6th / 19th December, 2006

The first ever celebration of the parish's patronal feast took place on 6th / 19th December. On the eve of the feast, a full festal vigil was celebrated at the private chapel of Christ the All-Merciful Saviour in Headington. The service was well attended; in fact the small chapel space was completely filled by the priest and the invited choir and worshippers, as all prepared celebrate feast of the parish's heavenly patron, St Nicholas, the Wonderworker of Myra.

The next day began early; we had invited His Grace Bishop Elisey of Bogorodsk to attend our parish's celebrations—Bishop Elisey is assistant bishop of the Korsun Diocese with special responsibility for the Diocese of Sourozh. As well as Bishop Elisey, we were also expecting a number of other visitors from the Diocese of Sourozh and other dioceses, and so there were a great deal of preparations to be made, both in the church, and at the Guild Room of the Oxford Oratory of St Aloysius where the festal meal was to be held.

By 9.20 a.m., the hours had been chanted and the clergy were vested and waiting for the bishop's arrival. Bishop Elisey arrived shortly afterwards accompanied by Protodeacon Joseph Skinner, and was met at the door by St Nicholas' churchwarden, Alexey Kostyanovsky with the traditional gifts of bread and salt. The bishop then venerated the cross offered to him by Father Stephen, and, as the choir began to sing 'It is very meet to bless Thee', entered the church. Waiting to greet him were Bishop Kallistos of Diokleia, Archimandrite Ephrem (Lash) and Father Ian Graham from the Archdiocese of Thyateira, and Father Philip Steer from the Diocese of Sourozh. The bishop invited all the priests to concelebrate with him, while Bishop Kallistos remained praying in the altar throughout the Divine Liturgy.

The Liturgy, attended by some 80 people, was celebrated in the mixture of English and Church Slavonic. At the end of the Liturgy, Fr Stephen presented Bishop Elisey with an icon of St Nicholas painted by a parishioner, and a handsome leather-bound English Bible with a commemorative inscription. Bishop Elisey responded in English thanking Fr Stephen and the parish for his gifts and warm welcome. He also expressed his gratitude to Bishop Kallistos and the priests of the Archdiocese of Thyateira for taking part in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy along with him. Bishop Elisey stressed the importance of strengthening the bonds of all Orthodox Christians gathered together around a common Eucharistic table. At the conclusion, Many Years were proclaimed to His Holiness Patriarch Alexis, the local hierarchs and all Orthodox Christians.

The social part of the celebrations then moved to the Guild Room by the kind permission of the Oxford Oratory of St Aloysius, whose parish priest, Fr Richard Duffield, came in briefly to greet the bishops and visitors and to wish all a splendid feast. The feast was indeed splendid, with a large assortment of home-prepared dishes. Many people took the opportunity to engage the new bishop in conversation and all remarked on his friendly, open manner and eagerness to learn more of the Orthodox life in this country. The children of the Sunday school had prepared a short sketch from the life of St Nicholas (the gift of gold to the three daughters destined for slavery) which was acted out before a warmly appreciative audience. At the end of the performance, St Nicholas' bags of gold (foil-covered chocolate coins) were shared out between the actors and the assembled spectators.

At 2.00 p.m. Bishop Elisey left the reception for a brief tour of Oxford colleges and other landmarks organised by the parish. In the course of the tour, Bishop Elisey visited Christ Church Cathedral where he was welcomed and shown around by the Sub-Dean, Canon Nicholas Coulton. Bishop Elisey was able to see the shrine of St Frideswide, patron saint of Oxford as well as other treasures of the Cathedral. He then went on to Merton College, where he was greeted by the chaplain, the Revd Dr Simon Jones, before visiting other famous Oxford landmarks. Later, Bishop Elisey arrived at Fr Stephen's home in Headington. After praying in the private chapel of Christ the All-Merciful Saviour, Bishop Elisey was entertained to a dinner hosted by Fr Stephen and Anna, attended Bishop Kallistos of Diokleia, the clergy who had concelebrated at the morning liturgy, and members of St Nicholas Parish Council. In a cordial and warm atmosphere, Bishop Elisey thanked the assembled company for their warm welcome and hospitality, and expressed his hope to return to Oxford in the near future.

Fr Stephen Platt

Click here for a gallery of photographs of the patronal feast...