A new biography of Patriarch Tikhon – a challenge to religious trends in Russia and the US today

Professor Scott M Kenworthy’s new biography of Patriarch Tikhon … launched in Cambridge this evening

Patrick Comerford

I an sorry to miss this evening’s launch of a new book in Cambridge, The People’s Patriarch: Tikhon Bellavin and the Orthodox Church in North America and Revolutionary Russia by Scott M Kenworthy, and published by Oxford University Press.

The book launch in Wesley House, Cambridge, this evening has been organised by the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, where I have been a student on many courses over the years, mainly in Sidney Sussex College.

This is the first scholarly and comprehensive biography of Patriarch Tikhon, and draws on documents from the Soviet leadership and secret police file that were previously inaccessible to researchers. It provides an in-depth account of a crucial period of Orthodox Christianity in North America and of Patriarch Tikhon’s vital contributions to its development. But it is also an important book at this crucial time of dissonate relationship between the Russian Church and the rest of the Orthodox world.

Professor Scott M Kenworthy is Professor of History in the History Department at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, where he also teaches for the Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies, and Religious Studies programs, and is also Associate Professor of Comparative Religion.

He is the author of the prize-winning book The Heart of Russia: Trinity-Sergius, Monasticism and Society After 1825 and, with Alexander Agadjanian, Understanding World Christianity: Russia. He is a past president of the Association for the Study of Eastern Christianity and has held research fellowships in the US, Germany, Hungary and Romania.

On 28 October 1917, just days after the Bolsheviks seized power, the great Council of the Russian Orthodox Church voted to restore the patriarchate, which had been abolished by Tsar Peter the Great almost two centuries earlier in 1721. The council chose as the new patriarch Patriarch Tikhon (1865-1925), born Vasily Ivanovich Bellavin, the son of a humble village parish priest.

As the Orthodox Bishop of North America (1898-1907), Patriarch Tikhon had already started putting into practice his vision of the Church as an organic body that welcomed the participation of all believers. The Bolsheviks, who had other ideas, aimed to create a revolution that would be carried out by the state on behalf of the people. They sought to eradicate religion as superstition, to disestablish the church and to destroy it altogether.

The alternate Russia that Patriarch Tikhon represented was crushed by the superior force of the Bolsheviks. But he helped to navigate the Church through immense challenges and, in the end, the Orthodox Church outlived the Soviet experiment.

In The People’s Patriarch, Scott Kenworthy tells the story of the clash of visions for the new Russia through the lens of the humble man chosen to lead the Church, whose life exemplifies the transformations within the Orthodox Church in late Imperial Russia and its fate during the Revolution. This the first critical biography of one of the most important Orthodox Christian leaders of the 20th century, based on an exhaustive use of previously untapped primary sources, including Patriarch Tikhon’s letters and encyclicals, previously classified documents from the Bolshevik leadership and Soviet secret police, and material from a dozen archives in five countries.

Patriarch Tikhon has been overlooked by most historians of Russia and the former Soviet Union, who have seen the Russian Orthodox Church as irrelevant within an anti-religious Communist polity. This book tells his story from his humble beginnings in the Pskov province in north-west Russia, to his ordination and consecration, and then his ministry as bishop of a diocese in Poland, where he was Bishop of Lublin.

For almost a decade (1898-1907), he was a bishop in the US, where he came to appreciate democracy, the separation of Church and State, and the vital part played by the laity and parish clergy within the Church. When he was appointed Bishop of the Aleutian Islands and Alaska in 1898, he went to the US where he eventually became a naturalized American citizen. There he visited emerging Orthodox emigrant communities in cities such as New York and Chicago and in coal-mining and steel-making areas in in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

He reorganised the diocese, changed its name to the Diocese of the Aleutian Islands and North America, and he blessed the cornerstone of Saint Nicholas Cathedral, New York, in 1901. He built churches across North America, opened dialogue with Greek Orthodox churches, and took part in the consecration of Reginald Heber Weller as an Anglican bishop in Saint Paul’s Cathedral in the Episcopal Diocese of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. He returned to Russia in 1907 when he was appointed Bishop of Yaroslavl.

When he was chosen in 1917 as the eleventh Patriarch of Moscow and the first since Peter the Great abolished the patriarchate 200 years earlier, Patriarch Tikhon quoted Ezekiel prophetically: ‘How many tears and groans will I have to swallow.’

After the abdication of the tsar in March 1917, the Russian Church was freed from its subjugation to the State and became once again respected by a large section of the educated population. But the church also faced years of persecution, and lost its legal status and right to own property. Lenin launched a ferocious attack on the church in 1922, and Patriarch Tikhon was imprisoned from May 1922 until June 1923.

Patriarch Tikhon was effectively a prisoner in the Donskoi Monastery and was frequently interrogated in the Lubyanka. But on the occasions when he was allowed to take walks along the monastery walls, crowds would regularly gather below the walls to receive his blessing.

Thanks to changes in the regime and to support from abroad, particularly from Britain, Patriarch Tikhon was not put on trial or executed. On 13 April 1923, the Archbishop Randall Davidson of Canterbury and other British religious leaders, including the Chief Rabbi, issued a statement condemning religious persecution in the Soviet Union.

The British Foreign Secretary issued an ultimatum to the Soviet government on 8 May 1923, condemning ‘the definite object of destroying all religion in Russia’ and threatening to break off relations. The Soviet leadership was desperate to preserve the 1921 Anglo-Soviet Trade Treaty and to maintain good relations with Britain.

When Patriarch Tikhon died on 12 April 1925, between 30,000 and 40,000 attended his funeral in the Donskoi Monastery, many more than attended Lenin’s funeral the previous year.

Patriarch Tikhon defies definition, challengec the capitulation of many Christian leaders to the Trump regime in the US, and stands in sharp contrast to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow

Patriarch Tikhon defies definition as either a dissident or a collaborator. He endeavoured to preserve the Russian Orthodox Church while he tried to remain apolitical, and he criticised the Communist regime without opposing it.

He is a challenge to the capitulation of many Christian leaders to the Trump regime in the US. During his time as a bishop in the US, he came to appreciate democracy, plurality and diversity, and the separation of Church and State.

He also stands in sharp contrast to the present head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, with his intimate relationship with the Putin regime, his autocratic approach to church leadership, and his persistent attempts to sow divisions within the Orthodox churches.

The Orthodox Public Affairs Committee (OPAC) said earlier this week: ‘Rather than serving as a prophetic voice for peace, reconciliation, and the sanctity of every human life, Patriarch Kirill has repeatedly offered religious justification for Russia’s unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine. He has portrayed the invasion as a sacred struggle, blessed those waging war, and increasingly intertwined the mission of the Russian Orthodox Church with the geopolitical ambitions of the Kremlin.’

Patriarch Kirill’s recent statements are disturbing and troubling. He has described Russia’s nuclear arsenal as a manifestation of God's ‘grace and mercy’ and he has claimed that the creation of the Soviet atomic bomb came about through divine providence and the prayers of Saint Seraphim of Sarov (1754-1833), a Russian saint known for his life of contemplation and kindness.

