On Sunday, 29 September, in the Sydney suburb of Kogarah, the festivities in honour of Panagia Myrtidiotissa culminated with due splendour. A crowded church of devout Christians from the local Parish – Community of The Resurrection of Christ, Our Lady of Myrtles and Saint Elesa, as well as many visitors from other areas of Sydney, all reverently participated in the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, which was presided over by His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, likewise in the all-day cultural program that followed, with traditional dances, sounds and tastes from the homeland.
During the Divine Liturgy, His Eminence was joined in concelebration by Their Graces, Bishop Iakovos of Miletoupolis, Bishop Christodoulos of Magnesia (Hierarchical Proistamenos of the celebrating Church), the Chancellor of the Holy Archdiocese, Archimandrite of the Ecumenical Throne, Very Rev. Christophoros Krikelis, and a multitude of clergy from the city of Sydney, including Fr. Stavros Agoroudis, who was honoured by His Eminence with the conferment of the office of Archimandrite.
Addressing the honoured clergyman with paternal words, Archbishop Makarios urged him to work with even greater zeal and a sense of responsibility for the sanctification and salvation of the faithful whom the Church entrusted him to minister to. “Each honour, progress and advancement,” His Eminence emphasised, among other things, “is accompanied by being charged with a great responsibility: the responsibility of sanctification and salvation. You assume this responsibility today, not only for yourself, but also for your neighbours. Because as we have said other times, salvation in the Church is not a personal matter. We want heaven to be for everyone, for us all to be there as we are now here, at the Divine Liturgy.”
Then, the Archbishop analysed the gospel reading of the day, from the Gospel according to Luke, where the Lord preached love to our enemies. “With the words ‘ to love your enemies’, Christ brought about a religious and social revolution”, he emphasised, among other things, recalling that this is a teaching that is not found in any other religions. “No other religion says what we heard today in the Gospel,” he observed and pointed out: “This is the greatness of our faith.” “This is how the life of people who love Christ and want to follow the Holy Gospel should be”, he added.
Before concluding his address, His Eminence referred to the upcoming Apostolic Visit of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Australia and invited everyone to show in practice their filial love and respect for His All-Holiness during His reception and stay in Sydney. “Let us be there to welcome the Patriarch of the Nation, the First of the Orthodox Church and to address him with one voice and one heart, “Welcome Your All-Holiness, Father and Master”, he characteristically urged.
Concluding, His Eminence wished the members of the celebrating Parish-Community of Kogarah to have the blessing and grace of the Most Holy Theotokos, while he did not fail to express his paternal wishes for the name day of His Grace Bishop Kyriakos of Melbourne.
The events in honour of Panagia Myrtidiotissa in Kogarah, Sydney were attended by the Hon. Matt Thistlethwaite MP, Federal Deputy Minister for Immigration, the Hon. David Coleman MP, Federal Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister for Communications, Mr. Simon Kennedy MP, Federal Member of Parliament, Mr. Mark Coure MP, state Member of Parliament, Mr. Sam Stratikopoulos, Councillor of the Georges River Council, Ms. Vicky Poulos, Councillor of the Bayside Council, Ms. Barbara Zantiotis, President of the Kytherian Association of Australia, Ms. Anastasia Karakominaki, President of the Pan-Macedonian Association of New South Wales, among others.
