Australian and New Zealand Diocese (ROCOR)

On Saturday and Sunday 7-8 April/25-26 March 2012 His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, celebrated the All-Night Vigil and Divine Liturgy for the Entry of our Lord into Jerusalem at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Strathfield.

Concelebrating with His Eminence were the clergy of the cathedral and a visiting priest from Georgia.

His Eminence announced that he would remain in Australia for the Feast of our Lord’s Resurrection and celebrate the services of Holy Pascha at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral.

The Midnight Office will begin at 11:30pm on Saturday 14th April followed by the Resurrection Matins and Divine Liturgy from 12:00am on Sunday 15th April.

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The Pastoral Conference of the Australian and New Zealand Diocese was held on the 13th and 14th of March 2012.

On Tuesday March 13th the cleargy of the diocese assembled at the Church of All Russian Saints, Croydon, for Matins and Confession. On Wednesday morning the Divine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts was served at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Strathfield.

Following the Divine Liturgy there was lunch in the parish hall followed by the Pastoral Conference under the presidency of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion.

Please see below for a photo report of the event. (more…)

В воскресенье 19 февраля, в неделю мясопустную, Первоиерарх Русской Зарубежной Церкви, Высокопреосвященнейший Митрополит Иларион, возглавил Божественную литургию в Петропавловском кафедральном соборе, в городе Сиднее.

Первоиерарху сослужили соборное духовенство и клирик Московской епархии протоиерей Михаил Васильев. (more…)

Saint Innokenty lived during the reign of Tsar Peter I and became the first bishop of the Diocese of Irkutsk. He taught reading and writing to the local Buryat children, painted icons, built chapels and churches, prayed and preached.

As Priest Alexander Abiduev of Holy Trinity Church in Ulan-Ude, Russia, explained, “After a fire in the church of Voznesensky Monastery, where he was buried, though the church was burned to the ground, his relics were unharmed and discovered to be incorrupt. When he was to be re-interred, it was found that even his vestments survived. The local believers began to notice miraculous healings and miracles occurring from his relics.  When people saw this, they started to pray to the saint, and many of their pleas were answered. With time, this led to the decision to canonize him and count him among the saints.” (more…)

On the Great Feast of the Baptism of our Lord, 6/19 January 2012, the Great Blessing of Water was celebrated at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, outside, at the entrance to the cathedral.

This was the first opportunity for many to see the new icon mosaic of our Lord Jesus Christ together with the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul which was loving completed by Archimandrite Alexis (Rosentool) of Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Bombala, and his many helpers, and was recently installed above the entrance to the cathedral. (more…)

The Great Feast of the Nativity of our Lord was celebrated at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral by the Cathedral clergy – Archpriest George Lapardin, Priest Simeon Nekipelov, Protodeacon Boris Evstigneev and Protodeacon Alexander Kotlaroff.

Please see below for a photoreport from both the eve and the day of the Feast. (more…)

The weekend of 26-27 November 2011 was the last time the Holy Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God was present for a service in Australia for 2011.

On Saturday 26th the Holy Icon was brought for the All-Night Vigil at the Diocesan Cathedral of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Strathfield. The following day, Sunday 27th November, the icon was again present in the Cathedral for the the Divine Liturgy. (more…)

On Sunday 20 November 2011 the Holy Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God was brought to the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul Cathedral in Strathfield by its guardian Deacon Nicholas Olhovsky for the All-Night Vigil service.

The Holy Icon was greeted on the steps of the Cathedral by the Cathedral clergy, Archpriest George Lapardin, Priest Simeon Nekipelov and Protodeacon Alexander Kotlaroff, and brought into the church to the singing of its troparion.

The All-Night Vigil commemorating the Archangel Michael and all the Bodiless Hosts was then celebrated in the presence of the Holy Icon. (more…)

В начале ноября в Сиднее прошли торжественные литургии в Петропавловском соборе и на следующий день в женском монастыре в Кентлине.

3 ноября священники и прихожане Австралийско-Новозеландской епархии РПЦЗ поздравляли своего Первоиерарха Митрополита Илариона с Днем тезоименитства. На литургии в Свято-Петропавловском соборе в Стратфилде участвовали три архиерея и около 15 священников, среди них настоятели почти всех крупных храмов РПЦЗ в Сиднее и Мельбурне. По-настоящему праздничное настроение создавал прекрасный хор собора, усиленный певчими из других храмов. (more…)

On 21 October/03 November 2011 on the occasion of his Names Day (the commemoration of Saint Hilarion the Great, Saint Hilarion of the Kiev Caves and Saint Hilarion, Metropolitan of Kiev) His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Diocesan Cathedral of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.

Serving with His Eminence were His Grace, Bishop Irinej of Australia and New Zealand of the Serbian Orthodox Church and 11 priests and 5 deacons.  His Grace Archbishop Gabriel of Montreal and Canada prayed in the altar. (more…)