His invocation of one of Orthodoxy’s most beloved saints in defence of nuclear weapons that are capable of unimaginable destruction is a profound distortion of the Christian faith. The Gospel proclaims peace, reconciliation, and the sacred dignity of every human person and must never be used to sanctify war, imperial conquest, or nuclear intimidation.

For more than four years, the Ukrainian people have endured the horrors of an unprovoked war with extraordinary courage, resilience, and unwavering faith. Families have been torn apart, cities have been reduced to rubble, and countless innocent lives have been changed forever.

In response, the Saint Nicholas National Shrine recently presented its Beacon of Hope Award to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine, recognising their courage, sacrifice, and resilience.

The National Shrine of Saint Nicholas was established to bear witness to the Light of Christ in the midst of darkness. It stands at the World Trade Centre as a place of prayer, remembrance and healing, and a reminder that evil and hatred will never have the final word. The US is about to mark the 25th anniversary of the ‘9/11’ attacks on 11 September 2001, the shrine is a ‘beacon of hope’ to all who suffer from violence, war, terrorism, and despair.

The shrine’s decision to honour President Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine has been criticised by Patriarch Kirill’s apologists, who have claimed that Ukraine is persecuting Christianity and ‘shutting down churches’.

Saint Nicholas National Shrine was consecrated in memory of lives lost to terrorism 25 years ago, and remains a reminder to the world, like Patriarch Tikhon, that the Light of Christ continues to shine in the darkness, and the darkness shall never overcome it.

The Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies is on Jesus Lane, Cambridge, beside Jesus College and Wesley House and across the street from Westcott House and Sidney Sussex College (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Ludwig returns to Cambridge with his identical twin brother, but can I solve the mystery of Darwin and the missing link?

The Backs and King’s College are among many of the familiar locations that appear as scenes in the BBC crime drama series ‘Ludwig’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Patrick Comerford

I am delighted that the detective drama Ludwig has returned to the BBC with a second series that began last week (20 August 2026), having enthusiastically watched the first series in 2024.

In both series of Ludwig, David Mitchell stars as John Taylor, a reclusive crossword setter and puzzle maker who publishes his books under the pen name ‘Ludwig’, and his missing identical twin brother, James Taylor, a successful detective chief inspector in the Cambridge police force.

As an enthusiastic fan of the Guardian crossword each day, I was interested to see that the Guardian’s crossword editor Alan Connor was involved in designing the crosswords used in the opening titles of the series; indeed, he also created a series of Ludwig-themed puzzles in the Guardian.

Throughout each episode, I am watching for familiar locations in Cambridge, where much of the plots and storylines are set, including the Backs and the River Cam, King’s College, Queens’ College, Queens’ Lane, Saint John’s College, the Bridge of Sighs, the Old Schools and All Saints’ Passage.

Almost three million viewers watched Episode 1 in Series 2 on BBC 1 last Thursday night (20 August 2026), with Episode 2 going out at 9 pm tonight (27 August 2026). The first three episodes in Series 2 are now available on BBC iPlayer and the remaining three episodes are due to be released on BBC iPlayer on 10 September.

‘Stands the Church clock at ten to three?’ (Rupert Brooke) … the clock at Grantchester Church, which features in the crime series ‘Grantchester’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

In Series 1, John Taylor works his way into the Cambridgeshire Police posing as his missing identical twin brother James. As a fake cop, he uses his pedantic puzzle-solving skills to solve some complex murders in and around Cambridge that make normally sedate Cambridge look like a more dangerous place to live in than Albert Square in EastEnders.

Oxford has Inspector Morse, but Cambridge has had its share of television sleuths too, including the vicars in the ITV detective drama Grantchester (2014-2026), filmed mainly in the village of Grantchester and in central Cambridge, with locations that include King’s Parade, Saint John’s College and the River Cam.

In addition, the four episodes of Porterhouse Blue (1987), a Channel 4 comedy series adapted from Tom Sharpe’s 1974 novel, were filmed mainly in Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, where I was a student over the years on a number of courses in association with the Institute of Orthodox Christian Studies (IOCS).

Sidney Sussex College provided the location for the Channel 4 comedy series ‘Porterhouse Blue’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

BBC’s Ludwig is primarily set in and filmed in Cambridge. The actor David Mitchell went to Peterhouse in Cambridge in 1993 to study history, and as an undergraduate he joined the Cambridge Footlights dramatic club.

Ludwig inevitably includes numerous positioning shots – usually aerial – of Cambridge. The locations, backdrops and shots include King’s College, the River Cam, Saint John’s College and the Bridge of Sighs, Queens’ College, Queens’ Lane and the Mathematical Bridge, Silver Street, Silver StreetBridge and the Anchor, and the Millpond.

Episode 3 next week in the new series has many street scenes in central Cambridge, including Portugal Place, Market Hill, Trinity Lane and Garrett Hostel Bridge. But there are many fictional locations too, including the ‘Scholar's Fountain’ and Turing Lane. The theatre where last week’s murder scene is located is certainly not in Cambridge … it is, in fact, the Theatre Royal in Windsor.

The fictional Cambridge Police Authority station was filmed at Stockley Park Business Centre, a glass-fronted modern business park building in outer London. The grim offices of the fictional East Anglia Advertiser have been filmed at Pentland site off Squires Lane in Finchley. Its sad decline as a newspaper reminds me of the decline of the Lichfield Mercury a few years ago.

Locations beyond Cambridge include Moor Park Golf Club in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, North Mymms Park near Hatfield in Hertfordshire and locations in and around London including Ham Yard Hotel.

Doppelganger or ‘missing link’? … Charles Darwin’s plaque in the Great Gate at Christ’s College(Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Back in Cambridge last month, introducing a friend from Ireland to the Cambridge I have known for 20 years, the question of a doppelganger or curious lookalike surfaced in a humorous moment at the Great Gate or porters’ lodge at Christ’s College.

This gate and tower, which have been restored and regilded in recent years, date back to the 16th century when Christ’s College was founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort. As we stood there looking into First Court and the chapel, an American couple commented, half joking and wholly in earnest, on the likeness of the plaque behind me of Charles Darwin.

I have been a guest in Christ’s College many times, and I have preached in the chapel and was a visiting lecturer back in 2009. So I have always been aware of Darwin’s place in the history of the college. But there have also been rumours in family lore and legend that Charles Darwin was related to the Comberford family of Comberford Hall.

The nearest thing I can find to an actual link, though. is through a web of marriages rather than any direct genealogical connection. Charles Darwin’s father, Robert Waring Darwin, grew up as the step-brother of Sacheverell Chandos-Pole. Sacheverell’s son, the Revd William Chandos-Pole, held a kinship equivalent to a first cousin of Charles Darwin through marriage, and his son later had family ties that had a brief connection with Comberford Hall.

First Court and the Chapel in Christ’s College, Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

I have described this tenuous relationship as a true ‘missing link’, but any direct connection between Charles Darwin and Comberford Hall is extremely remote, and indirect, and I have only traced these through collateral marital relations in Staffordshire. Perhaps I need Ludwig’s puzzle-solving skills if I am ever going to find this ‘missing link’.

But there is another puzzle in Ludwig: is the plot about a missing identical twin brother, about a doppelganger, or about a personality disorder?

