Amman, November 14, 2012
"The return of Holy Rus to the Holy Land will have a positive effect and good consequences both for the spiritual life of our people and the life of Orthodox people in the Holy Land," he told reporters at the Jordan airport, summing up the results of his visit to the Holy Land.
The Patriarch said his visit played a very significant role because it involved the sanctification of the Church of All Saints in Jerusalem and a visit to the Russian Pilgrim House in Jordan.
"These are new important steps, which are aimed at increasing the presence of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Holy Land. When we speak about increasing its presence, we do not mean the increase of its physical presence, but we primarily believe it is important to ensure that as many our pilgrims visit the Holy Land as possible," Patriarch Kirill says.
The Patriarch said an increase in the number of pilgrims will strengthen people spiritually and will "increase Russia's ties with the countries where holy places are located."
"We can already see what extensive maintenance and restoration work is being conducted in the churches of the Jerusalem Patriarchate. Of course, it is all connected with the appearance of our pilgrims because the financial possibilities of the Jerusalem church are increasing too. We are very happy because the holy places have been in need of serious restoration for many years," he said.