Holy Diocese of Chora: The “First Resurrection” service at the Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, Thomastown

With due solemnity and resurrectional anticipation, the “First Resurrection” Service was held on the morning of Great and Holy Saturday, 19 April 2025, at the Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord in Thomastown.

The Vesperal Divine Liturgy was presided over by His Grace Bishop Evmenios of Chora, who conveyed to the faithful the wishes and paternal love of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia.

In his sermon, His Grace emphasised that the “First Resurrection” is an invitation to hope. It is the moment when the Church announces the victory of Life over death, he pointed out, and calls on every believer to awaken from spiritual slumber and walk confidently towards the Light. “Christ enters the depths of Hades not to condemn souls, but so that His voice may be heard: ‘Arise, O sleeper, and arise from the dead!’” he emphasised.

He pointed out that the “First Resurrection” is not simply a historical event or a formal sequence, but a constant invitation to all of us to rise internally, to overcome everything that keeps us away from the true Life.