« A pilgrimage to the relics of St. Etheldreda, Abbess of Ely »

On June 18, 2023, with the blessing of His Grace Bishop Matthew of Sourozh, a pilgrimage of the clergy and laity of the parish of St. Ephraim the Syrian of Cambridge took place to the relics (right hand) of St. Etheldreda (Audrey), Abbess of Ely (+679) in Ely, Cambridgeshire.

After the Divine Liturgy in the Cambridge parish of St. Ephraim the Syrian, which was officiated by Archpriest Raphael Armour, Dean of the Diocesan District of East Anglia, who was concelebrated by Deacon Silviu-Cosmin Frăteanu, the pilgrims, after the meal, went to the small provincial town of Ely, located half an hour of driving to the north-east of Cambridge. In the old Catholic church in honour of St. Etheldreda, where the right hand of the Saint is kept, a moleben was served in front of her holy relics, after which the pilgrims were able to venerate the shrine. At the end of the moleben, Archpriest Raphael addressed those present with words of spiritual edification, telling about the life and miracles of the Holy Saint of the undivided Church. Father Raphael drew attention to the fact that the venerable abbess founded a monastery in this place in 673, and that regular pilgrimages to the relics of one of the most famous ascetics of ancient England, have been made for thirteen and a half centuries.

At the end of the trip, the pilgrims shared a common meal on the picturesque bank of the nearby Great Ouse River.

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