(Bradenton, FL) Priest John Chudick reports that work on the new temple for St Mark Church is rapidly coming to conclusion. The community hopes that they may get their occupancy permit by the Feast of Pentecost. For more information on the building progress in Bradenton, click here.

(Mt. Pleasant, SC) With the conscecration of Holy Ascension Church rapidly approaching on May 23-24, Priest John Parker has provided a look back at the progress of their building project since it began in May 2005. The key dates with the photos attached mark the following:

May 5, 2005 - Groundbreaking and planting of the Cross at the site of the Altar
May 6, 2006 - First disturbance of the land preparing for foundation.
May 10, 2007 - Raising of the Dome
May 6, 2008 - "Day of Rejoicing" in the Church and we Rejoice and give God thanks for a beautiful new temple built to the glory of His Holy Ascension.

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A recent visitor to an Orthodox Church, interested in learning more about the Faith, asked with all due respect about, “the relevance of Orthodox liturgical services to the post-modern era.” As the local priest considered his question he thought about the end of the Lenten journey: “the chosen and holy day…the Feast of Feasts…” It did not occur to the priest at the time but one possible answer to this inquiry might have taken the form of an invitation to attend the Midnight Service. The experience of absolute joy in the Resurrection, as expressed by the faithful packed wall to wall in the Church on Pascha night, seems to transcend categories of “relevance” and “need,” making questions about such things appear themselves almost irrelevant.

From time to time the relevancy of the traditional Christian Faith itself also comes under scrutiny. Such a position is understandable to the degree that the words and actions of Christians remain inconsistent with the vision of both God and man set forth in the Church’s Living Tradition, to the extent that they refrain from challenging contemporary society with that same vision.

The Paschal season provides an opportunity to measure our own lives according to these principles. As an aid to this endeavor the special hymns and Gospel lessons during the forty days remind us continually of the mysteries into which we have been baptized: Christ’s Death and Resurrection. The prescribed readings from the Book of Acts contain examples of great leaders who indeed confronted their day and time with God’s Truth. They accomplished this, however, not only with a readiness to preach Christ crucified and risen, but with a desire to share in His sufferings and triumph. They identified completely with the words of their Master, “He who gains his life shall lose it, but he who loses his life for my sake and for the Gospel’s, the same shall save it.” “Let him who would come after Me, deny himself, take up his cross and follow Me.”

This kind of whole-hearted witness is needed in each generation. It makes questions about “relevancy” somewhat unnecessary with regard to both liturgical services and the Faith. Through the apparent weakness of men resulting from self-sacrifice and true worship the glory of God is revealed, drawing men unto itself. The life giving character of the Cross when manifested through the disciples is more fully appreciated by those who initially consider the Way of the Cross to be scandalous or foolish. Without this evidence, however, of lives genuinely renewed through faith in the crucified, risen Lord, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the preaching of the Gospel is in vain. Individuals and communities offering themselves wholly to God, transformed by His grace, constitute proof that what Christians preach is true.

With the above thoughts in mind and borrowing a phrase from the Apostle Paul, “if then ye be (crucified) and risen with Christ” (Col. 3:1), how will we conduct ourselves in the days ahead? Will the multitudes, skeptical of a Faith whose main symbol is the cross of a crucified Savior, sincerely questioning the relevancy of that ancient Faith for modern times, see in us reason for hope? And, will we ourselves find renewal and become a source of joy for those around us?

The Orthodox Faith we profess will ultimately be measured by the effect that it has on our lives. For the sake of our neighbor and for our own salvation let us rededicate ourselves to the fullness of “grace and truth” as revealed through our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The services of Passion Week reach their climax on Holy Friday, when
the faithful are called to assemble at three points. The first time
calls us to the Morning Service, with its twelve Passion Gospels, often
held on Holy Thursday evening, since at 1:00 AM -- the time prescribed
by the Typikon -- we will probably still be ‘dragged down by sleep'. We
come together a second time at midmorning to read the Royal Hours, so
called because (as at Nativity and Theophany) the Roman Basileus would
serve as psalmreader, or at least be present. This practice was often
observed by orthodox monarchs in other countries long after the fall of
the Roman Empire in 1453.

Now there is no king but One Whose
‘reign is not of this world' (JN 18:33-38). So, at the ‘third hour',
about nine in the morning, at the same time (MK 15:25) as Jesus was
lifted up on the cross, we begin to read the Royal Hours with a very
different royalty in mind as we contemplate the King of Glory nailed to
the tree. On this most somber day of the liturgical year, the holy
Church directs our attention to the awful and awesome sufferings which
the immortal Son of God endured for our sake.

‘The One Who is
without passions now comes to His voluntary passion' (Triodion). ‘When
I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to Myself' (JN
12:32). ‘Lifting up' was a Roman euphemism for crucifixion, a hideous
form of torture to death, and humiliation even after death, from which
they spared their own citizens, but savagely inflicted on their unruly
slaves and rebellious subject peoples.

This is why (according to
ancient tradition) St Peter was crucified, but St Paul beheaded (ACTS
22:22-29). ‘Today, the One Who suspended the heavens is suspended
between Heaven and Earth' (Triodion). What can we say as we behold this
incredible sight? The Son of God is hanged, naked and tortured on a
shameful gibbet; He endures it, although the very elements protest (MT
27:45, 51-52; MK 15:33; LK 23:44-45).

In His awesome suffering,
He speaks but a very few words. He has already said everything He had
to say; now He fulfills the destiny He accepted when He accepted a
human body and soul for our sake (JN 18:37).When Jesus says ‘It is
finished.' (JN 19:30), He means that the redemption of the human race
has been accomplished, and that His work is over. His obedience, even
to the point of death on the cross (PHLP 2:7-8), annulled the effects
of Adam's -- and our own -- disobedience, if only we will claim that
annulment.

No human being could perfectly fulfill the laws of
the Old Covenant, which the rabbis say were imposed on Israel as a
result of their sin of idolatry at Sinai (EX 32), and which were
regarded as a curse from which Christ ransomed us (GAL 3:13), since
only H e, by His perfect obedience as the Son of God and Son of Man in
one person, could observe the Old Law perfectly (MT 5:17).

The
Old Law is finished, and we are now free to become by grace what Christ
is by nature: by His death and resurrection, the only Son of God made
it possible for us to become adopted children of God, and His royal
heirs along with Christ (ROM 1:17). Naturally, this is cause for our
great joy.

But, at the same time, we must also accuse ourselves
of the sins which made it necessary for so great a Savior to save us,
and we would be much worse off for ignoring and despising the Savior
than if He had never come at all (HEB 2:1-3).

Oh, how Christ
loves us! What can we do to return such great love? He tells us: ‘If
you love Me, you will obey My commandments' (JN 14:15). The last
service on Holy Friday is actually the first service of Holy Saturday.
This is the Evening Service, sometimes called the ‘Un-nailing' or ‘The
Descent from the Cross', not only because of the late afternoon time of
this service in our commemoration of the Lord's death and burial, but
also because, in many places, there is a liturgical reenactment of the
event: the image of the dead Christ is removed from the cross, and the
shroud depicting His body in repose is solemnly brought out for
veneration and placed in the ‘tomb' at the center of the nave. As
affecting as these rites are, we would do well to note that they are of
relatively recent origin, as is the outdoor procession with the shroud,
certainly not more than two centuries or so in general usage.

