Thousands Walk 30 Mile Pilgrimage to Kreshchatyk Monastery Ahead of Nativity of the Forerunner

Pilgrims at the Kreschatyk Monastery. Photo: UOJ's Ukrainian branch (SPZh)

CHERNIVTSI — More than 5,000 Orthodox Christians participated in a two-day pilgrimage from Chernivtsi to the St. John Monastery in Kreshchatyk, covering nearly 30 miles in anticipation of the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Forerunner.

The procession began on July 5 and included large numbers of youth, who joined in singing traditional hymns as well as the Serbian spiritual anthem “Faith Eternal, Glorious Faith.” Pilgrims arrived at the monastery in time for the All-Night Vigil, led by Metropolitan Sergiy of Ternopil, alongside hierarchs from Chernivtsi, Shepetivka, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Kitsman.

Most of the faithful camped overnight to take part in the festive Divine Liturgy the next morning. The monastery, founded in the 17th century by monks fleeing religious persecution in Galicia, remains a key spiritual site for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Previously, UOJ reported that the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Chernivtsi had been taken back by roughly 5,000 faithful following its attempted seizure.

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