“The Theology and Poetry of Dietrich Bonhoeffer”

Moscow

On April 15th Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow hosted a conference dedicated to the legacy of the the 20th century martyr, Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

“The life of Bonhoeffer is one of testimony and martyrdom;” with these words the Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Dietrich Brauer, opened the conference. Bonhoeffer ”looked straight into the eye of the very difficult question what it means to be a Christian, what it means to follow Christ, in an inhumane environment, in a totalitarian state. He clearly and without fear point out to his Church the threats that faced her.” As a pastor he called Christians to “wake up, come a live, grow up, and the Church to stop sleeping and keeping silence, to stop being self-interested.” Bonhoeffer needed to remind his congregation members that the Church “cannot be the church of Luther or the Church of the German people. It belongs to Christ;” Bonhoeffer himself became a “living sermon,” the Archbishop said.

He also touched on the theme of “religionless Christianity” that is found in Bonhoeffer. “The Christian faith is not the same as the Christian religion or worldview. A sermon is not a pious template. It should be ‘religionless,’ accessible, understandable.... A person becomes a Christian not through a religious ritual but by taking part in the sufferings of God in everyday life. That is what metanoia is, not to think first of all about your own troubles, problems, sins, and fears but to allow yourself to be drawn to the path of Jesus Christ...” the Archbishop said referencing the memorable words of the martyred pastor.

«Religionless Christianity” was the central theme of the conference, with two author theologians, Professor Svetlana Konacheva from the Russian State Humanitarian University and President of the Novosartavoka Theological Seminary, Dr. Anton Tikhomirov also speaking on the theme. Tikhomirov spoke about Bonhoeffer's poetry as a place where he sought a new language for “religionless” Christianity.

based on the article by Yulia Zaitseva, www.blagovest-info.ru.

The Musical Offering of J.S. Bach

Moscow
On March 14 Sts Peter and Paul Lutheran Church, supported by the German Embassy, hosted a concert of the famous German organist Martin Welzel as part of the fifth “Musical Offering of J.S. Bach Festival.” The program of the concert included works by the German composers J.S. Bach, J. G. Rheinberger, M.Regera and also French masters of organ music Louis Verna and Jean Langlais.
Martin Welzel is one of the world’s foremost contemporary organists. He was born in 1972 and received his education at the Higher School of Music in Saarbrücken , then in Washington University in Seattle. He has had the opportunity to give solo concerts in Notre Dame de Paris, in St. Paul Cathedral, in Westminster Abbey in London, at the cathedral of Stanford University (USA) and many other prestigious places throughout the world. Professor Welzel also teaches at the University of Ludwig-Maximilian in Munich.
The concert was opened with words by Archbishop Dietrich Brauer and by the permanent vice-Ambassador of Germany, Beate Grzeski, who directed attention to the fact that Johann Sebastian Bach was a Lutheran and supported the Reformation and added: “in Russia there is a special appreciation of this composer. His works were performed here even at the time when they were forgotten in Western Europe.”
The Archbishop emphasized that the concert is taking place in the year of the 333 birthday of the great composer: “The language of Bach is the language of faith, the language of eternity. Therefore it is accessible and understandable for any person whose soul is directed toward Divine mystery and who longs for its presence. I express my heartfelt thanks to the German Embassy and to the wonderful organist Martin Welzel for the musical gift of this evening and also for all of you who take part in this good deed, since the funds gathered at this concert will be donated to the Carl Blume home for the elderly in the Kaliningrad oblast.”
The Carl Blume House is one of the most important diaconal projects of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Russia. It receives no state help and run solely on the support of donations from the church.
Many fans of organ music came to the concert; not only was the sanctuary full, the balcony was as well. Representatives of the German embassy and other invited guests were in attendance.
Julia Vinogradova

ELCA Partner Visits

2017 showed that the ELCA continues to remain engaged in partnership with the church in Russia. In February regional representative Arden Haug made a trip to St. Petersburg and Moscow together with Bishop Cindy Halmarson, Global Mission Director for Europe, Middle East and North Africa. As usual they visited the central church administration, Bishop Kugappe of the Ingrian Church, and ELCA Pastor Bradn Buerkle in St. Petersburg, and then in Moscow visited Archbishop Brauer and his staff, the French-speaking congregation, and the Moscow Protestant chaplaincy.This trip came at the conclusion of Arden's many years of faithful service in accompanying the Russian church on the behalf of the ELCA; his knowledge of the situation and his efforts on behalf of our church throughout the years have been very much appreciated.

