On Tuesday 26 June 2012, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. He was met by the Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III, Abbot Isidore, and other monks, and was accompanied by Berl Lazar and Adolf Shayevich, the chief rabbies of Russia according to Russia's two leading Jewish organizations.
Putin attended an early morning vigil at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The Patriarch told President Putin, "Христос воскрес!", which means, "Christ is Risen!" The Russian President answered back, "Воистину воскрес!", which means, "Truly he has risen!" Putin knelt and prayed at the Anointing Stone and visited the site where Jesus Christ was buried and rose from the dead. He also visited Golgotha, the site of the crucifixion, as well as the Western Wall in the Old Town - a key place of pilgrimage and prayer in Judaism.
Putin attended an early morning vigil at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The Patriarch told President Putin, "Христос воскрес!", which means, "Christ is Risen!" The Russian President answered back, "Воистину воскрес!", which means, "Truly he has risen!" Putin knelt and prayed at the Anointing Stone and visited the site where Jesus Christ was buried and rose from the dead. He also visited Golgotha, the site of the crucifixion, as well as the Western Wall in the Old Town - a key place of pilgrimage and prayer in Judaism.
