Metropolitan Serafim of Penza and Nizhny Lomov Discusses the Service of Laypeople With SFI Teachers and Students
On the 31st of August, an expedition of SFI teachers and students led by Professor Yulia Balakshina visited Penza. Metropolitan Seraphim of Penza and Nizhny Lomov received the group at the Saviour Cathedral’s “Spas Centre” for Spiritual Enlightenment.
The group spoke about preparation of clergy and catechesis for laypeople, about the practice of confession in different Orthodox church jurisdictions, about the experience of reading the Gospel with groups of adults and young people, about possible forms for preaching in the contemporary setting, about Bible study groups, and how to bring people into the Church in such a way that they are “coming home”. They also discussed the issue of spiritual life in the world and in the family, and discussed how divine providence works in the life of the faithful.
Metropolitan Seraphim presented the group with an icon of the Mother of God of Kazan and Penza as a parting gift, and the expedition’s participants gave Metropolitan Seraphim various works newly published by St. Philaret’s Institute.
