Tag: Christianity

“Lord, whether I will it or not, save me…” Part 1John was born in the sixties of the twentieth century at the height of the Cold War, when the prevailing stereotypes about his father’s homeland were purely negative, so that Russia (the USSR at the time) was considered an evil empire and Russians the enemies of America.

“>Part 1

John and Rebecca, who converted to Orthodoxy in 2006, became parishioners of the Church of Apostles Peter and Paul, and now they could sing and read together in the choir. The friendly parish consisted of Orthodox Christians of different nationalities and colors—Russians, Americans, Czechs, and Mexicans. Their daughter Alyona was born that same year.

Most of the photos from the family archive depict John, his daughter and his wife. Since Alyona’s birth, her dad has always been close by—at home, on vacation, or at school. A big smile, a kind look full of love for his loved ones and the people around him are in every photo.

After John graduated from university in 2007, he and his family decided to move to the small town of Eau Claire for a residency in family psychology. To accomplish this, John took a out student loan to open a clinic and purchase a small farm, where he and his wife showed the talent of their ancestors who had tilled farmland.

    

    

After working for two years, John realized that because of compulsory clinical practices that existed in American medicine (such as abortion), he was unable to build a professional career without violating Christian commandments. As a result, he had to quit working in the medical field. Having worked as a mechanic for a company that sold biogas purifying and refining systems, he became unemployed in 2012 after his employer went bankrupt. Fr. John recalls that his job of mechanic helped him develop a sense of humility when he, a former nuclear physicist, had to clean dirty filters. Unemployed, he wasted no time passing an industrial engineer license exam, and in 2013 he found a job in his profession. In 2014, after living in misery for ten years, Rebecca was diagnosed with Bekhterev’s disease.

    

In Seattle, their daughter Alyona, who had already learned the basics of reading and writing in Russian at home, entered the Orthodox school at St. Nicholas Cathedral, one of the oldest Orthodox churches in the Americas. It was founded in 1932 by Russian immigrants, primarily the former Imperial Navy officers who found political refuge there from the Bolsheviks. Vladyka St. John (Maximovich) of Shanghai and San Francisco

“>John of Shanghai, now glorified among the saints, departed to the Lord in 1966 in one of the cathedral’s rooms while he was staying there during an archpastoral visit. The Stashko family had been parishioners of the St. Nicholas Cathedral for seven years before their move to Russia. John sang in the cathedral choir, which at times numbered as many as twenty-five singers and included a former opera singer named Harry.

    

Classes at the Orthodox school at the cathedral held on Saturdays included only humanity subjects, such as teaching of the Law of God, Orthodox chants, and the Russian language, literature and culture. Alyona studied all other subjects at home. Her mother taught the complete curriculum in English, while her father supplemented her knowledge in Math, Physics, and Science in Russian. Alyona spoke Russian from early childhood, as her father used to read to her only Russian-language books, despite being unable at times to understand the words he was reading, referring to a dictionary. John considers himself responsible for his daughter’s upbringing, and her spiritual state in particular.

John displayed a well-rounded personality from childhood. He refused to watch television in his youth, believing that television programs, and especially television advertising, had a negative effect on a person, left intrusive imagery and melodies in the memory, thus harming one’s spiritual state. He also believed that rock music caused despondency. When he was twenty-four, he decided to learn to play the violin. As a result, he worked at it for ten years with the help of a tutor and later switched to cello. He misses this instrument greatly—he had to leave it back in the USA and there is no way to to retrieve it in the future.

    

John prefers using literary English and avoids slang. He is thrilled with genuine literary Russian language in the belief that man differs from the rest of creation because he can speak, and we are given the skill to use words in order to communicate with God. He can’t tolerate swearing, and prefers to stay silent. Besides English and Russian, he studied several other languages, including Japanese. When we mentioned the Holy Hierarch Innocent of Moscow in the story about the miraculous help through prayer in front of the “Sitka” Icon of the Mother of God, the name of the Holy Hierarch Nicholas of Japan also came up, as he was spiritually connected with the Holy Hierarch Innocent. John was in Japan before he converted to Orthodoxy and participated at Catholic church services there. He sang the prokeimenon in Japanese to commemorate the trip.

In 2018, John came to the Russian city of Ust-Ilimsk in the north of the Irkutsk Region to work on the “Technological re-equipment of the evaporation station” project at a local forest industry complex. In his free time, he began attending services at the Church of All Saints Who Shone Forth in the Russian Land, and with the blessing of its rector Archpriest Alexander Bely-Kruglyakov he joined the church choir.

When Rebecca and Alyona arrived to Ust-Ilimsk, it became obvious that his wife’s illness was receding in the seemingly harsher climate conditions of the Russian North. They bought an apartment where both mother and daughter were staying while John entered the correspondence department of mechanical engineering department at Togliatti State University. At the height of the coronavirus epidemic in 2020, John decided to give up his position in the US and reside in Ust-Ilimsk, having obtained a temporary residence permit in Russia. In 2021, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from TSU, and thanks to his education, he was able to obtain Russian citizenship. As a regular member of the choir, he was ordained a Reader.

