Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Christ is Risen!
This is weekly newsletter #12 of the St Ignatius Parish in Belfast.
Contents of this Newsletter:
- Message from Fr Dmitry: Church Community and Holy Communion
- Announcements: changes to Online Faith & Fellowship schedule, and more
- Homily on Next Sunday’s Gospel: Good Struggle
Message from Fr Dmitry: Church Community and Holy Communion
I want to thank all of you for the beautiful fellowship we shared last weekend at church. And to those who could not be with us for various reasons – please do not be disheartened. We remembered you in our prayers, and through that, you were with us in spirit as part of our community. Some photos from the service available here: https://saintignatiusbelfast.org/sunday-of-the-samaritan-woman-in-our-parish
During the Great Entrance, when we carry the bread and wine from the table of oblation to the holy Altar to be consecrated, we offer this bloodless sacrifice to God on behalf of the whole community. We remember not only those who are present, but also those who are absent for reasons known and accepted by God.
Nevertheless it is essential to stress the importance of being present at the services in Church, especially if you are already an Orthodox Christian and able to receive Holy Communion. The Body and Blood of Christ is like oxygen for us. We need them to truly live as followers of Christ. Salvation is unity with God. The Eucharist is the deepest and most real way we can be united with Christ, both spiritually and physically, in this life.
I hope and pray to see all of you next time we celebrate the Divine Liturgy, God willing.
News and Announcements
- Online Faith & Fellowship Meetings – Please note that there will be NO online meeting this Wednesday, 21st May. Over the next two weeks, our meetings will not take place on Wednesdays either, my apologies for the inconvenience. The upcoming meetings will be:
- Thursday, 29th May at 7:00 PM
- Monday, 2nd June at 7:00 PM
We hope to return to our regular Wednesday schedule after that. Everyone is welcome to join, and the Zoom link remains the same: https://ucl.zoom.us/j/97707660214
- Orthodox Young Professionals (OYP) Conference 2025 – I would like to draw the attention of our young Orthodox members and catechumens who have completed full-time education and are now in the working or vocational stage of life.
With the blessing of Metropolitan Silouan, the Archdiocese is organising a summer conference for you, taking place 22–25 August 2025 at Milton Abbey in Dorset, England. Last year’s pilot conference was a great success, and I am sure this year will be just as wonderful. I strongly encourage those of you who can to register. I know the organising team personally. They are committed and dedicated to making it a beautiful experience of faith and fellowship.
The chaplain for the conference is Fr Boniface Carroll, who once served at our own St Ignatius community and is a priest-in-charge of our community of St Botolph in London.
You can find all the details, including how to register, information about financial support, and a report from last year’s event at: https://oyp.org.uk - Archdiocesan Retreat 2025. Another important event later this year, which unlike OYP is open to people of all ages and walks of life, is the 3rd Annual Archdiocesan Retreat, which will take place 24–27 October 2025 at the Othona Community in Essex, England.
With the blessing of Sayedna Silouan, we began exploring the retreat idea in 2023 with a day retreat in London, followed by a multi-day trial cathedral/diocesan retreat in 2024. Now we are ready to host a full Archdiocesan retreat open to everyone.
The chaplain this year is Fr Alexander Haigh Jr, parish priest of our Orthodox community in Eastleigh.
Details for registration and more information can be found here: https://antiochian-retreats.org
I was part of the organising committee last year and saw firsthand how much joy and encouragement this retreat brought to adults, youth, and children alike. If you have any questions or are unsure whether it is for you, please do not hesitate to ask, I will be happy to help.
