Greeting of the 2nd Grand Prior

Dear Brothers and Sisters! Dear Knights and Ladies of the Cavalry of the Great Priory of the Supreme Knightly Order of the Temple of Jerusalem!

Allow me to address you with words of greeting on such an important day for us and our Russia. The day that determined a new position for the best representatives of our beautiful Motherland is the formation of the Great Priory on our land, one of the oldest knightly Orders in the world, the first harbingers of a new perception of other traditions - the combination of monasticism and warfare. Before that, there were no such formations in the world. Our Russian land, too, traditionally, in difficult times, directed its monasticism to fight against adversaries, and not only in word, but also in deed. An example of this is the monks Peresvet and Oslyabya, who showed selfless courage in the Battle of Kulikovo, and the monasteries on the outskirts of the Russian land have always been a stronghold of spirit and strength. Our ancient traditions are akin to the spiritual knightly orders of Europe, and, probably, by the Will of God, they first appeared in the Holy Land. Time flows, ideals change, but the Commandments of the Lord do not change; initially it is up to knighthood to keep them, including us, the holders of the Exalted Knightly Order of the Temple of Jerusalem. After almost a millennium since the formation of the Order, it has changed and adapted to modern conditions of existence, but the principles laid down by Saint Bernard of Clairvaux and the first Grand Master of the Order, Hugo de Payns, have remained the same - we are defenders of the Christian faith! I wish the new Russian knighthood success on this difficult but blessed path to the Holy Gifts of the Lord! Peace to you and your home!

NON NOBIS, DOMINE, NON NOBIS, SED NOMINI TUO DA GLORIAM! Sincerely your Brother in Christ ╪ Vladimir BAGAEV 2nd Grand Prior of Russia Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Temple. 082.0002