Patriarch Alexy II was married. Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II. Biography Alexy 2 Patriarch biography children

Childhood years (1929 - late 30s)

His Holiness His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia is the fifteenth Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church since the introduction of the Patriarchate in Russia (1589). Patriarch Alexy (in the world - Alexei Mikhailovich Ridiger) was born on February 23, 1929 in the city of Tallinn (Estonia) into a deeply religious family.

The father of Patriarch Alexy, Mikhail Alexandrovich Ridiger (+1962), a native of St. Petersburg, came from an old St. Petersburg family, whose representatives passed the glorious field of military and public service (among them was Adjutant General Count Fyodor Vasilyevich Ridiger - a hero of the Patriotic War of 1812).

Mikhail Alexandrovich studied at the School of Law, graduated from the gymnasium in exile in Estonia. The mother of His Holiness the Patriarch is Elena Iosifovna Pisareva (+1959), a native of Revel (Tallinn). In pre-war Europe, the life of the Russian emigration was poor, but material poverty did not interfere with the flourishing of cultural life.

Emigrant youth was distinguished by a high spiritual attitude. A huge role belonged to the Orthodox Church. The activity of the Church in the life of the Russian diaspora was high, as never before in Russia.

The religious community in the Russian diaspora has created an invaluable experience for Russia in the churching of various forms of cultural activity and social service. The Russian Student Christian Movement (RSKhD) was actively working among the youth. The movement had as its main goal the unification of believing youth for the service of the Orthodox Church, its task was to train the defenders of the Church and the faith, and affirmed the inseparability of genuine Russian culture from Orthodoxy.

In Estonia, the Movement operated on a large scale. As part of his activities, parish life actively developed. Russian Orthodox people willingly participated in the activities of the Movement. Among them was the father of the future His Holiness Patriarch.

From a young age, Mikhail Alexandrovich aspired to priestly service, but only after completing theological courses in Revel in 1940 was he ordained a deacon, and then a priest. For 16 years he was the rector of the Tallinn Nativity of the Mother of God of the Kazan Church, was a member, and later the chairman of the diocesan council.

In the family of the future Primate, the spirit of Russian Orthodox Churchness reigned, when life is inseparable from the temple of God and the family is truly a home church. For Alyosha Ridiger, there was no question of choosing a life path.

His first conscious steps were taken in church, when, as a six-year-old boy, he performed his first obedience—pouring baptismal water. Even then, he firmly knew that he would become only a priest. At the age of eight or nine he knew the Liturgy by heart and his favorite game was to serve.

Parents were embarrassed by this and even turned to the Valaam elders about this, but they were told that if everything is done seriously by a boy, then there is no need to interfere. Most of the Russians living in Estonia at that time were not essentially emigrants. Being natives of this region, they ended up abroad without leaving their homeland.

The peculiarity of the Russian emigration in Estonia was largely determined by the compact residence of Russians in the east of the country. Russian exiles scattered all over the world sought to visit here. By the grace of God, they found here a "corner of Russia", which contained the great Russian shrine - the Pskov-Caves Monastery, which, being outside the USSR at that time, was inaccessible to the godless authorities.

Annually making pilgrimages to the Pyukhtitsky Holy Dormition Convent for Women and the Pskov Caves Holy Dormition Monastery for men, the parents of the future His Holiness Patriarch took the boy with them.

In the late 1930s, together with their son, they made two pilgrimage trips to the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Valaam Monastery on Lake Ladoga. For the rest of his life, the boy remembered meetings with the inhabitants of the monastery - the spirit-bearing elders Sheikhumen John (Alekseev, +1958), Hieroschemamonk Ephraim (Khrobostov, +1947) and especially with the monk Iuvian (Krasnoperov, +1957), with whom a correspondence began and who received the youth in my heart.

Here is a short fragment from his letter to Alyosha Ridiger: Dear in the Lord, dear Alyoshenka! I sincerely thank you, my dear, for your greetings on the feast of the Nativity of Christ and the New Year, as well as for your good wishes. May the Lord God save you for all these spiritual gifts.<...>

If the Lord would vouchsafe all of you to come to us for Pascha, this would increase our Paschal joy. Let's hope that the Lord, in His great mercy, will do it. We also remember all of you with love: for us, you are like our own, kindred in spirit. Forgive me, dear Alyoshenka! Be healthy! May the Lord keep you! In your pure childish prayer, remember me, the unworthy one. Sincerely loving you in the Lord m. Juvian.

Thus, at the very beginning of his conscious life, the future First Hierarch touched with his soul the pure spring of Russian holiness, “the wondrous island of Valaam.”

Through the monk Juvian, a spiritual thread connects our Patriarch with the Guardian Angel of Russia, St. John of Kronstadt. It was with the blessing of this great lamp of the earth that the Russian father Iuvian became a Valaam monk, and of course he told the boy Alyosha, dear to his heart, about the great shepherd.

This connection reminded of itself half a century later - the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1990, which elected His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, glorified the righteous John of Kronstadt among the saints.

Youth. Study, early ministry (late 30s - late 50s)

The path that the saints of the Russian land have traveled for centuries - the path of pastoral service, originating from the churched childhood in Christ - was banned under the Soviet regime.

The Providence of God for our current Primate built his life from birth in such a way that life in Soviet Russia was preceded by childhood and adolescence in old Russia (as far as it was then possible), and the young, but in spirit mature and courageous warrior of Christ met with Soviet reality.

From early childhood, Alexey Ridiger served in the church. His spiritual father was Archpriest John the Epiphany, later Bishop Isidor of Tallinn and Estonia (+1949). From the age of fifteen, Alexy was a subdeacon of the Archbishop of Tallinn and Estonia, Pavel (Dmitrovsky; +1946), and then of Bishop Isidore. He studied at a Russian high school in Tallinn.

His Holiness the Patriarch recalls that he always had a five according to the Law of God. The family was his fortress and support both in choosing the path and throughout the entire priestly service. Not only the bonds of kinship, but also the bonds of spiritual friendship connected him with his parents, they shared all the experiences with each other ...

In 1936, the Tallinn Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, whose parishioners were the parents of the future Primate, was transferred to the Estonian parish. The history of this temple is long-suffering: immediately after the proclamation of the Republic of Estonia in 1918, a campaign began to liquidate the cathedral - they collected money "for the demolition of churches with Russian golden onions and booths of Russian Gods" (Orthodox chapels) even in children's schools.

But the destruction of the cathedral was opposed by the public, Russian and international, as well as the Red Cross. Then a new wave arose: to demolish the domes of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, put up a spire and create a “pantheon of Estonian independence” there. Illustrations were published in an architectural magazine: a view of the city without "Russian bulbs", but with the "pantheon of Estonian independence".

These illustrations were preserved by the future His Holiness Patriarch Alexy and at one time were useful for saving the cathedral, when the authorities of already Soviet Estonia set out to convert the temple into a planetarium (the demonstration of the intentions of the bourgeois authorities regarding the use of the cathedral discouraged the Soviet rulers).

In 1936, the gilding was removed from the domes. In this form, the cathedral existed until the war. In 1945, subdeacon Alexy was instructed to prepare for the opening of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in the city of Tallinn for the resumption of divine services in it (the cathedral was closed during the military occupation period).

From May 1945 to October 1946 he was the altar boy and sacristan of the cathedral. Since 1946, he served as a psalmist in Simeonovskaya, and since 1947 - in the Kazan churches of Tallinn. In 1946, Alexy Ridiger passed the exams to the St. Petersburg (Leningrad) Theological Seminary, but was not accepted, because at that time he was not yet eighteen years old.

The following year, 1947, he was enrolled immediately in the 3rd year of the seminary, from which he graduated in the first category in 1949. Being in his first year at the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, on April 15, 1950, he was ordained a deacon, and on April 17, 1950, a priest and was appointed rector of the Epiphany Church in the city of Johvi, Tallinn diocese.

For more than three years, he combined the ministry of the parish priest with correspondence studies at the academy. In 1953, Father Alexy graduated from the Theological Academy in the first category and was awarded the degree of Candidate of Theology for his term paper “Metropolitan of Moscow Filaret (Drozdov) as a dogmatist.”

On July 15, 1957, Father Alexy was appointed rector of the Dormition Cathedral in the city of Tartu (Yuriev) and during the year combined his ministry in two churches. He served in Tartu for four years.

Tartu is a university city, quiet in the summer and lively in the winter when students arrive. His Holiness the Patriarch kept a good memory of the old Yuryev university intelligentsia, who actively participated in church life. It was a living connection with old Russia. On August 17, 1958, Father Alexy was elevated to the rank of archpriest.

In 1959, on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, the mother of His Holiness the Patriarch died. She had a difficult cross in her life - to be the wife and mother of a priest in an atheistic state. Prayer was a reliable refuge and consolation - every day Elena Iosifovna read an akathist in front of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow." Mother Elena Iosifovna was buried in Tartu, and buried in Tallinn, at the Alexander Nevsky cemetery - the resting place of several generations of her ancestors. Father and son were left alone.

episcopal ministry

On March 3, 1961, in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, Archpriest Alexy Ridiger took monastic vows. Soon, by the decision of the Holy Synod of August 14, 1961, Hieromonk Alexy was determined to become the bishop of Tallinn and Estonia with the assignment of temporary administration of the Riga diocese.