This
is important as a brake on our native conservatism in liturgical
practice: what we seek to conserve may not be all that old -- it's just
that we're used to it, and we might want to consider restoring ancient
practices or developing new ones even now.

There is an ancient
tradition describing St James, the Brother of God, serving the Divine
Liturgy on a table covered with the original shroud of Christ, and this
may be the origin of the image usually found on the _antimension_, not
to mention the _epitaphion_ itself, and possibly even the ‘Image Not
Made by Hands'; the ‘Holy Shroud' still preserved at Torino presents a
prototype of all of these: the full-length figure of a crucified man
reclining in death, hands crossed over the abdomen.

Notice that the right hand is placed over the left, the right hand which we venerate with our kisses.

This
is just the opposite of how we place our hands on our breasts as we
approach the Holy Cup, when we place the right hand over the heart and
the left hand over the right.

There is a very loud silence, a
palpable emptiness, which palls the holy Church on the evening of Holy
Friday. As we struggle to comprehend the horror of the suffering and
death of the very Son of God, each of us stands ashamed and wonders:
Since He was crucified for me, since my sins went far beyond my poor
ability to atone for them, it is I who crucified Christ.

More
than Judas, more than the Jews, more than the Romans, I crucified
Christ. How can I escape the wrath of God for putting His Son to death
like this? How can creation itself endure it? Even ‘the sun goes dark,
unable to bear the sight of God outraged' (Triodion). But it is the
very death of Christ which ‘tramples Death', since He rises from the
dead and liberates us from death as well, allowing us to escape the
ultimate punishment we deserve for our sins.

This is why we
describe God's mercy as ‘great'; this is the very definition of
‘grace'. This is the divine forgiveness and reconciliation with God for
which we hope and pray, and which is ours for the asking if only we
will return His love by accepting the salvation He offers us uniquely
through His Son, our Lord and God and Savior, Jesus Christ. ‘We adore
Your passion, O Christ! Also show us Your holy resurrection!'
(Triodion).

Beginning on the evening of Palm Sunday and continuing through the evening of Holy Tuesday, the Orthodox Church observes a special service known as the Service of the Bridgegroom. Each evening service is the Matins or Orthros service of the following day (e.g. the service held on Sunday evening is the Orthros service for Holy Monday). The name of the service is from the figure of the Bridegroom in the parable of the Ten Virgins found in Matthew 25:1-13.

Background

The first part of Holy Week presents us with an array of themes based chiefly on the last days of Jesus' earthly life. The story of the Passion, as told and recorded by the Evangelists, is preceded by a series of incidents located in Jerusalem and a collection of parables, sayings and discourses centered on Jesus' divine sonship, the kingdom of God, the Parousia, and Jesus' castigation of the hypocrisy and dark motives of the religious leaders. The observances of the first three days of Great Week are rooted in these incidents and sayings. The three days constitute a single liturgical unit. They have the same cycle and system of daily prayer. The Scripture lessons, hymns, commemorations, and ceremonials that make up the festal elements in the respective services of the cycle highlight significant aspects of salvation history, by calling to mind the events that anticipated the Passion and by proclaiming the inevitability and significance of the Parousia.

The Orthros of each of these days is called the Service of the Bridegroom (Akolouthia tou Nimfiou). The name comes from the central figure in the well-known parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The title Bridegroom suggests the intimacy of love. It is not without significance that the kingdom of God is compared to a bridal feast and a bridal chamber. The Christ of the Passion is the divine Bridegroom of the Church. The imagery connotes the final union of the Lover and the beloved. The title Bridegroom also suggests the Parousia. In the patristic tradition, the aforementioned parable is related to the Second Coming; and is associated with the need for spiritual vigilance and preparedness, by which we are enabled to keep the divine commandments and receive the blessings of the age to come. The troparion "Behold the Bridegroom comes in the middle of the night.", which is sung at the beginning of the Orthros of Great Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, relates the worshiping community to that essential expectation: watching and waiting for the Lord, who will come again to judge the living and the dead.

Holy Monday

On Holy Monday we commemorate Joseph the Patriarch, the beloved son of Jacob. A major figure of the Old Testament, Joseph's story is told in the final section of the Book of Genesis (chs. 37-50). Because of his exceptional qualities and remarkable life, our patristic and liturgical tradition portrays Joseph as tipos Christou, i.e., as a prototype, prefigurement or image of Christ. The story of Joseph illustrates the mystery of God's providence, promise and redemption. Innocent, chaste and righteous, his life bears witness to the power of God's love and promise. The lesson to be learned from Joseph's life, as it bears upon the ultimate redemption wrought by the death and resurrection of Christ, is summed up in the words he addressed to his brothers who had previously betrayed him, "'Fear not ... As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones.' Thus he reassured them and comforted them" (Genesis 50:19-21). The commemoration of the noble, blessed and saintly Joseph reminds us that in the great events of the Old Testament, the Church recognizes the realities of the New Testament.

Also, on Great and Holy Monday the Church commemorates the event of the cursing of the fig tree (Matthew 21:18-20). In the Gospel narrative this event is said to have occurred on the morrow of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:18 and Mark 11:12). For this reason it found its way into the liturgy of Great Monday. The episode is also quite relevant to Great Week. Together with the event of the cleansing of the Temple this episode is another manifestation of Jesus' divine power and authority and a revelation as well of God's judgment upon the faithlessness of the Jewish religious classes. The fig tree is symbolic of Israel become barren by her failure to recognize and receive Christ and His teachings. The cursing of the fig tree is a parable in action, a symbolic gesture. Its meaning should not be lost on any one in any generation.

Christ's judgment on the faithless, unbelieving, unrepentant and unloving will be certain and decisive on the Last Day. This episode makes it clear that nominal Christianity is not only inadequate, it is also despicable and unworthy of God's kingdom. Genuine Christian faith is dynamic and fruitful. It permeates one's whole being and causes a change. Living, true and unadulterated faith makes the Christian conscious of the fact that he is already a citizen of heaven. Therefore, his way of thinking, feeling, acting and being must reflect this reality. Those who belong to Christ ought to live and walk in the Spirit; and the Spirit will bear fruit in them: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-25).

Holy Tuesday

On Holy Tuesday the Church calls to remembrance two parables, which are related to the Second Coming. The one is the parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-3); the other the parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). These parables point to the inevitability of the Parousia and deal with such subjects as spiritual vigilance, stewardship, accountability and judgment.

From these parables we learn at least two basic things. First, Judgment Day will be like the situation in which the bridesmaids (or virgins) of the parable found themselves: some ready for it, some not ready. The time one decides for God is now and not at some undefined point in the future. If "time and tide waits for no man," certainly the Parousia is no exception. The tragedy of the closed door is that individuals close it, not God. The exclusion from the marriage feast, the kingdom, is of our own making. Second, we are reminded that watchfulness and readiness do not mean a wearisome, spiritless performance of formal and empty obligations. Most certainly it does not mean inactivity and slothfulness. Watchfulness signifies inner stability, soberness, tranquility and joy. It means spiritual alertness, attentiveness and vigilance. Watchfulness is the deep personal resolve to find and do the will of God, embrace every commandment and every virtue, and guard the intellect and heart from evil thoughts and actions. Watchfulness is the intense love of God.

