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October 9, 2009
Washington,
D.C.: His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion visits the Nations Capital
The first weekend of October, 2009
will be treasured in the memories of the parishioners and friends of
St John the Baptist Cathedral for a long time to come. October 3rd
ushered in our annual two-day Fall Bazaar. Organizers of the bazaar
and their helpers worked together to create a warm mood and welcoming
atmosphere, which was felt by everyone.
This event is important to our
parish life not only in terms of material benefit to our church, but
also because it gives us the opportunity to show our heterodox guests
the beauty of our temple, the depth of our Orthodox Christian faith
and acquainting them with our Russian national and spiritual
traditions. It also gives
them a chance to taste of our rich Russian cuisine which brings many
back to the bazaar year after year.
On October 3, at six o'clock in the evening His Eminence Metropolitan
Hilarion arrived at our parish for All-Night Vigil, who
incidentally
just the day before returned from a three-week trip to Russia with the
Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God. He was met by His Grace Bishop
Victor of the Moscow Patriarchate, who now lives in retirement in
Florida. Bishop Victor
came to Washington with a group of pilgrims to pray with us in our
cathedral and to welcome the Mother of God present in her
myrrh-streaming icon the "Softener of Hardened Hearts."
Due to the bazaar, the usual early
English Vigil was canceled and our parish prayed together at one
service conducted in two languages - Slavonic and English. At 6:30 pm
a car drove up with the much awaited miraculous icon of the Mother of
God the "Softener of Hardened Hearts." This Holy Icon was
met with the ringing of bells and hymns welcoming the Mother of God to
our church.
The Vigil service was headed by
Metropolitan Hilarion and concelebrated by Bishop Victor and clergy of
St John the Baptist Cathedral. During the whole service our priests
confessed believers desiring to purify themselves of sin and to soften
their hearts.
The next morning at 8:00 am before
the Divine Liturgy; a moleben and Akathist was sung before the
miraculous icon. After
which His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion arrived and was warmly
greeted with traditional bread and salt by the Cathedral Starosta
Dimitri Saretsky.
Serving the Divine Liturgy,
Metropolitan Hilarion was joined by Bishop Victor of Florida, the
parish rector Archpriest Victor Potapov, Priest Vasiliy Raskovskiy,
Priest Vladimir Danilevich, Priest John Johnson, Priest Alexander
Resnikoff, Protodeacon Leonid Mickle, Protodeacon John Cavin and
Deacon John Voloshchuk. Two choirs glorified God during the Liturgy
– the Slavonic choir under the direction of Mr. Yuriy Petcherkin and
the English choir under the direction of Mr. Jared Brewer. Present
in the throng of believers were the Ambassador of Russia Mr. Sergei
Kislyak, his wife Natalia Mikhailovna and the cultural attaché of the
Embassy Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Moshkalo.
The sheer number of believers
necessitated the distribution of Holy Communion from three chalices, a
poignant tribute to the Mother of God and her holy icon the
“Softener of Hardened Hearts.” After Holy Communion, His Grace
Bishop Victor gave a sermon on the touching and beautiful names given
over the centuries to the many miraculous icons of the Russian Church.
After the Divine Liturgy we
celebrated together one final moleben before the miraculous icon of
"Softener of Hardened Hearts" and Day Two of our Fall Bazaar
commenced. In the course of the next several hours many visitors came
and had the opportunity to venerate the miraculous icon and to speak
with His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion (who, incidentally, remained
until the close of the bazaar), while others simply embraced the
opportunity to relax in a pleasant and friendly atmosphere.
The following photos only
partially convey the warmth and blessedness of these two grace-filled
days of the beginning of October 2009.
Photo-report.
Media
Office of the Eastern American Diocese
