Dear brothers and sisters, greetings for the feast of Pentecost, following our Sunday celebration of Troitsa, for which we thank all who contributed do generously: our oltarniky, including Denys on his first Sunday in the oltar; our devoted singers; and our sisters who worked so hard to ptovide flowers and greenery, especially posies for everyone to hold during vespers for the Day of the Holy Spirit.
The celebration was a blessing not only for us as the people of God, but also for St Philip’s, where must oray for God’s grace and heavenly blessing to permeate its very walls, as stark and bare as they are.
We additionally offered a litia for Father Avraamy’s newly departed father, Valery, and given the stranglehold of the Phanariote-schismatics in Dnipro, and the impossibility of an Orthodox funeral, we will chant the funeral service in Father Luke’s garden chapel tomorrow at 18:00. Please keep the soul of Valery, together with the newly departed Leonid, Lyudmila and Irina in your prayers. Eternal Memory!
This week is, of course, a fast free week, before we begin the Apostles’ Fast, which will last from next Monday (16 June) until the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, which will be celebrated in Warminster on Saturday 12 July (New Style).
As announced, this coming Saturday will not only see our Warminster Liturgy, in the Chapel of St Lawrence, but also our Wessex barbecue at Frankleigh House, Bath Rd, Bradford on Avon BA15 2PB.
To quote Porphyrios… “Following the liturgy, at Frankleigh House Bradford on Avon (directions below) we will have a BBQ to which you are all warmly welcome.
If you can only make it for the BBQ, this will be starting at around 3pm, once we have cleared up and made our way there following the liturgy. Please let me know if you are planning to come.
From Bath come along the main Bath to Bradford on Avon Rd the A363.
After sign saying Welcome to Bradford on Avon, carry on for another ½ mile.
The road winds to the right and on the right is an entrance to a lane with signs saying 79 to 86 Bath Rd, 78 Bath Rd, and Frankleigh House.
Turn here, onto the lane.
After 10 metres there is a small car park on the left, park here. The truck is a 30 sec walk into the grounds of Frankleigh House.
From Bradford on Avon, follow the road out of Bradford for a mile or so, on the left is a sign saying concealed entrance ahead.
After 100 metres turn into this entrance, which is the lane mentioned above, with the signs etc, then into car park as above. Any trouble give me a ring.”
Sunday will see the third session of chanting/voice tuition, given at 4pm in the Catholic Church Hall in Chipping Sodbury. Please contact Masha for further details.
On Friday 20 June, our catechumens Adam and Serwa will be baptised in St Philip’s at 19:00 in the evening, and I hope the faithful who live locally will support them in this great moment in their spiritual lives.
Saturday 21 June will be marked by our clergy visit to Gloucestershire, and our monthly Cheltenham Liturgy in Prestbury United Reformed Church, beginning with the Hours at 10:00.
Our Wessex evening of prayers and Christian fellowship will be at Frankleigh House on Monday 23 June, and I will give a talk on the rôle of the senses in Orthodox worship in the minster church of St Denys, in Warminster, on Monday 30 June.
Saturday 28 June is the feast of St Vitus, Vidovdan, and the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo Polje, and group of us will make a pilgrimage to Lazarica to honour St Lazar and his martyred Orthodox Christian warriors on this solemn and holy feast. Liturgy will commence at 09:00.
Looking further ahead, our cathedral will celebrate its lower altar-feast on 17 July, which is also the first anniversary of Father Mark’s priestly ordination, and we very much hope that parishioners will be able to join us in travelling to Chiswick to share in the feast.
Looking forward to next Sunday, given that our Liturgy now finishes two hours before it did in St John’s, Father Mark and I have discussed the issue of trapéza.
As we now finish in the morning, rather than the early afternoon, we feel that we should ordinarily stick to breaking our fast with a cup of tea or coffee and simple finger food, as we did last week. Provision of food has continued to fall to too few people and has placed pressure on too few sisters. We can now be home in time for lunch, so we should keep things simple, and save more substantial hot food for feastdays.
As we continue to celebrate Pentecost, I very much encourage you to pray the Canon to the Holy Spirit, by the Venerable Theophanes:
English: https://russianorthodoxchurchcardiff.com/a-canon-to-the-holy-spirit-by-theophanes
Slavonic: https://azbyka.ru/molitvoslov/kanon-svjatomu-duhu.html
Asking your forgiveness, for Christ’s sake.
May God bless you.
Hieromonk Mark
