The Funeral Service of Fr. Michael Harper
The funeral service of Archpriest Michael Harper took place in the Cathedral of St. George, London on Thursday 14th January. Present were a number of Deanery clergy together with the Priest, Fr. Samir Gholam and Deacon Naim El-Hage who serve the Cathedral community. Also present were Fr. Yves Dubois and His Eminence Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia representing the Greek Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain, His Grace, Bishop of Elisey of Sourozh (Moscow Patriarchate), Fr. Peter Farrington of the Council of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, Fr. Simon Smyth representing Abba Seraphim of the Coptic Orthodox Patriarchate and several other ecumenical guests. Fr. Jonathan Hemmings of the parish of Holy Cross, Lancaster gave an inspiring homily and the Dean, Fr. Gregory Hallam, Protos at the service read a moving address from the Bishop, His Eminence Metropolitan John who could not attend on account of an illness confining him to home. The committal took place in Cambridge on the following day.
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| MEMORIAL & CONDOLENCE PAGE | Jeanne Harper and Fr. Yves Dubois |
From His Eminence, Metropolitan John
“A
Message from Bishop John to Father Michael”
(Apolytikion of the holy and glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist
John)
In these
blessed days, in which our Lord Jesus Christ came from Heaven to our
world to be born from the Virgin Mary and to be baptized by John the
Baptist for our salvation, two feelings – of sadness and of joy - are
combined together.
Sadness,
because we
have lost a very beloved brother and friend, Father Michael Harper,
but also joy, spiritual joy, that Father Michael left us at the Feast of
Theophany, for the central concern of his life was to proclaim the good
news of God made manifest in Christ.
One of
his last public actions in late November was, I am told, despite rising
ill-health, to put down on video the last of three talks he has
contributed to our outreach programme, The Way, on central aspects of
the Orthodox Christian Faith.
I cannot
forget that last year he asked me to write a prologue to his book
A Faith Fulfilled, which
is being translated into Greek. Appropriately, I wrote my introduction
on the feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross, 2009. We hope also that
in the very near future we will have Father Michael’s book
A Faith Fulfilled, translated
into Arabic.
Saint
John the Baptist, one of the main characters in the drama of the
Theophany, is reported as saying of Christ: “He must increase, but I
must decrease.”
(John 3:30).
However,
when the disciples asked the Lord about Saint John the Forerunner, the
Lord replied: “I say unto you, among those that are born of woman
there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist”. (Luke 7:28).
That is why we sing to Saint John these words: “The just are
remembered with praises, but for you the Lord’s testimony suffices, O
Forerunner.”
The
witness of the Lord and the testimony of Saint John’s works were
sufficient for people to admire him. So it is with Father Michael: his
achievements are enough to speak his praises.
Father
Michael was the first to manifest what I will call an Antiochian
consciousness in heart and mind. Thanks to his efforts and labours, his
sweat and tears, we now have a very marked presence in the United
Kingdom.
He was
the first one to join the Antiochian Orthodox Church and then, slowly,
slowly, the Deanery was founded, of which he was the first Dean.
By God’s
grace, the Deanery has grown, consisting now of more than twenty-four
Fathers in about twenty parishes in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Be sure,
beloved Father Michael, that this effective and dynamic presence will
keep growing and multiplying, day by day, led by our new Dean, Father
Gregory Hallam, who will continue to follow in your footsteps on this
path that you first began to walk upon.
No words
can describe the emptiness that we feel after Father Michael’s resting
in the Lord. Contrary feelings are in my heart at the same moment:
sadness and joy, emptiness and fulfillment, crucifixion and
resurrection.
Sadness
because we have lost a very beloved brother and friend, Father Michael
Harper, and we miss him; and joy
because we know that now he is celebrating the Theophany with the Lord
Himself in the Heavens. Emptiness
because we feel the gap that Father Michael has left in the Deanery and
in our hearts; and fulfillment
because we know that Father Michael is living and enjoying the full
light and glory of the Theophany in Paradise.
