Anglo-Russian Orthodox Church. Prince Charles of Wales is deeply interested in Orthodoxy, but apparently cannot convert to it - Metropolitan Kallistos Prince Charles converted to Orthodoxy
The heir to the British crown, Prince Charles of Wales, has "sincere feelings for Orthodoxy" and regularly visits Orthodox monasteries and Mount Athos, said the head of the Department of External Affairs. church connections(DECR) of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk in an interview dedicated to the first visit of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' to the UK.
“I am aware of Prince Charles’s sympathy for Orthodoxy. In addition to visiting Mount Athos, His Highness tries to visit other holy places. More recently, on September 30, Prince Charles, while visiting Israel, visited a Russian Orthodox convent in Gethsemane", where "he proceeded to the shrine with the relics of the Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna and laid fresh flowers from the homeland of his grandmother, who is the niece of the saint," said Metropolitan Hilarion.
“Such sincere feelings for Orthodoxy are also connected with the fact that Prince Charles’s father, Duke Philip of Edinburgh, is a representative of the Greek line of the Oldenburg dynasty and professed Orthodoxy from birth. Only after his marriage to Queen Elizabeth II, Duke Philip, becoming the British Prince Consort, accepted He often says about himself: "I became an Anglican, but I remained Orthodox," said Metropolitan Hilarion.
Another well-known Orthodox hierarch and theologian, Metropolitan Kallistos (Ware) of Diokleia, who is closely acquainted with the heir to the British crown, earlier in an interview for the media also confirmed the sincere attraction of the crown prince to Orthodoxy. "The heir to the throne, Prince Charles, undoubtedly shows a lively interest in Orthodoxy and has a number of Orthodox friends with whom he discusses aspects Orthodox faith. He made many pilgrimages to Mount Athos. But if he became Orthodox, this would create very serious constitutional difficulties. So, probably, he cannot abandon Anglicanism, but he will also take into account the Orthodox context," the British Orthodox bishop said.
According to British media, in the residence of Prince Charles in Highgrove, hanging on the walls Orthodox icons.
Russian roots of Prince Charles
Few people know that the imperial blood of the Romanovs flows in Prince Charles. The heir to the British crown theoretically could even inherit the Russian throne, since his father, the Duke of Edinburgh Philip, is the great-great-grandson of Emperor Nicholas I. And Charles's grandfather, the Greek prince Andrei, was even an officer in the Russian army: in 1908 he was enrolled in the list of the Nevsky Imperial Regiment and the 1st company of the Russian Imperial Army.
Athos pilgrim
One of the favorite places of pilgrimage for Prince Charles has long been Mount Athos. He often visits this Holy Greek center of Orthodox monasticism and is even the honorary chairman of the international British society "Friends of Mount Athos".
At the initiative of Prince Charles, the society he headed provided material assistance in the restoration of Athos monasteries Vatopedi and Hilandar, annually holds international scientific conferences dedicated to the history and heritage of Athos (the next such conference will be held in Cambridge on February 3-5, 2017), organizes pilgrimages to Athos.
Sometimes Prince Charles, visiting the Holy Mountain, stayed here for more than a month. According to media reports, during the pilgrimages to Athos, he lives in a separate tiny cell and gets up at 5 o'clock in the morning to pray with the monks. In his free time from prayer, he paints picturesque views of Athos in watercolor here. Some of these paintings were sold at a London auction, and the prince donated the proceeds from their sale to the monks of Athos. As noted in the prince's entourage, "a brief departure from worldly affairs and intense spiritual work has the most positive effect on Prince Charles."
The heir to the British crown first appeared on the Holy Mountain in the 1960s. with his father, Duke Philip. One of the Athonite monks recalls: “Prince Charles is always a welcome guest here. This is the place where he seems to find peace. He is treated here like an ordinary monk, and he lives like we do, starting from what he eats the same as we do."
