Four orthodox bishops in Buenos Aires prayed together on the Sunday of Orthodoxy for peace in Ukraine

This year 2022, on the 13th of March, on the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, in the capital city of Buenos Aires four heads of the local churches, who lead their dioceses here in South America, gathered for a joint liturgy.
The service took place at the Cathedral of St. George of the Patriarchate of Antioch, and was headed by Metropolitan Santiago. He was co-served by the head of our South American Diocese of ROCOR, Bishop John of Caracas, as well as Bishop of the Serbian Church Kirill and Bishop of the South American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate Leonid. They were also co-served by the clergy of the mentioned dioceses.

The large number of faithful who came from the different Orthodox jurisdictions attended with their icons for the celebration of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. After the Liturgy, according to the ancient tradition, the Procession with the holy icons was carried out, which here took place inside the temple. Bishops and priests carried icons, Gospels and chests with relics of the saints, and the faithful also with their icons, all in procession around the temple. The Metropolitan read the Synodical of Orthodoxy. And followed, Bishop Leonid prayed the Prayer for peace in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a prayer that was blessed by His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia Kirill, to be prayed.

In Conclusion, His Eminence Metropolitan Santiago thanked all the Bishops for having come to concelebrate in this great feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy over the iconoclasts and then gave the floor to His Eminence Bishop John of Caracas and South America, who also thanked the invitation and said:

«Dear beloved Bishops: Metropolitan Iakov, Bishop Kirill, Bishop Leonid; Dear Brothers and Sisters,

it is again a great pleasure that we could here concelebrate, and celebrate the Sunday of Orthodoxy together as one Orthodox Church.
We are living in very difficult and troubled times. Unfortunately, there is much division. There is war, as we all know, in the Ukraine, between Orthodox, well, supposedly Orthodox, nations, or nations which have roots in Orthodoxy. Furthermore, even within the Church, we are faced with schisms. So, we now find ourselves in a situation where we have to follow the words of the Most Holy Patriarch Pavle of Serbia, of blessed memory: “We are not doing that what we should do, but that what we can do”.  And so, even though here we cannot have – unfortunately – the fullness of the Orthodox Church, we have gathered together as many as we could, and we pray as we can. What is happening far away in the Ukraine and Russia is beyond our control, but we all pray. And we should try not to add evil to the evil already existing in this fallen world.
Forgive all and pray for all.»

The words that followed of their Eminences Bishop Kirill and Leonid in Spanish and Russian can be read here and here.