No.

106

September2015

TheOrthodoxParish
oftheHolyandLifeGivingCross,
Lancaster,U.K.

TheStavronian

amonthlymagazine&newsletterpublishedbythe'HolyCrossSynodia'

TheParishoftheHolyandLifeGivingCross,
belongstotheAntiochianOrthodoxChristianArchdioceseoftheBritishIslesandIreland.
ThePatriarchateofAntiochisthirdsenioroftheOrthodoxChurches.
ThePatriarchisHisBeatitudeJohnX.

ThediscipleswerefirstcalledChristiansinAntioch
(Acts11:26)

ECCLESIASTICALNEWYEAR
SEPTEMBER1st
ChristourGod,Yourkingdomisanever
lastingoneandYourlordshipisoverall.
You have made all things with wisdom
and have established proper times and
seasonsforourlives.Wegivethanksto
You in all circumstances and for all
things. Lord, bless the beginning of our
Church year with Your goodness. Grant
thatthisliturgicalyearbeforallofusa
yearofgrace.Makeusworthywithpurity
ofheartalwaystopraiseyou.Lord,glory
toYou!
Bless,OLord,thecrownoftheyearwith
Yourgoodness!

PIONEER,PRIESTAND
PROPHET
I have been blessed to meet two great
signposts of the faith who were both
BritishconvertsandArchimandrites,one
EnglishoneWelsh.Eachintheirownway
andintheirowncornerofGodsVineyard
onthisIslandofBritainwerePioneersof
Orthodoxy in the 20th Century when it
was extremely difficult to even find an
Orthodox Church let alone become
Orthodox.Butboththroughperseverance
foundtheirwayintotheArkofSalvation.
At this time in the middle of the 20th
century Orthodoxy was certainly
unknownandmisunderstoodbymanyas
some exotic form of foreign religion. It
was also seen as an ethnic enclave for
thosefleeingpersecutionandarefugefor

those escaping political turmoil. This

latterperspectiveholdstruthandinitself
isgoodbuttheChurchasshererooted
herself intoBritishSocietyheldstrongly
tocultural,nationalandlanguageidenti
tyandneglectedinpartherevangelistic
commissionfromChristandheruniversal
character.
Itmusthavetakengreatfaith,pati
ence, persistence and fortitude on the
part of these two British men to seek
entry into the Church yet when they
werereceivedandindeedordained,they
didnotkeepthisdiscovery ofthegreat
PearlofGreatpricetothemselves.They
were keen to open the rather dusty
TreasureChestofOrthodoxyinorderto
imparteternallifesavingtruthstothose
whowereseekingspiritualfoodandwho
thirstedtodrinkdeeplyfromthewellof
salvation.Theothersignificantfactthat
oneshouldtakeintoaccountisthatboth
ofthesemenlivedinremote,inaccessible
places which, though in accord with
Monastic tradition was strange to those
in Britain for whom most had a Parish
Church within walking distance. These
remote places became lighthouses and
powerhousesofprayerforthosenearto
the rocks for the storm tossed and
magnetsforthosewithoutaspiritualmap
orcompass.
The first of these remarkable men
was Archimandrite Barnabas of New
Mills.ThefirsttimeImethimwaswhen
hewasbasedinasmallmonasteryinthe
middle of Wales near Newtown. I was
readingforaMasterofTheologydegree
atthetimeinAberystwyth.Iwasdeter
minedtomeetthispersonofwhomIhad
heard. Indeed, I narrowly missed him
whenIwasteachinginEastDevonwhere
hehadasmallmonasteryatWillandnear
Cullompton.HehadmovedtoWalesbut
hissuccessor,whotookoverthemona
stery Fr. Benedict came to speak to my
sixth form students where he made a
greatimpression.

