Patriarch Kirill of Moscow
Kirill or Cyril (Russian: Кирилл, Church Slavonic: Ст҃ѣ́йшїй патрїа́рхъ кѷрі́ллъ, secular name Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev, Russian: Владимир Михайлович Гундяев; born 20 November 1946) is a Russian Orthodox bishop. He became Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church on 1 February 2009.
Styles of Patriarch Kirill | |
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Reference style | His Holiness |
Spoken style | Your Holiness |
Religious style | Patriarch |
Kirill | |
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Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus' | |
Patriarch Kirill in 2023 | |
Native name | Кирилл |
Church | Russian Orthodox Church |
See | Moscow |
Installed | 1 February 2009 |
Predecessor | Alexy II |
Orders | |
Ordination | 7 April 1969 |
Consecration | 14 March 1976 by Nikodim (Rotov) |
Personal details | |
Born | Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev 20 November 1946 Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
Denomination | Eastern Orthodox Church |
Alma mater | Leningrad Theological Academy |
Signature | |
Coat of arms |
Prior to becoming Patriarch, Kirill was Archbishop (later Metropolitan) of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, and also Chairman of the Russian Orthodox Church's Department for External Church Relations. He has been a permanent member of the Holy Synod since 1989.
A close ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Kirill has described Putin's rule as "a miracle of God". According to Putin, Kirill's father baptized him. During his tenure as Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus', Kirill has brought the Russian Orthodox Church closer to the Russian state. Kirill's relationship with Bartholomew I of Constantinople, Ecumenical Patriarch and the spiritual leader of Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide, has been tense. After Kirill lauded the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, clergy in other Orthodox Churches condemned his remarks, with Bartholomew I saying that Kirill's support for Putin and the war were "damaging to the prestige of the whole of Orthodoxy".