At the end of April 2022, Metropolitan Maximilian of Irkutsk and Angarsk came with an archpastoral visit to the Church of All Saints Who Shone Forth in the Russian Land in Ust-Ilimsk. John was chanting as he always did at the evening service on the Sunday of Antipascha. Upon hearing him singing at church, Vladyka blessed John to become a deacon. As he recalled his life’s journey, John said he undoubtedly had great doubts about this blessing. There were times in his life when his soul became attached to earthly things and worldly blessings. Besides, extra knowledge often blinds our minds—there are only few among us who made discoveries in the area of nuclear physics! It is not without reason that John’s previous life was so close to the mad rich man’s from the passage in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12, verses 16–21. But other stories from his life also come to mind, especially in his childhood while still a young boy, he pretended to be a priest; or as a young man he wished he could stay at church forever after attending services.

He pondered Vladyka’s blessing for a week. Rebecca also supported his decision to be ordained. The Lord was leading his servant John towards this moment all his life along a rather complicated and winding path. Reading about the life of the Church abroad, our fellow countrymen and compatriots who had to leave their homeland during the terrible revolutionary years, we marvel at their innocence and the depth of their faith, which was as natural to them as breathing. God created Man to be His co-creator, that’s why it isn’t surprising that a man can combine such vast life experience—physics and poetry, medicine, knowledge of languages, intensive music studies, and singing talent. Our abilities and talents are not limited but need to be developed, so that we don’t turn our life into a downward spiral.

During challenging moments of life, John always reads the Lord, Thou Hast Been our Protection in All GenerationsThe hypnotist lost his temper, shouting so hard that the veins on his face and arms swelled from the tension. He pressed his hands against my shoulders. Finally, covered in sweat, he fell on the leather couch and muttered, “I can’t do anything with her.”

“>Psalm 90 of David. Because of his deep reverence for the Mother of God, he loves to sing the Magnificat of the Most Holy Mother of God from Matins, especially its first verse “The Theotokos and the Mother of Light, let us magnify in hynms…” which is now a part of his ministry.

The amazing story of Fr. John’s life journey corresponds to the words of the Akathist written by Metropolitan Tryphon (Turkestanov)Tryphon (Turkestanov), Metropolitan

“>Holy Hierarch Tryphon Turkestanov, “Akathist Hymn Glory to God for All ThingsEither there is a God whom we trust or “we are of most men to be pitied.” I prefer to give thanks.”>Glory to God for All Things.”

In the wondrous blending of sounds, it is Your call we hear. In the harmony of many voices, in the sublime beauty of music, in the glory of the works of great composers, You lead us to the threshold of paradise to come, and to the choirs of angels. All true beauty has the power to draw the soul towards You and make it sing in ecstasy: Alleluia!

The breath of Thy Holy Spirit inspires artists, poets, scientists. The power of Thy supreme knowledge makes them prophets and interpreters of Thy laws, who reveal the depths of Thy creative wisdom. Their works speak unwittingly of Thee. How great Thou art in Thy creation! How great Thou art in man!

Glory to Thee, showing Thy unsurpassable power in the laws of the universe.
Glory to Thee, for all nature is filled with Thy laws.
Glory to Thee for what Thou hast revealed to us in Thy mercy.
Glory to Thee for what Thou hast hidden from us in Thy wisdom.
Glory to Thee for the inventiveness of the human mind.
Glory to Thee for the dignity of man’s labor.
Glory to Thee for the tongues of fire that bring inspiration.
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age.

On June 26, 2022, Metropolitan Maximilian of Irkutsk and Angarsk ordained John to the diaconate.

The diaconal ordination took place on the day of the patronal feast of the churches of All Saints Who Shone Forth in the Russian Land in both Ust-Ilimsk and Bratsk. It’s been truly providential, just like everything else in our life. Through the prayers of his patron saint the Holy Hierarch John Chrysostom, his parents and grandparents, the dreams of a small American boy with a Russian soul named John Chrysostom to live in Russia and always remain at church in order to serve the Lord have come true. He walked towards it all his life, unable to find complete satisfaction from any of his numerous activities and hobbies, because the Lord was preparing him to serve at the altar of God—the ministry that is loftier than anything else on earth.

St. Colette was born on January 13, 1381. He father was a carpenter, living in Corby Abbey in Picardy, France. After he died when she was 17, she gave away her inheritance to the poor.

Colette became a Franciscan tertiary, living as a solitary at Corby, where she was known for her holiness and spiritual wisdom. In 1406, she left her cell after a dream directed her to reform the Poor Clares. She received the Poor Clares habit from Peter de Luna, when the French recognized him as Pope, under the name Benedict XIII. She accepted orders to reform the Order, and was appointed as Superior of all the convents she reformed.

Colette faced great opposition, but persisted in her work. She founded 17 convents under the reformed rule, and adopted several of the older convents with the reformed rule as well.

Colette was known for her sanctity, ecstasies, and visions of the Passion. She prophesied her own death in her convent at Ghent, Belgium. A branch of the Poor Clares is still known as the Collettines.

St. Colette was canonized in 1807.

Bucharest, March 4, 2024

Photo: spzh.news     

A number of important decisions were made during the session of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church held in Bucharest on February 29.

In particular, the bishops resolved to establish two new dioceses within the Metropolis of Western and Southern Europe, for those Romanian faithful living in Great Britain and Ireland and Iceland, reports the Basilica News Agency.

The Synod also declared 2025 to be the Commemorative Year of the Centenary of the Romanian Patriarchate and the Romanian Orthodox Spiritual Fathers and Martyrs of the 20th Century. Several great elders, theologians, and confessors will be canonized in 2025, including Romanian Church preparing to canonize Elder Cleopa, Fr. Dumitru Stăniloae, Elder Gherasim (Iscu)At its session on February 25, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church decided to begin the canonization process of a dozen confessors and missionaries who suffered under Communism, to mark the 140th anniversary of autocephaly and the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Patriarchate in 2025.

