Search
Events
We are delighted to announce the Metropolitan Kallistos Memorial Lecture and the annual Friends of Mount Athos Vasilopita Celebration, which will take place on Thursday 21 January 2027 at St Sophia’s Cathedral, Bayswater.
The second lecture in memory of Metropolitan Kallistos will be delivered at 6.00 pm by Dr Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury. He will be introduced by His Eminence Archbishop Nikitas, Archbishop of Thyateira and Great Britain and the title of his lecture will be Orthodoxy, Courage, and Freedom: The Witness of Fr Nicolae Steinhardt
Dr Williams will explore the life and thought of Fr Nicolae, the remarkable Romanian writer, intellectual and Orthodox Christian whose recently translated Journal of Joy recounts his spiritual journey during the years of Communist persecution in Romania. Imprisoned under the post-war regime, Steinhardt underwent baptism while in prison and emerged as one of the most distinctive Orthodox voices of the twentieth century.
His reflections on faith, freedom, culture and human dignity speak powerfully to the challenges of contemporary Europe. Without resorting to ethnic nationalism or exclusivism, Steinhardt presents a vision of Orthodoxy that is both deeply rooted in tradition and fully engaged with the wider world, a perspective that resonates closely with Metropolitan Kallistos’s lifelong commitment to bringing Orthodoxy beyond cultural boundaries and into meaningful dialogue with modern society.
Following the lecture, members and guests are warmly invited to the Friends of Mount Athos Vasilopita celebration in the crypt of St Sophia’s Cathedral.
The cost of attendance, including the Vasilopita reception, is £30 per person – tickets may be purchased here.
