June 23, 2009
Howell, NJ: Diocesan celebrations of the feasts of the Royal Martyrs and St. Vladimir

On Monday, June 23, a regular meeting of the Diocesan Council was held in Howell, NJ. The council approved official diocesan celebrations of the feasts of the Royal Martyrs and St. Vladimir to be held in July of this year.  

Friday, July 17, 2009 will mark the 91^st anniversary of the martyrdom of the Holy Royal Martyrs of Russia. On this day, festivities in honor of the Holy Royal Martyrs will be held at St. George’s Church in Freewood Acres www.stnicholasredbank.com. On Thursday evening at 6:00 PM, the relics of the royal family will be greeted, after which an All-Night Vigil with an akathist to Tsar-martyr Nicholas II will commence. On Friday, July 17, the Divine Liturgy will be served by a multitude of clergy from across the diocese, led by Their Graces Bishops George and Jerome. After the liturgy, a procession with the holy relics will be held, as well as a luncheon in the Kuban Cossack Voisko hall. During the luncheon, a unique montage, dedicated to the life and suffering of the Holy Royal Martyrs, will be presented. The Cossack museum will also be open for all visitors.

 

The national celebration of St. Vladimir’s Day will take place this year on Sunday, July 26, at St. Vladimir Memorial Church in Jackson, NJ (www.stvladimirnj.org). On Saturday, July 25, a liturgy for the departed will be served in memory of all of the founders and builders of this most important and historic church, dedicated to the memory of the 1000 year anniversary of the Baptism of Russia. The Liturgy will begin at 9:00 AM in the lower church of the Protection of the Holy Theotokos, where the ever-memorable Archbishops Vitaly and Nikon are encrypted. At 5:00 PM the same day the greeting of our First Hierarch will take place, followed by an All-Night Vigil.

On Sunday, July 26, the great and holy icon of the Pochaev Mother of God will arrive from Holy Trinity Monastery for the beginning of the Diving Liturgy, which is to start at 9:30 AM with the greeting of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion. After the Liturgy, a procession and blessing of the water will take place, followed by a festive banquet. All those who wish to take part in the banquet, please contact Fr. Serge Ledkovsky by phone at (315) 868-2548.

 

It is incumbent upon all of the rectors and clergy of parishes in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Deaneries to cancel services on these days and take part in these festivities with their flock and fellow clergy. The days on which we commemorate the Holy Royal Martyrs and St. Vladimir are days of national Russian unity, and it is the duty of all clergymen and of the Russian people to take prayerful and brotherly part in them. 

Media Office of the Eastern American Diocese