Northwest Washington delegation with Bishop Brauer

In March a group of 5 people from the Northwest Washington Synod, including Bishop Unti, came to Russa to visit the two capitals and their partner synod (ELCER) and congregations in Yaroslavl and Tolyatti. They were very impressed by what they saw, and they are filled with a desire to strengthen ties further. Eva Mader, who was not able to join the delegation that came in March as she had originally planned, did make a short trip to St. Petersburg in September to attend the service of dedication for the new organ in Petrikirche, the partner congregation of her home Grace Lutheran in Bellevue.

Pastor Gary Teske, Pastor Gleb Pivovarov, and Olga Vinogradova

In September and October, a delegation from the Central States Synod made their first trip to Russia in 5 years; while they might not be frequent, they do cover a lot of ground! They began in St. Petersburg and made stops in Moscow, Omsk, Khabarovsk and Krasnoyarsk before reaching the congregations to which they have been historically tied in the Far East. Their meetings with church leaders along the way helped the delegation get a sense of the challenges the church faces and some of the hope-filled new aspects of church life in ELCUSFE, including the leadership of a new bishop, Alexander Scheiermann, with whom the delegation's leader, Gary Teske, had already become acquainted in Omsk at the bishop's installation in April.

Bishop Halmarson and other church leaders at the Reformation Anniversary

Viking Dietrich, the new ELCA area representative, joined the group in Vladivostok, where they all celebrated together with Dean Manfred Brockmann his 80 birthday and the celebration of 25 years since the congregation has been reborn.
Finally, our church was honored to have Bishop Halmarson with us again for the Reformation anniversary celebrations in Moscow over the last days of October through the beginning of November. Her presence was more than just a reminder that this event is being celebrated world-wide, it was also a chance to gain a deeper understanding of one another and one another's church life.

The Doctrine of Justification 500 Years Later – Lutheran/Roman Catholic Conference in Moscow

 From November 21-23 at the St. Thomas Institute the ecumenical seminar “The Doctrine of Justification 500 Years Later” was held. The organizers of the seminar were St. Thomas Catholic Institute and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of European Russia (ELCER).
The St. Thomas Institute has already been in cooperation with the ELCER for quite some time, especially with the Central Deanery. Many of its graduates are working in ELCER congregations. The Rector of the Institute, Father Thomas Garcia, has preached numerous times in our Sts Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow. Therefore during one of the meetings between Father Thomas, Father Viktor Zhuk, Dean Elena Bondarenko and Lay Minister Artist Petersons the idea arose to organize a joint theological conference open to the two denominations and to the public during the year of the anniversary of the Reformation.

The idea became incarnate – a three day seminar in St. Thomas Institute with lectures by Father Jose Vegas from the “Mary Queen of the Apostles” Seminary in St. Petersburg and Pastor Anton Tikhomirov, the President of the Novosaratovka Theological Seminary. It ended up being an interesting dialogue between Lutherans and Catholics about sin, justification, salvation and the role of the Church in contemporary life.
At the conclusion of the seminar there was a discussion moderated by Father Zhuk. Dean Bondarenko and lay ministers Artis Petersons and Nikolai Demonov helped in the preparations for the seminar.

Together with One Another and with Christ

Moscow

 From September 22-24 in the Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow a youth conference was held on the theme “Reformation: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow,” dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. More than 60 people took part from Lutheran congregations in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Slovakia.

The main goal of the conference was to study the history of the Reformation together, to discuss the historical and theological nuances of the broad process. However the conference was not just a series of seminars, discussions and meetings – everything that is associated with the word “conference.” Instead young people created a comfortable, warm, you could even say home-like atmosphere in fellowship with one another.

