The Commemoration of the Dedication of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
On Saturday, 13/26 September 2026, a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Katholikon of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the occasion of its Dedication. The Dedication took place on 13 September 326 AD, by order of the Great Constantine and under the direction of Saint Macarius, Archbishop of Jerusalem, in the presence of the holy, glorious and God-crowned Queen Helen, following the completion of the works for the construction of the Church of the Resurrection between the years 326 and 336 AD.
At this ceremony, “the dwelling-place of the glory of the Lord,” as the Church sings in the Apolytikion of the day, many bishops participated, having been instructed by the Great Constantine to attend, following the Council held at Tyre in Sidon.
The ceremony took place in the presence of a great multitude of people. When Saint Macarius, Archbishop of Jerusalem, raised up the Cross of the Lord which had been found, so that it might be seen from afar, they cried out repeatedly: “Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.”
The Church continues this practice to the present day, when, on 14 September, the Exaltation of the Precious Cross takes place towards the four points of the horizon, with the chanting one hundred times of “Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.”
The Divine Liturgy at the Katholikon of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of Lydda, concelebrating with the Archimandrites Philoumenos and Claudius, together with the clergy serving at the Church, Hieromonk Patrick and Archdeacon Mark. Pilgrims from Orthodox countries who have come to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Precious Cross, as well as nuns and local faithful, also participated.
Following the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, the Hierarchical Entourage proceeded to the Patriarchate, where they paid their respects to our Father and Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Theophilos.
From the Chief Secretariat
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