February2016

No.111

TheOrthodoxParish
oftheHolyandLifeGivingCross,
Lancaster,U.K.

TheStavronian

amonthlymagazine&newsletterpublishedbythe'HolyCrossSynodia'

TheParishoftheHolyandLifeGivingCross,
belongstotheAntiochianOrthodoxChristianArchdioceseoftheBritishIslesandIreland.
ThePatriarchateofAntiochisthirdsenioroftheOrthodoxChurches.
ThePatriarchisHisBeatitudeJohnX.

ThediscipleswerefirstcalledChristiansinAntioch
(Acts11:26)

CHURCHNEWS!
As from Sunday, Feb. 7th, the Orthodox
ChurchoftheHolyandlifeGivingCross
willbeworshippingatStMartinofTours,
which is located at Braddon Close,
Westgate,Lancashire,LA44UZ.
The Holy Liturgy will be celebrated
on Sundays at 10.30 a.m. preceded by
HoursorMatins,andthefirstSaturdayof
the month followed by a Memorial
service. Confessionsand Vespers will be
held on Saturdays upon prior arrange
ment.

CHANGINGYOURMIND!
The word metanoia is translated into
English as repentance. However, this
translation, does not only indicate a
negativefeelingofguilt,sorrow,regretor
remorse; it is the positive embrace of a
change of mind (nous) which issues in
action. If we allow it, guilt will just sit
there obstinately occupying the seat of
ourmemoryuntilwedosomethingabout
it.Repentancemaystartwithconfession
but it ends in conversion; repentance is
morethananounitisaverb;itisabout
making spiritual progress through Gods
mercy, forgiveness and grace. The
spiritualstruggleisthehumancondition
untiltheendofourlife,soweshouldnot
despair.
As C.S. Lewis states: We all want
progress. But progress means getting
nearertotheplacewhereyouwanttobe.
And if you have taken a wrong turning
thentogoforwarddoesnotgetyou any
nearer. If you are on the wrong road
progress means doing an aboutturn and
walkingbacktotherightroadandinthat
casethemanwhoturnsbacksoonestisthe

most progressive man. There is nothing

progressive about being pigheaded and
refusingtoadmitamistake.AndIthinkif
youlookatthepresentstateoftheworld
it's pretty plain that humanity has been
making some big mistake. We're on the
wrongroad.Andifthatissowemustgo
back.Goingbackisthequickestwayon.
TheCaseforChristianity
InBiblicalGreek, metanoe/ and
metanoia/ indicatesnotsimply a
changeofmind,itisamovementofthe
whole self through a prompting of the
spirit,acallingtotheheart,areturning
and retuning of the reason endowed
intellectualcapacitiesandawholemoral
realignmentoftheinnerself.Theprom
pting of the conscience through the
actionoftheHolySpirit bringsabouta
transformation. In the parable of the
Prodigalson(Luke15:17),theprofligate
soncomestoarealisationofhiscondi
tionandsituation;hecomestohissenses
he returns to himself he comes to a
rightmind!Ourtrueselfismadeinthe
image of God. The invasive persuasions
oftheevilonealtersourperceptionsand
justifies our passions. In order to move
forward with his life the Prodigal goes
back,Iwillreturntomyfather
Sin twists and warps our thinking
and reasoning, giving in to temptations
leads us down the wrong road because
thesubtletyofSatanscunningmakessin
seem attractive, even when our right
mindknowsitswrong.
Sochangingourmindisagoodthing
when it means finding ourselves and
allowing ourselves to be reshaped into
the real person that God has always
intendedustobe.
ThegloryofGodismanfullyalive.
StIrenaeus.
FrJonathan

INMEMORIAM:SISTER
ANGELIKITSAOUSITHE
UNMERCENARY
PAEDIATRICIAN(19322015)
Memory Eternal! !
TodayIhaveattendedtheAnnualGreek
MemorialServiceofaveryspecialperson,
a true handmaiden of God, one I am
blessed to considermy spiritual mother.
Sister Angeliki, a living legend, lived a
longlifeofsacrifice,charityandprayer,
dedicated to the ministering of the
hungry, the thirsty, the needy, the
clothless,thepoor,thestrangers,thosein
prison, the sick, the addicted, the
refugees, families in crises, all her
brethreninChrist,nomatterwhattheir
country of origin was and what their
religion.
Genuinely ecumenical, she selflessly
served in nearly all hospitals, charitable
and missionary organizations in Greece
andabroad.SisterAggelikidiscoveredthe
Holy Cross parish of Lancaster just a
monthbeforeherrepose.Thosedaysshe
wasinagonizingpain,stiflinghermoans
withHymnsandMartyrsApolytikiaand
the Jesus Prayer. And yet, incredibly
lucid, clairvoyant and full of the Holy
Spirit,shewaseagertolearnaboutour
Celtic Saints and Orthodoxy in Great
Britain,andsheblessedallofuswithher
prayers,iconsandrelics.Theminuteher
pure soul flew to our Maker, Sister
Aggelikis face glowed! She raised her
hand with her prayer rope and blessed
everybodyatherside,leavingthisworld
withineffableJoy!
For vignettes of her blessed life, please
followthelinkhere.
KleioKechagia
Thessaloniki,Greece

STMARTIN'SCHURCHAT
MORECAMBE
DearFriendsinChrist,
Asmostofyouknow,Ihadawarm
and positive meeting with the Vicar of
Torrisholme, Fr. Chris Holden, back in
September and then in October. In our
secondmeeting,theactingArchdeaconof
BlackburnwaspresentaswellasKonsta
ntinos Arfanis representing our Parish
laityandtwolayrepresentativesformthe
ParishoftheAscensionTorrisholme.
TheAnglicanChurchwouldrequirea
small rent in exchange for our Parish
takingcareofthebuildingandmanaging
theotherusersoftheChurch. At present
thehall,kitchenandotherrooms,toilets
etc. are used by fee paying groups
includingthePlaygroup,Cubs&Scouts
andadancegroup.
Thecontractisnowsignedforatrial
periodofoneyeartoseehowthingsgo.
Thereismuchthereforetothinkandpray
aboutbutIthinktwothingsareessential:

We all agree that this is the way

forward,infaith,forourChurch.