Holy Wednesday

On Holy Wednesday the Church invites the faithful to focus their attention on two figures: the sinful woman who anointed the head of Jesus shortly before the passion (Matthew 26:6-13), and Judas, the disciple who betrayed the Lord. The former acknowledged Jesus as Lord, while the latter severed himself from the Master. The one was set free, while the other became a slave. The one inherited the kingdom, while the other fell into perdition. These two people bring before us concerns and issues related to freedom, sin, hell and repentance.

The repentance of the sinful harlot is contrasted with the tragic fall of the chosen disciple. The Triodion make is clear that Judas perished, not simply because he betrayed his Master, but because, having fallen into the sin of betrayal, he then refused to believe in the possibility of forgiveness. If we deplore the actions of Judas, we do so not with vindictive self-righteousness but conscious always of our own guilt. In general, all the passages in the Triodion that seem to be directed against the Jews should be understood in this same way. When the Triodion denounces those who rejected Christ and delivered Him to death, we recognize that these words apply not only to others, but to ourselves: for have we not betrayed the Savior many times in our hearts and crucified Him anew?

I have transgressed more than the harlot, O loving Lord, yet never have I offered You my flowing tears. But in silence I fall down before You and with love I kiss Your most pure feet, beseeching You as Master to grant me remission of sins; and I cry to You, O Savior: Deliver me from the filth of my works.

While the sinful woman brought oil of myrrh, the disciple came to an agreement with the transgressors. She rejoiced to pour out what was very precious, he made haste to sell the One who is above all price. She acknowledged Christ as Lord, he severed himself from the Master. She was set free, but Judas became the slave of the enemy. Grievous was his lack of love. Great was her repentance. Grant such repentance also unto me, O Savior who has suffered for our sake, and save us.

The Bridegroom" Icon portrays Christ during His Passion, particularly during the period when our Lord was mocked and tortured by the soldiers who crowned Him with thorns, dressed Him in purple and placed a reed in His Hands, jeering Him as the "King of the Jews."

Orthodox Christian Celebration of the Bridegroom Service

The services conducted on Palm Sunday evening and on the evenings of Holy Monday and Tuesday are the Matins or Orthros services of the following day. After the reading of the Psalms at the beginning of the service the Troparion of the Bridegroom Service is chanted three times. On Palm Sunday evening as this hymn is being chanted, the priest carries the icon of Christ as Bridegroom in procession. The icon is placed in the middle of the solea of the church and remains there until Holy Thursday.

The Matins Gospel readings for each of the Bridegroom Services are: Holy Monday - Matthew 21:18-43; Holy Tuesday - Matthew 22:15-46, 23:1-39; and Holy Wednesday - John 12:17-50).

In most parishes a Presanctified Liturgy will be conducted on the mornings of Holy Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. The Liturgy of the Pre-Sanctified Gifts has a distinct character and order. It is comprised of three major parts or components: a) the service of Great Vespers peculiar to this Liturgy; b) the solemn transfer of the Pre-Sanctified Gifts to the Holy Table; and c) the preparation for and the distribution of holy Communion. The Liturgy does not contain the Anaphora, the Gifts of the bread and wine having been consecrated at the Divine Liturgy on the previous Sunday or Saturday.

The Scripture readings for each of the Presanctified Liturgies are: Holy Monday - Exodus 1:1-21, Job 1:1-12, Matthew 24:3-35; Holy Tuesday - Exodus 2:5-10, Job 1:13-22, Matthew 24:36-26:2; Holy Wednesday - Exodus 2:11-23, Job 2:1-10, Matthew 26:6-16.

Hymns of the Bridegroom Service

Troparion

Behold, the Bridegroom cometh in the middle of the night, and blessed is that servant whom He shall find watching; and again unworthy is he whom He shall find heedless. Beware, therefore, O my soul, lest thou be overcome with sleep, lest thou be given up to death, and be shut out from the Kingdom. But rouse thyself and cry: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God, through the Mother of God, have mercy on us.

Exapostelarion

Thy bridal chamber, O my Saviour, do I behold all adorned, and a garment I have not that I may enter therein. Illumine the garment of my soul, O Giver of Light, and save me. Listen

The Lenten Triodion, translated by Mother Mary and Kallistos Ware (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press, 1994), pp. 59-60, 511-547.

Calivas, Alkiviadis C. Great Week and Pascha in the Greek Orthodox Church (Brookline: Holy Cross Press, 1992), pp. 29-49.

Farley, Donna. Seasons of Grace: Reflections on the Orthodox Church Year (Ben Lomond, CA: Conciliar Press, 2002), pp. 130-132.

Wybrew, Hugh. Orthodox Lent, Holy Week and Easter: Liturgical Texts with Commentary (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1997), pp. 89-100.

Many thanks to Fr. Constantin Alecse and Biserica.org

(Dallas, TX) In 1998 Chad Arrington visited St Seraphim Orthodox Cathedral in Dallas, TX. He was steered toward the Orthodox Church by a fellow classmate at the University of Dallas, Trevor Beckworth who told him “this Church may be the real thing.”

Raised in the Church of Christ, Chad visited St Seraphim and with his wife Christy, they began to read and study more about Orthodoxy. Their study led them to embrace the Faith and on Holy Saturday in 1999, Chad and Christy, became members of the Orthodox Church.

Today, Chad is Priest Ambrose Arrington, priest-in-charge of Holy Apostles Mission in Tulsa, OK. His wife, Matushka Christy are the proud parents of Lucas, Mary, Miriam, and Aleksandr. But the story does not end there.

After Fr. Ambrose became Orthodox his mother and father Peggy and Ted started to look into Orthodoxy, at first to find out why their son left the Church of Christ. It did not take long for them to come to the same conclusion as their son, that in the Orthodox Church, they had found the authentic Church of Christ! In 2002 Fr. Ambrose parents became Orthodox. Peggy (Tabitha) and Ted (Theodore) are now members of St. Seraphim Cathedral in Dallas. But there is more to this story.

Fr Ambrose brother, Brent, and his wife Michael and their children began their journey to Orthodoxy which culminated in their family being received into the Church earlier this year. Brent (Andrew), Michael (Katherine), and their children, Benedict, Christine, Genevieve, and Elizabeth round out, so far, the Arrington family as Orthodox Christians.

Ten years ago only two members of the Arrington family were Orthodox. Today there are 14.

As the early Church grew from person to person, family member to family member, so too this dynamic is alive today in the Orthodox Church and especially here in the Diocese of the South.

For this, and all things, we give glory to God. Only by the Grace of God and the sacrifice of those who wish to follow the narrow path that leads to the Kingdom of God, can the Orthodox Faith continue to proclaim the Truth that is Jesus Christ in this land and share this Truth with others.

Last year, over 160 people were received into the Orthodox Church across the Diocese of the South. This year with 28 parishes, missions and mission-stations reporting so far, 105 are in their final preparations to be received into the Church on Holy Saturday or shortly thereafter - of which 7 will be received at Holy Apostles Mission in Tulsa, Fr Arrington’s mission.

Here in the DOS the “Litany for the Catechumens” and those “Preparing for Holy Illumination” are prayed with particular persons and families in mind. May the Lord, in His love, hear our prayers.

Oh, and by the way, remember Trevor who tipped Chad to the Orthodox Church? Trevor is currently a seminary student at St. Tikhon Seminary in South Canaan.

And so, the story continues!

