Pskov, July 16, 2019
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
The Holy Dormition-Pskov Caves Monastery is one of the most beloved holy habitations of the Russian Orthodox Church. It has been a guiding light for the entire Orthodox Church since the 15th century and was the only monastery in Russia to never close during the dark years of godless communism.
On July 14, the fourth Sunday after Pentecost, the monastery celebrated one of its main feasts—the Synaxis of All Saints of the Pskov Caves.
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
The feast was solemnly celebrated at the late Divine Liturgy by His Eminence Metropolitan Tikhon of Pskov and Porkhov and His Eminence Archbishop Gabriel of Montreal and Canada of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, reports the Synodal Department for Monasteries and Monasticism of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
At the end of the service, the hierarchs, clergy, and faithful processed from the monastery’s St. Michael’s Cathedral to the Holy Dormition Church.
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
Then the many pilgrims had the opportunity to visit the newly-restored cell of St. Simeon († 1960), where a newly-published book of his life and teachings was distributed.
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
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The feast of the Synaxis of All Saints of the Pskov Caves was established on the fourth Sunday after Pentecost with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Pimen of Moscow and All Russia, who was at one time the abbot of the monastery and had composed an akathist in their honor during his time there.
The text of the services for the feast were composed with the blessing of Elder John (Krestiankin), and in 1988, the year of the 1,000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus’, a church in honor of All Saints of Pskov Caves was founded on the monastery’s holy hill. The feast of the Synaxis was first celebrated in church in 1994.
The Synaxis of All Saints of the Pskov Caves includes:
St. Mark (15th C., commemorated March 29);
St. Jonah († c. 1480, March 29);
St. Vassa († c. 1473, March 19);
Monk-Martyr Cornelius († 1570, February 20);
Monk-Martyr Vassian of Murom († 1570, February 20);
St. Dorotheos of Yuga († 1622);
St. Lazar the Clairvoyant, schemamonk († 1824);
Hieromartyr Alexander (Petrovsky), Archbishop of Kharkov († 1940, May 11, October 30);
St. Simeon (Zhelnin), hieroschemamonk († 1960, January 5)
Photo: pskov-eparhia.ru
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