Panagia Soumela

Today the Orthodox Church commemorates the Dormition of the Mother of God. Due to this feast I thought of Panagia Soumela, known mainly as the Virgin Mary of a part of the Greek world, i.e. of Pontos. The monastery is located in the Trabzon Province, known also as Pontos, in modern Northern Turkey.

The monastery of Panagia Soumela is a holy, magical and mysterious place, both for the Orthodox and the Hellenic worlds. It is the historical, cultural and religious symbol and place which unites the Pontian Greeks. 

Even today it is considered a pilgrimage that many Orthodox wish to make. 

A very important fact is that last year on the 15th of August, for the first time since the end of World War II and the Greek-Turkish population exchange (1922), a Divine Liturgy was celebrated by the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. 

This was of course done after Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government accepted the request by the Ecumenical Patriarchate to celebrate the Divine Liturgy on this great feast day. 

It was an important moment for the Orthodox world, but mostly for the Pontian Greeks, who venerate Panagia Soumela (the Virgnin Mary of Soumela) tremendously. This is shown emphatically through the building of a monastery in Macedonia dedicated to Panagia Soumela, where her icon was brought by a priest from Athens. 

Let us hope that one day this monastery will be restored to its previous glory, under the Ecumenical Patriarchate's jurisdiction, where the Divine Liturgy can be celebrated daily.    

St. Dunstan in the West, Romanian Orthodox Church

St. Dunstan in the West is a beautiful church in Fleet Street, being a Neo-Gothic building on the outside but yet octagonal inside. 

St. Dunstan was born in 909 A.D.. He was taught by Irish monks at Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset, where he developed a reputation as a formidable scholar. Dunstan became a companion to the King Aethelstan's stepbrothers, Edmund and Eadred, although being banished after the king's death in 939. He after lived at Glastonbury as a hermit. Eventually he was appointed Abbot there in 945. He was appointed as the Bishop of Worcester, then Bishop of London and finally he was elected Archbishop of Canterbury in 960. Dunstan endeavoured peace with the Danes, promoted monastic life and established the library at Canterbury cathedral, where he was, in 988, buried. 

The original church stood at the same sight as the one found today. The exact date it was built is unknown to us, however we are sure it was between 988 and 1070 A.D. It is probable that Saint Dunstan himself, or priests who knew him quite well, decreed that a church was needed here. The church was nearly destroyed in the Great Fire of London (1666), however the Dean of Westminster saved the church by rounding up forty scholars from Westminster School to help him extinguish the flames with buckets of water. 

St. Dunstan was rebuilt in 1831. The tower was extremely damaged by German bombers in 1944 and was rebuilt in 1950. St Dunstan in the West became a Guild Church in 1952.

One great fact concerning this specific church is that it is home to the Romanian Orthodox Church in London. The beautiful altar screen, also known as iconostasis, was brought from a monastery in Bucharest (the capital of Romania) in 1966. It is a centre for the growing Romanian community in the U.K. emphasising how Orthodoxy benefits from the relationship and contact with the Anglican Church, which has in numerous instances accommodated the Orthodox church establish itself in Gr. Britain, as seen in the history of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Thyateira and Gr. Britain and the history of the establishment of the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius.  

St. Dunstan in the West is also home to the Anglican and Eastern Churches Association (AECA), making St. Dunstan a centre for Christian Unity. The side chapels within the church contain altars dedicated to different traditions, i.e. the Lutheran Church in Berlin, Oriental Churches (Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Syrian, Syro-Indian) and the Lutheran and Reformed Churches. 

Although many in the Eastern part of the Christian world might see this negatively, it is a great example of how various Christian denominations can co-exist in one Church, preserving of course their traditions respectively. It is vital to remember that the Anglican Church has nourished and serviced the establishment of the Orthodox Church within the U.K. and it is still promoting this spirit even today.  

St. Sava, Serbian Orthodox Church in London

I recently visited the Serbian Orthodox Church of St. Sava in West London. This church is one of several Serbian Orthodox churches in Great Britain. It is under the auspices of the Serbian Patriarchate in Belgrade and belongs to the Anglo-Scandinavian diocese, headed by Bishop Dositej.

Most Serbs settled in London after W.W. II, who were soldiers and allies of Britain. A huge influx was evident after the recent war in Yugoslavia. Currently it is estimated that some 40 thousand Serbs live in the British capital, including the surrounding areas. 

