« Bishop Matthew celebrates Divine Liturgy in Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Elizabeth, NJ »
28-05-2025 
On May 25, the Sixth Sunday after Pascha, the interim Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, Bishop Matthew of Sourozh celebrated Divine Liturgy in Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Elizabeth, NJ.
Before the start of the service, the reliquary containing a portion of the relics of St. Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow and all Rus’ was brought to the church.
The bishop was greeted at the doors of the church by acting rector Priest Julian Ryabtsev and parishioners.
The archpastor was co-served by the acting Chancellor of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, Abbot Nicodemus (Balyasnikov), Archpriest Mikhail Kapchits (dean of the Eastern States, rector of St. Nicholas Church in Bayonne, NJ) , Priest James Anthony (rector of St. John Chrysostom Church in Grand Rapids, MI), Priest Julian Ryabtsev, Priest Mikhail Kozyrev (dean of the Western States, dean of St. Nicholas Cathedral in San Francisco, CA), Deacon Alexis Golubov (head of the Hierarchal Protocol service), and Deacon Seraphim Kraker (cleric of St. John Chrysostom Church).
The liturgical hymns were sung by the parish choir under the direction of Matushka Taisiya Ryabtseva. Parishioners and guests of the church prayed during the service.
At the end of the service, Bishop Matthew was cordially greeted by Father Julian and presented His Grace an icon of his relative, Hieromartyr Matthew Ryabtsev, priest of Kasimov, glorified among the New Martyrs of the Russian Church, revered by the bishop since the time of his episcopal tenure in the Ryazan Metropolitanate.
The Archpastor addressed the congregation with a sermon dedicated to the Gospel reading about the healing of a man born blind by the Lord, and also congratulated them on the continuing days Pascha. The Bishop expressed gratitude to Father Julian and his assistants for the warm welcome. As a blessing to all participants of the service, Bishop Matthew presented icons of the Mother of God “Softener of Evil Hearts”, and in memory of the bringing of the reliquary with a particle of the relics of St. Tikhon – keychains with the name of the street “St. Tikhon Way”, on which St. Nicholas Cathedral built and consecrated by St. Tikhon is located in New York.
Interaction between the archpastor, clergy and parishioners continued in the parish cultural center over a meal prepared by the parish sisterhood. After the meal, Fr. Julian acquainted the bishop with the life of the parish and spoke about the work done there during his service.
Mospatusa.com/Sourozh.org