Russia: Kirill celebrates Saint Vladimir and calls for Ukraine peace

A liturgy was held in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour to honour the 1,000th anniversary of the repose of St Vladimir the Great in Moscow on Tuesday. The Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill led the service, during which he expressed his concerns over the crisis in Ukraine. Kirill vowed that the Russian church would aim to provide assistance where it is needed and called for strict observance of the Minsk agreements. The Patriarch has previously written to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko, urging a peaceful solution to be found to the conflict. He reminded the congregation that St Vladimir had taught Russians and Ukrainians love and forgiveness and appealed to today's leaders to end the bloodshed. St Vladimir was a Russian prince, who converted to Orthodox Christianity in 988 and ordered his people in Russia to also be baptised.