Dear brothers and sisters,
This is weekly newsletter #22 of the St Ignatius Parish in Belfast
Blessed Feast of the Holy Protection of the Theotokos! Due to historical developments, this feast is celebrated on different dates by different Orthodox jurisdictions (a difference that goes beyond the Old/New Calendar question). In the Antiochian calendar, two dates are reserved for it: 1st October and 28th October. You can read more about it HERE
Contents of this Newsletter:
- Message from Fr Dmitry: Church services in the coming week
- News and Announcements
- Homily on the Gospel from last Sunday: On the benefit of obedience
Message from Fr Dmitry: Church services in the coming weekend
Dear friends in Christ,
God willing, we will gather at the church for the services this coming weekend, 4 and 5th of October.
Address of the Church: Cullen Memorial Hall, Methodist Complex, 381 Donegall Road, Belfast, BT12 6GR
Schedule of Services
Saturday, 4th of October
5:00 PM – Great Vespers, followed by our regular fellowship in the kitchen with tea/coffee
Sunday, 5th of October
10:00 AM – Orthros
11:00 AM – Divine Liturgy, followed by a parish lunch
Lunch and “Conversation with the priest” on Sunday
This Sunday, we will be trialing a short public “Conversation with the Priest” fellowship after lunch. I recognise the need for some structured fellowship on the days when we gather at church: a space for the faithful, catechumens, and inquirers to ask questions, discuss topics, and grow together in our knowledge of the faith.
Our Divine Liturgy usually finishes around 12:45–1:00 pm. The order for the day will be as follows:
- Lunch (about 1:00–1:15 pm): After our Hospitality Team sets everything up, we will begin with a prayer before the meal. I will bless the food, and then everyone is welcome to take plates and help themselves from the self-service tables in the dining hall. The soup will still be served by the Hospitality Team to avoid spills.
- Conversation with the Priest (about 2:00 pm): After people have eaten, those who wish to stay will gather in a circle with their chairs for a time of questions and discussion with the priest. Before this, we kindly ask everyone to clear up after themselves by placing disposable plates and cutlery in the bins provided. This will make it easier for the Hospitality Team to tidy up afterwards.
I expect the conversation to last around 45 minutes, depending on the number of questions and topics raised. Of course, anyone who cannot stay until the end is welcome to leave at a convenient time.
This is a trial, and we will see how it goes. But I hope it will be fruitful and invite everyone to join. May it be blessed!
Confessions and private meetings this weekend
I will be available for confessions and private conversations on Saturday before and after the Great Vespers, and on Sunday morning from 8:30 until 9:30 am at the church, before we begin Orthros.
I hope to see you all this weekend, and I pray that God grants us a joyful time of fellowship!
News and Announcements:
- Weekly Online Faith & Fellowship Meetings on Wednesdays: Join us for our next regular weekly Zoom meeting on Wednesday, 1st of October, at 7:00 PM (UK time): https://ucl.zoom.us/j/97707660214 This week, we will pray Paraklesis to the Theotokos.
- Join our WhatsApp Announcement Group – I am happy to share that our parish now has a WhatsApp Announcements Group, which will be the simplest way to stay connected with parish life. Through this group you will receive service reminders, parish updates, and important notices directly on your phone. Your phone number will not be visible to others (unless they are already in your contacts), and only parish admins can post, so the group will remain free of chatter and focused on clear, useful updates. I encourage all parishioners to join by following this link: https://chat.whatsapp.com/FOR43rXflmPCm1VTj25yaD, so that no one misses reminders or important announcements.
- 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.
Last Sunday’s Gospel Reading and Homily: On the Benefit of Obedience
The reading from the Holy Gospel according to St Luke (5:1-11):
At that time, as Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, he saw two boats by the lake; but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” And when they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their nets were breaking, they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” For he was astonished, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
Homily: On the Benefit of Obedience
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Last Sunday’s Gospel highlights the importance of obedience in our life as Christians. Christ, known as a teacher of the Law and not a fisherman, tells His future disciples who had labored all night without success, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch” (Luke 5:4). To go fishing in the daytime in a place where all their experience told them there would be no fish seemed pointless. Yet Peter replied, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net” (Luke 5:5).
This short phrase, “At Your word”, is the key to today’s Gospel. Humanly speaking, it made no sense. Peter’s experience as a fisherman told him there were no fish. Yet he obeyed. And the result was beyond imagining nets bursting with fish and boats sinking under the weight of abundance.
Here we see the essence of Christian obedience. Obedience is not weakness, nor blind submission. Obedience is trust in the word of Christ, even when our own reasoning says otherwise. As St Paul says: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Peter acted in faith, and in that faith, the Lord blessed him with abundance.
Christ Himself is the perfect example of obedience. In the Garden of Gethsemane, before His arrest, He prayed: “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). In obedience to the Father’s will, He accepted the Cross, and through this obedience, the world was saved.
So, what does obedience mean for us, in our daily lives?
First, obedience is the foundation of the Church. The Church is not built on everyone doing their own thing, but on listening, trusting, and following the way handed down to us. We obey the dogmas and canons established and defended by the Councils of the Church, the order of services, the fasting seasons, and the prayers given to us by the holy fathers and saints of old. This is Holy Tradition, a living Tradition that binds us together in Christ. The Church is not an archaic collection of relics from the past, but a living manifestation of obedience to the Divine Will.
Second, obedience gives shape to our community. The clergy obey their bishop, and the faithful obey their priests, who serve not from themselves but as stewards of the mysteries of God (1 Corinthians 4:1). In the family, which is the little church of the home, obedience creates love and order. Children obey their parents “in the Lord, for this is right” (Ephesians 6:1). Husbands and wives live in mutual obedience, as Saint Paul says: “submitting to one another in the fear of God” (Ephesians 5:21).
Third, obedience brings personal spiritual benefit. The Fathers say that the greatest obstacle to holiness is not the devil but our own will. When we constantly say, “I know best, I want, I feel,” we close our hearts to God. But when we learn to set aside our own stubbornness and entrust ourselves to Christ, we receive freedom, humility, and peace. Saint John of the Ladder teaches: “Obedience is the tomb of the will and the resurrection of humility.”
For this reason, the Church gives us spiritual fathers. Their task is not to control us, but to guide us in the way of salvation. Obedience to a spiritual father is obedience to Christ through him. When we entrust ourselves in confession and spiritual counsel, we are learning to lay aside our self-will, and this becomes a source of healing and growth.
Obedience is not easy. It goes against our pride, our habits, and the spirit of the world, which always says, “Do whatever you want.” But today’s Gospel shows us the blessing that comes when we obey Christ: what seemed empty and hopeless became fruitful by His word. As St Silouan the Athonite reminds us, where there is obedience, there is peace. The soul that entrusts itself in humility to God is filled with His Grace. Without obedience there is no true peace in the soul, for a person who follows only his own will remains restless and troubled, never finding stability. Obedience frees us from the burden of self-will, and in its place brings the quiet confidence that God Himself is guiding us.
May we learn to say with Peter: “At Your word, Lord.” And may the Lord grant us the fruits of obedience: freedom from our passions, peace in our hearts, and the abundance of His grace! Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Fr Dmitry