At Noon on Thursday, 2 June, His Beatitude Abba Seraphim, Metropolitan of Glastonbury attended a Thanksgiving Service for H.M. the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee which was held at St. Alfege Church, Greenwich. He was accompanied and driven to St. Alfege by his friend and former teaching colleague, Mrs. Christine Nuaimi. The church bells rang grandly prior to the service, which was attended by clergy and laity from many Greenwich churches and they were welcomed by the Rev’d Simon Winn, Vicar of St. Alfege. The church choir sang many hymns of thanksgiving and all those present sang the English hymns “All people that on earth do dwell”, “Now thank we all our God” and “Guide me, O thou great Redeemer” supported by the church’s organ, whilst Francis Saunders, who had been a chorister at the Queen’s coronation in 1953, Pieter van der Merwe, an English writer on aspects of British maritime history, who works for the National Maritime Museum, spoke on “Her Majesty the Queen at Greenwich”. Among the many people who were present was also Abba Seraphim’s first cousin-once -removed, Owen Davis, who currently lives in Hong Kong and had travelled to Greenwich with members of his family to join in the Thanksgiving for our Sovereign Lady the Queen. Following the service light refreshments were offered to everyone present in the adjacent church hall.

On 9:00 am on Sunday, 17th April (the Western Easter) His Beatitude Abba Seraphim, again assisted by Abba James, celebrated the Morning Raising of Incense, followed by the Divine Liturgy for the Orthodox Palm Sunday in the chapel in the garage of the home of Archdeacon Antony Holland in Portsmouth. Archdeacon Antony’s current health problems have prevented him from driving and attending the British Orthodox Church of Christ the Saviour at Winton, Bournemouth, so he was now able to fully diakonise during the services celebrated in his home.

When His Beatitude Abba Seraphim, supported by Abba James, officiated at the British Orthodox Church of SS. Alban & Athanasius at Chatham, on Sunday, 10th April, he was delighted to administer the Holy Communion at the Divine Liturgy to an Ukrainian Orthodox lady as he has maintained very strong sympathies for the Ukrainian Orthodox faithful who have been suffering from the current aggression of the Russians.

As the mouthpiece of the British Orthodox Church, the Glastonbury Review is committed to the history and progress of indigenous Orthodoxy. It includes articles and book reviews about the Orthodox faith, Church History, Orthodox Spirituality, Celtic Christianity and various sympathetic figures and precursor movements in the West. It also chronicles and documents current events in the Oriental Orthodox churches, whilst endeavouring to be Pan-Orthodox and eirenic in its outlook as well as evangelistic and pastoral in outreach. Regular articles include Here, There & Everywhere, with news of the British Orthodox Church. Its Book Reviews is an expanding section.

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Abba Seraphim, Metropolitan of Glastonbury, accompanied by his Coadjutor, Abba James, travelled to the Church of Christ the Saviour in Bournemouth to celebrate the Liturgy for the second Sunday in Lent, 20 March 2022, also assisted by Father John Ives, the British Orthodox Parish priest for Bournemouth, during which Abba Seraphim ordained Yuriy Kot to the Order of Subdeacon, who has now adopted the religious name of Georgy.

         Following the Liturgy Abba Seraphim also met with the church’s neighbour, Susanna Riddell of Woodend Road, who has recently negotiated with one of her other neighbours to have his trees cut down which have long proved serious problems for her as well as for the Church of Christ the Saviour.

         Afterwards Abba James drove Abba Seraphim to Portsmouth to administer the eucharistic sacrament to Archdeacon Antony Holland, whose current health problems do not enable him to travel to the Bournemouth Church.