New Afrikaans Orthodox parish
Today we drove 255 km to Stilfontein in the North-West Province where Archbishop Damaskinos of Johannesburg and Pretoria blessed the St Theodore the Tyro Orthodox Mission Church. It is the second Afrikaans-speaking parish in the Archdiocese of Johannesburg and Pretoria (the first one was in Eldorado Park, in Johannesburg). Other parishes have had occasional services in Afrikaans, but these are the only parishes in the Archdiocese where the main liturgical language is Afrikaans.
In a way the new parish is an offshoot of the Greek Orthodox parish in Klerksdorp, where Fr Seraphim (van Niekerk) has served as parish priest for several years. In Stilfontein there was a disused church building belonging to the Gereformeerde Kerk, which the mission congregation bought, and converted to an Orthodox temple.
St Theodore the Tyro Orthodox Mission Church, Stilfontein
Extensive modifications were made to the church interior, which was originally a typical Reformed-style church with the pulpit as the central focus.
The ikonostasis of St Theodore Tyro Church, Stilfontein
Archbishop Damaskinos arrived with a visiting bishop from Tanzania, Metropolitan Demetrios of Irinoupolis (Dar es Salaam), and was greeted by members of the congregation.
Archbishop Damaskinos being greeted by a member of the congregation, followed by Metropolitan Demetrios of Tanzania, Fr Seraphim.
We met first in a tent outside the church, where Archbishop Damaskinos blessed holy water for blessing the temple.
Archbishop Damaskinos doing the Lesser Blessing of Water
The Archbishop then blessed the entrance to the temple, and we began the Divine Liturgy, served by Fr Kobus (van der Riet), who, together with Fr Zacharias of Robertson in the Western Cape, has played a large part in translating the liturgical texts into Afrikaans.
Archbishop Damaskinos blessing the entrance to the temple
At the end of the Divine Liturgy we had a Memorial Service for the departed, since it was a Soul Saturday, being the Saturday before Meatfare Sunday (Soul Saturdays, of which there are several during the year, are equivalent to the Western celebration of All Souls on 2 November).
Memorial Service for Soul Saturday
At the end of the service the Archbishop addressed the congregation, wishing them well for the future, and Fr Kobus and others spoke, explaining something of the history and theology of the Orthodox Church for non-Orthodox visitors.
Fr Kobus (van der Riet) addressing the congregation at the end of the service.
And after the service, refreshments were served in the hall.
The meal after the service
It was a great joy to share with this new parish in their celebration, and I hope they grow in both numbers and faithfulness.
The vision of St Eustathius
On the lawn in front to the church is a statue of a stag with a cross between its antlers. Fr Seraphim explained that it represented a vision of St Eustathius, who once when out hunting, saw a vision of such a stag. The statue was created by a Zimbabwean artist.
The Church is dedicated to St Theodore the Tyro (“the Recruit”), whose feast day is 17 February.
The church chandelier reflected in the floor tiles
Two men please God
They that serve him because they know him
They that seek him because they know him not
I celebrate the starting of every new assembly
And have come to the realization that “we” have discarded most symbols, traditions and prescriptions for i.e. The dress of priests in the name of grace. I suggest we should consider Lev 10:10 again distinguishing between the sacred and the secular
Anything to get out of SA. Now protestants are turning to orrhodoxy with the hope that the Archbishop will get them to Greece. From one hipocracy to another. Pray,pray,pray and everything will be okay.
The writer on the article of this new parish in Stilfontein has it wrong on the previous church that owned this building. Please rectify it. The building belonged to the “Gereformeerde Kerk”. The are more commonly known as the “Doppers”. Their college of theology is in Potchefstroom, the neighbouring town. Accredited with the Potchefstroom campus of the North West university. The “Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk” (NHK) had two congregations in Stilfontein. The one church building is in Hartbeesfonteinweg 70 (Ruth First” Avenue, behind the pannetjie. It was the “moedergemeente” (mother congregation) of the church in Stilfontein. The other parish has it’s church building in Wilge Street, nearby the Spar. This parish is known as the Stilfontein West congregation. It is the only remaining parish of the “Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk” (NHK) in Stilfontein. The mother congregation broke away from the NHK, together with other parishes of this church. The “Steedshervormers”, To form their own church. Currently known as the “Geloofsbond van Hervormde Gemeentes”. Church buildings of the “Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk” belongs to the parish and when the mother congregation broke away from the NHK, it transferred the building to the newly formed church. The theology college of the NHK is accredited with the University of Pretoria. Students of theology at the “Geloofsbond van Hervormde Kerke”. Students of Theology of the “Geloofsbond van Hervormde Gemeentes” are trained at the College of Theology of the “Afrikaanse Protestante Kerk” (APK).