Holy Diocese of Adelaide celebrates the Vespers of Love
With the blessing of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, the Holy Diocese of Adelaide celebrated the Vespers of Love at the Archiepiscopal Church of St Sophia (Holy Wisdom of God) at 11:00am on the Sunday of Pascha, 20th of April 2025.
The service was presided by the Bishop of Adelaide, His Grace Bishop Silouan, and accompanied by a dozen priests of the Archdiocese. It began with great celebratory pomp fitting for such a great occasion – with the clergy vesting in the adjacent Archdiocesan offices and then processing into the Church together with the chanters, chanting all together the Doxastikon It is Resurrection Day.
As is customary, the Gospel was read in several languages (Greek, English, Latin, German and Indonesian) – showcasing the universality of our Faith. The service was also blessed with the presence of Fr George Pillay who was visiting from Fiji, enroute to Crete.
His Grace conveyed the blessings of His Eminence and welcomed the 100-strong congregation to the service, inviting them next door for morning tea and refreshments before they departed to their own Paschal celebrations. After His Grace handed out the traditional red eggs, the clergy again walked in procession back to the offices to de-vest and join the celebrations.
A large number of people took up the offer and stayed for coffee and morning tea before heading off to their own individual Paschal gatherings. It was a wonderful opportunity to share in a celebration of this great feast together as a Diocese before taking that joy out to their respective homes.
