Hegumen Philip (Ryabykh), the representative of the Russian Orthodox Church at the Council of Europe, has passed on to the secretariat of PACE the greetings of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, and Metropolitan Hilarion, President of the Department for External Church Relations of Moscow Patriarchate, to Mr Jean-Claude Mignon, on his election to the Chair of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Mr. Mignon was elected to the post on January 23, 2012 in a secret ballot in PACE and was succeeded by Mr. Mevlut Cavusoglu, the President of the Assembly Representative of Turkey. The congratulatory texts are given below.
"Dear Mr Mignon,
I congratulate you on your election to the responsible post of President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
You will lead this authoritative consultative body in the next two years. During world economic crisis and the lack of political and social stability in certain countries you will need a lot of strength to shape a renewed vision of the future of Europe with current changes taken into account. Successful and harmonious development of Europe largely depends on values to which the leadership of European power institutions will get oriented in its activity. I am convinced that the truly free and democratic society can be built only if it is based on fundamental spiritual and ethical principles firmly rooted in Christian tradition that has shaped European identity and culture.
Religious communities play an important part in asserting European values and, fulfilling their peacemaking and educational mission, remain a moral authority for millions of people living in the Old World. It is important to maintain dialogue between institutions of the Council of Europe and religious organizations not to estrange them from the European process. The PACE has several times spoken up for establishing a platform for such interaction.
I hope that this most important direction of the Council’s activity will be developed during the years of your presidency.
I wish you God’s help in your work for the benefit of all people of Europe".
KIRILL, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
"Dear Mr. Mignon,
Please accept my congratulation on your election as President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
The Russian Orthodox attaches great value to the work of this most important institution. In 2007, its members were addressed by the late Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia. His address drew a wide response and became a testimony to the importance of Christian values for the European peoples. Christianity as a world religion lying in the basis of the continent’s culture is one of the most important factors of the European integration the significance of which is still to be appreciated.
We welcomed the PACE statement condemning the violence committed against Christians, which was adopted last January, as well as some other documents of the Assembly. We hope that the dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Parliamentary Assembly will develop and acquire new forms. To this end the Moscow Patriarchate Representation to the Council of Europe has worked in Strasbourg since 2004. It is headed by Rev. Philip Riabykh.
I wish you strength and successes in fulfilling your duties".
Hilarion, Metropolitan of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations, Moscow Patriarchate