“The presence of the Holy Great Martyr George at this feast of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women is no coincidence,” Metropolitan Panteleimon of Veria, Naousa and Kampania said on Sunday at the patronal feast of Pantocrator Monastery in Romania.
Both the Myrrh-Bearing Women and the Holy Great Martyr George followed the Saviour Jesus Christ at any cost, even unto the Cross, the metropolitan said in his homily during the festal Divine Liturgy.
“And what made them endure such toil and struggle?” the hierarch asked. “It was their love for Christ — that love which casts out fear both from the hearts of the Myrrh-Bearing Women and from the heart of Saint George.”
“The Holy Great Martyr George did not hesitate to confront the malice and cruelty of the pagans, nor the torments to which he was subjected, and he offered to Christ, in place of the precious myrrh brought by the Myrrh-Bearing Women, his own blood — the most precious gift of his martyrdom,” the Greek hierarch said.
“The life of both — of Saint Mary Magdalene and of the Holy Great Martyr George the Trophy-Bearer — is filled with love for Christ, a true and pure love that causes a person to be united with Him, to forget oneself and no longer take anything else into account, solely in order to be with Christ, to listen to Him and fulfil His will, to rejoice in communion with Him and to delight in His holy Name.”
Broad Liturgical and Cultural Programme
Pantocrator Monastery celebrated its patronal feast on the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women as part of a broader programme of liturgical and cultural events.
The programme included the pilgrimage to bring the honourable skull of Saint George from the treasury of Xenophontos Monastery.
Metropolitan Panteleimon thanked Patriarch Daniel of Romania, Bishop Galaction of Alexandria and Teleorman, and Archimandrite Sebastian Serdaru, abbot of the monastery, for the opportunity to take part in the celebration.
Bishop Galaction on the Synaxis of the Holy Romanian Women
At the end of the service, Bishop Galaction of Alexandria and Teleorman recalled that, beginning this year, the Romanian Orthodox Church also celebrates the Synaxis of the Holy Romanian Women on the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women.
“We should remember that both the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women — at least those known by name — and the Holy Romanian Women, likewise known by name, each have their own feast day. Yet today honour is rendered to them all — those we know by name, but especially those whose names and deeds remain unknown to us,” the local hierarch said.
Gratitude for the Pilgrims’ Piety
Elder Alexios of Xenophontos Monastery spoke of the miracles he had witnessed during the pilgrimage in Romania with the head of Saint George.
“The first great miracle is this holy monastery, built with much love and piety,” the Athonite abbot said. “The second miracle we are living in these days is you Orthodox Christians.”
Archimandrite Serafim Baciu, Administrative Vicar of the Diocese of Alexandria and Teleorman, thanked the pilgrims for their presence and devotion.
“I wish to thank you deeply, because you have helped all of us live this feast as a great Pascha, as truly a feast of our souls and spirits,” he said.
The archimandrite noted that the number of pilgrims attending this year’s patronal feast surpassed the organisers’ expectations.
Photo: Basilica.ro / Raluca Ene