That each of us commit to this

undertaking in word and action with
regular attendance and giving; so each
and everyone has a responsibility and
ownsthismission.
My role as priest is Liturgical and
Pastoral. I serve God and you through
prayer. I could not alone take on the
responsibility of management indeed,
thatiswhyGodhasprovidedourChurch
withmanyskillsandtalentedpeople.St
PaultheApostleisquiteclearaboutthis
sharingoftalentstobuilduptheChurch.
IrealisethatthisisabigdecisionandI
wantyoutoprayaboutthismoveandto
offeryourthoughts.

teach catechumens and appeal to all,

evenlocalpeopleinthearea!Wehavea
good number of families now and resi
dentregularswhichformthenucleusof
ourParish.
Ihavefoundinmylifethataccessibi
lity is not the main impetus for faith;
some of the most inaccessible Monaste
riesarethemostwellattended!Ifpeople
want God, they will find Him but we
have to make the effort. Wewould not
abandonthestudentswhoareOrthodox
butIwouldencouragethemtojoinus;
theChurchisonabusrouteandthebus
stops right outside the Church plus we
haveacarparkandmodernfacilities.
StNicholasPlanasneverhadhisown
Church, only a Synodia! St Joachim of
Vatopaedi and Ithaca built many Chur
ches!MayourPatronSaintsassistusby
their prayers. May the All Holy Spirit
guideusinwisdomandtruthtodiscern
thatwhichisneedfulandright.
Withmyloveandpoorprayers,
FrJonathan

ThechurchofS

tMartinofTours,Braddon
Close,Morecambe,LA44UZ.
Itwilltakeus5milesawayfromour
University, which has provided us with
ourmajorityconstituencyofparishion
ersforthepast20yearsandestablished
ourGlobalParishofStavronians.Thishas
indeedbeenagreatandconstantblessing
for all of us. However, we must think
whetherwewishtoremainintheChap
laincyCentreasanOrthodoxCommunity
orgrowtobecomeaParish,whetherwe
wanttoremainwiththevicissitudesand
limitations of shared space and time or
haveourownParish,wherewecanserve
the Liturgy on Sundays, do Vespers on
Saturdays,celebratetheHolyLiturgyon
major Feasts of the Church, have food
together,teachSundaySchool,socialise,

StMartinofTours(397)feastday
Nov.11th.ForthebiographyoftheSaint
pleaseclickhere.

ORTHODOXSUMMER
CONFERENCE

Alexandra,KatyaandPaulaccompaniedFr
Jonathanaswitnesses;theysignedthe
agreementforthetenureofStMartin's
WestgateattheChurchoftheAscension
TorrisholmeonbehalfofourCommunity.

NAMESOFDEPARTED
LOVEDONESTOBE
REMEMBEREDTHISMONTH
Feb.2:DimitriCoutya
Feb.21:Pisistratos
MEMORYETERNAL!
Pleasesendusthenamesofyourdepar
ted loved ones and dateof their depar
tureinorderforthemtoberemembered.

PARISHNEWS
Fr Jonathan's book Fountains in the
desert was published in Greek by the
publishing company En Plo ( ),
based in Thessalonica, Greece. Please
have a look at thelink here for further
information.

TheOrthodoxFellowshipofStJohnThe
Baptist,isorganisingasummerconfere
nce with the title Being Orthodox in a
MultiReligiousSociety.Itwillbeheldon
13 July 2016, Friday 4 pm to Sunday
teatime,atTheHayes,Swanwick.
AtthisconferencetheFellowshipwill
consider the witness of the Orthodox
Church in todays diverse society. Arch
bishopGregoriosofThyateiraandGreat
Britain will preside and preach at the
SundayDivineLiturgy.
Speakerstoinclude:BishopAngaelos,
General Bishop Coptic Church UK, HE
Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia, Fr
Philip Hall, Dr Mangala Frost, Dr Elena
Narinskaya,andMsMarinaRobb.
For further information please contact
BedeGerrard,email:bjg1@waitrose.com,
Tel:01865512126;Address:20Diamond
Court,153BanburyRd,OX27AA

MAJORCELEBRATIONSTHIS
MONTH
st
1Feb:StBridgetofKildare(
525)
nd
2Feb:TheMeetingofOurLordand
SaviourJesusChristintheTemple
rd
3Feb:StNicholas,Archbishop&
EnlightenerofJapan
th
10Feb:HieromartyrCharalampus
th
18Feb:StColman(
675)
th
24Feb:First&SecondFindingofthe
VenerableHeadofJohntheBaptist
th
26Feb:StPhotine,theSamaritan
woman

For the lives of Saints please visit the

CalendaroftheGreekOrthodoxArchdi
oceseofAmerica:www.calendar.goarch.org

ServicesduringFebruary*
Sun.7th
10:30am HolyLiturgyatStMartin's
Sun.14th 10:30am HolyLiturgyatStMartin's
Sun.21st
10:30am HolyLiturgyatStMartin's
Sun.28th

NoLiturgythisweek!
*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
ThefollowingblogsofOldStavroniansareavailableinRomanian,ConstiintaOrtodoxa,in
English,Orthodoxcityhermit,andinGreek,Orthodoxyrainbow.

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