On October 14, the feast day of the Protection Veil of the Most Holy Theotokos, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia officiated the Divine Liturgy at Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow and presided over the ordination of Archimandrite Gerasim (Shevtsov) as Bishop of Vladikavkaz and Alania.
At the end of the Liturgy, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church blessed Bishop Gerasim, delivered a sermon and presented church awards.
“Today I officiated the 200th episcopal consecration,” said His Holiness Patriarch Kirill. “The number of our dioceses has increased from 159 to 318. And the number of dioceses in Russia has increased from 69 to 199.”
“I am not talking about this in order to emphasize my role, but in order to say: if our people did not need the development of church life, there would not have been these dioceses,” added His Holiness Patriarch Kirill.
“Therefore, I’m grateful to all of you, my dears, for the way you keep the Orthodox faith. I thank our Orthodox people, who, despite the trials and difficulties, really preserves the life-giving roots that connect us with history, with our ancestors, with saints, and through this root system feeds itself with powerful spiritual strength. May it continue to be so, may the Russian Orthodox Church grow from strength to strength, relying on the faith of her people!” concluded His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
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