Idecidedwithsomefriendstogoand
seeFr.Barnabas.IhadreadhisbookA
StrangePilgrimageinwhichheoutlined
his own spiritual journey from Anglican
Priest then becoming a Roman Catholic
Priestandeventuallyfindinghishomeas
aPriestwithintheOrthodoxChurch.He
oncequippedwithtypicalBritishhumour
Ihavebeenbaptised three times,Ihave
been ordained three times I hope they
dontburymethreetimes.
Wearrived onaratherhotsummer
day.Iseem to recall we had written to
himandhehadkindlyinvitedustothe
Monasterynoneofusreallynewexactly
whattoexpect.
Therewerethreeofusinmylittlecar
myselfanAnglicanlaymanatthetime,a
protestant who had a senior position in
theBaptistChurchinWalesandanother
studentwhowasGreekOrthodox.
WeweremetbyFr.Barnabaswitha
warm, hearty greeting in Welsh and
English.Withoutdelay,hesettwoofus
an obedience to dig potatoes in his
garden plot. The other student a Greek
Orthodox young woman he sent to the
kitchentopreparefood.Thepotatoeswe
were digging proved to be the greater
part of the vegetarian soup which we
enjoyed later. I have to say here that
other visitors to the Monastery whom I
met subsequently always smiled at Fr.
Barnabas hospitality and at the
interestingfoodtheytooweregiven!
Afterwefinishedthefirsttask,heset
us another duty to paint the outside of
theMonastery.Eventuallywewerecalled
intotherefectorytoeatthesoupwhich
wehadearned.Thebreadwhichaccom
paniedourinitiallabourhadseenfresher
days yetwe were happy to sit at table
with aholy monk andlistento hiswis
dom.
Afterthemeal,Fr.Barnabastookus
onaguidedtouroftheChurchpointing
featuresoftheTempletotheuninitiated.
Histalkwasinterruptedbythevisitofthe

postman who came with a parcel. On

openingit,ithappenedtobeanantimen
sion from the newly appointed Arch
bishop.Ahanotherantimension!hesaid
inarathermatteroffactmanner,asifit
was a phone bill or bank statement!
Explainingitssignificancehethenputit
asidesaying:LetussaytheHours.
So, without very much explanation
onhispartandassumingthatwewere
conversantwiththeservice,wesetabout
intoning the Psalms. The result was a
stuttering,rathernervousvariablequality
of worship but we offered it with love.
True,wediditwithoutmuchknowledge
or experience but this gave it a rustic
authenticitywhichleftadeepimpression
on me that worship for all its rough
edgeswasaneverydayeventnotaoncea
week special occasion. This combined
with the conscious dedication of this
monk showed me that worship is not
somethingthathastobeperfect,isnot
simply a Sunday event but a regular
constantresponsetothepresenceofGod,
like breathing or eating (whatever the
menu)itislifeandnourishment!
Archimandrite Barnabas was instru
mental in many peoples pilgrimage to
Orthodoxy and people who knew him
speakofhimwithgreataffection.
Iwentonseveraloccasionstomeet
with Fr. Barnabas but it was through
correspondence that we mainly kept in
touch.Eachmonthhewouldsendteach
ings of the fathers and tracts together
with someofhisreflectionsonanews
sheet which he produced which proved
nourishingformysoul.
He never wrote a letter to me, but
wouldsendPostcardswithwarmgreet
ings and news. He produced a little
booklet on the Jesus Prayer which was
very helpful and established a yearly
PilgrimagetotheShrineofSt.Winefred
in Holywell which is continued to this
day. He possessed a discernment and a

propheticspiritaboutthefutureofOrtho
doxyinBritain.
He was able to perceive things in
otherpeople.InDecember1987whenI
hadtakenupateachingappointmentin
Lancasterhewroteapostcardtellingme
that I would be Orthodox in the place
whereInowlived.Eightyearslater,this
prophecycametrueandIwaschrismated
Orthodox and was ordained a priest to
serve in the place where he had said I
wouldbe.Hesaidsomethingelseinthis
card that Every person who becomes
Orthodox must work extremely hard in
order to establish again the Orthodox
ChurchintheseIslands.Hisexampleas
a humble ascetic and monastic drew
many people to the faith and I am
gratefultoGodthatIwasone.
Mayhismemorybeeternal!

FrJonathan

SAMBATADESUS
AMonasteryinRomania
Matthew 3:3,4; For thisis hewho was
spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:
Thevoiceofonecryinginthewilderness:
Prepare the way of the Lord; Make his
paths straight. Now John himself was
clothedincamelshair,withaleatherbelt
aroundhiswaist;andhisfoodwaslocusts
andwildhoney.
Glidingsilently,theprocessionmadeits
wayoutofthedarkenedchurch.
ThemonksRassaswereflowingand
glowingwiththeuncreatedlight.
Particlesofthedivineenergygently
gracedandtracedtheirpath,
Theselittleshieldsoflove,agiftfromthe
Almighty
FortheCavalryofCalvaryintheirearthly
fight.
Thefaithfulpilgrimskneltandbowed
theirheadsinreverence.
Turninginwardstheselayfootsoldiers
partedliketheRedSea
Allowingthesereplacementangels,Gods
reserve,topassthrough
OntheirjourneytothePromisedLand,
Theroyalvanguard,preparingtheway
forothers.

TheBrncoveanuMonasteryatSmbta
deSus,Romania,dedicatedtothe
DormitionoftheMotherofGod.Photos
takenfromwikipedia.

