With the blessing of Archbishop Makarios of Australia, the Vespers of Forgiveness took place on the evening of Cheesfare Sunday at the Church of St Nektarios in Dianella Presided by Bishop Elpidios of Kyanea.
This is one of the most beautiful services of our Church that takes place during a time when the faithful are reminded of the importance of forgiveness and fasting. As emphasized by Archbishop Makarios, “If we are to live the joy of Christ’s resurrection wholeheartedly and experientially, and not as a custom, as a formality or as a practice, then we must hear the voice of the Church, which at this blessed period refers to these two words: forgiveness and fasting“.
Towards the end of the service, Fr Terry Gerovasilis read the Catechetical Lenten Homily of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
After the Vespers, observing the ecclesiastical tradition of the day, Bishop Elpidios, exchanged the embrace of forgiveness with the clergy and the faithful of the Archdiocesan District of Perth and wished everyone a blessed and Holy Lent.
