Thursday, February 4, Bishop BENJAMIN and Mr. Barry Migyanko arrived in the city of St. Petersburg, Russia to take part in the visit of a delegation from the Sister Churches Program of Seattle to St. Petersburg (SCPS). The work of the SCPS began in the late 1980’s when members of several Christian Churches of the [...]
On November 21-22, Bishop Benjamin visited Saint Katherine the Great Martyr Mission in Kirkland, Washington, near Seattle. The parish feastday of Saint Katherine was occurring later that week (November 24), so the bishop requested that it be celebrated during his visit. The small church was full during the Resurrectional Vigil on the evening before, and [...]
When a new mission, created from convert zeal to found a Church near the country’s largest university, has the opportunity to welcome its bishop for the first time there is a simple description: sweet. Not knowing what to do or what to expect made it all the better. We did not have parishioners steeped in [...]
On Sunday, September 27, the mission of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Chico achieved another milestone when Bp Benjamin blessed their new chapel. Some sixty Orthodox Christians including Archpriest Thomas Renfree and Hieromonk Alexander (Lisenko) joined Priest Michael Spainhoward, rector, and the faithful in this joyous milestone in the community.
On Saturday and Sunday, October 3 & 4, His Grace, Bishop Benjamin visited the St. Innocent of Alaska Church of Livermore, California. The mission was originally established in 1991 in Fremont, CA and met in the Spanish Mission San Jose that was visited by St. Innocent himself during a visit to California in the early 19th century. Today, St. Innocent Church presently meets in a commercial space, which Archpriest Leo Arrowsmith and his parishioners have personally transformed. Two readers were tonsured Sunday morning just before the beginning of the Liturgy.
His Grace Bishop Benjamin recently traveled to Corvallis, Oregon to lead the people of St. Anne Church in the celebration of their Patronal Feast, the Dormition of the Holy and Righteous Anne, on July 25th.
On Saturday evening July 18 and Sunday July 19, Bishop Benjamin joined the clergy and faithful of the Protection/St. Seraphim parish of Santa Rosa, California for the summer celebration of St. Seraphim of Sarov. The date was also the 56th anniversary of the ordination of retired Archpriest Michael Margitich, father of Archpriest Lawrence Margitich, the rector.
The patronal feast of St. John the Baptist Church, Berkeley, CA was celebrated by His Grace, Bishop Benjamin, Archpriest Kirill Hartman, Deacon Brendan Doss and the parish faithful on Sunday, July 5.
As is our usual custom, Bishop Benjamin, clergy and faithful from the Bay Area gathered at Fort Ross to celebrate Independence Day. Following the Liturgy in the fort’s chapel, there was a cross procession to the nearby Russian cemetery where a panikhida was served for those who rest there. The services of the day were followed by a picnic and the firing of two of the four cannons in honor of the day.
His Beatitude, Metropolitan JONAH, the founding abbot of the St. John of Shanghai Monastery in Manton, CA, returned to celebrate the patronal feast of the community with Bishop BENJAMIN, Archimandrite Meletios and the monastery brotherhood.
