NEW YORK. On the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, the Sacrament of Holy Unction was celebrated at the Cathedral of St. John the Forerunner in Brooklyn

On March 1, the first Sunday of Great Lent — the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy — the Sacrament of Holy Unction was performed at the Cathedral of St. John the Forerunner in Brooklyn, New York.

The service was led by the Vicar of the Slavic Orthodox Vicariate of America, Archimandrite Alexander Belya, recently elected Bishop of Nicopolis. He was assisted by the clergy of the Vicariate: the cathedral’s rector, Protopresbyter of the Ecumenical Throne Alexander Belya, Archpriests Borys Babeshko, Vasyl Deiak, the rector of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker Church in Red Bank, New Jersey, Archpriest Rostislav Zadorozhnyy, Petr Prakaptsou, as well as Protodeacon George Hero.

The Sacrament of Holy Unction is traditionally celebrated in the cathedral during Great Lent, reminding the faithful of the words of the Apostle James: “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord” (James 5:14).

In his sermon, Protopresbyter Alexander noted: “The Sacrament of Unction is not only healing from bodily illnesses, but above all the healing of the soul. During Great Lent, the Lord is especially close to those who approach Him with repentance. May the grace of the Holy Spirit, bestowed through this holy anointing, strengthen us in completing the course of the Great Forty Days, help us purify our hearts from passions, and enable us to worthily meet the Bright Resurrection of Christ.”