The first day of the conference was dedicated to studying the past, the history of the Reformation itself. After prayer, the conference began its work. The question of the basis of Christian life was discussed – what is the foundation that a person builds his life on? Why is the question of a person’s relationship to God still relevant? Using skits young Christians took a creative approach to remembering those historical people who walked the path of Reformation, the path of a relationship with God. All the events of this day were mixed with energetic games that were in one way or another tied with questions of faith, Reformation and the service of God and one's neighbor. After supper there was a small excursion to the tourist sites near to the cathedral. Participants walked along the quiet, curvy streets and alleys of the Kitai-Gorod neighborhood and after supper even went on a Lutheran quest in the center of Moscow. The first day ended with a Taize prayer.

During the second day contemporary questions were raised - in particular how the Reformation as a spiritual transformation touches each of us. Participants shared with one another their visions of this issue, after which a skit prepared by the Lutheran congregation in Smolensk was performed in the chapel next to the cathedral. The name of the skit was “Martin Luther” and was dedicated to family values in the life of a Christian. Those in attendance noted the actors skills, in particular the person who played Martin Luther, whose character was portrayed very subtly and movingly. The second day ended with a prayer service led by the youth leader of the Moscow congregation, Vladislav Telegin and the preacher of the French-speaking congregation in Moscow, Mamy Rakotonitama, originally from Madagascar.

During the third and final day of the conference participants together with congregational members from the cathedral took part in Sunday worship during which the hymn of the conference (“God called us from various peoples”) was sung. Also during the second half of the day on Sunday there was an ecumenical youth worship service during with a number of participants took part together with representatives of other Protestant movements in Moscow.

During these days of work the participants also had the opportunity to spend their free time in an interesting way – some explored the city, others worked on crafts, others still played either board or sports-based games. The conference came to a close with a picnic in the yard of the cathedral.

All the participants could feel the spirit of true Christian unity, learn how congregations live in various parts of our country and neighboring countries, sharing with one another personal experience and cooperative work in various spheres of church life – from children’s ministry to to pastoral ministry. They expressed their desire to maintain their connections with one another and to work together on cooperative projects in the future. And there was even a note of melancholy  which participants felt in the last hours of the conference, but this could not destroy the joy that filled their heart and the thankfulness to the Lord they felt from the recognition of very simple and clear fact – we are the present and future of the church. We have seen each other face to face; we are together with one another and with Christ.

Natalia Shetsel, Vladimir Kazantsev

ELCR General Synod Elects a New President

Moscow

Archbishop Dietrich Brauer, in his sermon at the opening worship service of the Fifth General synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Russia, spoke about his recent experience at the worldwide LWF gathering: “The influence of the Reformation is not limited to only European countries. The large gathering of the Lutheran World Federation was held in May of this year in Africa, in Namibia.  The entire host country was caught up in great joy - the president of the country – a Lutheran – organized a warm welcome for guests. On one of the days there were testimonies given by ministers of the church from various regions. Delegate Vera Tkach told the story of St. Mary Lutheran Church in the Petrograd region of St. Petersburg. In the years of the blockade the wooden church was disassembled and used for firewood to warm people's homes. In this way the church continued to serve people. Everything changed a century ago and this century left scars. Today, though, we are traveling on the road to His coming kingdom, trusting our Lord.”

This report helped give context to those gathered in Moscow for the General Assembly. 20 delegates, elected to 6-year terms by local and regional leaders in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia (ELCER) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Urals, Siberia and Far East (ELCUSFE), took part in the event that included: the Archbishop's report, the vice-president's report from Tatyana Muramtseva and the report of the president of the Theological Seminary, Anton Tikhomirov.

Maria Khudenko and Viktor Weber spoke about the results of the new state registration of the church's constitution; the process has been completed and the Church should receive the confirmation documentation soon.

A second, no less important aspect of the meeting was the election of a new president. Two years ago Waldemar Bentzel was elected president, but he moved to Germany for a new place of service; in the meantime his responsibilities were passed on to Tatytana Muramtseva, the vice-president. The Dean of the Saratov Deanery of the ELCER, Andrey Dzhamgarov, was elected as the new president, with Dean of the Central Deanery of ELCUSFE, Vladimir Vinogradov, elected vice-president.

