6/4/26

The Feast of Pentecost in Sea Cliff

On Sunday, May 31—the Feast of the Holy Trinity (Pentecost)—the parish rector, Archpriest Serafim Gan, celebrated the festive Divine Liturgy, having served the All-Night Vigil the evening before, assisted by Protodeacons Pavel Wolkow and Eugene Kallaur. On the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of Christ, the Holy Church commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. This is the birthday of the Church—uniting all nations, filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and restoring the bond between God and man.

At the conclusion of the Liturgy, Great Vespers were celebrated, during which Father Serafim read the Kneeling Prayers of the feast. During this special service, stichera glorifying the Holy Spirit are sung in the churches, followed by the reading of three Kneeling Prayers. The first is addressed to God the Father, petitioning for aid against the machinations of the enemy; the second asks for the bestowal of the Holy Spirit—who instructs and strengthens us in the observance of God's commandments—so that we may attain the blessed life; and the third, addressed to the Son of God, contains prayers for the repose of the departed.

Photo: V. Gaberman