To the Clergy and Faithful of the Diocese of the South:

On behalf of His Eminence, Archbishop DMITRI, it is our pleasure to announce the convening of 31st Assembly of the Diocese of the South. The Diocese will celebrate its 30th Anniversary and our beloved Archbishop DMITRI will celebrate his 85th birthday later this year of which we will have the opportunity in anticipation of his birthday to honor him at the Assembly.

As the senior hierarch in The Orthodox Church in America and truly the father of our diocese, no other current bishop in our Church is more beloved for what he has humbly done to establish a diocese and shepherd it in a spirit of love and Orthodox missionary outreach.

The focus of this Assembly will be prayer and worship. We will gather often to thank God for what He has given us to steward and humbly beseech Him to give us strength and wisdom to continue to be missionaries in His Name and spread the Gospel. We will also discharge the work of the Diocese during the Plenary sessions on Thursday of the Assembly. The Diocesan Council will meet on the Tuesday afternoon of the Assembly.

His Eminence has invited Archpriest Paul Lazor to be our guest and to deliver the Keynote Address on Wednesday evening. We are also working on a dynamic Young Adults Presentation (ages 13-21) for the Wednesday evening of the Assembly. More details on this will be forthcoming.

As with last year, there will be no direct mailings of Assembly materials. Rather we will use the DOS website to announce and distribute all Assembly registration forms, reports and other materials. You are asked to download and print these materials and bring them with you to Dallas in June.

If you have any questions please contact Archpriest Joseph Fester or Archpriest Basil Zebrun at 214-522-4149. You may also use a special email address for the Assembly DOSCHANCERY@gmail.com if you wish to email your questions to the local committee.

Please refer to the general Assembly schedule posted on the DOS website under Assembly 08. A final schedule and complete Agenda will be posted in May.

You are encouraged to make your hotel reservation as soon as possible, again please go to the DOS website and click the Assembly Hotel Reservation button which will take you directly to the Renaissance Dallas Hotel website.

We look forward to hosting you in Dallas,

The 31st DOS Assembly Committee

(Dallas, TX) Priest Timothy Ullman who is assisting the DOS and our Montgomery, Alabama mission-station has been deployed to Iraq and will be stationed north of Bagdad in an area “affectionally named Mortaritaville” by the US soldiers there. Please keep him in your prayers. His current deployment will be until May but he expects to be redeployed to Iraq later this year for a much longer tour of duty.

The Round Rock, TX mission-station celebrated its first liturgical service this past Sunday evening with Vespers and Bible Study. Priest Thomas Ledford from our St Anthony Church in San Antonio will be assisting the group in their formative stage. The eventual location of the mission will be determined as the needs of the group and the outreach potential of a DOS mission in the greater Austin area develop.

Priest Philip Kontos, senior at St Tikhon’s Seminary will visit and serve at St Peter the Apostle Mission in Jupiter, FL during Bright Week to meet the faithful as he and they seek God’s will in his possible assignment after graduation. The mission has been faithfully serviced for the past year by Archpriest James Mason. Jupiter is located on the east coast of Florida north of West Palm Beach.

Priest Robert Royer and his wife Krystal visited St Seraphim Cathedral this past weekend to meet His Eminence and the DOS staff as he also seeks God’s will in his possible assignment in the diocese. Father Robert and Krystal will visit and serve at Holy Resurrection Mission in Aiken, SC during Bright Week and Thomas Sunday.

Priest John Chudik of St Mark Church in Bradenton, FL reports that “everyone is working feverishly in hopes of getting a temporary certificate of occupancy” for their new temple so that they may worship in it by Pascha. The impressive new temple will be a blessing to the community has they reach out to others with the Orthodox Faith.

Priest Paul Coats, senior at St Vladimir’s, his wife Gerianne and daughter Helen will visit Charlotte, NC where Fr. Paul will be assigned as second priest at the Nativity of the Virgin Mary Church and assist Fr Bill Mills. Fr Coats will also assist the Carolinas Deanery in its various mission outreaches and will begin work in the establishment of a second OCA mission in south Charlotte near Rock Hill, SC.

Priest John Parker of Holy Ascension Mission and his flock are making the final arrangements for the consecration of their new temple in Mt. Pleasant, SC the weekend of May 23-25. His Eminence will consecrate the new temple and ordain subdeacon John Hays to the Holy Diaconate. John is a graduate of St Vladimir’s and will be ordained to the Holy Priesthood later this year to serve in Wilmington, NC.

Priest Justin Frederick of St Maximus Mission in Denton, TX shared with His Eminence the latest renderings for their new temple which they hope to build in the near future. Andrew Gould the architect for the new temple in Mt. Pleasant, SC is working with St Maximus.

Priest Justin Mathews, assistant priest at St. Anne Mission in Oak Ridge, TN and OCF Chaplain at the University of Tennessee, recently led an eight day Orthodox Christian Fellowship mission trip the Dominican Republic. Although the Orthodox presence in the island nation is very small the potential is great. Father Mathews hopes to return to the Dominican Republic and share the many liturgical services that have been translated by Archbishop Dmitri into Spanish to those searching for Orthodoxy. Fr Justin is also asking anyone who can help him with locating other Orthodox materials in Spanish, (prayer books, akathists, books translated into Spanish) that can be used. If you can help, please email him at “justin@justinmathews.com”

Registration Forms for the 2008 DOS Assembly will be posted on the DOS website this week. As we did last year, all Assembly Reports will be distributed through the DOS website and participants are asked to download, print and bring those reports with them to Dallas in June. Please make your hotel reservation as soon as possible to get the discounted Assembly rate. Click here to make room reservations.

Milos Konjevich, DOS Treasurer reports that Tithes are running slightly ahead of last year’s record total. The final DOS financial reports for FY 2007 are now available on the DOS website. Total income from all sources last year totaled $813,884 compared to $720,310 in 2006.

Finally, Vladimir Gyrgorenko the iconographer for St Seraphim Cathedral here has completed the Pantocrator. He is working on the icons of the Prophets which will circle the inside of the dome. This phase of the interior iconography will be completed by the time of the June DOS Assembly Dallas.

 

(Dallas, TX) In response to deacons in the DOS who have requested additional assistance in learning to serve more effectively the various liturgical services of the Orthodox Church, His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri is encouraging DOS deacons and those in the OCA Diaconal Training Program (late vocation program) from the DOS to participate in the upcoming St Vladimir's Seminary Diaconal Liturgical Practicum. This year’s programi will run from June 3-6, 2008 at the Crestwood, NY campus of St Vladimir’s.

His Eminence recently shared that “Protodeacon Kiriil Sokolov (SVS Lecturer in Liturgics) is a learned deacon of our Church from a priestly family (the son of the late Archpriest Victor Sokolov of Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco.) In his current position at SVS he is also providing the diaconal training program to share his knowledge with other deacons so that the liturgical services of the Church can be celebrated with grace and peace.” In addition to Protodeacon Sokolov, Priest Alexander Rentel (SVS Coordinator of Liturgical Instruction) and the son of Archpriest Daniel Rentel (OCA-DMW) will also be a presenter at the Diaconal Liturgical Practicum.

(Alpine, TX) The Orthodox Mission-station here in Alpine held it first services with a priest this weekend with Archpriest Joseph Fester celebrating Great Vespers and the Divine Liturgy. Both Orthodox, catechumens and inquirers were part of the worshippers.

