A new year is traditionally a time for reflection and resolutions. Reflection on what filled the prior year, and setting goals for the new year. A new year is also about starting afresh and realizing one’s dreams. So please join us in offering a prayer and raising a toast to a Happy New Year and to prosperous new beginnings. May your new year be richly blessed with peace, health, and happiness.
Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One, / And the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One! / Angels with shepherds glorify Him! / The wise men journey with a star! / Since for our sake the Eternal God was born as a Little Child!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVukNhhYJP4
“If we approach with faith, we too will see Jesus … for the Eucharistic table takes the place of the crib. Here the Body of the Lord is present, wrapped not in swaddling clothes but in the rays of the Holy Spirit”— St. John Chrysostom.
We extend our heartfelt prayers and blessings to each of you this Christmas. At Matins we festively chant “God is With Us” – “Съ Нами Богъ”! God appears on earth in the Christ-Child and is laid among the poor in an obscure cave. The Angels proclaim this Mystery singing “Glory to God in the Highest” and the wise men follow a star to the birth place of Christ offering gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Without deliberate and intentional effort, one can easily become caught up in the ever increasing secularization of Christmas. If at this moment we recognize that our primary focus has been on the consumerism and chaos that so often typifies the modern experience of the holiday, be of good cheer that it is never too late to offer a gift to Christ.
In one of the many traditional Orthodox hymns of the Nativity, we sing at Vespers:
What shall we offer You, O Christ,
Who for our sake has appeared on the earth as a man?
Every creature which You have made offers You thanks.
The angels offer You a song.
The heavens, their star.
The wise men, their gifts.
The shepherds, their wonder.
The earth, its cave.
The wilderness, the manger.
And we offer You a Virgin Mother.
O Pre-eternal God, have mercy on us!
Please consider committing some time over these sacred days to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. The most precious gift one can offer to God is oneself. May the peace and joy of Christmas envelop you through out this blessed season.
“When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among brothers,
To make music in the heart.”
— from Essential Writings
by Howard Thurman, Luther E. Smith, Jr.
The Jesus you think you know might not be so! After spending years being typically depicted as a fair-skinned man with long light brown curls and light eyes, a new depiction of the man has been made.
Based on a new field of science, forensic anthropology, scientists were able to re-create an image of the biblical man. Scientists are now considering the image the most scientifically accurate image of him.
According to Esquire, researchers used well preserved specimens from that time to reconstruct the skull. Then used the bible and cultural history for clues of how Jesus would look physically.
Source: Getty Images
The National Council of Churches (NCC) welcomed its newest member communion, the Assyrian Church of the East, which was represented by His Grace Mar Awa Royel, Bishop of California and the President of CIRED (Commission on Inter-Church Relations and Educational Development).
“Our partnership with the Assyrian Church of the East has been welcomed with much excitement across our fellowship,” said Dr. Tony Kireopoulos, Associate General Secretary. “This venerable church, with its membership across the United States and its roots in Biblical lands, brings new energy to the NCC as we work together for justice and peace.”
“The suffering of Assyrian Christians is deeply felt by the millions of Christians associated with the National Council of Churches.”
Shop until you drop. Buy as much as you can… and then some. Spend money you don’t have. Max out the credit card. Buy! Buy! Buy! That seems to be the predominate message of Christmas! Unfortunately, our secular-humanistic culture suggests that expensive presents equate with love and a lot of stuff is the way to happiness, so we spend an enormous amount of time and money during December filling our lives with more stuff. As Orthodox-Catholic Christians, it is important to pause from the shopping to consider the true significance of Advent and to reflect on how we are spiritually preparing for Christmas.
Advent is the forty day period prior to Nativity during which we prepare ourselves for the coming of the Messiah. The Eastern Church considers Advent as a time of metanoia, a Greek word meaning repentance or change. It is a period of fasting, prayer and participation in the church services and sacraments to help us understand the full meaning of Christ’s coming into the world. Perhaps our change or repentence is to reduce our spending on stuff and to donate the savings to a charity. Maybe we invite someone without family into our home on Christmas Day to join us for dinner. Advent challenges us to identify the unique needs of change specific to our life, in light of Christmas as the birth of our Savior, the incarnation of God, the kingdom of heaven — and it is near and it is here.
