In continuation of the Holy Forty Days, in order not to deprive the deceased of prayerful remembrance during Divine Liturgy services, there were two Ancestors’ Saturday memorial services on the second and fourth weekends of Lent.

Today, on the second Saturday of the Holy Forty Days, remembrance prayers were said during liturgy and panikhidas were held in the Transfiguration and Trinity Cathedrals and in the “Joy of All Who Sorrow” Church of the Seraphim-Diveyevo monastery. On Friday, Great Compline and Matins were celebrated in the Trinity Cathedral.

During Lent, it is a duty for every true believer to do deeds of charity and mercy. Through them, we display our worthiness before the Lord to receive His mercy and charity. One of these acts, and the most important one, is the remembrance of the dead.

Anyone who wishes to showcase his love for the dead and offer them real help can do so best if we pray for them. In particular, it is so if we remember them at liturgy, when the parts, cut on behalf of the living and the dead are then immersed in the Blood of the Lord with the priest saying, “Wash away, O Lord, the sins of those commemorated here with Thy own righteous blood, through the prayers of Thy saints.”

There is nothing better or more useful for the departed than praying for them during liturgy. The soul feels the prayers we offer, it is grateful to us who offer them, and it is spiritually important for them.