His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri visited Alpine last November and began the process of helping form the mission station. Since then, weekly reader services are held on Sundays. The near-term goals for the mission-station are having a monthly visiting priest celebrate services and hear confessions. Also the mission-station would like to expand the weekly reader services to include not only the Hours and the Sunday Typica but Saturday reader vespers and other lay-led services.

The Alpine Mission-station is also actively looking for a temporary-permanent worship location to promote greater local visibility as the faithful reach out to others with the Orthodox Faith.

Alpine, TX - at an elevation of nearly 5000 ft amidst picturesque mountains - is located in the southwest area of Texas about 100 miles west of Big Bend National Park.

For more infomation on the Alpine Orthodox Mission-station, please contact Christine Serkland at “serk@wildblue.net”

(Moundville, AL) After 19 years of sojourning in rented facilities, St Gregory the Theologian Mission celebrated the first Divine Liturgy in their new permanent location here.

The community recently purchased 3 acres of land with a large 6500 square foot building on it to meet their immediate needs for a chapel, education, library, fellowship and office space.

For many years the mission was in downtown Tuscaloosa near the University of Alabama, however with rising prices for real estate near the campus, it became price prohibitive to continue to try and be near the campus. Thus the community started to look outside of Tuscaloosa and found the property in Moundville.

The location of the new property was the result many years of prayer and after His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri inspected the property in February and gave his blessing, the community purchased the land.

Priest Demetrius Edwards and his flock have enthusiastic plans for the property which include the construction of a new Church in the future.

 

(Dallas, TX) As reported earlier on the DOS website and also reported on the respective websites of the Greek Metropolis of Denver and the Antiochian Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America, His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri hosted both Metropolitan Isaiah and Bishop Basil at St. Seraphim Cathedral here and concelebrated the Divine Liturgy for the Sunday of Orthodoxy. His Eminence later commented that “this is a crowning memory for me to have my dear brothers in Christ and friends celebrate the Divine Liturgy together.”

That same day in the evening the three hierarchs with Orthodox clergy from the Dallas-Fort Worth area gathered for the celebration of Orthodoxy Vespers with a huge crowd of worshippers at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church.

Sunday of Orthodoxy in Safety Harbor - Archpriest Peter Tutko and the faithful of Holy Trinity Church in Safety Harbor are already making good use of their new temple by hosting the Sunday of Orthodox Vespers for the greater Tampa/St Petersburg area. Another large gathering of clergy and faithful celebrated the Triumph of Orthodoxy.

Mission News

Montgomery, AL- Peter Timothy Ullman sent a lengthy report to His Eminence on the progress of the DOS mission station in Montgomery, AL. The mission is growing, has new catechumens and is looking for land in the suburbs of Montgomery.

Round Rock, TX- Priest Thomas Ledford will travel to Round Rock this Sunday to meet with the mission-station members to continue organizing their efforts to plant a new mission in Round Rock which is north of the Texas capital of Austin.

Alpine, TX - The mission station will have its first Great Vespers and Divine Liturgy this weekend. Archpriest Joseph Fester will travel to Alpine to conduct the services. His Eminence was scheduled to serve the first services in Alpine, but the special session of the Holy Synod to be held this Thursday changed those plans.

Richmond Building Update- Priest David Arnold reports that their new temple is moving along nicely and the photos he has shared prove him right. The community is now looking at dates to have their new temple consecrated.

Greensboro Mission expanding- The Holy Cross Mission in Greensboro, NC which currently is renting space from a local Presbyterian Church is expanding to rent additional space from their Presbyterian friends to include rooms for Sunday School and an office for Priest Christopher Foley.

Mt Pleasant, SC - Holy Ascension Mission is finally in their new temple with a glorious procession from their old location to their permanent church. The consecration is scheduled form May 23-24 weekend.

Other News of Note

Hotel Reservations for the 2008 DOS Assembly- can now be made online by clicking this link which will take you directly to the hotel website which includes the special DOS hotel code so you can receive the Assembly rate of $119 per night. Everyone is encouraged to reserve your rooms as soon as possible.

Igumen Jonah Paffhausen, abbot of St John the Wonderworker Monastery in Manton, CA will lead a Lenten Retreat at St Seraphim Cathedral the weekend of April 11-13. For more information, scroll down to the recent Latest News Story on the DOS website.

Archpriest Ted Pisarchuk is traveling to Guatemala to minister at the Hogar Orphanage. Father Ted is active with the Orthodox Christian Mission Center and has served on the Board for many years.

Archpriest Ted Panchak the longtime priest at Dormition of the Theotokos in Norfolk, VA has been granted retirement by His Eminence effective September 1, 2008. The community will be looking to Dean Stephen Freeman to assist them in their development plan to expand the witness of the parish.

Tornado in Atlanta- The St John the Wonderworker Church in Atlanta narrowly missed being hit by a tornado that struck downtown Atlanta last week. The neighborhood around the church received heavy damage, but the church was spared.

Speaking of bad weather - Dallas was hit with rains of “biblical proportions” last week causing His Eminence's trip to The Woodlands and St Cyril of Jerusalem Mission to be cancelled. The trip was also going to include a visit with Bishop Peter of ROCOR who was to hold a retreat for his clergy in Houston, however that retreat was cancelled because of the death of Metropolitan Lauras.

Two Communities- in the DOS reached milestones recently when St Mary Magdalene in Rincon, GA was granted Church status and St John of Damascus in Tyler, TX was granted Mission status by His Eminence.

His Eminence - extends his prayers and condolences to the family of the newly-departed Archpriest Eugene Vansuch who fell asleep in the Lord suddenly last Sunday evening. Father Eugene was known to many of the clergy in the DOS who studied at St Tikhon Seminary and were instructed by Father Eugene who taught there. May his Memory be Eternal!

(Dallas, TX) Holy Ascension Mission in Mt Pleasant, SC moved into its new temple on the first Sunday of the Great Fast. With the blessing of His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri, the Divine Liturgy began at the storefront church/bookstore that the mission has been using for the past several years. At the Little Entrance, Priest John Parker, assisted by Archpriest John Breck and Deacon James Mark Barna led the procession to the new temple.

The faithful of Holy Ascension took icons off the walls and carried them to the new temple which is a short walk from their current location. The entrance was made and the Divine Liturgy concluded at glorious new temple.

His Eminence is scheduled to consecrate the new edifice May 23 and 24, 2008. Details on the consecration will be shared here on the DOS website.

For a gallery of photos of the Sunday of Orthodoxy procession in Mt Pleasant, click here.

For a look back at the worship locations for Holy Ascension since its founding, click here.

To read yesterday's article on Holy Ascension in the Charleston newspaper, click here.

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri has invited Igumen Jonah (Paffhausen) to lead a lenten retreat here the weekend of April 11-13 on the theme, “Three Spiritual Principles and the Path To Prayer- Do Not Resent, Do Not React, Keep Inner Stillness.”

Igumen Jonah is the Abbot of St. John the Wonderworker Monastery in Manton, CA (Diocese of the West-Orthodox Church in America.) He is a graduate of St. Vladimir Seminary. He has held various retreats across the USA and was the recent guest speaker at the Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers in Minneapolis, MN

The Lenten Retreat will begin on Friday, April 11 at 5pm with the Presanctified Liturgy followed by the first retreat session at 7pm. Saturday will begin with the Divine Liturgy at 8:30am, followed by a light lenten meal. Two sessions will be held on Saturday, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, with Vigil at 5pm.