On August 21, 1961, Hieromonk Alexy was elevated to the rank of archimandrite. On September 3, 1961, Archimandrite Alexy (Ridiger) was consecrated as Bishop of Tallinn and Estonia, temporarily administrator of the Diocese of Riga.

It was a difficult time - the height of Khrushchev's persecution. The Soviet leader, trying to revive the revolutionary spirit of the twenties, demanded the literal implementation of the anti-religious legislation of 1929. It seemed that the pre-war times had returned with their "five-year plan of godlessness." It is true that the new persecution of Orthodoxy was not bloody—the ministers of the Church and the Orthodox laity were not exterminated as before, but the newspapers, radio, and television spewed streams of blasphemy and slander against the faith and the Church, while the authorities and the “public” persecuted and persecuted Christians. Across the country there was a massive closure of temples. The already small number of religious educational institutions has sharply decreased.

In February 1960, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy I, in his speech at the conference of the Soviet public for disarmament, addressed millions of Orthodox Christians over the heads of those gathered in the Kremlin. Calling on them to persevere in the face of new persecution, His Holiness the Patriarch said: “In such a state of the Church, there is much comfort for its faithful members, for what can all the efforts of the human mind against Christianity mean if its two thousand-year history speaks for itself, if hostile against Christ Himself foresaw his attacks and gave the promise of the unshakableness of the Church, saying that "the gates of hell will not prevail against her!"

In those difficult years for the Russian Church, the older generation of bishops who began their ministry in pre-revolutionary Russia left this world — confessors who went through Solovki and the hellish circles of the Gulag, archpastors who went into exile abroad and returned to their homeland after the war... They were replaced by a galaxy of young bishops, among whom was Bishop Alexy of Tallinn. These bishops, who did not see the Russian Church in power and glory, chose the path of serving the persecuted Church, which was under the yoke of a godless state. The authorities invented ever new methods of economic and police pressure on the Church, but the faithfulness of the Orthodox to Christ's commandment became an invincible fortress for her: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matt. 6:33).

On November 14, 1961, Bishop Alexy was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate. Already at the very beginning of his hierarchical service, the young bishop was faced with the decision of the local authorities to close and transfer the Pukhtitsky Assumption Monastery to a rest home. However, he managed to convince the Soviet authorities of the impossibility for the bishop to start the service with the closing of the monastery. At the beginning of 1962, already the deputy chairman of the DECR, Bishop Alexy brought a delegation of the Evangelical Church of Germany to the monastery. At that time, his father was lying with a heart attack, but the bishop had to accompany foreign guests - after all, it was about saving the monastery. Soon there were rave reviews about the Pühtitsky monastery in the newspaper Neue Zeit. Then there was another delegation, a third, a fourth, a fifth... And the question of closing the monastery was removed.

Recalling those years, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy says: “God alone knows how much each of the clergy who remained in Soviet Russia, and did not go abroad, had to endure... they were shot, but how much they had to endure, defending the interests of the Church, God and history will judge. During the 25 years of Vladyka Alexy's episcopal service in Estonia, with God's help, he managed to defend a lot. But then the enemy was known - he was alone. And the Church had ways of internal opposition to him.

Having ascended the Patriarchal Throne, His Holiness faced a completely different situation: in the modern complex world, with its social, political and national problems, the Church has many new enemies. On June 23, 1964, Bishop Alexy was elevated to the rank of archbishop and at the end of 1964 he was appointed manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate and became a permanent member of the Holy Synod.

His Holiness the Patriarch recalls: “For nine years I was close to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy I, whose personality left a deep impression on my soul. At that time, I held the post of Administrator of the Moscow Patriarchate, and His Holiness the Patriarch fully entrusted me with the solution of many internal issues. The hardest trials fell to his lot: revolution, persecution, repressions, then, under Khrushchev, new administrative persecutions and the closure of churches. The modesty of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, his nobility, high spirituality - all this had a huge impact on me. The last divine service that he performed shortly before his death was in 1970 at the Candlemas.

In the Patriarchal residence in Chisty Lane, after his departure, the Gospel was left, revealed in the words: "Now let Thy servant go, Lord, according to Thy word in peace ...".

From March 10, 1970 to September 1, 1986, he carried out the general management of the Pension Committee, whose task was to provide pensions for the clergy and other persons working in church organizations, as well as their widows and orphans. On June 18, 1971, in consideration of the diligent efforts to hold the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971, Metropolitan Alexy was awarded the right to wear a second panagia.

Metropolitan Alexy performed responsible functions as a member of the Commission for the preparation and holding of the celebration of the 50th anniversary (1968) and 60th anniversary (1978) of the restoration of the Patriarchate in the Russian Orthodox Church; a member of the Commission of the Holy Synod for the preparation of the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971, as well as the chairman of the procedural and organizational group, the chairman of the secretariat of the Local Council; since December 23, 1980, he has been deputy chairman of the Commission for the preparation and holding of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia and chairman of the organizational group of this commission, and since September 1986 - the theological group.

On May 25, 1983, he was appointed chairman of the Responsible Commission to develop measures for receiving the buildings of the Danilov Monastery ensemble, organizing and carrying out all restoration and construction work to create the Spiritual and Administrative Center of the Russian Orthodox Church on its territory. He stayed in this position until his appointment to the St. Petersburg (at that time - Leningrad) department.

In 1984, Bishop Alexy was awarded the title of Doctor of Theology. The three-volume work “Essays on the History of Orthodoxy in Estonia” was submitted by him for the degree of master of theology, but the LDA Academic Council unanimously decided that, since “the dissertation in terms of depth of research and the volume of material significantly exceeds the traditional criteria for a master’s work” and “on the eve of 1000 anniversary of the Baptism of Russia, this work can form a special chapter in the study of the history of the Russian Orthodox Church”, then the author deserves a higher academic degree than the one for which he submitted it.

“The dissertation is a comprehensive work on the history of Orthodoxy in Estonia, it contains a huge church historical material, the presentation and analysis of events meet the high criteria for doctoral dissertations,” was the conclusion of the Council. On April 12, 1984, a solemn act of presenting the Doctor's Cross to Metropolitan Alexy of Tallinn and Estonia took place.

At the Leningrad department

On June 29, 1986, Vladyka Alexy was appointed Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod with instructions to govern the Tallinn diocese. Thus began another era in his life.

The reign of the new bishop became a turning point for the church life of the northern capital. At first, he was faced with a complete disregard for the Church by the city authorities, he was not even allowed to pay a visit to the chairman of the Leningrad City Council - the representative of the Council for Religious Affairs stated harshly: “This has never happened in Leningrad and cannot be.” But a year later, the same chairman, at a meeting with Metropolitan Alexy, said: "The doors of the Leningrad Council are open for you day and night." Soon, representatives of the authorities themselves began to come to see the ruling bishop - this was how the Soviet stereotype was broken. Since January 24, 1990, Vladyka Alexy has been a member of the board of the Soviet Charity and Health Foundation; Since February 8, 1990, he has been a member of the Presidium of the Leningrad Cultural Foundation.

From the Charity and Health Foundation in 1989 he was elected a people's deputy of the USSR. During the administration of the St. Petersburg diocese, Vladyka Alexy managed to do a lot: the chapel of Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg at the Smolensk cemetery, and the St. John Monastery on Karpovka were restored and consecrated.

During the tenure of His Holiness the Patriarch as Metropolitan of Leningrad, the canonization of Blessed Xenia of Petersburg took place, churches, churches and monasteries began to return, in particular, the holy relics of the Right-Believing Prince Alexander Nevsky, St. Zosima, Savvaty and Herman of Solovetsky were returned.

Activities in the international field

During all the years of his hierarchal service, the future His Holiness Patriarch Alexy took an active part in the activities of many international organizations and conferences.

As part of the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church, he participated in the III Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in New Delhi (1961); was elected a member of the Central Committee of the WCC (1961-1968); was president of the World Conference "Church and Society" (Geneva, Switzerland, 1966); member of the commission "Faith and order" of the WCC (1964-1968).

As the head of the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church, he participated in theological interviews with the delegation of the Evangelical Church in Germany "Arnoldshain-II" (Germany, 1962), in theological interviews with the delegation of the Union of Evangelical Churches in the GDR "Zagorsk-V" (Trinity-Sergius Lavra, 1984 ), in theological interviews with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland in Leningrad and the Pyukhtitsky Monastery (1989).

