April 2012 at Audley and Dresden

Services at St. Michael’s, Audley

Wed 4th 7pm Liturgy of the Pre-sanctified Gifts
Sat 7th 11am Lazarus Saturday Liturgy
Sun 8th 7pm Matins of the Bridegroom
Mon 9th 7pm Matins of the Bridegroom
Tue 10th 7pm Matins of the Bridegroom
Thu12th 11am Vesperal Liturgy of Saint Basil
Fri 13th 11am Royal Hours followed by Decoration of the Bier
Sat 14th 11am Vesperal Liturgy of Saint Basil
Sun 15th 2pm Paschal Vespers of Love

Services at the Church of the Holy Resurrection, Red Bank, Dresden
Sun 1st 10am Matins; 11am Divine Liturgy
Sat 7th 6pm Great Vespers
Sun 8th 10am Matins; 11am Divine Liturgy
Wed 11th 7pm Anointing Service
Thu 12th 7pm Matins with the Twelve Gospels
Fri 13th 11am onwards Decoration of the Bier; 2pm Vespers with
Procession with Epitaphios; 6pm Matins and Procession with Bier
Sat 14th 11.30pm Midnight Office; Paschal Light; Matins and
Divine Liturgy of Pascha
Sat 21st 6pm Great Vespers
Sun 22nd 10am Matins; 11am Divine Liturgy
Sat 28th 6pm Great Vespers
Sun 29th 10am Matins; 11am Hierarchical Divine Liturgy with Bishop Efraim

Name Days
15th Pascha – Anastasia Howorth
23rd Fr George; George Dobson; George Gandy; Alexandra Bendo; Georgina Chiurlea;
Alexandra Davidchack; Georgia Winter
26th Stephan Robinson

Reposed
16th John Yeomans (2002)
22nd Chad Makings (1999)
Patronal Feast
23rd Our Cathedral of Saint George in London


Advanced Notice of Pilgrimages
Sat 16th June Crowland
Sat 23rd June Pisani Chapel open day
Sat 28th July Stoney Middleton Liturgy
Sat 5th August Saint Bertram Liturgy at Ilam
Sat 8th September Lastingham

Pilgrimage to Crowland

Coming up very soon in June is the annual get together in Crowland which in recent years
has seen a dwindling number of attendees from our parish.
Come along for what is always a splendid day out and includes the opportunity to venerate
the relics of Saint Theodore together with a Divine Liturgy and Akathist to Saint Guthlac to
whom the ruined abbey is dedicated (together with Saint Mary the Virgin and Saint
Bartholomew).
Guthlac dwelt as a hermit in Croyland between 699 and 714 and following in his footsteps a
monastic community was established here in the 8th century.
During the third quarter of the 10th
century, Crowland came into the
possession of the nobleman
Turketul, a relative of Osketel,
Archbishop of York
Turketul, a cleric, became abbot
there and endowed the abbey with
many estates. It is thought that,
about this time, Crowland adopted
the Benedictine rule.
In 1537, the abbot of Croyland
wrote to Thomas Cromwell, sending
him a gift of fish: "ryght mekely
besechyng yow lordship favorablye
to accepte the same fyshe, and to
be gud and favorable lorde unto me
and my pore house". Despite these
representations, the abbey was
dissolved in 1539. The monastic
buildings, including the chancel,
transepts and crossing of the
church appear to have been
demolished fairly promptly but the
nave and aisles had been used as
the parish church and continued in that role.

Troparion from Bridegroom Matins
Behold, the Bridegroom comes at midnight,
and blessed is the servant whom He shall find watching;
and again, unworthy is the servant whom He shall find heedless.
Beware, therefore, O my soul, do not be weighed down with sleep,
lest thou be given up to death and lest thou be shut out of the Kingdom.
But rouse thyself crying: Holy, Holy, Holy, art Thou, O our God!
Through the Theotokos have mercy on us!

