[Plulpangepler]

Today (Friday), the relics of St Demetrios of Thessaloniki have been displayed for veneration in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. My wife went there this afternoon with her mother. As they emerged from Borovitskaya metro station and walked towards the cathedral they were astonished at the sight they saw. Thousands upon thousands of people were queuing to enter. Five or six abreast, the queue went round the cathedral and its precincts several times and down the main street.

[Plulpangepler]

Today (Saturday) on the Russian calendar is the feast day of St Demetrius. Russians, of course, make a connection with St Dmitri Donskoi.

[Toossehew]

Today (Friday), the relics of St Demetrios of Thessaloniki have been displayed for veneration in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. My wife went there this afternoon with her mother. As they emerged from Borovitskaya metro station and walked towards the cathedral they were astonished at the sight they saw. Thousands upon thousands of people were queuing to enter. Five or six abreast, the queue went round the cathedral and its precincts several times and down the main street.

Wow!

That is wonderful news! Thanks for sharing...

In Christ,
Alice

[CHEAPPoem]

It is amazing. Are they distributing Holy Myrrh from the relics there? It is amazing. I have from some years ago when I visited Agios Demetrios' and it is still as fragrant as it was. And I have shared from it twice.

[Plulpangepler]

I'm going to Moscow soon - I must remember to ask about the myrrh.

[CHEAPPoem]

St. Demtrios' relics are still there? You should ask to receive some myrrh.

[Plulpangepler]

No, the relics are not still there but they may have phials of myrrh available.

[refsherne]

When I was in Moscow a few years ago, the relics (head?) of St John the Baptist was in a church there.
I too saw queues six people wide going around the whole place.

Yes - it is very impressive!

[ssyyyrruho]

Dear Andreas,

While you were venerating St. Demetrios in Moscow, I was venerating St. Seraphin in Athens, Greece - the trade off was appreciated in Greece too ... thousands of Greeks and Russians in Greece lining up to venerate a wonderful Saint, St. Seraphim.

Before St. Demetrios left for Russia, I was fortunate to be in St. Thessaloniki to venerate St. Demetrios .... as Nina suggested, if you can get the myrrh do so. I have myrrh from years ago and also asked for more this time ....

The fragrance of St. Demetrios can not be found anywhere else in the world ... I think sometimes ... my whole room is fragrant with such a small piece and the smell does not seem to disipate with time ...

Holy St. Demetrios intercede for us, the sinners!

I have much affection for him ... he is our families patron saint.

[CHEAPPoem]

my whole room is fragrant with such a small piece and the smell does not seem to disipate with time ...

Holy St. Demetrios intercede for us, the sinners!

I have much affection for him ... he is our families patron saint.

Amin!

Yes the fragrance is still in the cotton I have from St. Demetrios' in Thessaloniki, although I have shared the cotton twice. It is so soothing, so blessed, so amazing fragrance. It is Heavenly!

[Plulpangepler]

We went into the centre of Moscow this afternoon (it's only 20 minutes on the metro) and went to Christ the Saviour Cathedral. Thankfully, they do have a supply of phials of oil of St Demetrios and we bought three. The city centre looked lovely this evening when we came out of the cathedral: there's snow on the ground and a light fall of snow, and the lights were glinting off the golden domes of the cathedral and the cathedrals in the Kremlin.

[ssyyyrruho]

We went into the centre of Moscow this afternoon (it's only 20 minutes on the metro) and went to Christ the Saviour Cathedral. Thankfully, they do have a supply of phials of oil of St Demetrios and we bought three. The city centre looked lovely this evening when we came out of the cathedral: there's snow on the ground and a light fall of snow, and the lights were glinting off the golden domes of the cathedral and the cathedrals in the Kremlin.

Be sure to take lots of photos! Such a beautiful image you have painted for us ...

[Plulpangepler]

On Monday we were at the Holy Trinity St Sergius Lavra. All afternoon and all evening, there was a queue of pilgrims waiting to venerate the relics of St Sergius. The queue stretched outside Holy Trinity church for some 200 yards. The temperature was about -12 degrees with a wind chill factor of about a further 5. It was also snowing lightly. It must have taken well over an hour for people at the back to get inside the church.

This afternoon, (Thursday), we went to Yelokhovsky Cathedral to pay our respects to the newly-departed Patriarch Alexey. It was my first visit to this cathedral and I can say it is full of grace. It is huge but it was packed with people. There were four long queues. One to kiss the late Patriarch's coffin (a panikhida was being served), another to venerate the relics of St Alexey, a third to venerate a miracle-working icon of the Mother of God of Kazan, and the fourth to venerate a miracle-working icon of St Nicholas. I queued to kiss the late Patriarch's coffin and I must say I found it a more emotional experience than I had expected. My wife didn't want to queue and stood a little way away and prayed and went to the other places mentioned. Afterwards, I urged her to join the now shorter queue to kiss the late Patriarch's coffin, which she did. She came away with tears running down her face. A friend we had met in church yesterday had said, 'we suffered a great loss with the Patriarch's death. He had become a father to us. Yes, certainly - a father to the Russian people. Even those not very much in the Church thought this'. It is apparent that at a very popular level, Patriarch Alexey is being venerated like a saint. Pictures of him are everywhere on sale.

[jeaccatty]

A friend we had met in church yesterday had said, 'we suffered a great loss with the Patriarch's death. He had become a father to us. Yes, certainly - a father to the Russian people. Even those not very much in the Church thought this'. It is apparent that at a very popular level, Patriarch Alexey is being venerated like a saint.

Yes, Patriarch Alexey truly became a father to his people, just as Metr Lavr became a beloved father to his (he is still frequently referred to as "our abba, Vladyka Lavr"). Because our two fathers have brought us together and reunited the family they have become beloved by both parts of the Russian Church and now we will have a new father to us all, the new patriarch who will be selected at the end of the month. Lord have mercy.

Fr David Moser

[Plulpangepler]

They say here (in Russia - I'm still here!) that the reunion of the Russian Church was a miracle wrought by two holy fathers of most blessed memory.

[jeaccatty]

They say here (in Russia - I'm still here!) that the reunion of the Russian Church was a miracle wrought by two holy fathers of most blessed memory.

Should either be glorified I believe that both will be glorified together.

Fr David Moser

[Plulpangepler]

Why should we not pray and hope that this is God's will? God knows we need saints in our time!

[Plulpangepler]

I can't help continuing to reflect on how I felt when I kissed Patriarch Alexey's coffin. Emotion? Something more? I don't know. We shall see.

[vipBrooriErok]

If they are saints, God will reveal them as such. If not, glorification would do no more than make them into symbols.

[Plulpangepler]

I just telephoned my wife. She and her parents are at their dacha which is near Kurovskoye some way east of Moscow on the road to Murom. It is has been a warm and sunny weekend. They have been tending the garden, and the gooseberries, raspberries, and redcurrants are starting to flourish. My father-in-law has made charcoal and cut up pieces of birch wood for the samovar. They went through the nearby pine forest to a holy spring dedicated to the Mother of God, and pilgrims were collecting water in plastic bottles. A small wooden church is just nearby. After their return, in the long warm evening, they sat on the porch drinking tea from the samovar and the only sound was of bumble-bees gathering nectar from the blossoms of the fruit trees and the rustle of the leaves of the birch trees. Oh, how I wish I was there!