Metropolitan Pavel of Manila and Hanoi celebrated the Divine Liturgy and ordinations in the church in honor of St. Matrona of Moscow in Davao.

On February 5, the Sunday of Publican and Pharisee and of Synaxis of the New Martyrs and Confessors of the Russian Church, Metropolitan Pavel of Manila and Hanoi celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the church in honor of St. Matrona of Moscow in Davao.

His Eminence was co-served by: Secretary of the Philippine-Vietnamese Diocese Hieromonk Cornelius (Molev), Secretary of the Khanty-Mansi Diocese Abbot Anthony (Kirpichev), dean of the Surgut City Deanery of the Khanty-Mansi Diocese Archpriest Anthony Isakov, cleric of the church of St. Isidore of Rostov in Alabel Priest Alexy Bergado. The deacon rank was headed by Hierodeacon Nicodemus (Pirkhovsky).

During the Liturgy, Metropolitan Pavel ordained Deacon John Mahinay, a cleric of the church of St. John of Shanghai in Santa Maria, in the rank of Priest, and Anthony Aranco in the rank of Deacon. He also performed the consecration of a reader Elijah Aleria.

At the end of the Service, Metropolitan Pavel addressed the audience:

“Dear fathers, brothers and sisters! Let me congratulate you on the feast of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ! This is the most important day – the Resurrection of Christ. Our Lord accomplished a saving mission by coming to Earth, He lived with a man, showed a saving path, suffered for us and by His Resurrection gave each of us the opportunity to live forever. And we must always remember the saving mission of our Lord Jesus Christ. We treat Sunday in a special way — as the little Easter, the great event that happened to Christ for the salvation of the human race. St. Seraphim of Sarov, our saint, greeted all those who came to him for spiritual consolation with the words: “My joy, Christ is Risen!” He lived by the Resurrection of Christ all his life. And he is for us an example of the attitude to the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This Sunday we celebrated the Divine Liturgy, performed 2 ordinations – diaconal and priestly. I congratulate Father John and Deacon Anthony on taking holy orders. I hope that they will faithfully serve God, truly, giving all their strength so that the Lord will not leave them and the flock they will lead by His mercy. I congratulate all our parishioners, the entire flock of the Philippine Diocese on the increase of the clergy and hope that the flock will increase. On this special day, I would like to thank the secretary, Hieromonk Cornelius, for the missionary labors he carries here, helping me to manage the parishes and I give him the cross so that the Lord comforts him and helps him carry out his ministry”.

After the Divine Liturgy, Metropolitan Pavel, met with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of the Philippines M.I. Pavlov.