“>Elder Cleopa (Ilie), Fr. Dumitru Stăniloae, Romania: Elders Paisie (Olaru) and Dionisie (Ignat) proposed for canonizationThe names of two more of the holy elders under consideration for canonization in 2025 by the Romanian Orthodox Church were revealed over the weekend.”>Elder Paisie (Olaru), Elder Dionisie (Ignat), and several others.

And in a decision that immediately proved controversial, the Synod announced the establishment of the “Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.”

According to the Synodal report, the hierarchs:

Bless, encourage, and support the initiatives of the Romanian Orthodox communities in Ukraine to restore communion with the Mother Church, the Romanian Patriarchate, through their legal organization in the religious structure called the Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Western Ukraine, specifically Bukovina, is home to a very old community of Romanians-Moldovans who consider this region to be their homeland. In modern times, the ancient region of Bukovina in Ukraine is mostly part of the Chernivtsi Province, where there are more than 100 Romanian parishes.

The fate of these Romanians living in Ukraine has been of concern to the Romanian Synod for at least several years now (see below), amidst the growing ecclesiastical schism that picked up steam in 2018-2019 with the creation of the schismatic “Orthodox Church of Ukraine”, and now the war in Ukraine with the accompanying state persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

The state’s fierce persecution of the Persecuted Metropolitan Longin undergoes another heart surgeryThough officially recognized as a Hero of Ukraine for having adopted hundreds of orphans, the state now considers him an enemy because he staunchly remains within the Orthodox Church.

“>sickly Metropolitan Longin of Bancheny, a stalwart hierarch, father of hundreds of orphan, and ethnic Romanian, has been especially alarming for the Hundreds rally in support of persecuted Metropolitan Longin of UOC in Romania and MoldovaThe protestors demanded that the Ukrainian authorities stop the aggression against the faithful, guarantee Ukrainians the right to freedom of religion, and ensure the safety and freedom of Met. Longin.”>faithful in Romania and Moldova.

While the Romanian Synod’s decision from last week effects ethnic Romanians, the establishment of a such a structure in Ukraine could only be met with condemnation, as the encroachment on the canonical territory of another Church.

An unnamed source in the Russian Orthodox Church, in comments to RIA-Novosti, referred to it as “expansionism” and “incredibly ignoble in light of the persecution unleashed by the Kiev authorities against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.”

And in comments to the Union of Orthodox Journalists, His Eminence Metropolitan Kliment of Nizhyn, head of the UOC’s Information-Education Department, spoke of the Romanian Synod’s decision against the background of the Ukrainian state’s plans to ban the UOC, saying:

With this decision, the Romanian Church has witnessed to the whole world about the fact of possible open state prohibitions and persecutions of the UOC, including Romanian-speaking parishes and monasteries in the Ukrainian territories adjacent to modern Romania.

By offering its jurisdiction to such ecclesiastical units, the Romanian Church states the obvious danger that they may be outlawed in Ukraine, or even worse—under a direct ban. This is a loud signal to the Ukrainian Parliament about how Ukrainian politics is seen in Europe, and what consequences it will have.

At the same time, he spoke about the threat that such a structure poses to Ukrainian Church and state territorial integrity.

It’s unclear whether this is about the idea of legal registration under Ukrainian laws, or whether such a structure has already been registered in Romania. In any case, it poses a danger not only to Church integrity but also to state sovereignty on Ukrainian territory historically associated with the Romanian state. There is no need to go far for examples. The same processes are already happening in the southern and eastern parts of our country.

But in all this, there is another most important factor—the faith and religious principles of those Orthodox ethnic Romanians to whom this tempting offer is addressed in the face of looming trials and possible persecutions. Anyone familiar with the actual Church situation in the Romanian-speaking regions of Ukraine will agree that precisely this factor, at this stage, leaves such an initiative with very few real prospects.

And true to form, Viktor Bed, a “bishop” of the schismatic “Orthodox Church of Ukraine,” which also considers Ukraine to be its rightful territory, said that the Romanian Synod’s decision proves that it is under the political sway of the Moscow Patriarchate and Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB).

The Romanian Synod also stated concerning Moldova that it:

Reaffirms the fact that all Romanian Orthodox clerics and their pastors from the Republic of Moldova who return to the Metropolis of Bessarabia are canonical clerics and blessed believers, and any disciplinary sanction directed against them on the grounds of their membership of the Romanian Orthodox Church is considered null and void, according to synod decision no. 8090 of December 19, 1992.

Two overlapping canonical structures operate in Moldova: the Moscow Patriarchate’s Metropolis of Chișinău and All Moldova, and the Romanian Orthodox Church’s Metropolis of Bessarabia, which have essentially tolerated each other since the latter was reestablished in 1991 by a bishop formerly of the Russian Church’s structure.

However, since the start of the war in Ukraine, a number of clerics have left the Metropolis of Chișinău and joined the Metropolis of Bessarabia without a canonical release, and several have subsequently been defrocked by the authorities of the Russian Church’s structure. However, the Romanian Church’s structure, with the backing of the Romanian Holy Synod, does not recognize these canonical sanctions.

***

Recent history leading to the establishment of the “Romanian Orthodox Church in Ukraine”

At the Synodal session in Romanian Holy Synod reiterates call for Moscow-Constantinople dialogues to resolve Ukrainian issueThe Synod recommended that the Moscow and Constantinople Patriarchates find a solution to the conflict through dialogue, preserving the unity of the faith, respecting the administrative-pastoral freedom of the clergy and faithful of Ukraine (including the right to autocephaly), and restoring Eucharistic communion. In their October statement, the bishops emphasized that synodality is “a permanent necessity in the life of the Church.”

