On Monday, His Grace Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop Varlaam of Ploiești celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the “St Petka” Church in the Drumul Taberei neighbourhood of Bucharest. During the service, the Patriarchal Auxiliary Bishop spoke about the tradition of venerating holy relics and emphasized the scriptural foundations of this practice.
“This is not a gesture without significance or biblical justification,” the bishop explained, reflecting on the matter. He referred to the Gospel account of the woman with the issue of blood who was healed by touching the garment of Christ.
“This tradition of Christ’s followers touching His garments continued with the Holy Apostles. In the Book of Acts, Saint Luke tells us that in the places where the apostles preached and founded churches, ordaining bishops, priests, and deacons, people were overjoyed if even the shadow of the apostles fell upon the sick whom they brought to meet them for healing,” Bishop Varlaam said.
“They were happy to keep the cloths with which the apostles wiped their faces while preaching the Gospel in their cities,” he added.
“In Scripture, we find the foundations of this sacred and pious practice of venerating the relics of saints, their garments and belongings, and even their graves, just as we venerate holy icons and the sanctified vestments of priests serving the Holy and Divine Liturgy.”
Saint Paraskeva shows us the path to eternal life
Bishop Varlaam also spoke about Saint Paraskeva’s life, highlighting her spiritual maturity despite her young age at the time of her repose.
“The saints, in general, and Saint Paraskeva, in particular, show us how to attain eternal life. She passed away at the age of 27, in the prime of her life—an age when many of us rarely think of God, seldom cross the threshold of the church, rarely kneel for Confession, or unite ourselves with Christ through the Holy Eucharist,” he said.
“At 27, she lost her earthly life but gained heavenly life, earned the honour of the Church, and won the devotion of millions of Christians who, at her feast day, as well as throughout the year, gather by the tens, hundreds, and thousands to honour her, coming from all parts of the country and even beyond its borders.”
The bishop further noted that Saint Paraskeva’s life calls us to “live our lives as children of God and as brothers and sisters by grace with our Saviour Jesus Christ.”
After the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Varlaam led a memorial service for the church’s founders.
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Photo: Basilica.ro / Mircea Florescu