The BBC confirmed last month that it has commissioned a third series of Ludwig. We may have to wait until then to put other pieces in the puzzle back into place.

All Saints’ Passage … one of the familiar scenes in Cambridge that provide locations for ‘Ludwig’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 93, Saturday 8 August 2026

The sycamore fig, the mulberry and the fig are all related … a fig tree near Pavlos Beach in Platanias near Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and tomorrow is the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X, 9 August 2026). Today, the calendar of the Church of England in Common Worship recalls Saint Dominic (1170-1221), Priest, Founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans).

I am working on completing the intercessions at the Parish Eucharist in Saint Mary and Saint Giles Church, Stony Stratford. At the same time, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘If you have faith the size of a mustard seed’ (Matthew 17: 20) … Wisdom (Sophia) and her daughters Faith, Hope and Love depicted in a fresco in the Church of the Transfiguration in Piskopianó in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 17: 14-20 (NRSVA):

14 When they came to the crowd, a man came to him, knelt before him, 15 and said, ‘Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly; he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.’ 17 Jesus answered, ‘You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.’ 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was cured instantly. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ 20 He said to them, ‘Because of your little faith. For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there”, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.’

A mulberry tree in Stoke Bruerne in Northamptonshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

We have a patio area in Stony Stratford but no garden, and I have never had any real interest in gardening. Nor could anyone ever say I had ‘green fingers’. But, when I lived in houses with gardens, I liked sitting in those garden, reading in the sunshine, listening to the sound of a small fountain, enjoying the shade of the trees, and in summertime, eating out in the open.

So, it is not that I do not enjoy the garden. It is just simply that I have always felt I am no good at it.

It is an attitude that may have been nurtured and cultured by heavy hay-fever from early childhood, hay-fever that comes back to haunt me persistently at summer-time, and that has been a burden in recent weeks.

I remember once buying a willow tree in the early 1980s, and travelling back across Dublin with it in the back of a small car, a small Mini, me holding on to the tree as it stuck out the side window. By the time I got back to the house, I was covered in rashes, and my eyes, ears and nose were in a deep state of irritation. It must have been related to those willow trees in Psalm 137, because afterwards I sat down and wept.

For that reason alone, you could not call me a ‘tree hugger.’ But do not get me wrong … I really do like trees.

I relish spending time in the vast, expansive olive groves that stretch for miles and miles along the mountainsides in Crete, or in vineyards where the olive groves protect the vines.

But I cannot be trusted with trees. I was once given a present of a miniature orange tree … and it died within weeks. I have been given presents of not one, but two olive trees. One, sadly, died. The other is still growing at the house I once lived in, but it is a tiny little thing. Perhaps if I had just a little faith in my ability to help trees to grow, they would have survived and matured.

We may wonder why Christ decides to talk about a mustard seed and a mulberry tree, rather than, say, an olive tree. After all, as he was talking during the incident in today’s Gospel reading at the Eucharist (Matthew 17: 14-20), he must have been surrounded by grove upon grove of olive trees.

But, I can imagine, he is also watching to see if those who are listening have switched off their humour mode, if they have withdrawn their sense of humour. He is talking here with a great sense of humour, using hyperbole to underline his point.

We all know a tiny grain of mustard is incapable of growing to a big tree. So, what is Christ talking about here? Because, he not only caught the disciples off-guard with his hyperbole and sense of humour … he even wrong-footed some of the Reformers and many Bible translators who make mistakes about what sort of trees he is talking about this morning.

Why did Christ refer to a mustard seed and a mulberry or sycamine tree, and not, say, an olive tree, or an oak tree?

Christ first uses the example of a tiny, miniscule kernel or seed (κόκκος, kokkos), from which the small mustard plant (σίναπι, sinapi) grows. But mustard is an herb, not a tree. Not much of a miracle, you might say: tiny seed, tiny plant.

But he then mixes his metaphors and refers to another plant. Martin Luther, in his translation of the Bible, turned the tree (verse 6) into a mulberry tree. The mulberry tree – both the black mulberry and the white mulberry – is from the same family as the fig tree.

As children, some of us sang or played to the nursery rhyme or song, Here we go round the mulberry bush. Another version is Here we go gathering nuts in May. The same tune is used for the American rhyme Pop goes the weasel and for the Epiphany carol, I saw three ships.

Of course, mulberries do not grow on bushes, and they do not grow nuts that are gathered in May. Nor is the mulberry a very tall tree – it grows from tiny seeds but only reaches the height of an adult. It is not a very big tree at all. It is more like a bush than a tree – and it is easy to uproot too.

However, the tree Christ names (Greek συκάμινος, sikámeenos) is the sycamine tree, which has the shape and leaves of a mulberry tree but fruit that tastes like the fig, or the sycamore fig (συκόμορος, Ficus Sycomorus).

Others think the tree referred to here is the sycamore fig (συκόμορος, Ficus Sycomorus), a tree we know as the big tree that little Zacchaeus climbs in Jericho to see Jesus (see Luke 19: 1-10).

The sycamine tree is not naturally pollinated. The pollination process is initiated only when a wasp sticks its stinger right into the heart of the fruit. In other words, the tree and its fruit have to be stung in order to reproduce. There is a direct connection between suffering and growth, but also a lesson that everything in creation, including the wasp, has its place in the intricate balance of nature.

Whether it is a small seed like the mustard seed, a small, seemingly useless and annoying creature like the wasp, or a small and despised figure of fun like Zacchaeus, each has value in God’s eyes, and each has a role in the great harvest of gathering in for God’s Kingdom.

Put more simply, it is quality and not quantity that matters.

Here are six little vignettes about faith that I came across:

1, Once all the villagers decided to pray for rain. On the day of prayer, all the people gathered, but only one little boy came with an umbrella. That is faith.

2, When you throw babies in the air, they laugh because they know you will catch them. That is trust.

3, Every night we go to bed without any assurance of being alive the next morning, but still we set the alarm to wake us. That is hope.

4, We plan big things for tomorrow in spite of zero knowledge of the future. That is confidence.

5, We see the world suffering, but still people get married and have children. That is love.

6, There is a man who wears a T-shirt with the slogan: ‘I am not 80 years old; I am sweet 16 with 64 years of experience.’ That is attitude.

This morning’s Gospel reading challenges us to pay attention to our attitude to, to the quality of, our faith, trust, hope, confidence, love and positivity. And if we do so, we will be surprised by the results.

Perhaps I should have paid more attention to those small olive tree I received as gifts.

Faith is powerful enough to face all our fears and all impossibilities. Even if our germ of faith is tiny, if it is genuine there can be real growth beyond what we can see in ourselves, and certainly beyond what others can see in us.

