September 26, 2021, on the 14th week after Pentecost, on the day of the Founding of the Resurrection Cathedral (Holy Sepulchre) at Jerusalem, in our Cathedral the Divine Liturgy was headed by Metropolitan of Rostov and Novocherkassk Mercury. The Metropolitan was co-served by the head of the Department for Cooperation with the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies of the Rostov-on-Don Diocese, senior priest of the Cathedral archpriest Valery Voloshchuk, dean of the Aksai district priest Alexy Shilov, acting the governor of the Don Starocherkassk Efremov convent hieromonk Sergiy (Kolomits), the dean of the Northern District of the city of Rostov-on-Don, priest Igor Milyaev, the clergy of the diocese.

On this day, the commander of the troops of the Southern Military District, Army General Alexander Dvornikov, ataman of the Aksai yurt Sergey Markov, representatives of the Don Cossacks, parishioners and pilgrims prayed in the Cathedral.

During the service, the Head of the Don Metropolia offered up prayers for an end to the harmful epidemic.

The chants of the Liturgy were sung by the choir of the Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection. Priest John Tsupko delivered a sermon before the Sacrament.

At the end of the service, archpriest Valery Voloshchuk, the senior priest of the Cathedral, addressed the Metropolitan with words of greeting and thanked the ruling bishop for the joint prayer.

Further, the Head of the Don Metropolia addressed the worshipers with a word in which he recalled the historical event of the erection of the Catholicon (the central chapel of the Resurrection Church, which in turn is the inner part of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem). Metropolitan Mercury also noted the importance of the holiday of the Resurrection of Christ for the Orthodox world and every Christian: “Churches in honor of the Resurrection of the Lord connect us, first of all, not with the historical event of the construction of a temple in Jerusalem and clearing holy places from pagan trampling, but more remind us of joy and essence of the very holiday of the Lord’s Easter – the Resurrection. And the Resurrection is inextricably linked with the Eucharist, because if there were no Easter, there would be no Eucharist; if there were no Eucharist, there would be no our unity, the Church of Christ, and the grace-filled state of renewal that we each time receive at the Divine Liturgy.

In the Eucharist, every time we wait for a meeting with the Lord for a special action – our inner renewal, which occurs not according to the result of human efforts, not according to the measure of our prayers, but because the Risen Lord reveals to us His Divine power in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Therefore, this day is a holiday of our universal renewal“.