Our emblem is that of the town of Stowmarket, which is situated in the very heart of Suffolk between the towns of the two great Suffolk Saints, St Edmund, King and Martyr, at Bury St Edmunds, and St Felix, Apostle of East Anglia, at Felixstowe.

The very word 'Stow' in Stowmarket means 'holy place' and to this day local people continue to call 'Stowmarket' by its old name - 'Stow'. It is thus a symbol of our home-county, which in ancient times was called 'Selig Suffolk' - Holy Suffolk. The emblem shows the mitre of St Felix and the three crowns traditionally linked with St Edmund and East Anglia: one crown is for St Edmund's kingship, another for his virginity, the third for his martyrdom. These three crowns also figure in the East Anglian flag, which shows the three crowns on the background of the English national flag. This latter flag is also that of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and a reminder of our national vocation which is, as the poet put it, 'to build Jerusalem here, in England's green and pleasant land'. The Latin motto of the emblem of OASIS means: 'May my soul be with Christ' - an apt recalling of the Orthodox Jesus Prayer and thus a suitable motto for all local Orthodox Christians.

Tel: 01394 273820

e-mail: frandrew_anglorus@yahoo.co.uk