KYIV – The Holy Fire from the annual miracle at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem that marks Christ’s Resurrection was brought to Ukraine on May 1 by Archbishop Agapit of Vyshhorod. The miracle in Jerusalem appears annually during the Holy Saturday services, which are led by the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, headed by Patriarch Theophilos III.
The fire was brought to St. Michael the Golden-Domed Monastery Cathedral in Kyiv on May 2, in celebration of Easter according to the Julian calendar.
Following his arrival with the Holy Fire at the cathedral in Kyiv, Archbishop Agapit, abbot of St. Michael Golden-Domed Monastery, stated: “The Holy Fire is for each of us a symbol of Divine Light, Which is our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ. With faith, we receive this fire as the Light, which serves to enlighten our souls, in the journey of each Christian, who advances toward salvation and to the Heavenly Kingdom. I express thanks today to two women, faithful of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, for assisting to bring the Holy Fire in its voyage by airplane and its delivery to Kyiv, and it currently can be found at St. Michael Golden-Domed Cathedral. I also want to announce that the Holy Fire should not detract from the feast of the Lord’s Resurrection, but should be for us a sign of God’s grace, which is given to us on the eve of this feast.
Ukraine is among 11 countries that sent planes to receive the Holy Fire from Jerusalem, including Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Poland, Moldova, Romania and Russia.