« Commemorative divine services were held at the spring and at the tomb of St. Frideswide, Abbess of Oxford (VIII) »

On October 30 and November 1, 2022, with the blessing of the Right Reverend Bishop Matthew of Sourozh, annual divine services were celebrated in memory of the heavenly patroness of Oxford, Venerable Frideswide, Abbess of Oxford (VIII).

On Sunday, October 30, a group of pilgrims led by the Dean of the Diocesan District of Central England, Rector of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker in Oxford, Archpriest Stephen Platt, made a pilgrimage to the holy spring of St. Frideswide in the village of Frilsham, near Newbury in Berkshires, where a water blessing moleben was served. In the evening of the same day, Father Stefan celebrated vespers in the nearby church in honour of the Saint, built in the 12th century.

According to church tradition, this is one of the places where the Saint hid from Prince Algar of Leicester, who tried to force her to leave the monastic life and marry him. The holy spring was the place where Saint Frideswide healed the sick with her prayers. It is believed that the nearby ancient church was built on the site where she lived with the nuns before her return to Oxford.

On Tuesday, November 1, on the day of the repose of St. Frideswide, Archpriest Stephen Platt celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the tomb of the holy lady of God in the Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford. During the service, pilgrims from Oxford and nearby settlements prayed and communed the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

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