Remarkable material preparation for the Consecration, and subsequent conversion, of Russia

In His Lordship's most recent interview, The Rt. Rev. Bernard Fellay F.S.S.P.X., General Superior of the S.S.P.X, was asked the following:

Brian Mershon: Ever since Pope Benedict was elected and the new Russian Orthodox Patriarch was chosen, there has been an obvious thaw in relations, and for the better, I believe. The Russian Orthodox Patriarch even published a book of the Pope’s writings to be disseminated to his lay faithful! How do you read this? Is this related to the Third Secret of Fatima as well?

Bishop Fellay: I personally believe there is something on the move in Russia. There definitely does seem to be something moving in Russia. There is something in the air. How far and how deep? I do not know. But, there are many things that show there is a revival of religion in Russia.
[http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31573]

"[S]omething on the move in Russia", indeed--and it's coming to Rome (in more ways than one, I hope): Here's a recent item from the Vatican Information Service's daily e-mail bulletin:

DAYS OF RUSSIAN CULTURE AND SPIRITUALITY IN THE VATICAN

VATICAN CITY, 7 MAY 2010 (VIS) - At midday today in the Holy See Press Office, Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, presented two initiatives due to take place on 19 and 20 May: the "Days of Russian Culture and Spirituality in the Vatican", and a concert in honour of Benedict XVI.

The events are being promoted by the Patriarchate of Moscow, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Archbishop Ravasi explained how between 14 and 20 May, Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk, president of the Department for External Church Affairs of the Patriarchate of Moscow, will head a delegation as it visits various Italian cities: Ravenna, Milan, Turin, Bologna and Rome.

In Rome on the evening of 19 May, Archbishop Hilarion will inaugurate a photographic exhibition by Valdimir Chodakov on the Russian Orthodox Church today. He will also attend a symposium on the theme: "Orthodox and Catholics in Europe today. The Christian roots and the shared cultural heritage of East and West". Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and Archbishop Ravasi are also due to participate in the symposium.

At 9 a.m. on 20 May, Archbishop Hilarion will preside at the divine liturgy in Rome's Russian Orthodox church of St. Catherine Martyr. At 6 p.m. on the same evening, the Russian national orchestra and the synodal choir of Moscow will give a concert in honour of the Pope. The concert, promoted by Kirill I, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, will be held in the Vatican's Paul VI Hall.

OP/ VIS 20100507 (280)
[bold type in the original]

Related reports:

(Schismatic) Metropolitan Filaret of Minsk and Sluck: '[T]he time has come to take decisive steps toward unity'
http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31516

"Russia planning to forge closer alliances with West"
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/russia-planning-to-forge-closer-alliances-with-west/story-e6frg6so-1225865376273

(Nevertheless, though I don't want to dampen people's excitement too much (and I myself am certainly excited at these developments), I must say that I have been disappointed at some of the, shall we say, unorthodox things I've been hearing from the Russian schismatics, viz.:

Father Philipp [Ryabykh, deputy head of the Department for External Church Relations of the schismatic Patriarchate of Moscow] calls for guarantees for the rights of religious communities to freely express their concerns on issues of bioethics or same-sex marriages: "If we build a society in which religious believers can also speak freely, we will have achieved the desired result for Europe '.
[http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31516]

Freedom of religion and freedom of speech? False, absurd and condemned by the Church. No thank you.

and

To overcome ["the desire", in the West, "to relegate the faith to the private realm in a way that is almost worse than the Soviet regime did in our country"], [schismatic Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia] added, the Church will have to enter "into a serious dialogue, devoid of prejudices, with lay and liberal humanism," but without falling into the temptation of "unilateralism."
[http://angelqueen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31629]

'Unprejudiced multilateral dialogue with lay and liberal humanism'? Do I detect the Spirit of Vatican II there? How uninspiring.)

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Peter Celestine, Pope, Confessor, and of St. Pudentiana, Virgin, A.D. 2010