One of the high royal sources adds that increasingly, under the burden of years, Prince Charles is looking for answers to questions of a spiritual and philosophical nature. "The spiritual life is very important to him these days ... He is a man pressed by many concerns, so he lives in the hope of solitude, which allows him to focus on spiritual matters." There were even rumors that the prince had secretly converted to Orthodoxy and was considering becoming a monk, sacrificing the British crown. It's most likely just a rumor. However, as Metropolitan Kallistos (Ware) notes, with all the difficulties of changing one's religion, the crown prince remains a sincere admirer of Orthodoxy.
Tree on Solovki
In 2003, Prince Charles visited the ancient Orthodox Solovetsky Monastery. This event was widely covered in the media. As he himself said in an interview with reporters, he always dreamed of visiting the Solovetsky Monastery, as he considers it a "pearl of the world." Here, in the monastery, Prince Charles planted a seedling of Siberian fir on the Alley of Memory for Stalinist concentration camp prisoners and promised that he would delegate people to care for the tree.
Orthodox icons at son's wedding
On April 29, 2011, during the wedding of Prince Charles' son, William, in Westminster Abbey, where the solemn ceremony took place, many observers and television viewers were surprised to see Orthodox icons. Their appearance at the celebrations in the main Anglican cathedral is not accidental. What is it - a tribute to the memory of Orthodox ancestors or a demonstrative gesture that can be compared with how William's grandfather, Philip, continued to be baptized with three fingers after the adoption of Anglicanism? Be that as it may, the very presence of Orthodox icons in the abbey during the marriage of Prince William looks quite revealing. And this once again demonstrates the attitude towards Orthodoxy in the royal family.
Grandmother nun
Charles's father, Duke Philip, was born and lived for some time in Greece. His father was the Greek Prince Andrei, and his grandmother was Olga Konstantinovna, the Grand Duchess of the Romanov dynasty.
After the wedding with the future Queen Elizabeth, Philip, according to British law, adopted the Anglican religion, although he said more than once in an interview that he continues to consider himself Orthodox.
Philip's mother, Prince Charles's grandmother, Alice Battenberg was Orthodox and actively helped the Orthodox Church. During the occupation of Greece by the Nazis, she hid Jews in her house, saving them from being sent to concentration camps. For this, she was subsequently declared the "righteous of the world."
The son's wedding was the last solemn event at which Alice Battenberg appeared in a secular dress. Having blessed her son and returning to Athens, she forever donned a monastic robe and fulfilled her old dream by organizing a parish in memory of her aunt. Elizabeth Feodorovna Orthodox sisterly monastery of Martha and Mary, in which future nannies and nurses were brought up. Alice Battenberg died in 1969 at Buckingham Palace. Before her death, she expressed a desire to be buried in Russian Orthodox monastery in Jerusalem next to his aunt, Elizaveta Feodorovna. This wish was granted on December 3, 1988, when her remains were transferred to the Orthodox Church in Gethsemane (in Jerusalem).
On the Holy Land
On September 30, 2016, during an official visit to Israel, Prince Charles visited the Russian Orthodox Convent in Gethsemane. The distinguished guest was met by the head of the Mission of the Russian Church Abroad in Jerusalem, Archimandrite Roman (Krasovsky). When singing the troparion Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Prince Charles proceeded to Magdalene to the shrine with the relics of the Martyr Elizabeth, on which he laid fresh flowers from the homeland of his grandmother, who is the niece of the saint. Then the distinguished guest approached other shrines of the temple and, having prayed, put candles.
Leaving the temple, the heir to the throne talked with the inhabitants of Russian Gethsemane and the students of the Bethany school, after which he went to the tomb of Princess Alice.
Here, Archimandrite Roman performed a funeral service, after which the grandson of the princess laid flowers on her coffin and lit a candle. The prince then wished to remain alone in the crypt.
After honoring the memory of his grandmother and expressing his deep gratitude to Archimandrite Roman, Abbess Elizabeth and the nuns of the monastery, Prince Charles set off for his homeland.
As a reminder, on October 15-18, 2016, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' visited Great Britain, dedicated to the 300th anniversary of Russian Orthodoxy on British Isles.
