- 1520 GREEN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123
- 415-567-WEST(9378)
- webmaster@dowoca.org
During Great Lent this year, the Southern Colorado Greek and OCA parishes joined together on the theme of outreach and evangelism during the Sunday night Vespers in Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Calhan.
A simple summary of the overall message :
The first step in evangelization is dedication of one’s own life to God, not simply at conversion and baptism, but throughout our lifetime as new experiences change and deepen us. Do we sometimes feel we have two lives, a secular worldly life and a Church life? This indicates a need to re-dedicate our whole life to Christ. Do we have inner imaginary thoughts and temptations that we keep secret, an inner life separate by our own design from God? These deep and hidden inner places need to be opened, these inner places dedicated to God, which is a theme of Great Lent. All the homilists gave examples of transformational witness in their own lives and in the lives of the saints.
“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His….” (Romans 6:3-5, Baptismal Epistle)
HOLY WEEK AND PASCHA 2018
To the Reverend Clergy and Faithful of the Diocese of the West
Dearly beloved:
Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!
In an “early” Paschal celebration, such as we experience this year, it is easy to be caught off-guard in our preparation for the celebration. Confessions are put off because it doesn’t “feel like time yet,” fasting started very early (indeed, only a few short weeks after the Nativity Fast) and has grown wearisome., and our prayer faces the same temptation it always faces — to be lost in the cares and hustle and bustle of daily life. The Lenten “imps” have been nipping at our heels for weeks now.
Therefore, it is more important than ever that we make a concentrated effort to travel with the Lord on His journey through the resurrection of Lazarus in Bethany, His triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, the daily back and forth between Jerusalem and Bethany, preparing all of His disciples (including each of us) for the coming Passion, teaching us about His Kingdom through parables, and finally standing at the Cross and the empty tomb as we share in the wondrous miracle of His Resurrection. The Church’s calendar delicately unwraps the layers of the Messiah’s coming to His Passion. All we need to do is come and see, open our hearts, and ask Him to illumine each of us with the Resurrected Light.
by Archpriest Lawrence Russell
Most of us remember the first time we heard or read the word “oxymoron,” a funny-sounding, funny-looking word; right? Oxymoron is a combination of two Greek words: oxys (sharp) and moros (stupid). Together, they mean “pointedly stupid.” As a figure of speech, an oxymoron describes an idea built of opposites, antonyms. Try “living death,” or “cruel kindness,” for instance. What strikes us in such pairings is contradiction, in and of itself. Finding oxymorons can be mere amusement, but discovering “needed oxymorons” can be riches indeed for our journey to the Kingdom.
Oxymorons generally are not used by scientists or engineers, but by writers – who choose them as a literary device – and especially (for our purposes) by Christian Theologians, who need them because the paltry categories of this limited world are not broad enough to express Divine Truth. They provide the “new wineskins” needed for the “new wine” – “else the wine will burst the skins, and the wine perisheth, and the skins” (Mk. 2:22).
In the spiritual realm, we find great depths in each oxymoron when we choose to look. After all, this is the realm in which God truly has brought together Life and death: Christ is, as the eternal Son of God, deathless Life; and He dies, as the God-man, a Life-filled death. When our Immortal, Life-giving Lord enters our world—a world subject to death—He bridges the chasm that separates Life from death! We see this in His Incarnation, in His Passion, in His Resurrection. This is what the Apostle Paul dared to call the “foolishness of God,” which is wiser than the “wisdom of men” (1 Cor. 1:25). Did you catch it: wise foolishness?
In June 2018, the master iconographer and world renowned icon painting instructor Theodore Papadopoulos will be coming to Los Angeles to provide his 6-day icon painting workshop and 2-day gilding workshop. This is his only stop in Southern California, and we are honored to have him come to our "Joy of All Who Sorrow" OCA mission in Culver City to teach. Mr. Papadopoulos will be providing most supplies, including boards, pigments, brushes, etc. The daily sessions will run from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm (or up to 6:00 pm, as needed). The best accommodations are through Airbnb, which are readily available in Culver City, including houses or apartments/condos to share, if desired. One of our participants has already found a walking-distance Airbnb for $60 per night.
