On February 15, 2024, on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord God and Our Savior Jesus Christ, Metropolitan Pavel of Khanty-Mansiysk and Surgut, governor of the Philippine-Vietnamese Diocese, celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the church in honor of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Polomolok, South Cotabato province of Mindanao Island (Philippines). His Eminence was co-served by: Hieromonk Cornelius (Molev), Secretary of the Philippine-Vietnamese Diocese, Archpriest Anthony Isakov, Dean of the Surgut City Deanery of the Khanty-Mansiysk Diocese, Archpriest Sergiy Shevchenko, Dean of the Nizhnevartovsk City Deanery of the Khanty—Mansiysk Diocese, Priest Konstantin Memyachkin, Chairman of the Architectural and Construction Department of the Khanty-Mansiysk Diocese, clergy of the Philippine-Vietnamese Diocese. The deaconess rank was headed by Hierodeacon Nicodemus (Pirkhovsky).During the Liturgy, Metropolitan Paul ordained Deacon Anthony Aranko as priest and reader Gabriel Hermudo as deacon.At the end of the service, His Eminence addressed the audience:Dear fathers, brothers and sisters! Let me thank everyone from the bottom of my heart and from the bottom of my heart for the common prayers! There is no greater glory than to glorify your Creator together, it is said in the Holy Scriptures. And today we are gathered together on the day of the Presentation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Child of God was brought to the temple, and Simeon the Righteous, as noted in the Holy Scriptures, came by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to this temple. For he said that until I see Christ, I will not find peace. And when he took Him in his arms, he said a prayer.: “Now let your servant depart in peace, O Lord, according to your word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation.”And you and I live on this earth, every believer, of course, wants to be with God, and probably, like Simeon the God-receiver, everyone wants to meet God on their way of life, so that He does not leave him here, but helps him walk the saving path. And today we are building temples, ordaining holy orders in order for the name of God and the truth of God to be glorified among the people, and if it is glorified among the people, then the people will be saved. For the Lord came to Earth, became incarnate, took human flesh, lived with us and showed us this way of salvation. And each of us seeks God in his life, longs to know God, to accept God into his life, into his heart, into his soul, and when a person is with God, everything is possible for him.Today we pray and ask the Lord to confirm us in our Orthodox faith. No matter what happens around us, we must hold on to the truth of the right faith and the Church that our Lord Jesus Christ created during the Last Supper.I rejoice with you today that our Orthodox Church in the Philippines is growing and strengthening, and you and I have a great responsibility: to preserve the faith, spread it and pass it on to our children and grandchildren. “So let us fulfill the law of Christ.” Today, I congratulate Father Anthony and Deacon Gabriel on taking holy orders! They have taken holy orders today, asserting themselves in the true faith and will affirm and carry the truth of Christ in their parishes. May the Lord strengthen us in the true Orthodox Faith! God’s help to all of us!”
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