On October 13, 2015, within the Primacy visit to the Don Metropolis, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia attended St. Don Starocherkassk Monastery and led the evening divine service on the eve of the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos at the Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection. This is the first service of the Patriarch within the walls of the Starocherkassk cathedral.

His Holiness was served by Metropolitan Varsonofy of St. Petersburg and Ladoga, Head of the Moscow Patriarchate; Metropolitan of Rostov and Novocherkassk Mercury, Head of the Don Metropolis, Chairman of the Synodal Department of Religious Education and Catechesis; Metropolitan Kirill of Stavropol and Nevinnomyssk, Chairman of the Synodal Committee on Interaction with the Cossacks; Bishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, Head of the Administrative Secretariat of the Moscow Patriarchate; Archpriest John Osiyak, secretary of the metropolitan of Rostov and Novocherkassk for the city of Rostov-on-Don; hieromonk Raphael (Mitrofanov), acting the vicar of the Holy Don Starocherkassk Efremov Monastery; clergy of the Rostov diocese.

The plenipotentiary of the President of the Russian Federation in the Central Federal District, the chairman of the Presidential Council for Cossack Affairs of the Russian Federation A.D. Beglov, Presidential Plenipotentiary in the Southern Federal District V.V. Ustinov, Governor of the Rostov Region V.Yu. Golubev, atamans of the Cossack troops and representatives of the Don Cossacks took part in the united prayer.

The liturgical hymns were performed by the consolidated choir of the clergy of the Rostov diocese and the Don Theological Seminary (the choir director is Protodeacon Vladimir Zubritsky).

After reading the Gospel, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill performed the unction of believers with oil.

The service was broadcast live on the South Region and Soyuz TV channels. The service was also broadcast on screens installed on the square in front of the cathedral.

The Principal of the Russian Church addressed the believers with the exhortation. In memory of the visit to the Army Cathedral of Christ’s Resurrection, Patriarch Kirill donated the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos Intercession.

The believers were given the icons of St. equal-to-the-apostles Prince Vladimir with the Patriarch’s blessing.