The Canon of the New Indiction

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Ode 1, Irmos: O all ye people, let us chant a hymn of victory unto Him Who delivered Israel from the bitter bondage of Pharaoh and led them through the depths of the sea dry-shod, for He hath been glorified.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

Let us all chant a hymn of victory unto Christ, by Whom all things were fashioned and in Whom the incomprehensible is perfected, as the hypostatic Word begotten of God the Father, for He hath been glorified.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

Let us all chant a hymn of victory unto Christ, Who through the Father’s good pleasure appeared from the Virgin and proclaimed unto us the acceptable year of the Lord for deliverance, for He hath been glorified.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

The Bestower of the law, arriving in Nazareth, taught on the Sabbath day, laying down for the Jews the law of His ineffable coming, whereby He saveth our race, in that He is merciful.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O all ye faithful, chanting, let us ever praise the all-wondrous Maiden who shone forth Christ upon the world and hath filled all things with the joy of everlasting life, for she hath been glorified.

Ode 3, Irmos: Establish me, O Christ, upon the immovable rock of Thy commandments, and illumine me with the light of Thy countenance, for none is holier than Thou, Who lovest mankind.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Good One, establish Thou that which Thy right hand hath lovingly planted on the earth, preserving Thy Church, the fertile vineyard, O Almighty One.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Master, God of all things, lead through this year which beginneth those who adorn themselves with divinely beautiful spiritual works, and who hymn Thee with faith.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

O compassionate Christ, grant me a tranquil year and fill me with Thy divine words which Thou didst reveal when Thou didst speak to the Jews on the Sabbath.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

We ever glorify thee, for thou alone didst, in manner surpassing nature, beyond human comprehension, receive grace in thy womb and didst, without changing, give birth unto Christ God.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Sedalion of the Indiction, in Tone 8: O Thou Who bestowest fruitful seasons and rains from heaven upon those on earth, and dost now accept the supplications of Thy servants: from all want do Thou deliver Thy city, for truly Thy compassions are evident in all Thy works. Wherefore, bless Thou our goings out and our comings in, set aright among us the work of our hands, and grant us forgiveness of offenses O God: For, as Thou art mighty, Thou didst bring all things from non-existence into being.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

(repeat sedalion)

Ode 4, Irmos: I have considered Thy dispensation, O Almighty One, and with fear have I glorified Thee, O Saviour.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

The beginning of the year do Thy people offer unto Thee, O Saviour, glorifying Thee with angelic hymns.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

As Thou lovest mankind, O Christ, count those who begin the year worthy to complete it in a manner well-pleasing unto Thee.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

O only and almighty Lord, having calmed the world, grant it cycles of years.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Let us all now hymn the Theotokos as the haven of our souls and our steadfast hope.

Ode 5, Irmos: Waking at dawn out of the night, we hymn Thee, O Christ, Who art consubstantial with the Father, and the Saviour of our souls: Grant peace to the world, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Christ, Who fillest all things with goodness: do Thou grant unto Thy servants a year of varied seasons, crowned with mildness, fruitfulness and blessings.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

Yearly recompense, a turn for the better and a state of peace do Thou show unto us who know Thee to be Him Who became like unto men, O Word of God.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

Thou didst come to earth proclaiming from the Father the release of captives and the recovery of the blind, and the acceptable time, O Thou that art equally unoriginate with the Father.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

We set our hopes and our desire on thee, O pure Theotokos. Him Whom thou didst bear do thou render merciful unto us, O Virgin.

Ode 6, Irmos: Thou didst save the prophet from the sea monster, O Lover of mankind; do Thou lead me up from the abyss of transgressions, I pray.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Master, with the beginning of the year vouchsafe us to begin a life well-pleasing unto Thee.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Master, with the beginning of the year vouchsafe us to begin a life well-pleasing unto Thee.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

O compassionate Saviour, show us forth who hymn Thee to be full of spiritual days in the study of Thy law.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O all-pure and most immaculate Theotokos who gavest birth to the Lord, from misfortunes deliver us who hymn thee.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Kontakion of the Indiction, tone 2: O Christ our King Who livest in the highest, Creator and Maker of all things, visible and invisible, Who hast fashioned days and nights, seasons and years: bless Thou now the crown of the year; preserve and keep in peace Orthodox hierarchs, this city and Thy people, O greatly Merciful One.

Ode 7, Irmos: The children raised together in piety, disdaining the impious command, feared not the threat of the fire, but, standing in the midst of the flame, they chanted: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O ye Orthodox people who now begin the year, let us set a beginning to our hymns to Christ Who reigneth over the everlasting Kingdom; and let us piously chant: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O ye Orthodox people who now begin the year, let us set a beginning to our hymns to Christ Who reigneth over the everlasting Kingdom; and let us piously chant: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

O Christ, Who before wast, shalt be and art the Lord: fill Thou this year with Thy good gifts for those who hymn Thee, the Source of goodness, chanting: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

As servants petitioning their Master, we set before Thee Thy pure Mother, O Christ, that Thou mayest deliver from every evil circumstance Thy servants who chant: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Ode 8, Irmos: Christ God, Who saved the chanting children in the furnace and transformed the raging flames into dew, hymn ye, supremely exalting Him for all ages!

