On the fourth Sunday after Easter Bishop Vsevolod Lytkin gave a priestly pectoral cross to Andrey Lipnitsky. Bishop said:
Brothers and sisters, today I give priestly pectoral cross to father Andrey, a pastor in our parish. At the ordination we couldn’t give it to him. The reason was simple: at that time we ran short of the crosses. When we were a part of the Estonian church, we received priestly crosses from there. But now we needed time to find, where those crosses could be produced in Russia.
According to our church tradition all priests are to wear identical crosses. It is one of the signs of the unity of the church, alongside with the same liturgy in different parishes of SELC.
This cross is a mark of our ministry and a sign that a cross of faithful preaching of God’s Word, Law and Gospel, and administer salvific sacraments.
Please, pray for father Andrey and for other pastors, give heed to them and help them.”
