On the Cathedral Square of the Lavra, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill celebrated a moleben before the venerated icon of Venerable Sergius of Radonezh. Concelebrating with His Holiness was an assembly of hierarchs who had celebrated the Liturgy in all the churches of the monastery on the feast of Venerable Sergius.
After the moleben, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill addressed the participants of the celebrations, hierarchs, clergy, monastics and laity, from the balcony of the Patriarchal chambers:
"Once again I greet all of you, my dear ones, on the feast, the memory of the holy and Venerable Sergius, Abbot of Radonezh!
And look, even the sun came out at the end. Everyone told us there would be rain, bad weather and cold, to dress warmly... Well, perhaps it is not as warm as we would like, but it is not cold either, so the mercy of the Venerable One is with us even in these simple things, just as it is on the paths of our life in general; everyone knows this. Sometimes we ask the Lord and His saints for the simplest things. It would seem, how can one turn to the Lord with all this? But we do! And our loving Father responds even to these prayers of ours.
May Venerable Sergius also incline his mercy toward us and intercede before the face of God in matters great and small that trouble us as a people, as a Church, that trouble each of us. By his prayers may the Lord preserve the Russian Church, our pious people and all of you, my dear ones. Happy feast!"
Then, in the Patriarchal chambers of the Lavra, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church presented awards to hierarchs marking anniversaries this year, as well as to lay people who have labored especially for the good of the Holy Church.
