The Feast оf оur Lady Queen оf Los Angeles

On the Saturday of Bright Week, April 18 2015, at the St. Steven’s Cathedral in Alhambra, Los Angeles, the Feast of Our Lady Queen of the Angels (Los Angeles) was celebrated for the first time, as we read from the Synaxarion: On this day, the Saturday of Bright Week, we celebrate the Synaxis of our All-holy Lady the Theotokos and Ever-virgin Mary, the Queen of all and Sovereign Lady of the Angels, protectress and unfailing intercessor of our holy diocese of Los Angeles.

The special liturgical service (Akolouthia) for this Feast-day was composed on the Holy Mountain of Athos by Athanasios, Hieromonk of Simonopetra Monastery, Hymnographer of the Holy Great Church of Christ, at the request of His Grace Bishop Maxim of Western America. The Service was translated from Greek language into English by Norman Russell.

The celebration of the Feast-day began on Friday evening with the Vesper service and continued the next morning with Matins, which incorporated the beautiful Paschal and Feast-day hymns sang for the first time in our Cathedral by Bishop Maxim and Fr. Nikola Ceko.

The Feast celebration continued with the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy officiated by His Grace Bishop Maxim with the concelebrating priests of the local Western American Diocese and other Orthodox Jurisdictions of the West: Fr. John Constantine (Metropolis of San Francisco of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese), Fr. Christopher Horsley (Western American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church) and Fr. Norman Kosanovich, Fr. Blasko Paraklis, and Fr. Borislav Jegarski (Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church). In his sermon, His Grace Bishop Maxim thanked the clergy and the faithful for their prayerful visitation and expressed his hope that this Feast-day of all Orthodox Christians in Los Angeles will grow in the hearts of the faithful in the course of time.

Following the Divine Liturgy the faithful gathered for a luncheon, graciously prepared by Cathedral priests, Fr. Nikola and Fr. Norman, and an afternoon of fellowship.

Source: westsrbdio.org