September 12 is the day of remembrance of Holy Righteous Great Prince Alexander Nevsky when the Church commemorates the translation of his relics from Vladimir to St. Petersburg.

As the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery’s refectory church was consecrated in honor of Holy Righteous Great Prince Alexander Nevsky, its patronal feast is celebrated today. Vigil service was served on the previous evening at the Trinity Cathedral followed by three liturgy services on the day of the feast at the Church of Righteous Prince Alexander Nevsky, Trinity and Transfiguration Cathedrals.

Today’s patronal feast is also celebrated at the Church of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God in the Diveyevo monastery’s Metochion Church in Arzamas where a northern chapel of its refectory addition is dedicated to Sts. Righteous Prince Alexander Nevsky and Venerable Alexander Svirsky. The metochion marked the feast by serving the vigil, the paraklesis with the water blessing prayer service and Divine Liturgy and Hegumenia Sergiya, the abbess of the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery, joined the sisters of the metochion in prayer.

Alexander Nevsky played an extraordinary role in the dramatic period of Russian history when Rus became the target of aggression from three sides, the Catholic West, Tartar Mongols, and Lithuania. The righteous prince who hasn’t lost a single battle in his life displayed his talent as a military commander and diplomat. He repelled the German aggression and, by submitting himself to the unavoidable rule of the Horde, averted the devastating incursions of the Tartar Mongols on Rus.

The Hieromartyr Thaddeus (Uspensky) noted that “the holy prince vanquished his enemies more with faith and prayer than his militancy and prepared for his victories with prayer, fasting, and participation in the Holy Mysteries. Even though he was given by his princely power an opportunity to self-indulge on many occasions, Alexander Nevsky preferred to be a father to the citizens of his country, and support the poor, widows, and orphans. As his earthly heroic path for the sake of his homeland came into fruition, he easily replaced the princedom with the monastic schema.”

The veneration of Great Prince began right at his burial at the Vladimir’s Nativity monastery of the Vladimir Suzdal Principality. A miracle was known to have happened at the prince’s burial when Metropolitan Kirill approached the coffin to insert the prayer of absolution into Alexander’s hand during the Eucharist for the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed and the hand of the deceased stretched out as if alive and accepted the paper. Ever since a lot of the faithful sought the intercession of the righteous prince in their prayers.