Figs ripening on the branches of a fig tree in Platanias, near Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Saturday 8 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (2-8 August 2026, pp 24-25), has been ‘Faith Under Pressure in Nicaragua’. This theme was introduced last Sunday with a Reflection by the Most Revd Juan David Alvarado, Bishop of El Salvador and Primate of the Province of the Anglican Church in Central America.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Saturday 8 August 2026) invites us to pray:

God of compassion, be near to those who have been silenced, displaced, or stripped of identity. May they know they are not forgotten, and be sustained by your presence and love.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
whose servant Dominic grew in the knowledge of your truth
and formed an order of preachers to proclaim the faith of Christ:
by your grace give to all your people a love for your word
and a longing to share the gospel,
so that the whole world may come to know you
and your Son Jesus Christ our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Merciful God,
who gave such grace to your servant Dominic
that he served you with singleness of heart
and loved you above all things:
help us, whose communion with you
has been renewed in this sacrament,
to forsake all that holds us back from following Christ
and to grow into his likeness from glory to glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Collect on the Eve of Trinity X:

Let your merciful ears, O Lord,
be open to the prayers of your humble servants;
and that they may obtain their petitions
make them to ask such things as shall please you;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

A window by Edward Burne-Jones in the north transept of Jesus College Chapel, Cambridge, depicting Faith (centre), between Hope and Charity (Photographs: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 92, Friday 7 August 2026

‘Whosever will come after me, let him take up their cross and follow me’ (Matthew 16: 24) … Station V in the Stations of the Cross by Irene Ogden in Saint Julian’s Church, Norwich (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Ninnth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity IX, 2 August 2026). Today, the calendar of the Church of England in Common Worship recalls John Mason Neale (1818-1866), Priest, Hymn Writer. Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘Let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’ (Matthew 16: 24) … Simon of Cyrene takes up the Cross, Station 5 in the Stations of the Cross in the chapel of Saint John’s Hospital, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 16: 24-28 (NRSVA):

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?

27 ‘For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. 28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.’

‘For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?’ (Matthew 16: 26) … torn and ragged banknotes in a tin box outside an antiques shop in Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

In the Gospel reading at the Eucharist today (Matthew 16: 24-28), Christ and the disciples are near the villages of Caesarea Philippi, in today’s Golan Heights. Christ has both commended Peter for his faith and warned him of the danger of being a stumbling block.

To their dismay, Christ now speaks openly about his imminent death and resurrection. He then describes true discipleship: first, a disciple must follow him and renounce self-centeredness (verse 23). Those who are prepared to give even their lives for his sake and for the sake of spreading the good news will find true life verse 24). But those who opt for material well-being deny their true selves and lose out (verse 26).

There is a cost to discipleship, but the challenge to take up the Cross and to follow Christ is open to all.

God in Christ has come to enfold humanity. The cross will not stop the proclamation of the Good News, nor will it keep salvation history from breaking into the cosmos.

So often, in the face of criticism, the Christian response is either to shut down or to retreat to a different understanding of God and Jesus. But Christ tells the people that if they want to follow him on the journey, there is a cost to discipleship.

We are challenged to take up our cross and follow Christ on that journey.

Christianity cannot be reduced to an individual mental or philosophical decision. It is a journey with Christ and with not only the disciples but with the crowd, the many, who are also invited to join that journey.

If Saint Peter knew what was ahead of him, perhaps he might have been even more vocal in rebuking Christ in yesterday’s Gospel reading. But the triumph comes not in getting what we want, not in engineering things so that God gives us what we desire and wish for, so that we get a Jesus who does the things we want him to do. The triumph comes in the Resurrection.

True discipleship and true prayer mean making God’s priorities my priorities: the poor, the sick, the imprisoned, the isolated, the marginalised, the victims, the unloved. If that is difficult, nobody said that being a Christian was going to be easy, that being a Christian would not cost anything.

As the German martyr and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer might have put it, being a disciple means having to pay the cost of discipleship. There is no cheap Christianity and there is no cheap grace.

The late Pope Francis once put it another way. Referring to discipleship and the traditional Lenten fast, he asked, ‘Do you want to fast this Lent?’ And then, he answered:

Fast from hurting words and say kind words.

Fast from sadness and be filled with gratitude.

Fast from anger and be filled with patience.

Fast from pessimism and be filled with hope.

Fast from worries and have trust in God.

Fast from complaints; contemplate simplicity.

Fast from pressures and be prayerful.

Fast from bitterness; fill your hearts with joy.

Fast from selfishness and be compassionate.

Fast from grudges and be reconciled.

Fast from words; be silent and listen.

‘Let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’ (Matthew 16: 24) … the Stations of the Cross in Saint Gregory’s Armenian Church, Singapore (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Friday 7 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (2-8 August 2026, pp 24-25), is ‘Faith Under Pressure in Nicaragua’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a Reflection by the Most Revd Juan David Alvarado, Bishop of El Salvador and Primate of the Province of the Anglican Church in Central America.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Friday 7 August 2026) invites us to pray:

Lord Jesus, renew hope in your missions, parishes, and communities. Give your people a missionary heart - open to all, ready to accompany those who suffer, and to speak words of hope.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
who sent your Holy Spirit
to be the life and light of your Church:
open our hearts to the riches of your grace,
that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit
in love and joy and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Holy Father,
who gathered us here around the table of your Son
to share this meal with the whole household of God:
in that new world where you reveal the fullness of your peace,
gather people of every race and language
to share in the eternal banquet of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Gracious Father,
revive your Church in our day,
and make her holy, strong and faithful,
for your glory’s sake
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

A Cross in the north aisle in Saint Bene’t’s Church, Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

The Greeks have a word (or two) for it: 65, Odyssey (η Οδύσσεια) and Odysseus (Ὀδυσσεύς)

How many would-be critics of ‘The Odyssey’ know the meaning of ‘Odyssey’ or the name of Odysseus? … a sailing ship at sunset in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Christopher Nolan’s film The Odyssey is continuing to be a box-office success, and is continuing to inspire criticism and evoke responses not only from film critics but from classicists too and also from people interested in Greek culture and language.

In my reflections in prayer diary this morning, I referred to the small island of Gavdos off the south coast of Crete which is said to be the Ogygia of Calypso where Odysseus stayed for seven years. I have often looked out across to this Ogygia or Gavdos from Preveli Monastery, and so the fires that have devastated the forests and landscape in the Preveli area in the past week are particularly poignant and heart-breaking for me.

But as I was reading some of the more absurd nit-picking about Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey, I wondered too how many of those would-be classicists, including Elon Musk, with his very weird observations, have ever read The Odyssey in its original Homeric Greek, how many understand that it is epic poetry and not historical narrative, and how many actually try to understand the meaning of the name Odyssey or the name of the hero Odysseus?

The Odyssey (η Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia) is one of two major epics in ancient Greek literature attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest surviving works of literature and remains popular with modern audiences.

Like the Iliad, the Odyssey is divided into 24 books. It follows Odysseus, also known in Latin as Ulysses, the heroic king of Ithaca, and his journey home after the ten-year Trojan War. His journey from Troy to Ithaca lasts an additional ten years, during which he encounters many perils and all of his crew members are killed.

During Odysseus’s long absence, he is presumed dead, leaving his wife Penelope and their son Telemachus to contend with a group of unruly suitors vying for Penelope’s hand in marriage.

The Odyssey was first composed around the eighth or seventh century BCE, and by the mid-sixth century BCE, it was part of the Greek literary canon. In antiquity, Homer’s authorship was accepted, but contemporary scholarship assumes that the Iliad and the Odyssey were composed independently, as part of long oral traditions.