Igumen Jonah will preach on Sunday evening at the Dallas area Lenten Vespers hosted by St .Seraphim Cathedral.

For more details and registration information, click here (updated) 

(Dallas, TX) The unity of the Orthodox faith is proclaimed on the first Sunday of the Great Fast commonly known as the Sunday of Orthodoxy or the Triumph of Orthodoxy. On Sunday at St Seraphim Cathedral and then later in the evening at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Dallas, that unity in a bond of love was visible.

His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri hosted His Eminence, Metropolitan Isaiah of the Greek Metropolis of Denver and His Grace, Bishop Basil of the Antiochian Archdiocese Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America as the hierarchs concelebrated the Divine Liturgy at St Seraphim Cathedral and then the Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers at Holy Trinity.

Large crowds at both events bore witness to the genuine cooperation that exists amongst the Orthodox clergy and faithful in the greater Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex.

At the Divine Liturgy, His Grace Bishop Basil preached a powerful sermon on the necessity for Orthodox to bear witness to the Truth that is in the Person of Jesus Christ. His Eminence, Metropolitan Isaiah later in the day at Orthodoxy Vespers continued the theme of standing firm in the Faith by not compromise ourselves and therefore our witness to Christ by the subtly and not so subtle messages we are daily bombarded with in our culture.

“What a joy it is to see these three bishops genuinely love and like each other. The peace that was present at the Divine Liturgy was a powerful witness to the bond of unity that can only come when ‘brothers dwell in unity” commented a St Seraphim parishioner. “In this day when there is so much rancor and bitterness in the Church and the world, it gives one hope to see ‘perfect love casting out fear.’”

God willing, the three hierarchs will gather next year in Wichita, KS at the see of Bishop Basil to celebrate the Sunday of Orthodoxy and again the next year in Denver.

 

(Atlanta, GA)  St John the Wonderworker Church in downtown Atlanta and on the edge of the heavily damage “Cabbage Town” section of Atlanta, narrowly missed damage by less than 100 yards last night as a F-2 Tornado slammed into the city center here.

“We were spared” explains Priest Jacob Myers, rector of St. John’s. “The Cabbage Town neighborhood, which we are right next to, was heavily damaged but all we suffered was a power outage.”

Being a downtown parish, St. John’s has a daily meal ministry to the urban poor in Atlanta and a parish school. Both ministries will be able to continue without disruption due to the storm.

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri made his first archpastoral visit to Holy Cross Mission in Greensboro, NC the weekend of March 1 and 2. His Eminence arrived in Greensboro on Friday, February 29 accompanied by Deacon Steven Kroll of St Seraphim Cathedral.

Saturday morning was occupied with a deanery meeting of the Carolinas Deanery. Priest Marcus Burch, dean gathered the clergy in Greensboro to brief His Eminence on the missionary activities of the deanery while the clergy shared with each other their ongoing efforts to share the Gospel.

Saturday evening the Archbishop attended Great Vespers at Holy Cross while a full hierarchical Divine Liturgy with vesting in the center of the Church was celebrated on Sunday. At the Liturgy, John Hays (graduate of SVS) was tonsured a reader and subdeacon and Daniel and Nicholas Kowalcheck were tonsured readers. Subdeacon John is scheduled to be ordained to the Holy Diaconate in May.

The fast growing Holy Cross Mission rents space from a local Greensboro Presbyterian Church which has been turned into worship and fellowship space. The mission will rent additional space to accomodate their growing religious education needs and office space for Fr. Foley.

For a complete photo essay of His Eminence’s trip to Greensboro, click here.

(Dallas, TX) The Great Fast began here last night with the celebration of Vespers and the Rite of Forgiveness. Over 100 people attended the Cathedral here and similar participation took place across the DOS.

His Eminence led the Rite of Forgiveness by confessing his sins to those assembled and asked each to forgive him. He preached on the absolute necessity that we not only forgive one another but that our very Christian identity must be grounded in a spirit of forgiveness, in charity, and incarnating the Christian virtues. “It is not enough for us to simply “agree” about forgiveness, but we must live it and practice it daily,” the Archbishop said. “The Rite of Forgiveness gives us a concrete example of facing one another and truly asking to be forgiven and to forgive.”

The Cathedral in Dallas will celebrate the Great Canon of St Andrew of Crete Monday-Thursday this week with the celebration of the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts on Friday evening.

Reminder: Daylight savings time resumes at 2 a.m. Sunday. Clocks are set ahead one hour.

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri will concelebrate the Divine Liturgy with His Eminence, Metropolitan Isaiah of the Greek metropolis of Denver here at St Seraphim Cathedral on the first Sunday of the Great Fast. Later that day, Archbishop Dmitri and Metropolitan Isaiah will be joined by Bishop Basil of the Antiochian Archdiocese Mid-America Diocese for the celebration of the Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Dallas.

All three hierarchs have a close working relationship with each other borne out of years of cooperation and respect. This example has promoted close cooperation between Orthodox parishes in the North Texas area. Local organizations such as the North Texas Orthodox Mission (NTOM) is one example of Orthodox cooperation to promote the spread of the Faith.

Annually, His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri hosts the local Dallas metroplex Orthodox clergy and their families at his home during Bright Week. The clergy and their families also gather with His Eminence after the Feast of the Nativity each year through the effort of the local Orthodox Clergy Brotherhood on North Texas.

Recently the NTOM sponsored the visit of Elder Zacharias from England in cooperation with the Orthodox Clergy Brotherhood. The NTOM with the OCB also sponsor the Festival of Orthodoxy which brings prominent Orthodox clergy and lay speakers to Dallas for presentations of various aspects of the Faith.

On a recent visit to Dallas, Metropolitan Isaiah hosted Archbishop Dmitri at the St Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Forth Worth during an exhibition of early Christian Art at the Kimball Art Museum. Both hierarchs toured the exhibit followed by Great Vespers at St Demetrios and then a banquet.

Later this year the Antiochian Mid-America Diocese Parish Life Conference will be held in Dallas with Bishop Basil presiding. An invitation to all Orthodox clergy has been extended to be at the Divine Liturgy at the Conference and to participate in other events.

The Divine Liturgy on Orthodoxy Sunday at St Seraphim Cathedral will start at 9:30AM and the Orthodoxy Sunday Vespers at Holy Trinity will begin at 6:00

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence is preparing for his first visit to Holy Cross Mission in Greensboro, NC this coming weekend. Priest Christopher Foley is preparing the growing mission community for the visit. “We are all very excited and want His Eminence first visit to be memorable” commented Fr Foley. “It is a big step for us to host our Archpastor.” Along with the visit to Holy Cross, His Eminence will meet with the clergy of the Carolinas Deanery and be updated on their missionary work.

Holy Trinity Church in Safety Harbor, FL celebrated their first Divine Liturgy on February 16th. The “Door Opening” as Archpriest Peter Tutko called it, was a joyous event with many clergy and laity from the greater Tampa/St Petersburg area in attendance. Please keep in your prayers the iconographer Elias Damianakis who is writing the icons for Holy Trinity. He was recently diagnosed with cancer.