Parish Spring Fayre

Saturday 28th April in Dresden Scout Hall
12 noon to 2pm
What can I do?
We need your help in a variety of ways both before the event and on the day if you can
possibly take part...
Helping with setting up the stalls and clearing away afterwards.
Helping to stock a stall: please give all you can to give us goods to sell
Cakes, jams & preserves, chutneys & pickles, unwanted gifts, craft items, prizes for the
tombola and prize draw, plants (take cuttings, divide plants or sow seeds now!), new and
worn clothes (in good condition – no holy socks please!), toiletries, books, CDs, DVDs etc.
Refreshments: brewing, serving and washing up
Selling tickets for the Prize Draw, before and during the Fayre
Taking the entrance fee on the door
Organising table-top games
Let’s make it a day of fun and fellowship!

Bishop Efraim’s Visit

Our beloved father and Metropolitan John is sending Bishop Efraim to us on Saturday evening
April 28th. Bishop Efraim will serve the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on Sunday 29th April.
On the Sunday, after the Divine Liturgy, we shall move to the Dresden Scout Hall for a shared
buffet-style lunch.
When sayedna John came to consecrate St. Michael’s we arranged fish and chips for lunch.
This time let us show our hospitality with some excellent “special dishes”.
Please sign up for this, indicating what you will provide. Whatever you can do well is a “special
dish”. Remember that monastics do not eat meat so some dishes should be fish or vegetarian.
Whilst it is correct to address our bishop as “your grace”, and liturgically as “Master”, the more
informal form of address is “sayedna”, like “vladyka” for the Slavs. We greet him, of course, by
kissing his hand and asking for his blessing.
Why all the fuss?
The Orthodox Christian Church is not like any other kind of religious society, and we cannot
find outside of Holy Orthodoxy anything which properly parallels our God-given concept of true
Bishops.
Luke 9: 1&2 “He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over
all demons, and to cure diseases. He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the
sick.”
Matthew 10: 40 “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him
Who sent Me.”
These are the very words of our Saviour Christ and the Church has always taken them literally.
St. Ignatios of Antioch, writing in 107 A.D., “The Bishop in each church presides in the place of
God… Wherever the Bishop appears, there let the people be, just as wherever Jesus Christ is,
there is the Catholic
Church.”

At the consecration
of a Bishop, he is given a

threefold power: to rule, to
teach and to celebrate theMysteries.

The first Bishops, the
Holy Apostles, and
those consecrated by
them formed an
assembly.
The priests were the
helpers of each
individual Bishop in
instructing the faithful and in performing liturgical services.
Whenever a priest serves the Liturgy he represents the Bishop and the Bishop represents, or
“stands in the place of” Christ Himself.1 Timothy 5: 12 & 13 “We urge you, brethren to recognise those who labour among you, and
are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their
work’s sake.”
Whenever there is a clergy-meeting in London, I invariably thank Fr. Samir for his hospitality to
us… very polite and very English! Fr. Samir, my dear brother, always points out that he has not
offered “hospitality” which is for strangers, but rather he has welcomed us as “family”. We
have been “at home” together.
It was such a shock to our English system when we first saw Orthodox men and women kissing
each other in greeting, as instructed by the Holy Scriptures, rather than the somewhat cold and
formal handshake.
When bishop Efraim comes to us let us be excited and full of love, for he represents Christ and
he is “family”.
His Grace Bishop Efraim was born in Jdaidet Artouz in the Damascus countryside in 1978.
He finished his secondary school education in Jdaidet Artouz in 1996 and joined the college
of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering at Damascus University in 1997. He entered Saint
George's Patriarchal Monastery as a novice and became a monk in 2001. He then moved to
Greece where he acquired a Bachelor's degree in Theology from the Theological College in
Athens in 2006.
In 2007 he was ordained a deacon and
then a priest in the Al Hosn diocese by
the laying on of the hands of His
Eminence Bishop John of Al Hosn (now
the Metropolitan of Europe).
In 2009 he gained a Masters degree from
the faculty of Greek Literature at Athens
University and a Masters degree in the
field of Patristic studies at the College of
Theology in Athens University.
He is now preparing his doctoral thesis
in the field of Greek literature at the
College of Philosophy in Athens
University, Greece.
He is skilled in Ancient and Modern
Greek as well as English.
He was an active member of the
Orthodox youth movement in
Damascus and served in its choir, also
attending many conferences and
meetings and acquiring many skills in
ecclesiastical and pastoral matters.

Great and Holy Week: What does it all mean?

