Sri Lanka, January 31, 2025
Photo: sinmis.ru
From January 11 to 26, a missionary expedition of the Russian Orthodox Church took place on the island of Sri Lanka. The expedition’s purpose was to support the spiritual heritage and strengthen ties between Orthodox communities in Sri Lanka and the Russian Orthodox Church.
During the trip, seven Divine Liturgies, an All-Night Vigil, two Baptismal services, and numerous individual services and molebens were celebrated, reports the Synodal Missionary Department.
The expedition members visited Russian-speaking communities in Colombo, Galle, Unawatuna, Hikkaduwa, as well as Orthodox local communities baptized during previous missionary trips in the cities of Kegalle, Kurunegala, and the Melsiripura and Maspota settlements.
They also visited local communities in Dambulla and the remote settlements of Nagollagama and Araula, who are undergoing catechism to join the Church and show interest in the Orthodox faith. During the services, 75 compatriots and 110 local residents, totaling 185 believers, participated in the Sacraments of Confession and Communion.
Further, 18 people were baptized in two services, including a former pastor of the Eastern Believers Church, who voluntarily agreed to be received into the Church as a layman and continue serving as an Orthodox missionary in Dambulla.
During missionary visits to settlements where missionary work is conducted among the local population, meetings were organized with catechumens and local communities interested in the Orthodox faith. About 90 people participated in such meetings, of whom approximately 50 people have already expressed desire to join the Church after completing the catechism course.
During the trip, they managed to publish in Sinhalese a second edition of a brief Orthodox prayer book, a wall calendar with daily Orthodox prayers, and an Akathist to the Sweetest Jesus. Preparation also began for republishing the Typika service for local lay missionaries to perform.
Photo: sinmis.ru
Additionally, the missionaries commissioned the translation of A Brief Church History for Orthodox Believers by Fr. Aidan Keller from English to Sinhalese. The editing of the translation of the Divine Liturgy into Sinhalese also continued.
Pavel Yesin, a graduate student at the Sts. Cyril and Methodius Institute of Post-Graduate Studies, continued church singing lessons with the youth group of the Orthodox parish in Kurunegala. The young people learned the chants of the litanies and the Trisagion. Musical notation was also composed for “As Many as Have Been Baptized into Christ” in Sinhalese.
Background:
In 2023, the Synodal Missionary Department received an appeal from a group of Orthodox Sri Lankans requesting regular spiritual guidance from Russian Orthodox clergy. Previously, 52 local Orthodox residents were baptized by Fr. Kirill Shkarbul, rector of parishes in Taiwan.
On January 13, 2024, the first SMD missionary expedition to Ceylon took place. Throughout 2024, four missionary trips were organized, including a 1.5-month expedition during which systematic catechization and Orthodox lectures were organized for newly baptized local residents.
In 2024, ten Divine Liturgies and three Baptismal services were celebrated.
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