This page provides general information about certain occasional services conducted in the Russian Orthodox Church: molebens, memorial services, and the blessing of homes. It was substantially revised on 21 July 2026. Information about other important occasional services is now available at the links below:
In our parish, general services of intercession ("molebens") are served at various times throughout the year. For example, a general moleben to the Mother of God will be served on the feast of her Protection, 14 October, if we have a service on that day, and a general moleben to Saint Nicholas will be served on his feast-days, 22 May and 19 December. General molebens will also be served on the day of other significant saints. At such times, our parishioners and regular worshippers are commemorated by name. Lists of names for this purpose are maintained by our parish priest.
In accordance with the practice of the Russian Orthodox Church, the Order for a Hymn of Supplication for the Conversion of Those in Error is served on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the First Sunday in Great Lent.
General molebens of thanksgiving are customarily served on the feasts of the Transfiguration of the Lord and the Dormition of the Mother of God, days closely associated with the foundations of Russian Orthodoxy in Newcastle and the wider Hunter Valley. They may also be served on significant civil occasions such as Australia Day, or significant dates in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church and people.
The faithful may also ask at any time for molebens for specific purposes. Such purposes include deliverance from sickness and misfortune, help in finding work or housing, and the seeking of God’s blessing and protection before beginning some good work or undertaking a journey. The faithful may also ask for a moleben of thanksgiving when their prayers are answered, or when God’s blessing is particularly felt in their lives. Arrangements for such services should be discussed in person with our parish priest. If the moleben is to be conducted after Divine Liturgy on a Sunday, arrangements may be made on the day; in all other cases, arrangements should be made in advance.
General memorial services (in Russian, панихиды) are also served at various times throughout the year. If we have an evening service scheduled on one of the customary Saturdays of the Departed – the Saturday before Meatfare Sunday, the second, third and fourth Saturdays of Great Lent, and Saint Demetrius Saturday – a general memorial service will usually be served beforehand. The parish maintains a list of departed parishioners and benefactors for commemoration at such services.
In the past, a general memorial service was served after Divine Liturgy on Radonitsa, the second Tuesday of Pascha, followed by graveside services in Wallsend, Sandgate and East Maitland Cemeteries. As of July 2026, it has has been some years since this was possible.
Our departed parishioners and benefactors are also commemorated after Divine Liturgy on our parish feast day of Saint Nicholas, 22 May. The departed parishioners and benefactors of the Holy Protection church in Greta are similarly commemorated on the feast of the Protection of the Mother of God, and the departed parishioners and benefactors of the Theophany parish in Mayfield are commemorated on the Sunday after the Great Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.
If possible, a memorial service for all Orthodox soldiers killed on the field of battle – and, more broadly, all Orthodox Christians killed in war – is served on the feast of the beheading of Saint John the Baptist, 29 August/11 September. Such services may also be offered on Anzac Day, 25 April, and Remembrance Day, 11 November.
If possible, we serve Divine Liturgy for the Departed each year on 22 November, the day of repose of the ever-memorable Archpriest John Lupish. A "parastas", or augmented memorial service, is served the preceding evening. Following Divine Liturgy we gather at his graveside in Sandgate Cemetery for a simple memorial service.
We also endeavour to remember the ever-memorable Ruling Bishops of our Diocese who have departed this life - Archbishop Theodore (Rafalsky)(+5 May 1955), Archbishop Savva (Raevsky)(+17 April 1976), Archbishop Theodosy (Putilin)(+13 August 1980), Archbishop Paul (Pavlov)(+15 February 1995), and Metroplitan Hilarion (Kapral)(+16 May 2022) - together with other significant clergymen of the Australian-New Zealand Diocese and the departed First Hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.
The faithful may also ask at any time for memorial services for their own departed relatives and friends. These may be served in church or at the graveside in one of the cemeteries. As with molebens, arrangements for such services should be discussed with our parish priest. If the memorial service is to be conducted after Divine Liturgy on a Sunday, arrangements may be made on the day; in all other cases, arrangements should be made in advance.
Orthodox Christians customarily seek God's blessing when taking up residence in a new home. In a short service generally served by the parish priest or another priest invited for this purpose, the new home is blessed with Holy Water, the four walls are anointed with Holy Oil, and prayers are offered for the health and salvation of those who will live there. This service is intentionally reminiscent of the consecration of a church, the Orthodox Christian home being a place in which one serves God and offers up prayers to Him - a domestic church.
In addition to this initial blessing, it is customary in many places to have one's home blessed each year on or around the Great Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, or Theophany, celebrated on 19 January. This is a shorter and simpler service in which the parish priest sprinkles the Holy Water blessed at the Theophany services throughout the home, again offering up prayers for the health and salvation of those who live there. This practice has not traditionally been observed in our parish.
Both forms of house blessing are an important way that we can bring the Church into our homes. Arrangements for the blessing of a home should be made well in advance with our parish priest or another priest invited for this purpose.
