Church of the Holy Annunciation

A fundraising appeal for “spiritual guidance.” That’s how the story of the Church of the Holy Annunciation begins. We stand before one of Melbourne’s oldest churches, a testament to the dedication of early Greek settlers. The Church of the Holy Annunciation, also known as Evaggelismos, stands as the second Greek Orthodox Church built in Australia, following Sydney’s Holy Trinity. Its history intertwines with the very beginnings of the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria. Imagine Melbourne in the late 1800s. A small but growing Greek community yearned for a spiritual home. They first gathered in a hired room at Chalmers Church Hall on Gipps Street, led by visiting priest Archimandrite Dorotheos “Samios” Bakalarios. This marked the establishment of the GOCMV in 1897. The community then formally requested a priest, and Father Athanasios Kantopoulos arrived in June 1898. The community’s minutes meticulously detail the fundraising efforts to secure land and build a dedicated church. Three founding members, Grigorios P. Matoorekos, Antonios J. J. Lekatsas, and Alexandros V. Maniachis, spearheaded this drive. At a meeting in Mr. Matoorekos’s business premises, they decided to petition the Patriarchate of Jerusalem for support. The fundraising continued, and by July 1899, a plot of land on Victoria Parade and Lansdowne Street was purchased for £600. The three committee members even personally loaned the community funds to secure the purchase. The foundation stone was laid on December 19, 1900, the feast day of St. Nicholas. The ceremony was a grand affair, attended by dignitaries, consuls, and members of the Greek and Syrian communities. The architects, Inskip & Butler, and builders, N. Longstaff & Co., brought the church to life. The Church of the Holy Annunciation officially opened on June 23, 1901, according to the Argus newspaper. The church wasn’t just a place of worship. It served as the heart of the Greek community, a hub for social and religious life. The church’s story even includes a dispute over its ecclesiastical jurisdiction, between the Synod of Athens and the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. This struggle reflects the complex historical context of the early Greek Orthodox Church in Australia. The Church of the Holy Annunciation stands as more than just bricks and mortar. It embodies the enduring spirit of a community, a testament to faith, perseverance, and the pursuit of “spiritual guidance”.