Coming back to the church, it was built in 1903. It was originally an Anglican Church dedicated to Saint Columba. It was consecrated as an Orthodox Church in 1952. The building is very spacious (as seen through the pictures). It has a modest brick interior, decorated with beautiful frescoes, which are copies of works from the walls of Serbian monasteries dating back to the 13th century from the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. What stands out is the Iconostasis, made in carved walnut and richly decorated with magnificent icons. What is also weird for me (from a Greek Orthodox view) is that the church does not have chairs, although they did have some on the sides. 

In front of the altar are two thrones, one for the bishop and the other for the Serbian royal family, who where in the past exiled in London. Even Queen Elizabeth II sat there in July 1957, where the baptism of Maria Tatiana, daughter of Prince Andrew of Yugoslavia took place. 

 A Sunday school exists there where students of all ages learn the Serbian language, history and theology. The church, together with the surrounding buildings are regularly visited by local schools in order to learn about Orthodoxy and Serbian culture. 

It is evidently a lively community and a centre for Serbian Orthodoxy. For those who do not know where it is located the address is: 89 Lancaster Road, W11 1QQ.

Virtual Tour of the Ecumenical Patriarchate

Ever wanted to visit the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople, today known as Istanbul? Well this can be achieved for free through the Virtual Tour of the Greek Patriarchate via an internet site. Through this site the visitor can have a tour of the Church of St. George, the surrounding buildings and the outdoor grounds.

The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate has been located  in the Fanar region of the city and specifically at the Church of St. George since 1602. It was used as a monastery during the 16th century. St. George has had a turbulent history; it was destroyed in parts due to many causes and eventually was repaired. In 1941 it was destroyed during the fire in 1941. However repairs took place commencing in 1989 and was completed in 1991.
Enjoy the tour! 

The Rotonta in Thessaloniki

The Rotonta in the second largest Greek city, Thessaloniki,  is a Roman building built in 300 A.D. by Caesar Galerius. He chose this city as his base, that is why he tried to decorate it with various magnificent buildings, such as palaces, hippodrome, temples.

Archaeologists cannot identify why Galerius built the Rotonta. Some believe that he wished it to be his Mausoleum; despite not being buried near Thessaloniki. Another hypothesis is that it was meant to be a Temple dedicated to Zeus, the Caesar's and the Roman Empire's patron God. 

With the eventual prevalence of Christianity during the Byzantine era the Rotonta was transformed into a church dedicated to the Archangels, maybe during the period Theodosios I was emperor in Constantinople (4th century A.D.). That is the period the mosaics were introduced in the interior of the church, which still exist to this day. 

The Rotonta was not one of the city's major churches, as were St. Dimitrios and St. Sophia. This was evident when Thessaloniki was conquered by non-Christians they would close down the most important churches and worship sites, however the Rotonta was not on this list. Nevertheless it became the metropolitan's main church during the Frankish period and the first period of the Ottoman Rule over the Balkan region. This of course happened in 1523, after the Metropolitan Church (St. Sophia) became a mosque. In 1591 the Rotonta also became a mosque.

After the Greek Revolution and the Balkan wars, where Macedonia became part of the Independent Greek State Dragoumis, General Commander of Macedonia, declared the Rotonta as a national monument and came under the jurisdiction of the Hellenic State. It was also given to the Orthodox Church and was officially re-opened in 1914 by Metropolitan of Salonika Gennadios. The Church was now dedicated to St. George, despite being rarely used as a church and mainly as a museum. Archaeologists have since began excavations within and around the building finding many archaeological artefacts. 

Greek Orthodox Cathedral of All Saints, Camden London

Being, during this past year, left chanter at the Cathedral of All Saints in Camden I thought of giving here the Community's history, since also being one of the most important Churches in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain.

The Church was established after a group of Greek-Cypriots made a request to Metropolitan Germanos Strenopoulos to create a second Church in London (the first being the Cathedral of St. Sophia in Bayswater). This would cater the rapidly growing Greek Orthodox community in London, which rose after World War II.

The Church building was originally Anglican, known as the Camden Chapel which was built in 1824 and was part of Lord Camden's development area. The architects were William and Henry Inwood. The inspiration for the Church in Camden had been Greek architecture and the tower was based on Lysicrates monument in Plaka, in the centre of Athens (known also as Diogenes' Lantern). That is why Deacon Meliton states that "there can be no doubt that the building's conversion from Anglican to Orthodox worship has been particularly successful, in part due to the Hellenistic inspiration of the building's architecture". 

