As we celebrated the feast of St. Andrew the other day my thoughts turned to our Orthodox brothers and sisters in the faith and a significant event bringing greater unity among the faithful of the East which took place in Russia the other week. The Orthodox Church shares Apostolic origin with Western Christianity. Those churches founded by one of the Apostles or by one of their disciples or subsequent missionary activity in the East have remained in communion with one another over the millennia. However, all these churches are independent of each other, and this has at times contributed to some distance and misunderstandings among the churches.
They share the same faith, doctrine, Apostolic tradition, sacraments, liturgies and religious services. Orthodox churches also venerate their sacred Icons and relics. Their veneration of Icons and relics, like Roman Catholics, are guided by the teachings of the Seventh Ecumenical Council which teaches that we do not venerate the materials, as such, but to their prototypes, or to the persons whom they represent. The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople is honored among the Orthodox Churches as the first among equals among the bishops of their churches. However, since the Orthodox Church in Russia is so large and powerful, it sometimes creates power struggles among the faithful.
Orthodox Hierarchs, clergy and faithful seek and desire greater ties of unity among all the Orthodox. One important step in this direction took place at the end of last month when the Greek Orthodox Church gave permission for the Cincture (belt) of the Virgin Mary, housed at the Vatopedi Monastery on Mt. Athos in Greece, to travel around Russia for 40 days and to end the tour in Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral. This is the first time this holy relic has ever left the monastery. The relic is one of the most precious of the Orthodox spiritual treasures. The Orthodox believe the relic was given by Mary the Mother of Jesus to St. Thomas the Apostle before her Assumption. It is believed that venerating the relic, which is a camel-haired belt encased in a jewel-encrusted glass case, will help barren women conceive and heal the sick.
Not only has this event brought closer ties of affection among the Orthodox Churches of Moscow and Constantinople, but it has expanded the religious revival taking place in Russia since the fall of communism. Russia’s Orthodox Church has enjoyed an incredible surge of influence and say in recent years as millions of Russians began to practice the faith in the 1990s after decades of state-dictated atheism in the Soviet Union. The Cathedral of Christ the Savior, which housed the holy relic, is a symbol of the change that has come to Russia, when its replica was built in 1997 in the same spot where the original was blown up the Soviet authorities in 1931.
More than 3 million Russian Orthodox faithful came out to venerate the Belt of the Virgin Mary, 1 million in Moscow alone. Braving freezing cold temperatures and ice-covered sidewalks, tens of thousands of faithful braved the elements to kiss the relic in the cathedral. The line of people waiting to venerate the relic stretched over 2.5 miles along the Moscow River despite temperatures that fell below 23 degrees. When the line became exceedingly long, police officers announced through bullhorns that it will take worshippers 24 hours to get to the relic — and no one gave up.
Archimandrite Yefrem, rector of the Vatopedi Monastery on Athos, said that several dozen miracles were registered after venerating the shrine. Russian leaders have been worried of late over the low birthrate in Russia. The Archimandrite happily reported to both Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev that many women-pilgrims said that they finally got pregnant after unsuccessful attempts during many years. A member of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior staff reported that a man who suffered from cancer recovered after his pilgrimage to the Belt of the Holy Virgin.
It is a blessing to see the faith of the Apostles being practiced with renewed vigor in Russia, as well as greater ties of unity among the Orthodox faithful and the miraculous healings, all because of our Blessed Lady!
Father Joseph D. Wallace is coordinator, Ecumenical and Inter-religious Affairs, Diocese of Camden.
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