Australian and New Zealand Diocese (ROCOR)

On Thursday 26 April 2019, His Grace Bishop George celebrated the Divine Liturgy of Holy Thursday at Sts Peter and Paul Cathedral.

Concelebrating with His Grace were the cathedral clergy Archpriest George Lapardin, Priest Michael Storozhev, Protodeacon Alexander Kotlaroff and visiting clergy, Mitred Archpriest Michael Protopopov rector, Our Lady’s Dormition Church (Dandenong VIC) and Protodeacon Martin Naef cleric, St Panteleimon Church (Gosford NSW). (more…)

On Saturday, 20 April 2019, the eve of the feast for the Entry of our Lord into Jerusalem, His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad and His Grace Bishop George of Canberra celebrated the All-Night Vigil at Sts Peter and Paul Cathedral Strathfield. (more…)

Communique

The 2019 Lenten Pastoral Conference of the clergy of the Australian & New Zealand Diocese (ROCOR), convened in Sydney 26-27 March, in the presence of His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion The First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church and His Grace Bishop George of Canberra.

The Conference commenced with Matins and a talk by Fr Peter Heers “The Boundaries of the Church and the Demonic method of adulteration of the Faith in Ecumenism” which generated a lively discussion amongst the clergy. (more…)

On Friday, 22 March 2019, His Grace Siluan, Bishop of the Metropolitanate Australia and New Zealand, Serbian Orthodox Church visited the residence of His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad in Sydney.

His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion together with His Grace Bishop George of Canberra welcomed His Grace Bishop Siluan where they exchanged greetings and discussed Church matters of mutual concern. (more…)

On Friday, 15 March 2019 His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, Archbishop of Sydney Australia and New Zealand arrived in Australia. His Eminence is expected to stay in Australia until Pascha.

On Saturday, 16 March 2019 and Sunday, 17 March 2019 His Eminence together with His Grace Bishop George celebrated the Sunday of Orthodoxy services at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral Strathfield. Co-served with His Eminence and His Grace were the Cathedral clergy, Archpriest George Lapardin, Priest Michael Storozhev, Protodeacon’s Alexander Kotlaroff and Constantine Moshegov. The Rite of Orthodoxy was intoned by Protodeacon Alexander. (more…)

Eminent Brother Archpastors, honorable Fathers, beloved Brothers, Sisters and Children in Christ:

 I offer my words of greeting, which are inspired by Christian love, on this great feast of the Nativity of Christ! With a warm heart I wish you all that profound and inalienable peace, which was heralded by the angels above the town of Bethlehem on the holy night when “the Word was made flesh” (John 1:14). (more…)

Fr Seraphim Slade fell asleep in the Lord on 25 December 2018 on the feast of St Herman of Alaska and St Spiridon after complications from  surgery for long-standing illness.

Fr Seraphim was, the first Aboriginal man to become an Orthodox clergyman. He worked for many years as a radio broadcaster in regional communities. He also worked in Aboridignal prison ministry since 2004. He was, for many years, a sub deacon in the Russian Orthodox Cathedral of the Protection of the Mother of God in Melbourne. He began missionary work to his own Aboriginal people in March 2008, and later that same year, in Canberra, he was ordained to the diaconate on the parish Feast day of the Nativity of St John the Forerunner (7 July 2008). His diaconate did not last long, as he was ordained a priest soon after. In 2009, he established a chapel dedicated to the memory of St John of Shanghai and San Francisco in his home in Gunning and continued to serve there and in Canberra. (more…)

The 2018 Teen Retreat saw almost 60 high school students, from parishes around Australia, travel to Stanwell Tops, south of Sydney, from 16-21 December – the eighth in a series of successful Teen Retreats hosted by different cities of our Diocese.

The highlight of the first day saw the Teen Retreat receiving the Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God as it travelled around the country. A moleben was served in its presence to open the retreat, followed by venerating the icon and a talk from Bishop George of Canberra on the history of the icon. This proved to be a wonderful beginning to the Retreat, followed by Icebreaker games run by Helen Alalikin. As always, it didn’t take long to feel as if the Retreaters had long known each other. (more…)

On 25 December 2018, the rector of St John of Shanghai and San Francisco mission in Gunning NSW Priest Seraphim Slade reposed in the Lord following a long illness.

On Friday, 28 December a Divine Liturgy will be served at 8:00am at the Holy Protection Church Cabramatta. The funeral service will be held following the Divine Liturgy.

Memory Eternal.

On Friday, 14 December 2018, His Grace Bishop George of Canberra brought the holy Kursk-root Icon of the Mother of God from New York to the Australian and New Zealand Diocese. At 10am the faithful of Sydney parishes greeted the holy icon at the Diocesan Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul in Strathfield where a moleben was served.

On Saturday, 15 December 2018 and Sunday, 16 December 2018, the holy icon was present at Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral Strathfield for the services which were led by His Grace Bishop George. Co-serving with His Grace were the cathedral clergy protopriest George Lapardin, priest Michael Storozhev and protodeacon Alexander Kotlaroff. (more…)