His Eminence deactivated the St Michael Mission in Houston earlier this month in an effort to consolidate our missionary efforts from St Cyril of Jerusalem Mission in The Woodlands (a suburb of Houston). Many of the faithful from the St Michael Mission were present at St Cyril’s last Sunday and were welcomed by Priest Basil Biberdorf and the mission faithful. Priest John Filipovich the former priest-in-charge of St Michael’s is now attached to St Seraphim Cathedral in Dallas. His Eminence and Archpriest Basil Zebrun, dean of the South central Deanery will visit St Cyril’s for the patronal feast day on Tuesday, March 18 where the Liturgy of the Pre sanctified Gifts will be celebrated followed by a lenten meal and fellowship with the Archbishop.

Speaking of the Cathedral in Dallas, the scaffolding is up again and the dome is now ready for the writing of the Pantocrator and the Prophets to be completed, God willing, by the time of the DOS Assembly in Dallas at the end of June. A special DOS Assembly 08 webpage is being finished in conjunction with the Renaissance Hotel in Dallas which will host the events. Reservations via the special Assembly webpage should be available in the next 10 days.

For the past 25 years, St Barbara’s in Fort Worth has held its annual Pysanky Festival. Last year nearly 1000 people for the Fort Worth area attended the Festival, which has turned into quite a local event. Click here for more information.

The St George Mission in Edenton, NC reports that they will soon receive relics of St John of Kronstadt, a generous gift from one of their mission faithful. This small mission in the historic coastal town of North Carolina is remodeling the town’s old railroad depot and turning it into its Temple, fellowship and meeting space.

Another mission in the DOS is also turning an old fire academy into its new Temple, fellowship and meeting space. St Gregory Mission in Tuscaloosa, AL is purchasing a 6000 sf building plus an additional 3+ acres which will be the site for their permanent Temple in the future.

The DOS was featured at the recently concluded Missionary Conference sponsored by the Diocese of the West. Priests Marcus Burch, John Parker, Joseph Ciarciaglino, Basil Biberdorf and DOS Mission Coordinator Fr Ted Pisarchuk were in attendance and shared their many and varied missionary experiences with the other missionaries at the event. This annual event brings missionary clergy and laity together at the Life-Giving Spring Retreat Center in Boulder City, NV to help equip missionaries in their work. Congratulations to all who attended from the DOS and to Bishop Benjamin and the Diocese of the West for providing this yearly gathering.

One of the newest missionary outposts in the DOS will be holding its first Vespers and Divine Liturgy during March. The Alpine Mission Outreach in Alpine, TX will be visited by a very special cleric of the DOS to launch the new mission outpost. More details to follow.

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri returned from Orlando, FL yesterday after making an archpastoral visit to St Stephen the Protomartyr Church. Archpriest Mark Stevens, rector of St Stephen and the dean of the Central Florida Deanery greeted His Eminence, who was accompanied by Subdeacon Vladimir Grigorenko from St Seraphim Cathedral.

After the Vigil service on Saturday evening, the Archbishop was the guest at a dinner with the parish council members and clergy at the home of one of the parish members. An informal question and answer session by the parishioners with His Eminence about the life of the parish were exchanged including the plans for St Stephen to build a new church.

A large crowd attended the Sunday Divine Liturgy and an extended fellowship hour concluded the visit in which the Archbishop was able to talk with most of the gathered faithful.

(Dallas, TX) Without boasting (too much) His Eminence has said to not a few people that the prosfora made at St Seraphim Cathedral here is “the best he has ever seen and tasted.” Allowing for his love for the Cathedral prosfora bakers but also taking into consideration that His Eminence has encountered countless incarnations of prosforas in his 39 years as a bishop - when he says “this recipe is the best” it might be worth trying. So here it is,


Item Needed:
A bowl for dough
Plastic wrap
Boiling water
10 cups of pre-sifted Organic unbleached flour (it makes a difference which flour is used.)
4 tsp of dry yeast
Salt

Yeast solution:
Put 4 tsp of yeast into 1/2 cup of warm water.
Stir.
Add a pinch of salt.

Dough:
In a big bowl add 4 cups of flour.
Pour 4 cups of boiling water over the flour and stir until it cools down and becomes warm.
Add yeast solution.
Stir.
Add 5-6 cups of flour, one or two at a time while kneading the dough.
Put the dough on the table and continue kneading for at least 20 minutes.
Put the dough in the bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rise for about 1 hour.
Roll the dough and form the prosfora.

Baking:
Bake prosfora at 350F for 20-30 minutes. (It’s OK if they get brown on top)
When baked, remove from oven and cover with paper towel, then with regular towel.
Let prosfora cool.
Bag and freeze or use fresh.

Depending on the size of the prosfora, the recipe makes two - three dozen medium size prosfora.

If you have any questions about the recipe or instructions, please feel free to call Subdeacon Michael Gladtskov at 469-733-5007

(San Antonio, TX) The church beautification program at Saint Anthony Church here has two new additions with the installation of the Pantocrator and Platytera icons on the ceiling of the church. The icons are 10' in diameter and were written by Mr. George Goutsev a noted Bulgarian iconographer.

For additional information and pictures of the new icons, click here
www.OrthodoxSanAntonio.org

(Dallas, TX) Mother Gabriella, Abbess of the Dormition of the Mother of God Monastery in Rives, Jct. MI will lead a retreat for women on the topic of "WOMEN OF THE CROSS" on Saturday, April 5, 2008.

The retreat is being sponsored by the Ladies Philoptochos Society of Holy Trinty Greek Orthodox Church here. For additional information including the Retreat Flyer and Registration information, click here.

(Dallas, TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri and the St Seraphim Cathedral clergy and faithful were honored today by the visit of the Archimandrite Zacharias of the Patriarchal Stavropegic Monastery of St John the Baptist located in the small village of Tolleshunt Knights in Essex, England. Elder Zacharias travelled to the USA to speak at the clergy conference of the Antiochian Archdiocese diocese of the West earlier this week before coming to Dallas to lead a one-day retreat hosted by the North Texas Orthodox Missions group at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church.

Large crowds at both Dallas venues greeted Archimandrite Zacharias who were blessed to hear his prepared presentations and his wise consul via questions offered by clergy and laity. At St Seraphim Cathedral the Elder offered the homily on the desire of Zachaaeus to see Christ even to the point of shame and ridicule by others, yet in overcoming these insults of the world he received salvation and that of his whole household.

Archimandrite Zacharias is the author of two recent books published by Mt. Tabor Publishing, The Enlargement of the Heart and The Hidden Man of the Heart. Both books are an outgrowth of the life long experience of the Elder Zacharias who is the spiritual son of the Elder Sophrony,(1896-1993) the founder of the St. John the Baptist Monastery in Essex. The Elder Sophrony was the disciple of St. Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938). Thus his teachings are part of an unbroken chain of spiritual teachers of two great Fathers of the Church.

The visit of Elder Zacharias afforded His Eminence Dmitri and the Archimandrite to renew aquaintences after 40 years when they first met each other in Paris, France.

Archimandrite Zacharias will next travel to St Tikhon Monastery and Seminary before returning to England on Friday

(Dallas, TX) The new church nearing completion in Safety Harbor, FL is being adorned by icons being written by Elias Damianakis. Archpriest Peter Tutko, rector of Holy Trinity Church and the parish faithful are planning a Door Opening on Saturday, February 16 with several clergy from the Orthodox Brotherhood of Tampa bay will participate. A related article on the iconographic work talking place at Holy Trinity can be viewed here.

