Photo:
RIA Novosti
The procession with the prayer singing to the monk Isaac of Dalmatia takes place on Sunday from St. Isaac’s Cathedral in St. Petersburg, the correspondent of RIA Novosti.
Earlier, the head of communications of the St. Petersburg Metropolia Natalia Rodomanova reported that on 12 and 19 February, two Sundays before Great lent in the diocese of St. Petersburg was blessed after the divine Liturgy to hold processions around St. Isaac’s Cathedral prayer singing to the monk Isaac of Dalmatia.
The procession in its current Sunday began after the Liturgy, which attracted about 500 people.
In the Archdiocese stressed that “the procession is not a tool of opposition to something or someone, and the way purely prayerful appeal to God.” Participation in congregational prayer will be able to accept all who come to these Sunday morning worship, a continuation of which and will be the procession. Procession around the temple does not imply closures will not affect traffic flows and does not require special approvals.
According to Rodomanova, the Church cannot speak to the opponents of the transfer of the Cathedral in the language of protests and demonstrations. Earlier, the state Duma Deputy Vitaly Milonov has filed a request to hold a procession from the Kazan Cathedral to St. Isaac’s Cathedral on February 11 in support of the decision of the city authorities on the transfer of the temple of the Russian Orthodox Church. However, the St. Petersburg diocese did not support the initiative of the Deputy. Opponents of the transfer of the Cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church are planning on Sunday to hold a protest.
The authorities of St. Petersburg decided to transfer to St. Isaac’s Cathedral for 49 years, the Russian Orthodox Church in the free use with preserving the Museum and educational functions. Remains and legal status of the object — its owner is the city. The public is concerned about the fate of Isaac, despite the statement of representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Museum functions will be expanded, and the entrance to the Cathedral will be free.