For more than a quarter of a century, Archbishop and Metropolitan Alexy has dedicated his writings to the activities of the Conference of European Churches (CEC). Since 1964 he has been one of the presidents (members of the presidium) of the CEC; was re-elected president at subsequent general assemblies. Since 1971, Metropolitan Alexy has been Vice-Chairman of the Presidium and Advisory Committee of the CEC. On March 26, 1987, he was elected chairman of the Presidium and Advisory Committee of the CEC. At the VIII General Assembly of the CEC in Crete in 1979, Metropolitan Alexy was the keynote speaker on the theme "In the power of the Holy Spirit to serve the world." Since 1972, Metropolitan Alexy has been a member of the Joint Committee of the CEC and the Council of Bishops' Conferences of Europe (SECE) of the Roman Catholic Church. On May 15-21, 1989, in Basel, Switzerland, Metropolitan Alexy was co-chairman of the First European Ecumenical Assembly on the theme "Peace and Justice", organized by CEC and SEKE. In September 1992, at the Tenth General Assembly of the CEC, the term of office of Patriarch Alexy II as chairman of the CEC expired. His Holiness spoke at the Second European Ecumenical Assembly in Graz (Austria) in 1997.

Metropolitan Alexy was the initiator and chairman of four seminars of the Churches of the Soviet Union - members of the CEC and the Churches that maintain cooperation with this regional Christian organization. Seminars were held at the Assumption Pyukhtitsky Convent in 1982, 1984, 1986 and 1989.

Metropolitan Alexy took an active part in the work of international and domestic peacekeeping public organizations. Since 1963 - a member of the board of the Soviet Peace Fund, a member of the founding meeting of the Rodina society, at which he was elected a member of the society's council on December 15, 1975; re-elected on May 27, 1981 and December 10, 1987.

On October 24, 1980, at the V All-Union Conference of the Society of Soviet-Indian Friendship, he was elected vice-president of this Society.

Delegate of the World Christian Conference "Life and Peace" (April 20-24, 1983, Uppsala, Sweden). Elected at this conference as one of its presidents.

It was up to the future First Hierarch in his Patriarchal ministry to revive church life already on an all-Russian scale.

On May 3, 1990, His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Pimen reposed in the Lord. An extraordinary Local Council was convened to elect a new Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church. On June 7, 1990, the bell of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra announced the election of the fifteenth All-Russian Patriarch. The enthronement of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy took place on June 10, 1990 at the Epiphany Cathedral in Moscow.

The return of the Church to broad public service is largely the merit of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II. Truly providential events followed one after another: the discovery of the relics of St. Seraphim of Sarov, their solemn transfer to Diveevo, when, according to the saint’s prediction, Easter was sung in the middle of summer; finding the relics of St. Joasaph of Belgorod and returning them to Belgorod, finding the relics of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon and solemnly transferring them to the Great Cathedral of the Donskoy Monastery, finding the relics of St. Philaret of Moscow and St. Maximus the Greek in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, finding the incorruptible relics of St. Alexander Svirsky.

These miraculous acquisitions testify that a new, amazing period has begun in the life of our Church, testify to the blessing of God on the service of Patriarch Alexy II.

As co-chairman, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy joined the Russian organizing committee for the preparations for the meeting of the third millennium and the celebration of the two millennium of Christianity (1998-2000). On the initiative and with the participation of His Holiness the Patriarch, an inter-confessional conference "Christian Faith and Human Enmity" was held (Moscow, 1994). His Holiness the Patriarch chaired the conference of the Christian Interfaith Consultative Committee “Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13:8). Christianity on the Threshold of the Third Millennium” (1999); Interreligious peacemaking forum (Moscow, 2000).

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy was Chairman of the Patriarchal Synodal Biblical Commission, Editor-in-Chief of the Orthodox Encyclopedia and Chairman of the Supervisory and Church Scientific Councils for the publication of the Orthodox Encyclopedia, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Charitable Foundation for Reconciliation and Harmony, and headed the Board of Trustees of the National Military Fund.

During the years of his hierarchal service in the rank of Metropolitan and Patriarch Alexy II visited many dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church and countries of the world, was a participant in many church events. Several hundred of his articles, speeches and works on theological, church-historical, peacemaking and other topics have been published in the ecclesiastical and secular press in Russia and abroad. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy headed the Councils of Bishops in 1992, 1994, 1997, 2000, 2004 and 2008, and invariably presided over the meetings of the Holy Synod.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy paid great attention to the training of clergy for the Russian Orthodox Church, the religious education of the laity, and the spiritual and moral education of the younger generation. To this end, with the blessing of His Holiness, theological seminaries, theological schools, and parochial schools are being opened; structures are being created for the development of religious education and catechesis. In 1995, the dispensation of church life made it possible to approach the reconstruction of the missionary structure.

His Holiness paid great attention to the establishment in Russia of new relations between the state and the Church. At the same time, he firmly adhered to the principle of separation between the mission of the Church and the functions of the state, non-interference in the internal affairs of each other. At the same time, he believed that the soul-saving service of the Church and the service of the state to society require mutually free interaction between church, state and public institutions.

After many years of persecution and restrictions, the Church was given back the opportunity to carry out not only catechism, religious, educational and educational activities in society, but also to carry out charity towards the poor and the ministry of mercy in hospitals, nursing homes and places of detention.

The pastoral approach of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy removed the tension between the institutions of the state system for the preservation of cultural monuments and the Church, which was caused by unjustified fears, narrowly corporate or personal interests. His Holiness signed a number of joint documents with the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the leadership of individual museum complexes located on the territory of church-historically and spiritually significant monasteries, which resolve these problems and give the monasteries a new life.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy called for close cooperation between representatives of all areas of secular and ecclesiastical culture. He constantly reminded of the need to revive morality and spiritual culture, to overcome artificial barriers between secular and religious culture, secular science and religion.

A number of joint documents signed by His Holiness laid the foundation for the development of cooperation between the Church and health care and social welfare systems, the Armed Forces, law enforcement agencies, justice, cultural institutions and other state structures. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, a coherent church system has been created for the care of military personnel and law enforcement officers.

In the course of political, social and economic reforms, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II constantly spoke about the priority of moral goals over all others, about the advantage of serving the good of society and a particular person in political and economic activities.

Continuing the tradition of Christian peacemaking service, during the socio-political crisis in Russia in the autumn of 1993, fraught with the threat of civil war, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia took on the mission of appeasing political passions, inviting the parties to the conflict to the negotiations and mediating these negotiations.

The Patriarch spoke with many peacekeeping initiatives in connection with the conflicts in the Balkans, the Armenian-Azerbaijani confrontation, military operations in Moldova, the events in the North Caucasus, the situation in the Middle East, the military operation against Iraq, the military conflict in South Ossetia in August 2008, and so on. Further.

During the time of the Patriarchal service, a large number of new dioceses were formed. Thus, many centers of spiritual and church-administrative leadership arose, located closer to parishes and helping to revive church life in remote regions.

As the ruling bishop of the city of Moscow, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II paid much attention to the revival and development of intra-diocesan and parish life. These works have largely become a model for organizing diocesan and parish life in other places. Along with the tireless intra-Church organization, in which he constantly called for more active and responsible participation of all members of the Church, without exception, on a truly conciliar basis, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church paid great attention to the issues of fraternal cooperation of all Orthodox Churches for joint witness to the Truth of Christ to the world.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy considered cooperation between different Christian denominations for the needs of the modern world to be a Christian duty and a way to the fulfillment of Christ's commandment of unity. Peace and harmony in society, to which Patriarch Alexy tirelessly called, necessarily included benevolent mutual understanding and cooperation between adherents of different religions and worldviews.

Alexy II. Portrait by Viktor Shilov.

Alexy II (Ridiger Alexei Mikhailovich) (b. 02/23/1929), patriarch Moscow and all Russia. The son of a lawyer who became a priest and emigrated to Estonia. Born in Tallinn, in "independent" Estonia. He studied at the seminary in Leningrad (1949). Graduated from the Theological Academy in Leningrad (1953). Priest in Tartu (1957). Archpriest (1958). Monk (1961). Archbishop (1964). Chairman of the Commission for Christian Unity and Interchurch Relations (1963-79). Metropolitan of Tallinn and Estonia (1968). Member of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches (1961-68). Closely associated with Valaam monastery, the main center of monastic life in the North of Russia. Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod (1986). He played a major role in the canonization of St. Xenia Petersburg and the return of the relics of St. Alexander Nevsky from the museum to its original location in Alexander Nevsky Lavra. After the death of Patr. Pimena elected Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia (June 7, 1990). He performed divine services in many famous Russian cathedrals, which were closed after the Bolshevik coup. (St. Basil's Cathedral on the Red Square, Assumption Cathedral v the Kremlin, coronation church of Russian tsars, Saint Isaac's Cathedral In Petersburg). Made a statement that the Declaration Sergius (Stragorodsky) cannot be considered an expression of the free will of the Church.