In a time when illiteracy was widespread, the poem was performed for an audience by an aoidos (ἀοιδός) or skilled singer.

The key themes in the epic include those of νόστος (nostos, return or homecoming), which gives us the concept of nostalgia, wandering, ξενία (xenia, guest-friendship), testing and omens. while the Iliad centres on the exploits of soldiers and kings during the Trojan War, some groups in the Odyssey, such as women and slaves, have larger roles than in other works of ancient literature, making the poem relevant to today’s agendas.

The Odyssey is one of the most significant works of the western canon. Its first complete English translation was published in 1616 and it remains one of the most enduring narratives in literature.

Posters for ‘The Odyssey’ at Arts Picturehouse, Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Odysseus (Ὀδυσσεύς or Ὀδυσεύς, Odysseús or Odyseús) of Greek mythology was known in Roman mythology by the Latin variant Ulysses (Ulysses or Ulixes).

Odysseus was the son of Laërtes and Anticlea, the husband of Penelope, and the father of Telemachus, Acusilaus, and Telegonus. He is cunning with an edge of pride, a liar and a storyteller, too smart by far so that he can wriggle his way out of any tight corner. He has a determination to get his homecoming at almost any cost.

He is renowned for his intellectual brilliance, guile, and versatility. The term πολῠ́τροπος (polytropos) literally means ‘man of many turns’, while some translations ‘man of twists and turns’ and ‘a complicated man’. This, in turn, gives him the epithet Ὀδυσσεύς ὁ πολύμητις (Odysseus ho polymetis), Odysseus the Cunning, μῆτις (mêtis) meaning ‘cunning intelligence’.

Ὀδυσ(σ)εύς (Odys(s)eus) is used as the form of his name starting in the epic period and through the classical period. But other forms and variations are found. In vase inscriptions, the variants include Oliseus (Ὀλισεύς), Olyseus (Ὀλυσεύς), Olysseus (Ὀλυσσεύς), Olyteus (Ὀλυτεύς), Olytteus (Ὀλυττεύς) and Ōlysseus (Ὠλυσσεύς). Other forms of his name include Oulixēs (Οὐλίξης) and Oulixeus (Οὐλιξεύς).

But the etymology of his name remains unknown. Ancient authors link his name to the Greek verbs ὀδύσσομαι (odussomai) ‘to be wroth against, to hate’; ὀδύρομαι (oduromai), ‘to lament, bewail’; or even to ὄλλυμι (ollumi) ‘to perish’, ‘to be lost’.

Homer relates the name to various forms of this verb in references and puns. In Book 19 of the Odyssey, where Odysseus’s early childhood is recounted, Euryclea asks the boy’s grandfather Autolycus to name him. Euryclea seems to suggest a name like Πολυάρητος (Polyaretos), ‘for he has much been prayed for’.

But Autolycus, ‘apparently in a sardonic mood’, decided to give the child another name recalling ‘his own experience in life’: ‘Since I have been angered (ὀδυσσάμενος odyssamenos) with many, both men and women, let the name of the child be Odysseus’.

Odysseus also receives the patronymic epithet Laertiades (Λαερτιάδης), ‘son of Laërtes’.

In Latin, he was known as Ulixēs or Ulyssēs, but the origins of the Latin form have different explanations. However, I sometimes wonder whether James Joyce’s great work Ulysses would have the same impact if he had named it Odysseus or even The Odyssey.

For my reflections on Christopher Nolan’s film The Odyssey, see this posting on 21 July 2027.

For the word Ὀδύσσεια (Odyssey) alone, see an earlier posting in this series: The Greeks have a word for it: 39, Odyssey, Ὀδύσσεια (7 May 2024).

A poster at the bus station in Rethymnon reminded me I was setting out on an Odyssey (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Previous words in this series:

1, Neologism, Νεολογισμός.

2, Welcoming the stranger, Φιλοξενία.

3, Bread, Ψωμί.

4, Wine, Οίνος and Κρασί.

5, Yogurt, Γιαούρτι.

6, Orthodoxy, Ορθοδοξία.

7, Sea, Θᾰ́λᾰσσᾰ.

8,Theology, Θεολογία.

9, Icon, Εἰκών.

10, Philosophy, Φιλοσοφία.

11, Chaos, Χάος.

12, Liturgy, Λειτουργία.

13, Greeks, Ἕλληνες or Ρωμαίοι.

14, Mañana, Αύριο.

15, Europe, Εὐρώπη.

16, Architecture, Αρχιτεκτονική.

17, The missing words.

18, Theatre, θέατρον, and Drama, Δρᾶμα.

19, Pharmacy, Φᾰρμᾰκείᾱ.

20, Rhapsody, Ραψῳδός.

21, Holocaust, Ολοκαύτωμα.

22, Hygiene, Υγιεινή.

23, Laconic, Λακωνικός.

24, Telephone, Τηλέφωνο.

25, Asthma, Ασθμα.

26, Synagogue, Συναγωγή.

27, Diaspora, Διασπορά.

28, School, Σχολείο.

29, Muse, Μούσα.

30, Monastery, Μοναστήρι.

31, Olympian, Ολύμπιος.

32, Hypocrite, Υποκριτής.

33, Genocide, Γενοκτονία.

34, Cinema, Κινημα.

35, autopsy and biopsy

36, Exodus, ἔξοδος

37, Bishop, ἐπίσκοπος

38, Socratic, Σωκρατικὸς

39, Odyssey, Ὀδύσσεια

40, Practice, πρᾶξις

41, Idiotic, Ιδιωτικός

42, Pentecost, Πεντηκοστή

43, Apostrophe, ἀποστροφή

44, catastrophe, καταστροφή

45, democracy, δημοκρατία

46, ‘Αρχή, beginning, Τέλος, end

47, ‘Αποκάλυψις, Apocalypse

48, ‘Απόκρυφα, Apocrypha

49, Ἠλεκτρον (Elektron), electric

50, Metamorphosis, Μεταμόρφωσις

51, Bimah, βῆμα

52, ἰχθύς (ichthýs) and ψάρι (psari), fish.

53, Τὰ Βιβλία (Ta Biblia), The Bible

54, Φῐλοξενῐ́ᾱ (Philoxenia), true hospitality

55, εκκλησία (ekklesia), the Church

56, ναός (naos) and ἱερός (ieros), a church

57, Χριστούγεννα (Christougenna), Christmas

58, ἐπιφάνεια (epipháneia), θεοφάνεια, (theopháneia), Epiphany and Theophany

59, Ζέφυρος (Zéphuros), the West Wind

60, Αύριο (Avrio), Tomorrow

61, καλημέρα (κaliméra), ‘Good Morning’, and καλαμάρι, κalamári, ‘squid’

62, Ελευθερία ή θάνατος, ‘Freedom or Death’

63, Ποδόσφαιρο, ‘Football’

64, καφές (coffee), Φραπές (frappé)

65, Odyssey (η Οδύσσεια) and Odysseus (Ὀδυσσεύς)

Series to be continued

Penelope waiting for Odysseus … Μαριάννα Βαλλιάνου, Η επιστροφή, Mariánna Valliánou, ‘The Return’

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 88, Monday 3 August 2026

‘He made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side’ (Matthew 14: 22) … a fishing boat on the Sarawak River in Kuching (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Ninth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity IX, 2 August 2026).

Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

Punters on the Backs and the River Cam behind King’s College, Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Matthew 14: 22-36 (NRSVA):

22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. 25 And early in the morning he came walking towards them on the lake. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’

28 Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ 29 He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. 30 But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ 32 When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’

34 When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. 35 After the people of that place recognized him, they sent word throughout the region and brought all who were sick to him, 36 and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.

Boats at Salter’s by Folly Bridge in Oxford (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Today’s Reflections

In last year or two, I have enjoyed being on boats in Sarawak and Singapore, barge trips on the Grand Union Canal, and watching rowers and boats in York, on the Backs in Cambridge, on the river in Oxford and in York. I even had the pleasure many years ago of one college boat club in Cambridge asking to use one of my photographs in a fundraising drive.

It is almost 60 years since I first went rowing as a teenager on Lough Ramor in Virginia. But I had long thought that I would be left regretting that I had taken up courses in Cambridge when I was too late in life to learn, or to re-learn, how to row.

I had come to enjoy rowing as a sport and an activity, but in a very passive way.

Then, shortly after I arrived in Askeaton in 2017, one evening, as I was standing at a slipway by the banks of the Rover Deel, I was invited suddenly and unexpectedly to get into a boat and to row.

I was fearless. It was a pleasure I had often hoped for and wished for. And for almost an hour, we rowed upstream, under the bridge at Askeaton, and as far as the castle, and then downstream past the factory, although not as far as the estuary. When I suggested that I might be too old to learn, or re-learn, how to row, I was told brusquely and with humour that once I stopped learning I had stopped living.

Later that same week, I watched children and teenagers hop in and out of boats, freely and fearlessly, confident of their own ability and the ability of those who were training them.

Fearlessly. But as I was messing about on boats in Crete some weeks earlier, hopping on and off them in the sun as I visited smaller islands and lagoons, I thought of how this was a pleasure that I was paying for and wondered but how many refugees were full of fear as they boarded boats in the dark trying to arrive on Greek islands, having paid exorbitantly for the risk and the dangers.

Fearlessly. What are your worst fears?

I know, at present, many of us have fears arising out of the wars between Russia and Ukraine, the wars involving the US in Iran and the Gulf, Israel in Gaza and Lebanon, and the global insecurity created by the mercurial decision-making by the Trump regime.

As we grow up and mature, we tend to have fewer fears of the outside world, and as adults we begin to cope with the fears we once had as children, by turning threats into opportunities.

The fears I had as a child – of snakes, of the wind, of storms at sea, of lightning – are no longer the stuff of recurring nightmares they were as a child. I have learned to be cautious, to be sensible and to keep my distance, and to be in awe of God’s creation.

But most of us have recurring dreams that are vivid and that have themes that keep repeating themselves. They fall into a number of genres, and most psychotherapists identify a number of these types of dreams that most of us deal with in our sleep at various stages in adult life.

They include dreams about:

• Drowning.

• Finding myself unprepared for a major function or event, whether it is social or work-related.

• Flying or floating in the air, but then falling suddenly.

• Being caught naked in public.

• Missing a train, a bus or a plane.

• Caught in loos or lifts that do not work, or that overwork themselves.

• Calling out in a crowd but failing to vocalise my scream or not being heard in the crowd or recognised.

• Falling, falling into an abyss.

There are others. But in sleep the brain can act as a filter or filing cabinet, helping us to process, deal with and put aside what we have found difficult to understand in our waking hours, or to try to find ways of dealing with our lack of confidence, feelings of inadequacy, with the ways we confuse gaining attention with receiving love, or with our needs to be accepted, affirmed and loved.

There are two choices in the lectionary for Gospel readings at the Eucharist today: Matthew 14: 13-21, or Matthew 14: 22-36. The first choice was also the Gospel reading yesterday.

In this second, alternative Gospel reading (Matthew 14: 22-36), Saint Peter’s plight seems to be a working out of a constant, recurring, vivid dream of the type that many of us experience at some stage: the feelings of drowning, floating and falling suddenly, being in a crowd and yet alone, calling out and not being heard, or not being recognised for who we are.

Peter sees Christ walking on the lake or floating effortlessly above the water. At first, he thinks he is seeing a ghost. But then Christ calls to him, and Saint Peter responds.

Once he recognises Christ, Saint Peter gets out of the boat, starts walking on the water, and comes towards Christ. But he loses his confidence when he notices the strong wind, he is frightened, and he begins to sink.

He cries out: ‘Lord, save me.’ Christ immediately reaches out his hand and catches him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’

They get back into the boat, the wind ceases. And those in the boat worship him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’

Was the sight of Christ walking on the water an illusion?

Was Peter’s idea that he could walk on the water the product of an over-worked mind while he was sleeping?

Did he realise he was unprepared for the great encounter?

Did the wind cease when he woke from the dream?

All of these questions are over-analytical and fail to deal with the real encounter that takes place.

Even before the Resurrection, in his frailty, in his weakness, in his humble humanity, Saint Peter calls out to Christ: ‘Lord, save me’ (verse 30).

Do the others in the boat fall down at Christ’s feet and worship him because he can walk on water? Because he can lift a drowning man out of the depths? Or because they recognise that in Christ they can find the end to all their worst dreams and nightmares?

Despite the heatwaves we have been experiencing this summer, we know too, as they say, to expect the unexpected when we are on water, whether it is a river or a canal, a lake or at sea. Everyone needs to know that the weather can turn, the waters can become choppy, and this can be a frightening experience, even on rivers, close to the river bank and close to firm land.

As seasoned boat-handlers, the Disciples know not to try walking on water. They know the risk of sudden storms and swells, and they know the safety of a good boat, as long as it has a good crew.

But since the early history of the Church, the boat has symbolised the Church.

The bark (barque or barchetta) symbolises the Church tossed on the sea of disbelief, worldliness, and persecution but finally reaching safe harbour. Part of the imagery comes from the ark saving Noah’s family during the Flood (I Peter 3: 20-21). Christ protects Peter’s boat and the Disciples on the stormy Sea of Galilee (see also Mark 6: 45-52; John 6 16-21). The mast forms the shape of the Cross.

It is an image that appears in Apostolic Constitutions and the writings of Tertullian and Clement of Alexandria. We still retain the word nave for the main part of the church, which, architecturally often looks like an up-turned boat.

So, I do would not want any of us to risk walking on water, or to play stupidly in boats on the river or on a lake, and certainly not off the coast or out to see.

But if we are to dream dreams for our parishes, for the Church, for the Kingdom of God, we need to be aware that it comes at the risk of feeling our dreams may be the nightmares of others.

If we are going to dream dreams for our parishes, for the Church, for the Kingdom of God, we may need to step out of our safety zones, our comfort zones, and know that this comes with a risk warning.

And if we are going to dream dreams for our parishes, for the Church, for the Kingdom of God, we need to keep our eyes focussed on Christ, and to know that the Church is there to bring us on that journey.

