On July 19, 2024, the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan hosted the opening of the photo exhibition «Liturgy with the Patriarch» dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the enthronement of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
The exhibition was prepared by the Press Service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia .
The exhibition was prepared by the Press Service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia and Synodal Department for Relations between the Church and Society and the Media with the support of the Pyotr Baryshnikov Foundation for the Development of Art and Photography, the Russian Peace Foundation, the «ProLab» Center and the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan.
The opening ceremony was attended by Metropolitan Kirill of Kazan and Tatarstan, Chief Federal Inspector for the Republic of Tatarstan of the Office of the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District Viktor Demidov, Deputy Chairman of the State Council of the Republic of Tatarstan Yuri Kamaltynov, Head of the Department for Cooperation with Religious Organizations of the Department of Raisa of the Republic of Tatarstan Albert Dirzizov, Director General of the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan Alisa Vyatkina, Head of the Photo
The opening ceremony was attended by clergymen Kazan Diocese, students of the Kazan Theological Seminary, representatives of the museum community and republican mass media.
The Archdiocesan Male Choir, conducted by Denis Rogov, performed the troparion «Intercessor Zealous » and the hymn «Only-begotten Son».
Metropolitan Kirill addressed the audience with welcoming remarks:
«Dear friends, brothers and sisters! Dear Alisa Lvovna! Dear Viktor Nikolayevich! Dear Yuri Zimelevich!
We have come to the main holiday of our land — the day of the appearance of the icon of the Mother of God, which the whole world has come to call Kazan. It is the feast of Kazan, of course, but it is also the feast of our whole Church. Soon after the discovery of the relic, the day of the apparition of the icon of the Queen of Heaven in the city of Kazan became an honored holiday in our country and beyond.
A huge number of churches are dedicated to the Kazan image of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And today, to commemorate this event, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, an exhibition is being opened dedicated to the labors that His Holiness bore during his 15 years on the Patriarchal cathedra. Our Kazan was the first city that was honored to host this exhibition after the Cathedral of the Patriarch of Moscow.
We often hear in the news that His Holiness the Patriarch has spoken on one occasion or another, visited the sick, helped people in need.
You and I often hear in the news that His Holiness the Patriarch spoke on this or that occasion, visited the sick, helped people in need. But the center of the life of any priest, and above all of His Holiness the Patriarch, is the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. Today, thanks to the work of the photographers of the Moscow Patriarchate, we have the opportunity to look at the life of the Russian Orthodox Church over the past 15 years through the prism of the Divine Liturgy. Some of the photos presented here are related to our Kazan, to other amazing places that His Holiness the Patriarch visited, where he performed the Bloodless Sacrifice, praying for every parishioner, for all of us, for our Motherland.
For us, this exhibition is of great importance. It embodies the connection between the celebration in honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God and the ministry of our Holy Patriarch Kirill, who is the successor of Patriarch Hermogenes, who accepted the icon at the burned house of the girl Matrona in 1579. This connection is very pronounced. Familiarizing ourselves with the photos presented at the exhibition, we can look into the depth of the labors and prayers of the Primate of our Church and all those who labor and pray with him.
Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of this significant event. Father Igor! We are very grateful to God, grateful to His Holiness the Patriarch and the Synodal Department for Cooperation with Society and the Media, and grateful to you personally. And of course we express our gratitude to the leadership of our republic and our wonderful National Museum for providing us with wonderful premises for the realization of this project. The exhibition will be available not only to people who come to the Church of God, but also to those who come to Kazan and familiarize themselves with the museum collections of our city.
In this world everything is interconnected. And each of us, at one time or another in our lives, witnesses how the earthly touches the heavenly. Through this exhibition we can see a visible sign of the blessed time in which the Lord has allowed us to live these 15 years.
The head of the National Museum Alisa Vyatkina in turn noted that the photo exhibition «Liturgy with the Patriarch» is complemented by the exposition of samples of Orthodox culture of the XVII-XIX centuries from the collections of the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan:
The exhibition is organized by the National Museum of the Republic of Tatarstan.«Here are rarities that we show very rarely because they require special storage conditions. But we are always happy when there is an opportunity to present these exhibits to the public. We are grateful to I would like to thank the Kazan Diocese for the honor, trust and opportunity to host this exhibition. It is symbolic that the opening takes place on the eve of a great holiday for all Orthodox believers — the day of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. Our museum also has a relation to this shrine. For many years we kept the casing of the Kazan icon of the Mother of God, kept carefully, studied, restored. Exactly three years ago, with God's help, we gave it to the Tatarstan Metropolitan Church.
Tatarstan Metropolitan Church.
We are very happy to have such a sensitive and attentive attitude to our subject. When Vladyka Kirill and I discussed the process of handing over the silver frame, the archpastor said very important words: "Such relics, of course, should remain museums, but they should serve people. And so it is, and so it has turned out. The shrine serves people, but it remains a museum object. May it continue to be so, with God's help.
Priest Igor Palkin thanked the leadership of the Republic of Tatarstan and the head of the Tatarstan Metropolitan Church for their support and expressed gratitude to the staff of the National Museum, who worked on the development of the presented exhibition project:
.«You have complemented our modern photographic exhibition with historical exhibits that are in the museum. These artifacts in the context of our exhibition show a connection to our history, to our ancestors. They emphasize that the Liturgy as the central Sacrament of the Church is not only outside of space, but also outside of time. And this is one of the main meanings of the exhibition. It is a joy that the museum staff felt this and emphasized it with their work.
After the opening ceremony, the distinguished guests, accompanied by Priest Igor Palkin, toured the exhibition «Liturgy with the Patriarch».
After the ceremony, Metropolitan Kirill of Kazan and Tatarstan and Priest Igor Palkin, head of the photo service of the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, answered questions
from reporters of the republican mass media.
The exposition is based on photographs taken over the past 15 years at church services and other events with the participation of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in various parts of Russia and the world, including Tatarstan. The photo exhibition is intended to focus the attention of modern people on the importance of understanding the Liturgy as a sacrament of the Church, without which salvation is impossible, to explain to modern people the importance of the Liturgy in their lives, to convey the depth of meaning with which this sacrament is filled.
An example of the ministry of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill conceptualizes the sequence of the main sacrament of the Orthodox Church — the Divine Liturgy. Viewers have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with its main parts, to feel the magnitude and importance of the Patriarchal ministry not only in prayer, but also in the works of faith that take place after the Eucharist.
The photo exposition is supplemented by monuments of Orthodox culture of the XVII-XIX centuries from the funds of the National Museum of the Republic, reflecting the peculiarities of the bishop's ministry. Visitors will see items of vestments of the bishop who took part in the coronation of Emperor Nicholas II in 1896, the sakkos of Metropolitan Lawrence — one of the most valuable examples of facial sewing, made in Stroganov's workshops in the second half of the XVII century, the personal Gospel of Patriarch Adrian.
Patriarch Adrian.
The exhibition will last until August 5. The address of the National Museum is 2, Kremlevskaya Street, Kazan.
The exhibition will run until August 5.
Tatarstan Metropolis/Patriarchy.ru
