His Holiness Patriarch Kirill celebrates divine service at St. Daniel’s Monastery on the thirty-fourth anniversary of his episcopal consecration

On 14 March 2010, the fourth Sunday of Lent, the commemoration day of St. John the Climacus, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia celebrated the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in St. Daniel’s Monastery.

The Holy and Right-Believing Prince Daniel of Moscow, the founder of the monastery, was commemorated this day with the blessing of the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Concelebrating with His Holiness were Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations; Archbishop Evlogy of Vladimir and Suzdal; Archbishop Miron of Hajnowka (Polish Orthodox Church); Archbishop Alexy of Kostroma and Galich; secretary of Moscow Patriarchate for the institutions abroad Archbishop Mark of Yegorievsk; abbot of St. Daniel’s Monastery archimandrite Alexy (Polikarpov); DECR acting secretary for inter-Orthodox relations Revd. Igor Yakimchuk; ordained brethren of the monastery, and representatives of Moscow clergy.

At the Little Entrance, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill awarded the brethren. Hieromonk Makary (Sytenko) was elevated to the rank of hegumen, while hieromonk Filipp (Dmitriev) was granted the right to wear epigonation, press service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia reports.

After the reading from the Gospel according to Mark, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church delivered a sermon on the read verses.

Hierodeacon Feognost (Tkachev) of St. Daniel’s Monastery was ordained hieromonk.

After the Divine Liturgy, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrated a short prayer service at the shrine with the relics of the Holy and Right-Believing Prince Daniel of Moscow.

Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk congratulated His Holiness Patriarch Kirill with the thirty-fourth anniversary of his episcopal consecration on behalf of the concelebrating bishops, abbot and brethren of the monastery. (His Holiness was consecrated Bishop of Vyborg on 14 March 1976).

The abbot of St. Daniel’s Monastery archimandrite Alexy thanked His Holiness Kirill for celebrating the divine service and presented him with an icon of St. Daniel of Moscow.

His Holiness address the worshippers with his primatial homily in which he spoke about the spiritual deed of the founder of the monastery.