Δημοσιεύθηκε: Παρασκευή 30 / 7 / 2021 , 16:09 από news_room

Άγιοι Τόποι : Αρχιερατική Θεία Λειτουργία στα Ερείπια Βυζαντινού Ιερού Ναού 5ου Αιώνος στη πόλη Ashdod – Adologala.gr

Αρχιερατική Θεία Λειτουργία τελέστηκε σε Ερείπια Βυζαντινού Ιερού Ναού του 5ου Αιώνα στην πόλη Ashdod του Ισραήλ. Συγκεκριμένα στις 16/ 29 Ιουλίου 2021 στα ερείπια του βυζαντινού ιερού ναού της ακολουθίας προεξήρχε ο σεβασμιώτατος Αρχιεπίσκοπος Γεράσων κ. Θεοφάνους. Στην θεία λειτουργία συμμετείχε ο Αρχιμανδρίτης π. Ιγνάτιος , Ηγούμενος του χωριού των Ποιμένων και της Μπετζάλλας ο π, Κωνσταντίνος, Ηγούμενος της Ι.Μ. Χοτζεβά, ο π. Αρτέμιος Ηγούμενος Χαϊφας ο π. Λεοντίος Ηγούμενος Ραφίδων Σαμαρείας, ο π. Μάρκελλος  Ηγούμενος Αγίου Γεωργίου Λύδδης και ο π. Αλέξανδρος Γιασέβιτς εφημέριος Ρωσοφώνων Μπέρ-Σεβάς, παρόντων του Σεβ. Αρχιεπισκόπου Ιεραπόλεως κ. Ισιδώρου, του Αρχιμανδρίτη π. Ειρήναρχου Ηγουμένου της Καπερναούμ και του Αρχιμανδρίτη π. Χρυσόστομου Ηγουμένου της Κανά.

Μετά την Θεία Λειτουργία ο Μακαριώτατος Πατριάρχης Ιεροσολύμων κ.κ.Θεόφιλος με την συμμετοχή Πατέρων τέλεσε Ιερό Τρισάγιον υπέρ αναπαύσεως των ψυχών των πρό αιώνων κεκοιμημένων Πατέρων, τα ονόματα των οποίων μνημονεύονται σε διάφορες επιγραφές του μωσαϊκου δαπέδου  ὡς π.χ.: Ἡρακλείου Ἐπισκόπου, Προκοπίου Ἐπισκόπου, Κάρου Ἐπισκόπου, Γαΐανοῦ Πρεσβυτέρου, Στεφάνου Πρεσβυτέρου, Μαξίμου Διακόνου, Σωφρονίας ἤ Εὐφροσύνης μητρός, Σεβήρας Διακονίσσης, Θεοδοσίας Διακονίσσης, Γρηγορίας Διακονίσσης.

Ἀνεσκάφη καί τάφος μέ ὀστά μικρῶν παιδίων – μᾶλλον λειψάνων, καθ’ ὅτι ἡ κεφαλή ἑνός τούτων διεπερᾶτο διά λόγχης ἀπό στόματος ἕως κρανίου, ὅπερ σημεῖον μαρτυρίου.

Κατόπιν με την παρουσία των Τοπικών Αρχών δηλ. του Αντιδημάρχου της Πόλεως Ασντοντ, της Αρχαιολογική Υπηρεσίας του Πανεπιστημίου του Τελ-Αβίβ, ο Μακαριώτατος Πατριάρχης Ιεροσολύμων κ.κ. Θεόφιλος ξεναγήθηκε από τον Διευθυντή των ανασκαφών . καθηγητή δρ.Αλέξανδρο Φαντάλκιν στον χώρο των ανασκαφών και προσεφώνησε υπογραμμίζοντας την σημασία των ανακαλυφθέντων ευρημάτων ως σύνδεσμο Παλαιάς και Καινής Διαθήκης και ώς τόπου συναντήσεως ερευνητών, προσκυνητών και περιηγητών, εμπνευομένων σε μία ζωή δημιουργίας, ειρήνης και πολιτισμού :

“MR. MAYOR,

Dr Fantalkin,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure for us to be here today at this significant site. This church, established by Bishop Procopios in the 6th century, is important evidence of the fact that Ashdod, known then as Azotos, was among the principal cities on the coast during the Byzantine period.

