From Fr Gregory-Palamás
of the Orthodox Christian Churches in Plymouth and Torquay
⛪️👴🏻💻📱 Watch Fr Gregory-Palamás daily prayers and services video broadcasts on Facebook Live
💒 Holy Week - Live Videos
From our Archdiocesan Office
Please continue to serve with doors closed giving your parishioners the opportunity to watch services through live streaming. I would like to repeat that nobody is allowed to enter the Church and we are not allowed to give Holy Communion to anyone.
I know this might be very difficult for many people who are close to our faith and would like to receive Holy Communion while they are working hard this period to assist others but we have to follow the orders of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and comply with the governmental instructions.
From Fr Gregory-Palamás
Plymouth and Torquay Orthodox Christian Churches
Facebook.com/StsDemetriosNikitasPlymouthEngland
Facebook.com/Greek Orthodox Church of St. Andrew – Torquay
Plymchurch.com
Having experimented with streaming from church, I have concluded, with the help of Professor Anthony Caleshu, that it is not practical without more cameras than I have on my computer and iPad.
I am gratified that more people see the daily streaming from my house than we see in church, even at Pascha. These daily events will continue every morning until the end of the lockdown. Evening streaming is problematic until I have fibre optic broadband later in the month, but I will attempt to stream some extracts from the evening services in addition to what I do in the morning. There will only be a little Greek, since everyone with satellite access may watch the Divine Services from Greece or Cyprus, and I am conscious that most of the listeners have English as their first language.
The Paschal Proclamation will be streamed on the morning of Sunday19 April.
For fuller services from England, you may access Greek from the Ecumenical Patriarchate FaceBook page at https://www.facebook.com/ecumenicalpatriarchate/ or https://www.hellenictv.net
or the Twelve Apostles Church in Herefordshire at http://www.12apostles.co.uk or in English, Russian style, at http://www.stnicholas-oxford.org
Of course it goes without saying that you may send me requests for prayers by email or text and send names of both living and departed to be commemorated during services. Use my mobile number, rather than the land line, for private conversations; I will ensure that I am in a room by myself. Do feel free to be in touch if I can help you at a distance in any way.
👴🏻 Message From Fr Gregory Palamás
While the present emergency lasts, Presvytera and I will stream prayers and readings on the Parish Facebook page: St Demetrios & St Nikitas Orthodox Community Plymouth. I hope it will soon be available as a link on that of Torquay: Greek Orthodox Church of St. Andrew Torquay. I encourage people, whose birth language is not English, to follow the Holy Services from their birth country. Until I have a better WiFi connection, morning services will remain at 08:00. I hope that 20:00 during Holy and Great Week will also miss the extra traffic caused by people working at home. I am delighted with your response; Presvytera and I are greatly encouraged by your love for the Saviour and for his Church.
The programme of services with times is posted on Plymchurch.com. If you are attached to a parish other than those in Plymouth or Torquay you should be in touch with your own parish priest to find out what he is doing or to discuss personal matters. Orthodox Christians in Plymouth and Torquay may receive private prayer, confessions or advice via my mobile; will arrange a time when I am alone, if necessary. For conversation or advice from Presvytera you may speak to her on her mobile.
Brothers and sisters, let us not allow the present situation to lessen our trust in the Saviour, or forget to observe this sacred season.
“The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all!”