Wednesday
Jul192023

« On the day of the memory of St. Sergius of Radonezh, Bishop Matthew of Sourozh concelebrated with the Chairman of the DECR, Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, in the church of St. John of the Ladder of the Moscow Theological Seminary »

Date19-07-2023
On July 18, 2023, on the feast of the finding of the relics of St. Sergius of Radonezh (1422), solemn festive services were held at the Holy Trinity-St.Sergius Lavra.
His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia celebrated the Divine Liturgy on the Cathedral Square of the Holy Trinity - St.Sergius Lavra.
A solemn service was celebrated in front of the venerated icon of St. Sergius of Radonezh. To celebrate the festive all-night vigil and the Divine Liturgy, a platform was built on the Cathedral Square, and a holy table under the canopy was installed in front of the Dormition Cathedral of the Lavra.
At the Liturgy His Holiness was assisted by Metropolitan Yuvenaly (Poyarkov); Metropolitan Vilenty of Tashkent and Uzbekistan, head of the Central Asian metropolitan district; Metropolitan Varsonofy of St. Petersburg and Ladoga, Metropolitan Dionysius of Voskresensk, Administrator of the Moscow Patriarchy, First Vicar of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia for the city of Moscow, Bishop Foma of Sergiev Posad and Dmitrovsk, abbot of the Lavra; Bishop Kirill of Zvenigorod, Rector of the Moscow Theological Academy, and host of bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Bishops and clergy of the Local Orthodox Churches participated in the service: Metropolitan Niphon of Philippopolis, representative of the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia;  Bishop Anthony of Moravich, representative of the Patriarch of Serbia to the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia; Archimandrite Seraphim (Shemyatovsky), representative of the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia to the Moscow Patriarchal Throne; Archpriest Daniel Andreyuk, representative of the Orthodox Church in America; Archimandrite Isaiah (Lukic), abbot of the monastery of Blessed Matrona, Republic of Serbia.
The divine service was attended by A.Yu. Kuznetsova, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation;  L.E. Slutsky, Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, Head of the LDPR faction in the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs;  I.Yu. Bryntsalov, Chairman of the Moscow Regional Duma; S.G. Malyshev, Senior Vice President, Financial Director of Norilsk Nickel Group; D.A.  Akulov, Head of the Sergiev Posad city district Administration of the Moscow region; and A.V. Potemkin deputy General Director of "Sofrino", Art and Production Enterprise of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The divine service was also attended by abbess Juliania (Kaleda), Deputy Chairman of the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism, abbess of the Zachatievsky stavropegial convent, abbesses of other stavropegial convents, monastics and pilgrims who arrived at the Lavra for the feast.
Liturgical hymns were performed by the joint choir of the Holy Trinity-St.Sergius Lavra and the Moscow Theological Academy under the direction of Hieromonk Nestor (Volkov).
Live broadcast of the Patriarchal Divine Liturgy was carried out by Soyuz and Spas TV channels, as well as by Patriarchia.ru, official website of the Russian Orthodox Church.  For the convenience of pilgrims who arrived at the monastery of St.Sergius, the broadcast was shown on large screens installed on the Cathedral and Krasnogorskaya squares of the Lavra.
The sermon before communion was delivered by abbot Philip (Elshin), a resident of the Lavra.
At the end of the Liturgy, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, members of the Holy Synod and the hierarchs, who arrived at the Lavra for the feast, served a moleben to the Abbot of the Russian Land.
Abbot of the Lavra, Bishop Foma of Sergiev Posad and Dmitrov, greeted His Holiness Vladyka and presented His Holiness with an icon of St. Sergius.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church addressed the faithful with the primatial word.
Then His Holiness Patriarch Kirill proceeded to the Trinity Cathedral of the monastery, where he venerated the honourable relics of St. Sergius. His Holiness Vladyka also venerated the shrines of St.Nikon chapel and St.Serapion Chamber.
His Holiness briefly spoke with the participants of the international congress "Commonwealth of Orthodox Youth", which is taking place in Sergiev Posad these days.
In the Throne Hall of the Patriarchal Chambers of the Lavra, His Holiness Vladyka presented church awards to the bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church who celebrated memorable dates.
By tradition, on the day of memory of St. Sergius of Radonezh, festive hierarchal services were celebrated in the churches of the Holy Trinity - St.Sergius Lavra and in Moscow theological schools.
The Divine Liturgy  at St.Sergius refectory church was officiated by Metropolitan Pavel of Krutitsa and Kolomna, Patriarchal vicar of the Moscow Metropolis;  in the Intercession Academic Church - by Metropolitan Veniamin of Minsk and Zaslavl, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus;  in the Church of St. John of the Ladder — by Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate; in the Chernigov skete - by Metropolitan Rostislav of Tomsk and Asinovo.
His Grace Bishop Matthew of Sourozh, temporary Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA and Canada, co-celebrated at the Divine Liturgy in the Church of St. John of the Ladder to Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, Chairman of the DECR MP. The divine service was attended by archpastors serving in the dioceses of the far abroad: Archbishop Tikhon of Ruza, head of the Berlin-German diocese; Bishop Alexey of Vienna and Austria; and Bishop Leonid of Argentina and South America. The archpastors were assisted by Archpriest Nikolai Lishchenyuk, Deputy Chairman of the DECR, monks of the Holy Trinity-St.Sergius Lavra, teachers of the Moscow Theological Academy, guests and pilgrims in holy orders.
After the Liturgy, the archpastors and concelebrating clergy joined the moleben to St. Sergius of Radonezh, which was headed by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on the Cathedral Square of the Holy Trinity - St.Sergius Lavra.