December is dubbed by that Christmas favorite, “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” True. Add to that, though, for many it’s the most frenetic and stressful time of the year. Advent calls us to prepare for Christmas by simplifying our lives, pausing to consider its true meaning through spiritual reading, quiet meditation and prayer. Advent counter-culturally reminds us to slow down and simplify!
Advent offers us additional opportunities to prepare for Christmas with worship. Together, one with another, we proclaim in our prayers and our hymns the mystery of the incarnation of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. The season of Advent calls us to intentionally set aside time to worship privately and communally.
How will we spend the remaining few weeks of Advent leading up to Christmas? The Church counsels us to prepare with metanoia (repentance), simplicity and worship.
50th Commemoration of the Common Lifting of Anathemas between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches
NEW YORK – Fifty years ago, on December 7, 1965, after their historic meeting the previous year (Jerusalem 1964), Patriarch Athenagoras and Pope Paul VI declared their commitment to steer the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches onto a path of mutual understanding, reconciliation, and love. Together they agreed to “remove from memory and from the midst of the Church the sentences of excommunication” leveled against each other in 1054 and which have divided our two Churches for centuries.
As a result, a theological dialogue between Orthodox and Roman Catholic theologians started. This dialogue continues to our days and has produced a number of significant theological documents. In addition, a number of other events like the meetings of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew with Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis contributed to the creation of mutual understanding and the clearance of the way to the desired union.
On the occasion of this 50th Commemoration, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America said: “This anniversary reminds us of the need to work diligently towards the fulfillment of the Lord’s fervent prayer before His passion that His disciples be one (John 17, 11).”
“Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him” (Jeremiah 17:7).
Dear Angels, Members, Supporters and Friends of the Orthodox Catholic Monastery of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow,
During this time of Advent, a season of hope in preparation for the birth of our Savior, we are offered an opportunity to recommit our lives to faith and trust in God. In contrast, insecurity and fear are epidemic in society; and, there are certainly many rational causes for societal and personal insecurity. As believers, however, we have this assurance:
“And those who know Your name put their trust in You, for You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You” (Psalm 9:10).
The Orthodox Catholic Monastery of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow (OCMOLJAWS) strives in this time of insecurity to be an oasis of faith and trust in God’s providence by observance of its mission of contemplative prayer and by sharing spiritual inspiration and education via its website and blog:
As the calendar year is ending, we want to take this opportunity to thank each of you who has contributed in any way to make this humble ministry possible and to humbly ask for your continued support and contributions. Year-end also means tax season is here again. Please consider making a gift to help foster the development of a contemporary monastic spirituality responsive to today’s society. Your financial support is greatly needed and appreciated!
The Orthodox Catholic Monastery of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) organization. All gifts are confidential and tax-deductible. To make a year-end safe and secure offering to the monastery, please click Donate (button below). Donations can be made via PayPal or any major credit card (a PayPal account is not required).
We wish you a blessed holiday season of preparation and celebration!
“Happiness is realized by a soul when a person ceases to pray for what is missing in one’s life and begins to rejoice for what one already has.”
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” – (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Every year on Thanksgiving Day, we pause to return thanks to God for our many blessings. Just prior to feasting on a sumptuous meal, each person gathered around our abundant table is asked to share at least one thing for which she or he is thankful. I confess that on a few occasions when it was my turn to express thankfulness, I was feeling sad, angry, irritated, depressed, or some other emotion… but thankful was not at the top of the list. Nevertheless, for propriety’s sake, I cognitively identified and voiced a legitimate reason which merited thankfulness. Now I question whether it was hypocritical to render thanks with my voice while my mind was laden with disappointment?
In a similar vein, it seems to me in retrospect that the content of my Thanksgiving homilies delivered while serving as a full-time parish priest often bordered more on scoldings to evoke guilt for a lack of thankfulness rather than joyous gratitude for our blessings. I recall saying things like “Think about all the things you have and all of the other people in this world who have nothing” and “Be grateful for what you have rather than focusing on what is missing in your life.” Although the statements are essentially valid, they serve to evoke guilt rather than genuine gratitude, and guilt is a poor motivator for truly giving thanks.
With the approach of Thanksgiving in the United States this year, I’ve spent time in reflection regarding authentic gratitude and am beginning to discover there’s a difference between giving thanks and having a thankful heart. I’m also beginning to discover that the God cares more about thankfulness that flows from the inside out rather than an imposed obedience of gratitude. Basically… my question is whether God wants outward compliance or a heart capable of expressing guiltless or imposed thankfulness? The answer, of course, is obvious. God desires more than mere obedience—God desires unconditional thankfulness freely flowing from our hearts as prayers of joy and gratitude regardless of life situations.
