The parents of Pancratius were natives of Antioch. Hearing the good news of Jesus Christ, Pancratius' father took his young son with him and went to Jerusalem in order to see the great Teacher for himself. The miracles astonished him, and when he heard the divine teaching, he then believed in Christ as the Son of God. He became close with the disciples of the Lord, especially with the holy Apostle Peter. It was during this period that young Pancratius got to know the holy Apostle Peter.
Archpriest Sergei Bulgakov
Five and a half centuries have passed since the blessed repose of St. Sergius. The changes that have occurred in everything are great, and great is the historical distance that separates us. However, he still remains not only our spiritual leader and heavenly intercessor but also a friend who measured the depths of our sorrow and through it became our kin.
Rating: 5,9|Votes: 7
The 400th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty is marked on the 6th of March. Michael Romanov, whose grandfather, Nikita, wa a central adviser to Ivan the Terrible, was unanimously elected Tsar of Russia by a national assembly on 21 February 1613. Since that time, Romanov family, as the second and last Russian imperial dynasty, ruled the country right until 1917. The February Revolution resulted in abdication of Nicholas II in favor of his brother Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich. The latter declined to accept the crown, terminating the Romanov dynasty's rule over Russia.
Archpriest Alexander Shargunov
Rating: 8,5|Votes: 14
From that time on we often appealed to the holy Tsar Nicholas, and help came immediately under extraordinary circumstances. Since Tsar Nicholas Aleksandrovich was not only our Sovereign, but also head of a large family, we began to pray to him whenever we had family conflicts and disagreements. Peace was restored to our family very quickly. O holy Royal martyrs, pray to God for us!
After serving an all-night Vigil, and taking it out from the Blachernae church, the sacred Robe of the Mother of God was carried in a procession around the city walls. Its edge was dipped into the waters of the Bosphorus, and it was then carried to the center of Constantinople to the church of Hagia Sophia. The Mother of God protected the city and turned back the Russian warriors. An honorable truce was concluded, and the siege of Constantinople was lifted.