On the 21st of December, St. Ignatius Church held a festal Vespers service, presided by His Eminence Metropolitan Basilios, in honour of their Patron, St. Ignatius of Antioch. Over 100 priests and faithful gathered together for a warm evening which concluded with a wonderful feast.
During the evening, His Eminence spoke about the unity of the Archdiocese, which was evident in the united Vespers Service attended by faithful from many parishes. This unity was also shown through financial support and the generous donations towards the building payments from across the archdiocese throughout the year. Less than $200,000 is now owing. God willing, the property will be paid off in three more years, allowing for work to begin on adding a retreat centre on the land.
Those who attended saw many new improvements to the Church building, including the near-completed iconostasis, carpet, back wall and larger worship space due to the removal of the corner room. There are still many improvements and renovations to be made, but the Church has come a long way in just two years. For this, we give thanks and glory to God.
At the end of the service, His Eminence generously gifted the parish with a lovely blessing cross and distributed icon cards of St. Ignatius, whose example reminds us of the sacrifice required for following Christ.
