Pochayiv Icon of Theotokos Visits Edmonton, Canada
Ukrainian Orthodox Church’
According to the program of stay of the Wonderworking Pochayiv Icon of the Mother of God in Canada on October 5 the shrine arrived to St. German’s Cathedral of Edmonton, where it was met by the church rector, hegumen Alexander Pigach with the clergy and faithful. The same day in the evening the akathist service was performed, praying at which were the numerous believers and clergymen, the representatives of all the orthodox jurisdictions of Edmonton.
On October 6 in the church mentioned the Divine Liturgy was celebrated following which the co-workers of the Department for External Church Relations of the UOC archpriest Mykolai Danilevych conferred church awards on some local clergymen of the Diocese of Ottawa and Canada, on the blessing of His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr of Kyiv and All Ukraine and on the occasion of the visit of the wonderworking image in Canada.
The same day the akathist was read in Ukrainian and English to the Icon of the Mother of God of Pochayiv by the hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Canada (Patriarchate of Constantinople), Bishop Hilarion (Rudnyk) of Edmonton together with the clergy and numerous parishioners. It should be noted that Edmonton is considered to be one of the main centers of residence of the Ukrainian diaspora in this country.
The same day in the evening more than a hundred local Ukrainian Greek Catholics arrived to the Cathedral of the venerable Herman of Alaska, led by Bishop David (Motiuk), who raised prayers to the Icon of the Most Holy Virgin, having no possibility to conduct worship services.
October 7 the Wonderworking Pochayiv Icon of the Theotokos left for Calgary, Canada.
