Patriarch Kirill blesses recognition of remains from Oryol cemetery as relics of Athanasius of Oryol

Patriarch Kirill has blessed the recognition of the remains discovered at the Krestitelskoye Cemetery in Oryol as the holy relics of Athanasius of Oryol. The Church canonised Athanasius on 14 May 2026 as a holy fool and confessor.

Athanasius was born in 1887 in the village of Danichevo in the Volhynia Governorate. In July 1920 he was arrested and held until November in Oryol concentration camp No. 1. After his release he settled in the bell tower of the Epiphany Cathedral and began his ascetic feat of foolishness for Christ. In 1931 he was arrested again, on a charge of agitation against the collective farms. Athanasius admitted that he had dissuaded people from joining a collective farm, but rejected the remaining charges. From 1932 he spent nine years in the Oryol psychiatric hospital. After 1948 he was arrested several more times and in total spent seven years in psychiatric hospitals. The doctors recorded in his case notes his religiosity, his calm and his kindness.

Athanasius died on 5 May 1967 at the age of 81. His remains were found on 3 August 2026 during excavations at the burial site, in which clergy and forensic experts took part. The Diocese of Oryol will mark the day of the finding of the relics every year on 21 July by the Old Style, or 3 August by the New

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National Museum of Korea director criticised over misattributed work from his own collection

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In a hall of the European Parliament stands a golden sculpture seated on the shoulders of a bronze figure, the plinth reading “The Orange Plague”, with two men walking past.

Jens Galschiøt's sculpture “The Orange Plague” is on display at the European Parliament in Strasbourg

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National Museum of Korea director criticised over misattributed work from his own collection

The Metropolitan Museum and the Louvre Prepare “Rembrandt and the Ancients” for New York in 2027 and Paris in 2028

The Ramayana in Hollywood Cinema, from “A Little Princess” to Nitesh Tiwari’s Film

Jens Galschiøt's sculpture “The Orange Plague” is on display at the European Parliament in Strasbourg