Father Peter Farrington represented the British Orthodox Church at a Conference of European clergy held in Venice under the chairmanship of His Holiness Pope Tawadros from 6-8 May. During the conference the Liturgy was celebrated for St. Mark’s Feast in the yet unfinished Coptic Cathedral in Venice, but the fine weather made the absence of windows and doors of little consequence. At one of the sessions Father Peter was invited to speak briefly on the subject “The Spiritual Character of the Preacher:  

“The spirituality of the preacher, the topic on which I have been asked to speak, is not concerned with the techniques we might use to communicate an idea, but it is to do with the spiritual quality and character of those who preach, and the spiritual quality and character of those things which are spoken. In the Gospel for the Liturgy which was provided in the Katamarous for yesterday (Wednesday, 6th May), I read the words from John 7:18… “He that speaks from himself seeks his own glory, but he that seeks the glory of Him that sent Him, he is true and there is no unrighteousness in him”.

What does this mean? It surely means that it is possible to speak from a heart that seeks our own glory rather than the glory of God. Such a one might well have a reputation as a great preacher. But he cannot preach Christ if he is preaching himself. His preaching may be clever, but it cannot be wise. It may be amusing and entertaining to the congregation, but it will not transform their lives. It cannot draw people to Christ since the heart of such a preacher is concerned, even if he does not realise it, with the glory of self. We can discern within our own hearts whether we are seeking our own glory. We will be disturbed if we are not often praised for our great abilities. We will be jealous of the success of others. We will hesitate to say anything which might lead to a loss of our popularity.

But such a focus in our lives on the glory of self, as the Gospel teaches, is neither true nor righteousness. It is not true because there is no glory in us. It is not righteous because it is the expression of pride, the greatest of sins, and makes us like Lucifer, who saw the divine glory which he reflected, and believed it was his own glory. If we are to speak, it must be as those who seek after the glory of the one who has sent us, and has given us this ministry of service which we do not deserve and cannot accomplish in our own strength. To seek the glory of God is to deny our self, not to glorify it.

It is the Lord Jesus Christ himself who sets us an example of what it means to be those who seek the glory of God, rather than the glory of self. He entered this world in humility and took the form of a servant. He endured the hatred and abuse of those he loved with an unfailing love, and he became obedient even to death, saying on behalf of all mankind in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Your will be done””.

The one who would speak to the glory of God in truth and righteousness must be just such a humble and obedient servant of the loving will of God.
If we will seek to glorify ourselves then our service is of self. If we will deny ourselves then the glory of the Lord will fill our hearts and will shine forth in all we say and do.

We read in the New Testament on three occasions that it is said to those who have the ministry of care for the Church that they are to “Feed my sheep”. Our service and our preaching is of no value if it is not conducted out of love for God and for Christ who gives us this ministry. These are not our sheep. They belong to the Lord, and we are granted the privilege of serving with the Great Shepherd of the flock, but our service must be in love. Our service must be one of nourishment. We are to feed the sheep. Not to entertain them, nor to show them how clever we are and how much we have read. If our preaching is to be in love, and for the glory of God, then we must address the needs of the flock of Christ when we speak.

In Acts 20:28, St Paul also instructing the priests of the Church, and repeating the words, “Feed the Church of God”, says to us, “Pay attention to yourselves and to the flock over which the Holy Spirit has made you shepherds”. To feed the flock we must be aware of the needs of the flock. What are the concerns that burden them? What struggles are they enduring? What are the special temptations to sin and doubt that afflict them?

If we are to feed and nourish the flock over which we have been given charge, then we must pay attention to the flock, we must know each of the sheep by name, and know their needs, so that we may feed them with spiritual nourishment. But St Paul instructs us also to pay attention to ourselves. The quality of our own spiritual life will be reproduced in those over which we have responsibility. Can one who is filled with anger teach others to be gentle? Can one who does not pray lead others into the presence of God within the temple of the heart? Can one who does not love the Scriptures open their inner meaning to those who wait to hear the word of God from his lips? We must pay attention to ourselves because the spiritual life we experience is all that we have to offer to others in our teaching and preaching.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, in Matthew 12:35, speaks of the good man, who out of the good treasure of his heart brings out good things. If we are to be those who preach to the glory of God and for the salvation of souls then we must have this spiritual treasure already in our heart so that we are able to bring it out in the service of others.

The duties of the spiritual service are many, but it is not possible to serve in our own strength. To do so is to glorify self. Our Lord went away from the crowds and found nourishment himself in the presence of his father. How much more necessary is it for us to be committed to the spiritual life, not as something extra or additional to our service, but as the very basis and foundation of all service.

Our Lord Jesus sent out his disciples saying to them, in Matthew 10:8, “Freely you have received, freely give”.