Alexy II (in the world Alexei Mikhailovich Ridiger) (1929-2008) - patriarch. Born in Tallinn in the family of an emigrant from Russia, a priest, Mikhail Alexandrovich Ridiger. From 1944 to 1947 he was subdeacon of the Archbishop of Tallinn and Estonia Pavel (Dmitrovsky). Since 1946 he served as a psalmist in Simeonovskaya, and since 1947 - in the Kazan Church in Tallinn. In 1947 he entered the Leningrad Theological Seminary. In his first year at the Leningrad Theological Academy in 1950, he was ordained a deacon, and then a priest, and was appointed rector of the Church of the Epiphany in the town of Johvi, Tallinn diocese. In 1953 he graduated from the Theological Academy. In 1957 he was appointed rector of the Dormition Cathedral in Tartu. In 1958 he was elevated to the rank of archpriest. In 1961, in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, he was tonsured a monk. In 1961 he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite, from the same year he was bishop of Tallinn and Estonia. Since 1964 - archbishop, since 1968 - metropolitan. In 1986 he was appointed Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod with instructions to manage the Tallinn diocese. On June 7, 1990, at the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, he was elected to the Moscow Patriarchal Throne.

Used material from the site "Russian Abroad" - http://russians.rin.ru

Other biographical material:

Compositions:

Epistle of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia and the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church on the 75th anniversary of the assassination of Emperor Nicholas II and his Family // Noble Assembly: Ist.-Publicist. Or T. Almanac. M., 1995, S. 70-72; Russia is needed not only for itself, but for the whole world // Lit. Studies. 1995. No. 2/3. pp. 3-14; To return to people the interethnic, political and social peace: From the answers of His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II to the questions of the columnist of the newspaper "Culture" // Russian Observer. 1996. No. 5. S. 85-86; Appeal to the participants of the international conference "Spiritual foundations of politics and principles of international cooperation" // ZhMP. 1997. No. 7. S. 17-19; Epistle of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia and the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church on the 80th anniversary of the assassination of Emperor Nicholas and his family // Ibid. 1998. No. 7. P. 11; The role of Moscow in the defense of the Fatherland // The role of Moscow in the defense of the Fatherland. M., 1998. Sat. 2. S. 6-17; Word of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia: [On the Crisis of the Russian School] // Christmas Readings, 6th. M., 1998. S. 3-13; Word to the participants of the Council Hearings [World Russian People's Council March 18-20, 1998] // Church and Time / DECR MP. 1998. No. 2 (5). pp. 6-9; Church and spiritual revival of Russia: Words. Speeches, messages, appeals, 1990-1998. M., 1999; Russia: spiritual revival. M., 1999; Appeal in connection with the armed action against Yugoslavia // ZhMP. 1999. No. 4. S. 24-25; Sorrowful of the Russian Land: The Word and Image of the First Sanctifier. M., 1999; Word at the first service in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior // ZhMP 2000. No. 1. P. 44-45.

Literature:

Patriarch. M., 1993;

Primate. M., 2000.

Alexy II, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. Church and spiritual revival of Russia. Words, speeches, messages, appeals. 1990–1998 M., 1999;

Thoughts of the Russian Patriarchs from the Beginning to the Present Day. M., 1999;

Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2007. M., 2008;

Tsypin V. History of the Russian Orthodox Church. Synodal and modern periods. 1700–2005 M., 2006.

He headed the Russian Orthodox Church for 18.5 years, and during this time he did so much that future generations have yet to fully appreciate the deeds of His Holiness.

The patriarch himself, apparently anticipating his imminent departure to another world, said in an interview published after his death: “I had to establish completely new relations between the state and the Church, which were not in the history of Russia, because the Church was not separated from the state, the emperor was the head of the Church, and all decisions that were made on church matters came from his office. And now completely new relations have been established, when the Church herself makes decisions and is herself responsible for her actions before her conscience, history, and people.”

About childhood, youth, adolescence. About how it was Alexey Ridiger(worldly name) until the patriarchal election. All this was told to us by people who knew him well. Including, at home in Estonia.

Rowing and loved to watch figure skating

To the banal question, beloved by many journalists, “What profession would you choose if you had not become a priest?” - Alexy II had no answer.

“Since childhood,” he said, “I did not imagine any other ministry for myself, except for the church.”

His parents had a two-story wooden house with two verandas and a garden in Nymme, a suburb of Tallinn, recalled His Holiness's cousin Elena Kamzol. — It even seems to me that he was born there... But at the beginning of the war, the family sold the house in order to somehow exist. And now it stands there, all overgrown - no one remembers that the future Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church lived in it.

Parents of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II Mikhail and Elena Ridiger with their son Alexei. 1929 Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

We talked a lot with Alyosha in childhood, especially during the war. My brother began to study in a bourgeois Estonian school, and finished in a Soviet one. Although I don’t know much about his school years - as a child, the difference of seven years (I’m younger) is quite noticeable, and we never talked about studying. He often teased me, hid my toys, and then told his dog to look for and bring. He's a man with a great sense of humor. At the same time, he always joked in a good, kind way. Rudeness was not allowed. As a child, I had long braids, but he never pulled them.

We met very often. I didn’t have a dad - in 1941 he was shot in Leningrad. I lived with my mother and grandmother, and Alexei often came to visit us with his parents. We can say that we had one very believing family. But there were no priests in it for a long time. The first was Uncle Misha (father of the future patriarch. - Ed.). First as a psalmist, then as a priest. Our whole family often went to his service. Later, my brother, who lived in America, followed his example, and then Alyosha.

As a child, Vladyka built a "church" in the shed and loved to play there. I remember that I asked for a long time to show me the “altar”, my brother did not want to let me in, he said: “Women are not allowed!” And only when he was very offended, he took pity: “Okay, I’ll let you in as a cleaning lady.” As a child, he already began to serve in the temple. At the age of six, he performed his first obedience - he poured baptismal water. And soon he memorized the entire Liturgy.

However, like any boy, Alexei Ridiger was also fond of sports. Being engaged in rowing in the sports society "Kalev", he even received a youth category. Chased with peers the ball. He played chess with varying degrees of success. “I beat someone, someone beat me,” Vladyko later recalled. “He treated losses calmly, and he was happy about victories.” He was very fond of motorcycle racing, he knew all the athletes by name. I watched hockey and figure skating with pleasure - I could admire ice art for hours, forgetting about everything in the world. However, he did not dream of becoming a sports star. As a child, Alexei often had a sore throat, which gave a heart complication. But of course that wasn't the point...

Childhood photo of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II (c. 1929-1933). Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

Traveled with his father to the Nazi concentration camps

Father of the future Patriarch Mikhail Ridiger began to study in St. Petersburg at the Imperial School of Law, but because of the revolution of 1917, he was forced to interrupt his studies and emigrate to Estonia. In 1926 he married Elena Pisareva, and three years later, their only son was born to the spouses, who was called the "man of God" - Alexei. Deeply believing Mikhail never returned to jurisprudence. He completed theological courses in Revel (now Tallinn) and became a priest.

“In pre-war Estonia, my parents could profess the faith without hesitation and brought me up in what they themselves lived,” His Holiness later recalled. – I remember pilgrimages to monasteries – to Pyukhtitsa, Pechory and Valaam – to the temple where I served as an altar boy... Then the war broke into our lives, and with it a very real awareness of incalculable human suffering. On trips to Nazi concentration camps, together with my father, a priest, I had a chance to come into contact with the torment of compatriots doomed to death. I felt early a call to devote my life to the service of God and the Church; it was finally strengthened precisely at this terrible time.

Alexey Ridiger will never regret the chosen path later.

“My parents brought him here as a baby,” she said. nun Irina, resident of the Pyukhtitsky Dormition Convent, — and our sisters swaddled the future patriarch. My father served at that time, my mother sang in the kliros. And when Alyoshenka grew up, he began to learn to read in the church. In the summer, he never rested: he went with his sisters to haymaking, to the potato field, and harvested bread with them. They return back - he will run into the forest, pick up a basket of mushrooms and carry them to a common meal.

The future of the patriarch was predetermined - he literally grew up in the church. Modest, tall beyond his years, thin. The sisters were even worried: is his mother really not feeding? Or maybe he's sick? Alyosha knew he was praying.

Childhood photo of Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II (c. 1934-1941). Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

Parishioners were treated to tea and biscuits

Whether he wanted it or not, Aleksey Ridiger was moving up the career ladder rapidly. Already at the age of 16, he, a subdeacon, was assigned to put in order and prepare for worship the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Tallinn, which was destroyed during the war. In the restored church, the future head of the Russian Orthodox Church served as a psalm reader and sacristan. In 1946, at the age of 17, he passed the exams to the Leningrad Theological Seminary, but because of his age he was not accepted. The following year, he was enrolled there immediately for the third year. Then he entered the Theological Academy in Leningrad, was ordained a deacon, in whose rank he stayed ... 1 day. At the age of 21, Aleksei Ridiger became a priest and was appointed rector of the Church of the Epiphany in the Estonian town of Jõhvi.

“He took his first steps here,” he recalled. Pyotr Sirotkin, who served as a chorister in the church. “But he already led the services as a real priest should. Educated, sociable, read good sermons and immediately liked all the parishioners. We traveled with him to parishes, to Lake Peipsi, often held rehearsals in his house. He treated us to tea, biscuits...