Let us dream dreams, take risks for the Kingdom of God, step outside the box. But let us keep our eyes on Christ and remember that the boat, the Church, is essential for our journey, and let us continue to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

An icon of the Church as a boat, including Christ, the Apostles and the Church Fathers (Icon: Deacon Matthew Garrett, www.holy-icons.com)

Today’s Prayers (Monday 3 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (2-8 August 2026, pp 24-25), is ‘Faith Under Pressure in Nicaragua’. This theme was introduced yesterday with a Reflection by the Most Revd Juan David Alvarado, Bishop of El Salvador and Primate of the Province of the Anglican Church in Central America.

The USPG prayer diary today (Monday 3 August 2026) invites us to pray:

Lord, strengthen your Church in Nicaragua as it faces fear and persecution. Grant courage and protection to all who continue to witness to your truth.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
who sent your Holy Spirit
to be the life and light of your Church:
open our hearts to the riches of your grace,
that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit
in love and joy and peace;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Holy Father,
who gathered us here around the table of your Son
to share this meal with the whole household of God:
in that new world where you reveal the fullness of your peace,
gather people of every race and language
to share in the eternal banquet of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Gracious Father,
revive your Church in our day,
and make her holy, strong and faithful,
for your glory’s sake
in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

Learning, or re-learning, how to row on the River Deel at Askeaton, Co Limerick

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

‘A little too gorgeous and complete’: the Catholic church in Cambridge owes much to a former ballerina

The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and the English Martyrs (OLEM) stands on the corner of Hills Road and Lensfield Road in Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Patrick Comerford

It is impossible not to notice the exuberantly massive Roman Catholic Church that stands tall on a prominent street corner on the way from the train station into the heart of Cambridge city centre.

This impressive – if not overpowering – castellated Gothic building is known locally as the Catholic church, or simply as ‘the Catholic,’ although local Cambridge Catholics often refer to it affectionately by its acronym, OLEM – Our Lady and the English Martyrs.

It was the first church my friend from Ireland and I visited during our walk-about in Cambridge two weeks ago. She was taking a short ‘top-up’ course in theology, and I was happy to show off the Cambridge I have known for almost 20 years.

The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and the English Martyrs, also known as the Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs (OLEM), stands on the corner of Hills Road and Lensfield Road, a busy junction facing Regent Street and Gonville Place and a prominent corner in south-east Cambridge sometimes known locally as ‘Hyde Park Corner’.

It is a large Gothic Revival church built in 1885-1890, a Grade I listed building and the tallest building in Cambridge at 65 metres (213 ft), including the spire.

The Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs is a large Gothic Revival church in Cambridge designed by Archibald Dunn and Charles Hansom (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

For the first quarter of the 19th century, the nearest place for Catholic worship in Cambridge was at Sawston Hall, about 10k m south of the city. Saint Andrew’s Church was designed in 1842-1843 by AWN Pugin (1812-1852), the great architect of the Gothic revival, and built on Union Road. At the same time, Pugin published his trenchant critique in the Ecclesiologist of the architecture and style of Saint Paul’s Church, close-by on Hills Road. A few years later, Pugin would play an important role in the restoration, decoration and furnishing of the mediaeval chapel in Jesus College in 1846-1849.

The parish priest Canon Thomas Quinlivan (1816-1885) was born in Co Clare, and arrived in Cambridge in 1843. He quickly became a popular figure and acquired additional adjacent land In 1865, but he could not raise adequate funds a new building project needed.

The ban on Roman Catholics attending the university, receiving degrees or holding fellowships in Cambridge colleges, was finally lifted in 1871. Until then, Saint Andrew’s had served the small Catholic community in Cambridge, but the increasing number of Catholic students at the University of Cambridge created the need for a new, much larger church.

With the aid of the Duke of Norfolk, the Lensfield estate was bought in 1879, and the task of raising more funds fell to Canon Quinlivan’s successor, Monsignor Christopher Scott. The new church was all made possible by Yolande Lyne-Stephens (1812-1894), a wealthy widow and famed French-born former ballerina at the Paris Opera and Drury Lane.

Monsignor Scott wished to commemorate the Catholic Martyrs who died between 1535 and 1681, over 30 of whom had been in residence at the University. On the Feast of the Assumption, 15 August 1884, she offered Scott £70,000 – the equivalent of almost £10 million today – to finance building the new church in its entirety, ensuring that it was to be built to her taste. She also paid for other churches, convents and schools in England and for the bishop’s house in Northampton.

Yolande Lyne-Stephens bankrolled the construction of the ‘mini-cathedral’ in Cambridge, one of the largest Catholic churches in England (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

Yolande Lyne-Stephens was the widow of Stephens Lyne-Stephens (1801-1860), a wealthy landowner who was said to be the richest commoner in England, and she bankrolled the construction of this ‘mini-cathedral’ – one of the largest Catholic churches in England.

In her biographical study, The beauty of her age, Jenifer Roberts tells the dark side of the story of Yolande Lyne-Stephens. She was born Pauline Duvernay in poverty in Paris, and by today’s standards, the adults involved in her life in her teens would all be accused of abusing her and her fellow dancers.

Roberts describes how Yolande was sold for sexual assignations from puberty, gave birth to two children, and became the mistress of a succession of men by the age of 18, including Louis Veron, manager of the Paris Opera.

When Yolande married Stephens Lyne-Stephens, the wealthy heir to the Lyne-Stephens glass fortune, she retired from the stage. They were married for 23 years before Stephens Lyne-Stephens died. Numerous court cases followed but Yolande inherited the family fortune and became the wealthiest woman in England – even richer, it was said, than Queen Victoria.

She dedicated the rest of her life to philanthropy and Catholic piety, despite living in a barely disguised ménage-à-trois with General Edward Stopford Claremont (1819-1890) and his Frances Charlotte (Wetherall) – Stopford Claremont was an illegitimate grandson of the 2nd Earl of Courtown.

The church is designed in the Gothic revival style, inspired by the Early Decorated or Middle Pointed style of the late 13th century (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The new church was designed by the architects Archibald Dunn (1832-1912) and Charles Hansom (1842-1900) of Newcastle. Their work includes the tower of the Catholic cathedral in Newcastle (Grade I), and the chapel of Stonyhurst College (Grade II*).

The building work by Rattee and Kett began in 1885, and the foundation stone was laid in June 1887. Despite the ill health of Yolande Lyne-Stephens, the church was completed and then consecrated on 8 October 1890. By the time of its completion, the total cost had risen from £30,000 to £70,000.

The first Mass was attended by all the Roman Catholic bishops of England and Wales except for Cardinal Manning and Bishop Vaughan.

The church is one of the largest Catholic churches in the United Kingdom. Outside and inside, it is a riot of detail and decoration: Gothic gargoyles and sleeping dogs, angels and saints, apostles and martyrs, all decorate and embellish the church in stone and in glass.

It is designed in the Gothic revival style, inspired by the Early Decorated or Middle Pointed style of the last quarter of the 13th century, and follows the traditional cruciform layout. Although it is not traditionally oriented – the High Altar and liturgical east face the geographic south-east – my references follow the conventional liturgical compass points.

