Dear brothers and sisters,
Despite fierce weather, flooded roads, viruses, colds and various ailments, yesterday saw the core of the parish gather for the celebration the feast of the Holy Great-Martyr Menas, whose icon is here before me on my travels.
We would do well to turn to him in prayer in our present trials, having received the blessing of Father Mark’s diaconal ordination on this feast (Many years to Father!), and we were originally offered use of St John’s after a week of prayers to the Wonderworker.
The canon to the saint may be found here, in English: https://russianorthodoxchurchcardiff.com/canon-st-menas
… and the akathist in Slavonic: https://azbyka.ru/molitvoslov/akafist-svjatomu-velikomucheniku-mine.html
… and in English: https://russianorthodoxchurchcardiff.com/the-akathist-to-st-menas
Holy Great-Martyr, Menas, pray to God for us and for our community!
It was good to have Hierodeacon Avraamy back with us, after the virus that kept him away for several weeks, though we missed those who were unable to be with us, due to weather and road conditions.
As we look to Nativity Fast, we should consider prayers and readings to focus us during the forty days, and I will touch upon this during this evening’s last 2024 “end-of-month visit” to the Wessex parishioners, after which I will share reflections and thoughts on our WhatsApp page.
As we fast and pray, simplifying and limiting the food we consume, we should all endeavour to devote time to spiritual reading and increase our prayers during the season, so that spiritual nourishment fortifies us and renews us.
As we approach the Fast, we need to remind ourselves that the Church calls us ALL to fast as a basic practice of the Christian life, and to do so is obedience to he Law of God, and the Calling of the Holy Spirit in the living, sacred Tradition of the Church.
We are not called to fast for a token week, then ignore the fast until the week before Christmas and then resume is. This is a disingenuous insult to Christ, Whose obedience to the Father – even to the death of the Cross – is realised in His Incarnation to redeem us and raise us up to heaven..
Our basic diet is free of meat, fish, seafood, dairy, alcohol and eggs – unless fish and wine are permitted according to the typikon, and this week’s fasting regulations are:
Thursday 28 November: Wine and oil permitted.
Friday 29 November: Food without oil.
Saturday 30 November: Fish, wine and oil permitted.
Sunday 1 December: Fish, wine and oil permitted.
On Thursday, the first day of the Fast, an Advent moleben will be chanted in the Oratory Church at 15:00 and I will be available for confessions after the service, as well as in the evening, and on Friday the akathist to the Precious and Life-Giving Cross will be chanted at the same time, with the possibility of confessing before and after prayers.
As announced in church and in previous newsletters, this year’s St Herman Calendar is dedicated to the Saints of Wales, and will cost around £10. We will be ordering soon and to avoid excess copies would ask for requests from those who wish to purchase them. This is excellent resource contains lives of saints, as well as an explanation of Orthodox fasting.
As you know, the last month has been one of funerals and memorials, and I ask you to remember the soul of Nikola, whose funeral and burial were on Friday, as well as the newly departed matushka Annemieke and Olga, and – of course – Archbishop Peter of Chicago.
Please pray for Ambrose and Piran in their search for work, with St Xenia being our trusted helper in finding employment, and for Masha and husband, Neil, as they travel to Egypt.
Asking your forgiveness for Christ’s sake.
In Christ – Hieromonk Mark