Veria, Imathia, Greece, June 30, 2023
Photo: lickr.com
Hierarchs from throughout the Orthodox world came together this week to celebrate the holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Veria, Greece. St. Paul is honored as the founder of the Church in Veria.
The feast began with Great Vespers in the Old Metropolitan Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, which brought together hierarchs from the Churches of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Georgia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Greece, reports the Metropolis of Veria.
Photo: lickr.com
A piece of the holy relics of St. Paul kept in the Metropolis was brought out for veneration.
Photo: lickr.com
The feast continued the next morning with the Divine Liturgy. Before the start of the service, the Synodal and Patriarchal Act of Canonization of St. Gerasimos the Hymnographer was solemnly read out. A message from the Sacred Community of Mt. Athos, where St. Gerasimos had labored in the Great Lavra, was also read out.
St. Gerasimos was canonized by the Holy Synod of Constantinople on January 10, and on April 26, Patriarch Bartholomew officially signed the relevant proclamation.
Photo: lickr.com
Following the service, Metropolitan Panteleimon of Veria spoke about the spiritual examples of Sts. Paul and Gerasimos:
St. Gerasimos followed the example of the foremost Apostle Paul from his youth. He considered everything as rubbish, in order to gain Christ, and he responded to the call of Christ by leaving everything behind, his family and his plans for the future. At the age of 19, in 1922, on the day of the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos, he went to Mt. Athos to dedicate his life to asceticism, fasting, vigil, prayer, and the solitary desert of Holy Mt. Athos, to achieve through humility and obedience what the apostle Paul lived, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. Thus, the saint became already on earth “a companion of the saints and a friend of God.”
With Christ in his soul, St. Gerasimos was able to endure all the trials and temptations of monastic life, fighting not only against flesh and blood … against spiritual wickedness in high places, but also against the rulers of the darkness of this world.
As a result of his struggle, he was given, according to the apostle Paul, “a word to speak boldly in opening his mouth,” the God-given gift of hymnography, to hymn the wonders of God, to hymn the Lady Theotokos, the Guardian of St. James’ Monastery, the Venerable Forerunner, the protector of his Cell and personal guardian, the holy and God-bearing Fathers Dionysios the Orator and Metrophanis the Spiritual, the founders of the Skete of Little St. Anne’s, as well as all the saints, ancient and modern, of our Church, including the founder of the Church of Veria, the great Apostle Paul, and many saints of our Local Church.
Follow OrthoChristian on Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, MeWe, and Gab!
