« A pilgrimage to the tomb of St. John of Beverley took place »

On Saturday, May 18, 2019, on the eve of the feast day of St. John of Beverley, clergy and parishioners of the Diocesan District of the North of England and Wales took part in a pilgrimage to the place of rest of the saint in the ancient cathedral of Beverley, where the Divine Liturgy was celebrated by the pilgrims.

The pilgrimage, which, by the blessing of His Grace Bishop Matthew of Sourozh, was headed by Priest Anatoly Vikhrov, Rector of the parishes of St. Xenia of St.Petersburg in the city of Leeds and the Meeting of the Lord in Bradford, was also attended by Archpriest Gregory Butler, Rector of the Church of Saints Aidan and Chad in Nottingham, Priest Michael Alexander (Patriarchate of Antioch), cleric of the parish of St.Constantine the Great, Equal-to-the-Apostles, in York,  Priest Victor Akhryapin, cleric of St. George's Church, Newcastle, and Deacon Nil Lyubchenko.

After the service, a procession and moleben took place at the tomb of St. John, which is located in the center of the Cathedral.

The liturgical chants were sung by the combined choir of the Deanery and the parish of Hierarchs Aidan and Chad, Nottingham.

At the end of the service, Fr. Anatoly Vikhrov addressed the clergy and pilgrims present in the church with words of welcome and thanks for their help in organizing the pilgrimage.  Fraternal communion was continued over the meal.

On that day, the ruling bishop of the Diocese of Sourozh, Bishop Matthew, celebrated his birthday.  "Many years"  were proclaimed to Vladyka Matthew.

On behalf of the pilgrims, Father Anatoly thanked Father Jonathan Baker (Anglican Church), Rector of the Cathedral, for having graciously given the opportunity to celebrate a liturgy in the Cathedral and offered to him a gift - icon of All Saints who shone in the lands of Britain and Ireland.

History reference:

There is a magnificent monastic churchn in a small English town of Beverley, which is located between cities of York and Hull.  Relics of St. John of Beverley rest in a bushelI in the very center of this Cathedral.

St. John was born in Harpham, Yorkshire, into a noble family, around the middle of the seventh century.

In 687, St. John was consecrated bishop of Hexham.  Having headed the Hexham Cathedra for 18 years, he became Bishop of York.  In York, St.John remained the next 13 years of his life.

After his retirement, from 718,  St. John settled in a quiet place of Beverley where he spent the last few years of his earthly life.  The Saint departed to the Lord in 721, on May 7 (May 20, new calendar).  Surprisingly, St. John did not become known as "St.John of York" - as he supposed to be called, but as "St.John of Beverley", still being the patron Saint of the city of Beverley.

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