The feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God was celebrated on 21 September 2019 at Saint Alexius Cathedral in Samarkand.
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 Mother of God was read.
After the service Fr. Igor addressed the parishioners, congratulated everyone on the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God, and reminded them that we had 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 fulfilment 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 Saviour might be born in their family. Such people often suffered humiliation and insults from those around them. Among them were the parents of the Most Holy Theotokos, whose offering a priest even refused to accept in the Temple for this reason.
“Joachim and Anna began to pray to God for the birth of a child. The Lord heard their prayers and sent His angel to announce the imminent birth of a child.
From the example of today’s feast we see how seriously spouses 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 spouses should be the birth of a child. Any other way of life leads to the gravest sins of fornication and the killing of children. These lessons are very important for us today. And we must pray that our minds and hearts be enlightened and that we learn to live as Christians.”