“>February 2019, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel spoke about the ecclesiastical tension in Ukraine and noted that there are 127 parishes in Ukraine with Romanian communities, calling on the Holy Synod to consider their pastoral care.

The Synod stated that in considering its stance on the Ukrainian ecclesiastical issue (the Romanian Church has never recognized the schismatic OCU), priority will be given to the consideration of the Romanian parishes.

Thus, the Synod said that it’s necessary to obtain written guarantees from the Church authorities that the Romanians’ ethnicity and language will be respected and that they will have the opportunity to organize into a Romanian vicariate and to cultivate their spiritual connection with the Romanian Patriarchate. The statement also mentions that a Ukrainian vicariate has operated in Romania since 1990.

“Metropolitan” Epiphany Dumenko, the head of the schismatic OCU, Ukrainian schismatics willing to create Romanian vicariate but not to accept re-ordination to facilitate recognition by other ChurchesIn particular, Epiphany considers it acceptable to create a Romanian vicariate within the OCU for the Romanian faithful living in Bukovina.

“>immediately said his group was willing to create a Romanian vicariate, which was reiterated by its Synod a few months later in Ukrainian schismatics to create Romanian Vicariate without a single Romanian parishThe Romanian Synod stated in February that its evaluation of the Ukrainian issue largely depends upon the fate of the Romanian faithful in Bukovina who are concerned about preserving their ethnic and linguistic identity.”>July 2019, though the OCU did not have a single Romanian parish at that time and nothing seems to have come of these plans.

It was Ukrainian Schismatics pressuring Romanian-speaking faithful to join themA source in the Romanian Orthodox Church told the Ukrainian outlet Vesti that “the OCU is putting strong pressure on the priests and laity to fill up the Romanian vicariate, and it could lead to the creation of rival Romanian-speaking structures in Ukraine.”

“>later reported that the schismatics were pressuring the Romanian-speaking faithful to join them, while at least some individual parishes had already Romanian-speaking parishes in Ukraine confirm loyalty to canonical Church and primateTwo Romanian-speaking parishes of the Chernivtsi-Bukovina Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have voted to remain loyal to the canonical Church and its primate His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, who is a native son of Chernivtsi and headed the diocese before being elevated to the primacy.”>declared their fidelity to the canonical UOC under His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine.

Then, in Romanian Church calls on Ukraine to respect rights of Romanians living thereAs state persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church ramps up, Romanians are increasingly concerned about the fate of their compatriots who live and attend church in Ukraine.

“>February 2023, a year after the start of the war in Ukraine, and with the increased persecution of the canonical Church from state authorities, the Romanian Synod reiterated its concern for the Romanian faithful in Ukraine:

Concerning the situation of the Romanian Orthodox parishes in the Northern Bukovina area, under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church firmly maintains its stance in favor of respecting the rights and freedoms of Romanian communities throughout Ukraine, just as Ukrainians are respected throughout Romania.

The issue is also of great concern to secular authorities in Romania. In January 2023, politician Gelu Visan went on TV to talk about the Ukrainian authorities’ “crimes against the servants of the Lord,” accusing President Zelensky of closing 100 Romanian churches and banning the Romanian language, despite all the help that Romania has given Ukraine throughout the ongoing war.

Another participant in the program recalled how priests are being physically attacked and the services interrupted, forcing the faithful to gather elsewhere. “These are real crimes they’re committing against the servants of the Lord,” she said.

There have even been calls from Romanian public and political organizations for His Eminence Metropolitan Longin of Bancheny to lead the Romanian-speaking parishes into the Romanian Patriarchate, due to Kiev’s initiative to ban the Ukrainian Church.

After this call, Romanian politician Dumitru Viorel Focșa visited Ukraine and interviewed Romanian clerics and faithful. “Romanian priests are being terrorized and forced to join the new political church, leaving the autonomous canonical Church of Ukraine,” Focșa said, adding that they remain loyal to His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine and don’t want to join the Romanian Church.

The Security Service officers who are wreaking havoc in churches throughout the Chernivtsi-Bukovina Diocese use “Stalinist rhetoric without evidence, shameful and stupid,” summed up Focșa. “So I will report to the European Parliament Commission on Violence. Ukraine doesn’t know how to respect minorities, and the European Commission, the European Parliament should know what these Kiev politicians are doing.”

His Eminence Archbishop Viktor of Baryshevka, head of the canonical UOC’s representation to European international organizations, commenting on the situation at the time, wrote that if Ukraine does finally ban the canonical Church, then it would be no surprise if the Romanian clerics and faithful look to join the Romanian Church, which would be a clear signal to the world that there is discrimination and harassment going on in Ukraine.

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New York, March 4, 2024

Photo: easterndiocese.org     

New York City Mayor Eric Adams declared Monday, February 26, 2024 as Serbian Heritage Day, thereby “signif[ying] a profound respect for Serbian-American relations and acknowledge[ing] the historical contributions of Serbian communities to the social, economic, and cultural fabric of New York City,” reports the Serbian Orthodox Diocese of Eastern America.

This was the first such day in history of Serbian-American relations in New York City. His Grace Bishop Irinej of Eastern America was among the numerous dignitaries present at the proclamation.