Crucifixion because our
hearts are wounded with the spear of sadness at his death, and
Resurrection because we are
sure that he is now enjoying eternal life in the bosom of Abraham with
all the saints.
I can
see with the eyes of the heart, that Saint John the Baptist is waiting
for Father Michael at the gate of Paradise, leading him by the hand
before the divine Throne, showing him the Lord in His glory, and saying:
“Come and see. Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the
world.” This is the Lamb that Father Michael used to sacrifice at
every Divine Liturgy, giving Him to the faithful, in the Body and the
Blood, for forgiveness of sins and for eternal life.
From the depth of my heart, I pray to God to receive
Father Michael in His Heavenly Kingdom. I ask Him, our good Lord and
Lover of Mankind, to grant Father Michael the fulfilment of divine light
and glory, to establish his soul in the tents of the righteous, to give
him rest in the bosom of Abraham, and to number him with the
righteous.
In
this difficult moment, I can find nothing to say for consolation to all
of us better than to tell you what happened when I visited Father
Michael in the hospital.
Alone I entered his room. Presbytera Jeanne said to him: “It is our beloved bishop”. With difficulty he whispered: “I love you”.
Be sure, Father, that you will be always in my heart, with great love.
I greet you, Father Michael, for the last time with the Paschal greeting: “Christ is Risen. He is Risen indeed”.
May his memory be
eternal.
The Funeral Homily by Fr. Jonathan Hemmings
In the name of God Father, Son and
Holy Spirit. Amen
4 Kingdoms” Now
the sons of the prophets in
It was God the Father’s will that the Lord Jesus Christ who blessed the River Jordan by His Baptism on the Feast of Theophany called our beloved father Archpriest Michael home on this day when, as we say in the blessing of the waters, the terrestrials join with the celestials and the celestials join with the terrestrials. The crossing over of the River Jordan by Elijah is a type of baptism, a crossing from this world to our promised inheritance.
St John Chrysostom writes:
“O how great is
the virtue of the Saints! Not only their words, not only their bodies,
but even their very garments are always esteemed venerable by the whole
of creation. The sheepskin of this man divided the
As one who is unworthy to ask even a fraction of my spiritual father’s spirit, I raise my eyes to heaven in gladdening sorrow and like Elisha cry:
“Father, O father the chariot of
In Father Michael we have had in our midst not
only an Archpriest and pastor but a man of prophetic ministry.
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing in everything
give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not
quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies.”
We give
thanks to God this day for the life of our beloved Archpriest Michael.
For God is faithful and true in every age and we have always had
prophets in the
St. Luke writes in the Acts of the Apostles ch 13:-
“ Now in the
church that was at
God, the Holy Spirit chooses and separates (which of
course is the meaning of holiness) and in Father Michael he chose and
set apart a man who combined vision with practical application to lead
us over the
He used to say that one of the great influences on
his early life was having an evangelical nanny. Apparently he was in
good company in this respect. She encouraged his prayer life and took
him to Baptist Chapels. Another formative influence on his early life
was the Headmaster at St. Faith’s School in
I believe the Orthodox Church will view with reverence this courageous pioneer whom God chose to go before us. Because we are Eucharistic creatures we give thanks to God for this good man and that He gave to his beloved servant Father Michael a faithful and fitting helper in Khouriya Jeanne. How richly God blessed you both, your love for one another-a love that was not self centred or self contained but a love that was generous; the agape of God is inclusive and spills over to others and it radiates to all in that circle of grace and beyond, for the Holy Spirit moves where He wills!
Father Michael was a friend to all and his words were continually of blessing. Whenever you were in his company you felt loved, warmed, wanted, important, valued-he would listen to you. He had that great capacity to place your needs as his responsibility and joy. I represent many who owe him a great debt and who are eternally grateful for his comforting presence, ministry and support. It was quite remarkable how Father Michael had the ability to engage with people even on first meeting-he would take the initiative and talk to anyone and everyone; whether it was the man in the corner store or the man on the pavement. We have a legacy of love from this good, humble man and an example of holiness.
