On September 6, 2025, in Halifax (West Yorkshire, England), an entire evangelical community, along with its pastor, completed the process of joining the Antiochian Orthodox Church. According to the website of the Archdiocese of the British Isles and Ireland, the newly established parish has been named after St. Hilda, the abbess of Whitby, a revered 7th-century saint in England. St. Hilda is honored in both Catholicism and Orthodoxy and is recognized by the Russian Church as one of the holiest women of England, often referred to as the "abbess of the English people" and the "spiritual mother of the English."

The community's journey to Orthodoxy began with the study of Scripture and an introduction to Orthodox tradition. After attending a service at the Church of St. Aidan of the Antiochian Patriarchate in Manchester in 2024, the believers felt a strong calling to become part of the Orthodox family. In February 2025, they were officially accepted as catechumens.

The celebrations in Halifax were led by Metropolitan Silouan of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of the British Isles and Ireland. A total of 34 individuals received Baptism and Chrismation, and Pastor Doug Clark, who took the name Caedmon, was ordained as a deacon the following day.

Services were held in a school hall where the community had previously gathered for prayers. The Sunday liturgy took place at St. Malachy's Church, where nearly one hundred attendees welcomed the new cleric with loud exclamations of "Axios!" (Worthy!).

In his address, Metropolitan Silouan noted that Orthodox life in Britain is gradually developing and responding to the spiritual search of modern Britons:

"Many, especially young people, are seeking and finding something in the Orthodox Church. The faces of the newly enlightened shone with joy and peace, filled with the Holy Spirit. They have found a home."

The Antiochian Orthodox Church, to which the new parish belongs, is one of the oldest in the Christian world, tracing its roots back to the Apostle Peter. It has been actively growing in the UK and Ireland since the 1990s, welcoming not only individual believers but also entire communities, as seen in Halifax.