The participants of the “St. Seraphim’s Doctor-2020” competition from three regions of Russia, namely the Volzhsky, Siberian, North-Western, Far-Eastern federal districts and from the neighboring countries arrived to the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery to take part at the award ceremony.

The festivities began with the conciliar prayer at the Trinity Cathedral during the akathist to Venerable Seraphim of Sarov and the liturgy celebrated by Bishop Filaret of Dalnekonstantinov, the Vicar of the Nizhny Novgorod Diocese.

We prayerfully remember St. John the Theologian, the Apostle of love, today and Rev. Fr. Alexiy Kurnosov of the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery centered his post-communion sermon on the topic of love.

“Christian love is an absolute,” the preacher emphasized. All of us are called to love people and all of the God’s creation. This love testifies that Christ is in our midst.”

At the end of the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Filaret of Dalnekonstantinov addressed the faithful with the archpastoral word and asked God to bestow blessings upon monastic labors of the abbess of the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery and its sisters.

On behalf of all the monastic family and as a sign of gratitude for his prayers during the Divine Liturgy, Hegumenia Sergia presented Bishop Filaret with prosphora bread and wished that the Lord, through the prayers of the Most Holy Mother of God, Holy Apostle St. John the Theologian, Patriarch Tikhon, and all the saints of Diveyevo gives strength to His Grace to carry on his archpastoral work.