While carefully reading 1 Thessalonians 5:18, I discovered the passage reads “IN everything give thanks…” not “FOR everything give thanks…” The truth is, I am not thankful “for” everything but I can still be thankful “in” everything. That may seem insignificant to some but it has helped me to see that although I may not be able to give thanks “for” every situation, I can still give thanks “in” every situation. A good illustration of this can be found in the life of Saint Seraphim of Sarov. After being robbed he said: “Let me be thankful, because although they took my belongings, they did not take my life; and, because it was I who was robbed, not I who felt it necessary to rob.”
My prayer is to become ever aware that true thankfulness comes from the heart, not from fleeting emotions and ever-changing circumstances of life. May you have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving!
Q. Are there any differences between the Orthodox-Catholic Church and the Roman Catholic Church? If so, what are they?
A. Yes, in addition to liturgical practices, there are also theological differences.
The Orthodox Church keeps the original Nicene Creed, accepted by the Universal Church, East and West, during the first millennium without the addition of “And the Son” or the “Filioque.” It accepts, on faith, Christ’s words in the Gospel, that the Father is the Unoriginate Source of the Life of the Trinity, with the Only-Begotten Son and the Holy Spirit Proceeding from the Father Alone. We cannot know how the Begetting of the Son and the Proceeding of the Spirit from the same Father is different, only that it is and this distinguishes the two Persons.
The West decided to add “And the Son” which is a philosophical conclusion, without warrant, in fact, in Scripture Orthodox Cross or the Fathers. It was not so much Orthodox Rome that adopted the addition to the Creed, as it was the Frankish theologians of Charlemagne, individuals who were hardly in the grand tradition of Orthodox Theology in both East and West.
This addition to the Creed in the West led to the eventual break between the two Churches beginning in 1054 and solidifying finally at the Sack of Constantinople in the thirteenth century by the western Crusaders (really “sword-bearers” rather than “cross-bearers”).
Roman Catholic theologians today agree that the addition to Triadic theology of the filioque led to negative consequences in western theologyas a whole.
In general, the role of the Holy Spirit Himself seemed to be downplayed.
The Words of Institution (“This is my Body . . .) became the “consecrating formula” for the Eucharist in the West, while the entire Canon, the anamnesis, the Words of Institution and the Epiclesis of the Holy Spirit remained the “consecrating formula” (it is a bad term, isn’t it?) in the East. Those Western Churches which have returned to Orthodoxy have restored the Epiclesis in their liturgies to where it once was.
In addition, the Roman view on Original Sin is different. Following largely Augustine of Hippo, the West believes, although has never declared doctrinal, the view that we somehow inherit the Sin of Adam, and not just the consequences of that sin. The Orthodox Church has always held that Original Sin is about the consequences of Adam’s Sin (how can we be responsible for someone else’s personal sin?). These consequences are basically death, concupiscence and our tendency toward sin in our nature.
As a result of this view, the West has declared the Mother of God to be Conceived Immaculately, without the Sin of Adam and to have been assumed into Heaven body and soul.
The Orthodox Church has always believed that the Mother of God is the highest person above all humanity and the angels owing to her role as Mother of the Word Incarnate. She believes that the Mother of God was perfectly holy and most holy and sinless. The Church celebrates Our Lady’s Nativity, which would be impossible otherwise since only the feasts of Saints may be celebrated.
In Her Prayers, the Orthodox Church praises the Mother of God as “All-Immaculate” and “Most Immaculate” and Most Holy etc. The Orthodox Church believes and celebrates the Dormition and Assumption into Heaven of the Body and Soul of the Mother of God, but has never defined these, since Her Liturgy has always defined them. Indeed “Orthodox” means, at one and the same time, “Right Faith” and “Right Worship.” Our worship expresses our faith.
The great devotion to the Holy Spirit in the Orthodox Church has always led it to celebrate the divinization or Theosis of humanity through the Incarnation, Death and Resurrection of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ Who sends us His Holy Spirit, the Comforter. We are partakers of the Divine Nature, God’s Energies through Christ and in the Spirit. This dynamic view of salvation is characteristic of the Orthodox Church, whereas in the West, Christ’s death on the Cross has been emphasized to be a kind of “pay-back” to God the Father Who was offended by the sins of humanity. In Eastern Icons, the halo is always part of the body of the saint. In Western saints’ pictures, the halo is often disconnected from the body and is above the head – this illustrates different views of salvation by both Churches.
