Newsletter No. 20: March 2010

This is our twentieth anniversary year. A number of special events are being planned to celebrate it, some of which are described below. We hope that you will be able to join us for at least some of them. The Annual Report for 2009 is now in production and will be mailed as soon as possible. We apologize for its delayed appearance this year.

The 2010 AGM: Saturday 19 June at St Anne’s College, Oxford

The notice for this year’s AGM is enclosed. As usual, the proceedings will be chaired by His Eminence Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia. We hope that the programme will prove to be interesting and that it will attract a good turn-out. Unusually, this year we have three speakers.

In the morning, Archimandrite Dr Cyril Hovorun, a distinguished theologian from Kiev, will give an illustrated presentation entitled ‘Athos and the Beginnings of Monasticism in Kievan Rus’. The main focus of the lecture will be on St Anthony of Kiev (983–1073) who had lived on Mount Athos before founding the still flourishing Monastery of the Caves and is celebrated as the father of Russian monasticism. Fr Cyril has degrees in theology from the universities of Kiev, Athens, and Durham. Since 2004 he has been a member of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches and is now Chair of Theology at the Postgraduate School of the Russian Orthodox Church in Kiev.

Our second speaker is Chris Paul, a member of the Friends, who belongs to a group that specializes in researching and recording wartime escapes and journeys. A previous expedition led by him traced the route followed by the commando team (led by Paddy Leigh Fremor) that abducted General Kreipe on Crete in 1944. Most recently the group has retraced the route taken by Major General W.B. ‘Sandy’ Thomas when he escaped from the infamous transit camp in Thessaloniki and walked across the Halkidiki mountains to Athos where they visited each of the monasteries that helped Sandy during his escape. The story is told in Sandy’s book, Dare to be Free (1951), which is still in print and is one of the great escape narratives of the Second World War. Chris’s talk is entitled ‘Dare to Follow: An Expedition to Retrace the Escape Route of Sandy Thomas’.

Our third speaker is Markos Kambanis from Athens. Also a member of the Friends, Markos studied in London and has been painting both landscapes and churches on Athos for twenty years. His presentation will be based on an exhibition of his work currently showing at the Byzantine Museum in Athens and will include such topics as the illustrated life of St Simon the Athonite, the painted ceilings of Simonopetra, the printmaking workshop in Karyes, and the murals now in progress at the convent of Kornofolia, a dependency of Iviron Monastery. His talk is entitled ‘A Greek Artist Painting on Mount Athos’.

A buffet lunch, usually of a very high standard, is available in the college and must be booked in advance (price £17.50). It is followed by the official business of the AGM itself and as usual there will be elections. Four members of the Executive Committee have reached the end of their term of office and will tender their resignations: Metropolitan Kallistos (Chairman), Simon Jennings (Treasurer), John Arnell, and Dimitri Conomos. All four have indicated their willingness to stand again. Any further nominations for these positions should reach the Secretary in writing at least one week before the meeting. Guests are welcome to attend the AGM but may not vote.

When the proceedings have ended, there will be an opportunity to join the Orthodox community at 1 Canterbury Road (five minutes’ walk from St Anne’s) for a service of Vespers beginning at 5.00 pm. Both Orthodox and non-Orthodox members and their guests are warmly invited to attend this service which will last about an hour. The language used will be principally English.

Attendance at the AGM is free. The charge for attending the rest of the day (including morning coffee and afternoon tea) is £10.00 each (students £5.00). Completed forms and cheques (payable to the Friends of Mount Athos) should be sent as soon as possible to Michael Naldrett, Flat 2, 17 Primrose Gardens, London NW3 4UJ.

Project for the restoration of footpaths and wayside shrines and fountains

This spring another expedition, the tenth, will be dispatched to the Mountain for a fortnight in April/May. The list for this year is already full and there is a waiting list, but the project leader, John Arnell, will soon be assembling a team for next year and any members of the society who wish to volunteer their services are encouraged to contact him (John@thearnells.org).

Pilgrimage to the Monastery of St John the Baptist, Tolleshunt Knights

Several members have asked if we could run a low-budget pilgrimage to the monastery in Essex that was founded by Archimandrite Sophrony. This has been arranged for Saturday 3 July and will be led by Metropolitan Kallistos. Both Orthodox and non-Orthodox members and their families and friends are invited to participate. Those who are interested should contact the organizer, Dimitri Conomos (see separate sheet enclosed).

Pilgrimage to the Golden Ring and Moscow: 18–29 August 2010

Places are still available on this year’s pilgrimage to Russia which is being led by Metropolitan Kallistos and will include a seven-day cruise to the principal monasteries and churches of the Golden Ring and a four-day visit to Moscow. The total cost (excluding Russian visa and museum entry fees) is around £1650 per person. Anyone interested should contact Dimitri Conomos (dimitri.ec@btinternet.com) asap.

Madingley conference, 25–27 February 2011

The society will hold its fifth residential conference at Madingley Hall, Cambridge, over the weekend of 25–27 February 2011. The theme this time is ‘“The Earthly Heaven”: The Mother of God and the Holy Mountain’. Further details and a booking form will be circulated nearer the time, but please put the date in your diary now.

Doug Patterson: Artist in Paradise

There will be a private view for members of the Friends of the work of Doug Patterson, artist and architect, who has painted extensively the monasteries of Mount Athos, the dzongs of Bhutan, and the mosques of North Africa and India, at the National Theatre, London SE1 9PX, on Tuesday 13 April from 6.00 to 8.00 pm. Details are on the website (www.athosfriends.org). The exhibition will continue until 16 May.