« Bishop Matthew of Sourozh officiates Patronal Feast of St. Demetrius Monastery in Framingham, USA »
09-11-2024 
On Friday, November 8, the feast of Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica, the eponymous monastery in Framingham, MA celebrated its patronal feastday. That day, Interim Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA & Canada, Bishop Matthew of Sourozh celebrated Divine Liturgy in the monastery.
His Grace was concelebrated by monastery abbot, Hieromonk Savvatey (Ageyev), Interim Chancellor of the Patriarchal Parishes, Abbot Nicodemus (Balyasnikov) and Deacon Alexey Pnev (cleric of Holy Dormition Convent “Novo-Diveevo” in Nanuet, NY). During the service, the brethren of the monastery, Archpriest Alexander Androsov (rector of Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Manchester, NJ), and the bishop's personal secretary Nikolai Trubnikov prayed, sang in the choir, and received Christ’s Holy Mysteries. The liturgical hymns were sung in Church Slavonic, English, and Greek.
Before the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, the archpastor tonsured altar server Paul Morin as a reader for Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Manchester, and ordained novice of St. Demetrius Monastery Dionysius Lvov as a subdeacon.
After Holy Comunion, Bishop Matthew and the concelebrating clergy served a short moleben to the heavenly patron of the monastery, the Great Martyr Demetrius, before an icon containing a particle of his holy relics.
At the end of the service, Hieromonk Savvaty warmly greeted the archpastor on behalf of the brethren, parishioners and pilgrims of the monastery. In turn, Bishop Matthew addressed those gathered with a sermon dedicated to the memory of the Great Martyr Demetrius, and also expressed gratitude to Fr. Savvaty and the brethren for their hospitality and tireless work. "The monks called to the episcopal service, obediently engaged in the organization of the diocese entrusted to them, visit parishes, deal with various issues of diocesan life, but each of us rests in heart and soul when there is an opportunity to visit a monastery and pray with brother monks," the bishop noted in particular. In memory of the service held on the day of the patronal feast, Bishop Matthew presented Fr. Savvaty a diary for the coming year, expressing the wish that the abbot of the monastery would mark more than one bishop's service on its pages. The archpastor's communication with the brethren and pilgrims continued over a meal, after which Bishop Matthew familiarized himself in detail with various issues of the monastery's life and approved the work plan for the coming year proposed by Hieromonk Savvaty.
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