The Orthodox East prays for the faithful departed incessantly so that God may bring them closer to Himself. The West has defined a place called purgatory where the souls of those with small sins or debts must suffer again to “pay back” to God what they “owe.” Legalism is therefore a hall-mark of the Roman Church as well. It is unknown in the East, as are indulgences.
Then there are the doctrines surrounding papal primacy. The Orthodox Church believed that the Pope of Rome was “first among equals” in a grouping of patriarchs of the universal Church when sitting in Council. In addition to this, the popes of later centuries declared a primacy of jurisdiction for themselves and infallibility when defining doctrine from the Chair of Peter.
The Orthodox Church has always held Ecumenical Councils as the highest Organ of the Church where doctrine and morals can be codified and defined.
For the Roman Church, the Pope is a kind of “world Bishop” with the world as his diocese as the only Successor of Peter. The Orthodox Church has a truly social and “catholic” or “holistic” view which is also Her theology of the Eucharist, that the fullness of the Church is present in each of Her parts throughout the world, wherever it is organized around the episcopate, the successors of Peter and the Apostles, with the sacraments/mysteries and the fullness of the Orthodox Catholic Christian Faith handed down from them as well.
It should be noted that Rome in the West was the only city where the Apostles Peter and Paul preached and established a Church. Thus, Rome became the West’s Apostolic See because it was the only one. In the East, Peter and Paul and the Apostles established churches in many cities, such as Antioch, and in many villages and towns so that deference to any one on the basis of Apostolicity would have been impossible.
This is why the Orthodox Church finds the claims of Rome rather strange given that she has always had the Apostles as Her pillars and founders from Her very beginning. Rome’s claims are, in actual fact, based more on its position as the capital of the ancient Roman Empire, a position that shifted to Constantinople, the New Rome, later. The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem comes from the Apostolic Age, as do the Patriarchates of Alexandria and Antioch. The Orthodox Church is the earliest Church of the Apostles.
“Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to rage, for it is written: “If you will not execute judgment for yourself, I shall execute your judgment, says God” – Romans 12:19 (Aramaic Bible in English).
France is in shock and in mourning. French President Francois Hollande vowed to attack the Islamic State group without mercy as the jihadist group claimed responsibility Saturday for orchestrating the deadliest attacks on France since World War II. Not unlike after the horrific attacks of September 11th, President George W. Bush’s statement in response to those attacks that he would lead the world to war “against terror.” The popular call seems to be mounting —“this time it’s all-out war.”
Our world is filled with violence – like a plague, an infection, a pandemic of people killing people, and people killing themselves. Violence is an undeniable part of creation. It arises in the opening chapters the Book of Genesis when Adam and Eve, due to their sin, became required to kill animals for food and clothing. While permitted by God as necessary for their survival outside of the Garden, it introduced violence to humanity.
As the story of Creation continues, violence quickly shatters the human family. Enraged by fear that his little brother Abel would find greater favor with God, and thereby take advantage and power over Cain, the older brother violently defends his position and prominence in the world with the brutality of fratricide. Throughout the Biblical narrative, violence continues with horrific consistency. Power is defined by the sword, forged in vengeance, lived in dominance, and blessed by presumed fidelity to God. Yet, even when sanctioned and blessed by God, the stain of violence is one for which God is not pleased—a brutal reality of humanity’s brokenness and sinfulness. Even King David, a man after God’s own heart and one truly blessed by God, was forbidden to build the Temple because he had blood on his hands.
God in His Son Jesus reveals that violence is neither holy nor redemptive. Jesus demonstrated to us a different path—a peaceful and non-violent path. When calls arose for the Messiah of God to take up arms and vanquish the enemy with the force of military power, Jesus responded as a sheep being led to slaughter. Upon witnessing violent bloodshed in his defense by those who loved him, Jesus chose to heal the wounds of the enemy and condemn the use of weapons in the fear-driven anger of violence. Ultimately, rather than succumb to the lie that is redemptive violence, Jesus allowed the demonic powers to prevail in such a way that a new path may be known—the path of love.