Next Sunday’s Gospel Reading and Homily:
The reading from the Holy Gospel according to St John (9:1-38):
At that time, as Jesus passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be made manifest in him. We must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day; night comes, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” As he said this, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed the man’s eyes with the clay, saying to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing. The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar, said, “Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?” Some said, “It is he”; others said, “No, but he is like him.” He said, “I am the man.” They said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” He answered, “The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash’; so I went and washed and received my sight.” They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know. They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. Now it was a sabbath day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. The Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put clay on my eyes and I washed, and I see.” Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” There was a division among them. So they again said to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet. The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight, and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” His parents answered, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself.” His parents said this because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess him to be Christ he was to be put out of the synagogue. Therefore his parents said, “He is of age, ask him. So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, “Give God the praise; we know that this man is a sinner.” He answered, “Whether he is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see.” They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” He answered them, “I have told you already and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you too want to become his disciples?” And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” The man answered, “Why, this is a marvel! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in the Son of man?” He answered, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you.” He said, “Lord, I believe”; and he worshiped him.
Homily: Good Struggle
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
The Gospel reading for the sixth Sunday after Pascha, the Sunday of the Blind Man, is rich with divine revelation. Like all Gospel readings, it is a boundless source of spiritual wisdom, especially when we approach it with the eyes of our mind illumined by God.
Before reading the Gospel in the Divine Liturgy, the priest prays quietly: “Illumine our hearts, O Master who loves mankind, with the pure light of Your divine knowledge, and open the eyes of our mind to the understanding of Your Gospel teachings…” This reminds us that we can only understand Scripture through God’s grace.
he readings from the Gospel according to Saint John, which we hear on most Sundays between Pascha and Pentecost, are particularly intense and theological. So each time a priest preaches on them, he can only hope to uncover a small part of the divine wisdom contained in them and share it with the faithful.
This year, one phrase in particular stood out to me. When the disciples ask the Lord why the man was born blind, He replies: “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be made manifest in him.” (John 9:3)
It is true that sin separates a person from God, and in that separation, we become vulnerable to suffering and disorder. Spiritual and even physical illness can be the result of sin, but not as punishment from God. Rather, it is a natural consequence of turning away from Him, the source of life and healing. When we repent, we are reconciled with God, and healing begins.
But we must also be careful not to assume that every difficulty or illness in life is caused by something we did wrong. Sometimes this belief comes from pride. We think that everything in our lives must be a direct result of our actions. But no, brothers and sisters, God’s will is greater than we can understand. He has a plan for each of us, and for the world. His will is revealed through our lives, especially when we remain faithful to Him.
Even a life filled with struggle can be a life filled with blessing, if we are walking with God. Through struggle, God teaches us and shows His love to us and to others. The blind man’s suffering was not wasted. It became the moment through which God revealed His mercy and glory.
His physical blindness also represents the spiritual blindness of the world after the Fall. Humanity became separated from God, and unable to see clearly. But Christ is the Light of the world. As it says earlier in John’s Gospel: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5) This Light opened the blind man’s eyes, and it opens the eyes of all who turn to Christ.
In the Divine Liturgy, after receiving Holy Communion, we sing: “We have seen the true light, we have received the heavenly Spirit, we have found the true faith.” This is not just poetry. It is the experience of those who have encountered Christ. And just as that Light was revealed through the blind man, it is still revealed in the world today. Not only through great miracles, but through the quiet and faithful lives of those who trust in God. People like the blind man, who was ready to believe even before he fully understood. He says, “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” (John 9:36). He was open to God and ready to follow Him.
Saint Paul speaks of this mystery in his second letter to the Corinthians (2 Cor 4:7-11). The quote comes from the reading assigned for the coming Sunday. He writes:
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed. Perplexed, but not driven to despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken. Struck down, but not destroyed. Always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”
Let us not assume that every illness or misfortune is the result of sin. Yes, sin is serious. It cuts us off from God and can bring suffering. But when we repent and turn back to God, we are healed. And more than that, we become vessels through which His love is shown to others.
So let us be humble and entrust ourselves to God’s will. Even if life is difficult, if we walk with the Lord, that struggle is blessed. And we will be delivered. Not always in this life, but surely in the life to come. Because Christ is Risen, and in Him, we never die. Amen!
Yours in Christ,
Fr Dmitry