The audit commission was also elected: Elena Lobova from Omsk, Olga Smykova from St. Petersburg, and Lidya Reichert from Samara.

At the prayer service at the conclusion of this most authoritative meeting of Russian Lutherans Archbishop Brauer blessed Andrey and Vladimir in their new ministries.

Cooperation with PCUSA

The Presbyterian Church (USA) has worked in Russia since shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union; their unique role throughout the years has been to cooperate with the ministry of the country's historic Christian denominations (which, speaking generally, does not include Presbyterians, but does include Orthodox, Baptists and Lutherans). Their efforts to show support across denominational lines has been an impressive witness of commitment to true Christian unity.

While PCUSA has been engaged mostly with Baptist and Orthodox churches, but they've supported the Lutheran church in significant ways, too. In particular, for many years they supported the teaching ministry of Dr. Joseph Kang at the Theological Seminary in Novosaratovka, and through their area representative, Ellen Smith, they've also occasionally worked out partner congregations between the U.S. and Russia.

It was with working toward this goal that Ellen Smith joined fellow American, Pastor Bradn Buerkle (who leads the off-site, “Equipping for Service” educational program for our church), on a trip to the Northern Caucasus deanery near the end of March. Area Dean Sergey Maramzin received the guests, whom he invited to visit congregations in the region and to take part in a deanery seminar about the anniversary of the Reformation. Pastor Buerkle prepared lesssons, while Dean Maramzin prepared the place; he has been working very hard to construct (much with his own hands) a small retreat center that could be used for deanery-wide events or simply for individuals looking for a place of spiritual restoration.

The building was filled with capacity, then, when twelve people from four different locations came for the day-long seminar; there they got a short refresher course in the basics of Lutheranism, met Ellen and heard about her church, and also checked out the new retreat center. A good impression was formed on all sides – clearly the retreat center is useful and comfortable, the lessons were helpful review and also provided new perspectives on a few questions, while the hope of developing a relationship between the region and a U.S. congregation seems realistic. After a long period of stagnation, it is clear that the Lord's Spirit is moving among the believers in the Northern Caucasus, and God has blessed the region with a commitment by the church to support its further development.

Ellen continued to contribute to our church life later in the month by helping to arrange a seminar in Moscow for those engage in diaconal ministry. Artis Petersons made the arrangments on the ELCER side, and the “Equipping for Service” program covered expenses.

Two teachers from PCUSA - women engaged in diaconal ministry in very different ways (one through the organization of lay ministers groups, the other as a sociologist) – shared their knowledge with the ecumenical, international, and intergenerational group that gathered for 3 full days of classes.

Both the teachers and the participants of the course came away feeling enriched, and in this way the seminar reflects all the ways we have interacted with PCUSA throughout the years. 

Ecumenical Reformation Anniversary Organizing Committee Established

Moscow
Representatives of the Protestant community, the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox confession, the International Union of German Culture as well as representatives of the Presidential Administration of Russia and the city government of Moscow were present at the first meeting of the Reformation Anniversary Organizing Committee on January 18. Archbishop Dietrich Brauer opened the session; in his greetings to the participants, he noted that the anniversary of the Reformation would be celebrated extensively in the entire world, including Russia. This anniversary should be not only festive, but also a reason to make sense of the errors of the past and to overcome the contradictions within the Christian church as a whole. “We need to be in dialogue, in touch with one another. That is why we have gathered here, so that this year of the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation might become a possibility for us to find new ways to reach out for the greater glory of the Lord. All of us are thinking over our actions within our churches, and again and again we come to the need to repent and bow down before the Lord, the giver of all mercy.” During the meeting, the schedule of events celebrating the anniversary year was coordinated. They will take place in Moscow as well as in the regions of Russia. The first important event of the year will be the jointly-led Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Catholics and Lutherans of Russia decided to revive a former tradition and have events take place in the churches of both confessions during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity from January 18 to 25, 2017, in order to confirm the mutual wish to go from division to full community in Christ. The General Secretary of the Conference of Catholic bishops of Russia, Chancellor of the Curia of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God in Moscow Father Igor Kovalevsky noted in his speech that the Catholic Church is ready to take part in different events of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in order to testify to the values of the Gospel together. He suggested throwing more light on the Catholic-Lutheran dialogue in the world so that parishioners of all confessions could grasp its contents. The main thing is making the Gospel clear, as Father Igor Kovalevsky emphasized. The representatives of the presidential administration and the city government expressed their honest wish to help and support the organizing committee in every way in conducting the events of the Reformation anniversary year. A collective prayer and a blessing by Archbishop Dietrich Brauer closed the meeting.

