« On the 16th Sunday after Pentecost, Bishop Matthew of Sourozh celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Parish of St. Silouan of Mount Athos in Southampton »
28-09-2025 
On September 28, 2025, the 16th Sunday after Pentecost, following the feast of Exaltation of the Cross, His Grace Bishop Matthew of Sourozh celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Parish of St. Silouan of Mount Athos in Southampton, Hampshire.
With the blessing of His Grace, the celebration of the parish's patronal feast day, St. Silouan, was postponed from September 24 to this day.
His Grace Bishop Matthew was assisted by Archpriest Joseph Skinner, Dean of the Diocesan District of South West England and parish rector; Archpriest Dimitry Nedostupenko, Secretary of the Diocese of Sourozh; Priest Alexander Kapustin; and Protodeacon Vadim Santsevitch.
The parish choir, under the direction of Matushka Sarah Skinner, performed the liturgical hymns.
Following the Liturgy, the Archpastor and concelebrating clergy performed a prayerful glorification before the icon of St. Silouan and the veneration of the Cross of the Lord.
Archpriest Joseph Skinner warmly greeted Bishop Matthew, thanked him for his visit and the joy of their shared prayer, and, on behalf of the parishioners, presented the Bishop with a copy of the icon of St. Boniface, the Apostle of Germany, English missionary, and Archbishop of Mainz (+754), whose image is located to the left of the icon of the Savior in the local row of the church iconostasis.
In turn, Bishop Matthew expressed gratitude to Father Joseph for his pastoral work in developing parish life in the South-West Deanery and, in particular, for caring for the Orthodox faithful in the parish in Southampton. The Archpastor also noted that the local Orthodox community has grown significantly over the 15 years of its existence and currently represents a large and friendly multinational parish.
Bishop Matthew then addressed the clergy and parishioners in English with words of sermon and spiritual edification.
Congratulating the clergy and parishioners on the feast day and the 15th anniversary of the founding of the Orthodox community in Southampton, Bishop Matthew presented, as a gift to the parish, a liturgical Gospel, published in English by the Moscow Patriarchate Publishing House with the participation of the Diocese of Sourozh.
With the Bishop's blessing, all participants in the service were given icons of St. Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus', the centenary of whose repose the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates in 2025.
The conversation with the Archpastor continued over a festive meal, prepared by the parish.