Welcome
from the Priest-in-charge:
Dear visitor,
I welcome you in the Name of Our Lord, God, and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
It has been said that a church's website is its front door. As Parish Priest of St Charalambos I am so very glad you have reached our front door! Whether you are a long time member looking for information, or a complete stranger, looking to find a church home, open the door and come in! You will find a wealth of information about our worship, our activities and our ministries. If you have any questions, you can ask through our Contact Us page.
We are an Orthodox church in the Archdiocese of Thyateira under the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The main worship language is Greek; however, as an Orthodox Church, we welcome Orthodox Christians of whatever background. We are a very diverse community with members from many parts of the world. Depending on the composition of the congregation English, Romanian, Church Slavonic, and even Arabic, may be also used during services.
We also welcome all visitors to our Divine Liturgy. While Holy Communion may only be received by prepared Orthodox Christians, our non‐Orthodox guests are welcome to join us for receiving blessed bread (antidoron) at the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy.
Whether you are visiting the area or looking for a church community to worship in, we assure you of a warm welcome as we come together to glorify God and share in fellowship as his children in this place.
Yours sincerely in Christ,
Father David
Father David (secular name: Panayiotis) Somalis comes from Greece and has lived in Britain for several years. He studied Biomedical Sciences at the University of Westminster and then worked for some time as a Science Teacher at a London Inner City Secondary School after completing his PGCE at the Institute of Education. After having worked for various pharmaceutical companies in Tender Management and Regulatory Affairs, he joined the workforce of a Local Government Authority as Senior Administrator at a Supported Living Service for Adults with Learning Difficulties and has been in that field for a good few years.
Father David studied both Byzantine and European Music in Greece and initially joined St Charalambos Community as a Senior Chanter in 2015. He was trained at the Sunday School and Youth Ministry Training Institute of his home diocese and has taught in Sunday Schools and conducted Youth Bible classes. Having attended Overseas Missionary Work Courses, he served in the Orthodox Archdiocese of Kenya for two summers as a lay missionary and paramedic.
On September 19, 2020 His Emminence Archbishop Nikitas ordained Panayiotis to the Diaconate renaming him 'David' in honour of St David the Elder of Euvoia and on December 27, 2020 His Eminence ordained Deacon David to the Priesthood. In his limited spare time Father David enjoys baking, listening to classical music and studying history and languages. Besides speaking Greek, English and French, Father David has an understanding of Romanian, Bulgarian and Serbian and can celebrate church services and hear confessions in various languages.
Email: father.david@btinternet.com
Mobile: 07392 151 668
N.B. Fr David has a full-time job during the week (and sometimes on weekends), as our church cannot sustain a full-time priest. Please remember that when contacting him!