Faithful invited to Participate in Pilgrimages in Conjunction with the Return of the Tikhvin Icon
The Orthodox Church in America recently announced that four pilgrimages in July 2004 will be conducted in conjunction with the historic return of the wonder-working Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God to Russia.
In addition to participating in the liturgical celebrations at the Dormition Cathedral in Tikhvin, pilgrims will have the opportunity to visit numerous other religious and historic sites, depending on the itinerary selected, in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Sergiev Posad, and Riga, Latvia.
While four separate pilgrimages will depart from New York and Chicago, each with varying itineraries and dates, the groups will converge in Tikhvin on July 8 and 9, 2004, the Feast of the Tikhvin Mother of God, where they will join His Holiness, Patriarch Aleksy II of Moscow, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Herman, and the over 100,000 pilgrims anticipated to participate in the once-in-a-lifetime liturgical celebrations.
Dates and itineraries are as follow:
Pilgrimage 1: June 20-July 10, 2004—Riga, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tikhvin.
Pilgrimage 2: June 25-July 7, 2004—Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tikhvin, Helsinki.
Pilgrimage 3: June 25-July 10, 2004—Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tikhvin.
Pilgrimage 4: July 1-10, 2004—St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Tikhvin.
Prices, which vary according to itinerary and number of passengers, include round-trip air fare via Finnair or SAS from Chicago or New York, all ground transportation, hotel accommodations with private bath, comprehensive sightseeing and admissions, transportation to and from liturgical services, English-speaking guides, most meals, and much more. Space is limited, so early registration through Friends Over Seas Tours and Travel of Jericho, NY is strongly encouraged.
For reservations and further information contact FOS Tours and Travel toll-free at 800/367-3450 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).