During the visit, on October 18, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill met with Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and Northern Ireland at Buckingham Palace in London. His Holiness Patriarch congratulated the British Queen on her 90th birthday and presented her with the image of the Mother of God "Quick to Hear", made in Russian jewelry traditions. During the meeting, a wide range of topics was touched upon, including the position of Christianity in modern Europe. On the same day, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church met with the head of the Anglican Church, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
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Based on materials: RIA-Novosti, Patriarchia.ru, Pravoslavie.ru, Orthodoxy and the world, Russian7.ru
At the end of December 2019, the Montenegrin authorities adopted the law “On Freedom of Religion…”, on the basis of which the state set out to take away from the Serbian Orthodox Church all its real estate – churches and monasteries. The people, led by pastors, rose to defend their shrines. In the cities of Serbia and Montenegro, the second month does not stop mass protests - religious processions, prayer standing. Radmila Voinovich, a member of the Union of Writers of Serbia and Russia, a professor, a well-known church and public figure, shared with us a story about the ongoing events: “For about 30 years, Montenegro has been headed by Milo Djukanovic, sometimes as prime minister, sometimes as president.
Lack of faith is one of the signs of the end times. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? (Luke 18:8) tells us Holy Bible. Faith is not just words. These are righteous deeds and deeds. Many call themselves Orthodox, but few observe fasts, as required by the Typicon. Many consider themselves to be churched, but few understand the true meaning of this word. Churching is inseparable being in the Church of Christ, it is life with God and in God. Not so that he came, lit a candle, paid tribute to the rite or the Sacrament, and, returning home, left the Orthodox image and clung to the sinful sweets of this world.
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Prince Charles of Wales has a long and sincere interest in Orthodoxy. However, due to his position in the state, the heir to the British throne and potential head Anglican Church can hardly change religion. This was the essence of the answer given by one of the most famous and authoritative modern Orthodox theologians, Metropolitan Kallistos (Ware) of Diocleia to the question about the attitude of the House of Windsor towards Orthodoxy at a meeting with the parishioners of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Washington.
One of the participants drew attention to the fact that in Westminster Abbey in London, where the wedding ceremony of Charles's son, Prince William and his wife took place last year, large Orthodox icons hung at the very beginning of the central gallery. This is what prompted the question.
“Indeed, the works of a Russian icon painter are hung there,” Metropolitan Kallistos said, referring to Sergei Fedorov. “I find this significant,” he added, explaining that the famous cathedral is constantly besieged by crowds of tourists who need to be reminded that this is not a museum, but a “house of prayer”. And icons, in his opinion, “best of all create the proper atmosphere” and become for many a “window” through which people discover Orthodoxy for themselves.
Turning to the essence of the matter, Vladyka first of all emphasized that “Queen Elizabeth herself is without any doubt a deeply and sincerely believing Christian.” “In her last speeches, the last year or two, she began to speak much more openly and directly about her Christian faith”, he added.
The Orthodox hierarch, an Englishman, recalled that the coronation ceremony in the UK is accompanied by a rite of anointing, which is not preserved everywhere. “And I am sure that Queen Elizabeth herself is very serious about the fact that she is a Christian empress,” he said.
The Metropolitan also stressed that the British crown is a symbol of the country's unity. “Of course, the American presidency can serve as such a symbol, but this is not always the case, since specific parties nominate presidential candidates,” he explained. In his opinion, the presence of a national leader who stands above inter-party fights is especially important in times of crisis; In this context, he shared his childhood memories of how, during the years of the Second World War, after the brutal nighttime German bombing of London, King George and his wife visited the most affected areas in the morning.
Vladyka further recalled that the husband of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, comes from a Greek royal family and was baptized in Orthodoxy. By marrying a British princess, he converted to the Anglican faith, although he was not required to do so. “When we met with him, he said: “Well, yes, I was baptized in Orthodoxy, and I continue to consider myself Orthodox, but at the same time I am now an Anglican,” the metropolitan said to the laughter of the audience. “I could answer that I don’t completely agree with this, but I thought it best to remain silent, since everything was said in a friendly way,” he admitted.
“The heir to the throne, Prince Charles, undoubtedly shows a keen interest in Orthodoxy and has a number of Orthodox friends with whom he discusses aspects of the Orthodox faith,” the speaker continued. — He made many pilgrimages to Mount Athos. But if he became Orthodox, this would create very serious constitutional difficulties (in terms of government, Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy, although formally there is no single basic law there - approx. ITAR-TASS). So, probably, he cannot abandon Anglicanism, but he will also take into account the Orthodox context.”
