His Grace Bishop Makary of Glavinitsa, the assistant bishop of the Metropolitan of Ruse from the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, celebrated the Divine Liturgy Monday at the Oborul Vechi Church of Saints Joachim and Anna in Bucharest.
In his sermon, he emphasized Saints Joachim and Anna’s unwavering trust in God’s plan: “We must have this same trust, teaching our children to have faith in God, to value righteousness, and to abstain from all that may harm the soul,” he advised.
Saints Joachim and Anna
The Bulgarian bishop highlighted the connection between the incarnation of Jesus Christ and the holiness of Saints Joachim and Anna, the parents of the Virgin Mary. He noted that God prepared not only the Mother of God but also her parents.
“Saints Joachim and Anna, as described by Saint Luke, were righteous people, surpassing the righteousness of well-known figures from the Old Testament, such as Noah, Joshua, and even Moses,” he added.
Patronal feast
The Church of Saints Joachim and Anna also known as Oborul Vechi Church is dedicated to Virgin Mary’s parents in Bucharest. This year’s feast celebrations featured the presence of a reliquary from the Roman Archdiocesan Cathedral, containing a fragment of the relics of Saint Parascheva of Iași and 22 other saints, including Saint Anna.
Pilgrims who attended the feast venerated the historic icon of Saints Joachim and Anna from 1781 and the icon of the Mother of God from Pochaev.
Photo: Trinitas TV
