A Miracle in London
On Thursday night, 8 November, just when the parish of St Nektarios in London www.agiosnectarios.com started celebrating its feast day, with the holy relics brought out, their Icon of the Mother of God ‘It is truly meet’ began to issue a stream of a watery or oily substance right from the corner of the right eye of the Most Holy Mother of God. When I was called on by other people to see it for myself, the trace of the stream was already rather long, running down all the way through the body of the Holy Child.
A Liturgy began at 10pm and towards its end, it was already possible to see a new and somewhat wider (but not as thick or long) trace coming out of the mouth of the Theotokos, which eventually took the form of an unusually long cross. Soon after the Liturgy, another service was served until about 2.30am. The access to the Icon had been blocked earlier (as some people were touching the Icon with their hands) earlier by a portable Icon, which was installed in a way that it would touch the streaming Icon and also extend outward to allow a sort of mediated veneration of the streaming Icon. Pieces of cotton were then dipped in the oil of the lamp burning at the streaming Icon and also rubbed against the streaming Icon (sufficiently far away from the two miraculous traces to prevent interference) by the priests and given to us following the anointment.
Unfortunately, I could not stay overnight inside the church (I had to be at work in the morning), but other parishioners of our Chiswick Cathedral went there on Friday. Having waited till the end of the Liturgy, led by Archbishop Gregorios I believe, they approached the Icon and could already sense fragrance. Other miraculous things happening there (to my companion or myself) are somewhat more difficult to share at the moment, perhaps later when, God's willing, I visit you in person.
Several of us are now planning to attend the all-night (literally) service from 11pm Saturday till 4.30am Sunday, see http://www.agiosnectarios.com/. A Greek student of mine told me a few hours ago BCC already had a report on this, but I have not yet been able to verify this myself.
Alexei Koloydenko