“The declaration of the Day of Serbian Heritage on February 26 has additional symbolism, considering that on the same day, the Serbian Orthodox Church celebrates the Day of Saint Simeon or Stefan Nemanja, the progenitor of the holy line of Nemanjić, the Serbian medieval dynastic family,” the diocese writes.

The ceremony was held in the heart of New York in Bowling Green Park, with the American and Serbian flags being symbolically raised together and the anthems of both countries being sung. The Serbian folklore society Opančići also performed traditional Serbian songs and dances.

The speakers, including Consul General V. Božović, spoke about the role of American Serbs in the development of New York City.

Serbian Heritage Day coincided with the permanent placement of the Serbian flag on the building of the Serbian Consulate General in Manhattan.

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Mt. Athos, March 4, 2024

    

A serious fire broke out yesterday, Sunday, March 3, at the holy Cell of the Lifegiving Spring on Mt. Athos, located between the Koutloumousiou and Iveron Monasteries, near the Athonite capital of Karyes.

The cell belongs to the Skete of St. Panteleimon, under the authority of Koutloumousiou.

The fire broke out at 9:40 AM. The sole inhabitant, Hieromonk Theophylaktos, was immediately evacuated, and 10 firefighters rushed to the scene, reports voria.gr.

The fire quickly grew, and the firefighters, together with a number of monks who rushed to help, worked hard to prevent it from spreading to neighboring cells or the church. According to the outlet’s information, the cell building was almost completely destroyed.

The history of the skete dates back to 1780, when Hieromonk Charalambos requested Koutloutmousiou Monastery to grant him the pre-existing Cell of St. Panteleimon to turn it into a skete for his disciples.

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As violence in Haiti spirals further out of control, the country’s bishops have urged national authorities to ensure the safety and security of citizens and to provide answers after a recent explosion left a bishop severely burned.

In a statement, the Haitian Bishops’ Conference (CEH) referred to the Feb. 18 explosion that injured Bishop Pierre-André Dumas of Anse-à-Veau and Miragoâne, saying, “the authorities of the Church of Rome, and other sister churches, the church in Haiti, and all citizens of the country must know what caused this enormous explosion.”

“We await without delay the results of the investigation by the Scientific Police to find out what happened and to make the appropriate decisions,” they said, saying Dumas “is suffering a lot. His family is suffering. The bishops, priests and faithful of the Diocese of Anse-à-Veau/Miragoâne, all citizens of goodwill, are suffering.”

However, the bishops insisted that “there is hope,” noting that Dumas continues to receive treatment. They prayed for his recovery, asking that “he can return among us, return to his diocese, resume the work of announcing the Gospel of love, justice and peace.”

Dumas was wounded in a massive explosion in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince on Feb. 18, sustaining severe burns.

He has since been transferred to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, where he is receiving ongoing treatment for burns to his face, arms and legs. He continues to undergo various procedures but is in stable condition and is expected to return to Haiti when his health permits.

The bishops’ statement comes as Haiti has declared a 3-day state of emergency and a nighttime curfew after armed gangs stormed two of the country’s largest prisons over the weekend, allowing some 4,000 criminals, including murderers and kidnappers, to be released back onto the streets.

According to local reports, at least nine people died over the weekend, including four police officers, while gangs have targeted other structures such as police stations, the country’s international airport, and the national soccer stadium.

The deadly weekend marked a new low for Haiti, which for years has been plagued by violent unrest and criminal activity, prompting the United States to advise its citizens to leave the country and Canada to temporarily close its embassy.

As the weekend’s violence unfolded, 15,000 people were forced to flee between Thursday and Saturday, including those already living in makeshift camps for the displaced, according to the United Nations.

Gangs in Haiti are becoming increasingly bold as the situation continues to spiral out of control, making coordinated attacks on high-profile targets such as the central bank.

There are roughly 9,000 national police officers in Haiti working to provide security for more than 11 million people, according to the UN. They are regularly overwhelmed and outgunned by gangs, which currently control an estimated 80 percent of the capital.

Much of the violence exploded after the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, who faced broad political opposition yet made the controversial decision to extend his tenure for one year, leading to mass upheaval and protests.

His assassination sparked a widespread political crisis, followed shortly by the outbreak of gang violence in many parts of the country. In 2022, further mass protests ignited over rising energy prices and an increased cost of living.

In February, a series of protests turned violent, leaving five people dead, with demonstrators seeking the removal of Haitian Prime Minister Ariel in compliance with a political agreement forged in 2022.

Henry, who took over after Moise’s assassination, has repeatedly postponed plans to hold parliamentary and presidential elections, which have not taken place in Haiti in almost a decade.

In their statement, the Haitian bishops reminded the government that they are the “de facto power that is responsible for the security of the country.”

As such, the government, they said, “must answer for the lives of citizens, because once they accept to be in command, they accept all the privileges, but also all the obligations and all the burdens that come with it.”

“What are we doing to change the situation of the people left to their fate? What are we doing to change the face of Haiti, our beautiful country?” they asked, challenging national authorities.

The bishops asked national police and the Scientific Police investigating the explosion that injured Dumas to publish their findings, saying, “we are awaiting the results of the investigations, and we ask God for peace and justice in Haiti.”

They closed praying for those “still in the hands of kidnappers,” and voicing solidarity with “all those who have been kidnapped, with all those who have been forced to flee their homes, who have lost family members or property,” telling them, “do not lose hope!”

Moscow, March 5, 2024

Screenshot from life.ru     

A fire broke out at a monastery in central Moscow late last month.