There is limited space in both workshops in Los Angeles, so if anyone is interested, I can be reached at deborahtomasi@yahoo.com or via cell at 310-849-9451. Interested individuals can either email (with "Los Angeles Icon Workshop" in the subject line), call, or text. Time is of the essence, as all of our spaces may be filled soon.
For both workshops, June 8-9 and June 11-16, the total cost is $900, including a $350 non-refundable deposit.
The icon painting workshop alone is $680, including a $250 non-refundable deposit.
The gilding workshop alone is $270, with a $150 deposit. However, the price listed above for both workshops includes a $50 discount off the gilding portion.
This year, Mr. Papadopoulos will be conducting his icon workshops in London, Ireland, Germany, and the United States.
One can see Mr. Papadopoulos website by visiting:
-Matushka Deborah Tomasi
Hieromonk Innocent
St. John's Monastery, Manton, CA
Eighteen years ago, I converted to the Orthodox faith. During my years as an inquirer, I tried to follow the ascetic practices if the Church, including keeping the fast of Great Lent. For the particular parish that I attended, fasting meant the type of food (essentially vegan) and the quantity. Eager to follow all the customs, I requested that my apartment be blessed. The priest set up an appointment for the afternoon during one of the days of the Fast.
"How are you?"
"I'm hungry."
"I am glad." A smile teased his lips. "That is music to my ears!"
For a moment, his reply struck me as sadistic--for him to be glad at my misery while I tried to follow all the rules! Then I realized that his smug satisfaction was actually proof of his pastoral success. As he had taught us, Lent was supposed to be uncomfortable, it is supposed to cause real hunger pangs. His future catechumen was starting to get it.
Real hunger, in fact, is extremely beneficial. At my monastery, as in many parishes and monasteries in the Orthodox world, the first three days of Lent are spent attending many services in the chapel and eating nothing at all. It is amazing how at peace the body becomes when it is free of the burden of digestion. Thinking becomes easier. The perennial mental fogs lifts. The pounding onslaught of thoughts slows down. During the long services, the words of the Psalms, in particular, seem to sink in as never before.
After years of suffering from chronic pain and other enigmatic symptoms, Matushka Priscilla Shipley was recently diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). According to the MS Society, symptoms of MS are often mistaken for other conditions including Lyme Disease for which she tested positive for several years ago. Mat. Priscilla has tried every treatment under the sun to address what doctors thought were Lyme symptoms, all the while leaving her MS untreated for years. Unfortunately, the MS progressed rapidly and just recently Mat. Priscilla was rendered blind in one eye and unable to walk. Last week they went to Stanford, and had a very long informative appointment. It turns out that not only does Mat. Priscilla have MS, she also has a rarer disease called Neuromyelitis Optica or NMO. It's similar to MS, but much more serious and can be fatal. She will have to do more tests to rule out cancer, and then if there is no evidence of cancer start treatment for the NMO as soon as possible. This means immune suppressing infusions and steroids, among other things.
Her husband, Fr. Ian (the full time priest at Sts. Cyril and Methodius in Chico, CA) has been caring for her at home. Doctors are unable to tell whether these debilitating conditions will be permanent or not. Until then, the family is in great need of outside assistance while they travel to Stanford and UC Davis so that Matushka can begin her tests and treatments. We ask for everyone’s prayers, and we also ask that you please consider helping to contribute financially, not only so that they might be able to work with home health aides who can provide much needed support, but also to help fund necessary renovations to their bathroom (to accommodate a wheelchair), travel expenses to and from Stanford and probably UC Davis and any additional medical costs not covered by insurance. Thank you.
To support the Shipleys, please click on the link: https://www.youcaring. com/priscillashipley-1089613
GREAT LENT 2018
To the Reverend Clergy, Monastics and Faithful of the Diocese of the West
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:14-21, Gospel reading for Forgiveness Sunday Liturgy)
Dearly beloved,
Mere moments before we enter the Great Fast, the Church in her wisdom calls us to reflect on the essential elements of a truly Lenten effort. Prayer is a part of every Orthodox Christian’s life — it almost goes without saying. That prayer becomes the foundation of everything else we do during Great Lent. Besides our personal prayer, the Church calls us to more corporate worship, giving us the Eucharist as many as four times a week to strengthen us in our efforts.
