Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Blessed Afterfeast of the Feast of the Holy Cross!
This is weekly newsletter #21 of the St Ignatius Parish in Belfast
Contents of this Newsletter:
- Message from Fr Dmitry: Report about services last weekend
- News and Announcements
- Homily on the upcoming Sunday’s Gospel: Take up your cross and follow me!
Message from Fr Dmitry: Report about services last weekend
It was a great blessing to see so many of you in church last weekend. It was by no means an ordinary one. We had the joy of receiving three new members into the Holy Orthodox Church and celebrating the Great Feast of the Elevation of the Venerable and Life-Giving Cross.
On Saturday we began with the baptism of the little child Daniel (name after great Prophet Daniel), surrounded by his large family. This was followed by the Festal Great Vespers for the Holy Cross and our usual informal fellowship in the kitchen afterwards.
On Sunday, our catechumen Corey was baptised and our catechumen Carl was chrismated. They were joined to the Orthodox Church with the names Longinus (after St Longinus the Centurion) and Seraphim (after St Seraphim of Sarov).
During the Festal Divine Liturgy that followed, the newly illumined Daniel, Longinus, and Seraphim received their first Holy Communion. At the end of the Liturgy, we held a procession with the Holy Cross around the church and the solemn rite of Elevation, commemorating the joyful occasion of the finding of the True Cross by Empress Helena and Patriarch Makarios of Jerusalem in 326.
After the Liturgy, we shared a fasting but festive and tasty parish lunch.
Check more photos from the weekend, following the below links:
I want to thank all of you for coming and sharing these beautiful services with us. Special gratitude goes to the servers, chanters, and everyone who prepared the church, assisted during the services, and helped afterwards. It was also the first practical debut of our new Hospitality Team, who did a wonderful job coordinating and hosting the parish lunch. I am very grateful to them. May God bless you all and grant us the joy of gathering again for the Divine Liturgy on the 5th of October.
In the meantime, I remind you that there will be a Reader’s Service (without a priest) on Sunday, 28 September, at 11:00 a.m. Read further in the News and Announcements section of this newsletter.
News and Announcements:
- First monthly Reader’s Service in the church – 28th September, Sunday, 11:00 am – Join the parish for our first monthly Reader’s Service (without a priest), consisting of the 3rd and 6th Hours and Typika, followed by light refreshments and fellowship. Come and pray together, and listen to the appointed readings from the Word of God. Our choir director, Carmel, is also looking for volunteers to help with the readings. If you are an Orthodox Christian and would like to take part, please speak to her in advance or on the day. May God bless these Reader’s Services, which, from now on, will be held regularly once a month.
- Weekly Online Faith & Fellowship Meetings on Wednesdays: Join us for our next regular weekly Zoom meeting on Wednesday, 17th of September, at 7:00 PM (UK time): https://ucl.zoom.us/j/97707660214 This week, we will pray the Little Compline and discuss the Gospel Reading for the upcoming Sunday: https://www.antiochian.org/epistleliturgicday/4318
- Parish Library is now open – I remind you that that our parish library is now open! The library offers a growing collection of Orthodox books on various subjects for both adults and children, which you are welcome to borrow and read. You can browse the catalogue online, check the borrowing terms, and even place an order for a book at: saintignatiusbelfast.org/library. Our librarians, Michael and Porphyrius, will be glad to assist you and can be contacted at library@saintignatiusbelfast.org.
Next Sunday’s Gospel Reading and Homily: Take up your cross and follow me!
The reading from the Holy Gospel according to St Mark (8:34-38; 9:1):
The Lord said: “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.
Homily: Take up your cross and follow me!
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Last Sunday we celebrated the Feast of the Holy Cross, “the weapon of peace, the trophy invincible” as the Kontakion of the feast calls it, by which our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ “trampled down death by death”. The Cross is our constant and visible reminder of God’s ultimate self-sacrificial love for us. As we heard in the Gospel two weeks ago: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
This Sunday’s Gospel reading turns to us and reminds us of our response to that love. What is the natural consequence of God’s self-offering? What must we do if we truly accept this gift? The Lord gives the answer directly: “Take up your cross and follow me.”
To confess Christ means not only to say we believe, but to live that belief. Faith is not only words but life. It requires us to change our way of living in accordance with the commandments of God. To love Christ, to believe in Him, to accept the gift of eternal life won for us on the Cross, means to follow Him. But what does it mean to follow Christ? And what is my cross?
The Lord Himself explains: “Whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” Just as Christ gave Himself for the world, emptying Himself out of love, so we too are called to die to ourselves and to love those around us with self-sacrificial love.
Of course, we are not God. Christ endured to the very end because He is the God-man, His divine power sustained His human nature and raised it from death. We too are sustained by God, through prayer, through the sacraments, first and foremost in Holy Communion, and also through the daily gifts He provides: work, food, shelter, and the kindness of others.
Still, dying to ourselves does not mean being careless with ourselves. God does not call us to neglect our health or basic needs, but to remain strong enough to serve others. There is a difference between taking care of ourselves so that we may serve, and living only for self-pleasure and luxury. Carrying the cross of Christian life means co-working with God in a life of sacrificial love. As we say commonly say in Russia: “На Бога надейся, а сам не плошай”, which in English roughly translates to, “Trust in God, but do your part.”
What does this look like in practice? First of all, we must be fair in our relationships with others. We should not take advantage of people or treat relationships as opportunities for personal gain. Instead, we should ask ourselves: how can I help this person? How can they be better off for having met me? And if we are wronged or taken advantage of, we should forgive. Forgiveness does not always mean closeness, but at the very least it must free us from anger and bitterness.
We should also pay attention to those whom God has already placed around us: family, friends, colleagues, neighbours, etc. Can we give them more of our time, our attention, our help, whether material, emotional, or spiritual? If our schedules already feel full, perhaps we can use our time more wisely and free space for others. Or, perhaps, we can give up something from our schedule, for the sake of others.
Finally, we must not ignore those whom God unexpectedly sends into our lives. A beggar on the street, a new acquaintance, or an old friend who suddenly reappears may not be accidental encounters. God may have chosen us to be the one who offers care, kindness, or love at that moment. It is easy to say: “This is not my cross, it is someone else’s.” But to follow Christ means to see every person as beloved of God, and therefore as our responsibility too. Did Simon of Cyrene expect, on that Friday near Golgotha, to be asked to help Christ carry His Cross (Matthew 27:32; Mark 15:21; Luke 23:26)? Certainly not. Yet when he encountered the Lord on the way, he did take up the Cross. In the same way, when God places people or situations unexpectedly before us, we are called not to turn away, but to bear that cross with love.
There is much more that can be said about how we carry the cross. But we need to begin somewhere. These small steps, made in faith and love, open the way for God to guide us further, perhaps even to greater responsibilities or heavier crosses, if they are for our good.
Let us therefore take up our cross and follow Him. Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Fr Dmitry