WASHINGTON, DC: August 12, 2008
The Parishes of the Russian Church Abroad Pray For the End of Bloodshed in the Caucasus

Last Sunday, many parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia raised their prayers for the end of the conflict between the fraternal Orthodox peoples of Russia, South Ossetia and Georgia.

His Eminence Archbishop Mark of Berlin and Germany issued an ukase for the parishes of his diocese to pray for Orthodox Christians in the Caucasus and for the restoration of peace in the region.

On August 10, prayers for the increase of love and cessation of bloodshed were made during Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of St John the Baptist in Washington, DC. Parish Rector Protopriest Victor Potapov called the conflict "a terrible, fratricidal tragedy provoked by the enemy of our salvation." Immediately following a moleben, a pannikhida was performed for the memory of the innocent Orthodox Christian victims killed in the conflict in South Ossetia.