eastXwest Network

eastXwest has grown out a body of people who have met Sister Petra Clare through her work as as an iconographer and lecturer, or who have made a retreat at the skete. Many are Catholics who have studied the icon or commissioned icons for church or home. Some are Orthodox or eastern Christians, mostly living in the UK. Others are from other Churches. There is a common thread of interest in the life of prayer, good liturgy, and the authentic traditions of the Church.

St. Andrew - Patron of East & West

St. Andrew the Apostle is patron both of Scotland and of the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople, making him the obvious patron saint of eastxwest. In his remarkable study of Andrew’s missionary journeys, ‘He raised the cross on the ice,’ George Alexandrou details his international ministry. Taking the principle “all evidence is possible” he traced literary sources and oral tradition of a journey, which took him to Valaam and Karelia, working his passage as a fisherman along the shipping routes to St. Andrew’s in Scotland.

Angels in the Highland Tradition

eastXwest Angels is the short name of the trust we are establishing. Angels are 'messengers,' communicators: they are known as invisible helpers. Poems and invocations from traditional Highland sources tell us of Michael and his angels helping out in the ordinary domestic tasks of farm and kitchen. More recently, it is told that Pope John Paul II, preparing for particularly difficult meetings, requested the guardian angels of the participants to sort things out among themselves first!

Principles of eastXwest

"There was a cross at the heart of the universe before Christ died on the cross" said Lev Gillet. It is the challenge of the cross to empty ourselves of inherited prejudices and see things as they really are. eastXwest is dedicated to honesty in relations between the churches and exploring the common traditional basis of theology, Christian life and practise, and its manifestation in liturgical arts and music. We believe that no authentic relationship between the churches is possible without radical honesty, fidelity to the Gospels and to the teaching of the great Councils of the Contact us Church in the first centuries.

Pope Benedict XVI ‘Concrete Gestures’ Required

"In full awareness and at the beginning of his ministry in the Church of Rome that Peter bathed with his blood, the current Successor assumes as his primary commitment that of working tirelessly towards the reconstitution of the full and visible unity of all Christ's followers. This is his ambition, this is his compelling duty. He is aware that to do so, expressions of good feelings are not enough. Concrete gestures are required to penetrate souls and move consciences, encouraging everyone to that interior conversion which is the basis for all progress on the road of ecumenism."

Patriarch Bartholomew ‘Self-Emptying’ the Path

"Primacy does not consist of power, but of a kenosis (self-emptying) which seeks only to bring life to others...moving beyond polemics, we need today to reflect on a period of ecclesial life in which tensions were resolved neither against the pope, nor against councils, but in a different way." The patriarch stressed the need for self criticism and continuous repentance, adding that to denounce the one who erred first is not the issue, or whether he erred more or less..."When a kenotic ethos finally prevails, then we will easily restore the unity of faith."

Examples of Members Interests:

• How did the Church of the Apostles become the Church of today?
• How does the liturgy and the liturgical building today show the mystery?
• How do we re-develop iconography in the western Churches?
• Which chants?
• What can the Tridentine Liturgy contribute to a meaningful modern liturgy?
• How do women and men understand themselves as spiritual persons?
• What are the theological issues at the hub of the Catholic/Orthodox divide?
• How have the Orthodox Churches in Constantinople and Egypt survived for centuries under the shadow of Islam?
• How did the theological misunderstandings between Catholic and Protestant arise?
• How is the Church surviving in troublespots such as Palestine and Afghanistan?
• Some churches, like those of India and China, are deeply embedded in a non-Christian culture - how does this affect their liturgy and witness?
• Jesus said 'you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.' The aim of eastXwest is to facilitate a place where honest dialogue, indepth study and exchange can take place.