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really did become something else: it became prayer. I was particularly
struck by two things. Firstly, at the convent, there was a genuine at-
tempt by the priests and ‘???????’ ?????????? (Archpriest) Andrey
Lemeshonok to make an explicit connection for people between liturgy
and life. This was ultimately about living a moral life, which ???????
?????????? (Archpriest) Andrey Lemeshonok made clear meant com-
ing to the ???? often, going to confession, receiving communion, pray-
ing for others, and having the assurance that God loves us more than
our sins. How we relate to others was at the heart of all this, and the
knowledge that it is not possible to live without God (?????? ???? ???
????). The other thing that particularly struck me in the liturgy was the
way all the living and departed were brought together into the one pre-
sent community. Certain actions helped this of course, for example, that
the priests and deacons intoned lists and lists of names both living and
departed, but every person present was also asked to say their name at a
certain point in the liturgy. It was also very apparent how the nature of
the liturgy, especially the Divine Liturgy, was to unfold and live in the
present the whole story of creation, the fall, redemption and, ultimately,
?nal things.

I really did have an extraordinary visit to St Elisabeth’s Convent
and I am very grateful to AECA for such an opportunity. I certainly left
with many thoughts and questions as to the nature and character of our
own Anglican liturgy, particularly the story it tells, especially how it
draws worshippers into the worship of heaven, but also how do we, the
Church, form a connection for people between liturgy and life.

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