The blaze occurred at the Holy Conception Convent, originally built in the 14th century by St. Alexei, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia, and his holy sisters Sts. Juliana and Eupraxia, reports TASS.

The monastery is just down the street from Christ the Savior Cathedral.

The fire occurred in the cell building, which is currently under reconstruction. It covered an area of 50 square meters. Firefighters were able to extinguish the flames without any casualties.

For more information about the Holy Conception Covent, one of Moscow’s most beautiful monasteries today and one of the most important in the history of the city, see the article, “No Kids? Have You Prayed in the Holy Conception Monastery?Orthodox spouses have been praying to Sts. Joachim and Anna at Holy Conception Monastery for the gift of children for centuries.

“>No Kids? Have you Prayed in the Holy Conception Monastery?”

Athonite cell goes up in flamesA serious fire broke out yesterday, Sunday, March 3, at the holy Cell of the Lifegiving Spring on Mt. Athos, located between the Koutloumousiou and Iveron Monasteries, near the Athonite capital of Karyes.

“>Yesterday, OrthoChristian reported about a recent fire at the Cell of the Lifegiving Spring on Mt. Athos.

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French bishops called for fasting and prayer as abortion was enshrined in the constitution by an overwhelming 780-72 vote, accompanied by a standing ovation when the result was announced as the parliament met in Versailles.

After several months of legislative process, the French Congress, a special body composed of both chambers of parliament, revised the country’s 1958 constitution to enshrine women’s “guaranteed freedom” to abort in Article 34, making France the first country in the world to explicitly include the right to abortion in its constitution.

French bishops called for “fasting and prayer” in a March 4 statement with the Pontifical Academy for Life releasing its own communique on the same day, saying, “There can be no ‘right’ to end a human life.”

Academy members lamented the debate over the bill in France “did not touch on support mechanisms for those who wish to keep their child” and added that the “protection of human life is humanity’s primary objective, and can only develop in a world free of conflict, where science, technology and industry are at the service of the human person and of fraternity.”

In a statement signed by Archbishop Éric de Moulins-Beaufort of Reims, president of the French bishops’ conference, and vice presidents Archbishop Vincent Jordy of Tours and Bishop Dominique Blanchet of Créteil, the bishops cried out that “of all European countries, even Western Europe, France is the only one where the number of abortions is not decreasing and has even increased over the last two years,” and that France “would have honored itself by instead promoting the rights of women and children.”

In an online post Oct. 28, 2023, French President Emmanuel Macron said that “in 2024, the right of women to choose abortion will become irreversible.” This followed a promise Macron made March 8, 2023, International Women’s Day, which was seen as a response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022.

In the wake of Congress’s move that French media called “historic,” French bishops said in a Feb. 29 statement that abortion “remains an attack on life from the very beginning,” and “cannot be seen from the sole angle of women’s rights,” regretting that “the debate initiated did not mention support measures for those who would like to keep their child” — argument repeated in the statement issued by Pontifical Academy for Life on March 4.

Several French bishops additionally stressed their anger and expressed the danger for freedom of expression about abortion in their country.

On Feb. 27, Archbishop Olivier de Germay of Lyon pointed out that constructive debate is no longer possible in France on the issue of abortion. “It is becoming difficult to express oneself on this subject without running the risk of becoming a media target,” he said.

With the bill, Archbishop Germay said, France put “the equal dignity of all human life — a principle with constitutional value — and freedom of access to abortion on the same level. How to explain such a contradiction?” he asked.

Abortion is free of charge, allowed up to 14 weeks of pregnancy and is far from being called into question in France.

In 2022, there were over 234,000 abortions for 723,000 births in France, the highest number of abortions since 1990 and the highest number among European Union countries. It’s a “sad record,” wrote the bishops in November. “This dramatic reality goes beyond the mere question of a right for women” and “is not progress.”

Lucie Pacherie, a lawyer for the Jérôme Lejeune Foundation, which continues the research of geneticist Jérôme Lejeune on Down syndrome, told OSV News, “The freedom to have an abortion was in fact already constitutionally recognized.”

The threat, she said, is that the Congress has now “placed it at the rank of a supreme constitutional value.”

“This elevated it to a higher level than other freedoms — such as freedom of conscience or freedom of expression — which are only recognized by (statements issued by) the Constitutional Council or in other texts with constitutional value,” she said. Pacherie warned “this will put a greater pressure on those who seek to understand and remedy the often dramatic causes which can lead women to have an abortion.”

In 1958 — same year when the now-updated constitution was passed — Lejeune and two other scientists, Marthe Gautier and Raymond Turpin, discovered the chromosomal anomaly responsible for trisomy 21, known as Down syndrome.

Dismayed to see his discovery used in prenatal diagnosis, and leading to abortions, he campaigned throughout his life for the defense of human life from conception until natural death. St. John Paul II asked Lejeune to become the founding president of the Pontifical Academy for Life. He died in 1994, and in 2021 Pope Francis approved the promulgation of a decree on his heroic virtues, declaring Lejeune venerable.

“I am concerned about the taboo that now exists on this issue,” Pacherie added. “The deputies were unable to raise the ethical questions that the medical act of abortion poses, to propose amendments or evoke the conscience clauses for doctors, without being booed. The number of abortion is increasing in France, and it is impossible to debate on this subject,” she echoed the concerns of the bishops.

Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris, speaking on Catholic-run Radio Notre Dame March 2, expressed his “sadness” at seeing “the fact of not transmitting life” promoted as a positive value.

