Categories: uncategorized
Date: 29 January 2006 12:19:17
This afternoon I headed down with our sub-deacon to the city of Wollongong, about an hour's drive south of Sydney. Our sub-deacon goes down twice a month to help serve the Liturgy at St Elias' parish there.
A very small number turned up, but it was a beautiful service nonetheless. I do so love the service of Divine Liturgy. The parish itself, being built in 1983 (I think), is very beautiful also, with a wonderful iconostasis and recently completed stained-glassed windows in an Eastern-art style (I was shocked to see stained-glass, but it did look very beautiful). The icons on the iconostasis were of a different type than those I have seen before: more rounded faces and softer features similar to those on this page. Sub-deacon told me they bear some resemblance to early second millennium icons from Kiev.
It was also good to spend some time driving there and back, and having coffee and dinner, with our sub-deacon. He is a true blessing to us, has a wonderful desire to see us all fulfilling the requirements in Micah 6:8: do justice; love kindness; walk humbly with your God. Love of neighbour is something he constantly emphasises to us: and I can never tire of hearing it. He also has a wonderful sense of humour and a great level of knowledge on many topics, so I'm happy to either have a laugh or discuss anything from 11th Century happenings to Vatican II!
I got home just in time to see Federer beat Baghdatis in the Australian Open. The great emotion present in the post-match speeches was evident to see: it's a great thing to see true joy and true and raw emotion. Congratulations to the fantastic Roger Federer, and congratulations to Marcos Baghdatis who has had the sizable Greek and Cypriot community in Melbourne in raptures: and the rest of us as well. Great to see a new player, and someone with such talent, coming through. I think he promises to be a very talented and exciting player.
Last night, after Vespers, a few of us went out for a nice dinner at Drummoyne Sailing Club. Again, it is wonderful to spend time with my brothers and sisters in Christ: God has blessed me richly with great and encouraging friends and parishioners: I am greatly blessed. It's a true joy to spend time with them. Thanks be to God!