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New Zealand Defence Force/Flickr
Church News

Russian Orthodox leader to give Mass in the Antarctic

The Antarctic

Size: 13,829,430km-squared (around 58 times the size of the UK)
Climate: The coldest, highest, driest and windiest continent on Earth
Highest mountain: Mount Vinson (4,892m)

*British Antarctic Survey

Patriarch Kirill has flown to the continent from Chile, where he concluded a tour of Latin America which included a meeting in Cuba with Pope Francis.

This historic meeting was the first time in around 1,000 years that the two churches have come together.

The 69-year-old is understood to be visiting scientists at Russia's Bellingshausen scientific station on the Island of Waterloo and Holy Trinity Church, the only permanent place of worship in the Antarctic.

Russian media has also pictured Patriarch Kirill wearing a life vest over his traditional clothes while he is introduced to local penguin populations.

During a landmark meeting last week at Cuba's main airport in Havana, Patriarch Kirill and Pope Francis said they were ready to overcome their historical differences.

They also called on political leaders to respond to the plight of Christians in Iraq and Syria who are being killed and forced to flee their homes because of the Islamic State group.

Larry Koester/Flickr
 
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