At the invitation of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia and with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Tawadros II of Copts, a delegation of representatives of the Egyptian monastic community visited Russia on a pilgrimage from July 13 to 21, 2026. The delegation was led by Metropolitan Anthony of Jerusalem and the Middle East, permanent member of the Holy Synod of the Coptic Church, Vicar of the Patriarch of the Copts in the Holy Land.
At the Pokrovsky Stavropol Convent, which became the seat of the delegation in Moscow, Metropolitan Anthony and his entourage were warmly received by the sisters of the monastery.
On July 14-15, a delegation of the Coptic Church visited the holy sites of the Nizhny Novgorod metropolia, including the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and the Voznesensky Pechersk Monastery in Nizhny Novgorod, as well as the Holy Trinity Seraphim-Diveevskaya Convent, where they met with Metropolitan George of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas.
On July 16, representatives of the Egyptian monastic community visited the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra and the Moscow Theological Academy, where they were warmly welcomed by Bishop Kirill of Sergiev Posad and Dmitrov, rector of Moscow Theological Schools. The pilgrims prayed at the shrine with the relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh, widely revered in a number of Ancient Eastern Churches. On the same day, a delegation of the Coptic Church visited the Pokrovsky Khotkovo Stavropol Convent and venerated the venerable relics of the parents of the abbot of the Russian land, Saints Cyril and Mary. The guests were warmly welcomed by the abbess of the Khotkovo monastery, Abbess Olympiada (Baranova), and the sisters of the monastery.
On July 17, the Egyptian guests visited the museums in the Moscow Kremlin, the Assumption, Annunciation and Archangel Cathedrals, the Red Square and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.
The participants of the trip also visited the Martha and Mary Convent of Mercy, where they were warmly welcomed by the sisters, led by Abbess Abbess Elisaveta (Pozdnyakova). A guided tour of the monastery was conducted for the Coptic monks. During the meal, the Abbess had a long conversation with the guests.
On July 18, the delegation visited the Resurrection New Jerusalem Stavropol Monastery. On behalf of the vicar, Archimandrite Theophylact (Bezukladnikov), the guests from the Holy Land were warmly welcomed by the sacristan of the New Jerusalem Monastery, Hieromonk Agafangel (Kobylenko). Afterwards, Metropolitan Anthony of Jerusalem and the Middle East and members of the delegation visited the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Kubinka, the main church of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The visit included an introduction to the Memorial Road museum complex, including exhibitions dedicated to the 85th anniversary of the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, and a visit to the Patriot Park. Egyptian monks worshiped the cathedral's main icon, the image of the Savior Not Made with Hands, donated to the temple by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. The members of the delegation proclaimed "Eternal memory" to all those killed "in the year of the Great Patriotic War for faith, truth and their Homeland."
On July 19, Metropolitan Anthony of Jerusalem and the Middle East celebrated the Liturgy at the Coptic house church in honor of the Apostle and Evangelist Mark, located on the territory of the parish house of the Church of the Martyr John the Warrior on Yakimanka. In addition to the faithful of the local community of the Church of Egypt, representatives of the Russian and Novo-Nakhichevan dioceses of the Armenian Apostolic Church and members of the Moscow Holy Trinity Youth Association of believers of the Ethiopian Church (Mahibere Selassie) prayed at the Liturgy.
After the service, a festive reception was held at the parish house, which was attended by Bishop Siluan of Pavlovo-Posad, Deputy Administrator of the Moscow Patriarchate, rector of the Church of the Martyr John the Warrior.
Then representatives of the Coptic Church visited the temple complex of the Resurrection of Christ and the New Martyrs and Confessors of the Russian Church in Butovo, which was erected on the site of the mass shootings of religious clergy, monastics and laity that took place in 1937-1938. Rector Archpriest Kirill Kaleda, who cordially welcomed the guests, gave the delegation a tour of the temples of the complex and the Memorial Garden of Memory. Metropolitan Anthony and members of the delegation celebrated a litiya for all those who "were innocently slain by godless rulers during the time of hard times," and offered thanks to the saints of God who died a martyr's death for Christ at this place.
On July 20, a delegation met with the monastery's vicar, Metropolitan Theognost of Kashira, chairman of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism, and the brethren at the Don Stavropol Monastery in Moscow. In the Zachatievsky Stavropol convent in Accompanied by Abbess of the monastery, Deputy Chairman of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism, Abbess Juliania (Kaleda), representatives of the Coptic Church visited the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit and the Church of the Conception of the Righteous Anna, worshiped the revered monastery shrines: a particle of the Precious Life-Giving Cross of the Lord, the icon of the Mother of God "The Merciful" and the shrine of the founders of the monastery of the Venerable Juliania and Eupraxia, whose relics are hidden. In the basement of the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin, the guests also viewed a memorial exhibition dedicated to the life and ministry of Mother Abbess's parent, Archpriest Gleb Kaleda (1921-1994).
During their stay in the Russian capital, representatives of the Egyptian monastic community also visited the Armenian temple complex of the Transfiguration of the Lord, where they were warmly welcomed by the head of the Russian and Novo-Nakhichevan Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Archbishop Yezras Nersisyan.
On July 21, the delegation left Russia.