But the Lord brings our attention to the other great tools of true spiritual effort. First, fasting. The true fast does not find fruits in following mere “rules.” “What can I eat? Does this have any milk in the ingredients? When can we have fish, wine or oil?” Those rules are there as guidance and not as ends in themselves. We can feel so proud that we have “followed the rules.” But the self-denial of fasting also leads to peace, calm, a new look at the things we too often see as important. In our consumer society, we never deny ourselves anything at any time. We have truly come to believe that man does “live by bread alone.” The lengthy, and sometimes grueling, fast strips us of the superfluous and leaves only the essential. We learn to eat to live, and not live to eat.
Facing Provocations, Thoughts, and Temptations: Taking Jesus as Our Guide", led by Monk Cosmas
March 16th, 17th, and 18th.Location: Monastery of St. John, 21770 Ponderosa Way, Manton, CA 96059
Cost: $125 per person, Couples $200
There are still some spaces left. Register today to reserve your spot!
To register, contact the Monastery of St. John at: office@monasteryofstjohn.org or by phone: 530-474-5964.
Payment options: online--visit the following website and make a $50 donation to the Monastery of St. John through PayPal. Please type "Lenten retreat" in the field provided. http://bit.ly/2nsTEMG
The balance can be paid upon arrival.
Retreat begins with Vespers at 5:00 PM on Friday and concludes with a final session from 11:30-12:30 on Sunday.
It is recommended that retreatants arrive before dark on Friday. Please see the monastery website for directions:
http://www.monasteryofstjohn. org/documents/Guest_&_Visitor_ Information.pdf
For more details about the retreat visit our website: www.monasteryofstjohn.org/ retreats/
VANCOUVER, WA [OCA]
Funeral services for Matushka Mary Perez, beloved wife of Priest Dimitri Perez, Rector of Holy Apostles Mission, Vancouver, WA, will be celebrated at the Church of the Annunciation, 13515 SE Rusk Road, Milwaukie, OR on Thursday and Friday, February 15 and 16, 2018.
Matushka Mary fell asleep in the Lord on Monday, February 12.
The Funeral Vigil will be celebrated on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. The reading of the Psalms will follow and continue until 8:30 a.m. on Friday, at which time the Hours will be chanted. The Divine Liturgy will begin at 9:00 a.m., followed by a mercy meal. Interment will be at Saint John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Monastery, Goldendale, WA on Friday afternoon.
Born Heidi Mary Perez on August 8, 1971 in Rochester, MI to Timothy and Diane Harvey, she and her family moved to Eagle River, AK, where she grew up. She graduated from high school in 1989. In 1991, she met the future Father Dimitri [Erik] Perez, whom she married on July 11, 1993, after which they moved to Santa Cruz, CA. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from UCSC in June 2000. In June 2002, the Perezes moved once again, this time to Pennsylvania, where Erik enrolled in Saint Tikhon’s Seminary. He was ordained to the priesthood by His Eminence, Archbishop Benjamin at Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco, CA in July 2005, taking the name Dimitri, while Heidi took the name Mary for her patron saint, Mary Magdalene.
During their years in Pennsylvania, Mary pursued her Master of Arts degree in Clinical Child Psychology at Marywood University, Scranton, PA, graduating in 2005. Later that year, Matushka Mary and Father Dimitri moved to Portland, OR, where they planted Holy Apostles Mission, which they have been serving for the past 13 years.
Facing Provocations, Thoughts, and Temptations: Taking Jesus as our Guide
Retreat at the Monastery of St John March 16, 17, and 18 2018
led by Fr Cosmas
On the fourth Sunday of Great Lent we celebrate St John of the Ladder and his book, the Ladder of Divine Ascent. His book contains a wealth of counsel on the spiritual life, written for monks at the request of the abbot of another monastery. Some readers — including some of us monks — may find it so dense, though, that they have a hard time applying it to their lives. It’s almost as if St John catalogued and analyzed everything there was to say on the subject so thoroughly that we don’t know where to start in putting it to use.
Why not approach the topic of provocations, thoughts, and temptations in a more basic way? Why not draw on passages in the Gospels that show how Jesus handled these challenges? After all, the life and teaching of Jesus was as much a basic point of reference for St John of the Ladder as it is for us. Then those who want to go back to read — or re-read — the Ladder will gain a new appreciation of St John’s treatment, and all of us will have a deeper understanding of the Gospel readings we will encounter during Holy Week.
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.