Even in the evil that Jesus endured, he consistently challenged the myth of redemptive violence. He looked into the eyes of those killing him and called on God to forgive them. He loved his enemies and taught his disciples to do the same. He often said things like, “You’ve heard it said ‘an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’… but I want to say there is a better way” and “You’ve heard it said, ‘love your friends and hate your enemies’… but I tell you love those who hate you… do not repay evil with evil’.” Jesus challenged the prevailing logic of his day, and of ours. He insisted that if we “pick up the sword we will die by the sword” – and we’re learning that lesson all too well.
Orthodox Catholic Christianity throughout history has had a powerful critique of violence in all its ugly forms. One of the early patriarchs, Saint Cyprian, as African Bishop in the third century, critiqued the contradictory view of death so prevalent in our contemporary culture where we hypocritically call killing evil in some instances and noble in others: “Murder, considered a crime when people commit it singly, is transformed into a virtue when they do it en masse.” Violence in any form is evil, and evil is inconsistent with our faith. The message of the Cross remains one of peace—a peace that passes all understanding and a peace that does not come as the world believes it ought. Christ’s peace transcends the false myth of redemptive violence, for redemptive violence gives way to violence as an end in itself.
When one of Jesus’ disciples picks up a sword to defend him and cuts off a guy’s ear, Jesus scolds his own disciple, picks up the ear, and heals the wounded persecutor. Christian theologians have said Jesus teaches a “third way” to interact with evil. We see a Jesus who abhors both passivity and violence and teaches us a new way forward that is neither submission nor assault, neither fight nor flight. He shows us a way to oppose evil without mirroring it, where oppressors can be resisted without being emulated and neutralized without being destroyed. We can take courage that Jesus understood the violence of our world, very well. At one point he wept over Jerusalem because it didn’t know the things that make for peace. No doubt Jesus is still weeping. And lots of us are weeping with him – from Boston to Kiev, from Damascus to Paris. Perhaps it’s time for a united, nonviolent assault on the myth of redemptive violence. Perhaps it’s time for us to declare that violence is always evil – period. There is always a third way.
*Compiled from multiple sources.
In our prayers this morning we especially spiritually unite with all of those who stand against terror.
Saint John Kochurov was born in Russia on July 13, 1871. He excelled at his studies at both the seminary and academy. After graduating in 1895, Fr. John married and then was subsequently ordained a priest on August 27, 1895 at the St. Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg.
In the late 1890s, a large number of émigrés from Carpathian Ruthenia and Galicia were migrating to the United States. Having expressed the desire to be a missionary priest, Father John was assigned as the first permanent priest at St. Vladimir’s Church in Chicago, which later became Holy Trinity Cathedral. As the parish did not yet have their own building, his first major project was the construction of the church building. Under the guidance of Bishop Tikhon (future Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow), Fr. John enlisted the services of the noted architect Louis Sullivan to design the church. In addition to his zealous labor in Chicago, he was also instrumental in establishing parishes in Buffalo, New York, Hartshorne, Oklahoma, and Slovak, Arkansas.
After returning to Russia he was assigned to serve in Estonia, where he applied the teaching skills he had learned in America. In 1916 he received a new assignment to Tsarskoe Selo near St. Petersburg. Only six days after the Bolsheviks seized power, Father John was beaten to death in the street by a gang of Bolshevik sailors in Tsarskoye Selo. Thus he became the first of countless Priest-Martyrs of the Soviet’s atheist yoke.
Commemorated on October 31/November 13
Monastery Icon of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow
Greetings on our monastery’s Altar Feast of the Icon of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow!
Поздравляем всех с Престольным Праздником Иконы Пресвятой Богородицы Всех Скорбящих Радости!
We pray that God grant to every affiliate and benefactor health and salvation for many blessed years!
Спасения вам и здравия на многая и благая лета!
All Orthodox churches, monasteries, and chapels are naturally dedicated to the worship of God. After the period of persecutions ended and Christians first became able to build churches, they built them on holy sites associated with events in scripture, the life of Christ, or over the tombs of the martyrs. If there was no holy site at hand, the faithful would dedicate the church or monastery in the name of a saint or a holyday commemorated on the ecclesiastical calendar. This tradition has continued to this very day, so our churches always have their own special feast day. This is called the altar feast or the patronal feast.
