A strict fast lasting until Aug. 15 begins today, ahead of the Great Feast Day of the Dormition of the Theotokos, the Ever Virgin Mary, one of the most significant dates on the Church’s religious calendar.
Meanwhile, the Procession of the Precious Wood is commemorated by the Church today. It is the first of the three “Feasts of the Savior” in August.
The custom prevailed in medieval Constantinople, whereby the precious Wood of the Cross was carried in a procession throughout the Bosporus metropolis for the latter’s sanctification and its deliverance from illnesses.
The custom began after Constantinople was saved from a Saracen raid, during the 12th century reign of Emperor Manuel Komnenos.