- 1520 GREEN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123
- 415-567-WEST(9378)
- webmaster@dowoca.org
Thriving Parishes Project Program Director Priest Andrew Smith and Project Manager Brittany Yeager traveled to St. John of Damascus Church in Poway, CA for a weekend of training the local Church Health Team and introducing the broader scope of the project to parishioners.
Parish Rector Archpriest Michael Anderson served Divine Liturgy for the St. Demetrius Memorial Saturday the morning of October 25. The Church Health Team reassembled at 12:30 pm to begin its training in administering the parish health survey. Great Vespers was served at 6 pm.
Sunday Divine Liturgy was celebrated by Fr. Michael, who was assisted by Protodeacon George Shumaik, a former member of the Diocesan Council. Archpriest Alexander Federoff was also in attendance. In his homily, Fr. Michael invited those gathered to reflect on the events surrounding the Great Earthquake in Constantinople in the year 740. The people quickly realized that this event was allowed by God due to their sins, and in an instant they changed their ways and repented and thus were saved. There is an important reminder of this lesson every time Orthodox Christians greet each other with the phrase, “Christ is in our midst” and respond, “He is and ever shall be.” This greeting and response reaffirm each time that Christ was not just with us in the past, nor that He will be with us only sometime in the future, but that He is with us. Now. If we can live our lives with and through this understanding, we will be saved.
Fr. Andrew addressed the whole community at Coffee Hour, explaining all the new vocational work being done though the Thriving Parishes Project (priestly formation, diaconal student support, training in music ministry, and fostering community and engagement for young adults) and encouraging the parish to participate in the parish survey and learning modules offered on the third Tuesday of every month.
St. John of Damascus Church has a history of thriving in the Diocese. Founded in 1975 by only two families, the parish began holding services at Our Lady of Kazan Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in San Diego, served by U.S. Navy Chaplain Priest Peter Haskell (Commander). One year later, the community purchased its current 2.3 acre plot of land on Espola Road in Poway for $36,500. One of the parish founders, and past member of the Diocesan Council, Bill Moision, donated $10,000 to the Diocese to establish its Mission Fund, on the condition that the first loan given out would be to St. John of Damascus Church!
After years of fundraisers and meeting at various sites while the land remained undeveloped, the community broke ground in 1984, installing three modular units to serve as a church and parish hall. Construction of the current, permanent temple began in 1993, much of the cost being financed through Church Building Notes. It was completed in 1994 and consecrated in 1995 by Metropolitan Theodosius (Lazor), Bishop Tikhon (Fitzgerald), Bishop Basil (Rodzianko), and Bishop Boris (Geeza).
St. John of Damascus Church has hosted the Diocesan Assembly in 1999 and 2010. Community members range from multi-generational families who have been with the parish since its earliest years to the ‘new normal’ of Americans from all walks of life and faith backgrounds who are finding Orthodox Christianity. May God continue to bless the vineyard which He has planted in Poway!
Photo Gallery:
The Diocese of the West is the geographical district of the Orthodox Church in America consisting of the Western United States. The diocese has active parishes in Montana, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii. San Francisco is home to the diocese’s cathedral, Holy Trinity, as well as the Chancery offices. The diocese is led by His Grace Vasily, Bishop of San Francisco and the West.
