The Yaroslavl governor proposes to coincide with November 4 for the transfer to the Church of most icons owned by the state

The governor of the Yaroslavl region, Anatoly Lisitsyn, proposed that most of the state-owned icons be transferred to restored Orthodox churches. The practice of transferring icons, the governor believes, should be made traditional and the transfer of icons should be timed to November 4 - a new public holiday.

On National Unity Day, a ceremony will be held to hand over 22 icons owned by the region to the Yaroslavl diocese. The governor will give 4 icons to the Church from his own collection.

"I hope that this tradition will be accepted by the Ministry of Culture, as well as by my colleagues - governors of other Russian regions," A. Lisitsyn said. Minister of Culture A. Sokolov, according to the governor, "appreciated this idea positively, but noted that its implementation requires caution and a legislative mechanism."

A. Lisitsyn clarified that it was "about the transfer of icons of the 19th and 20th centuries, which are not of particular historical value, but at the same time prayed, and which are necessary for the revival of churches." In addition, icons will be handed over to those parishes that can create conditions for worthy storage of shrines.

On November 4, 26 icons were indeed transferred to the Yaroslavl diocese: 12 from the State Historical, Architectural and Literary Museum-Reserve and 10 from the Yaroslavl Art Museum. 4 handed over personally by the governor.

Sources

• The state should return most of the icons of the Russian Orthodox Church, the governor of the Yaroslavl region believes // Interfax-religion. 2005. November 1.
• Icons from the storerooms of museums were transferred to the Yaroslavl diocese // Pravoslavie.ru. 2005. November 8.