Liturgy in the Old Russian rite was celebrated in Pskov

In the ancient Pskov church of St. Nicholas from Torg, which is at the courtyard of the Pskov-Pechersky monastery, on the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, for the first time in the last few centuries, a Divine Liturgy was held in the Old Russian order. The solemn service, co-served by the clergy, was performed by the ruling bishop and one of the most famous clergymen of the Russian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Tikhon (Shevkunov).

The parishioners of the church and pilgrims gathered together for common prayer during the service, many of whom have traveled tens and hundreds of kilometers for this. The midnight service, the meeting and vesting of the bishop, the readings of the third and sixth hours, and the liturgy itself - the entire service was held in accordance with the Statutes, which the Church adhered to during the late Middle Ages. During the liturgy, ancient sacred chants were performed, which were performed by the combined choir of the same faith communities of the Moscow diocese under the direction of Golovshchik Vasily Sorokin and the male choir of the courtyard of the Pskov-Caves monastery under the direction of choir director Yuri Gerasimov.
Addressing the archpastoral word to all those gathered on the feast in the house of prayer, the Metropolitan Tikhon said: “We, priests, today prayed in the altar with those prayers that from our hearts and words went to God both at the Monk Sergius of Radonezh and at the Monk Martyr Cornelius. Until the end of the 17th century, all priests prayed in this way. These prayers are very special: very deep, very touching and very clear. Wishing to make the Slavic language clearer, paradoxically, they made it much more complicated. The prayers of the ancient Orthodox liturgical order are much more understandable even for an ordinary person than the prayers of Nikon's translation. But it is not for us to judge them! We have gathered in order to remind ourselves once again how hard it is to make a mistake in relation to Church Tradition ”.

Metropolitan Tikhon expressed confidence that the festive service on the feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God will contribute to the resumption of services of the same faith in the Pskov land. “In the church of St. Nicholas in 1844, services of the same faith began. Unity of faith is that part of the Russian Church, those children, faithful to the Russian Church, who are in Eucharistic communion with all of us, but who perform divine services according to the old, pre-Nikon rite. They are preserved chants, prayers and ceremonies as they were under our fathers, conditionally - until 1654-1656. Of course, it was unusual, because a lot of what the eye and hearing are used to are different here. I hope that there will be people who will in a special way love this unhurried, measured and concentrated, without the excessive beauties of partisan singing, without haste, the divine service - and will become parishioners of this parish, 'the Pskov Information Agency quotes Vladyka Tikhon.
On the day of the Feast of the Theotokos, the ruling bishop presented the Smolensk icon of the Most Holy Theotokos 'Odigitria' ('Guidebook') to the parish of St. Nicholas from the Torgue. All those who prayed in the church at the liturgy, performed in the Old Russian rite, were presented with a brochure about one of the most revered Christians of the saints of the Lord God, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Lycia.

Photo: press service of the Pskov diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church