This is the week before Pascha (Easter) when we walk in the footsteps of our Saviour Christ to
His voluntary death and glorious Resurrection.
Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday introduce us to Holy Week and Christ’s journey to the Cross.
Lazarus, a friend of Jesus, had been dead for four days when Jesus went to his tomb and called
him out alive. Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, shows His authority over life and death. This
wonderful miracle brought many to faith, but caused the chief priests to decide to kill Jesus.
Palm Sunday celebrates Jesus’ triumphal, yet humble, entry into Jerusalem.
After the Liturgy we carry blessed palm-fronds and candles in procession showing our
willingness and joy to welcome Christ and to follow Him to the Cross.
Sunday, Monday and Tuesday evenings we serve the Bridegroom Matins.
The icon of Christ the Bridegroom is in the
centre of the church. Christ, the Bridegroom of
the Church, bears the marks of humility and
suffering while preparing a marriage feast for
us in God’s Kingdom. We are exhorted to be
always ready, for “the Bridegroom comes at
midnight”. We must not only hear God’s word,
but also obey it and produce in ourselves fruits
worthy of repentance. “Thy Bridal Chamber I
see adorned, O my Saviour, but I have no
wedding garment that I may enter. O Giver of
Light, enlighten the vesture of my soul, and
save me”.
In the Sacrament of the Holy Oil, on
Wednesday evening, prepared for by
confession and reconciliation to God, we are
anointed to be healed both physically and
spiritually.(As a Sacrament of the Church it is only available to those who belong to the Orthodox Church.)
Holy Thursday is when Jesus celebrated the Last Supper with His disciples and it is at this Liturgy that the Lamb is consecrated which will be used throughout the year to Communicate those too ill to come to church.
“Of Thy Mystical Supper, O Son of God, accept me today as a communicant, for I will not speak of Thy Mystery to Thine enemies, neither like Judas will I give Thee a kiss, but like the thief will I confess Thee: Remember me, O Lord, in Thy Kingdom.”
Holy Friday begins, as do all liturgical days, the evening before. So, on Thursday evening we begin the day of mourning, fasting and prayer, for on this day our Lord and Saviour went to the Cross and died for us. The Twelve Gospel readings relate the events of Jesus’ Holy Passion and Death and His last instructions to His disciples. After the Fifth Gospel, the Crucifix is adorned with a wreath of flowers and carried in procession to the centre of the church. This symbolises Christ’s journey to Golgotha to offer Himself willingly as the sacrifice for the sins of the world ...
mine and yours.
How can we go home to the television or trivial things when our Lord is crucified in our midst?
Let us keep quiet and be prayerful, inside the church, outside the church and at home. The
following morning we come to church, some to pray the Royal Hours and some to quietly and
prayerfully prepare Christ’s tomb. Those who prepare the Tomb/Bier are not chatting and
arranging flowers but rather offering a fitting worship to the dead body of the Lord Himself,
which is, so soon, to be laid therein. Everyone is welcome to perform this loving task to honour
Christ’s Body.
If we are able, we keep a total
fast, so that we may hunger and

cry out with Christ: “I thirst”.
In the afternoon service the Body
of Christ is taken down from the
Cross, wrapped in fine white linen
and placed on the altar table. A
cloth icon or shroud depicting
Christ’s Sacred Body, called the
Epitaphios, is carried in funeral
procession, placed in the
decorated bier and the
Lamentations are sung, with both
sorrow and joy. “In a tomb they
laid Thee, O Christ, the Life. The
angelic hosts were overcome with
awe, and glorified Thy
condescension.”
Straightaway, on Saturday morning, we begin to anticipate the descent into hell and the
Resurrection. We sing “Arise, O God, and judge the earth, for to Thee belong all nations”. Rose
petals and bay leaves are scattered throughout the church in joyful exaltation. At midnight we
receive the “Light of Christ”.
“Come, receive ye light from the Unwaning Light, and glorify Christ, Who is arisen from the
dead.”
In procession we sing:
“Thy Resurrection, O Christ our Saviour, the angels in heaven sing.
Enable us on earth to glorify Thee in purity of heart.”
In the afternoon we celebrate the Agape Vespers, when we embrace and forgive each other,
sharing with others Christ’s gift of new life.
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!