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07/06/2026 Metropolitan Joseph celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Assumption Cathedraltranslated

July 6, 2026 · 1 min read

📷 Guy Fawkes · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

On July 6, on the feast of the Vladimir Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos and the Synaxis of the Vladimir Saints, Metropolitan Joseph of Ivanovo-Voznesensk and Vichuga celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Assumption Cathedral in the city of Ivanovo. During the service in the church there was an icon with particles of the relics of the saints of the Vladimir land.

Metropolitan Joseph read a prayer for Holy Rus' and led the praise.

Concelebrating with the Bishop were Hieromonk John (Pletmintsev), Hegumen Vitaly (Utkin), Hieromonk Macarius (Markish), Hieromonk Theophanes (Naumov), Hieromonk Avksentiy (Fokin), Hierodeacon Varnava (Laguta) and Hierodeacon Andrey (Datsko).

The apostle was read by Hierodeacon Andrei (Datsko).

The Gospel was read by Hierodeacon Auxentius (Fokin).

The liturgical hymns were performed by a choir under the direction of Ilya Sablin.

Reader Ilya Novikov and Andrey Filippov served as subdeacons.

Press service of the Head of the Ivanovo Metropolis

Recorded 07/06/2026 Metropolitan Joseph celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Assumption Cathedral for the first time the Ivanovo Metropolis appeared.

Source: Site: Иваново-Вознесенская епархия · Read the full story →

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💬 Comments (8) 🌐 Show original

Sophia Walker

Thanks for the report. Nice to see the Vladimir icon with the relics there — that must have made the Liturgy feel extra special. The choir under Ilya Sablin always does a solid job too.

Anna Parker

The Vladimir icon with those relics really does change the whole feel of the service — I was there and it felt like the saints were right with us. Glad you noticed the choir too; Ilya Sablin has them sounding tighter every year. Did you catch the prayer for Holy Rus at the end?

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ნანა კვარაცხელია

Thanks for the report. It's really nice that the icon of Vladimir came with parts — just like last year, when we had a similar icon in Batumi. The prayer on Holy Russia read by Joseph Metropolitan sounded very preachy.

Paula López

It's great that they brought the icon of Vladimir with the particles of relics, it shows that the atmosphere of the service changed. I liked that Metropolitan Joseph read the prayer for Holy Rus at the end. Ilya Sablin's chorus always sounds clean, as always.

Nicholas Turner

Yeah, that icon with the relics made it feel more grounded, like the service had real weight to it. I missed the exact wording of the prayer for Holy Rus but caught the tone — it landed heavy after the Gospel. Did you stay for the cross procession afterward?

Михайло Бойко

The icon with the relics of Vladimir saints is a good thing that was brought. Heard how Auxentius read the Gospel, his voice is clear. And Metropolitan Iosyf always reads the prayer for Holy Rus' calmly, without pathos.

Juliette Girard

I liked that the icon with the relics of the saints of Vladimir remained throughout the liturgy, it really gives weight to the service. I noticed that it was hierodeacon Avksenty who read the Gospel, his voice carries well. The prayer for Holy Russia read by Metropolitan Joseph at the end also touched me, he always said it calmly.

Serge Martin

Yes, this icon with the relics really gave a beautiful presence to the whole liturgy, we felt it almost in our midst. I also appreciated Avksenty’s voice for the Gospel, it carries far without forcing. On the other hand, the prayer for Holy Russia, I always find it a little long in this place, even if the metropolitan reads it very calmly. Were you there yourself?