Wednesday
May242023

« On the patronal feast of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, Bishop Matthew of Sourozh celebrated the Liturgy in the "Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village" in Alberta »

Date24-05-2023
On May 22, 2023, on the feast day of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, His Grace Bishop Matthew of Sourozh, temporarily Administrator of the Patriarchal parishes in the United States and Canada, officiated the patronal feast and celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the church of St.  Nicholas the Wonderworker, located on the territory of the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village.
His Grace was assisted by Archpriest Igor Kisil, Dean of the Patriarchal Parishes in the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan; Archpriest Yevgeny Protsenko, Secretary of the Patriarchal Parishes in Canada, Archpriest Yevgeny Protsenko, Rector of the Orthodox V Parish District, Priest Alexy Suraev, Priest Viktor Kramarenko, Rector of the church of St.George the Victorious in Red Deer (ROCOR), and Deacon Andrei Boldyrev.
At the end of the Liturgy, the Right Reverend Archpastor addressed the clergy and parishioners with words of spiritual edification in Russian and English, drawing the attention of those  gathered to the life of the heavenly patron of the church honoured on that day.
In consideration of his labors for the good of the Holy Church and in connection with his 50th birthday, Archpriest Yevgeny Protsenko was awarded the Patriarchal Award - the Medal of the Order of the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Seraphim of Sarov. Presenting the award, Vladyka Matthew warmly congratulated Fr. Yevgeny on his jubilee and wished God's help in his future pastoral ministry.
In conclusion, a common meal took place in the open air, where parishioners were able to communicate with Vladyka and ask questions of interest to them.
A unique wooden church in honour of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, built in 1908, was moved in 1972 to the Kalina Country Eco-cultural Reserve, located on the outskirts of the Ake Island National Park. Traditionally, services in the memorial church are held several times a year - on the patronal feast, during the Easter period, on "Victoria Day" - a public holiday in Canada, in honour of the birthday of Queen Victoria.