Dec 7, 2019
Last night, our fellowship concluded for the year with a talk by Mrs Victoria Baghos entitled 'The Life and Times of St Matrona.' Born in the late 1800s in Tula, 200km from Moscow, the young Matrona was blessed with spiritual foresight from a young age, to the awe of her pious parents and the villagers. As her renown grew, St Matrona -- who carried the cross of complete blindness from birth -- would heal the sick and exorcise demons; in her conflict with the latter it was permitted by God that she would be paralysed on account of sorcery. Lifting her cross, she continued to minister to the Church and was acclaimed by St John of Kronstadt as the one who with God's help would give spiritual succour to many Russians during the dark times of the Communism.
Victoria deftly outlined the historical circumstances that led to the Bolshevik revolution and the persecution of the Church. We were moved to hear of the murders of clergy, the destruction of relics, icons, and churches, and the terrible propaganda against the Church in this time. But Victoria pointed out that it was precisely during these hard times that many saints were raised by the Holy Spirit as intercessors to Christ, and that, in these circumstances Matrona deliberately went to Moscow -- to the heart of the revolution and the Bolshevik party -- to minister to God's people.
Victoria gave many pertinent scriptural allusions to Matrona as an imitator of Christ, including that she had 'nowhere to lay her head' (see Luke 9:58) and that those things that we prize the most -- namely health and worldly possessions -- she willingly gave up to guide the faithful in difficult times. Victoria also highlighted how important it is to learn from Matrona for our difficult circumstances as Christians living in an increasingly secular environment; to take courage from her example in Christ and to ask for her prayers to the Lord for his assistance. A great Q&A, with reflections on how the saint's life is relevant for our contemporary circumstances, followed.
This was our final fellowship for the year, but Father Athanasios, Mario and the team look forward to organising next year's program over the summer. Thank you to all who attended and contributed talks to our fellowship this year. This ongoing catechesis is important for all of us and we thank God that he provides St Catherine's with so many speakers who are willing to teach us the Orthodox faith. Until next year!