Do not lose heart, but be encouraged: Patriarchal order to the Belgorod flocktranslated

With the blessing of Metropolitan John of Belgorod and Stary Oskol, we are publishing the resolution of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus', based on the report on the activities of the Belgorod and Stary Oskol diocese for 2025. “The difficult times experienced by our earthly Fatherland are by no means a reason for despondency, for “this must be” (Mark 13:7), nor, moreover, in order to, citing temporary difficulties, weaken in efforts to serve, to preach the word of God, to missionary feat. “Harden not your hearts, as in murmuring, in the day of temptation,” Holy Scripture reminds us (Heb. 3:8). It was in the midst of the storm that the Savior said to His disciples: “Be of good cheer” (Matthew 14:27). And we, the disciples of Christ, and even more so the ministers of His sacraments, must firmly proclaim publicly: “Be of good cheer, for God is with us.” Today is the time when the biblical word is literally fulfilled: “Wisdom proclaims in the streets, in the marketplaces she lifts up her voice” (Proverbs 1:20).

The all-Moscow procession of the cross, which took place on September 7, 2025, and the many religious processions that gathered in many cities throughout Russia in the past and already this year are a visible manifestation of our...