And he organized pilgrimages to his beloved Pukhtitsky monastery, although in those years such an initiative could end sadly.

In his first parish in Jõhvi, Father Alexis will serve for 7.5 years, after which he will be appointed rector of the Dormition Cathedral in Tartu. By that time, he would become a candidate of theology, and soon he would take monastic vows at the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. After 29 years, in the same place, in the main monastery of Russia, he will be elected Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.

In the photo, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II in his youth (c. 1942-1947). Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

But first they will be appointed bishop of Tallinn and Estonia, then manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate and a permanent member of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church. 4 years before death Patriarch Pimen he will become the Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod with the assignment of managing the Tallinn diocese.

I wanted to feed the animals and ran away from the guards

“When His Holiness was still a metropolitan and manager, he often came to us,” she said. Abbess of the Pukhtitsky Monastery Varvara. And almost always with guests. He showed them the monastery, picked mushrooms with them. This is his favorite pastime. The place where he especially liked to walk, we called "Vladykin Bor". Usually he himself got behind the wheel of his Tallinn diocesan ZIM and drove everyone to Lake Peipus. The sisters always looked forward to his arrival. And when he left, they blocked his way - they didn't want to let him go. The patriarch did not get angry - he even joked: “Well, all right, I’ll get out of the car now and stay here. Let them work there without me...” Oh, how we regretted it when they took him from Tallinn! We were both pleased and sorry. Then he could not come so often - in 9 years he could visit only four times. But, if he came, he immediately went to the barnyard. He does love animals. In the monastery, he even had his favorite horse, Inga, who, as soon as he heard the footsteps of the Patriarch, began to beat with his hooves. The cemetery, the Holy spring and the barnyard were his favorite places in Pyukhtitsa.

In the photo from the archive (c. 1948-1955), Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II in his youth. Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

Once - he was then the manager of the Moscow Patriarchate - he saw on the road how a chicken flew out of a passing car. I was not too lazy to stop, pick up a bird, go out. He even taught me to drink tap water. And then brought to Pyukhtitsa. But she could no longer eat and drink with other chickens - all the time she asked to be held by the poultry house, she drank water only from the tap and rejoiced when His Holiness came.

There were always dogs in the house of Alexy II. In recent years, a little Chizhik lived with him. In general, the farm in Peredelkino had chickens, cows, and big dogs. And the Patriarch liked to feed everyone himself - food was specially left for him. Fought with newly born calves.

“One day I came to visit him, and Vladyka wanted to feed the animals,” Elena Kamzol recalled. But there are always two people with him. Somehow we managed to escape them. “Let’s go quietly while no one is watching,” he said. It's hard all the time with security. Therefore, he likes to relax in Switzerland. I think he can easily walk there alone, in civilian clothes.

Photo of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II in his youth (c. 1948-1955). Photo provided by the press service of the Moscow Patriarchate. Photo: RIA Novosti

It is known that in addition to Elena Kamzol, the patriarch had a cousin Alexander, who lived in Germany, and a second cousin in Australia, about whom Vladyka learned already as a Patriarch: for a long time everyone thought that she had died. Their fate is now difficult to trace. Yes, and Elena Kamzol several years ago went to another world. And once upon a time, His Holiness greatly appreciated every opportunity to meet a sister living in neighboring Estonia. He liked to treat her with goodies, to walk with her around Moscow and in Peredelkino. They told each other about their affairs and remembered their parents. In parting, he always gave her something. Once, Elena Fedorovna recalled, it was a Gzhel jug with the patriarchal monogram and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

The cousin of the patriarch Elena Fedorovna was with her brother on "you", but still called him "Vladyko". When he was a metropolitan in Tallinn, she ran to him; then they met in Pyukhtitsa. In addition, he is the godfather of her daughter. In Tallinn, Elena Fedorovna and her husband shared a house with another family; in recent years, her husband worked as an electrician in the port. “Everything is fine,” said a relative of the head of the Russian Orthodox Church. “A person like His Holiness should not help those close to him. Let him help others."

Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Pimen, Catholicos, Patriarch of Georgia Ilia II, manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Alexy. Photo: RIA Novosti

Strict, demanding, but kind

And the patriarch helped. Only the Pyukhtitskaya monastery was saved three times. For the first time - when they wanted to give it to the miners as a rest home ... In 1990, with the election of Vladyka Alexy to the Patriarchal throne, the monastery received the status of stavropegial.

“When the monastery was being restored, His Holiness helped a lot,” Abbess Varvara said. - I came, watched how the construction was going on, advised. He couldn't say, "Not mine!" or "Doesn't concern me." It's just that he's unapproachable. And so - strict, demanding, but - kind. It is very easy to work with him. All the sisters love him very much, they meet and see him off like a father. He even tonsured all of us as nuns.

Russian President Boris Yeltsin, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko and Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II. Photo: RIA Novosti / Dmitry Donskoy

He also spoke about the attentiveness of His Holiness to people Metropolitan of Tallinn and All Estonia Cornelius:

- It is very difficult to get through to him - all the time is busy, but if you do get through - there is never any refusal like: "Call later."

“He had already come to us as a man of vast hierarchical experience,” he recalled. Rector of the Church of Kulich and Easter in St. Petersburg, Archpriest Viktor Golubev. - Calm, balanced and at the same time very firm. I served as Secretary of the Diocesan Board for 4 years when Father Alexy was appointed Metropolitan of Leningrad. Prior to that, he had been in Estonia for a long time - financially, the diocese is extremely unsecured - and had to calculate his every step. As a manager, he often traveled around the diocese, settling controversial issues. Then, after all, many problems arose with the authorities - until 1988 they did not take into account the church. And Father Alexy will definitely do what he has planned. He made sure that Xenia of Petersburg was canonized as a saint. Local rulers put up all sorts of obstacles, and he said: if you don’t allow me, I’ll go to Moscow. All the time there were skirmishes with the Commissioner for Religious Affairs under the Council of Ministers ...

Patriarch Alexy II and Vladimir Putin. Photo: RIA Novosti / Sergei Velichkin

Recipe for salted mushrooms from His Holiness

“The last time I visited my brother for five days,” recalled His Holiness’s cousin Elena Kamzol. - Usually before the trip I buy him some kind of Tallinn souvenir. For example, we make old Tallinn houses from ceramics. And I found a chapel in the form of a candlestick in the store. Vladyka was so delighted with the gift: “Yes, this is our old chapel!” After so many years, I recognized her... That time there was a fast, and the Patriarch treated me to fish and all sorts of meatless dishes. By the way, his mother was a very good housewife, a cook, she cooked well and, apparently, passed on her talent to her son. Previously, Vladyka always made all the preparations for the winter himself - he collected, cleaned and pickled mushrooms, salted cabbage. Salty mushrooms, for example, I first tried it with my brother. Then he taught me, and now I don’t do it any other way. The recipe seems to be ordinary, but there is also a secret: mushrooms cannot be collected in wet weather and washed - you can only wipe them. And my brother's salty whites are always amazingly delicious. When he was not yet a Patriarch, he liked to rest in the south of Estonia, where a friend of his father, also a priest, lived. So, they went far into the forest and arranged competitions: who will collect the most mushrooms. Everyone had their own places... And Vladyko even brought milk mushrooms from Switzerland.

Perhaps mushrooms were Patriarch Alexy II's only food addiction. The rest was unpretentious. I could eat porridge and potatoes. Loved pies. Due to a sick heart, he rarely drank coffee, preferring tea to it. But he did not drink wine at all - at the table he was usually poured into a decanter of plain water. Only in this way could the Patriarch preserve his already shattered health. He slept very little, except for a sick heart, he was tormented by veins.

“When His Holiness was ill, I prayed for him every day,” admitted parishioner of the Epiphany Cathedral in Moscow Alexandra Matveevna. - I put candles, wrote notes about health. I think any Orthodox will agree with me: the government, the Duma, and the president are given to us for our sins, and Patriarch Alexy II is given for prayers, faith, and repentance...

On December 5, 2008, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia, the fifteenth Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church since the introduction of the Patriarchate in Russia, died.

Patriarch Alexy (in the world - Alexei Mikhailovich Ridiger) was born on February 23, 1929 in the city of Tallinn (Estonia). His father studied at a law school, graduated from a gymnasium in exile in Estonia, in 1940 he graduated from the theological three-year courses in Tallinn and was ordained a deacon, and then a priest; for 16 years he was the rector of the Tallinn Nativity of the Virgin of the Kazan Church, was a member, and later the chairman of the diocesan council. The mother of His Holiness the Patriarch is Elena Iosifovna Pisareva (+1959), a native of Revel (Tallinn).

From early childhood, Alexei Ridiger served in the church under the guidance of his spiritual father, Archpriest John the Epiphany, later Bishop Isidor of Tallinn and Estonia; from 1944 to 1947 he was a senior subdeacon of the Archbishop of Tallinn and Estonia, Pavel, and then of Bishop Isidore. He studied at a Russian high school in Tallinn. From May 1945 to October 1946 he was an altar boy and sacristan of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Tallinn. Since 1946, he served as a psalmist in Simeonovskaya, and since 1947 - in the Kazan Church of Tallinn.