This is the necessary quality of our preaching. It must be the speaking of that which we have already received. It must be the fruit of our own spiritual experience. It must be the expression of a life lived in humble and obedient seeking after the glory of God. And when we feel most unable and unworthy, we may remember the Lord commanding the disciples to feed the great crowd that had come to see him. He said to them, “You feed them”. And they had together just a couple of fish and a few loaves of bread, but offered to God, and transformed by his presence, it was enough for all.

May the little fruit we offer the Lord, fruit of our own spiritual life with Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, be used in the same manner to feed the flock of God. Amen.

On 6 May 2015, Abba Seraphim and Deacon Daniel attended the Licensing and Installation of a new priest in charge and a assistant priest for the Parish of St. George-in-the-East at Shadwell. The traditional legal formalities (which included ringing the church bell) took place during a Votive Eucharist of the Holy Spirit. These are the Rev’d Canon Dr. Angus Ritchie and the Rev’d Timothy Clapton.  Canon Ritchie is the Executive Director of CTC (Centre for Theology & Community) and Father Timothy is the Director of the Urban Leadership School. The work of CTC is to equip churches to transform their communities through community organising, theological reflection and prayer. It is already based in the crypt of St. George’s but now will enter into a partnership with the parish, the Bishop of Stepney (The Right Rev’d Adrian Newman)  and a lay resident community of up to six young people based at the Rectory.  It will initially run for an experimental period of 16 months.

Abba Seraphim was among a number of ecumenical guests who welcomed the priests to their new ministry and spoke warmly of the value of sustaining a core community of prayer and service at the heart of every larger Christian community. The Orthodox London Mission is in its fourth year of using St. George-in-the-East for Orthodox worship as well as the regular monthly Orthodox Study Group and is happy to play its part in the wider Christian witness centred on this historic church.

The Portsmouth Divine Liturgy celebrated on Saturday 2nd May included prayers and hymns of commemoration for the new Ethiopian and Eritrean Martyrs of Libya. Announcing the hymn “For all the saints who from their labours rest, who Thee before the world confessed” Father Simon emphasised how these martyrs had indeed confessed our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ before the whole world. Their murderers in releasing the video of their martyrdom no doubt had other motives and intentions but in doing so they had broadcast the martyrs’ confession of faith around the world. During the singing of the hymn Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox worshippers lit candles in commemoration of the martyrs. Father Simon also reminded the congregation that this was a war that ISIS and its allies could never win inasmuch that every martyr they create is yet another holy and powerful intercessor in heaven. Although there was sadness, natural, human and right, for the death of fellow Orthodox, fellow countrymen and fellow human beings, also concern for the bereaved families, there was also a mood of celebration and pride in the heroic faith of these fellow believers and countrymen.

Memory eternal! Memory eternal! Memory eternal!

On 23 April, Abba Seraphim welcomed for tea at the Church Secretariat in Charlton, Nermien Riad of Washington DC, the Founder and Executive Director of Coptic Orphans. She was accompanied by Jean-Paul Markos, manager of Coptic Orphans’ UK office in London. While visiting London they came to speak with Abba Seraphim about the amazing way their ministry has been blessed and grown over the more than a quarter century since it was founded. Abba Seraphim, who lost his father at the age of four, shared with them his own experience of being supported through his education by committed Christians and spoke of the importance of empowerment of young people through education and spoke appreciatively of the important work being done by Coptic Orphans.   

News of the brutal murder of Ethiopian migrant workers in Libya by the so-called Islamic state follows on from their relentless attacks on vulnerable Christians throughout the Middle East and North Africa.  It comes as the Archbishop of Canterbury visits Egypt on an eirenic visit to offer his condolences to His Holiness Pope Tawadros for the similar slaughter earlier this year  of twenty-one poor Coptic workers. Archbishop Welby also met with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Mohamed Ahmed el-Tayeb. His description of the so-called Islamic state as “deeply evil” echoes the response of both Christian and Islamic leaders.

Writing to His Grace Abune Antonios, the diocesan bishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Great Britain, Abba Seraphim offered his deepest sympathy at the shocking news of the brutal murder of Ethiopian Orthodox Christians at the hands of extremists in Libya. Coming so soon after the murder of the Coptic workers, he stated that he shared their grief and anguish. 

“These are terrible times for our Oriental Orthodox churches as we commemorate the centenary of the Armenian Genocide and Syriac Sayfo, to find that we now face the demonic destruction of Orthodox churches and cruel treatment of Christians across the Middle East and Africa at the hands of Daesh. We draw comfort from the knowledge that those who perish at the hands of these vicious murderers remain faithful unto death, have received the crown of life, and now dwell for ever in the presence of their Saviour. We also mourn the tragic loss of life of those recently drowned in the Mediterranean, among whom were Christians from Ethiopia and Eritrea.”

He assured Abune Antonios that the “British Orthodox Church shares your grief and joins with you in fervent prayer for the families and friends of all those killed, who are our brothers in Christ. We pray that these new martyrs will intercede for us with the Lord of mercy.”