On Sunday, 10 August, His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, visited the Parish of Panagia Kamariani, in Red Hill, Melbourne, and celebrated the Divine Liturgy with the local Bishop of Melbourne, His Grace Bishop Kyriakos, and His Grace Bishop Evmenios of Chora. The church was filled with devout believers, who came to pray with their Chief Shepherd, to receive his blessing and to thank him for his unceasing paternal care. Among the congregation were the Consul General of Greece in Melbourne, Ms. Dimitra Georgantzoglou, the Federal Member of Parliament, Ms. Zoe McKenzie, the Archons of the Great Church of Christ, Mr. Tony Tsourdalakis and Mr. Marios Kalogiannis, Presidents of Parishes and Communities and representatives of Greek community organisations.
At the end of the Divine Liturgy, in an atmosphere of spiritual joy and emotion, His Eminence tonsured two young members of the Parish, Mr. Ioannis Kozis and Mr. Ioannis Lam, as Readers, while he awarded the Medal of the Order of the Christ-Loving to Mr. Antonios Antoniou and Mrs. Maria Sakoula, recognising their valuable contribution to the Parish of Panagia Kamariani and the local Church.
The Parish Priest, Archimandrite Irinaios Koikas, welcomed and addressed the Archbishop with warm words, conveying to him the filial love and respect of all the pious parishioners. Fr. Irinaios briefly presented the current works and initiatives of the Parish, which include the implementation of extensive renovations of its facilities and the establishment and operation of a Greek School, under the auspices of the “Aetolian College”. In addition, he referred to the organisation of five events during the current year, which, as he pointed out, “after the suffering of the coronavirus, brought the Greek community back to our Parish.” He made special reference to the planning of anniversary events for 2027, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Parish of Panagia Kamariani, while he also announced the unanimous decision of the Parish Council to name the new Spiritual Centre of the Parish “Archbishop Makarios of Australia”, where various activities for youth, the elderly, etc. will be hosted. Concluding his address, Fr. Irinaios assured of the love and devotion of all members of the Parish to the Holy Archdiocese of Australia and the venerable person of their Chief Shepherd.
Clearly moved, His Eminence Archbishop Makarios expressed his paternal joy for the large turnout of the faithful and for the spirit of unity that distinguishes them, founded on the sound teaching of Christ. “The ministry of the Archbishop is not always pleasant,” he noted in his introduction and pointed out: “He has the ability, through the Mysteries of the Church, to direct people towards sanctification and salvation, but he also has the responsibility to keep the Church united and pure. Not only united, but also pure. That is, united in truth, not in falsehood. That is why the work of the Archbishop is often arduous. And I say all this because this Parish went through an some trials and for many years was essentially living a lie. For many years you listened to teachings that had nothing to do with the essence of our faith. For many years you have been listening to sermons that were aimed at personal promotion and not at the glory of Christ. Therefore, now I am glad to see you all here and I thank you for realising what the truth of the Church is and how much a person benefits when they listen to the canonical Church, not when they follow persons who are deceived and misguided. After all, it is not the persons within the Church that have value, but the Church itself. We all have value only when we are within the Church. When we move away from the truth of the Church and from the canonical Church, we wither spiritually and fade away. Because the grace of God, the truth of our faith, the Apostolic succession and the ecclesiastical canonicity are what give value and life.”
The Archbishop concluded his speech by addressing heartfelt paternal wishes to the congregation and warm praise to the Parish Priest, Fr. Irinaios. Highlighting the many gifts he possesses, he pointed out that “if he gives them to the Church, for the glory of Christ, he will literally work miracles.” “We have already seen this,” he added, “because in the one year he has served here, he has truly revitalised the Parish and the community.”