Our monastery chapel is dedicated to the Feast of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow,” which is celebrated tomorrow on the Julian Calendar. The original Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow” was glorified by wonderworking in the year 1688. A woman named Evphymia, who was by birth the sister of the Patriarch of Moscow Joakim (1674-1690), lived in Moscow and for a long time had suffered from an incurable illness. One morning during a time of prayer she heard a voice: “Evphymia! Go thou to the temple of the Transfiguration of My Son; an image is there, named “Joy of All Who Sorrow.” Have the priest serve a molieben (prayer service of entreaty) with a blessing of water, and thou wilt receive healing from sickness.” Evphymia, having learned that in Moscow was actually such an icon in the church of the Transfiguration on Ordynka Street, dutifully followed the instruction that had been conveyed to her, and she was healed of her infirmity. The miraculous healing occurred on October 24th/November 6th in 1688.
When establishing our monastic community in 2013, the decision to dedicate our chapel to the patronage and protection of the Most Holy Theotokos Joy of All Who Sorrow was not without due consideration. Approximately twenty-five years ago, an acquaintance of mine was informed that her distant relative who resided in Austria had recently died. Having no living relatives in Austria, my acquaintance was named as the executor of her relative’s affairs. Upon her return from Austria, my acquaintance requested to meet with me privately to discuss an important matter. During our meeting, my acquaintance shared the following information with me:
Toward the end of World War II two young soldiers came upon my relative’s home and begged for shelter. They related that they had been forcibly drafted into the army and had been stationed in Russia on the Eastern Front. Having fled the fighting, they were desperately trying to return back to their families in Austria. The woman offered them food and overnight shelter. On the following day, she provided them with civilian clothing and destroyed their military uniforms. In gratitude for her generosity, one of the young soldiers gifted her with an icon that he had obtained while in Russia. She graciously accepted the gift and entrusted the safety of the two young men to the protection of the Mother of God. Although the woman was Roman Catholic, she hung the icon in a prominent place in her home where it was kept with reverence for the rest of her earthly life. In her Last Will and Testament, she requested that the icon be given to a Russian Orthodox priest, who would spiritually value it as she had done so during her lifetime. My acquaintance stated that I was the only Russian Orthodox priest that she knew and, therefore, would like to gift me with the icon pursuant to her relative’s request.
The icon is a portrayal of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow. The exact age of the icon and its provenance are unknown to me. Miraculously the icon survived the Bolshevik Revolution and subsequent persecution of the Church, when most sacred items were destroyed unless they had been secretly hidden. The holy icon also survived the prolonged and devastating Nazi invasion of Russia during World War II. The icon bares signs of both age and abuse. Upon receipt, I had a case (kivot) specially fashioned in an attempt to help preserve the icon and to protect it from further damage and deterioration. And, so, it seemed appropriate to consecrate our community to the protection of the Icon of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow. Coincidentally, or rather, providentially, the official approval date of our Articles of Incorporation is November 5, 2013, which happens to be the eve of the Icon’s Feast.
Veneration of the Mother of God is very popular among Russian and other Slavic people, and there are countless churches with this dedication in the Russian lands and in the immigration. I think it safe to say that our small community senses the great sanctity of our precious icon and feels the heavenly intercessions and protection of the Mother of God in a special way. We give thanks to God for our OCCA household of faith, our small place of worship, for God’s innumerable mercies to us, for the intercession and protection of the Mother of God on our walk through life, for our religious community and for our beloved family and friends.
The annual celebration of our altar feast is something very special to us, filled with prayers for special intentions and thanksgiving. Tomorrow morning we will offer a special Molieben and Akathist in the monastery chapel before the Icon of Our Lady Joy of All Who Sorrow. If you would like to have prayer for any reason offered before the icon, please send your intentions via email to: ocmoljaws@gmail.com
“At the Last Judgment, I will not be asked whether I satisfactorily practiced asceticism, or how many bows I have made before the divine altar. I will be asked whether I fed the hungry, clothed the naked, visited the sick and the prisoner in jail. That is all I will be asked” – Mother Maria Skobtsova of Paris.
Mother Maria Skobtsova was an unconventional Orthodox nun who aided the persecuted Jewish people in occupied France during WWII. Confronting the horror of Nazi brutality, Mother Maria devised an ingenious plan to save Jewish children destined for extermination camps: Paris garbage collectors, upon her urging, hid the children in trash cans and whisked them to safe havens outside the city. Mother Maria, for her selfless rescue activities, perished in a gas chamber in Ravensbruck concentration camp in Germany in 1945. Today, she is among the “righteous gentiles” honored in Israel and a canonized saint in the Orthodox Christian Church.