“We guarantee the freedom not to carry a pregnancy to term. But what guarantees do we have that women will have the freedom to make another choice? What support will they have?” he asked.

Since 1975, women have had a legal right to terminate their pregnancy in France. The late Simone Veil, who served as France’s health minister in several governments and is considered a godmother of French “abortion rights” called the Veil Act, always claimed that “no woman resorts to an abortion with a light heart” and that it is “always a tragedy.” Since 2012, abortion procedures have been fully reimbursed by social security.

Macron described the March 4 move as “French pride” that had sent a “universal message.”

Following the vote, the Eiffel Tower in Paris was lit up in celebration with the message: “My Body My Choice.”

“This constitutionalization of abortion is the constitutionalization of a lie,” Pacherie told OSV News. “This lie hides the objective reality of abortion, which regards an unborn child, and a woman in a situation of distress.”

The Pontifical Academy for Life appealed to “all governments and all religious traditions to do their best so that, in this phase of history, the protection of life becomes an absolute priority.”

The French bishops added in their March 4 statement, “As Catholics, we will always have to remain servants of the life of each and every one, from conception to death,” and they prayed that “our fellow citizens will rediscover the taste for life, for giving it, for receiving it, for accompanying it, for having and raising children.”

Pierre Puvis de Chavannes. The Prodigal Son. 1879. Photo: gallerix.ru     

The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke. (15:11-32)

As we continue our journey through the pre-lenten Sundays, we are reminded that last week we heard the message of the The Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee

“>Pharisee and the Publican. We took from this message the foundational necessity for humility as a start to our spiritual lives. Yet we understand that the Church is a place where balance is necessary. If one were to go to an extreme in their self-condemnation and self-accusation it might lead to depression or even complete despair. We see an example of such despair in the person of Judas Iscariot. But the Church reflecting the mind of it’s master and Lord, teaches us that humility is only part of the story of our salvation.

We hear today this beautiful The Parable of the Prodigal SonThe parable of the Prodigal Son is inexhaustible. It contains such a multitude of themes, that it is difficult to enumerate them. Each man, who delves into it with reverence, finds the answer for himself to questions about his own spiritual condition.

“>parable of the prodigal son. What a magnificent passage. I find that from year to year this is one of the texts that is very difficult to preach on, not because there isn’t enough to say about it, but because it has almost too much to say! The lessons are many and they are powerful. We begin with the young man, the son who was clearly not content with what he had in life. He desired more for himself. He went with boldness to his father and said “Father, give me the share of property that falls to me.” The father being both just and kind, agreed to this request and gave the young man his proper share of the inheritance. Do you know what this means? It is a symbol of the life that God has given each of us. God hasn’t given you a life in order that you should feel like His slave or like He controls you. He has given you life out of the abundance of His love for you. He wants you to have this love and to embrace it.

The younger son wanted to embrace life and he took all of the riches that were promised to him and he departed away from his father’s house and from all that he knew in order to experience independence and dictate his life according to his terms. We are told that the young man went to a far away country and that he squandered his wealth on loose living. Yet, things got worse. A famine arose. There was very little food and he was now very broke. So he went to work as a laborer for one of the citizens of that country. He was put to work right away. He was sent into the fields to feed swine. Those who would have heard this story from the lips of our Lord Jesus would have been disgusted since swine was considered unclean. But the young man in his desperation was so hungry. He had no choice but to work in this way in order to make some kind of a living to support himself. Hunger took hold of him. Hunger convinced him that he would gladly bend down and eat the pigs food if only someone cared enough to offer it to him, but no one gave him anything.

The young man had once had everything. But his rebellious spirit and his desire for the world caused him to squander every last cent. You know sin is never isolated. It pervades our mind and heart. It pervades our being. He ran away to sin and “experience the world.” But one thing built on another and he quickly lost his senses. He found himself working for a man who didn’t care for him. Had the man cared for him, he would have fed the young man, but he did not. So the young man in his desperation contemplated eating the swine’s food. This is how sin reduces the stature of a man and makes him like a slave. Yet, there was still hope. God used the young man’s troubles and trials to bring him to a deep hunger. Through this hunger, we are told that the young man “came to himself.”

One of the reasons that we fast for many days during Great and Holy Lent, is in fact the need for each of us to become hungry. This becomes increasingly difficult in a world of abundance. But the gospels teach us of the need to fast. The church fathers understood that physical hunger would help awaken our deeper and more profound spiritual hunger. This young man fasted involuntarily and through this involuntary fasting, his senses were awakened. He came to himself. He understood his reality. His heart was opened and he missed his father. He missed his father’s home and all that he once had taken for granted. My brothers and sisters, this is a symbol of the Church.

The young man is everyone who has ever left the safe harbor of their heavenly Father’s house, the Church, and tried to live independently as their own person with their own rules and their own ways. This is even true of some who never physically leave the Church, yet in their hearts and minds they left long ago. They aren’t interested in the things of God. They aren’t interested in prayer or speaking with God. They aren’t interested in living a godly life or obeying Christ’s commandments. And God, out of His deep sense of honor for our personhood and a deep sense of love for us, allows us to take the inheritance (the life that He has gifted us) and use it as we wish. He doesn’t force us to stay in His house miserable. He steps aside so that we may pursue our hearts desire. We are fortunate and blessed that in some of these cases, we reawaken and come to ourselves.