Vladyka Kallistos is co-chairman of the mixed commission for Orthodox-Anglican dialogue. He was asked about the prospects for rapprochement between the two churches, but he repeated his well-known point of view that this is hindered primarily by the presence of different currents in Anglicanism itself. As he recalled, along with the conservative and very close to Orthodoxy " high church“There are also “evangelical and extremely liberal” directions, “to imagine unity” with which it is “impossible” for the Orthodox. For all that, the metropolitan is "for the continuation of the dialogue," albeit without the hope of "immediate achievement of practical results."
On the day of the memory of the Apostle, December 13, 2016, the Prince of Wales paid a private visit to the Russian Assumption Cathedral of the Diocese of Sourozh in London Charles.
Representative royal dynasty Great Britain took part in a festive prayer service dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Queen Elizabeth II and the 300th anniversary of the presence of Russian Orthodoxy in the British Isles, according to the website of the Diocese of Sourozh.
The service was led by the head of the diocese, Archbishop Elisha, who on this day also consecrated the bell tower of the Assumption cathedral after reconstruction and a belfry for bells.
After the prayer service, Prince Charles examined the interior of the cathedral, prayed at the relics of the martyr, and also got acquainted with the historical exposition dedicated to Grand Duchess.
“The Crown Prince’s visit to the Cathedral of the Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church in England is perceived by us as a sign of spiritual desire that historically warm relations between the two peoples, based on common Christian origins, be restored through the prayers of hundreds of Orthodox British saints,” said Archbishop Elisey.
In memory of his visit to the Assumption Cathedral, Vladyka presented the royal person with a photograph of a bell made for the 300th anniversary of Russian Orthodoxy in Britain with the image of Queen Elizabeth II.
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Concluding his stay in Israel in connection with the funeral of Shimon Peres, Prince Charles of Wales visited the Russian convent in Gethsemane, the official website of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia reports.
The head of the Mission of the Russian Church Abroad in Jerusalem, Archimandrite Roman (Krasovsky), met the distinguished guest at the gates of the holy monastery and told him about the history of the monastery. Standing on the porch, from where the whole old city is visible, the archimandrite pointed out to the prince the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, the shrines, historical places and sights of the holy city.
While singing the troparion of Mary Magdalene Equal to the Apostles, Prince Charles proceeded to the shrine with the relics of the Martyr Elizabeth, on which he placed fresh flowers from the homeland of his grandmother, who is the niece of the saint. Then the distinguished guest approached other shrines of the temple and placed candles.
Having said a few warm words to Prince Charles from the pulpit, Archimandrite Roman proclaimed to him and the entire royal house many years of English language. Leaving the temple, the heir to the throne talked with the inhabitants of Russian Gethsemane and the students of the Bethany school, after which he went to the tomb of Princess Alice.
Here, Archimandrite Roman performed a brief memorial service, after which the grandson of the princess laid flowers on her coffin, lit a candle and looked at old photographs preserved in the monastery. Prince Charles then wished to be alone in the crypt.
The Yad Vashem Memorial recognized Prince Charles' grandmother as Righteous Among the Nations. During World War II, she hid in Greece Jewish family: Rahel Cohen and her children. In 1903, Alice married Prince Andrei of Greece, the great-grandson of the Russian Emperor Nicholas I.
After honoring the memory of his grandmother and expressing his deep gratitude to Archimandrite Roman, Abbess Elizabeth and the nuns of the monastery, Prince Charles set off for his homeland.
Princess Alice of Battenberg, later, after marriage - the Princess of Greece and Denmark, (also known by the English version of the surname - Alice Mountbatten) (February 25, 1885 - December 5, 1969) - the mother of Prince Philip and the mother-in-law of the English Queen Elizabeth II. She remained in Athens during the Second World War, gave shelter Jewish families, for which her name is engraved on the wall of the Righteous Among the Nations in the Yad Vashem memorial. After the war, she founded the Orthodox Sisterhood of Martha and Mary.
