On July 19 – the 7th Sunday after Pentecost, and the day when the Holy Church honors the memory of the Venerable Sisoes the Great and the Synaxis of the Saints of Radonezh – Metropolitan Nicholas of Eastern America & New York celebrated Divine Liturgy in the Synodal Cathedral of the Sign in New York City, co-served by Bishop Michael of Boston.

Concelebrating with the hierarchs were cathedral clerics: Archpriest Seraphim Chemodakov, Hieromonk Theognost (Kogan), and Protodeacon Serge Arlievsky, as well as Protodeacon Nicholas Ilyin (cleric of Holy Protection Church in Nyack, NY).

The choir sang beautifully under the direction of conductor Vadim S. Gan. Liturgy was celebrated under the aegis of the Protectress of the Russian Diaspora – the wonderworking Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God.

Numerous parishioners and believers from other city churches prayed at Liturgy. The majority of worshippers communed of Christ’s Holy Mysteries.

At the conclusion of the service, Metropolitan Nicholas greeted all with the Lord’s Day and addressed the faithful with a sermon on the Gospel reading from Matthew, concerning the healing of the blind men who cried out to the Savior for their cure.

"It is vital for us to know that the Lord heals us when we ask Him with a pure heart. Yet the Lord also asks of us a humble heart, a humble mind, and a humble way of life. This is how an Orthodox Christian lives."

He also noted that "the days commemorating the Royal Martyrs – as well as the New Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth and the Nun Barbara – have passed. In them, we see an example of humility and obedience to God, and of absolute love for God and one’s neighbor. We preserve here portions of their relics – of St. Elizabeth (specifically, her right hand) and the Nun Barbara. St. Elizabeth not only blesses us but also offers us comfort, just as she comforted the suffering in Alapayevsk during her lifetime – through singing, prayer, and compassion. Whatever the New Martyrs faced in life, they strove toward God; they knew their end would not be easy, yet the King of Glory is invincible. Attempts were made to destroy them, but Christ the Victor glorified them, and today we honor the Royal Family and the Holy New Martyrs. They set an example for us of spiritual heroism for the sake of the Holy Church and the Lord Jesus Christ."

A luncheon was served in the cathedral hall, where the clergy and the faithful continued their fellowship in a fraternal atmosphere.