Ekaterinburg, December 10, 2024
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
Thousands of Orthodox Christians gathered in procession in honor of St. Catherine, the patron saint of the Ural capital of Ekaterinburg, on her feast day on Saturday, December 7.
The day began with the Divine Liturgy celebrated by seven hierarchs and a host of clerics at Holy Trinity Cathedral. Before Holy Communion, Hieromonk Prokopy (Rudchenko), secretary of the Academic Council of the Ekaterinburg Theological Seminary, offered a homily about the Great Martyr, saying:
By her life, St. Catherine proved her faith and her loyalty to Christ. Each of us is a Christian, and this means that each of us bears Christ’s name and is His follower. This means that we should accept Sacred Scripture in all things and follow what the Holy Church teaches us. And we can do this, above all, by following the commandments…
For our city, the memory of St. Catherine and for each resident of this city is a special day, because the Great Martyr cares for each of us. Let us not forget her example, let us remember her strong faith, her courage and bravery. Let us pray that all these qualities may be in each of us.
Ten chalices were needed to commune all the faithful who had gathered to celebrate St. Catherine. The service was broadcast live by Soyuz:
Following the Liturgy, the hierarchs led a citywide procession to the Chapel of St. Catherine, with about 3,500 faithful joining in. A moleben was served at the historic site where the majestic St. Catherine Cathedral stood until it was blown up by the Bolsheviks in 1930, reports the Ekaterinburg Diocese.
Following a long-standing tradition, a copy of the miraculous image of St. Catherine of Alexandria from Mt. Sinai with a particle of her relics was carried in the procession.
Following the moleben, His Eminence Metropolitan Vikenty of Tashkent and Uzbekistan addressed those present with an archpastoral message:
We are joyful and happy and grateful to God that we have such a glorious saint at the head of our city—the Great Martyr Catherine, who is for us a great example of faith, piety, faithfulness to God, devotion to God, great wisdom, honesty, decency, diligence, peace, and harmony.
How much we can draw from her: strength, knowledge, and blessings for our earthly life! May God grant that the grace of God through the prayers of Great Martyr Catherine be ever with us, ever enlightening us, strengthening us, delivering us from many troubles and tribulations, difficulties and various illnesses, because we’re all subject to earthly difficulties, but we have protection, we have help from God and from the Great Martyr Catherine.
Photo: ekaterinburg-eparhia.ru
After the procession, each believer could venerate the Icon of the city’s Heavenly patroness, as well as the reliquary containing the relics of St. Catherine that remains in the St. Catherine Chapel.
Afterward, all participants in the prayer procession were treated to hot tea and refreshments.
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