St. Tikhon’s Monastery announces 113th Memorial Day Pilgrimage schedule

St Tikhon's

The community of Saint Tikhon’s Monastery and Seminary extends a cordial invitation to all faithful to attend the 113th Annual Pilgrimage Memorial Day weekend, May 26-29, 2017.

“We are very glad to be able to offer the blessing of the monastery and her founder, Saint Tikhon of Moscow, to all visiting hierarchs, clergy and faithful from the Orthodox Church in America and other Orthodox jurisdictions and guests from near and far,” said Archimandrite Sergius, Abbot of Saint Tikhon’s Monastery.

The pilgrimage will officially open on Friday, May 26, at 3:30 p.m. with the greeting of the Hawaiian Myrrh Streaming Icon of the Iveron Mother of God and the celebration of a Molieben.  Vespers and Matins will follow at 4:00 p.m. in the Monastery Church of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk.  The icon will be available for veneration throughout the pilgrimage.  All pilgrims are invited to dinner in the monastery dining hall following Friday’s services.

The 75th annual Commencement of Saint Tikhon’s Seminary will be held on Saturday, May 27.  The day will open with the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy in the monastery church at 9:00 a.m., followed by a meal in the dining hall.  Commencement Exercises will begin at 1:00 p.m.  The Resurrection Vigil will be celebrated at 4:00 p.m., followed by dinner for all pilgrims in the dining hall.

The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy will be celebrated at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 28, followed by a meal for all in the dining hall.  Vespers and Matins will be celebrated at 4:00 p.m.

On Memorial Day—Monday, May 29—the Divine Liturgy will be celebrated in the Monastery Church at 7:30 a.m.  The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m., followed by a Panikhida for Veterans at All Saints Bell Tower at 12:15 p.m.  The Akathistos Hymn to Saint Alexis will be celebrated in the monastery church at 1:30 p.m., while the Molieben to the Most Holy Theotokos with the Anointing of the Sick, Infirm and All Pilgrims will be celebrated at the monastery bell tower at 2:30 p.m.  The pilgrimage will close with the celebration of Vespers and Matins at 4:00 p.m.

Concurrent with the Pilgrimage, the Patriarch Tikhon Russian-American Music Institute [PaTRAM] will hold its Second Annual Memorial Day Young Singers’ Conference at the Monastery.  [See related story.]  PaTRAM recently released the first recording by its Patriarch Tikhon Choir, titled “Praise the Lord, All Ye Nations.”  Under the direction of Maestro Vladimir Gorbik, the 30-voice mixed choir includes vocalists and choral musicians from the US, Canada and Russia.  Conference participants will sing the liturgical responses during the Pilgrimage.  Detailed Conference information may be accessed on PaTRAM’s web site.