Relics of Saint Prince Vladimir of Ukraine brought to St Parascheva Church in Hancu

A part of the relics of Saint Prince Vladimir and his icon from the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra in Ukraine were brought to Moldova, to Saint Pious Parascheva Monastery in Hancu, for the first time. The relics were brought before the Feast of Satin Pious Parascheva, who is Moldova's patron saint, celebrated on October 27. They will be at the monastery until November 20, Archimandrite Pavel, of the Hancu Monastery, has told Info-Prim Neo. Archimandrite Pavel said that it became a tradition to bring the relics of saints on the eve of the Hancu Monastery's Dedication Day and the Bishop of Hancu Petru strictly observes this tradition. This time, the Bishop's initiative was blessed by His Holiness Vladimir, the Metropolitan Bishop of Chisinau and All Moldova, and by His Eminence Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine. Besides the icon with parts of relics of Prince Vladimir, there were also brought two icons with relics of Pious Gabriel of Aton and Saint Teodosie of Balta, who was recently canonized by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Archimandrite Pavel said the people who have the possibility can come to the Hancu Monastery from dawn till dusk to pray. “Some people ask what is the meaning of the relics. For us, the Orthodox Christians, they are very important. They belong to persons who lived on Earth, led a pure life and dedicated themselves to God. For their piousness and lifelong prayers, God left their relics for us to pray and reach Him through them,” he said. The relics of Prince Vladimir were found during archeological works in 1635. At the beginning, they were kept in the Savior Jesus Christs Church in Berestov. In a year, they were transferred to the Assumption Cathedral of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. Metropolitan Bishop Petru Movila gave a part of the relict to the the Assumption Cathedral in the Kremlin. Later, the relics were moved to the Nativity of the Virgin Mary Cathedral in Rostov-on-Don. Recently, a part of them were brought again to Ukraine. Before the Second World War, a renowned sculptor-anthropologist took the relics from Kiev to Leningrad to help restore the historical face of Prince Vladimir. During the war, the relics that were in Leningrad disappeared. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church looked for them, but all in vain.