Monday 12 November 2018

HE Archbishop Angaelos takes part in National Remembrance services on Armistice Day 2018, as the Coptic Orthodox Church is invited to the Cenotaph Commemoration for the first time in history



Coptic Orthodox Church UK
Media and Communications Office

Coptic Orthodox Church (Europe)
                                Media and Communications Office

HE Archbishop Angaelos takes part in National Remembrance services on Armistice Day 2018, as the Coptic Orthodox Church is invited to the Cenotaph Commemoration for the first time in history



12 November 2018

On 11 November 2018, His Eminence Archbishop Angaelos, Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London, took part in national Remembrance Sunday commemorations, which included the Cenotaph Remembrance Service in London in the morning, a prayer service at Southwark Cathedral in the afternoon, and a service to mark the Centenary of the Armistice at Westminster Abbey in the evening. 
At 11am, Her Majesty The Queen, alongside other senior members of the royal family including His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, marked the Armistice Day centenary at the Cenotaph with a two-minute silence, prayers led by the Rt Rev Sarah Mullally, the Bishop of London, and the laying of wreaths at the memorial. This was the first time that the Coptic Orthodox Church had taken part in this service.

Following the Cenotaph Commemoration, Archbishop Angaelos joined the Bishop of Southwark, The Rt. Revd Bishop Christopher Chessun, and the Dean and Chapter of Southwark Cathedral, at a service marking the end of the First World War. The Archbishop read a New Testament Reading during prayers.

In the evening, Archbishop Angaelos attended a service in Westminster Abbey, conducted by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall. Her Majesty The Queen and His Excellency Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany attended the service, and Her Majesty was accompanied by TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, TRH The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, TRH The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, HRH The Duke of Kent and HRH Prince Michael of Kent. The Address was given by The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. The Right Honourable Theresa May MP, Prime Minister was among those who read passages of Scripture during the service.