“Let the fire of brotherly love with kindness, grow continually between you and your brother, allowing nothing to turn it cold.” (St Kyrillos VI)
Fr Raphael Ava Mina, the personal deacon of Pope Kyrillos writes:
His heart was full of love for his children. A divine fire of love pulled him towards his sons and daughters. He could not help but to love them and open his heart before he opened his door to them. For them, he suffered, grieved, wept, became depressed and exhausted.
As the love that filled his heart was a divine one, he loved everyone; those who offended him as well as those who exalted him; those who accepted him as well as those who rejected him. If he had rebuffed someone or was hard on them, it was because his love was truthful and sincere. If he had compassion or pity on someone standing on shaky ground, he would help him stand firm. He was fearful that the weak person was like a bruised reed that would break in a storm of tribulation.
As his spirit was immeasurably stronger than his body, no debilitating illness would have prevented him from meeting with his children. He met with them because he loved them, even when he was sick in bed, tired, or in pain which only those close to him knew about.
We will remember you father for many years. History will keep your memory for many generations. Celestial bodies will witness, until the end of times, that you were a father for your children; that you were the shepherd for your flock, teaching them with meekness, humility, and love. You gave them peace from your overflowing heavenly peace. For them you were not just a preacher, but your life was a sermon.
As I gather a little from here and there of the life of Your Holiness, I witness that your love for your children was a matter that no words can describe, and no stories can tell. Therefore, I sincerely ask the reader to think deeply with a clear mind into each and every story I mention. I hope the reader will be able to see the true meaning of God’s work in our saint’s heart. I wept with each word as I went through each story; and why not, since the one who loved us so much has departed.
Ref: The life of the saint Pope Kyrillos the Sixth, p. 70 – 71
The Art of Orthodoxy 