On Great Thursday evening the divine service of the Great Friday Matins with 12 “Gospels of Passions” was held in the parishes of the diocese in Vietnam and the Philippines.
Monthly Archives: April 2021
From the St Petersburg Academy:
Students from Indonesia and the Philippines celebrated the Feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem in the house church of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, where they continue their studies. During Holy Week, the seminarians are within the walls of the Academy and do not leave its borders, preparing for the Bright Holiday of the Resurrection of Christ on long divine services. Let us pray for our brothers in Christ and turn to the words of the troparion of the first three days of Holy Week, calling the faithful to spiritual vigil: Behold, the Bridegroom cometh at midnight, / and blessed is the servant, whom he will find watching,/ but unworthy is he, whom He will find despondent./ Beware, O my soul,/ lest thou be weighed down with sleep,/ lest thou be given up to death,/ and be shut out from the kingdom. But arise, calling:/ Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God,// through the Theotokos have mercy on us.
Press service of the Moscow Patriarchal Exarchate of the Southeast Asia
Entry of the Lord to Jerusalem
The Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem is the triumph of the Savior’s earthly life. They want to make him King, because He can Make Israel Great Again. So that they would not obey to the Romans but they would be paid tribute by the barbarians, as in the times a thousand years before. And that it would be good for everyone in Israel. But it is impossible to build happiness on neighbor’s grief, and instead of seizing power, Christ continues to teach: “Pay to Caesar that is Caesar’s and to God that is God’s”, and “Love your neighbor”. And we know that in a few days the Son of God will be betrayed, tortured, and crucified by His people. And no one will stand up for Him. Such is the gratitude of Israel for that the Lord healed his children of diseases. For freeing him from the bondage of Egypt and Babylon. He would have freed them from the Roman one as well, but He came to free us from the bondage of death.And in the coming days, called the Great Days, we will once again watch with awe the realization of the Divine plan for our salvation. Holy Week is the culmination of Christianity and human history. Yes, the creation of the world was also the greatest event and miracle, but this is hardly mentioned in the church calendar. Because it was easier for God to create the universe than to guide us to the right path, for which He had to taste death. The trillions of stars in the sky do not obscure His main creation for Him; the life of each of us matters to Him! As well as the prayer of each of us.
Meeting with the Consul General
On April 15, the parish of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God in Vung Tau hosted a meeting of the Consul General of the Russian Federation in Ho Chi Minh City Mr Sadykov with the rector of the parish priest Evgeniy Tsukalo.
Timur Sirozhevich Sadykov just arrived at a new place of work and when visiting Vung Tau offered to get acquainted. The Consul General was accompanied by Consul-Adviser Vadim Valeryevich Basinsky.
Priest Evgeniy spoke about the parishes in Vietnam, about the peculiarities of a parish life.
Sunday of Veneration of the Cross
Today, the Catholic Philippines celebrate Easter. But today, the Jews also celebrate their Easter (the exodus from the Egyptian captivity). The Orthodox Church does not celebrate Easter together with the Jews, since the Resurrection of Christ was after the Jewish Old Testament Passover. In our calendar, today is the middle of Lent, and we remember the Cross of the Lord- “a temptation for the Jews, a madness for the Hellenes” (1 Cor. 1: 23). A temptation, because the crucifixion was an execution for the worst villains but the weapon of death became the weapon of victory over death. Madness, because the Son of God suffered for the people. Suffered for we can be saved and see this His Love for us forever. Love which “never ceases” (1 Cor. 13, 8)
Seminar in Davao
On March 29-31, at the education center of St. Matrona of Moscow in Davao city, one more seminar was conducted about Lenten services for the clergy. Now it was for the General Santos deanery. Priest Roman Buniel and deacons Matthew Sale and Alexiy Bergado, after the classes, together with Hieromonk Korniliy (Molev), completed a full daily circle of Lenten Divine Service, ending it with the Vespers with the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts like their brothers did a week ago.
