Archbishop Elpidophoros: Presents the Athenagoras Award to Yulia Navalnaya
Archbishop Elpidophoros of America presented the 2024 Athenagoras Human Rights Award to Yulia Navalnaya. In his remarks, he referred to her as a “courageous woman who carries the torch of her late husband’s legacy.” Navalnaya received the award for her advocacy of human rights.
The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarch chose to honor Yulia Navalnaya, noting that she is a freedom fighter, human rights activist, and the wife of Alexei Navalny, who championed the cause of democracy in Russia. Following her husband’s passing, she continued this fight. As per the award’s rationale, she is the president of the Human Rights Foundation and head of the advisory board of the Anti-Corruption Foundation. Her resilience and dedication have made her a symbol of courage and strength for many Russians.
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Remarks by Archbishop Elpidophoros and Yulia Navalnaya
“Amid the pain and loss of your martyred husband, you found a way to keep his memory alive for all of us who looked to Alexei as the last great hope for a Russia free from tyranny,” said Archbishop Elpidophoros. “Free from a tyranny that spins endless lies to deceive and trap the Russian people in a totalitarian nightmare from which they cannot awaken. Free from a tyranny that uses violence and war as tools of personal glorification. Free from a tyranny that threatens the world while destroying the Russian nation from within.”
In her acceptance speech, Yulia Navalnaya reaffirmed her commitment to the values for which her husband fought and died. “How can we ensure that religion in Russia plays the same role it does in Western countries? Not as a tool of state propaganda, but as a vital social institution that strengthens community bonds, teaches kindness, and helps people. How can the Orthodox Church regain the trust of the people and find its place in their hearts?… It is up to us to seek the answers to these questions,” she said.
“Abandon the Fantasies”
In the past, Archbishop Elpidophoros has commented on the issue of the Ukrainian Church, a topic that has caused a rift between the Russian Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. He noted that despite the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s efforts to resolve the matter with the Moscow Patriarchate, the latter chose isolation.
“The Moscow Church must abandon its fantasies and align itself with the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the other Orthodox Churches,” he had previously stated.
