Mosaic “Suvorov’s March Over the Italian Alps in 1799”. Suvorov Museum (St Petersburg (Federal City of St Petersburg) RF). Over two centuries later, the people of Switzerland and Northern Italy remember Marshal Suvorov… he was the Liberator, and there’s no two ways about it. Italy and Russia go back a LONG time…
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The Italian government granted legal status to the MP parishes on its territory, granting it official recognition. This move will greatly facilitate the pastoral ministry of priests and open new opportunities for the development of the Orthodox faith in the region. Bishop Nestor Sirotenko, the ordinary of the MP Diocese of Korsun (which has jurisdiction over Italy), said, “This recognition gives us completely new legal opportunities. We’ll be able to enter into contracts for the use of church buildings, that’s something that we have to do quite often. This recognition from the Italian government was an absolute necessity for us. In fact, in contemporary Italy, according to various estimates, about a million people are the MP’s spiritual children. Firstly, they’re emigrants from the Ukraine, Moldova, and Russia. Their number’s very considerable; the number of our parishes is constantly growing”.
As a legal entity, the MP can now purchase property and land, carry out legal action in the courts, have an independent income, and even apply for funds from the state budget. Fr Vladimir Kuchumov has already served in Italy for 10 years. Due to the fact that the MP wasn’t a recognised religious organization, he often met difficulties in his pastoral ministry. He said, “When I was rector of the Russian parish in Naples, I couldn’t visit the prison, even if our countrymen were imprisoned there. Even though I’m a priest, I wasn’t allowed to go there, because our church wasn‘t recognised by the Italian state. There were a few times that I used the pull of the local Catholic bishop in Naples when there was an urgent need. Now, no one has the right to keep me from visiting the gaol if our believers are imprisoned there”.
Today, Fr Vladimir’s the rector of the legendary Russian Compound in Bari. Earlier this year, the Italian government finally transferred the St Nicholas podvorie, also known as “Little Russia in Italy”, to the MP. In the early 20th century, the donations of Russian believers funded the construction of this unique Orthodox complex in Bari. True, in its early years, the Russian Compound belonged to the Russian state. After the 1917 Revolution, the new Soviet state abandoned the complex’s buildings. The process of returning the property of the Russian Compound of St Nicholas only began in the mid-1990s.
Fr Vladimir said, “Now, not only Russian Orthodox believers come to the complex, but also Orthodox from other countries, and even Catholics. Generally, we have very friendly relations with the Holy See’s representatives. Amongst practising and devout Catholics, there’s great interest in Eastern traditions. Orthodox priests in Italy are at their ease. When we go about in public wearing our riassa and the cross, the locals show signs of respect, they even ask for blessings and prayers. We’re always treated with great respect, and we’re always receiving invitations to come to Catholic parishes to talk to Catholics about the Orthodox faith”. Orthodoxy is the third largest religion in modern Italy. The history of Russian Orthodoxy in the region dates back to the late 18th century. The first “Russian” churches appeared in 1797 in Torino {because of Marshal Suvorov’s campaigns in Northern Italy: editor}, and two years later in Naples. At present, over 50 MP parishes and communities exist in Italy.
24 May 2012
Milena Faustova
Voice of Russia World Service
http://rus.ruvr.ru/2012_05_24/75777511/
Editor’s Note:
There’s “ecumenism” and there’s “friendly relations with the neighbours”, and they’re NOT the same thing. The first is indifferentist and syncretistic, and only the worst and most unhinged sort of Catholic and Orthodox “theologians” indulge in it. The second is human and natural, mostly engaged in by decent human beings. Latin Catholics are what they are… and, no doubt, they feel the same way about us. As an Ecumenical Patriarch put it famously, “Send us no more letters about doctrine; send us letters of friendship, only”.
If we follow such a course, that’ll smooth relations greatly, I’m sure. Let’s not chase after a false and chimerical “union” (our beliefs ARE that different)… let’s pursue a modest and decent friendship, as Christians ought (our beliefs ARE that similar). The key’s under the mat and the front gate’s unlatched… but you knew that already, didn’t you? Did you bring the church key and the Jimmy Sturr records? Now, THAT’S important…
BMD
Voices from Russia 
Good Ol’ Silvio Rides Again… “Bribes are Necessary”
Tags: Berlusconi, bribery, CEO, Chief executive officer, Election, elections, ENI, EU, European Union, Finmeccanica, Italy, Mario Monti, Monti, Paolo Scaroni, Political, Political campaign, political commentary, political debates, Politician, politicians, politics, Politics of Italy, Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, Third World, Turin
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Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi shocked the Italian media with his views on bribery and its necessity in doing business in Third World markets. A series of corruption scandals has rocked the Italian political scene, whilst the current election campaign added to the intensity of the media inquiries into the unsavoury business practises of Berlusconi’s former allies. Amongst the targets of the latest anti-corruption campaign are the CEOs of Finmeccanica S.p.A. and Eni S.p.A.. It seems that Berlusconi felt the need to defend them, telling a Financial Times correspondent, “Bribes are a phenomenon that exists, and it’s useless to deny the existence of these necessary situations when you’re negotiating with Third World countries and régimes”.
The former Italian Prime Minister also tried to explain that bribing government officials is basically an unavoidable part of doing business, and that Giuseppe Orsi (former head of Finemeccanica) and Paolo Scaroni (former head of Eni) were actually paying “commissions”. Finmeccanica and Eni are Italian companies where the Italian government has significant stakes; therefore, the media often links the bribes paid by those companies to the corrupt practices of government officials. Both former CEOs denied any wrongdoing, but it’s unknown whether they appreciate such a form of public defence from Berlusconi, a politician who’s been heavily-involved in corruption scandals. Berlusconi’s political enemies used this opening to criticise him for “supporting corruption”, whilst current Prime Minister Mario Monti emphasised that his government has taken unprecedented measures to root out corruption. Given the fact that Mario Monti is a former employee of Goldman Sachs (a bank that often faced charges of corrupting government officials across the world), it’s safe to assume that both sides of the Italian political spectrum lack anti-corruption credentials.
18 February 2013
Voice of Russia World Service
http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_02_18/Bribes-are-necessary-Berlusconi/
Editor’s Note:
Like it or lump it, Good Ol’ Silvio speaks the God-honest truth. You don’t have to agree with or like someone to acknowledge that. If you want to do business outside Western Europe or the Anglosphere, it’s best to include a hefty allowance for… ahem… “extraordinary expenses”. If one was dealing with Mobutu’s Zaïre or Batista’s Cuba (or any Good Ol’ Boy state in the Southeastern USA or some local “machines” in the Northeast (our local boss, Jerry Jennings, is smarter than that… he knows that a modest “return” ensures “repeat business”))… well, that “margin” could be very dear, indeed.
BMD