On the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, coinciding with the Feast of the Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles, on 13 July 2025, His Eminence Vladimir, Metropolitan of Chișinău and All Moldova, celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Nativity of the Lord in Chișinău.
Concelebrating to the Metropolitan were Archpriest Vadim Cheibaș, Metropolitan Secretary and Cathedral Eclesiarch, along with the clergy present.
The divine service was adorned by the ordination of Subdeacon Serghei Musteață — a 2022 Theology MA graduate of Academy of Orthodox Theology of Moldova — to the rank of deacon, appointed to serve at the wooden Church of the Holy Great Martyr John the New of Suceava in Chișinău.
The Orthodox Church appointed that on this Sunday the Gospel passage from Saint Matthew 8:28–34; 9:1 be read, which recounts the Healing of the Two Demon-possessed Men in the region of Gadara.
In his homily, Father Vadim offered a spiritual reflection on this Gospel passage:
“From this Gospel, we learn that the Saviour Jesus Christ came to bring healing to those under the bondage of the devil, to those who suffer, to those who are long afflicted with illness,” said Fr. Vadim. “He, the Son of God, came into the world out of love for fallen mankind, showed compassion to all, and by this example teaches us how we should behave towards others — towards those in suffering, those who are alone, those pushed to the limits of endurance, and those rejected by society. The Saviour always showed immeasurable love to every person He encountered.” Just as the people of Gadara once did, many of us today also place worldly concerns above spiritual matters.
The Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious, and All-Praised Twelve Apostles includes: Peter and Andrew his brother, James and John the sons of Zebedee, James the son of Alphaeus, Philip, Jude (Thaddeus), Bartholomew, Simon the Zealot, Thomas, Matthew, and Matthias.
Synodal Sector for Institutional Communication and Media Relations