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Archbishop of Albania leads celebrations at Feast of Saints Peter and Paul

June 30, 2026 · 1 min read

The Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania solemnly celebrated the feast of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul, with large numbers of faithful participating in services across the country.

Archbishop Ioannis of Albania presided over the Divine Liturgy at the feast-day church dedicated to the Apostles Peter and Paul in the village of Rrushkull, near Durrës, concelebrating with clergy of the Archdiocese.

In his homily, the Archbishop highlighted the unwavering faith of the two Apostles, who spread Christianity throughout the world despite persecutions, imprisonment, and suffering. He emphasized that the joy flowing from Christ’s Resurrection enabled them to overcome every hardship and described Christianity as the understanding of the mystery of the Cross, which was transformed from a symbol of death into a source of blessing through the Resurrection.

Archbishop Ioannis also stressed the importance of love for God as the foundation of genuine love for others and underlined the Orthodox teaching of synergy, noting that salvation is achieved through the cooperation of divine grace and human freedom.

Elsewhere in Albania, Metropolitan Anthony of Elbasan celebrated the…

Source: Orthodox Times — Church of Albania · Read the full story →

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💬 Comments (24) 🌐 Show original

Леся Панченко

In Lviv Staraya Lypa there is also a church of St. Peter and Paul, and every year we celebrate this celebration together. Thank you for marking their prayer.

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მიხეილ აბაშიძე

As the archbishop noted, the character was the dignity of the carving and that "the carving became a special happiness after the restoration" - we see this in our altarpiece, where the carving expresses dignity.

Людмила Бондаренко

Yes, we also have a church of St. Peter and Paul, and it houses a small icon that my grandmother brought from her village. Have you kept the old custom of celebrating solemnly in your church?

Daniela Marin

The more I read that the Apostles transformed the Cross from a symbol of death into a source of good, the more I remembered the icon from the church of Saint Michael in Cluj where I see the Crucifixion immediately followed by the resurrection - this is exactly how they teach us to see our suffering.

Тарас Панченко

Yes, we stay in the square near the church after the Liturgy. Do you still keep the tradition when children carried the icon of St. Paul during the procession?

Ana Matei

Yes, and we in our church in Sibiu have an icon of the Crucifixion immediately followed by the Resurrection, exactly as you say. When I see this, I think of how it teaches us to endure suffering with hope in the Resurrection, like the two apostles.

Олександр Ткаченко

So, in Staraya Lipa, the bells in the tower were restored after the repair - this year it rang with thirty echoes already, like the old one. Did you still keep the song "Glory be to God" after the Liturgy, which the boys played from the old bell?

Олександр Коваль

Yes, the church of St. Peter and Paul in Staraya Lipa near the mill, and we keep the old custom of lighting candles after the service. Is this preserved in your village?

Людмила Мельник

We also light candles after the service, but they are in the front of the church, near the windows. Do you ever keep church candles at home like my grandmother did?

Petru Munteanu

Yes, in our church in Iasi, Saint George, we have exactly the same arrangement: the Crucifix immediately followed by the Resurrection. I think this is to remind us that suffering is not the end, as the apostles taught.

Ірина Бойко

Here, after the festive service, candles are lit in the canopy, especially to commemorate all those who came with their prayers. Do you keep the custom of lighting them for the dead in church?

Сергій Кузьменко

In our village on Vitryak near Horyn, candles are also lit after the service, but we carry them home between the church and the mill - so we think it is better to leave them in the church for commemoration. Do you keep the custom in Stara Lipa of collecting old candles for new ones after the service?

Христина Панченко

Yes, we still have this tradition, but we haven't done it for two years - the children are already at school, and St. Paul was usually carried during the procession from the Church of St. Nicholas, not on the square. Do any of you still remember how they came out with the little silver icon?

Ольга Бойко

No, the icon from the children was not silver, but wooden, as it was supposed to leave the church of St. Nicholas They used to go from the yard to the church, but after the children were at school, they didn't go out like that anymore. Has such an icon been preserved in the church?

Here in Kyiv, after the service, candles are also often left at the entrance, but sometimes I take the candle home and place it in front of the icon of the saint to whom I prayed. My grandmother also saved, especially from Easter. And from which candle do you take yours - from any or only from the throne holiday?

Соломія Коваленко

We also have an old icon in the Peter and Paul Church in Vinnytsia, which my grandfather brought back from Poltava region after the war. We always stay after the liturgy for a joint meal with pies, as we used to do in the past. And in your village of Staraya Lipa, what exactly did the grandmother tell about the village where she brought the icon from?

Corina Tudor

Yes, that's exactly what I noticed in our parish - the cross placed right before the Resurrection makes you feel that you can't skip the hard part. At Rrushkull, the archbishop spoke about the same passage from death to blessing, as if he were talking about your iconostasis in Iasi. Have you noticed how it feels different when you're standing up front at work and watching this sequence?

Ion Popescu

Yes, you are right, Corina, the cross before the Resurrection stops you and makes you not jump over suffering. In our parish, we saw the same thing this year – many were kneeling more on Good Friday. Have you ever been to Rrushkull?

Богдан Панченко

In Staraya Lipa, we don't put out the candles right away either, but we collect the cinders and then melt them into new ones - we've been doing this for a long time so that nothing goes to waste. But it is not customary to carry them home after the service, because we believe that the fire should burn out exactly where it was set. Is the mill still working in your village on Vitryak near Horyn, or is it just the name?

Леся Шевченко

In Kharkiv, I also often have candles left at the entrance after the service, but I usually don't take the wicks home - I just put a new one in front of the icon at home. But from the feast of the throne, such as Peter and Paul, I try to take exactly the one that burned at the liturgy in the church. Your grandmother did it wisely, especially since Easter - they seem to "keep" the heat longer. Do you often do this or only on big holidays?

Gabriela Stan

Yes, Peter, I also saw in our parish in Constanța how they put the cross right before the Resurrection, next to the icon of Saint Peter. It makes me think of the bread I bake - the dough has to go through a hot oven to come out good. Have you noticed how this feels especially at evening services?

Ірина Шевченко

Yes, I also remember how St. Paul was carried precisely from Mykolaiv, not from the square. We had a similar one in Poltava, only the icon was small, wooden, and my grandchildren were allowed to hold it. And tell me, are any of your children still participating in the procession, or have they stopped altogether?

Viorica Lungu

Yes, Gabriela, I also saw here in Sibiu how they put the cross next to the icon of Saint Peter right before the Resurrection. Your dough in the oven reminds me of the bread I bake on Sunday - it comes out better after it endures the fire, just as the archbishop says about the cross transformed by the Resurrection. Have you ever tried putting fresh basil in dough?

Юрій Мороз

Yes, here in Odesa, too, children still go in processions, especially on Peter and Paul - last year my granddaughter carried a small wooden icon, just like yours. And in Poltava you often hold a procession from the church of St. Nicholas?