The Holy Orthodox Church all over the world from antiquity has built in a mechanism to assist us in coming to our senses and receiving the life-saving medicines of the soul. We fast together to help us to wake up and come to our senses. God wants us to hunger for Him. If we hunger for God and we see the depth of our own fall, then we might turn back towards home and run with haste towards the One who loves us unconditionally. That is precisely what the young man did. He decided that even the servants in his father’s house were in a far better position than the one in which he found himself.

So he turned back towards home. The Church is your home. By one degree or another, each of us has drifted away and is in need to start returning to Our Father’s home. Each of us is called to remember our inheritance and our status and to find the One who has shared all of it with us. As the young man began to draw near to the house, his father saw him and ran towards him. God is waiting like this for each of us. If we knew how much God loved us, we would be overwhelmed by it. I’m not sure we could really comprehend it. This love is shown to us in the image of the father who sees his son still at a distance and yet he comes running, not walking, running!

How God longs to see us come home! How God longs to embrace us and forgive us and restore us to a place of honor, to celebrate our return! How God longs to see those who are dead, restored back to life and health so that they might dwell with Him!

The whole universe of God’s mercy and forgiveness is open wide to receive those who will repent and return. May we do so without hesitation, as St. Tikon of Zadonsk writes,

“Sinners that repent are still saved; both publicans and fornicators cleansed by repentance enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. The compassionate God still calls to Himself all that have turned away, and He awaits them and promises them mercy. The loving Father still receives His prodigal sons come back from a far country and He opens the doors of His house and clothes them in the best robe, and gives them each a ring on their hand and shoes on their feet and commands all the saints to rejoice in them.” + St. Tikhon of Zadonsk: Journey to Heaven Part II: The Way of Salvation

Amen.

Ahead of a crucial vote on Friday, the bishops of Ireland have raised grave concerns about proposed changes to the country’s constitution, warning these would abolish “all reference to motherhood” and diminish the “unique importance of the relationship between marriage and family.”

On International Women’s Day, March 8, voters in the country of more than 5 million people will head to the polls to cast their ballot in twin referendums proposing historic changes to the Constitution of Ireland.

The first referendum pertains to the family and would amend Article 41.1 by introducing “other durable relationships” alongside marriage as the foundation of the family.

The second referendum would delete a wording on women and motherhood in Article 41.2, where the state recognizes “that by her life within the home, woman gives to the state a support without which the common good cannot be achieved.” Therefore, the state shall “endeavor to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labor to the neglect of their duties in the home.”

This wording on women, motherhood, and even the home in the Irish Constitution would be replaced by a gender-neutral amendment, where the state recognizes that “the provision of care, by members of a family to one another by reason of the bonds that exist among them” gives to society a “support without which the common good cannot be achieved and shall strive to support such provision.”

The proposed changes have alarmed the Catholic Church in Ireland.

Bishops warn of impact on youth, families

In a statement published Feb. 25, the Irish bishops warn that the proposed amendment on family “diminishes the unique importance of the relationship between marriage and family” and is “likely to lead to a weakening of the incentive for young people to marry.”

The Irish prelates affirm that “the commitment of marriage contributes to the common good in a unique way by bringing stability to the family and society, and that it consequently deserves the protection of the state.”

While marriage is also a public and legal commitment, the bishops continue, the term “durable relationship” is “shrouded in legal uncertainty and is open to wide interpretation.”

David Quinn of The Iona Institute, which promotes the place of marriage and religion in society, has raised concerns about the “very ambiguous term.”

Supporters of the twin referendums on March 8 see the proposed changes as part of social progress in the country and an end to “very outdated language in our constitution,” to quote Taoiseach (prime minister) Leo Varadkar.

Rapid social change in Ireland — a country once regarded as a Catholic powerhouse — has brought about the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2015 and free contraception in 2022.

‘What benefit is it’ to delete ‘woman’ and ‘mother’?

Countering claims of sexism and asserting the “role of mothers should continue to be cherished in our constitution,” the Irish bishops dismiss the notion that the current wording states that “a woman’s place is in the home.”

Instead, they argue, it is “reasonable to ask what benefit is it to Irish society to delete the terms ‘woman’ and ‘mother’ from the Constitution of Ireland?”

For supporters of the change, such as academic Caitriona Beaumont, the benefit is the removal of Ireland’s Catholic heritage. The professor of social history at London South Bank University wrote on Feb. 2: “If Ireland is to fully shake off the shackles of its Catholic past and achieve its ambition to be a modern and progressive nation, then Article 41.2 must be consigned to the annals of history.”

As supporters of the current wording point out, however, surveys have shown that almost two out of three Irish mothers would prefer to stay at home to raise their children, given the choice.

“The present constitutional wording does not in any way inhibit women from working or taking their proper place in social and public life,” the bishops note. “It does, however, respect the complementary and distinct qualities that arise naturally within the family.”

Care in or outside the home?

The Irish bishops note a further concern: “People generally recognize the enormous commitment that women in Ireland have given, and continue to give, in relation to care, love, and affection in the home.”

With the proposed changes, however, the home will also be removed from the article in the Irish Constitution.

Writing in the European Conservative, Dualta Roughneen noted: “The implications are unclear; but in a society that increasingly outsources care to institutions — whether children, the elderly, or the infirm — it will remove any constitutional preference for care in the home.”

Concluding their statement, the Irish bishops remind the faithful of the words of St. John Paul II, who said in Ireland in 1979: “The future of the Church, the future of humanity depend in great part on parents and on the family life that they build in their homes. The family is the true measure of the greatness of a nation, just as the dignity of man is the true measure of civilization.”