Russian Patriarch Kirill congratulated the head of the Macedonian Orthodox Church, Archbishop Stefan, on his 70th birthday, BGNES reported.
"In sending you this joyful Easter greeting, I congratulate you with all my heart on your 70th birthday. From your youth, after hearing the Savior's call to deny yourself and follow Him, taking up your cross, you devoted yourself entirely to God and constantly strive to devote yourself to prayer and service to the word. By God's grace, you have risen from strength to strength and have earned great love and respect from the clergy and laity, who, by the wise Providence of the Most High, have chosen you to the primatial throne of ancient Ohrid—the Slavic Jerusalem— which, through your efforts, has once again shone as a bright star in the family of the Local Orthodox Churches," Kirill wrote to Stefan, adding:
"On this solemn day for you, I pray for good health, peace of mind, and inexhaustible help from the Lord for many blessed years of your upcoming ministry."
BGNES recalls that on May 24, 2017, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that the Slavic alphabet came to Russia from "Macedonian lands." This statement was strongly condemned by scholars and public figures. I BGNES