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Delivered at Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco on Pentecost Sunday 2012.
We celebrate our parish feast this morning, the Feast of the Trinity, of Pentecost, when the Most-Holy Spirit of God descended upon the disciples of Christ “who were all of one accord and in one place,” as is recorded in the Book of Acts.
This feast is not a purely Christian feast. It is also a feast celebrated by the Jews, Shavuot, which commemorated the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai and was linked to Passover in that it happened 50 days later. The Hellenistic Jews of the Diaspora gave it the name pentekosti or the fiftieth day. The feast was also connected with the harvest. Farmers brought the first fruits of wheat, barley, figs, grapes, olives, pomegranates, and dates in gold and silver baskets to be offered to the Lord in the Second Temple. It was said in the Jewish commentaries on the Scriptures that when the Lord gave the Law to Israel Mount Sinai it became covered in flowers and greenery. And so, it has been the custom among observant Jews to decorate their synagogues and homes with greenery on Pentecost. Curiously, Christians have also retained this custom of decorating their churches with greenery and flowers on Pentecost.
May 30th marks the 25th anniversary of the consecration of His Grace, Bishop Tikhon, to the Holy Episcopate. We send our heartfelt congratulations to His Grace on this historic day.
Those who are relatively new to the Diocese of the West may not realize that during the 20 year tenure of His Grace, Bishop Tikhon, the number of parishes and monasteries doubled. His call, especially to liturgical renewal and mission, made for a new and creative wind to blow in our diocese. As just one example, the Mission Deanery initiated by His Grace continues to exercise a strong and vibrant influence.
We ask for Vladyka's prayers and we thank him for the genuine peace, order, and pastoral love and care he brought to us over the many years following his consecration at Holy Trinity Cathedral. In Christ, we have inherited many rich blessings from our former Hierarch; blessings we should continue to remember and treasure.
May God grant His Grace Many Years!
(Ed. Note: This post is not as timely as we would like due to unavoidable technical circumstances.)
In the light of recent and highly publicized debates in our society regarding marriage, His Eminence, Archbishop Benjamin, wants to remind us that the Orthodox Church has firm, clear and eternal statements on contemporary issues.
The Assembly of Orthodox Bishops of North America has a wonderful statement about marriage on their website, which everyone should read and reflect upon.
Read the statement here.
(Originally published in the Russian Orthodox American Messenger, Vol. IX, No. 151, August 1905. Translation from Russian by Sergei Arhipov.)
June 18th 1905 was memorable for the Russin (a people from the Carpathian Mountains, who maintained their spiritual, historical, and spiritual identity with the Russian people, rather than with the Galician and other (mostly Uniate) western Carpatho-Ukrainians - trans.) Serbian and Greek residents of Pueblo — for on this day, His Eminence, the Most Reverend Archbishop Tikhon arrived in their smoky and bustling little city. At around 1pm, a large and excited crowd of many Orthodox people began to gather at the railroad station to meet the Archbishop. People were glancing at their watches, telling each other that any moment now, the train carrying their beloved guest would soon arrive. The hands on the platform clock showed 1:10, the announced arrival time, but no train was in sight. The people began to crowd in under the roof of the station and looked down the empty tracks for any sign of the errant train. After a while, the people started to get worried. Obviously the train was late and they all wanted to greet him in person; but many of them had to get back to work, else they lose their jobs. There was nothing they could do… By the time the hands showed 2:40 pm, only about one quarter of the original crowd remained at the station waiting there to meet him.
The Diocesan Chancellor, Archpriest Ian MacKinnon, has been notified that at the meeting of the Holy Synod of Bishops held May 7-10, the Synod has conferred upon our beloved diocesan hierarch the title of The Most Reverend Benjamin, Archbishop of San Francisco and the West.
May the Lord bless His Eminence, Archbishop Benjamin, with long life and health in his continued service to the faithful of the Diocese of the West! AXIOS! AXIOS! AXIOS!
The annual celebration at historic Fort Ross, California will not be held on July 4th as usual. Instead, the celebration will be held on August 25th, to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the founding of the fort.
His Grace, Bishop Benjamin was informed by the office of the Representative of the Patriarchate of Moscow in North America, His Eminence, Archbishop Justinian, that Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, the head of the Russian Church's Department for External Affairs, will participate in the celebrations on Saturday, August 25, 2012. Joining Metropolitan Hilarion and diocesan hierarch, His Grace, Bishop Benjamin, that day will be His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion of ROCOR and both Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco and Archbishop Justinian.
The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. inside the stockade of the fort. A cross procession around the fort will take place following the Liturgy and a blessing of the cemetery. Food will be available for purchase, however many are expected to bring along picnic lunches.
The clergy and faithful of the Pacific Central Deanery are encouraged to attend this historic event. More information will be forthcoming as the date of the celebration nears.
We have also learned Metropolitan Hilarion will be serving the Liturgy on Sunday, August 26 at Holy Trinity Cathedral, San Francisco. Holy Trinity is the oldest Orthodox parish in the Lower 48 and is the seat of the Bishop of the Diocese of the West.
On Sunday, April 29, His Grace, Bishop Benjamin celebrated the patronal feast of the Church of the Holy Myrrhbearers in West Sacramento, California. His Grace was warmly greeted by the new rector, Archpriest Matfey Ismailov, and the children of the parish.
West Sacramento is the home of a rather large Russian Community that includes a rather substantial Russian Baptist element. The Holy Myrrhbearers Church was founded in 1925 and has served the Russian-speaking Orthodox of the metropolitan Sacramento area since then.
A prayer service (molieben) with cross procession followed the Liturgy. His Grace was joined by the area dean, Archpriest Basil Rhodes. A wonderful banquet of Paschal Russian food was held in the parish hall. The young people of the parish made the celebration especially festive by performing Ukrainian dances.
(Updated 4/27) The publicity,
cover letter and registration materials for campers and staff for our
beloved St. Eugene’s Orthodox Youth Camp being held July 1-7 at St.
Nicholas Ranch in Dunlap, CA near Kings Canyon National Park are now
available.
This year we are trying to get the information out
earlier so that parents can make payments on their children’s tuition
over time, rather than having to send a check for the funds all at once.
We are also trying to recruit dedicated adults to get our staff in
place a bit earlier which will help with our planning.
Available is
• The color flyer for this year's camp. Please send to your youth and post in your parish.
• A cover letter from the Director which explains in detail many of the questions that some may have.
• 2-page Camper Application Form (to be sent to Kathy Pieracci, our Treasurer). The Camper’s Medical Forms, Policy Agreement and Packing List will be forthcoming closer to camp.
• Staff/Counselor Application Form
(to be sent to me, as Director). Cost for camp this year is $385.00
($335 + $50 registration) per camper with discounts for siblings (see
application for details). You must submit at least the $50
non-refundable deposit with your application. On the application you
will also notice that we have payment plan to ease the burden on
families. You can make payments toward your child’s tuition from now
until the beginning of camp.
A former star of the daytime show General Hospital who discovered Orthodoxy while making a film in Romania was recently interviewed on the Roads from Emmaus podcast of Ancient Faith Radio by Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick. A four-time Emmy award winning actor, Jonathan Jackson is also the lead singer and songwriter of a Christian band named Enation. He, his wife, and his three children are now catechumens at Holy Virgin Mary Cathedral in Los Angeles and are scheduled to be received into the Church on Holy Saturday of this year.
The podcast can be heard at through the following link: http://ancientfaith.com/podcasts/emmaus/general_hospital.
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.