Prayer for Christian Unity in the Lutheran Cathedral

Moscow

On January 24 in St. Peter and Paul's Cathedral of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia there was a worship service that united Christian congregations of various denominations from around the city. Participants came from Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Armenian, Baptist, Pentecostal and Adventist congregations.

In his greeting Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia Dietrich Brauer said: “Dear brothers and sisters! Five hundred years ago, the Reformation began. Martin Luther prompted the church to reform so that it would be able to fulfil the Great Commission given by Jesus Christ – to preach the Gospel to the world for the reconciliation of humankind with God. However, peace with God is tied inextricably with peace between people. A person acquires faith in God, becoming a child of God without any merits of their own, solely by grace. Therefore a believer cannot fail to see in a fellow Christian a brother or a sister. A Christian cannot but mourn about the division of the Church and to strive to attain unity. The ministry of reconciliation about which the Word of God is talking so clearly today is our common ministry. It takes place under the sign of the Cross. The Cross of Christ is the eternal sign of reconciliation between God and humankind. But the cross is also an eternal call to repentance. We really have nothing more to quarrel over when we are engaged in a ministry together. For the life of a Christian is the ministry of reconciliation. Today, dear brothers and sisters, I am praying to God to bless each of us to engage in this ministry of reconciliation in the name of Jesus Christ, to help us grow in the spirit of mutual acceptance, forgiveness, encouragement, love and the promise of unity for the Church of Christ.”

Archbishop Paulo Pezzi, the metropolitan of the Roman Catholic Mother of God Archdiocese, addressed those gathered: “‘How good and pleasant it is for brothers to live together,’ we read in the Psalm. This gathering which unites Christians of this city, is wonderful and from my perspective a sign of that to which the whole world is called, all people of goodwill. I especially like that this year we have the opportunity to pray together, whether in the Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception yesterday, or here today in this marvelous Lutheran church or in St. Andrew's Anglican Church tomorrow. This is a sign that we deep in our heart want to be together. We are united by Christ's love.” The Papal Nuncio in Russia, Archbishop Celestino Migliore, added: “I think that it is very important to meet together in this Protestant Cathedral in the year when we commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.. The Reformation has a lot of meaning not only for Protestants, but for all Christians. We should confess our sins against unity in the past and speed up our efforts toward unity in diversity."

The ecumenical worship service was accompanied by the singing of choirs from different confessions: the chapel choir of St. Peter’s and Paul’s Cathedral, the choir of the Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, the Armenian Apostolic Church and the “Church of God” at Tsarytsino (Russian United Union of Christians of Evangelical Faith - Pentecostals). Hymns were not just musical accompaniment of the evening. They also helped everyone who had come to the cathedral to feel our common Christian roots and culture more deeply. As Father Patrick, the Chaplain of the Anglican Cathedral, said in his speech: “Music is not only an international but also an ecumenical language. Music is a strong help for coming to the Lord, for preaching the Gospel.” During the worship service representatives of the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Christians of Evangelical Faith, the Evangelical Christians – Baptists, the Russian United Union of Christians of Evangelical Faith and the Seventh Day Adventists addressed the congregation. The worship service was closed by the Lord’s Prayer and a blessing from Archbishop Dietrich Brauer.

Mamy Rakotonitama Blessed as Lay Minister

Moscow

On November 6, 2016, in Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral Mamy Rakotonitama was blessed as Lay Minister of the Central Russian Deanery of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia. Archbishop Dietrich Brauer led the service and he was assisted by Dean Elena Bondarenko and Lay Minister Artis Petersons. After worship with the French-speaking congregation the Archbishop and the church council president shared special words of greeting. The youth sang a celebratory hymn and then invited everyone to a feast prepared by Fara Rakotoarievelo.

