President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, visiting the Cathedral of Saints Cyril and Laurus of Turov in the city of Turov on Easter, presented the church with a recreated sacred relic – the altar Turov Cross, which was lost after an earthquake that destroyed the cathedral in the 13th century, reports BELTA correspondent.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, visiting the Cathedral of Saints Cyril and Laurus of Turov in the city of Turov on Easter, presented the church with a recreated sacred relic – the altar Turov Cross, which was lost after an earthquake that destroyed the cathedral in the 13th century, reports BELTA correspondent.
Alexander Lukashenko emphasized the symbolic significance of one of Belarus's sacred relics returning to the city's main Orthodox church precisely on the day of Bright Easter. "Goodness and light always return to people. Even through centuries," the President said.
He noted that this church appeared in Turov relatively recently, already in the history of the independent country, and now the Turov Cross will also take its place of honour. Work on this masterpiece took three years. "During the Christmas days, when presenting the 'For Spiritual Revival' award, including to the creators of the restored relic, I said: life is so short, so let's not waste it on empty talk and destruction," said the Belarusian leader.
Alexander Lukashenko noted that he, as President, was fortunate to be involved in the recreation of Belarusian sacred relics, including the cross of Euphrosyne of Polotsk, and now – the Turov Cross.
Over the past few years, work has been underway in Belarus to recreate the altar cross of the Turov diocese of the 12th-13th centuries. It belongs to the category of processional (altar) crosses of Byzantine and Old Russian churches. Another famous Belarusian sacred relic, the cross of Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk, also belongs to this category.
As early as 1962, during excavations of the Turov settlement, four lead icons – of the Most Holy Theotokos and three saints – were discovered in the 12th-13th century layer. According to scientists, they were located on the altar cross. The cross itself was the main sacred relic of the Turov diocese and was kept on the altar of the city's cathedral. It is known that the church was destroyed by an earthquake in the first half of the 13th century.
In recent years, a decision was made to recreate the Turov Cross. The corresponding instruction was given by the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, on June 16, 2017, during a visit to the Polesia State Radiation-Ecological Reserve. In August 2019, the concept of the Turov Cross was approved by the then Metropolitan of Minsk and Zaslavl, Pavel, and the work on its creation began in the autumn. Two identical crosses were made using medieval technologies – one for the Turov Diocese and one for the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.
Source: belta.by