead and the recovery of the injured.
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On March 23, Archbishop Tikhon of Ruza, administrator of the Diocese of Berlin and Germany, celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Resurrection of Christ Cathedral in Berlin, the Federal Republic of Germany. At the litany for the dead the worshippers prayed “for the innocent servants of God” killed in terrorist attack committed the day before in Krasnogorsk near Moscow. The death toll stands at over one hundred.
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On March 23 and 24, memorial services were celebrated in churches and communities of the Russian Orthodox Church in Turkey for the victims of the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall.
Rev. Georgy Sergeyev, who is taking care of the Moscow Patriarchate faithful in the Republic of Turkey, took part in the flower-laying ceremony at the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in the Black Sea region of Turkey. Attending the commemorative ceremony that was held after the meeting of the Coordinating Council of Organizations of Russian Compatriots in Trabzon were also Mr. Alexei Yu. Ivanov, Minister Counselor of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Ankara, Mr. Alexander A. Sotnichenko, head of the Russian House in Ankara, other Russian diplomats, and the chairmen of organizations of Russian compatriots in Turkey.
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Citizens of Russia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Uzbekistan, and the United States residing in the Chinese capital gathered for the memorial service for the victims of the terrorist attack. It was celebrated at the church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God located within the walls of the Russian Embassy in Beijing, China, by hieromonk Innokenty (Kolesnikov), rector of the church.
“It was with tremendous grief and aching heart that people received word of the atrocity in Moscow. There is no name for this crime in human language and nothing can justify it. Since yesterday we have been praying for the recovery of the injured and for the repose of everyone killed in terrorist attack. Now, brothers and sisters, let us offer up our prayers to the Lord for the rest of the souls of His newly departed servants,” hieromonk Innokenty said.
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On Saturday, the memorial service was celebrated after the Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York for the repose of Orthodox Christians killed in terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall on March 22.
Archpriest Igor Vyzhanov, rector of the cathedral, said in his sermon that the tragedy caused him acute pain as he is a Muscovite and his place of residence in Moscow is not far from the Crocus City Hall. Fr Igor emphasized that it was not for the first time that the capital of Russia had become the target of terrorists gripped by the demonic power of evil. He added that he had miraculously escaped death from explosion committed in the underpass at the Pushkinskaya metro station in Moscow on August 8, 2000.
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On March 23, archimandrite Alexander (Zarkeshev), rector the church of St. Philip the Apostle in Sharjah, the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the memorial service for all the innocents killed in terrorist attack in Krasnogorsk near Moscow.
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On Sunday, the Liturgy in the church of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity on Phuket island, Thailand, was celebrated by archimandrite Oleg (Cherepanin), secretary of the Thai diocese. It is in all churches of the Russian Orthodox Church that the faithful pray on this day for those killed and injured in terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall. Augmented prayers during the Liturgy were offered up in all parishes of the Thai diocese that includes Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.
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On March 24, memorial services were celebrated in the parishes of the Philippine-Vietnamese Diocese for the innocent people killed in terrorist attack in Krasnogorsk. Prayers were offered up in all churches of the diocese for the speedy recovery of all the injured. Orthodox citizens of the Philippines deeply empathize with the victims of the tragedy, praying also for the rest of the souls of the departed and for consolation of their near and dear. The faithful of the diocese extend profound condolences to their Russian brothers and sisters in Christ.
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On March 24, the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, Rev. Joseph Kimeli, rector of the parish of St. Stylianos of Paphlagonia, Nandi deanery in Kenya, celebrated the Divine Liturgy, during which the worshippers offered up zealous prayers for peace in Russia and Kenya. At the end of the service, the office of the Triumph of Orthodoxy was celebrated, after which a procession with holy icons took place.
After that, the priest prayed for the repose of the souls of those killed and for the health of those injured in terrorist attack in Russia. Also, prayers were said for the road traffic accidents victims in Kenya.