John the Golden Mouth said:
“For Elijah
left a sheepskin to his disciple, but the Son of God ascending left us
His own flesh!
Elijah indeed cast off his mantle, before he went up, but Christ left it
behind for our sakes, and yet retained it when he ascended. Let us not
then be cast down. Let us not lament, nor fear the difficulty of the
times, for He who did not refuse to pour out His blood for all, and has
suffered us to partake of His flesh and blood again, what will He refuse
to do for our safety?”
It is difficult to calculate in human terms the inspirational influence that Father Michael had on the countless number of people with whom he came into contact.
As a spiritual father Archpriest Michael offered an
over-arching grace filled canopy under which his spiritual children
could shelter from the storms of life and grow in the Holy Spirit. His
wisdom, patience and humility guided souls to Jesus Christ. He was a
true spiritual father –grace filled, always pointing beyond himself to
the source of all goodness-the Father of Lights. One person who met him
only recently spoke of him as “life –enhancing.” Another person wrote to
me from
”
He was one of those people who you would hope never will leave this
world, because they are so much needed.”
Father Michael could be described as a
living signpost to
heaven-indicating the way by his words and actions. It was his courage
and clear sightedness to further the
” Our deanery is a mission deanery carrying on the work of the saints of
the undivided church in this land and that is our priority.”
This is the vision that Father Michael sets before us today!
The Orthodox
Church is evangelistic and charismatic as well as Catholic and Apostolic
and Father Michael was able to let people discover and realise this as
he showed by his own journey and as is recorded in his book “A
faith fulfilled.” He wanted to open up the Treasure Chest of
Orthodoxy and share these precious jewels of our holy faith with those
who seek the Truth and make them available and accessible to the people
of these
We must hold on to that vision that our spiritual
father has set before us, for he would want us to build on that
foundation which he helped lay around Christ the Cornerstone. Like
living stones we are being built into a
Father Michael was a brave soldier of Christ bearing opposition at the beginning of the Pilgrimage to Orthodoxy with forbearance, equanimity and forgiveness even to the point of forgetting. He leaves a rich legacy through his books,videos, interviews, lectures, sermons but especially he lives in the hearts and minds of people who knew him.
When the Trojan hero Hector ( Homer’s Iliad XXII)realises his death is imminent at the hands of Achilles he says,” Let me not have an inglorious end and let my feat of arms come to the ears of generations still unborn.”
Brian Patten one of the Liverpool Poets writes:
“A man lives for as long as we carry him inside us, for as long as we carry the harvest of his dreams.”
Elder Porphyrios of Mount Athos expressed this sense of carrying the vision forward like this:
“ The soul of
the Christian needs to be refined and sensitive, to have sensibility and
wings, to be constantly in flight and live in dreams, to fly through
infinity, among the stars, amidst the greatness of God, amidst silence.”
Of course Father Michael continues to live in Christ,
for he is as he has always been, in the Lord. As for us who are pilgrims
and workers here in this corner of God’s Vineyard where Christ has
placed us, we carry those dreams forward into a new chapter of the book
of salvation history and with the help of the Holy Spirit we will
further realise those dreams.
Father Michael once said:
“Indeed the key to Orthodoxy is
to understand that it is the work of the Holy Spirit. Scripture,
Tradition, the Fathers, the Church - all the gifts are given to edify
the body, there is no isolation or individualism.”
The Holy Apostle Paul speaks to his spiritual son Timothy thus:
“But you O man
of God…..pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience,
gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life to
which you were also called and have confessed-the good confession in the
presence of many witnesses.”
You are witnesses to this man of God.
We dare to ask God in His goodness like Elisha asked of his spiritual father Elijah that we may have a portion of Fr.Michael’s spirit to carry forward the vision and the harvest of his dreams.
“Father, O father the chariot of
Christ is Risen!
We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song!
May Angels speed your to your rest and reward dear father. Pray for us dear father and May your memory be eternal!
To God be the glory now and forever and unto the ages of ages. Amen
