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Primate of Russian Church celebrates Liturgy in St Daniel’s Monastery on the commemoration day of St Silouan the Athonite
On 24 September 2016, Saturday before the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, commemoration day of St Silouan the Athonite (1938), His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia officiated at the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity of St Daniel’s Monastery in Moscow.
The Divine Service in St Daniel’s Monastery, where a reliquary with the holy head of the Russian Athonite zealot had been kept for the veneration of the faithful from September 21, completed the celebrations marking the millennium of the Russian monks’ presence on Mt Athos and the 150th anniversary of the birth of St Silouan.
Concelebrating with His Holiness Patriarch Kirill was an assembly of hierarchs and clergymen of the Russian Orthodox Church. Among those praying together with His Holiness were hegumens and hegumennesses of the Russian Orthodox Church and of the other Local Orthodox Churches who had come to Moscow to take part in the celebrations marking the millennium of the Russian monks’ presence on Mt Athos and in the meeting of hegumens and hegumennesses of the Russian Orthodox Church, held on September 22-23.
Among the worshippers was Mr. Alexander Beglov, Plenipotentiary Envoy of the Russian President to the Central Federal District, chairman of the Presidential working group for the preparation of the celebrations marking the millennium of the Russian presence on Mt Athos.
After the Litany of Fervent Supplication His Holiness Patriarch Kirill said a prayer for peace in Ukraine, as well as prayers for the repose of the souls of the eigtht firefighters, Alexander, Alexy, Roman, Alexander, Pavel, Nikolai, Sergy and Pavel, who had died while extinguishing a fire at a warehouse in eastern Moscow. The tragedy occurred on September 22.
After the Liturgy the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church said a thanksgiving at the holy relics of St Silouan the Athonite and delivered a Primatial homily.
On behalf of the Athonite brethren, Hieromonk Kirion (Olkhovik), antiprosopos of St Panteleimon Monastery at the Holy Kinot, who accompanied the reliquary in Russia, greeted His Holiness and presented him with an icon of St Anthony of the Kiev Caves, founder of the Russian monastic tradition, who had taken vows on Mt Athos at the first Russian Monastery of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos – the Xilourgou.
His Holiness Patriarch Kirill then carried the reliquary with the holy head of St Silouan the Athonite from the Holy Trinity Church to the cathedral square of the monastery. The shrine was handed over to the representatives of St Basil the Great Foundation and the clergymen who will deliver it to the Russian Monastery of St Panteleimon on Mt Athos, where it is kept.
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The holy relics of St Silouan the Athonite were brought to the Russian Orthodox Church to mark the celebrations on the occasion of the millennium of the Russian monks’ presence on Mt Athos. Together with the relics, brought to Russia for the first time was also the miracle-working icon of the Saviour, before which St Silouan had been praying when the Lord Jesus Christ had appeared to him.
St Basil the Great Foundation was in charge of the organization of this memorable event. The shrine was brought to Minsk, Bryansk, Orel, Yelets, Shovskoye village, Tambov, Yekaterinburg, St. Petersburg, and Moscow. Some three hundred fifteen thousand worshippers in Russia and Belarus were able to venerate the holy relics of the Russian Athonite saint.
Patriarchal Press Service/
DECR Communication Service
Photo by the Patriarchal Press Service
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