In 1947 he entered the St. Petersburg (at that time - Leningrad) Theological Seminary, from which he graduated in the first category in 1949. On April 15, 1950, Aleksey Ridiger was ordained a deacon, and on April 17, 1950, a priest and was appointed rector of the Epiphany Church in the town of Johvi, Tallinn diocese. In 1953, Father Alexy graduated from the Theological Academy in the first category and was awarded the degree of Candidate of Theology.

On July 15, 1957, Father Alexy was appointed rector of the Assumption Cathedral in the city of Tartu and dean of the Tartu district. On August 17, 1958, he was elevated to the rank of archpriest. On March 30, 1959, he was appointed dean of the united Tartu-Viljandi deanery of the Tallinn diocese. March 3, 1961 in the Trinity Cathedral of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, he was tonsured a monk. On August 14, 1961, Hieromonk Alexy was appointed Bishop of Tallinn and Estonia, with the assignment of temporary administration of the Riga diocese. On August 21, 1961, Hieromonk Alexy was elevated to the rank of archimandrite. On September 3, 1961, Archimandrite Alexy was consecrated Bishop of Tallinn and Estonia at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Tallinn.

On November 14, 1961, Bishop Alexy was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate. On June 23, 1964, Bishop Alexy was elevated to the rank of archbishop. On December 22, 1964, Archbishop Alexy was appointed manager of the affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate and became a permanent member of the Holy Synod. He remained at the post of business manager until July 20, 1986. On May 7, 1965, Archbishop Alexy was appointed chairman of the Educational Committee. Released from this position, according to a personal request, October 16, 1986. From October 17, 1963 to 1979, Archbishop Alexy was a member of the Commission of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church on Christian unity and interchurch relations.

On February 25, 1968, Archbishop Alexy was elevated to the rank of Metropolitan. From March 10, 1970 to September 1, 1986, he carried out the general management of the Pension Committee, whose task was to provide pensions for the clergy and other persons working in church organizations, as well as their widows and orphans. On June 18, 1971, in consideration of the diligent efforts to hold the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971, Metropolitan Alexy was awarded the right to wear a second panagia. Metropolitan Alexy performed responsible functions as a member of the Commission for the preparation and holding of the celebration of the 50th anniversary (1968) and 60th anniversary (1978) of the restoration of the Patriarchate in the Russian Orthodox Church; a member of the Commission of the Holy Synod for the preparation of the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1971, as well as the chairman of the procedural and organizational group, the chairman of the secretariat of the Local Council; since December 23, 1980, he has been deputy chairman of the Commission for the preparation and holding of the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia and chairman of the organizational group of this commission, and since September 1986 - the theological group. On May 25, 1983, he was appointed chairman of the Responsible Commission to develop measures for receiving the buildings of the Danilov Monastery ensemble, organizing and carrying out all restoration and construction work to create the Spiritual and Administrative Center of the Russian Orthodox Church on its territory. He stayed in this position until his appointment to the St. Petersburg (at that time - Leningrad) department. On June 29, 1986, he was appointed Metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod with instructions to manage the Tallinn diocese.

On June 7, 1990, at the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, he was elected to the Moscow Patriarchal Throne. The enthronement took place on June 10, 1990.

Activities of Metropolitan Alexy in the international field

As part of the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church, he participated in the work of the III Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in New Delhi (1961); was elected a member of the Central Committee of the WCC (1961-1968); was President of the World Conference "Church and Society" (Geneva, Switzerland, 1966); member of the commission "Faith and organization" of the WCC (1964 - 1968). As head of the delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church, he participated in theological interviews with the delegation of the Evangelical Church in Germany "Arnoldshain-II" (Germany, 1962), in theological interviews with the delegation of the Union of Evangelical Churches in the GDR "Zagorsk-V" (Trinity-Sergius Lavra, 1984 ), in theological interviews with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland in Leningrad and the Pyukhtitsky Monastery (1989). For more than a quarter of a century, Metropolitan Alexy devoted his works to the activities of the Conference of European Churches (CEC). Since 1964, Metropolitan Alexy has been one of the presidents (members of the presidium) of the CEC; was re-elected president at subsequent general assemblies. Since 1971, Metropolitan Alexy has been Vice-Chairman of the Presidium and Advisory Committee of the CEC. On March 26, 1987, he was elected chairman of the Presidium and Advisory Committee of the CEC. At the VIII General Assembly of the CEC in Crete in 1979, Metropolitan Alexy was the keynote speaker on the theme "In the power of the Holy Spirit - to serve the world." Since 1972, Metropolitan Alexy has been a member of the Joint Committee of the CEC and the Council of Bishops' Conferences of Europe (SECE) of the Roman Catholic Church. On May 15-21, 1989, in Basel, Switzerland, Metropolitan Alexy was co-chairman of the First European Ecumenical Assembly on the theme "Peace and Justice", organized by the CEC and SEKE. In September 1992, at the Tenth General Assembly of the CEC, the term of office of Patriarch Alexy II as chairman of the CEC expired. His Holiness spoke at the Second European Ecumenical Assembly in Graz (Austria) in 1997. Metropolitan Alexy was the initiator and chairman of four seminars of the Churches of the Soviet Union - members of the CEC and the Churches that maintain cooperation with this regional Christian organization. Seminars were held at the Assumption Pyukhtitsky Convent in 1982, 1984, 1986 and 1989.

Since 1963, he was a member of the board of the Soviet Peace Fund, participated in the founding meeting of the Rodina society, at which he was elected a member of the society's council on December 15, 1975; re-elected on May 27, 1981 and December 10, 1987. On October 24, 1980, at the V All-Union Conference of the Society of Soviet-Indian Friendship, he was elected vice-president of this Society. On March 11, 1989, he was elected a member of the board of the Foundation for Slavic Literature and Slavic Cultures. Delegate of the World Christian Conference "Life and Peace" (April 20-24, 1983, Uppsala, Sweden). Elected at this conference as one of its presidents. From January 24, 1990, he was a member of the board of the Soviet Charity and Health Fund; since February 8, 1990 - a member of the Presidium of the Leningrad Cultural Fund. From the Charity and Health Foundation in 1989 he was elected a people's deputy of the USSR.

As a co-chairman, he entered the Russian organizing committee for the preparation for the meeting of the third millennium and the celebration of the two thousandth anniversary of Christianity (1998-2000). On the initiative and with the participation of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, an inter-confessional conference "Christian Faith and Human Enmity" was held (Moscow, 1994). His Holiness the Patriarch chaired the conference of the Christian Interfaith Advisory Committee "Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today and forever" (Heb. 13:8). "Christianity on the Threshold of the Third Millennium" (1999); Interreligious peacemaking forum (Moscow, 2000).

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy was an honorary member of the St. Petersburg and Moscow Theological Academies, the Cretan Orthodox Academy (Greece); doctor of theology of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy (1984); doctor of theology honoris causa of the Theological Academy in Debrecen of the Reformed Church of Hungary and the Theological Faculty of Jan Comenius in Prague; Doctor of Theology honoris causa from the General Seminary of the Episcopal Church in the USA (1991); Doctor of Theology honoris causa of the St. Vladimir Theological Seminary (Academy) in the USA (1991); doctor of theology honoris causa of the St. Tikhon Theological Seminary in the USA (1991). In 1992 he was elected a full member of the Russian Academy of Education.

The patriarch was also a Doctor of Theology honoris causa from Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage, Alaska, USA (1993); laureate of the State Prize of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) named after A.E. Kulakovsky "For outstanding selfless activity to consolidate the peoples of the Russian Federation" (1993). In 1993, Alexy II was awarded the title of Honorary Professor of Omsk State University for outstanding achievements in the field of culture and education. In 1993 he was awarded the title of honorary professor of Moscow State University for outstanding services in the spiritual revival of Russia. in 1994 - an honorary doctor of philological sciences from St. Petersburg University.

His Holiness was also an honorary doctor of theology from the Faculty of Theology of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Belgrade, an honorary doctor of theology from the Tbilisi Theological Academy (Georgia, April 1996). Alexy II - winner of the gold medal of the University of Kosice in the Faculty of Orthodox Theology (Slovakia, May 1996); honorary member of the International Foundation for Mercy and Health; Chairman of the Public Supervisory Board for the Reconstruction of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. He was awarded the highest award of the Russian Federation - the Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called, the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, many orders of the Local Orthodox Churches and state orders of different countries, as well as awards from public organizations. In 2000, His Holiness the Patriarch was elected an honorary citizen of Moscow, he was also an honorary citizen of St. Petersburg, Veliky Novgorod, the Republic of Mordovia, the Republic of Kalmykia, Sergiev Posad, Dmitrov.

