St Michael’s was privileged to host Theo Andreou on Saturday 13th June after Great Vespers.
About 40 people attended the talk, not only from our own parish, but also from St Marinas Greek Orthodox Parish in Longton, from the Romanian Parish of the Ascension in Meir Park, along with Fr Cyprian and his wife from Preston. It was a joy to host our Orthodox brothers and sisters.
After summarising the basic chapter themes, and describing the role of ‘types’ in the Holy Scriptures, Theo gave us insights into the way in which the Mother of God mystically represents the Church, the New Eve, the source of Life, and the Daughter of Zion, showing us how many of the events in the Old Testament prefigure her, and demonstrating that the writers of the New Testament and the apocryphal writings were using Old Testament scriptures this way when writing during the first and second centuries. We have, in many cases, just lost the ability to see what their references mean.
Theo also debunked the myth that ‘Marian devotion’ is something that developed in the church during and after the fifth century (particularly after the Council of Ephesus in 431AD), showing that indeed it has been present in the Church from the beginning.
Many people took the opportunity to purchase the book and more are available on our bookstall for those that haven’t yet got a copy!
We are grateful to Theo for giving us of his time and expertise, and for enriching our understanding of the Faith. Glory to God!
