On 3 November 2022, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the clergy of the Diocese of Tashkent, led by their ruling bishop, Metropolitan Vikenty of Tashkent and Uzbekistan, began a pilgrimage to the holy places of the Holy Land.
On arrival in Tel Aviv the pilgrim group went to Jaffa, where they visited the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission's metochion of the Righteous Tabitha and venerated her tomb. The pilgrims then visited the Church of the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious in Lydda, where his relics rest, and then the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, where they were warmly welcomed by the Metropolitan of Bethlehem. The pilgrims venerated the place of the Savior's Nativity and saw the resting place of the Holy Innocents of Bethlehem, slain at the command of King Herod.
On the second day of the trip Metropolitan Vikenty led the Divine Liturgy in the convent church of the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene on the slope of the Mount of Olives, where the pilgrims venerated the relics of the Venerable Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna and the nun Barbara. The group then visited the Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, a cave church at the place of the burial of the Mother of God, where the holy and righteous Joachim, Anna and Joseph the Betrothed also rest. At the residence of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem the pilgrims met with Patriarch Theophilos of Jerusalem, to whom Metropolitan Vikenty presented commemorative gifts: a cross with two panagias and an embroidered icon of St. Luke of Crimea. The pilgrims also venerated the Holy Sepulchre in the Church of the Resurrection and visited the Gorny Convent, the place where the Most Holy Theotokos met the righteous Elizabeth.
On the third day, Demetrius Saturday of the departed, Metropolitan Vikenty led the Liturgy at the Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos outside the walls of the Old City, concelebrating with Bishop Joachim of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The pilgrims also visited the Lavra of St. Sabbas the Sanctified in the Judean Desert, venerated his relics and visited the cave of St. John of Damascus, where an akathist was sung before the ancient tomb.
On the fourth day, Sunday, the delegation of the Diocese of Tashkent prayed at the Liturgy in the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem, where Metropolitan Vikenty was concelebrated by the ordained clergy of the mission. For the clergy of the Central Asian Metropolitan District the pilgrimage became a time of deep spiritual renewal at the greatest shrines of the Christian world.
