Festive Services Dedicated To St. Mary Of Egypt Held At The Academy On The 5th Sunday Of Great Lent

"How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God" (Heb. 9:14). In these words, read during today's Sunday Liturgy, all Christian hope and reliance on the Lord Jesus Christ, who freed the human race with His Blood and redeemed every person from sins, are expressed.

However, not all people strive to partake in this Sacrifice, to humbly accept it as a priceless gift and offer thanksgiving to God. Most rely solely on their own strength, depend on their own reason, and reject the Savior's help because they do not believe in Him.

The Church dedicated this Sunday of the Holy Quadragesima to the memory of the life and feat of St. Mary, an Egyptian ascetic of the late 5th - early 6th centuries. This remarkable woman, who had known the dark depths of sin, felt the all-consuming horror of passions with her entire being, and reached the limits of human despair, found her Savior and Redeemer in the Lord Jesus. The light of Christ touched her soul and enlightened her heart in such a way that she was able to find a way out of the darkness of ignorance.

By the example of her life, St. Mary showed that the doors of the human heart are locked from the inside. The Lord stands at these doors and constantly calls to man to open and invite God into the house of his soul. Turning her mind and heart toward God, the ascetic became an abode of the Holy Trinity - a pure crystal reflecting Evangelical meanings.

The Lord addresses Christians through His holy saints and ascetics, whose lives testify to God better than any human word. Today, through the life of St. Mary, the Lord testifies that He rejects no one, but wants all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4).

At every Liturgy, He offers every believer to partake of Divine life, to be cleansed from sin, to be freed from passions, and to be sanctified by His Precious Blood, in which there is the fullness of life.

On March 28 and 29, 2026, on the fifth Sunday of Great Lent, festive services dedicated to the memory of St. Mary of Egypt were held at the Academy.

On the eve of the feast, March 28, an All-night Vigil was held at the Academy. The service was led by Archimandrite Platon (Igumnov) in concelebration with the academic clergy.

Following the reading of the Six Psalms, a sermon was delivered by Mikhail Sedin, a 4th-year undergraduate student.

On Sunday, March 29, the teachers and students of the Moscow Theological Academy gathered for the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great to partake of the Holy Eucharist and glorify the great ascetic, St. Mary. The festive service was led by the Rector of the Academy, Bishop Kirill of Sergiev Posad and Dmitrov.

After the Eucharistic Canon, the Bishop performed the diaconal ordination of Vladimir Zaitsev, a 3rd-year postgraduate student.

Following the Communion verse, a sermon was preached by the Dean of the Faculty of Church Singing Art, Abbot Lazarus (Gnativ).

After the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Kirill of Sergiev Posad and Dmitrov addressed the congregation with an archpastoral word.

Background information:

The liturgical hymns were performed by the 2nd Academic Choir under the direction of Deacon Alexander Leventsov and the 1st Mixed Choir under the direction of S.P. Borovinskaya.

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