THE FEASTS OF THE CIRCUMCISION OF THE LORD AND SAINT BASIL THE GREAT AT THE PATRIARCHATE

On the night of January 1/14, 2024, the Despotic feast of the Circumcision of the Lord and of Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea of Cappadocia, was celebrated in the Patriarchate.

This holiday was solemnly celebrated as a “parresia” after all the splendour and propriety, initially in the Catholicon of the Church of the Resurrection with Matins, followed by the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great at the Holy Sepulchre. The Liturgy was presided over by H.H.B. our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem Theofilos and with him their Eminences, Metropolitan Isychios of Kapitolias, the Archbishops, Theophanes of Gerassa, Aristarchos of Constantina and Dimitrios of Lydda, Holy Sepulchre Hieromonks, the first of whom is Elder Kamarasis Archimandrite Nektarios s and deacons, representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate, Fr Vassianos and Roumania Fr Ioannis. Hierodeacon Simeon delivered the chanting on the right and the monk Joseph on the left, in the presence of the Consul General of Greece in Jerusalem, Mr Dimitrios Angelosopoulos and the Consul Mrs Anna Mandika.

After the Divine Liturgy, a litany took place in the Holy Shrines with the relic of the right hand of the Great Basil, which is kept in the Sacristy.

At the end of the Litany, the cutting of the Vasilopita took place in the Office of the Elder Archbishop Isidoros of Hierapolis, by His Beatitude, who distributed it and wished everybody a happy and prosperous New Year 2024.

Around 7.00 a.m. after the Divine Liturgy in the monastic Church of Saints Constantine and Helen, His Beatitude cut the pie for the Holy Sepulchre Fathers in the Epitropikon.

At noon, His Beatitude attended the meal of the Holy Sepulchre Brotherhood in the Central Monastery and blessed it.

From Secretariat-General