From Diocese of Sourozh
The ‘Reigning’ Icon of the Mother of God unites Russian Orthodox believers in London
The ‘Reigning’ icon of the Mother of God has arrived in London as part of its tour around the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad. At present it is to be found at the Russian Synodal Cathedral in Chiswick where it is being visited by a steady stream of believers who come to venerate the icon, ask for the intercessions of the Mother of God and pray at the molebens celebrated there.
The icon arrived in England on Saturday 29 September, accompanied by Metropolitan Onuphry of Chernivtsi and Bukovina together with Archimnadrite Tikhon, the superior of the Sretensky monastery and the other delegates which also included the Sretensky monastery choir. The delegation was met in Stansted Airport by the acting administrator of the Diocese of Sourozh, Bishop Elisey of Bogorodsk. In the late evening of the same day, the icon was taken to the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Dormition of the Mother of God and All Saints in London where a moleben was celebrated. It was attended by a large number of parishioners who had remained waiting after the vigil service and were now able to venerate the icon. The following day, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated by Metropolitan Onuphry and assisted by Archbishop Mark of Berlin, Diocese of Germany and Great Britain (Russian Orthodox Church Abroad) and Bishop Elisey of Bogorodsk. The outstanding choir of the Sretensky monastery sung at the service. The Liturgy was also attended by the representatives from the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Serbian Orthodox Church as well as the officials from the diplomatic corps of Russia and other Orthodox countries.
At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, Archbishop Mark made a particular mention of the fact that it was here, in London, that his very first act of concelebration with the episcopate of the Moscow Patriarchate had taken place. Later on in the evening, the Sretensky monastery choir performed a highly successful programme of both sacred and secular choral compositions in London’s Cadogan Hall. The icon will depart for France on Tuesday, 2 October.