Festival of Denominational Choirs

Moscow, Russia
On April 10th Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral hosted the 1st Festival of Denominational Choirs. This event became a part of the 3rd Moscow Inter-Christian Easter Celebrations. 
  12 choirs took part. Spiritual and folk music filled the cathedral, which was overflowing with visitors. The concert came to a close with music by a bell choir; this was the first time many people had head a bell choir, and it was unforgettable. 

  The audience had the joy to hear: the Younger Choir of the N.A. Alekseeva Music School; the “Unforgettable Light” men's choir, the choir of the Moscow missionary committee (Russian Orthodox), the “Ringel” Jewish women's choirc, the choir of the Roman Catholic cathedral, the Chapel Choir of the Sts. Peter and Paul Lutheran Cathedral “Lux Mundi,” the “Ovsana” and “Norayrash” choirs of the Armenian Apostolic Church, the free choir of the Baptist church, the Goethe Institute Academic Choir and the choir of hand bells of the musical department of the Union of Baptists. 

"Reformation Cantata" in Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral

Moscow
  As part of the “Cranach Family: between Renaissance and Mannerism” exhibit 
being hosted at the Pushkin Museum of Fine Art in Moscow from March until May, the General Consulate of Germany organized a unique concert in the Lutheran Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul. On April 18th J.S. Bach's “Reformation Cantata” (BWV 80) was given a rare performance in Russia. 
  The Cantata, composed around 1730, was performed by famous musicians – international award winner Konstantine Volostnov (organ), soloists of the Moscow “Helikon-Opera” theater Alisa Gitsba and Michael Davidov, soloists of the Chamber Orchestra of the Moscow Conservatory Maria Chelmakina and Taras Yasenkov, the Tula State Choir, and the State Assemble of Soloists “Orpharion.” The director was Alexander Solovyev.
  One of the unique parts of the “Reformation Cantata” was that it includes four lines of Martin Luther's famous song  «Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott» (“A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”) 
 A special guest at the concert was the Minister-President of Thuringia Bodo Romelow, who was in Russia on an official visit. He gave a word of greeting, as did the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany Rüdiger von Fritsch and Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia Dietrich Brauer. 

Based on material from   http://www.germania.diplo.de/

Ambassador Rüdiger von Fritsch, Archbishop Dietrich Brauer, and President-Minister Bardo Romelow  

ELC Archbishop in the Duma

Moscow
On January 28th the Duma Committee on Non-governmental and Religious Organizations, as a part of the 4th Annual Christmas Parliament Meetings, held a round table dedicated to the question of improving laws regulating religious organizations. ELC Archbishop Dietrich Brauer in his report called attention to the process of registration of pseudo-ecclesiastic organizations and spoke against their activities, stating that they not only "harm the reputation of religious groups, but they also destroy peoples' souls."
Yaroslav Nilov, the head of the Committee, led the discussions. Before them he summarized the work of the Committee over the past year, reminding everyone that the "State Duma made a number of important statements, to the press in particular, about avoiding inciting religious hatred. Mr. Nilov regretted that the full Duma considered, but did not pass, the document the Committee recommended regarding the repression of Christians in the world, though, he underlined, "this question remains relevant today in many regions of the world."
Among legislative initiatives, the Committee chair noted that it is a step forward that the Russian Civil Code has been altered to show that the activity of religious organizations is regulated by a special law "On the Freedom of Conscience;" "this allows religious organizations to fully function today," he said. In his words the corrections made to the portions of the law regarding ministry in the penal system "significantly simplified the work of ministers." "A new order was found for regulating financial activity of religious organizations," the definition of the term "religious group" was clarified, the "so-called 15 year formula" was taken out of the law, and a 10 year limit was placed on newly founded religious organizations on their missionary and educational activities; norms were formulated to defend holy texts from accusations of extremism, and the first reading of a law went through which would allow the possibility of foundations to administer the properties of religious organizations if the foundations themselves are religious organizations or an organization's representative.
At the end of his presentation the Committee  Chair summarized by saying that the state knows that the "dialog which we have needs to be developed and strengthened and the State Duma, which can act as a meeting place for dialog and a "spark for speeding up certain processes" will continue to improve the legal code of the country.  