The Church was called St. Stephen's Church and later it was renamed to All Saints. During WWII it was damaged during the air-raids due to its proximity to important areas within the city. 

The building was first used as an Orthodox Church in 1948 (Palm Sunday) where Archbishop of Thyateira and Great Britain Germanos and Arhimandrite Parthenios officiated. The Church was purchased later and was raised to cathedral status on 26th April 1981. It is important to state that the Anglican Diocese of London leased the Church to the Greek Orthodox Community emphasising that the relations between the two were on a good level. This of course was not the first time Anglicans assisted Orthodoxy to establish itself in Britain. Many were priests at this historic church, one of them being the current Archbishop of Thyateira and Great Britain Grigorios.  

It is also famous due to the fact that Archbishop of Cyprus and President of the Republic of Cyprus Makarios officiated at All Saints whenever he was in London. That is why it is also known as the Greek-Cypriot Cathedral of London. 

Currently it has two priests, the Very Revd. Protopresbyter George Zafeirakos and the Very Revd. Archimandrite Vassilios Papavassiliou. Also a deacon is appointed to All Saints, Deacon Meliton Richard Oakes, who has also written a book titled: The Greek Orthodox Cathedral Church of ALL SAINTS.

The Church of All Saints celebrates its patronal feast on the first Sunday after Pentecost.

Official Opening of St. Panteleimon Church in London

Today we celebrated the Official Opening of the new Byzantine Style Church in Harrow, NW London. It was a unique occasion for us all, since the last time this took place in the UK was over 100 years ago when the last Greek Orthodox Church was built.

The Official Opening, Θυρανοίξια, is different to a consecration, which will eventually take place in the coming Autumn. The Official Opening symbolises the official entrance into the new Church. The ceremony was presided over by His Eminences, the Archbishop Gregorios of Thyateira and Great Britain and the Metropolitan Georgios of Paphos. Many priests, deacons and chanters took part, whilst the Church was fool of people from all over London. Also the Metropolitan bought from Cyprus relics of St. Panteleimon which also added a magical atmosphere in the celebrations. 

It is moving to be present at such an event, where everyone was amazed at the progress of the New Church building of St. Panteleimon. It was also emotional to see many people enter the Church moved by this magnificent and massive project, which is still in progress. 

It seems that Marx was wrong when he said " Die Religion ist das Opium des Volkes", which translates into English "Religion is the opium of the people". Religion cannot be seen, as Marx understood it, as a social reality, without taking into consideration other factors, such as spirituality, faith , God or the human nature. Also it is wrong to believe and state that religion is going to vanish from society in the coming years, something which many sociologists believed would be the case in the first decade of the 21st century. This ofcourse is not the case. These endeavours show emphatically how both paradigms have been proven wrong by this astonishing new Church. 

We can only hope that the rest of the project will continue as planned and then I am sure the beautiful icons will follow to decorate the interior and the exterior of the Church.

St. Nikolaos Church in Ermoupolis

Visiting Syros, a Greek island in the middle of the Aegean (where the capital of the Cyclades - Ermoupolis - is located) I found the Church of St. Nikolaos as a wonder. It is located on a hill in the capital Ermoupolis and can be seen clearly from the ship, since it is in a prominent position between many buildings. The blue dome makes it stand out from other buildings.

The construction of the church commenced on the 28th of February 1889 and was finished on September 13th 1870. It was the biggest church of the liberated part of Greece. Its imposing dimensions, its beautiful, tall, marble bell towers, its marble entrances with ionic columns, the rosettes that elapse the church give monumental ancient Greek character. 

Eminent people, not only from Syros, ambassadors, ship-owners, businessmen, consuls from Greece, Russia, or other Balkan countries, dedicated to the church consecrated vessels, gospels, holy cups, blessing crosses, Epitaphs embroidered with gold. The interior of the church is overflowed with distinguished scintillations of light from the crystal chandeliers from Trieste since the days of Mary Theresa and the unique bronze chandeliers from Venice. 

The church also has an imposing and miraculous icon of Saint Nikolaos, which was painted and overlaid with silver in Moscow. The church also has an organ since 1968 and accompanies the choir, which is an exception within the Orthodox world, since the Byzantine tradition uses a monophonic system.