JERUSALEM: 26 April, 2024
Appeal by Archimandrite Roman (Krassovsky), Chief of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem (Russian Church Abroad)

“Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion.” (Psalms 147:12)

Jerusalem, "the city of the Great King" (Matthew 5:35), is the geographical center of our faith. Since childhood we heard from our parents, from our priests, the sacred history of the Holy Bible, about the earthly life of our Lord Jesus Christ. Throughout the year, we spiritually experience and commemorate the sacred events that took place in the Holy Land. In the coming week, in our parishes and monasteries, we will experience the last days of the salvific Service of the Son of the Virgin Mary, His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the despicable betrayal in the Garden of Gethsemane, the unrighteous judgment of the Sanhedrin, the sentence of Pilate, and, finally, the terrifying but salvific crucifixion on Golgotha. And after all these experiences, let us all joyfully celebrate the Resurrection of Christ on Paschal night!

A Russian Orthodox Christian cannot help but turn his mind and heart to these Gospel passages in these holy days.

Since the founding of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem in the 19th century, Russian Orthodox Christians have had the opportunity to come to the Holy Land and make pilgrimages, visit Russian churches and monasteries, pray at services decorated with our church hymns, and commune with the clergy and monastics.

Pilgrimages to the Holy Land are now possible for all Orthodox Christians from all nations of the world.

The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and its Russian Ecclesiastical Mission are doing everything to improve and support the Russian shrines of Palestine: Ascension Convent of the Savior on the Mount of Olives, Gethsemane Convent of St Mary Magdalene, Equal-to-the-Apostles, where the holy relics of the Holy Martyrs Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna and Nun Barbara rest, Bethany Community of the Resurrection of Christ in Bethany which operates a school for girls, the Fara Lavra of St Chariton the Confessor, and many other Russian holy sites. But our efforts are far from enough, especially in these turbulent days, when we suffer a severe lack of funds for the maintenance of shrines.

Due to martial law in Israel, the Mission finds itself in a very difficult situation. There are virtually no more pilgrims, the only financial support thanks to which our Mission exists has therefore ceased.

We appeal to all concerned members of our Church with a request to take part in the maintenance of Russian holy places in Palestine and thereby fulfill their Christian duty.

Every year, with the blessing of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, a plate collection is held for all parishes on Palm Sunday.

We ask everyone to remember our Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem in this difficult time and to make their contribution to its needs.

"Let us not be stingy in almsgiving, knowing that we give not to men, but to God; He who gives alms makes God his debtor, Who loves to repay a hundredfold to him who gives to Him through the poor and the sick, whom He is pleased to call His brethren. The greater the almsgiving, the more generous will be the recompense for it: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly" (from the appeal for help to the Mission of St Macarius [Nevsky], Metropolitan of Moscow).

With love in the Lord,

Archimandrite Roman
Chief of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem (ROCOR)

The Lord's Entry into Jerusalem, 2024