Divine service at St. Isaac’s Cathedral in St.Petersburg

Sunday saw a divine service at the St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg, an event that coincided with All Saints’ Day and which was conducted by Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.

Both of the Patriarchs were hailed by the clergy and Orthodox followers as they made their way to the St.Isaac Cathedral, one of Russia’s main Orthodox shrines.

The Church of Constantinople contributed considerably to Prince Vladimir’s decision on the baptism of Kievan Rus in the 10th century.

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Ecumenical Patriarch wraps up Russia visit

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has wound up a visit to Russia by touring historic sites and Orthodox shrines in St Petersburg and by visiting former imperial palaces outside this country’s northern capital. He paid tribute to the valor and fortitude of the city’s people in defending Leningrad from the Nazis during a dramatic two-and-half-year siege. The Russian Patriarch Kirill presented him with a replica of a revered icon used in a ceremony to enthrone the first Romanov Tsar in 1613. He also spoke about full doctrinal and liturgical unity between the Churches of Russia and Constantinople.