Lay Preacher Blessed in Moscow

Moscow
On February 7th ELC Archbishop Dietrich Brauer commisioned Artis Peterson as a lay minister.

32-year-old Artis  is a member of the Moscow congregation and a catechist of the Central Deanery. At present he is studying both at the Theological Seminary in Novosaratovka and at the St. Thomas Institute in Moscow. Artis has a degree in information engineering. He does public relations and tech support for the cathedral congregation in Moscow; one of his projects is recording videos of sermons which are then posted on the lutherancathedral.ru site.

Artis will mainly be serving in the congregation in Kostroma, but will also serve in other congregations of the Central Deanery - Moscow, Kolomna and Smolensk.

110th Anniversary of the Dedication of St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow

Moscow

On December 20th the cathedral church of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia celebrated its 110th anniversary. To mark this event there was an evening of spiritual reflection and music to which were invited representatives of the city government, the Russian Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church and other Protestant churches of Russia.

Archbishop Dietrich Brauer greeted those present: "We are witnesses of a wonderful time when God's grace and glory is raised in various languages to all people, including through music. Today is really a miracle. A miracle that the cathedral is restored, a miracle that it is serving its purpose. Today we going to listen to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. And I hope that all of you will let into your hearts that Word which has been placed in the music! The Word which became flesh and dwelled among us. Let Jesus Christ shine in His Glory above us with us and through us." 

The German Ambassador to Russia, Ruediger von Fritsch, and the Moscow Patriarchate's Secretary of External Relations for Inter-Christian Affairs, Stefan Igumnov, also spoke. The latter said: "For us it is a great joy, a great honor and a significant event to mark together with our brother Lutherans the 110th anniversary of the dedication of this wonderful cathedral. From the moment of its founding the congregation of the cathedral lived a full spiritual life and was one of the great Christian congregations of Moscow. But then for reasons unrelated to the believers themselves, life in the church was interrupted for many years. And what a blessings that the cathedral is experiencing rebirth! It has become a center of spiritual life, like it was at the beginning. It is a center of gravity for those Muscovites and guests of the capital that seek culture, that seek to enjoy the treasurers of classical music."

The evening continued with a performance of Bach's "Christmas Oratorio" and readings from the Christmas stories in the Gospels. 

1st Annual Reformation Day Theological Conference in Moscow

Moscow
The first annual Reformation Day theological conference was held on October 31 in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Moscow. The theme chosen this year was: "Reformation: from Conflict to Dialogue."
Elena Bondarenko, Dean of the Central Deanery and Public Relations director for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in European Russia, opened the conference. She noted that for such an ecumenical conference, it is inappropriate to approach the Reformation as something that is either simply positive or simply negative. "Many centuries later Christians of all denominations are seriously thinking about points of contact and not about what divides us. The experience of Martin Luther's Reformation needs a serious, well-thought-out approach, not an apologetic defense." The interesting speakers for the day provided a wonderful opportunity to do just that.
Many guests from various churches attended, including representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, of the Archbishop of Canterbury,from the German embassy congregation, the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy and the Moscow Bible Church.
The friendly tone of the conference was set by Pavel Gnilorybov, a historian of Moscow. He spoke about the history of the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral on Starosadsky alley. The rector of the St. Thomas Institute, Tomas Garsiya and Father Kirill Gorbunov, press secretary of the Roman Catholic Archbishopric of the Mother of God in Moscow, shared their thoughts about the development of friendly and partner relationships between the Lutheran and Catholic Churches. Andrey Desnitskiy, a consultant with the Bible Translation Institute and a member of the Oriental Studies division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, spoke about the problems that all Christians (of any denomination) face. The conference was concluded by the Rector of the ELC Theological Seminary, Anton Tikhomirov, who spoke about his research into a number of church sounds from Western Christian denominations. 