LitonlybyGodspresenceastangibleand
assilentastheUniverse.
Theformalcycleofpraisewasoverand
hadreturnedtotheSourceasglory.

Nowinthisquietretreating,thebeating
prayeroftheheartstoodguard,
Thepulseofprayerthatneverendsand
thatfindsitsinteriordwelling
Hiddeninthesoul.
InthisexodusthepillaroftheLightof
theWorldledtheway

Anexampleofforgivenessandofsaintly
life,withmiraclesyouhelpallpeopleand
youvanishthedemonsevilfire.
SaintWalstaninspireuswithyourholy
lifeandprayforustokeepthewordsof
ourLordforeverinourhearts.
ChristosVasilopoulos
Kozani,Greece

Andthenightshoneasbrightastheday.

TotheGloryofGod
TherightviewoftheCHURCHisthatthe
CHURCHisdistinguishedintotheMilitant
and the Triumphant; and that it is
Militant so long as it struggles against
wickednessfortheprevalenceofthegood,
the Triumphant in the heavens, where
there dwells the choir of the Righteous,
who struggled and were made perfect in
thefaithinGodandinvirtue.
St.NektariosofAegina

NAMESOFDEPARTED
LOVEDONESTOBE
REMEMBEREDTHISMONTH
Sept.29:Georgios
MEMORY ETERNAL!
Pleasesendusthenamesofyourdepar
ted loved onesand dateoftheirdepar
tureinorderforthemtoberemembered.

POEMTOSTWALSTANOF
TAVERHAM
Theshiningsilver,thegloriousgoldcould
nottouchyourhumbleandpioussoul.
Fromchildhoodthepowerofthethrone
seemedtoyoulikeasourceofpain.
Youcouldclearlyseehowalltheriches
werefullofvanity.
Kinglyauthoritywasinyourtaking,but
thepoweryourenouncedandyourrich
clothesyoutossedaway.
Ahumbleservantyoubecameandcalled
afool,butyouprovedtothepeoplewhat
itmeanttofollowChristintruegoodness.

MAJORCELEBRATIONSTHIS
MONTH
st
1Sept:TheEcclesiasticalNewYear
th
8Sept:TheNativityofourMostHoly
LadytheTheotokosandEverVirginMary
th
9Sept:TheHoly&RighteousAncestors
ofGod,JoachimandAnna
th
11Sept:St.EuphrosynustheCook
th
14Sept:TheExaltationofthePrecious
andLifeGivingCross
th
16Sept:TheGreatMartyrEuphemiathe
Allpraised

th
17Sept:MartyrSophiaandherthree
daughters,Faith(Pistis,Vera),Hope
(Elpis,Nadezhda)andLove(Agape,
Lyubov)
th
19Sept:St.TheodoreofTarsus,
ArchbishopofCanterbury
rd
23Sept:TheConceptionoftheHoly,
GloriousProphet,ForerunnerandBaptist
John
th
24Sept:St.SilouantheAthonite

th
25Sept:St.Sergius,Abbotand
WonderworkerofRadonezh
th
26Sept:TheFallingAsleepofSt.John
theEvangelistandTheologian
th
28Sept:St.LiobaofWimborne,Abbess
ofBischofsheim(782)

For the lives of Saints please visit the

CalendaroftheGreekOrthodoxArchdi
oceseofAmerica:www.calendar.goarch.org

ServicesduringSeptember*
Sat.5th

NoLiturgythisweekasChaplaincyisnotavailable.
Sat.12th
10:00am HolyLiturgyinR.C.
Sat.19th

NoLiturgythisweekasChaplaincyisnotavailable.
Sun.27th
10:00am HolyLiturgyinQ.R.followedbyParishlunch
*Helpsettingupthechurchisgreatlyappreciatedandstartsfrom9.15a.m.

Godcaresforeveryone.Despairisineffectalackoffaith
St.GeorgeKarslides

Forfurtherinformationpleasecontact:
FatherJonathanHemmings
67SibseyStr.,Fairfield,Lancaster,LA15DQ
Tel:+441524840759,+441524580600
Email:frjah@yahoo.co.uk
www.orthodoxlancaster.org.uk
www.antiochianorthodox.co.uk

TopandbottomsketchesarecreatedattheHolyMonasteryofTheAnnunciationoftheTheotokosChios,Greece,courtesyofFrTheodosiosDendrinos,Ithaca,Greece.
ThesketchofChristbyPhotisKontoglouwasscannedfromtheOrthodoxcalendaroftheApostolikiDiakoniaoftheChurchofGreece.