On July 11, 2023, a festive All-night vigil was held in the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Zhovkva, Lviv region, on the occasion of the patronal feast and the 30th anniversary of the construction of the local Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The service was led by Metropolitan Symeon of Vinnytsia and Bar and Metropolitan Dymytrii of Lviv and Sokal in concelebration with local and invited clergy.
Before the service began, the hierarchs brought to the church and handed over to the priests an icon of the Holy Great Martyr John of Suceava. This saint, who lived in the fourteenth century and was born in the Romanian city of Suceava, was martyred in the land that is now part of Ukraine (the city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi). John of Suceava is connected with Zhovkva by the fact that for 97 years, starting in 1685, his holy relics were kept in the local monastery, having been brought to Zhovkva by Polish King Jan Sobieski. Only in 1783 were the relics of St. John returned to Suceava, where they remain to this day.
The arrival of the icon with a part of the relics emphasized the solemnity of the celebration of the Church's anniversary and the feast of its heavenly patrons. Metropolitan Dymytrii and the clergy celebrated the festive litia, and Metropolitan Symeon led the service of the polyeleia, after which many parishioners and guests bowed before the icons of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul and the Holy Martyr John.
After the service, Metropolitan Dymytrii congratulated the parish rector, Archimandrite Markian (Kayumov), on his patronal feast. The Archpastor spoke about the holy apostles Peter and Paul, the peculiarities of their characters and their virtues.
Metropolitan Symeon also congratulated those present on the holiday and the anniversary of the church. The Archpastor emphasized that the religious community of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Zhovkva was the first community in the Lviv region to leave the moscow patriarchate and, together with its rector, joined the Orthodox Church of Ukraine in December 2018.
The mayor of Zhovkva, Oleh Volskyi, greeted the audience. The mayor congratulated the rector and parishioners on the anniversary of the church and wished the church community development and further success in spiritual, educational and charitable endeavors. Mr. Mayor presented letters of gratitude from the city authorities to Metropolitan Symeon, Metropolitan Dymytrii and the religious community of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.
The rector of the church, Archimandrite Markian, thanked everyone for the joint evening prayer and invited them to tomorrow's festive service, which will be performed by the Chief Secretary of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Symeon of Vinnytsia and Bar.
Press service of the Vinnytsia-Bar Diocese of the UOC (OCU)
