The feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos was celebrated at Saint Alexius Cathedral in Samarkand on 21 September 2018. The Divine Liturgy was celebrated by the rector of the church, Priest Igor Babakov. On the eve, Fr. Igor served the All-Night Vigil.
After the service, the Akathist to the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos was read.
After the service, Fr. Igor addressed the parishioners, congratulated everyone on the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos and reminded them that we recently marked the beginning of the church new year, and that today's feast is the first of the Twelve Great Feasts in the new cycle of church services.
The ancient Jews awaited the coming of the Messiah into the world. And every married couple hoped to serve the fulfillment of God's promise. If no child was born in a family, society considered the spouses to be sinners, since the Lord did not grant them even the hope that the Savior might be born into their family. Such people sometimes endured humiliation and insults from those around them. Among them were the parents of the Most Holy Theotokos, whose sacrifice the priest even refused to accept in the temple for this reason.
"Joachim and Anna began to pray to God that a child would be born to them. The Lord heard their prayers and sent His angel to announce that a child would soon be born.
In the example of today's feast we see how seriously married couples then regarded the coming of a child. So it was until quite recently. People remembered that marriage is blessed by God for the bearing of children, and therefore the aim of the spouses should be the birth of a child. A different life leads to the gravest sins of fornication and infanticide. These lessons are very important for us today. And we must pray that our minds and hearts may be enlightened and that we may learn to live as Christians."