His Holiness was awarded the national awards "Person of the Year", "Outstanding People of the Decade (1990-2000), who contributed to the prosperity and glorification of Russia", "Russian National Olympus" and the honorary public title "Person of the Epoch". In addition, His Holiness the Patriarch is a laureate of the international award "Perfection. Blessing. Glory", awarded by the Russian Biographical Institute (2001), as well as the Main Prize "Person of the Year", awarded by the holding "Top Secret" (2002).

On May 24, 2004, the Patriarch was awarded the United Nations "Defender of Justice" award for outstanding services in strengthening peace, friendship and mutual understanding between peoples, as well as the Order of Peter the Great (I degree) number 001.

On March 31, 2005, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia was presented with a public award - the Order of the Golden Star for Loyalty to Russia. On July 18, 2005, His Holiness the Patriarch was awarded a jubilee civil order - the Silver Star "Public Recognition" number one "for the laborious and selfless work to provide social and spiritual support to veterans and participants in the Great Patriotic War and in connection with the 60th anniversary of the Great Victory."

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy was Chairman of the Patriarchal Synodal Biblical Commission, Editor-in-Chief of the Orthodox Encyclopedia and Chairman of the Supervisory and Church Scientific Councils for the publication of the Orthodox Encyclopedia, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Russian Charitable Foundation for Reconciliation and Harmony, and heads the Board of Trustees of the National Military Fund.

During the years of his hierarchal service, Metropolitan Alexy visited many dioceses of the Russian Orthodox Church and countries of the world, and was a participant in many church events. Several hundred of his articles, speeches and works on theological, church-historical, peacemaking and other topics have been published in the ecclesiastical and secular press in Russia and abroad.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy headed the Councils of Bishops in 1992, 1994, 1997, 2000 and 2004, and invariably presides over meetings of the Holy Synod. As Patriarch of All Russia, he visited 81 dioceses, many of them several times - more than 120 trips to dioceses in total, the goals of which were primarily pastoral care for remote communities, strengthening church unity and the testimony of the Church in society.

During his hierarchical service, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy led 84 hierarchal consecrations (71 of them after being elected to the All-Russian See), ordained more than 400 priests and almost the same number of deacons. With the blessing of His Holiness, theological seminaries, religious schools, and parochial schools were opened; structures were created for the development of religious education and catechesis. His Holiness pays great attention to the establishment in Russia of new relations between the state and the Church. At the same time, he firmly adheres to the principle of separation between the mission of the Church and the functions of the state, non-interference in each other's internal affairs. At the same time, he believes that the soul-saving service of the Church and the service of the state to society require mutually free interaction between church, state and public institutions.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy called for close cooperation between representatives of all areas of secular and ecclesiastical culture. He constantly reminded of the need to revive morality and spiritual culture, to overcome artificial barriers between secular and religious culture, secular science and religion. A number of joint documents signed by His Holiness laid the foundation for the development of cooperation between the Church and health care and social welfare systems, the Armed Forces, law enforcement agencies, justice, cultural institutions and other state structures. With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, a system of care for military personnel and law enforcement officers has been created.

The Patriarch came up with many peacekeeping initiatives in connection with the conflicts in the Balkans, the Armenian-Azerbaijani confrontation, the hostilities in Moldova, the events in the North Caucasus, the situation in the Middle East, the military operation against Iraq, and so on; it was he who invited the parties to the conflict to the negotiations during the political crisis in Russia in 1993.

More recently, less than a decade ago, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia, who led the Russian Orthodox Church in the most difficult for the whole country, critical years of the late 80s and early 90s, passed away to the Lord. His Holiness, despite his high position, was easy to communicate with, and therefore loved by everyone who knew him closely, a principled person of a bright soul. He became the fifteenth Primate of the Church after the restoration of the Patriarchate in Russia.

The name of Alexy II also occupies a fundamental place in the science of Church history and theology. Only before his accession to the primatial throne, he had more than 150 publications on church history and theology of the topic. Who is Patriarch Alexy (Ridiger), why he is revered as a righteous man and what he did for the Church and all of Russia - you will learn in this article.

Childhood of the Patriarch

At birth, in the world, the Patriarch also had the name Alexei Ridiger - which is quite unusual, usually when taking vows as a monk, the name is changed. He was born on February 23, 1929 in the "capital of Soviet Estonia" - Tallinn. The history of his family is unusual: according to his father, Mikhail Alexandrovich, he was a descendant of a German family of nobles who moved to the new capital - St. Petersburg under Anna Ioannovna or even Peter the Great and became Russified, that is, they accepted the Orthodox faith. By his mother, Elena Iosifovna Pisareva, His Holiness was an Estonian. The family were emigrants who left Petrograd through the Finnish lands after the revolution. Despite the poverty of life, typical for all refugees, Alyosha Ridiger was brought up in knowledge and respect for cultural values, interest in art and the Church.

The roots of the deep faith and piety of Alexy II were laid by his family, who led a truly Christian life. The father of the future Patriarch was a priest and blessed his son to help him in divine services; church life was inseparable from family life. Even the time of the first service in which the future His Holiness Patriarch participated is known: at the age of six, in 1936, he began to help pour holy water for the parishioners at the Baptism of the Lord. Probably, since childhood, he wanted to serve the Church - but only God knows how and when that strength of spirit appeared in him, which allowed him to lead the entire Russian Church.

An important page in the beginning of the life of Alexy II was a regular visit with his parents to the Valaam Monastery of the Transfiguration of the Savior, the spiritual pearl of Ladoga, an ancient monastery. Here he also served at the altar. It is clear that in this monastery he also had a desire to give his life to monastic service to God and people.

Russian Patriarch in his youth

The talent for inspired prayer, piety, knowledge of church services — that is what determined the vocation of Alexei Ridiger, who at the age of 15 became a subdeacon (that is, accompanying and constantly serving the bishop at divine services) of Bishop Isidore and Archbishop Paul of Estonia and Tallinn. At the age of 16, the year the Great Patriotic War ended, Alexei even became a sacristan (responsible for vestments and church utensils), continuing to serve as an altar boy in the Tallinn Cathedral.

Soon he entered the Leningrad Orthodox Theological Seminary (now SPbPDAiS) and upon graduation became a student at the Theological Academy of the Northern Capital. Having received ordination as a priest, at first he was just a white celibate priest (not having monastic vows, but only taking a vow of virginity). Having begun his priestly service in the small town of Jõhvi, he soon became the rector of the Epiphany Monastery, and in 1957, the rector of the local Assumption Cathedral. So for about a year he led two cloisters and the parish of the cathedral. Then he was officially appointed dean of the district (that is, a priest who controls the activities of a number of parishes - usually this position is given to the rector of a large cathedral in the region, who has many years of pastoral experience).

Since 1959, the future Patriarch decides to fully devote himself to God in monasticism. Quite a bit of time passed from his cassock tonsure - the naming of a new name, the symbolic cutting of his hair with the opportunity to wear some monastic clothes - to the tonsure of the mantle. At this time, Alexy, like all cassock novices, had the opportunity to refuse to be tonsured a monk, this would not be a sin. However, the future Primate was already firm in his decision to renounce worldly life, and in 1959 he was tonsured into a mantle, that is, a "small angelic image", a small schema. He made vows of obedience to the bishop, renunciation of the world and non-acquisition - that is, the absence of his own property. Such tonsure of monks has been going on since antiquity and continues to the present day.

Father Alexy was tonsured into the mantle while retaining his name, which is quite unusual for church practice. Also, after a short time - only after 2 years - he was consecrated as a bishop. At 32, he was one of the youngest archpastors of the Church. He was sent to manage his native Riga diocese with the title of Estonian and Tallinn bishop.

Bishop Alexy - future Patriarch of Moscow

Despite the “Khrushchev thaw,” the 1960s, when Vladyka Alexy began his hierarchal ministry, were difficult for the Church. If in the 1930s priests were shot along with everyone else as enemies of the people, then during the Great Patriotic War they began to return en masse from the camps, opening churches. Khrushchev opened up new persecutions: first of all, by organizing an information wave not even of godlessness, but of stereotypical slander against the Church in the media. Revolutionary slogans were raised, condemning "obscurantism", people were psychologically pressured, dishonored at work, for example, for attending Easter services. Seminaries were closed under the pretext of poor-quality education and churches, which simply “needed” to be used as warehouses, factories and granaries.

Having become Patriarch, Alexy II often spoke, including in print, but without details, about these times, that only God knew how difficult it was for priests and bishops to endure the time of persecution. However, the interests of the Orthodox Church were defended, She did not die with the help of such zealous servants of the Lord as Vladyka Alexy.

Thus, after becoming a bishop, His Grace Alexy began to work actively in the sphere of international and interchurch relations. He worked in many committees, was a member of delegations. His Eminence (this is an address to the bishop) was an active supporter of the joint work of the Churches of various Christian denominations, emphasizing that in a perfect world people forget about Christ in principle, and that all Christians should seek common ground in serving and communicating with each other, acting together.