The church has a polygonal apse and a central lantern tower. Casterton stone was used for the foundation, Ancaster stone for the plinth, the remainder is Combe Down stone, while the interior is built in Bath stone, Plymouth marble and Newbiggin stone.

The spire, the tallest in Cambridge, is 65 metres (214 ft) high and can be seen for several miles. The approximate internal dimensions are: length 48 metres (157 ft), width across the aisles 16 metres (52 ft), width at the transepts 22 metres (72 ft), and the height of the nave 15 metres (49 ft).

The west front and west door of the church in Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The (north) entrance porch is richly carved and ornamented, with a trumeau featuring Saint John Fisher (1469-1535), cardinal, Bishop of Rochester, Lady Margaret’s Professor of Divinity and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, who was martyred on 22 June 1535. In the tympanum is a figure of the Virgin Mary surrounded by sensing angels and a scrolling vine populated by martyrs.

The best general impression of the interior is obtained from the gateway in the iron screen dividing the nave from the ante-chapel. Inside and over the west door stands the figure of Our Lady of the Assumption crowned with lilies and standing on the crescent moon with the vanquished serpent beneath. The west window shows the English Martyrs arranged in two principal groups, the clergy on the south side with Saint John Fisher in their midst and the laity on the north grouped round Saint Thomas More.

The depictions in the windows include the dedications of Cambridge Colleges and scenes from the lives of English martyrs, in particular Saint John Fisher. The nave windows depict saints connected with the Church in Britain, arranged in chronological order from east to west.

The aisle windows were almost completely destroyed when the church was struck by a bomb on 1941, but were later replaced in their original form. They represent the various sufferings of the English Martyrs, their being brought before the council, racked, hung, drawn and quartered in the sight and sympathy of the faithful.

The north aisle windows depict Carthusians, Saint Thomas Moore, Blessed Margaret Pole and others, while the south aisle is made a ‘Fisher Aisle’, devoted to scenes from the life of Saint John Fisher.

Inside the church, looking from the iron screen dividing the nave from the ante-chapel towards the rood and the liturgucal east end (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The Rood, between the nave and the sanctuary, is of the type known as Majestas, with the figure of Christ with glorified wounds, robed in alb, stole and pallium as High Priest and crowned as King ‘reigning from the Tree’. The oak cross is about 6 metres high, the figures of Christ, the Virgin Mary and Saint John are of Kauri pine. They were carved locally by B Maclean Leach and completed and blessed in 1914.

Beyond the present, modern altar is the High Altar with the relics of Saint Felix and Saint Constantia, early martyrs Church. The tabernacle and ornaments of the altar are French work from Lyons. The baldacchino above the High Altar is similar to one over the tomb of Robert the Wise (1275-1343) at Santa Chiara, Naples. The figure of Christ in glory at the top is supported by angels on each side.

The Chapel of the Holy Souls is at the west end of the south aisle. The sculpture above the altar depicts the solace and relief of the Holy Souls in Purgatory through the intercessions of the Virgin Mary and the angel who comforted Christ in Gethsemane.

The organ was built in 1890 by Abbott and Smith to a specification by the Dublin-born composer Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924), Professor of Music at Cambridge; his students included Herbert Howells, Gustav Holst and Ralph Vaughan Williams.

The north aisle of the church, looking towards the east end (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The belfry houses a ring of eight bells hung for change ringing, with a ninth for the Angelus. All the bells were cast in 1895 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. The tenor bell is believed to be the largest in Cambridgeshire. The chimes heard at each quarter-hour of the clock, made by Potts of Leeds, are based on the ‘Alleluia’ chant for the Easter Vigil.

The church has a 16th-century oak statue of the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child beside the south aisle. The statue is said to have been found in Emmanuel College in 1850, and is said to be the same statue that Thomas Cromwell ordered to be removed in 1538. A notice under the statue the statue of was formerly in the Dominican priory that stood on the site of Emmanuel College.

The one additional donation Yolande Lyne-Stephens consented to was a mediaeval cross from the Austrian aristocrat Baron Anatole von Hügel (1854-1928), curator of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and a prominent Catholic in Cambridge.

The north entrance porch is richly carved and ornamented, with a trumeau featuring Saint John Fisher (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The church was intended to make a strong, dramatic statement of faith in a city that had a strong Protestant tradition. This new Catholic church on such a prominent site, with its dedication to the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, caused much controversy among local Anglicans and members of the university. The steeple was taller than the then recently-completed All Saints’ Church opposite Jesus College, and such a large church outside the Church of England ruffled the feathers of many people in Cambridge.

Perhaps for these reasons and many others, EM Forster says in The Longest Journey that the Catholic church ‘watches over the apostate city, taller by many a yard than anything within, and asserting, however wildly, that here is eternity, stability, and bubbles unbreakable upon a windless sea.’

After its opening, the church saw a great rise in the number of Catholics in the parish. This was partly due to Monsignor Scott’s pastoral work as parish priest and Father Robert Benson’s reputation as a preacher. Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson (1871-1914) was, perhaps, the best-known priest associated with the church is. He had studied classics and theology at Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1890-1893.

Benson was a son of Archbishop Edward White Benson of Canterbury, who had ordained him priest in 1895. But after some time with the Community of the Resurrection, he became a Roman Catholic in 1903, was ordained a priest a year later and was then sent to Cambridge, and was a curate there in 1905-1908.

He found the Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs ‘a little too gorgeous and complete.’ But his impact on Cambridge undergraduates was so great that leading Cambridge Anglicans tried to put pressure on his family to make him leave.

Most of the windows were shattered and damaged during the Blitz in World War II (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

During the Blitz in World War II, a small bomb struck the sacristy during an air raid in 1941, blowing a 6-ft hole in the roof and another in the wall of the Sacred Heart chapel. The blast also shattered most of the windows and collapsed part of the organ gallery.

To bring the sanctuary in line with the liturgical directives resulting from the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), it was redesigned and reordered by Gerard Goalen (1918-1999), a major architect of the Liturgical Movement in Catholic church design. Bishop Charles Grant of Northampton consecrated a new central altar on 7 April 1973. The original high altar was later used mainly for reservation of the Blessed Sacrament.

The Stanford organ was renovated in 2002 by Nicholson & Co Ltd. The choir is semi-professional and includes former university choral scholars. A second choir, the Schola Cantorum, sings almost exclusively in Latin, and sings polyphony and Gregorian chant at the weekly solemn Latin Mass.

Looking out on Hills Road from the north porch (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)

The church was upgraded to a Grade I listed building from Grade II* in 2022. The rectory immediately to the south of the church dates from around 1890. In the Tudor style, of red brick with stone dressings and a castellated slate roof, it is a Grade II listed building.

Today, Cambridge is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia. Meanwhile, Pugin’s old church was dismantled and re-erected as the Church of the Sacred Heart in St Ives in Huntingdonshire and is now listed Grade II.

•The Right Revd Monsignor Provost Eugène Harkness is the Rector and parish priest. Mass times are: Saturday, 10 am and 6 pm (Vigil); Sunday, 8 am, 9:30, 11 am, 1 pm (Polish), 4:30 and 6: 30 (Latin); weekdays, 8 am and 12:15. The church is open daily

The rectory beside of the church is in the Tudor style, and is a Grade II listed building (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)