DECR Chairman Meets the Abbot Primate and Members of the Benedictine Confederation Delegation

DECR Communication service, 01.07.2026.

On the 1st of July 2026, a meeting took place at the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate between the DECR Chairman, Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, and a delegation of abbots and monastics representing the Benedictine Confederation of the Roman Catholic Church.

The delegation is visiting Russia from 30 June to 3 July to become acquainted with the monastic life of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Representing the Benedictine Confederation were Abbot Primate Jeremias Schröder, Abbot of Saint Anselm's Abbey in Rome and head of the delegation; Archabbot Ciril Hortobágyi, President of the Hungarian Benedictine Congregation and Archabbot of Pannonhalma Archabbey (Hungary); Archabbot Luca Fallica, Archabbot of Monte Cassino Abbey (Italy); Abbot Urban Federer, Abbot of Einsiedeln Abbey (Switzerland); Abbess Noemi Scarpa, Abbess of the Abbey of Bastia Umbra (Italy); Fr Adalberto Piovano, priest of the Abbey of Dumenza (Italy); Fr Sebastian Hacker, priest of Schottenstift Abbey (Austria); Sr Manuela Scheiba, Professor at the Pontifical University of Saint Anselm and a nun of Alexanderdorf Monastery (Germany); and Sr Rafaela Kołodziejak, a nun of the Benedictine Monastery of Perpetual Adoration in Vienna (Austria).

Representing the Department for External Church Relations were Hieromonk Stefan (Igumnov), DECR Secretary for Inter-Christian Relations, and Deacon Alexander Cherepenin, a DECR staff member. Also present at the meeting were Hieromonk Sergiy (Filippov), rector of the St John the Baptist Metochion of the Novospassky Monastery in the village of Sumarokovo, and Hieromonk Philothey (Artyushin), Associate Professor at the Moscow Theological Academy.

Metropolitan Anthony welcomed the guests to Moscow and noted the significance of the visit by representatives of one of the most ancient monastic traditions of the Christian West. According to the DECR Chairman, throughout the centuries monasticism has served as a guardian of the life of prayer, the Church's sacred tradition, the liturgical heritage, literary culture, and education.

During the meeting, the participants emphasized the significance of the forthcoming commemoration of the 1,500th anniversary of the repose of Saint Benedict of Nursia. They noted that Saint Benedict is venerated in the Russian Orthodox Church as a saint of the undivided ancient Church. His Rule, which unites obedience, prayer, and labour, is of particular value for monastics and forms part of the common spiritual heritage of the Christian East and West.

The parties also discussed prospects for the exchange of monastic experience and for academic cooperation.

The Benedictine Confederation (Confederatio Benedictina Ordinis Sancti Benedicti) is an association of the Benedictine congregations of the Roman Catholic Church, established in 1893 by Pope Leo XIII. The Confederation performs coordinating and representative functions while preserving the autonomy of individual monasteries, which is a defining characteristic of the Benedictine tradition. Its permanent institutional centre is the Sant'Anselmo complex in Rome, which houses the Curia of the Abbot Primate, the Pontifical Athenaeum of Saint Anselm, and other institutions serving the Benedictine Order. The Confederation includes all monasteries belonging to the Benedictine tradition, including the abbeys of Monte Cassino, Subiaco, Pannonhalma, and others. It comprises more than 6,000 monks and over 12,000 nuns.

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DECR Chairman Meets the Abbot Primate and Members of the Benedictine Confederation Delegation

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Department Chairman

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Patriarch

Department Chairman

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