On Monday, July 10, the first day of his pastoral visit to the Archdiocesan District of Perth, Archbishop Makarios of Australia had the pleasure of welcoming seven new members to the Orthodox Church, through the celebration of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism.
The newly baptized, who are members of the same family – a mother from Sri Lanka, and her six Australian-born children – received the names: Despoina and Dionysios, Minas, Georgios, Melani, Iouliani, and Eleni.
The baptisms were performed at the Church of the Annunciation of the Theotokos in Perth, where the Archbishop of Australia was accompanied by Bishop Elpidios of Kyanes, Archiepiscopal Vicar of Perth, and clergy of the region.
At the end of the Mystery, the Archbishop addressed speeches of spiritual edification to the neophytes, as well as paternal wishes for their experiential integration into the Body of the Church, so that their lives would be guided by the grace and light of the Risen Christ.
It is worth noting that more and more members of Australian society, of non-Greek origin, know and embrace the Orthodox faith in the context of the missionary work carried out by the Holy Archdiocese of Australia, to which the establishment of new English-speaking parishes also contributes.