Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates All-Night Vigil at the Laura of the Holy Trinity and St. Sergius
On 17 July 2010, the eve of the commemoration day of the invention of relics of St. Sergius, Hegumen of Radonezh, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia arrived in the Laura of the Holy Trinity and St. Sergius, press service of the Patriarch reports.
The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church was met at the Holy Gates by Archbishop Yevgeniy of Vereya, chairman of the Education Committee of the Russian Orthodox Church and rector of the Moscow Theological schools; Archbishop Feognost of Sergiev Posad, abbot of the Laura of the Holy Trinity and St. Sergius; bishops who arrived to the Laura to celebrate its dedication day; monks and pilgrims.
His Holiness the Patriarch officiated at Lesser Vespers celebrated at the shrine with the precious relics of St. Sergius in the Cathedral of the Trinity. Concelebrating were Metropolitan Juvenaly of Krutitsy and Kolomna; Metropolitan Varsonofiy of Saransk and Mordovia, Chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchate; Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department for External Church Relations; Archbishop Yevgeniy of Vereya; and Archbishop Feognost of Sergiev Posad; Bishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s Administrative Secretariat.
In the evening, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrated the All-Night Vigil Service at the Cathedral of the Trinity. Concelebrating were Metropolitan Onufriy of Chernovtsy and Bukovina; Archbishop Yevlogiy of Vladimir; Archbishop Dimitry of Vitebsk and Orsha; Archbishop Feognost of Sergiev Posad; Archbishop Ioann of Belgorod and Stary Oskol; Archbishop Nikodim of Anadyr and Chukotka; archpriest Arkady Shatov, chairman of the Synodal Department for Church Charity and Social Ministry; archpriest Dimitry Smirnov, chairman of the Synodal Department for Relations with the Army and Law Enforcement Agencies; archpriest Nikolay Balashov, deputy chairman of the DECR MP; archpriest Vladimir Vorobyov, rector of St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Humanitarian University; and ordained inhabitants of the Laura.
After the Divine service, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill congratulated the worshippers on the commemoration day of St. Sergius, a great zealot of the Russian land.