Saying Goodbye to Pastor Fara

Moscow
  On July 19th after 8 years of service Pastor Fara Rayarisoa from Madagascar completed her service in the French-speaking Protestant congregation of Moscow. This event was marked by worship in St. Peter and Paul cathedral and by an African barbecue meal in the courtyard after worship.
  Elena Bondarenko, Dean of the Moscow region, is fluent in many languages, including French; this will allow her to be Pastor Fara's successor. The congregation already knows Pastor Bondarenko well thanks to her frequent visits to and preaching in their congregation, which is made up of French-speaking Africans and a few Protestant French citizens who work at the embassy. The congregation has been in contact with the ELCER for 15 years already and celebrates its regular services in the chapel. This year the congregation expressed its desire to become an official congregation of the ELCER while at the same time maintaining its French Protestant identity.

Like a Large Canvas

Moscow
“The Unity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace” - these words from Ephesian 4 were the theme for the second annual “Church Days of the ELCER,” held February 9-10, 2015, in the Moscow oblast at the “Dom Bosko” Roman Catholic retreat center.
  Representatives of the deaneries of the ELCER – pastors and active congregational members – gathered together for a day of fellowship; they told one another about what life is like throughout the church. Representatives of the deaneries took turnings giving short presentations about their congregations – through pictures it was obvious both how alike and how different the congregations are. One thing unites them all – an accent on diaconal work. Carrying for the elderly, for orphans or the disabled, for those who need pastoral care, for the homeless and for those who are HIV positive...  while most of society is indifferent to such needs, that is not the case with Russian Lutherans. That is one thing that is obvious from the presentations given during the ELCER Church Day. It also remains clear that our church is like a large canvas made up of various pieces that can only fulfill their function by being together.

  A number of congregations and their historical buildings celebrated special anniversaries this year – in Samara, Ulyanovsk, and Perm. Others are working on finding the resources to restore historic buildings or to build new ones; this is the priority of such congregations as Yaroslavl and Saratov. In Kazan the full restoration of the building has been completed...and few people know that there is a building of the Lutheran Church in Vladikavkaz! But right now it is used by the orchestra (as is the case in Archangelsk.)
  There are Lutheran congregations not only in the big cities, but also in villages, for example in the Samara, Saratov and Kaliningrad deaneries. It was news to many that a small, new congregation has now been founded in the Northwest deanery - in the village of Krestsy in the Novgorod region. For the first time, congregations from Crimea took part in the Church Day; the congregations in Simferopol and Yalta are now in the process of re-registration and will soon become official congregations of ELCER. The Crimeans introduced their congregations to the rest of the church and expressed a wish that friendly relationships with Russian church would develop quickly.
  Throughout the day representatives from the ELCER's new partner church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony, were also present and took part. The day ended with Bible study and evening prayer led by pastors Viktor Weber (Moscow) and Elena Bondarenko (Moscow area Dean). The conclusion of the Church Day was worship the next morning, presided at by Archbishop Dietrich Brauer. The preacher was recently-ordained Andrey Dzhamgarov from Saratov.

Installation of Dietrich Brauer as Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia

Moscow
  St. Peter and Paul's Cathedral in Moscow had never held such an event before; perhaps it was the largest event of its kind in the post-Soviet history of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Russia – the consecration of Dietrich Brauer as Archbishop of ELCR on February 8, 2015. There were bishops from foreign churches, representatives of international church organizations, local representatives of churches, of the government and of foreign diplomatic missions (Germany and America).
Image  After two years as the “acting” Archbishop, the title was made official at the General Assembly of the Russian church in September 2014. It was decided then that it would be good to plan the installation as a large meeting of partners and friends of the church, so time was left to invite people and put together plans. In the end the installation was presided at by the Archbishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Estonia Urmas Viilma, who himself had just become Archbishop in Tallinn the week before. Assisting him were representatives of the LWF, the churches in Hungary, Slovakia, Finland, Austria, Latvia, Siberia and Kazakhstan. Ecumenical guests from the Orthodox, Catholic and protestant churches also were in attendance.
  In his sermon Archbishop Brauer spoke about what he sees as priorities – the strengthening of internal church unity and of the structures of the Union of Evangelical Lutheran Churches. He sees the Lutheran church here playing  a positive role in Russian society, in the ecumenical sphere and in the international Lutheran family.