Thousands of pilgrims from the country and abroad took part, on Saturday morning, in the procession of the reliquary with the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva, around the Cathedral of the Metropolitanate of Moldova and Bucovina in Iasi.
Procession with the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva in IasiPhoto: Agerpres
At around 6:00, the Akathist of Saint Parascheva was read in the Metropolitan Cathedral, later the reliquary was taken out and carried in a procession around the cathedral, then deposited in a specially arranged canopy in the Metropolitan Court for the worship of the faithful.
A council of 32 priests, led by PS Nichifor Botoşăneanu, carried the casket with the relics of Saint Parascheva in the procession. There were four stops, one at each corner of the cathedral. Also, the procession went out on the pedestrian Ştefan cel Mare si Sfânt, on the Sfânta Parascheva gate and entered on the Sf. Andrei gate.
Thousands of pilgrims took part in the procession. Most of them came to Iasi since Friday morning and sat in line waiting for the moment when they will worship the reliquary with the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva. Most of the pilgrims are from Voluntari, they were brought to Iași by 150 buses.
The priests will officiate in the following hours the service of sanctifying the water and the Sacrament of the Holy Oil, as well as the Holy Liturgy.
The pilgrims who will go these days to worship the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva will also be able to honor the relics of Saint Andrei the Critean, nicknamed “the exarch of church singers”. The relics will be brought to Iasi, on Wednesday evening, from the Metropolitan Cathedral of Arkalochori, Crete.
Also known as Holy Friday, Pious Parascheva was born in the town of Epivat, today Cape Kaliacra, in Thrace, on the shore of the Sea of Marmara, in the first half of the 11th century. She would have died at the age of 27 in her native village, Epivat. The relics of the Pious were kept for almost 200 years in a church in Epivat, then in Târnovo, and in the 16th century they were taken to Constantinople. In 1641, on June 13, voivode Vasile Lupu managed to bring them to Iaşi, placing them in the church of the “Sfinții Trei Hierarhi” Monastery.
The reliquary of St. Parascheva was moved to the Metropolitan Cathedral at the end of the 19th century, in 1888, after the relics escaped unscathed from the fire at the “Three Hierarchs” Church. Since then, the relics of the Pious Parascheva are at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Iasi .
Saint Pious Parascheva is celebrated throughout the Romanian Patriarchate and is considered the protector of Moldova, but also of those afflicted. The canonization of Saint Parascheva was decided by the members of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church in 1955. It was also then that the date of Saint Parascheva’s celebration was established, on October 14. (Source: Agerpres)
