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On July 28, the commemoration day of St. Vladimir Equal-to-the-Apostles, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, His Holiness and Beatitude Catholicos-Patriarch Iliya II of All Georgia and His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Kiev Laura of the Caves.

Among their concelebrants were all the members of the Russian Orthodox Church Holy Synod, an assembly of hierarchs from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, representatives of Local Orthodox Churches in Georgia, Romania and Cyprus, as well as numerous clergy.

The liturgy was celebrated on the altar installed in front of the church of the Dormition in the cathedral square. On the altar there was a shrine with particles of the relics of St. Vladimir Equal-to-the-Apostles. The square was overcrowded with people. The service was broadcast by the Ukrainian television.

After the reading of the Gospel, the Primate of the Russian Church delivered a sermon.

There were three choirs from the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Trinity in Tbilisi, the Metropolitan’s choir of the Ukrainian Church, and the Kiev seminarians’ choir, who sang in Church Slavonic, Georgian and Greek.

After the service, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir said addressing the primates in his homily, ‘The great power in Orthodoxy and in all human life lies in prayer. We have lifted up a prayer today and you have led us in it. For this we bow before you in gratitude. May the Lord through the interception of the Holy Prince Vladimir Equal-to-the-Apostles give each of us strength for the lofty service of God and the people. We expect you, Your Holiness, to come to Kiev again so that we may again pray and commune with you’.

Patriarch Kirill greeted the congregation on the occasion and presented Catholicos-Patriarch Iliya with a pectoral icon and an icon of St. Vladimir. He congratulated Metropolitan Vladimir on the 45th anniversary of his episcopal consecration and presented him with a set of pectoral icons. Patriarch Kirill gave the Kiev Laura a copy of the Icon of Our Lady of Valamo.

In his address, Catholicos-Patriarch Iliya noted that he was the first Patriarch of Georgia to come to Kiev. As a token of his visit he gave the Laura an Icon of Our Lady of Pochaev painted by Georgian icon-painters.

Small icons of St. Vladimir with a Patriarchal blessing were distributed to the congregation, the Patriarchal Press Service reported.

DECR Communication Service