At the foot of the western slope of the Mount of Olives is the Garden of Gethsemane, the place of intense prayer of our Lord Jesus Christ before his evil disciple betrayed him there.

In the garden of Gethsemane is the “royal” church of St. Mary Magdalene. On the evening of Great Thursday, the head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission, Archimandrite Roman (Krassovsky) led the reading of the Holy Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, the so-called, 12 gospels. The first gospel narratives describe the terrible scene that occurred at that very place where the worshipers stood and added to their prayer. The clerics of the Mission – Hieromonk Misail (Minin), Priest Roman Gultiaev and Hierodeacon Amphilokhy (Mazur) co-served with the Head of the Mission. At the end of the divine service, in procession, the sisters, led by Abbess Elisabeth (Smelic), went to the cave on the territory of the convent and there Fr. Roman read the gospel narrative from the Evangelist Mark about the Gethsemane prayer of the Savior. Then, after an edifying sermon by Fr. Roman the sisters returned to the monastery with prayer.

 

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