Metropolitan Theologos of Serres and Nigriti on Friday morning celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the church of St Demetrios the Myrrh-gusher in Thessaloniki marking the beginning of the celebrations honouring the city’s Patron Saint.
Following the Divine Liturgy, the military Saint’s relics and a large icon decorated with flowers were carried in procession on the streets of Thessaloniki by cars of the Greek Army, Orthodoxia News Agency reports.
The procession was attended by representatives of the municipality, representatives of the armed forces and law enforcement bodies, academic and cultural personalities, students, monks, priests and deacons from Thessaloniki and other areas of Greece.
The Metropolitan of Serres addressed those present and stressed that Saint Demetrios shows the faith as the most precious treasure of human life.
The metropolitan urged the believers not to be discouraged in distress, because “Christ is with us, and the saints protect and direct us.”
The city of Thessaloniki celebrated its 107th anniversary of liberation from Ottoman occupation. In 1912, on the feast day of St. Demetrios, the Greek Army accepted the capitulation of the Ottoman garrison in the city of Thessaloniki.
The Holy Great Martyr Demetrios lived in the 3-4 centuries and was the son of the ruler of the city of Thessaloniki. He is considered the spiritual protector of Thessaloniki.
The Saint is celebrated by the Orthodox Church on October 26. In iconography he is depicted as dressed in military uniform and with a spear in his hand, a weapon by which he suffered martyrdom.
Photography courtesy of Orthodoxia News Agency / Raphael Georgiades
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