(Dallas, TX) Orthodox from North Texas and beyond will gather this weekend in Dallas to participate in a retreat led by Archimandrite Zacharias Zacharou of the Patriarchal Stavropegic Monastery of St. John the Baptist in Tolleshunt Knights, Malden Essex, England, and Dr. Christopher Veniamin, Professor of Patristics at St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. Archimandrite Zacharias was a disciple of Elder Sophrony, who the founder the Monastery and disciple, biographer and compiler of the works of St. Silouan the Athonite. Archimandrite Zacharias has written The Enlargement of the Heart: “Be ye also enlarged” (2 Corinthians 6:13) in the Theology of Saint Silouan the Athonite and Elder Sophrony, Archimandrite Zacharias will be at St Seraphim Cathedral this Sunday and preach at the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy.

One of the DOS parishes got a real scare last week when wind whipped flames raced across the former barracks and outbuildings of now closed Fort Chaffey Army Base. The fire destroyed over 100 structures on the former base. SS. George and Alexandria Orthodox Mission in Ft. Smith took advantage of the base closure and bought land and buildings from the US Government to relocate to and provide a permanent Church home. All of that, however, was threatened last week when fire raced across the base and a transformer exploded next to the Church. “It was such a blessing that our iconographer John Lickwar and two of the men in the Church were present when the fire broke out” recounts Fr. John Maxwell, of SS. George and Alexandria. “While the fire trucks were dealing with the major fire and second fire broke out on Church property, one of our members drove down to get a fire truck and they could only send one man. They had Victor drive the fire truck and the fire was put out. If they were not there our Church building would probably have been lost.” Roof damage was sustained to both buildings of the church complex but the parish is working with their insurance adjuster to remedy the damage.

As Fr Maxwell stated, while all the excitement was happening on the outside of the Church, there was great excitement happening on the inside as new icons were being installed by John Lickwar (see pictures above.) We thank God that no one was hurt and that the church was spared.

Fr Stephen Freeman, dean of the Appalachian Deanery and rector of St Anne Church in Nicholasville, KY reports that Subdeacon Ed (Innocent) Krieg's was notified by the OCA Diaconal Vocation Program that he passed his writing exams “with flying colors.” The DVP use to be called the Late Vocations Program, and in this case “late” is an apt term because the good Subdeacon Innocent is 74 years young! Arrangements for his ordination to the Holy Diaconate are being planned.

One of many pleasant experiences from His Eminence’s recent trip to Atlanta was the decision to ordain to the Holy Priesthood, Deacon Basil Henry (graduate of St. Tikhon Seminary.) God-willing, Deacon Basil after his ordination will be assigned to St Luke Mission in Anniston, AL.

St. Cyril of Jerusalem Mission in The Woodlands, TX (suburb of Houston) has received a DOS Planting Grant. Priest Basil Biberdorf (graduate of St. Vladimir Seminary) is actively working to secure a new worship location so that the mission can reach out to more people. Several properties are being considered and His Eminence is very encouraged by the recent growth and renewed spirit in the mission.

The new mission-station in Alpine contacted the DOS chancery this week to set up a monthly schedule of priest visitations to the mission-station. Chris Serkland (the sister of the late Fr John Platko) is one of the mission coordinators. The community is conducting Reader Services and doing what they can to further the exposure of the mission-station in Alpine, TX. His Eminence would like to start monthly services no later than next month.

His Eminence will travel to Orlando, FL. next weekend to be at St Stephen the Protomartyr Church. Father Mark Steven, is rector and also dean of the Central Florida deanery. Continuing his visitation schedule, His Eminence will travel to Holy Cross Mission in Greensboro, NC March 1-2 to meet with Carolinas Deanery clergy and make an archpastoral visit to our new mission in Greensboro being led by Priest Christopher Foley (SVS). Holy Cross continues to experience consistent growth and vitality. Check out their new website!

Archbishop Dmitri hosted a “Welcome to Texas and the DOS” gathering at his home this week to officially welcome Priest John Mikita, his wife Christy, and their children Rachel and Alexander to the DOS. DOS clergy, clergy wives and kids, enjoyed the get-together and the opportunity to welcome the Mikita’s. Fr John is the new priest-in-charge of St. John Damascus Mission in Tyler, TX.

Priest David Arnold of St Cyprian of Carthage Church in Richmond gave His Eminence an update on the rapid pace of their building program. “The shingle crew was on the site Sunday afternoon, so we were surprised to see the shingles in place” reports Fr David. The community is very excited as they can now see “the shape of things to come” as the church moves toward completion.

DOS Treasurer Milos Konjevich has revised upward the 2007 DOS Tithe and Assessment figures previously reported on this site as additional 2007 income flows into the Chancery here. As of today, 2007 DOS Tithe Income totals $521,291.66 while OCA Assessment income totals $ 195,538.69 for a new grand total of $716,830.35!

In closing, His Eminence will be interviewed by OCN, the online Orthodox Christian Network on a series of topics to be serialized by the station. A variety of topics will be discussed by the Archbishop including his just about to be released Commentary on Romans and questions about "justification by faith alone,” St Paul’s approach to Scriptures, what is the real meaning of St. Paul's words about "predestination" and of course His Eminence approach to missions and the missionary imperative of the Church. Check the OCN website later in February and March for when these interviews will air.

(Dallas, TX) The date for the consecration of Holy Ascension Orthodox Church in Mt Pleasant, SC has been set for Saturday, May 24, 2008. This is also the weekend for the famous Charleston, SC “Spoleto Music and Arts Festival.” Thus rooms in the greater Charleston area will be at a premium.

If you are considering traveling to Charleston for the consecration, please email Priest John Parker at “frjohn@ocacharleston.org” for reservation information. Also please find here that latest a dramatic photos of Holy Ascension.

(Dallas,TX) His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri made Archpastoral visits this past weekend to St John the Wonderworker and St Mary of Egypt Churches in Atlanta which included an important stop at St Gregory the Theologian Mission in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Archbishop travelled to Tuscaloosa and Atlanta with DOS Treasurer Milos Konjevich and Archpriest Joseph Fester of the DOS Chancery Office.

Day One

After many years in rented facilities, Priest Demetrius Edwards and the faithful of St Gregory were forced to leave their location. This meant that the community would have to find another rented location. However the move also focused the attention of the community on seeing if they could purchase land and build their a Church. After several months of searching a property in nearby Moundville, AL was found. With an exisiting building on the land and several additional acres also ready for the building of a permanent Temple, His Emiennce inspected the land and building on Day One of the trip. The exisiting building will be suitable for all the needs of the St Gregory the Theologian faithful with ample land in front of the existing structure to build Church in the future.

Day Two

The day began with the celebration of the Festal Divine Liturgy at St John the Wonderworker Church in downtown Atlanta. Priest Jacob Myers greeted His Eminence along with Archpriest Peter Smith of St Mary’s in Atlanta. His Eminence tonsured two sub-deacons, Niphon Wallace and Herman Cowan. Niphon is a doctoral candidate in Theology at Emory University. His Eminence preached on the the Feast of the Meeting of our Lord, (click here to listen.) At the conclusion of the Liturgy, the parish hosted a wonderful brunch and a packed hall of parishioners who had a stimulating “Question and Answer” session with the Archbishop.

In the evening His Eminence attended Great Vespers at St Mary of Egypt Church in Norcross, GA (north suburb of A