Ashdod has a long and noteworthy history, and we read about it in both the Old and the New Testaments. According to the Book of Joshua, it was given to the Tribe of Judah as their home (Joshua 15:46), and in the Acts of the Apostles, we read that Saint Philip found himself hereafter baptizing the officer of the court of the Ethiopian queen (Acts 8:40).

These are only two examples from its long history. But they speak to the fact that the Bible is a record of our shared sacred history. And the discovery of this Byzantine church, which is for us Christians a significant holy site, is a testimony to the witness that the Patriarchate of Jerusalem has given down the centuries to our sacred history. As the oldest religious institution in the region, the Patriarchate has embodied this sacred history and given it legitimacy.

We appreciate very much that the State of Israel and the Antiquities Authority are sensitive to the diverse civilizations that have existed in this region. This has always been a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious landscape where different peoples have flourished down the ages. And we wish to recognise the hard work and commitment of Dr Fantalkin and the Faculty of Humanities of Tel Aviv University, to which the Department of Archaeology belongs, since the discovery of this site in 2017. They have borne the major burden of the work of this excavation and brought to light this invaluable heritage.

This site is both a holy site as well as a site of supreme historical and academic value. There is an existence of the Christian presence here even before this Church. We know that one of the bishops of this region, Bishop Silouanos, attended the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea in the year 325. There are inscriptions at this church mentioning the name of Bishop Hierakleios, who participated in both the Third Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in 431 and the Fourth Ecumenical Council at Chalcedon in 451.

But we have here a site that, like Madaba and Megiddo, has the power to draw not only scholars but also tourists and pilgrims in large numbers. We have a treasure here that we must preserve and make accessible to the many hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who come to the Holy Land every year. As a site of such significant scientific and religious consequence, this site is of immense value to the City of Ashdod, and it is part of the common heritage of all humanity in the Holy Land.

At this site, many tombs have been discovered, including the graves of several women who bore the title deaconess. This confirms for us the existence of this office in the early Church. In addition to this, tombs of holy martyrs have been uncovered, which is proof that this place served as a liturgical gathering place before the 4th century. This is evidence that this place was a place of worship during the time of persecution. According to the writings of Saint John Chrysostom, the tombs of the martyrs were used as the altars where the divine Eucharist was celebrated. This discovery alone will draw the presence of pilgrims, both from the East and the West, who will want to venerate this holy site and who hold the martyrs from the age of persecution in high honour.

We thank you, MR. MAYOR, for your care and concern for the preservation of this site that is a witness to our shared sacred history in this region. And we congratulate you, Dr Fantalkin, on your remarkable achievement in bringing this site to the attention of the world community. The conservation and development of this site by the local authorities would strengthen the existing good relations between the State of Israel and the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and, by extension, with the Christian world in general and with the Orthodox world in particular, such as the nations of Greece, Cyprus, Russia, Rumania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Georgia and others.

In the preservation of this site, today’s residents of Ashdod will take pride in the further evidence of the historical and spiritual significance of their beloved city, and if we pay special attention to those who have preceded us and left an indelible stamp of their presence, we would expect future generations to preserve the evidence of our own lives and witness here. As we read in the Book of Psalms:

Then we your people, the flock of your pasture,

will give thanks to you forever;

from generation to generation, we will recount your praise.

(Ps 78 [79]: 13)

It is our fervent hope and desire that this site be preserved intact, and ultimately be made accessible both to scholars and to pilgrims, like all other holy places in our region. This would be a living testimony of the history of this ancient city, and would promote peaceful coexistence, tolerance, and mutual respect. This would be a tangible symbol of the words we read in the Bible, that we are to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness (1 Tim. 6:11).

This is the mission of the Patriarchate, and we pledge ourselves to support and assist in this work. MAY this place be a source of both knowledge and spiritual refreshment for generations to come.

Thank you”.

Εἰς τό σημαντικόν γεγονός τοῦτο ἐπεστάτησεν ὁ Ὑπεύθυνος τοῦ Ρωσοφώνου ποιμνίου τοῦ Πατριαρχείου Σεβασμιώτατος Ἀρχιεπίσκοπος Μαδάβων κ. Ἀριστόβουλος, ὁ ὁποῖος καί εἰς τό τέλος προσέφερεν εἰς  τήν Πατριαρχικήν συνοδείαν καί ὅλους τούς συμμετέχοντας τό κόλλυβον ποτήριον ψυχροῦ ὕδατος καί ὀπώρας.