On the day when we commemorate the memory of the First Teachers and Enlighteners of All Slavs, Saints Cyril and Methodius, the sacred shrine of Saint John, the Bigorski Monastery, was honored by a visit from the esteemed Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to the Republic of Macedonia, Mr. Henrik Markus. He was accompanied by an official delegation, which included: Monsignor Marián Hradel – Vicar of the Diocese of Žilina, Mr. Milan Laurenčík – Member of the Slovak Parliament, Mr. Jozef Davidík – Mayor of the town of Terchová, Mr. Ruod Patrnčák – Director of the Cultural Center in Terchová, Mr. Stojan Lekoski – translator and bibliographer who has lived and worked in Slovakia for a long time, as well as the Ambassador’s wife, Mrs. Žaneta Markusová.
These benevolent citizens of Slovakia visited our country on the occasion of the feast of the First Teachers and Enlighteners of All Slavs, the Holy Brothers Cyril and Methodius, whom they also celebrate with great solemnity in the largest Slovak church dedicated to Saints Cyril and Methodius, as well as in numerous other churches built in their honor throughout the land where these great Saints once walked. Just two days ago, in Skopje, and in honor of this significant feast for all Slavic peoples, the Slovak delegation organized a special exhibition, which was attended by many Macedonian citizens.
During their visit to our Monastery, the members of the delegation joyfully presented our Elder, Archimandrite Parthenius, with an official invitation for our monastic choirs to participate in the jubilee 30th annual “Days of Saints Cyril and Methodius” in the town of Terchová, scheduled to take place from July 3–5, in the Year of Our Lord 2019.May our gracious Lord, through the prayers of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius, enlighten these devoted admirers of the sacred Cyrillic-Methodian mission, granting them spiritual strength to continue worthily celebrating and carrying forward the sacred work of our First Teachers and Enlighteners.