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Christ, the honoured Church offereth Thee the beginning of the year, as to the Author of our salvation, crying: Hymn ye and supremely exalt Christ forever!

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

The Creator Who hath wisely renewed all that He brought into existence, and hath brought forth the cycles of the seasons by His will, hymn ye and supremely exalt forever!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

Let us chant unto God, Who hath brought forth all things and Who changeth the seasons for the manifold prosperity of men: Praise and exalt Christ supremely forever!

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

With the cycles and seasons of time, we, the assemblies of men, hymn thee in Orthodox manner as the Theotokos, the pure Virgin Mother of God, the salvation of all.

Ode 9, Irmos: The bush which burnt with fire yet was not consumed showed forth an image of thy pure birth giving. And now we pray that the furnace of temptation which rageth against us be extinguished, that we may unceasingly magnify thee, O Theotokos.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

O Word of God, Power, true and hypostatic Wisdom, Who sustaineth and directeth all things wisely, do Thou now peacefully order the season which hath dawned for Thy servants.

Glory to Thee, O God, glory to Thee.

All Thy works, O Lord: the heavens, the earth, light, and the sea, the waters and all the springs, the sun, the moon, darkness, the stars, fire, men and beasts, praise Thee with the angels. Thou alone art pre-eternal, in that Thou art the Creator of the ages.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.

O reigning Godhead, One, indivisible, in three Persons: through the supplications of the pure Mother of God, show forth this year as fruitful for Thine inheritance.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Saviour of all, Maker, Creator, and Ruler of all creation: through the supplications of her who gaveth birth to Thee without seed, grant peace to Thy world, preserving Thy Church ever undisturbed.

Troparion of the Indiction: O Fashioner of all creation, Who in Thine authority hast appointed the times and seasons: bless Thou the crown of the year with Thy goodness, O Lord, preserving in peace Orthodox Christians and Thy city, and save us through the prayers of the Theotokos.

THE CHURCH NEW YEAR. 

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Dear brothers and sisters,

Greetings as we celebrate the New Indiction and begin a new Church year.

This is a great sense of newness, this year, as we celebrate not only the New Indiction, but the election of a new First-Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, and the accession of a new King to the throne of Great Britain. Both Bishop Nicholas of Manhattan, our Metropolitan-Elect and King Charles are in our prayers as we reflect on the passage of time, renewal, endings and new-beginnings.

And, this Church New Year must also be a time of reflection and renewal for each and everyone of us, as we contemplate that time is not infinite and that we must receive this year and every day as a gift from God for our spiritual renewal through repentance and growing in the spiritual life.

Like our departed Metropolitan Hilarion and the late Sovereign, we too will pass from the world when the Lord calls us, at a time of His reckoning and not of our volition.

Mindful of this, we must constantly live with the words of Blessed Seraphim of Platina echoing in our ears. “It’s later than you think!”

Each hour, each day, and each year should bring us closer to God, and see us further perfected and purified, as the image of God is restored in us, but we have to question whether this is the reality of our lives.

In the past year, has the image of Christ become clearer in us? Have we reflected Him ever-clearer, as mirrors polished through prayer, virtue and repentance?

Have we grown closer to Him and have we drawn closer to the Gates of the Kingdom? Or, have we stood still or, indeed, moved one step forward and two steps back?

Have we tackled the spiritual problems and illnesses which beset us and taken the medicine of repentance to recover – even if that medicine is bitter?

Have we sought to overcome the passions which may have held us?

These are the questions to ask as we receive this Church Year as a gift from God: a gift of time and the opportunity to journey towards His outstretched arms and paternal embrace.

But though this should be a time for sobriety, this is not a time for gloom, and we must begin the Indiction thankful not only for a new year, but also for all of the gifts and blessings of the old year: personal blessings, blessings upon our families and parishes, blessings upon the Church and nation and, in the words of the troparion we pray:

“O Fashioner of all creation, Who in Thine authority hast appointed the times and seasons: bless Thou the crown of the year with Thy goodness, O Lord, preserving in peace Orthodox Christians and Thy city, and save us through the prayers of the 

May God bless you all, and let us begin this year of grace with spiritual purpose and the clear vision of the spiritual journey before us, as the spiritual destination of every year must be the Kingdom of Heaven and the life of the age to come.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

The “Chernigov-Gethsemane” Icon of the Mother of God

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The Chernigov-Gethsemane Icon of the Mother of God is a copy of the famed Ilyin-Chernigov Icon of the Mother of God (April 16), which was to be found at the Trinity-Ilyin monastery near Chernigov on Mount Boldina, and where in the eleventh century Saint Anthony of the Kiev Caves struggled in asceticism.

Saint Demetrius of Rostov described the miracles of this icon in his book THE BEDEWED FLEECE. He wrote in conclusion: “The end of the booklet, but not of the miracles of the Most Holy Theotokos, for who can count them?” The grace-bearing power of this icon is manifest also in its copies.

The Chernigov-Gethsemane Icon of the Mother of God was painted in the mid-eighteenth century and was passed on to the Trinity Sergiev Lavra in 1852 by Alexandra Grigorievna Philippova, who piously kept it for a quarter century. (This icon was given to her by the priest John Alekseev, who received it in turn from one of the monks of the Trinity Sergiev Lavra.)

On the advice of the head of the Lavra, Archimandrite Anthony (+ May 1, 1877), the icon was placed in the newly-consecrated cave church named for Saint Michael, Leader of the Heavenly Hosts, which was consecrated on October 27, 1851 by Saint Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow (November 19), who assumed an active role in the building of the Gethsemane skete.

In this manner, the icon took in the currents of grace of all the history of the Russian Church, it acquired the blessing of Saint Anthony of the Caves, of Saint Sergius of Radonezh and of his parents Saints Cyril and Maria (September 28), and finally, of the ascetics of the nineteenth century. These spiritual connections providentially come forth through the Chernigov-Gethsemane Icon of the Mother of God.

It is remarkable that the first miracle of this icon was witnessed on the day of the Church New Year, September 1, 1869, when the twenty-eight-year-old peasant of Tula governance, Thekla Adrianova, was healed, after being completely crippled for nine years.

Living at the hostel by the caves, and then at the Lavra during the celebration of the Repose of Saint Sergius (September 25), Thekla recovered completely. Saint Innocent the Metropolitan of Moscow (October 6 and March 31), learned of the miracle from his daughter the nun Polyxeni, treasurer of the Borisov wilderness monastery. On the feast of Saint Sergius, he himself met with Thekla and asked her about the details of the healing. On September 26, 1869 Saint Innocent arrived at the Gethsemane skete and gave the blessing for a Molieben to be served before the glorified icon, while he himself prayed with tears.

By September 26 three healings had occurred already, and a whole series of miracles in November of that same year. The fame of the icon of the Mother of God spread with unusual swiftness. Exhausted by suffering and sickness, thirsting for bodily and spiritual healing, people from every class of society came with firm faith to the wonderworking icon, and the mercy of God did not forsake them.

By the beginning of the twentieth century, more than 100 miracles had been recorded. By its great esteem the icon benefited the ascetics of the Gethsemane skete: the schemamonk Philip (+ May 18, 1868), the founder of the cave monastery, and his three sons, the hieroschemamonks Ignatius (+ 1900), Porphyrius (+ 1905 ?) and Basil (+ April 1, 1915). They preserved accounts of the deep love, which the hieromonk Elder Isidore (+ February 3, 1908) displayed for the Chernigov-Gethsemane Icon.

The initial celebration of the icon was established on April 16, on the day when Ilyin-Cherigov icon was celebrated. Later, it was transferred to September 1, the day of its glorification. At the present time there are copies of the Chernigov-Gethsemane icon at Trinity-Sergiev Lavra. They are found in the temple of Saint Sergius, in the monastery trapeza, and in the portico of the Trinity cathedral, painted by Elders of the Gethsemane skete and the Zosimov wilderness monastery.

Source: https://www.oca.org/saints/lives/2012/09/01/102458-chernigov-gethsemane-icon-of-the-mother-of-god

Икона Богородицы Черниговская-Гефсиманская

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Черниговская-Гефсиманская икона Божией Матери является списком с прославленной Черниговской-Ильинской иконы Божией Матери, которая находилась в Троицком Ильинском монастыре близ Чернигова, на Болдиной горе, где в XI в. некоторое время подвизался преподобный Антоний Печерский. Описанию чудес от этой иконы, начавшихся 16 – 24 апреля 1662 года, святитель Димитрий Ростовский посвятил книгу “Руно Орошенное”, заканчивая которую он писал: “Конец книжки, но не чудес Пресвятой Богородицы, ибо кто может их исчислить”. Благодатная сила этой иконы проявилась и в ее списках.

Икона Божией Матери Черниговская-Гефсиманская была написана на полотне в XVIII в. и передана в 1852 году в Троице-Сергиеву Лавру Александрой Григорьевной Филипповой, благоговейно хранившей ее у себя четверть века. (К ней эта икона перешла как благословение хотьковского священника Иоанна Алексеева, которому, в свою очередь, она досталась от одного из монахов Троице-Сергиевой Лавры.) По совету наместника Лавры архимандрита Антония (+ 1мая 1877) икона была помещена в новоустроенном пещерном храме в честь святого Архистратига Михаила, который был освящен 27 октября 1851 года митрополитом Московским Филаретом (+ 19 ноября 1867), принимавшим деятельное участие в строительстве Гефсиманского скита. Таким образом, икона впитала благодатные токи всей истории Русской Церкви, она стяжала благословения преподобного Антония Печерского, Преподобного Сергия Радонежского, его родителей, схимонахов Кирилла и Марии (+ 1337; заупокойная литургия по ним с чтением специальной молитвы совершается 28 сентября и в четверток седмицы мытаря и фарисея), и, наконец, подвижников XIX в. Эти духовные связи промыслительно обнаружились через Черниговскую-Гефсиманскую икону Божией Матери.

Знаменательно, что первое чудо от этой иконы было засвидетельствовано в день церковного Новолетия – 1 сентября 1869 года, когда от полного расслабления, продолжавшегося в течение 9 лет, исцелилась 28-летняя крестьянка Тульской губернии Фекла Адрианова. Прожив в гостинице при пещерах, а потом в Лавре до празднования преставления Преподобного Сергия (25 сентября), Фекла совершенно выздоровела. Святитель Иннокентий, митрополит Московский (1797 – 1879; память 23 сентября и 31 марта), узнал о чуде от своей дочери, казначеи Борисовской пустыни, монахини Поликсении. На празднике Преподобного Сергия он сам встретился с Феклой и расспрашивал ее обо всех обстоятельствах исцеления. 26 сентября 1869 года святитель Иннокентий прибыл в Гефсиманский скит и благословил совершить молебное пение пред прославившейся иконой и сам молился со слезами.

До 26 сентября произошло еще три благодатных исцеления и целый ряд чудес в ноябре того же года. Слава иконы Божией Матери распространялась с необычайной быстротой. Измученные страданиями и болезнями, жаждущие телесного и духовного исцеления, люди самых разных сословий с твердой верой шли к чудотворной иконе, и милость Божия не оставляла их. К началу XX в. было засвидетельствовано более 100 чудес. Большим почитанием пользовалась икона у подвижников Гефсиманского скита: у схимонаха Филиппа (+ 18 мая 1868), основавшего пещеры, у его трех сыновей – иеросхимонахов Игнатия (+ 1900), Порфирия (+ 1905?) и Василия (+ 1 апреля 1915). Сохранились сведения о той глубокой любви, которую проявлял к Черниговской-Гефсиманской иконе старец иеромонах Исидор (+ 3 февраля 1908). Первоначально празднование иконе было установлено 16 апреля, в тот же день, что и празднование Черниговской-Ильинской иконе, а затем перенесено на день прославления – 1 сентября. Ныне в Троице-Сергиевой Лавре известны чтимые списки с Черниговской-Гефсиманской иконы в храме в честь Преподобного Сергия, в монастырской трапезной и в притворе Троицкого собора, писанные старцами Гефсиманского скита и Зосимовой пустыни.

The Election of Bishop Nicholas as First-Hierarch

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Dear brothers and sisters,

It was with great joy that we greeted the news of the election of His Grace, Bishop Nicholas of Manhattan, as First-Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, and as Metropolitan of New-York and Eastern America.

At the very beginning of the life of our Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia – then known as the Russian Church in Exile – the presidency of His Eminence, Metropolitan Anthony of Kiev and Galych initiated a glorious succession of men of deep faith, asceticism and prayer as First-Hierarchs of the Church in the diaspora.

During the rule of the ever-memorable Metropolitans Anthony, Anastasy, Philaret, Vitaly, Lavr and Hilarion, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia has been a defender of sacred Tradition and of the freedom of the Church, and – as a bastion of holiness – has produced men and women of great sanctity, some of whom we look to as the saints of tomorrow, yet to be glorified by the Church, though already glorified by God.

Even as the godless Soviets sought to control and destroy the much-suffering Church in the Soviet Union, the First-Hierarchs of the exiled Church led and defended free Church life in exile, and prayed fervently for those who suffered under atheist Bolshevism. But, such was God’s sovereign-will, that there was no short-lived communist junta and the hoped-for return from exile – no going home, and no freedom for the Church behind the Iron Curtain for nigh on seventy years.

As exiles became reconciled to life in the new lands in which they had settled, and as the Holy Synod moved from Constantinople to Sremski Karlovtsi, and thence to Vienna, Munich and New York, our Church Abroad settled, grew and flourished in the Americas, Europe and Australasia, with non-Slav faithful finding Orthodox Christianity in its temples and communities.

As the children of the successive waves of exiles shared their Orthodox Christian Faith and welcomed local peoples, our Church grew and developed, no longer an ethnic and predominantly Slavic Church of exiles, but a multi-national, multi-lingual and multi-cultural Church embracing people of all nations, yet cherishing the enduring spiritual inheritance and legacy of Holy Rus’.

This is wonderfully illustrated by the make-up of our own parish, with its mixture of peoples, languages and nationalities, and this is very much the inheritance that Vladika Nicholas understands as the identity of our beloved ROCOR.

Just over a hundred years after the beginning of organised Church life in the diaspora, we shall soon hear his name, as Metropolitan and First-Hierarch, knowing that with his integrity and Faith, he will develop, defend and preserve the legacy that will be handed over to him when he is enthroned this coming Sunday.

We may be joyfully confident that his rule as First-Hierarch of our Church will be one in which the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia will spiritually prosper in holiness and truth, and in which the rights and freedoms of our Church will be defended and preserved.

We pray for God’s blessing upon Bishop Nicholas, that his rule may be long, spiritually-fruitful and blessed.

Many years to His Grace, and glory to God!

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Today and the Coming Week

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Dear brothers and sisters,

St John’s was certainly a very joyful place today, with so many children in church, and the blessing of hearing confessions of those old enough to do so and to commune them with the Holy Mysteries. It was also young Vanya’s nameday, though we didn’t realise this until we had gone to trapeza.

We wish Vanya, as well as all of our Natalias ‘Many Years’.

Your prayers are asked for the newly arrived children from Ukraine, as some of them have just started school here in Wales, with so much that is new unfamiliar – especially language! We especially ask your prayers for Vanya, Misha and Denys, asking God to bless them – and all of our children – in their studies, through the prayers of St Nicholas and all the saints.

Our congregation also had plenty of new faces today, including the two young Ukrainian sopranos on the kliros, and the newly arrived Ukrainian faithful who are now part of our parish family.

The greatest surprise was to have unexpected visitors from London, and to be able to welcome them to the Liturgy and community.

Before I joined parishioners for trapeza, I celebrated a memorial for the newly-departed Larissa, and ask you to remember her in your prayers, together with the newly-departed Metropolitan Kallistos, Ioann, Valentina, Valentina, and Alexander.

We also pray for the soul of the newly-departed Queen Elizabeth, and for the new King, as he ascends the throne.

On Monday 19th September, the royal funeral will be broadcast on a big screen in St John’s Church, and any Orthodox parishioners who would like to join the Canton parish on this occasion are most welcome. A book of condolence may be found before the votive candle stand on the altar-step, and parishioners are welcome to add their condolences to those of the local community.

Next Sunday will be the feast of the Uncovering of the Relics of the Holy Wonder-Workers Peter and Febronia of Murom, with the variables to be found at Orthodoxaustin:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DNU3ert2yl2oVbuBWxIZZapj2WqZHtOT/view

Confessions will be heard on Friday afternoon and in the early evening before our 19:00 catechesis session in St Mary Butetown. May I please have requests for confession before 22:00 on Wednesday.

The New Church Year begins on Wednesday this week, and we will pray for God’s blessing of the New Indiction with an evening service in the Chapel of St David and St Nicholas, in Llanelli.

Thank you to all who made today such a joyful celebration of Faith, especially those who looked after our new visitors so warmly, and congratulations to all who communed of the Holy Mysteries. Поздравления с причастием!

May God bless you, and the week ahead.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Today in Cheltenham

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Dear brothers and sisters,

Deacon Mark and I were very struck by the beauty and prayerfulness of today’s service in Cheltenham, where a dozen of us gathered to chant the Hours and Typika, during which most of those present confessed and communed of the Holy Mysteries.

After the Typika, we offered a short litia in honour of the Venerable Fathers buried in the Far Caves of St Feodosiy in the Kiev-Caves Dormition Lavra, and then celebrated the feast with a conversation-filled lunch in the little meeting room, where we were able to congratulate Natalia on her nameday (which was also her birthday, and her son’s 16th birthday). Many years to them both!

It was wonderful to stand with three generations of one of our Cheltenham families as they chanted together at the kliros, and a special joy to be with our Exeter parishioners who have been able to be with us for the last two Liturgies due to rail industrial action.

I was particularly touched by the loving and warm concern shown by the matriarchs of the parish when I felt off-colour before the service, realising that as they commandingly sat me down and set about ‘dealing’ with my headache and the blood-circulation of my hands, they were praying fervently, so that I could hear the words of the hymn to the Mother of God, ‘Pod tvoya milost’ / Under thy merciful care…’

Our Cheltenham services are always striking in their warmth and and the bond that unites our small parish-family, but today so overflowed with heart-warming love that it felt that the Lord was allowing us to experience it in a very real and palpable way – as a grace and gift to lift and restore us. Glory to God!

I must also admit that today brought me a new personal-experience of the little chapel in Prestbury, where we currently worship in nonconformist bareness and simplicity.

As we entered, its characteristic smell was a joy and comfort, reflecting how the familiarity of the Victorian red-brick tabernacle with its features and furnishings imperceptibly becomes part of our lives – with today as a realisation of how special it is.

It is, of course, very different from the High Victorian and High-Church splendour of All Saints, Pittville, but in its own quiet way it has become just as special, and I now happily anticipate turning the street corner in Prestbury and seeing the polychrome brickwork of the chapel and its characteristic tower. It really feels like a pilgrimage, with all of the joys and blessing that a pilgrimage brings!

Heartfelt thanks go to our parishioners, and especially mama Galina and mama Liuba, as well as to Oksana and her family for singing at the kliros. Spasi Gospodi!

As some parishioners are away on the expected weekend planned for next month’s service, we now hope that our next Cheltenham Liturgy will be a week earlier, on Saturday, 8 October, when we will celebrate the repose of Venerable Sergius of Radonezh.

May God bless you all!

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

The Death of Her Majesty the Queen

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With the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, we pray for the soul of the departed Sovereign and for her family, that the Lord may comfort them at this time of sadness and loss.

Regardless of our views of the institution of monarchy and of our individual political persuasions, we must surely agree that her late Majesty’s example was selfless and inspirational.

Her life was one of service, dedicated to the nation and commonwealth, and her death will be mourned throughout the world.

In times when we have seen such poor political leadership, Queen Elizabeth showed how leadership should operate, with a profound sense of duty, of moral and spiritual strength, and responsibility before God, having made her coronation vows as a woman shaped by duty and faith.

For many of us, Queen Elizabeth has been a symbol of the nation for our whole lives, but we now pass into the reign of His Majesty, King Charles III, and pray for the Lord to give him strength for the duties that now fall upon his shoulders.

May our All-Merciful God remember Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II in His Kingdom.

The Vladimir Icon and Sts Adrian and Natalia

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This evening, we chanted vespers for the Meeting of the Vladimir Icon of the Most Holy Mother of God in the little chapel of St David and St Nicholas, at Father Luke’s home, in Llanelli.

The feast commemorates the meeting of the icon on its journey from Vladimir to Moscow, and the salvation of Muscovy from the Islamic army of Khan Tamurlane in 1395.

The icon left the ancient capital after the celebration of the feast of the Dormition and the chronicles relate that as the icon was received at the gates of Moscow the Mother of God appeared to the Khan in a dream, after which the superstitious and frightened ruler ordered the retreat of the Tatar armies.

The feast also coincides with the celebration of the Holy Martyrs Adrian and Natalia, and whilst we may have no Adrians, we have our Nataliya’s to congratulate – in Penarth, Llanishen, Wenvoe, Cheltenham, Newquay, Bristol and Melbourne!

We congratulate all of our sisters on their nameday, and pray that God may grant them ‘Many, Blessed Years!

Многая и благая лтѣа!

In the fourth century, the pagan Roman Emperor Maximian cruelly persecuted those who believed in Christ. He came together with his soldiers to the city of Nicomedia in Asia Minor. There it was reported that in a certain cave Christians were hiding, and that they sang and prayed the whole night to their God. Immediately Maximian sent his soldiers to seize these Christians. The soldiers did as they were commanded and the Christians were beaten and brought in iron chains to the place of judgment.

One of the chiefs of the judgment place, a young man by the name of Adrian, seeing how patiently and how willingly the Christians suffered for their faith, asked what reward they expected to receive from their God for such tortures. The holy martyrs replied: “It is written in Scripture that eye hath not seen, nor hath ear heard, nor hath it entered the heart of man those things which God hath prepared for those who love Him” (I Cor. 2:9). Hearing these words, Adrian declared that he too wished to be a Christian and was willing to die together with them for Christ. For this he was also thrown into prison.

When Adrian’ s young wife Natalia was told of her husband’s conversion to Christ and of his imprisonment, instead of being sad, she greatly rejoiced for she was secretly a Christian herself and she knew the joy which now filled her husband’s heart. She ran to the prison and, falling down at the feet of her husband, she kissed his chains and said, “Blessed are you, my Adrian; you have found such a treasure.” When Adrian was brought before the Emperor and threatened with torture if he did not worship the pagan gods, his godly-minded wife Natalia and the other martyrs encouraged him saying: “Having been found worthy to carry your own cross and to follow Christ, take care that you do not turn back and lose your eternal reward.”

Adrian had always faithfully served his earthly king, but now he was to serve the King of Heaven. He courageously endured the tortures and was returned to the prison. There Natalia, together with other pious women, would come and help the prisoners, cleaning and bandaging their wounded bodies. When the cruel Emperor found out about this, he forbade them to visit the prison. But the blessed Natalia had such love for the sufferers that she cut her hair and put on men’s clothing. In this disguise she was able to enter the prison.

Day after day the holy martyrs endured such cruel and severe tortures that they were barely alive. The Emperor became angry that even under such tortures they would not deny their God. Finally he ordered for them a violent death. Their arms and legs were cut off and their bodies were thrown into a fire to be burned so that none of the Christians might gather their precious remains. But just at that moment, there burst forth thunder and lightning and a powerful rain which put out the fire. Natalia, together with other Christians took the bodies of the holy martyrs from the fire and rejoiced to see that God had preserved them from harm. A faithful Christian man and his wife then took the holy relics to Constantinople where they could be safely kept until the death of the impious Emperor.

After a certain time, a pagan nobleman desired to marry Natalia who was still young and beautiful. She cried and begged God to save her from this union with an unbeliever. Having prayed fervently, St. Natalia fell from exhaustion and sorrow into a light sleep during which the holy martyrs appeared to her in a vision and said, “Peace be unto you. God has not forgotten your labours. We shall pray that you will come to us soon. Get on a ship and go to the place where our bodies are and the Lord will make Himself known to you.”

Following their directions, the blessed Natalia reached Constantinople and going to the church where the bodies of the holy martyrs lay, she fell down before them and prayed. She was so tired from the journey that she fell asleep and saw in a dream her husband St. Adrian, who said to her, “Come my beloved, and enjoy the reward of your labours.” Very soon after this St. Natalia died peacefully in her sleep. Although she did not shed her own blood, she is numbered among the martyrs for having co-suffered with them, serving and encouraging them in their heroic struggles for the sake of Christ.

Martyrs Adrian and Natalia, Troparion in Tone IV: In their sufferings, O Lord, Thy martyrs received imperishable crowns from Thee our God; for, possessed of Thy might, they set at nought the tormentors and crushed the feeble audacity of the demons. By their supplications save Thou our souls.

Looking back over the past year… and lots of photos!

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Dear brothers and sisters,

With the hot days of summer behind us, the darkening nights, the yellowing trees laden with berries and fruit, and the blessing of honey, fruit, herbs and flowers during the Great Feasts of August completed, we come to the end of the Church year.

Each year the development of the parish seems to gather pace and, as we reflect on parish life since last September, this year has certainly been different to past years in many respects, particularly in terms of the new faithful in Cardiff – whether converts to Holy Orthodoxy, present catechumens, those fleeing conflict in Ukraine, or those who commute from England and have made their spiritual home in Cardiff.

The parish has proved itself to be a place where everyone can feel safe and secure, and where people of all nations and cultures can share and celebrate their Faith.

In addition to our local parishioners, our weekly congregation usually includes parishioners from Somerset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, showing the seriousness of people’s spiritual life, when the need for a traditionalist and maximalist parish is worth a journey of a hundred to a hundred and fifty miles for Liturgy. Praise God for such resolute firmness of Faith!

On a few occasions, I’ve been able to be the one making the journey to serve in the west of England in addition to our Gloucestershire activities.

I have been overjoyed by the selfless offering of our singers and altar-servers during the year. Even when there have only been several singers, or even a lone chanter, the Liturgy has been chanted with prayerfulness and devotion. Having Aleksandra with us whilst she completed her studies was a great blessing, and she is sorely missed!

Apart from the period of my last covidious imprisonment, and the Sunday when we supported Father Luke’s first Liturgy in Mumbles, we have celebrated the Liturgy every remaining weekend of the year, and even on the weekend of my self-isolation the parish came together for a sung typika and trapeza, even sending home-cooked Russian food to Llanelli with Deacon Mark and matushka Alla.

The same love and care is reflected in the generosity of our parishioners and spiritual children from other communities, week by week, as we are nourished with food cooked with great love and generosity, as well as by the spiritual food God gives us.

Our Deacon continues to do so much in addition to his liturgical role, acting as parish administrator for both Cardiff and Cheltenham, and ensuring that everything runs smoothly. We are also blessed to have such a dedicated starosta and trustees, who are an incredible support to the clergy and everyone in the parish, ensuring that a warm welcome is offered to all who come through the doors of St John’s or St Mary’s.

Our oltarniky have served with great competence and care, impressing visitors with the dignity and devotion with which they fulfil their obedience.

Though we took it for granted that we would have returned to Nazareth House by now, we remain in St John’s, and though financially challenging (costing £100 every Sunday) it has been popular with many of our families, especially given the ample space for children and for us to enjoy trapeza without moving buildings.

We have come to find how to use it best for Orthodox worship, and the Anglican parish has been happy for us to leave the Lady Chapel looking very much an Orthodox chapel after each Sunday’s worship. With Ukrainians using the vestry for language lessons each week, this allows somewhere for them to visit and pray, whilst in St John’s.

The greatest challenge with St John’s is that of time, with such a short time to set up, say the entrance prayers, hear confessions and perform the proskomedia. Every Sunday is a challenge, and sometimes only Father Luke’s presence has made it possible to celebrate Liturgy without turning people away from confession.

I know I keep repeating this, but I still suspect that many people do not appreciate the difficulties and the seriousness of the situation. We need a place of worship that offers sufficient time to prepare for worship without either rushing or having to continue priestly ministrations whilst the community shares trapeza without the priest, who is not interested in the food, but does want to spend time with the faithful and welcome new faces.

We have also been greatly blessed in having the constant use of St Mary Butetown for feast-day and Lenten services, confessions and catechism (where we struggle to get Father Dean to accept any money). Equally, the Oratorians regularly welcome us to use St Alban’s for day-time confessions.

Our profound thanks go to Fathers Dean and Sebastian and the Congregation of the Oratory in Cardiff. Like number 62 Park Place (when an Oratorian household) and Newman Hall under Father Sebastian’s custody, the Oratory remains a peaceful and hospitable refuge for an ever-walking, tea-seeking and foot-weary hieromonk.

A great challenge this year has been the loss of Newman Hall, where the Little Oratory was dearly loved, and saw its last Orthodox service just before the beginning of the new Church Year. It always seemed that Orthodox services were the time when his humble little sanctuary took on a new significance and really became the foot of Jacob’s Ladder. It evidently seems that our presence also kept it clean, cared for and loved.

The loss of the facilities of Newman has been a particular challenge since my full-time employment by the parish, as I no longer have a personal base in Cardiff.

It is wonderful to be able to be employed by the parish, and to not have to juggle secular employment with ever-expanding parish needs, but commuting to and from Cardiff, from home in Llanelli has been a major challenge, with in excess of twenty-four hours a week sometimes spent on public transport. The equivalent of one day in seven on buses and trains is not sustainable in the long term – physically above all – and continued full-time ministry will come to depend on the establishment of a priestly-base in the city, and this needs to be under our own roof, not reliant on the generosity and charity of other good souls.

To return the passing year… One of our greatest joys has been the baptism of our adult converts, most of them having been prepared for baptism through our Butetown catechism sessions.

Early Advent saw Aldhelm’s baptism in the waters of the River Ewenny at Ogmore Castle, with the brave young man being plunged into the icy waters on a beautiful December afternoon.

April and Lazarus Saturday saw George’s baptism in the sea at Watch House Bay, in Barry, in rather warmer circumstances, so that he was able to commune on Palm Sunday and was sacramentally prepared for his Pascha holiday in Greece.

Saturday of the Ascension, in June, took us to St Nicholas-in-the-Vale, where Melangell was baptised in the garden of the Old Church Hall.

We returned on the eve of the Dormition to baptise Mary before vespers for the feast, which was also her first nameday. We are very grateful to Melangell for making the garden available for adult baptisms and for expressing willingness to do so in the future.

James would have been baptised last month, had family illness not prevented it, and we look forward to doing so in the next few weeks, on his return from Seattle.

We also look forward to the baptism of our student catechumen, Thomas, who will be baptised and named in honour of St Vasily the Blessed around the feast of the Protecting Veil of the Mother of God. This is no coincidence, as St Vasily – the Blessed Basil – was buried in the cathedral of the Protecting Veil, on Red Square, where his shrine is still a place of pilgrimage.

During the Church Year, pilgrimages have seen small groups of us head to Llancarfan, Llandaff, Bradford on Avon, Glastonbury, with parishioners also visiting Penrhys, and Pennant Melangell.

We have also made several local pilgrimages to the shrine of St Alban in the Cardiff Oratory, praying before his relics and icon.

I had rather hoped that we would have regular pilgrimages, but – for various reasons – this has not happened, this year.

I have also been blessed to serve in Walsingham in February, April and July, and look forward to hopefully returning in November, possibly with a parish group. ROCOR has been part of the life of the shrine since the 1930’s, and it is a great joy to continue the diocesan presence. It is a place where the Mother of God feels extremely near, and pilgrimage to this little corner of North Norfolk is special time spent with Our Lady.

House blessings have taken the clergy to Wiltshire and Somerset, as well as visiting parish homes in Cardiff and its environs, and the greatest blessing of all was the visit of the Kursk-Root Icon, which visited some parish homes in Chippenham, Cardiff and the Vale, in addition to services in Cardiff and Cheltenham, and the clergy’s journey taking the icon to Telford.

After previous visits of the Kursk-Root Icon, most parish homes have been visited, though there are several exceptions which are our priority next time the Mother of God blesses us with a visit of her wonderworking-icon.

Deacon Mark and I have also served in the cathedral during the year, concelebrating at some of the great feasts, including the altar-feast of the Nativity of the Mother of God and being part of a parish group who celebrated Theophany in the cathedral, where – for once – I had the pleasure of blessing the faithful with copious amounts of holy water. Following the ROCOR tradition, I also concelebrated the Mystery of Holy Unction (Soborovanie) and the Liturgy of Holy and Great Thursday with Bishop Irenei and the clergy of the diocese during Holy Week, with the beautiful rite of the washing of the feet.

The Cheltenham parish continues to be served from Cardiff, and after internal problems last summer (and despite the loss of the use of All Saints, Pittville), parish life has settled down.

We sometimes struggle musically, and lack the beauty of All Saints, but the little community overflows with love and is so incredibly prayerful and spiritual that every visit to the little nonconformist chapel we use in Prestbury is a wonderful blessing.

The arrival of our greatly loved ‘extended parishioners’ from Ukraine has brought great joy, and we have parishioners travelling from as far as Exeter each month. This Saturday, in fact, will see our last Cheltenham Liturgy of the Church Year, when we shall celebrate the Saints of the Far Caves, in Kiev.

With a reduction of the number of Liturgies in Llanelli, we are benefitting from having Father Luke with us, and are very happy to have some of the faithful from further west joining us every few weeks, with Nicholas and Silouana assisting with reading the Hours and thanksgiving prayers, and Isaiah taking photographs for our local Facebook pages.

On the theme of readers, it is good that we now have a small band of very capable readers from the Cardiff and Llanelli parishes, and look forward to advancing several of our men towards being tonsured by Vladika Irenei in the not-too-distant future.

I am planning some practical workshops for the autumn, and hope that we can spend time looking at the structure of the services and how they ‘fit together’ in terms of variables and the sources of texts. Several parishioners have asked for something of this sort since buying the recently published Anthologion. As a start, I will talk about the Hours and the Psalter after compline this Friday. We will also undertake formal training of readers.

Having already mentioned our Friday catechism / discussion group in St Mary Butetown, I should say that this has not only been for the benefit of catechumens, but also for other parishioners who have attended and deepened their knowledge of the Faith. Our Friday evenings in St Mary’s have also been a social time of great joy and fellowship.

We recently observed that such joyful community celebration seems to be the character of every gathering at St Mary’s, where parishioners clearly feel at home. This is why it was such a joy to celebrate Holy Week and Pascha in the great Victorian sanctuary, gathering in the choir-stalls and celebrating at the high-altar. Following this great success, our weekday Liturgies for feasts have been celebrated at St Mary’s, with a festive trapeza following each Liturgy in the parish room.

There are no doubt things that I’ve forgotten – and I AM so forgetful, these days – but I’m sure that there will be be gentle reminders pointing out things to add to our round up!

Many thanks to everyone who had been so positive, so supportive and so generous during the last year. The parish only operates so well because its brothers and sisters work together, and give so much, as do our benefactors.

Parish life and priestly life is still a challenge, given the lack of our own temple, but the Lord knows far more than us, and such is His will that this is our lot until He sees fit to grant us our heart’s desire.

In the meantime we struggle forward in Faith and prayer: for one another; for our parish and other diocesan communities; for the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia; for our bishop, Vladyka Irenei, and for all of our bishops as they approach the procedure to elect our next First-Hierarch.

We remember those who have gone before us in Faith, particularly our recently departed and beloved First-Hierarch Metropolitan Hilarion, of Blessed Memory.

And – soon we will invoke God’s blessing for the new Church year, knowing that it will bring blessings and challenges, and that with God’s help, we will have more to celebrate at this time next year, when – as now – we will say, “Glory to God for all things! Слава Богу за всё!”

With love in Christ – Hieromonk Mark