After a short period, the active and active archpastor was noticed in the leadership of the Moscow Patriarchate, and he began to be promoted to even more responsible posts. In 1964, at the age of 35, he became an archbishop, deputy chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, and then, in fact, the first deputy of His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow. He received the rank of metropolitan (that is, higher than episcopal) of Tallinn, and then was transferred to St. Petersburg (Leningrad) in the rank of metropolitan of Leningrad and Novgorod, at that time, as now, being the center of church science and prayer life. Through the efforts of Vladyka Alexy, many events took place, the memory of which grateful Petersburgers keep: the return of the brethren to the Valaam Monastery - the spiritual cradle of Vladyka Alexy himself, the revival of the St. John of Kronstadt convent, founded by the holy righteous John of Kronstadt on the Karpovka River, and the acquisition of the relics of the most holy righteous John of Kronstadt. In 1989, His Eminence even became a people's deputy of the USSR, which was extremely unusual, and, in fact, a political figure.

Despite active service, Vladyka Alexy prepared and defended his doctoral dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Theology.

In 1990, His Holiness Patriarch Pimen died, and on June 10 of the same year, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia was chosen to take his place.

Words and deeds of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy 2

Interestingly, the activities of the Patriarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church are expanding with each subsequent election of the Primate. Usually the Patriarch was elected from among venerable hierarchs who had extensive pastoral experience, but therefore cut off from too perfect trends in society. In the middle of the 20th century, no one thought about the importance of attracting young people to the Church: it was difficult to talk to them, the guys not only strove for ordinary entertainment, but also had an opinion about the Church as a “gathering of obscurantists.” Lacking life experience, they relied on the judgment of teachers and the authority of the state.

Over time, a lot began to change. The intelligentsia and émigrés turned to Christianity as a de facto religion of protest, a breath of fresh air in the stuffy Soviet ideology. If Patriarchs Alexy the First and Pimen, basically, had concerns about maintaining parishes, about the existence of a church at least in every city, about protecting pastors from repression (and Pimen also about celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Russia, that is, the cultural and historical establishment of the Church ) - then His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II developed activities to spread the missionary service of the Church, work with youth (on which the new, current Patriarch Kirill also places great emphasis), restructuring the Church, and creating new dioceses.

Church and secular historians highlight the following pros and cons of the activities of Alexy II as Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia:

An increase in the number of churches, monasteries and dioceses, despite the fact that the number of believers and church people did not require such a number of church structures.

The active return to the church of the historical buildings of the temples, their restoration - this was called "the claim of the Church to the canonical territory." If some churches were given over to warehouses or workshops and returned painlessly, then the return of temples-museums, temples-monuments met with active resistance from public activists. There were incidents when the Church and cultural organizations found themselves on opposite sides of the barricades. Nevertheless, it was during the period of Patriarch Alexy's activity that the experience of overcoming such confrontation was laid. The intelligentsia became convinced that the Church really knows how to preserve the cultural heritage of the side, especially since it was she who created this heritage: it was for prayer that the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, and the Ipatiev Monastery in Kostroma were built.

An increase in the number of ordained bishops, priests, monks and the apparatus of church officials - Synodal departments - at a time when people were not spiritually ready for responsible church service. This is a controversial point to this day: from apostolic times to the revolution in Russia, no priests were ordained before the age of 30. Under Alexy II, even bishops under thirty began to be ordained.

At the same time, such an “increase in the flow of personnel” and places for prayer created a reserve, space for the further coming to the Church of many, many people. Today begins not only the revival of temples in the historical buildings of churches, but also the construction of new ones. So, in Moscow there is a program to create 200 new churches in the sleeping areas of the capital; 36 churches are being built in the Vyborg diocese alone, and more than 100 in the entire St. Petersburg metropolis. People really do not fit in the buildings of small churches, many parishes take columns outside the building on Sundays and holidays so that people can pray on the street.

The number of educational centers increased, the missionary activity of the Church became more active. Many believed that the Church should not attract new people, but occupy a niche in a certain service sector. Nevertheless, it was Patriarch Alexy who again began the catechizing work of the Church: after all, even Christ commanded the apostles to enlighten all peoples with the light of Christianity, to save the souls of people. He himself fearlessly spoke around the world with speeches aimed at strengthening traditional moral values ​​- after all, they are based on the commandments of God - at a time when a movement was beginning in Europe to promote homosexuality and leveling differences between the sexes, legalizing euthanasia. The primate has repeatedly stated that the moral decay of society leads to the death of civilization.

Relations within the Church were not easy: Local Councils were rarely convened, relations with the Roman Catholic Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople became aggravated. At the same time, a number of clergy accused His Holiness of ecumenism, that is, too active interaction with other confessions and religions.

During the period of the Patriarchal ministry of Alexy II, military conflicts took place in the world and in Russia. This Patriarch is known. by the fact that in 1993 he admonished the State Committee for the State of Emergency by taking the Vladimir icon out of the storerooms of the Tretyakov Gallery and praying before it for peace and God's help with all the people. In addition, he regularly came up with peacekeeping initiatives regarding the wars in the North Caucasus, South Ossetia, during the bombing of the US Air Force in Iraq and Serbia.

In an interview shortly before his death, His Holiness Bishop Alexy II himself summed up the results of his work, evaluating the fruits of his labors as a completely new relationship between the Church and the state, which he was forced to build. By the will of God, he was able to turn the interaction with society and with the authorities towards the acceptance of the Church.

Patriarch Alexy II was killed?

His Holiness passed away in the Lord just two months before his 80th birthday. Alexy II died at the Patriarchal Residence in Peredelkino, on the days of the Nativity Fast, on December 5, 2008. The Orthodox people of all Russia and the neighboring countries are so accustomed to the fact that this good shepherd of the Church is always cheerful, travels around the country and even visits remote dioceses, that his death caused shock and amazement. Against this background, rumors even began to circulate that the Patriarch had been killed, but they were refuted by the testimony of hierarchs who knew him closely and the conclusion of a medical examination: Alexy II suffered several heart attacks and a stroke during the last years of his life, so death occurred due to natural causes, becoming the result of a heart attack. insufficiency.

Where is buried Patriarch Alexy II

At parting with the Patriarch, the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the largest church in Moscow, recreated on the site of the one blown up in the 1930s in the same architectural forms, was full of people. Day and night, they walked in a stream to take a last look at the fifteenth Archpastor of the Russian Church, who led it during the years of perestroika, the collapse of the Soviet system and the creation of a new society, which led the Ship of the Church through the waters of one of the most difficult times in the history of the country.

The coffin with the body, in a majestic funeral procession, was transported across Moscow to the Epiphany Yelokhovsky Cathedral, where they were buried. A marble tombstone with a cross now stands over the grave. The clergy of the temple and employees of the Church testify that many pilgrimage routes from different regions of the country necessarily have a stop in the cathedral at the tomb of Alexy II. Even now there is a veneration of His Holiness among the people.
Not only his spiritual children, who during their lifetime asked for the Patriarchal advice, but also many people, from the village parishioners who came to bow to the shrines of the capital, to the President himself and various celebrities, come to consult with His Holiness, to ask for his help and blessings for good and necessary deeds. The patriarch has not yet been canonized - after all, more than a dozen years must pass for canonization - but miracles are already being recorded through prayers to him at the grave, materials and evidence of milestones in his life are thoroughly studied, and popular veneration is growing.
Thus, Metropolitan Clement of Kaluga and Borovsk, who was Alexy II’s deputy — he held the position of the Moscow Patriarchy’s manager of affairs — wrote that in close communion he always saw in him a judicious pastor of the Church, who had a truly God-given love for all people. He was like a caring father for all Orthodox people, leading the Church with a sincere experience of her problems in his own heart. For him there was no question of unimportant, even the simplest people who were treated unfairly, he defended before the authorities, helped the most distant and poorest church parishes. According to His Eminence Clement, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy received more than ten thousand letters annually (that is, about 30 daily) - and he did not leave a single one unattended, each day setting aside time for reading correspondence and instructions at the request of addressees. Many people who served together with His Holiness or were former employees of the Synodal departments testify that fellowship with him has become a school of life. He showed an example of pastoral service in unchanging striving for the Lord and love for every person.

Tomb of Patriarch Alexy

On any day you can visit the Yelokhovsky Cathedral of the capital and talk at the grave of His Holiness with him. Prayer is a dialogue with the deceased, who has signs of holiness.

Get a candle in the temple, put it on a candlestick at the grave, turn to the Lord:

“God give rest to the soul of Your departed servant, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, where there is no sorrow and tears, but life and joy are endless. Forgive him all sins, voluntary and involuntary, with his holy prayers and have mercy on me, a sinner (sinner).

Then, in your own words, turning to the Patriarch, ask him about your needs. Many ask him, as a wise leader,

• About advice in business;
• About making a decision in a difficult choice;
• About help to get rid of the injustice of the authorities;
• About justification in case of slander;
• With gratitude for the accomplished deeds, the resulting things.

Through the prayers of Patriarch Alexy, God bless you!