Telegram of His Holiness, Patriarch Aleksy of Moscow and All Rus to President George Bush

His Excellency
MR. GEORGE BUSH
President of the United States of America

Mr President,

I Convey to you and the American people my most profound sympathies.

May the Lord wipe away the tears of your countrymen. May He aid the injured and those who have lost loved ones to overcome suffering. May those who have been killed rest in the mansions of the just. Together with the entire Russian Church, I pray for the living and the dead.

It is with great pain that I learned of the monstrous crimes that have destroyed the lives and health of tens of thousands of people. There can be no justification for those who are responsible. I hope with all my heart that such horrible tribulations and grief will never come to the American land again.

At this tragic hour, we are with you, with America and its people. May the mercy of God be upon you.

+ALEKSY Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus