Parish News at the Beginning of Great Lent

Dear brothers and sisters,

Greetings on this first day of the Great Fast, and thanks to all who contributed to our weekend celebrations in Cheltenham and Cardiff.

Having left maslenitsa behind, and having enjoyed sharing both food and one another’s company, we now enter into the Lenten season with a first week that is dominated by the words of the Great Canon of St Andrew of Crete.

Having commemorated the fall and the casting out of Adam and Eve from Paradise in our Sunday services, the Great Canon explores man’s sinful rebellion through the ensuing generations of humanity, not only using the myriad examples as a warning, but also positively focussing on the mystery of repentance and return to God, Who desires the repentance, return and restoration of all of His children.

Through the many Biblical examples we hear, we are called to action in these days of the Great Fast, to wake up and take our spiritual life and our salvation seriously, through obedience, repentance, prayer and fasting.

As we hear in the kontakion,

“My soul, my soul, arise! Why are you sleeping? The end is drawing near, and you will be confounded, awake then and be watchful that Christ our God may spare you, Who is everywhere, and fills all things.”

Now is the time for us to arise from slumber, and even as the natural world around us comes to life and brings forth flowers and blossoms, the season of the Fast needs to be a time of growth and blossoming for us, with the knowledge that blossom becomes fruit.

At 16:00 this afternoon, and on the next three afternoons there will be a quiet celebration of compline, with the reading of the Great Canon at the shrine of St Alban, in the Oratory Church of St. Alban-on-the-Moors, Swinton Street, Splott, Cardiff, CF24 2NT.

I know that some of our Wessex parishioners are coming together to chant the canon, and encourage all who are unable to get to a service to add it to their evening prayers, at home.

The Great Canon will likewise be chanted in the Chapel of Saints David and St Nicholas in Llanelli at the later time of 19:00 each evening. Compline with the Akathist Hymn will be chanted there at the same time on Friday.

This Saturday – 23rd March – will see our March pilgrimage to Margam Abbey, where the Divine Liturgy for the Saturday of St Theodore will be celebrated at 10:30.

At the moment, only a tiny handful of parishioners have indicated their intention to attend, so please let me know if you are coming, especially as we may need to coordinate some student-lifts or pick-ups from Port Talbot railway station. As usual, there will be a bring-and-share lunch after Liturgy, with food obviously being Lenten. May I remind you that it is not our local tradition to eat shellfish, whatever happens in other jurisdictions.

As announced at Liturgy and in previous newsletters, the mystery of Holy Unction will be celebrated in our London Cathedral at 14:00 on Saturday 20th April, when His Grace, Bishop Irenei will concelebrate with the clergy of our diocese to consecrate the Holy Oil of Anointing for the strengthening and healing of those who receive partake.

All Orthodox Christians of seven years and over may be anointed at the service, providing they are in good standing within the Church and have prepared by fasting and confession.

Looking forward to next Sunday, when we will celebrate the Triumph of Orthodoxy and the restoration of the holy icons, weather permitting, we will preform a cross-procession / krestny khod at the end of the moleben and we would like parishioners to bring icons to celebrate this triumphal first Sunday of the Fast. Trapeza offerings have the weekend relaxation permitting wine and oil, but no shell-fish / sea-food, please.

I will hear confessions, as usual on Thursday, though they will be in St Alban’s Church before our 16:00 service. If you require a later confession, please let me know, and I will arrange early evening confessions in Nazareth House.

I hope and pray that this week is one of simplicity, withdrawal and peace for you: a week of as few words as possible, with electronic devices switched off unless needed for specific reasons, social-media on the back-burner, a minimal diet that does not try to imitate the food of the rest of the year with ‘pretend’ substitutes, and silence that allows you to hear the birds singing as spring gathers pace and the rumbles of a stomach that is fasting!

Everyone should know, but a reminder that our diet is vegan, and we should forego olive oil and wine (alcohol) on weekdays. Saturday as the Sabbath, and Sunday as the Lord’s Day, have the consolation of wine and oil. Finding food with no oils or vegetable fats can be difficult, but avoiding fried food, sauces and dressings, and obviously oily food is pretty straightforward!

Twenty of our parishioners are reading a kathisma of the Psalter each day, ensuring that it is completed in the parish each day, and I would encourage everyone to read the Psalms of David as much as possible during Lent.

May God bless you and the arena of your Lenten struggle. Καλό Στάδιο!

Asking your forgiveness, for Christ’s sake.

Hieromonk Mark

Parish News: 11 March 2024

Dear brothers and sisters,

Greetings on the feast of Blessed Nikolai of Pskov, the Holy Fool who dared challenge Tsar Ivan the Terrible, and was glorified by the Lord in his poverty and seeming foolishness.

Our weekend was marked by a double-celebration with the Divine Liturgy ‘going out’ of Cardiff and across the Severn, with the first of our mission Liturgies celebrated in Warminster on Saturday, in addition to our Canton-St John’s Liturgy on Sunday.

After having celebrated evening services in Wiltshire on the final Monday of the last two months, and having had singing lessons / practices for our local ladies and gents, celebrating the Liturgy was a source of grace and strength for our faithful living such a distance from our parish base in Cardiff. Thanks to the parishioners and to Ian at the chapel of St Lawrence. 

A litia for the departed was celebrated in each location after our Liturgies, withthe blessing of kutia in Warminster – though it was also enjoyed in Cardiff. It would be good if more parishioners could contribute to cooking memorial-wheat for our services for the departed, and we will post some recipes in Facebook and WhatsApp.

We continue to remember the newly departed Archbishop Anatoly and Nikolai, and prayed for the servant of God Vladimir to mark the anniversary of his repose. Memory Eternal!

Thanks to all who contributed to our Cardiff Liturgy, especially with the expansion of English language chanting, and over the next few weeks I hope that we will also see a variation of readers, as other young men in the parish fulfil this obedience and become accustomed to chanting the readings and thanksgiving prayers.

With the able assistance of our students and young people, the last few Thursdays have seen the chanting of compline, with the akathist after confessions in Nazareth House, and we will pray the night-office of the Church again this week at 19:00, but with a supplicatory canon to the Mother of God and the Canon to St David, the Apostle of Wales, whose feast falls that day. I will hear confessions in the afternoon, and would appreciate requests – as usual – by 18:00 on Wednesday, please.

This Saturday will see the clergy to head to Cheltenham to celebrate the Divine Liturgy for the Saturday of maslenitsa, on which we commemorate all of the venerable fathers and mothers who have shone forth in the monastic life. As usual, we will worship in Prestbury United Reformed Church, Deep St, Cheltenham GL52 3AN.

Confessions will be heard from around 09:30, with the Hours and Liturgy commencing at 10:30. The usual bring-and-share lunch will follow the service, and we know that our matriarchs will be in maximalist mode for blini-week.

The following Saturday, 23rd March, our parish-pilgrimage will be to Margam Abbey, where we look forward to celebrating the Hours and Liturgy at 10:30. Please let me know if you can join us, especially as we may need to arrange lifts from Port Talbot Parkway Station for those without cars.

The mystery of Holy Unction / Soborovanie will be served in our London cathedral on Saturday 20th April at 14:00, and I hope that parishioners who are able to attend may share cars and work together so that as many as possible are able to be part of this diocesan celebration. Only Orthodox Christians above the age of seven years may be blessed to receive this Holy Mystery, and must prepare with confession.

Next Sunday will, of course, be Forgiveness Sunday, and the Liturgy will immediately be followed by the Vespers of Forgiveness, with the rite of mutual forgiveness at the end. This reminds us of the absolute necessity of seeking reconciliation with anyone who we have hurt or offended, even if unintended, asking their forgiveness and forgiving the offence that anyone has caused us. To begin Great Lent otherwise, will see the Great Fast lead us no-where: a spiritual cul-de-sac! We cannot journey towards the Lord’s Pascha with unresolved conflict, or with resentment in our hearts and minds. We must at least have made the first step towards peace and reconciliation, even if we have a considerable way to go on the journey.

After Liturgy and Vespers, we shall then share our last non-Lenten trapeza, though meat has already been given up, yesterday.

The variables for Liturgy may be found here… https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dYl232tSSDKVucg0lIuM7aVn6-yMxsGx/view …and vespers here… https://drive.google.com/file/d/11cC6fYhWuIorAMLk0b5ukOBhxCSPfoAI/view

On Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in the the first week of the Great Fast, Compline and the Great Canon of St Andrew of Crete will be anticipated by an early celebration at 16:00 at the shrine of the Holy Protomartyr Alban in the Oratory Church, in Swinton Street. As always, many thanks to Father Sebastian and the brethren. We are most grateful.

A bilingual text of the Great Canon may be found at orthodoxaustin,https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XyLJRSiDLIdBetWWNsWoKzu3qKzV2kh1/view though parishioners might chant it in the general order for chanting the canons, in small compline as an economia, or in evening prayers.

Please make sure you have the things you need for the Great Fast, and be ready for the Lenten journey to Pascha.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Parish News – 4 March 2023


Dear brothers and sisters,

Having celebrated the Sunday of the Prodigal Son, the Great Fast grows ever closer, with this week being the last week in which Orthodox Christians consume meat until Pascha, to be followed by cheese-fair (bliny) week during which we consume eggs, fish and dairy foods. We should remember that the customary fast still adheres to this Wednesday and Friday, but with the allowance of fish, wine and oil.

Meat-Fair, next Sunday, will be the last day for the consumption of meat. Please use the next few weeks to use up the foods that need consuming. The first few days of the Great Fast are NOT the time to do this, and we often have serial offenders who do this every year, with no excuse.

We should use also the next two weeks to prepare for the fast, particularly in terms of spiritual resources, ensuring we have the prayer materials needed for our Lenten observance and selecting reading materials as our spiritual food during Lent.

As announced on WhatsApp, we hope to repeat last year’s daily reading of the Psalter, with parishioners and friends of the parish reading a designated kathisma ofthe Psalter, so that it is read in its entirety each day. We would ideally like twenty readers so that each could read one kathisma of the Psalter, in rotation. Anyone wishing to participate should email oltarnik Alexander at psaltergroup@fastmail.com

Members of our communities have been recommending, and indeed buying, various books for l

Lenten reading, with some suggestions below…

  • The Paradise of the Fathers, volumes I and II
  • The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Apophthegmata Patrum: The Alphabetic Collection: 59 (Cistercian Studies Series, 59)
  • On Ascetical Life: St. Isaac of Ninevah
  • A Spiritual Psalter or Reflections on God, by St Ephraim the Syrian, sadly not readily available in the small hardback tome, though available in a paperback traditional English edition: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spiritual-Psalter-Reflections-God/dp/B0C2S22VK1
  • On the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ by St. Philaret of Chernigov
  • Orthodox Lent, Holy Week and Easter: Liturgical Texts with Commentary, by Hugh Wybrew
  • Season of Repentance: Lenten Homilies of Saint John of Kronstadt

Today and tomorrow have been set aside for house blessings, and I hope to fulfil more requests before the beginning of the Fast. We all have busy lives, but a house blessing takes little time, and brings God’s grace inti the Christian home, setting it apart and hallowing it through prayer and the sprinkling of holy water blessed at Theophany.

I was very happy to have a group of our young people come to Nazareth House to chant compline/ and the akathist to Mother of God last Thursday evening, following confessions in the afternoon and early evening, and we will – God willing – do the same again, this week, with compline at 19:00. Everyone, not just the parish youth,  is welcome and encouraged to support our weekday service.

May I ask for confession requests by 18:00 on Wednesday, reminding you that anyone working in the day is welcome to request a confession after work, and that we will accommodate school runs and family demands? Please ask!

Next weekend will see our first Wessex Liturgy in the Chapel of St Lawrence in Warminster, and our local parishioners have been busy making preparations for this inaugural public service. We have already celebrated services on Porphyrios’s narrow-boat, and look forward to the Liturgy in the historic chapel, generously made available to us by the feoffees who hold it in trust for the people of Warminster. We will set up the chapel at 9:00, with confessions commencing around 10:00 after the proskomedia. The Hours and Liturgy will be celebrated at 10:30, and we will celebrate a memorial for the departed after the Liturgy, followed by a bring-and-share lunch.

We greatly look forward to welcoming anyone who wishes to join us, being there for all Orthodox Christians, and will endeavour to make them feel at home.

The primary language of this new local mission will be English, though we shall endeavour to be inclusive, reflecting those who come to pray and worship with us.

The following Saturday will see our monthly Cheltenham Liturgy, which will now be on the thirds Saturday of the month. We continue to worship in Prestbury United Reformed Church. As in Warminster set up will be at 9:00, confessions around 10:00 after the and Hours and Liturgy at 10:30, followed by our customary bring-and-share lunch.

Our next parish-pilgrimage will be on Saturday 23rd March, when we look forward to celebrating the Divine Liturgy at Margam Abbey, whose Norman foundation succeeds an earlier Celtic Christian presence attested to by the Celtic crosses and memorial stones preserved a short distance from the abbey church in the museum that houses them. The Hours and Liturgy will be celebrated at 10:30 (despite previous discussions of 10:00) in order to allow time for anyone travelling by train to be collected from the station, if needed.

As announced last week, the mystery of Holy Unction / Soborovanie will be served in the cathedral on Saturday 20thApril at 14:00, and we hope that it will be possible for as many parishioners as possible to attend and partake of this Holy Mystery. We will not serve Unction in our parishes, as we preserve the old Tradition that during the Great Fast, there are conciliar services, in which the bishop and priests of the diocese serve together.

As we settle into St John’s and begin to feel at home, I think it necessary for us to remind ourselves that Sunday is set apart for the Lord, and we need to impress this and the ‘otherness’ of church and the Liturgy upon our children and young people.

The Liturgy is admittedly long for our youngest parishioners. We recognise that, and that they cannot be held to attention for its entire duration. However, we only become accustomed to the Liturgy, and grow into it by being part of it, as participants in the Holy Mysteries.  

We have been very happy to hear the children singing on the kliros during the litanies, and whilst recognising that we cannot expect our youngest parishioners to be at the front during the whole Liturgy, we need to ensure that they come forward to hear the readings, and I have previously asked parents to ensure that their children are with them from the Cherubic Hymn onwards, to be part of worship as the Holy Gifts are offered and consecrated.

However, since our return to St John’s and the enticement of the children’s corner, this has been rather forgotten. So, mums and dad’s, please have your children with you during the most sacred parts of the Liturgy, to pray and worship with you as a family, and to be part of our parish community.

Over the last few days, we have been asked to pray for Masha’s friend, Susan, and for Porphyrios’s daughter’s teacher Miss Kirk, who is in intensive care after being attacked. We also pray for the health of Father Anthony of the Mettingham parish, our parishioners Norman-John and Ludmila, and for Brigid in West Wales; for  Despina as she faces the issues of relocation in Cyprus; for the repose of the newly departed servants of God, Archbishop Anatoly and Nikolai, and for Barnabas whose forty day memorial has just passed. As requested on WhatsApp, we ask your prayers for Lazarus and Liz as they seek to relocate closer to us – encouraging the canon and prayers to St Minas.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Parish News – week of the pharisee and the tax-collector

Wiltshire

Monday 14/27 February

Dear brothers and sisters,

What a busy few days across our parish, with today starting with a visit to several of the historic parish churches of the Wylye Valley in Wiltshire with Wessex parishioners, starting at the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Boyton, with its wonderful collection of remnants of medieval, renaissance and Georgian stained glass, carved stone monuments and liturgical features, and embroideries – including a monumental icon of the Hospitality of Abraham.

It was also lovely to revisit the little church of St Cosmas and Damian, in Sherrington, where some of our Wiltshire ladies prayed in the ample porch each Sunday during the misery of lockdown – prior to their migrating to Cardiff from their erstwhile parish, where the Holy Mysteries were completely abandoned. This quintessentially English village church is a remnant of the rural Anglicanism of past centuries, with its texts painted in cartouches on the walls, and its candlelit pulpit and lectern: the only real adornment being an embroidered Madonna and Child by the same embroiderer whose work we had seen in Boyton Church – Margaret Cuddiford.

The evening saw our ‘last-Monday-gathering’ on Porphyrios’s narrow-boat on the Kennet and Avon canal, where we chanted compline with the canons to the Mother of God and the Guardian Angel before supper and discussions about our forthcoming first Wessex Liturgy at 10:30 on Saturday 9th March. This followed a very positive meeting with one of the feoffees (trustees) of the chapel of St Lawrence in Warminster, with a tour of the church, including climbing the tower to see the 17th century curfew-bell and the 18th century clock.

Many thanks to our parishioners from Wiltshire for their characteristically warm hospitality and generosity. We are extremely grateful to Porphyrios for welcoming us aboard his home, where we look forward to praying before the icon-corner in the lamp and candlelight light, warmed by the wood-burning stove, and tonight, with wonderful homemade soup (not soap, as per the typo in the emailed  newsletter!)

We also enter this week after a weekend blessed not only by the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, but also by Saturday’s pilgrimage, whose locality in no way undermined the significance of the occasion as we gathered in the Oratory Church to honour the holy protomartyr of Britain, St Alban, with a moleben offered before his shrine.

Our young brothers took turns chanting the canon and parts of the service of supplication, and we look forward to those soon to be baptised taking their turns in the prayers of our pilgrimages in the coming months. We are most grateful to the Oratorians for their usual warm hospitality, including the use of the hall, where we shared lunch and chatted, with Aldhelm tinkling the ivories in the background. I was the very happy to be able to perform a house-blessing after the pilgrimage.

We now look forward to our next pilgrimage on the first Saturday of the Great Fast, 23 March, the Saturday of St Theodore. The Divine Liturgy will be celebrated in Margam Abbey, with devotions to the Mother of God and the commemoration of St Theodore, with the blessing of kolyva. Details will follow.

I will not be arranging an April Pilgrimage, as I hope it’s place may be taken by our April Liturgy in Warminster on Saturday 13th and the Holy Unction (soborovanie) service in our London cathedral the following Saturday, 20thApril, at 14:00, for which I hope as many people as possible will make the journey and join in this important celebration.

This Sunday’s Liturgy, in St John’s, was blessed by a well supported kliros, and some of our boys were very enthusiastic in chanting the Litany responses with a generous fortissimo! Again, we had a congregation of around fifty, an encouraging number of students and young people, and a large number of confessions and communicants. I spent the hour before proskomedia hearing confessions, as well as hearing our children’s confessions during the preparation of the Holy Gifts. I had intended to not hear confessions at this point, but given the number of children to be confessed, it was necessary.

I would appreciate confession requests for this Thursday’s Nazareth House confessions by 18:00 on Wednesday, please, and also notice from those requiring Sunday confessions would be appreciated. It may be necessary to hear the Sunday confessions of regular communicants every other week, given the sheer volume of confessions, which are a challenge to fit in.

At the end of Thursday’s confessions, Compline will be chanted at 19:00, with the hope that this will be repeated each week.

Please start thinking about the Great Fast, particularly in terms of reading materials, and ensure that you have spiritual food for the Lenten season.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Zacchaeus Sunday – Parish News

Greetings to you all as we continue to celebrate the after-feast of the Meeting of the Lord. S prazdnikom!

As the feast fell on a Thursday, when St John’s is unavailable, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated in Llanelli, and I was pleased to be able to assist Father Luke by singing on the kliros. Unfortunately, the afternoon journey to Cardiff was severely disrupted by problems with the railway line beyond Llanelli, so a number of confessions had to be cancelled, though I still managed to see a few people in the early evening before joining our young people to congratulate Kalina on her birthday. Many years!

Despite half-term, road closures, car-troubles and parishioners’ commitments, we were heartened by attendance at today’s Liturgy, and despite the dent in numbers we were still comfortably in excess of forty souls once the children were factored in.

It was good to welcome brothers from Swansea, and it was lovely to be joined by our former parishioner, Monika, visiting from Leicester with her children. In my homily on the saving curiosity of Zacchaeus, I referenced her film “Finding Faith”, and anyone who would like the link and sign-in details should contact me or Father Deacon Mark.

Many thanks to the kliros, operating on holiday numbers, and to Sasha for lone-serving, and thanks to those who brought flowers and refreshments for our celebration.

We greeted Yuriy at the end of our service, congratulating him on his sixth birthday and chanting many years before singing happy birthday after grace at trapeza, during which it was lovely to see so much conversation, warmth and fellowship.

I must admit to being rather slow today after a lovely but busy week and lots of travelling, last Sunday having seen me head over the Severn, taking the opportunity to not only have a prayerful quiet-day in Glastonbury, but also to perform several house-blessings and be in Chippenham for a singing practice with our Wessex gentleman before returning to Llanelli for the feast. Masha has also spent time working on vocal technique and chants with our local ladies, and we are very grateful for this preparation for the liturgical life of our Wessex mission.

We are extremely encouraged by the support being given by the feoffees  of the Chapel of St Laurence in Warminster, who, as trustees, govern the extra-parochial chapel, which is classed as a non-royal peculiar, having being acquired by the townspeople of Warminster at the reformation.

We greatly look forward to our Liturgies on the second Saturday of each month, commencing on 9th March with the Hours and Liturgy at 10:30, confessions being heard from 10:00. The generosity of spirit that we have already received is heartening, with help offered in notifying the local Orthodox that we will be serving in the town.

We already hold a Wessex prayer meeting on the last Monday of the month, currently meeting ‘afloat’ on Porphyrios’s narrowboat – now christened the “porphyrion”. Last month’s initial gathering saw the blessing of the boat and a mission-supper, following several house-blessings, a pilgrimage to Whitchurch Canonicorum and the blessing of the River Wylye. We shall be certainly trying to maximise what we fit into clergy visits.

Our Cheltenham Liturgies will be moving to the third Saturday of the month, and our pilgrimages will be on the fourth Saturday.

Returning to the principality – this week’s confessions in Nazareth House will follow the Thursday pattern, for which emails would be appreciated by 18:00 on Wednesday. I shall also be able to hear some shorter confessions before and after our moleben in St Alban’s., and have already mentioned this to a few people.

We look forward to our protomartyrs pilgrimage on Saturday, and pilgrims should assemble at the Oratory Church of St Alban-on-the-Moors for our 10:30 moleben to St Alban and the reading of his life, before the veneration of a portion of his sacred relics and icon. We are very grateful to Father Sebastian and his confrères for their characteristically warm hospitality, which includes use of the church-hall for a bring and share lunch, for which all food-offerings will be very gratefully accepted.

Weather permitting, we shall head to Caerleon after lunch, visiting the Roman remains of the ‘city of legions’, where the protomartyrs of Wales, Julius and Aaron were garrisoned as soldiers of the Imperial army, before their arrest and martyrdom.

Thanks to those who have already offered lifts to our non-drivers. This is much appreciated.

Echoing Deacon Mark’s announcement, would parishioner please refrain from parking vehicles on the grass on the right hand far end of the drive, next to the church vestries, this has been planted with bulbs and seeded with wild flowers and is not a parking area.

Our prayers are with our very dear sister, Despina, as she makes her way across Europe to Greece, before the last leg to life in Cyprus, and we wish her a safe journey, happy that Catalin is accompanying her on a long and challenging drive for the land bound portion across the continent. She occupies a very special place in our hearts and is greatly loved in our ROCOR and Romanian Orthodox communities in which she has been a faithful presence and a help to many. Kalo taxidhi! May God bless your journey and protect your every mile!

Whilst we were celebrating in Cardiff, our diocese was blessed by the ordination of Deacon Alban Illingworth to the sacred priesthood in our London Cathedral, and he will serve in our Durham mission. We are greatly blessed that despite mischievous schismatic ‘defrocked’ whispering about the state of our God-preserved diocese, we go from strength to strength, with the establishment of new missions, the ordination of new clergy, and growth within our parishes. We congratulate Father Alban, as well as newly-ordained Deacon Antonio in Geneva, and the priest Georgi who has transferred from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church to serve in Zurich. Many, blessed years to you all, dear fathers. Axios! Axios! Axios!

Please remember the clergy in your prayers.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Weekly News – Monday 12 February

Dear brothers and sisters,

Greetings to you all after another busy weekend, with Liturgies in Cheltenham and Cardiff, the joy of sharing the celebration of Faith with so many people, and the unexpected arrival of geographically distant parishioners and friends not seen for a while. It’s also wonderful that recent visitors are now clearly new parishioners, looking very much at home in the parish. Praise God!

Before the busy week ahead, I’m happy to be soaking up the sun on a bus wending its way over the Mendips for a quiet, prayerful day in Glastonbury – having just glimpsed the Tor rising above the Somerset Levels – before a house blessing and time with our Wessex parishioners, the feast of the Meeting of the Lord in Llanelli, then confessions and pastoral time in Cardiff before another weekend.

Our third week back in St John’s was blessed with another well-attended Liturgy (which constantly sustains forty adults or more, plus the children every week), with parishioners from across Wessex joining us for our celebration, which ended with the admission of young Maximilian to the catechumenate after around six months of dedicated participation. We are very grateful to his dad for driving him the considerable distance from Monmouth week by week.

Thanks to our choir, who sang a linguistically well balanced Liturgy, with English alongside the Slavonic, reflecting the developing dynamic of the parish, and thanks to all who contributed to trapeza by bringing food and so warmly and generously looking after everyone.

Parishioners are clearly enjoying being in St John’s, though we are still getting used to things, with a rather minimal set up. However, without the rather stark interior of Nazareth House, even the minimal Orthodox setting feels much warmer. We are very pleased that the large shrines for our iconostasis now flank the high altar when not in situ for Liturgy, and look forward to the frontals that Georgina will be making for them (as well as new analoy covers) after her current Walsingham visit.

The return of weekly trapeza has made a great difference to parish life, and it was heartening to hear my nephew say what a welcome change it was to be surrounded by so many kind and generous people. This is a prime way in which we can touch those who come through our doors with God’s love working in us and through us.

As clarified on messenger, our LOCAL pilgrimage will involve venerating St Alban’s relics in SPLOTT, not Hertfordshire. I have emailed Fr Sebastian to check the availability of the hall for a bring-and-share lunch, as this could make things more straightforward. ‎

We shall celebrate the moleben to St Alban in the Oratory Church in Swinton St, at 10:30, venerating a portion of the protomartyr’s sacred relics, and then have lunch if the hall is free. We shall then head to Caerleon, weather permitting, to visit the amphitheatre and remains of the garrison where Saints Julius and Aaron would have lived. Notification of your intention to attend would be appreciated, so that we can endeavour to match places in cars with non-drivers for the journey to Caerleon. Lifts will be greatly appreciated for those of you with spare places in your vehicle.

The lack of availability of St John’s on Thursdays means our Liturgy for the Meeting of the Lord will be in the little chapel of St David and St Nicholas, at 11 New Rd, Dafen, Llanelli SA14 8LS.

The Hours and Liturgy will commence at 10:00. I will travel to Cardiff after the Liturgy so that confessions may be heard in Nazareth House in the late afternoon and early evening. Please contact me by 18:00 on Wednesday, though I have already received some verbal requests at Liturgy. Notification of those intending to confess on Sunday is also greatly appreciated, so that we know how many people are expected within our limited time-frame.

Thanks to all who have started contributing to St John’s food bank, and also to all who contributed to the extra collection for leprosy Sunday, a few weeks ago, raising over two hundred pounds, before any offerings from further west.

I look forward to the celebration of the after-feast of the Meeting of the Lord and feast of St Agatha, on Sunday, for which the variables may be found at “orthodoxaustin”:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NkfW1Mouqk4Z6UidAr1yfia6Ij2BC3WZ/view

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

 

 

Parish News: 5th February

Dear brothers and sisters, 

Our week begins after a characteristically busy Sunday, with a well attended Liturgy in St John’s, and a larger than usual number of the faithful confessing and communing, though the number of communicants has been significantly growing over the last five or six weeks. I am grateful for the patience of our parishioners as confessions were concluded during the preparation of the chalice with the Holy Gifts.

It was wonderful to look out of the altar at the beginning of the Liturgy and see all of our children assembled to join in the chanting of the litanies before the Gospel. It was equally wonderful to see so many flowers in vases and adorning the icons.

I was very happy to see so many people enjoying trapeza after Sunday Liturgy, and particularly to see so many young people enjoying one another’s company, with students from Cardiff, Bristol and Bath joining other young people from our South Wales parishes.

A thank you to all who have been helping in the setting up and rearrangement of the church before and after Liturgy, and remind all that everyone’s aid makes these movements considerably quicker and easier.

With the growing numbers of worshippers, with more people staying for this bring-and-share lunch, I hope that we may ensure that there is enough food to at least offer some simple refreshment to all who join us.

Again I would like to thank parishioners for their greetings and gifts for the feast of St Mark of Ephesus. Having a Torte Napoleon to share with our students was very much appreciated and made for a festive student gathering.

Intercessions 

As we begin our week, the news is dominated by the cancer-diagnosis of His Majesty the King, and we offer our prayers for his health and treatment during his illness, and for a swift and speedy recovery, turning to the Mother of God ‘the Queen of All’ before whose icon we pray for all of those – including our own loved ones and parishioners – affected by cancer.

Among those who are sick, we also pray for Ludmilla, Brigid, and for Steven, Martin, Nigel and Jacky among the friends a family members of our parishioners.

Having chanted a post-Liturgy memorial service for the newly-departed Alexey, we continue to pray for the repose of his soul, also remembering His Grace Archbishop Anatoly, Yulia and Barnabas. Memory Eternal!

Confessions in Nazareth House this week

Given the limited time we have before Liturgy, if you know that a confession lasting more than five minutes is required, we will need to hear such longer confessions and commune the faithful after Liturgy. We must be firm in starting the Hours and proskomedia at 11:00, but will find appropriate ways to meet the pastoral and sacramental needs of the faithful.

Of course, we very much hope that those living in Cardiff will avail themselves of the opportunity to make their confession on Thursdays, when they may do so in the afternoon or evening, according to circumstance and need. Please email by 18:00 on Wednesday to arrange a Thursday confession, and by Saturday midday to notify us of Sunday confessions, purely to give me an idea of number.

Thursday confessions continue to be heard in Nazareth House!

Cheltenham Liturgy: 10 February

Next Saturday will be our February Liturgy in Cheltenham, when we will celebrate the feast of Saints Ephrem and Isaac the Syrian in Prestbury United Reformed Church, Deep St, Cheltenham GL52 3AN.

Due to the pastoral needs for confession, as well as setting up the church for Liturgy, from Saturday, the Hours and Liturgy will now start at 10:30: half an hour later than previously. However, confession will still begin around 9:20, and will end at 10:20. We will have our customary bring-and-share lunch after the Liturgy, and look forward to spending time with both parishioners and visitors.

Llanelli Liturgy for the Meeting of the Lord: 15 February

As the coming feast of the Meeting of the Lord on 2/15 February falls on a Thursday, we are unable to celebrate in St John’s, due to weekly use in the morning. Therefore, the Divine Liturgy of the feast will be celebrated in the chapel at Father Luke’s home in Llanelli, with the Hours and Liturgy commencing at 10:00.

Pilgrimage to the Oratory Church and Caerleon: 24 February

Looking forward to the coming months, we will recommence our pilgrimages on the fourth Sunday of each month, and will begin with a local pilgrimage in honour of the protomartyr of Britain, St Alban, and the protomartyrs of Wales, Julius and Aaron. Through the good offices of Father Sebastian and the Cardiff Oratory, we will head to the Oratory Church in Swinton Street, Splott, where we will offer a moleben before the sacred relics of St Alban at 10:30, before heading to Caerleon for lunch and a visit to the amphitheatre and Roman excavations, offering prayers to Saints Julius and Aaron,

Pilgrimage to Margam Abbey: 23 March

Our pilgrimage on Saturday 23 March, in honour of the Mother of God, will be to Margam Abbey, near Port Talbot, where we hope to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, share a picnic lunch and explore the church and neighbouring abbey ruins, returning to church for devotions to the Theotokos, whose shrine in the abbey was destroyed during the reformation. We will announce details after further discussions with the Margam clergy.

Food Bank

Thank you to all who contributed to St John’s Food Bank on Sunday. I hope that those parishioners who are able might make Sunday contributions of non-perishable foodstuffs part of their weekend routine.

Telephones

May we remind everyone to turn off their telephones before the beginning of Sunday worship, and stress that it is not appropriate for children to be using smart phones for entertainment/occupation during the Liturgy. We have some very young children who need occupying during the service, and recognise this, but ask that they play in the children’s corner, so that there is are no distractions for the clergy and faithful at the front of church during our worship.

I look forward to being with our Cheltenham parishioners on Saturday, and Cardiff parishioner on Sunday, which is the feast of the Translation of the Relics of the Hieromartyr Ignatius the God-Bearer.

The variable of the day may be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HDV9a4R90dQWfAgp8DXETQnOP39NLCq0/view

May God bless you.

Hieromonk Mark

Weekly News – Theophany 2024

Dear brothers and sisters,

Greetings for the after-feast of the Baptism of the Lord, at the end of a busy day in Wiltshire, and after a final festal service in Nazareth House yesterday.

On such a joyful day, with the Great Blessing of the Water at the end of Liturgy as everyone gathered round, it was lovely to welcome parishioners from far and wide, with the return of our students, new faces, and some familiar faces for the first time in while. Buoyed and blessed by the feast of the Lord’s Baptism, we look forward to our return to St John’s, Canton after fourteen months in Nazareth House.

Thanks to all who contributed to such a joyful Liturgy, especially those who contributed to our trapeza, which will now be a weekly feature of life of St John’s, so – if you are able – please bring something to our bring-and-share lunch.

Due to the impracticalities of weekday celebrations in Nazareth House, around ten of us headed to Chiswick for Theophany, and greatly enjoyed celebrating the feast with our cathedral clergy and brothers and sisters. We are extremely grateful to Fathers Vitaly and Yaroslav and the sisterhood for their warmth and hospitality, and hope that we, as a parish, may connect more with our cathedral over the coming year.

Today day started with a house blessing near Warminster before the sanctification of  the River Wylye at Hanging Langford, a Theophany lunch with Wessex parishioners, a visit to the chapel of St Laurence in Warminster (an intended winter Liturgy setting for our developing Wessex mission), and the evening blessing of Porphyrios’s narrow boat. It was lovely to gather on the house-boat with the icon corner as its obvious focus and centre, praying together in our first Wessex prayer meeting, and then enjoying a warm and congenial bring-and-share supper.

I am very grateful to our Wessex parishioners for their warmth, hospitality and generosity, which will be one of the great blessings of our mission in Wessex, and which – I am sure – will impress itself upon those who meet us and the Church in Wiltshire and beyond.

We look forward to heading to Dorset tomorrow, for another house blessing and a pilgrimage to the shrine of St Wite in Whitchurch Canonicorm.

His Grace, Bishop Irenei, has blessed our mission to serve our very loyal Wessex parishioners who are part of the Cardiff parish, and we look forward to serving them in their own corner of the world, blessed by so many saints and such a noble and profound Christian legacy. We hope to announce our first Liturgy over the next few weeks.

Wednesday will see the relocation of most of our effects to St John’s in Canton, where we will resume parish life, with the Liturgy at 11:00, after confessions from around 10:15 to 10:55, at which time the proskomedia MUST take place.After being without facilities, we look forward to having a kitchen and food area, so please make the most of this, and bring something for our lunch after Liturgy. Thanks to all who did so today. I will hear confessions in Nazareth House on Friday this week, and would appreciate requests by 20:00 on Thursday.I will also be happy to receive requests for house blessings, which have begun in Wessex, before we also do so in Wales.

May God bless you.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

New Year Greetings and News

Dear brothers and sisters, greetings for the new civil year, and best wishes for 2024.

The last day of the past year saw a well-attended Liturgy with  around forty adults and the return of some old faces from the Baltic and closer to home, as well as faces new to our community.

Having expected a dip between western Christmas and Orthodox Nativity, we have been surprised this year, with more or less sustained numbers, though singers and servers have been sparse at times. Welcome all who have made acquaintance with us over the last few weeks and welcome back all who have been away.

I was able to confess a dozen regular parishioners, and – as made clear during announcements – they are blessed to commune on the coming feast of the Nativity, allowing confession time for others who are preparing for Christmas Communion.

This week, confessions will be on Friday afternoon and before and after the Nativity Vigil (from 18:00 and for as long as needed after. On Christmas morning – next Sunday – I would like to be free to confess those coming for the day from destinations beyond the Severn and our Welsh parishioners who live some distance from Cardiff.

As 2024 begins, we pass from one year to the next with the world overshadowed by conflict, with the violence and misery of war, though the past year did see some of our temporary parishioners return to Ukraine, and some of our current parishioners have gone home for Nativity. May God bless and protect them! We are also ever-mindful of the suffering of those in the Holy Land, and have been glad to do what little we have been able to for the relief of those in Gaza and the West Bank.

Not only did 2023 see the continued armed conflict in Ukraine, and the terrible conflict in Gaza, but also the unending state-sponsored crusade against the Church in Ukraine, with continued violent seizures of temples, physical assault on believers, the arrest and imprisonment of clergy, desecration of shrines, temples in flames, the exile of seminarians and pilgrims from the Kiev Caves Lavra and other places – a neo-Soviet attempt to destroy the Church of Christ. Yet – praise God – whilst the seized temples of Patriarch Bartholomew’s schismatics are deserted, nearly empty or even locked for lack of worshippers, the confessing Church is purified, strengthened and radiant in the poverty and humility of the Saviour. A stable was good enough for His birth, and private houses, converted commercial premises, pavements, gardens and open-air places are good enough for the Church. This is the quiet and comforting meaning of the words of the Nativity Vigil: God is with us!

I hope that the same quiet confidence in the Lord’s abiding presence will continue to guide our own community in its wanderings, and constantly changing conditions.

2023 was a year back in Nazareth House, where we have worshipped week by week, have welcomed new faces, admitted new catechumens, performed baptisms, and (yesterday) churched and communed our latest neophyte – Steven – whom we congratulate on the joyful occasion of his baptism in St Nicholas in the Vale. We congratulate him on his first Liturgy as a baptised Orthodox Christian, especially upon his reception of the Holy Mysteries. Many, blessed years!

2023 was a year of pilgrimages, with one each month from February to November, and I hope that we will ensure that every month of 2024 will be blessed in the same way. Thanks to Tracy who has acted as our pilgrimage coordinator and to all who have contributed to these spiritual journeys that have been a source of grace and blessing. Our pilgrimages to Capel y ffin and Llanthony, Pennant Melangell and Glastonbury particularly stand out, and I hope that all three destinations may become a pilgrimage fixture on our calendar.

The year also saw parishioners go farther afield on pilgrimage, with half a dozen intrepid souls facing the summer heat of the Holy Land to join the diocesan pilgrimage, packed with visits to so many sacred destinations. They were greatly blessed to be able to celebrate the Holy Mysteries in places at the heart of the Faith, not only with our own bishop, but also with the hierarchs of the Mother Church of Jerusalem (and yes, Jerusalem is the Mother Church, not somewhere in Turkey, where Pentecost definitely did not happen!).

As a result of conversations and an invitation in the Holy Land, later in the year, a group of our young brothers travelled to Mount Athos with Reader Wilfred from our cathedral, and they very much hope that an annual visit to the Bulgarian monastery of Zographou will become a feature of parish life.

Some changes in Nazareth House have posed obstacles to Sunday worship, limiting our ability to hear confessions, set up the church, and generally celebrate as we need to. Weekday Liturgies on feasts have become difficult, hence celebrating in Llanelli. The lack of trapeza has rather dented the life of the parish (though boosting business at our local café), especially as the massive geographical spread of our parishioners across South Wales and Wessex means that Sunday is the only opportunity for parishioners to spend time together, and some have a long journey home. This has a been a growing topic of conversation, with some parishioners expressing the need for much-missed facilities, and a less limiting physical environment.

As a result of such conversations and discussions, Deacon Mark and I recently visited Llys Esgob, in Llandaff, and spoke with Mother Frances’s appointed successor at St John’s, Canton, the Reverend Andrew Sully. He and Andrew, the starosta, are enthusiastic about the parish returning to Canton and building a community partnership, so that our parish is very much an active part of the life of St John’s. So, we have agreed that we will return to St John’s Canton for Liturgy from Sunday 28th January. Until then, our worship continues in Nazareth House. Parishioners who visited St John’s were delighted to discover that the central heating system now works splendidly. I hope that having the leafy, tree-lined grounds will allow fuller parish life, with adult baptisms in the church garden, processions on each feast, picnics and outside eating in the summer – with occasions to get together with the Anglican faithful.

We extend our thanks to the Sisters of Nazareth for their hospitality over the last thirteen months, and Fathers Alexander and David for their kindness during the previous chaplaincy, when they did everything to help, with great respect for our presence. May God bless them.

We will have the task of moving our furnishings and possessions from Nazareth House to St John’s towards the end of the month, and will appreciate assistance at that time.

Next weekend, our Nativity Vigil will be at 19:00 on Saturday evening and on Sunday 7th January, our Nativity Liturgy will start as close to 11:00 as possible.

Looking beyond Nativity, Theophany falls on Thursday 19th January (New Style) and given that neither Nazareth House chapel or St John’s are available on Thursday mornings, a group of us will attend the celebration of the feast in the cathedral in Chiswick. However, we will perform the Great Blessing of the Waters in Nazareth House after Liturgy on Sunday 22nd January.

The following day, I look forward to an outdoor water blessing in Wiltshire when our Wessex parishioners have the first meeting of their local prayer-group. With the blessing of Bishop Irenei, we will be supporting our loyal Wessex ‘pilgrim-parishioners’ with a local mission, and we are presently looking for a place to celebrate the Divine Liturgy. Please keep this intention in your prayers.

So… we begin 2024 with some major changes and developments in the life of our scattered community, but ones which I look forward to, seeing great opportunities for positive development after a period in which parish life has become limited and faced obstacles. We pray for God’s blessing and guidance.

May God bless you and your families in the year ahead.

In Christ – Hieromonk Mark

Weekly News: 27 November

Dear brothers and sisters,

The last few days have certainly been busy, and I hope that those who made the journey to Birmingham to venerate the Trojeručica-Hilandarska icon of the Mother of God, in Bournville, have been spiritually buoyed and encouraged in their Faith by a wonderful day, with a moleben with the akathist before the icon.

Our pilgrimages over the last ten months have been such an encouragement and a common celebration of our Faith, bringing the different generations of our parish together for prayer, Liturgy and social time. I hope and pray that we will continue in these pilgrim endeavours, especially now that we have an active and energetic core of young people.

With so many things going on in December, our plan is to make a local pilgrimage to the Cardiff Oratory, to venerate their portion of the relics of St Alban, enshrined in the church of St Alban-on-the-Moors. Given that this is so local, I wonder whether we may do this on a mutually convenient weekday evening, and we will discuss this over the next week or so. Father Sebastian and his confreres are very keen that we avail ourselves of the shrine and church for devotions to the Protomartyr of Britain, having welcomed us so many times in the past. I will approach him with our request.

For anyone who may be interested in travelling further afield, the ‘Midlands Orthodox Christians’ group (of which we met some members in Bournville), will be making a December pilgrimage to Stoke St Milborough, near Ludlow on Saturday 16th December, and I hope to join them, possibly blessing St Milburgha’s Well. They would be delighted for any of our parishioners to join them!

We were happy to welcome past visitors to yesterday’s Liturgy, as well as welcoming new people to our worship, and welcoming home those who have been away. We are grateful for those who helped set up the church in such a short time, not to mention packing things away.

In future, we will start chanting the Hours before the Roman Catholic service, as the more than doubling of the length of the mass makes it impossible for us to set up, chant the Hours and celebrate the Liturgy at such a late hour, though the confession situation continues to work extremely well.

Tomorrow sees the beginning of the Nativity Fast. There are some variations in local practice, but the common foundation is that food is vegan, without wine and oil, though with wine/oil or fish as permitted additions on certain days.

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays are essentially ‘dry days’, Tuesdays and Thursdays ‘oil days’, and Saturdays and Sundays ‘fish days’. Whenever fish is permitted, so is wine and oil.

I know that many of our parishioners follow the St Herman Calendar, which has some differences in the fasting rules, but we will be publishing rules according to ROCOR’s printed calendars, and encourage you to follow these guidelines.

Tuesday 28 (15) November:  Holy Martyrs and Confessors Gurias (299), Samonas (306), and Abibus (322), of Edessa. St. Paisiy (Velichkovsky) of Moldavia and Mt. Athos (1794). Fast (Bread, Vegetables, Fruits etc)

Wednesday 29 (16) November: Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew (60). Wine and oil allowed.

Thursday 30 (17) November: Venerable Nikon, abbot of Radonezh, disciple of St. Sergius (1426). Wine and oil allowed.

Friday 1 December (18 November): Martyr Platon of Ancyra (266). Fast (Bread, Vegetables, Fruits etc)

Saturday 2 December (19 November): St. Philaret, metropolitan of Moscow (1867). Fish, wine and oil allowed.

Sunday 3 December (20 November): Forefeast of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple. Venerable Gregory Decapolites (816). Fish, wine and oil allowed.

I hope that we will all add to our prayer-life and spiritual reading, to focus Advent and our preparation for the Lord’s Nativity.

This Friday would usually be our discussion group, but as there is a rail-strike, I will not be venturing beyond Llanelli – already having such a regrettable time using the railways for travel to and from Cardiff. So, I will hear confessions on Thursday, and will offer an Advent moleben at 16:00, as well as hearing confessions before celebrating vespers at 16:00, on Saturday.

As announced by Marina on Sunday, the next deadline for blanket collection for children in Ukraine is 8th December, and new fleece blankets will be greatly appreciated.

Another charitable focus over the next few weeks will be the concert in St John’s, Canton, on Wednesday 13thDecember at 19:30, with all proceeds supporting suffering Christians in the Holy Land, where the Bethany Christian School is suffering immense hardship

Please endeavour to support these worthy causes!

Next Sunday will be the forefeast of the Entrance of the Mother of God into the Temple, and the following morning the Liturgy for the feast will be in Llanelli, with the Hours starting at 10:00. Given the challenges we face before every morning service in Cardiff, our weekday Liturgies will be in Llanelli for the foreseeable future.

May I ask for confession requests for Thursday to get to me by noon on Wednesday, please?

May God bless you all. Good strength for the fast!

In Christ – Fr Mark