Icon of St.Vladimir, Prince of Kiev

St.Vladimir Orthodox Church

3163 Purcell's Cove Road, Halifax, NS

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News and Events

March 8, 2024

Fortyth Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday March 9 Commemoration of the Departed
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

This is when you bring, not send, your list of departed friends and family to be read out, and commemorated
followed by a Panikhida

Saturday March 9 Vespers 6:00pm

Clocks jump forward

Sunday March 10 Sunday of the Dread Judgement
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 7

Pray for: Presvytera Joy, Therese, and others

There are two good news items to proclaim. The first is the formation of the Sisterhood, and the second is the deciding of a saint sponsor for the Adult Discussion Group. It will continue under the sponsorship of "The Great Martyr Catherine of Alexandria."

Speaking of this, here is a message from Dan:

Dear all:

The Fellowship of St. Catherine (Great Martyr Catherine of Alexandria) is the new name of our adult education/discussion group that meets before Vespers on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month. A reminder that our next meeting is scheduled for this Saturday, March 9 at 4:30 p.m. in the basement at St. Vladimir Church.

For the Lenten season we are currently reading together Way of the Ascetics by Tito Colliander. This little book is a concise distillation of teachings of the holy Fathers of the Orthodox Church on Christian prayer, fasting and spiritual struggle. We discussed the first two short chapters last time and will pick things up from there this week.

We try to be warm and inviting, and we encourage all parishioners and interested guests alike to attend, especially newcomers.

As usual, for those who can't come in person, we will stream the discussion at:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84462331463?pwd=NLFDnjMtzdVPfretIBFaOp6m4aauVq.1

Meeting ID: 844 6233 1463
Passcode: 43839568

With Love in Christ, Daniel

There is also an important message from the Monks of the Hermitage regarding the new Season of Garden Produce:

Dear Friends,

We are excited once again this year to provide fresh vegetables for you and your families. Our work is our prayer. Knowing that our hidden monastic work (and prayer) feeds people and brings friends and family together gives us great joy.

We are making some changes...

Over the winter we realized we had to make some decisions. The garden was too large, and the work too much, for 3 monks. We were over-extending ourselves. A stable and healthy monastic life requires that we reduce our activities.

We have to say good-by to:

  • the Panier du Moine, our weekly subscription food box,
  • farmers' markets,
  • regular deliveries along the South Shore and to Halifax.

Instead, this year we will focus on

  • a smaller production and the simplicity of monastic life,
  • improving the quality of our vegetables,
  • and taking better care of the soil.

We are still going to have lots of vegetables! All directly at the monastery.

Fresh vegetables
every Saturday morning at the monastery
9am to 12 noon
(starting May 11)
172 Goose Chase Road
We look forward to seeing you !

What are our Growing Practices?

Monastic life is a constant striving to live a unified and simple life. Our growing practices match the same spirit as our monastic life. This means we strive to grow vegetables in an ecological manner, with simplicity and quietude:

  • Our produce is grown chemically free, using practices accepted by organic farming.
  • We prioritize soil health over harvest quantity, remembering the smallest of creatures.

How long will the season be?

This past year we were able to continue selling vegetables until Christmas. And we can likely expect to do the same this year. In fact, our climate is quite amenable to winter gardening: with hoop tunnels and some row covers, the garden is still now providing some fresh vegetables for the monks!

Our mailing address is:

Goosechase Monastery
P.0. Box 155
172 Goosechase Rd
New Germany, NS B0R 1E0
Canada

Schedule of services for Great Lent and Passion Week 2024

Monday - March 18
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete (parts 1 and 2 without Compline)
Wednesday - March 20
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete (parts 3 and 4 without Compline)
Saturday - March 23
6pm Vigil (Vigil is Vespers plus Matins with a Gospel)

First Sunday in Lent - March 24
10am Divine Liturgy First Sunday of Great Lent Triumph of Orthodoxy
Great Vespers 6pm
Wednesday - March 27
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - March 30
10am Liturgy Commemoration of the Departed (prepare and bring your list of departed)
6pm Vigil

Second Sunday in Lent - March 31
10am Divine Liturgy Second Sunday of Lent
Wednesday - April 3
6pm Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - April 6
6pm Vigil (Cross brought from altar for the Veneration of the Precious Cross)

Third Sunday in Lent - April 7
Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, Veneration of the Precious Cross
10am Divine Liturgy Third Sunday of Lent
Wednesday - April 10
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - April 13
10am Liturgy Commemoration of the Departed (prepare and bring your list of departed, Orthodox and others)
6pm Vigil

Fourth Sunday in Lent - April 14
10am Divine Liturgy St. John of the Ladder
Wednesday - April 17
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete
Thursday - April 18
6pm Presanctified Liturgy
Friday - April 19
6 pm Akathist to the Most Holy Mother of God
Saturday - April 20
6pm Vigil

Fifth Sunday in Lent - April 21
10am Divine Liturgy St. Mary of Egypt
Wednesday - April 24
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Friday - April 26
6pm Matins
Saturday - April 27 Lazarus Saturday
10am Liturgy with Baptism of Catechumens
6pm Vigil with Blessing of Palms

Passion Week
Sunday - April 28
10am Divine Liturgy Palm Sunday Procession with Palms
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Monday
Holy and Great Monday - April 29
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Tuesday
Holy and Great Tuesday - April 30
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Wednesday
Holy and Great Wednesday - May 1
6pm Holy Unction
Holy and Great Thursday - May 2
10am Vesperal Liturgy Great Thursday Mystical Supper of Christ
6pm Reading of the 12 Passion Gospels
Holy and Great Friday - May 3 Great Friday
2pm Great Vespers
6pm Matins and procession of the Shroud
Holy and Great Saturday - May 4
10am Vesperal Liturgy
11pm Matins and Liturgy of Pascha (blessing of baskets)

Sunday - May 5
Bright Resurrection of Christ
4pm Agape Vespers (blessing of baskets)
Monday May 6 - St. George
10am Liturgy

That's pretty well it for this week. I try to make sure we are all up to date. We did investigate that United Church that is for sale. When we get the 5.5 million dollars that they are asking, we will consider it.

May God bless all of us,
Love in Christ,
-- Father David

Reminder: Fellowship of St. Catherine on Saturday 4:30pm - Sunday School week - and Catechumens meet after coffee on Sunday.

Civic Calendar with Service Schedule

Year 2024
March
 Sun  Mon  Tue  Wed  Thu  Fri  Sat 
     0102
Vespers 6:00pm
03
Sunday of the Prodigal Son
Hours 9:30am

Liturgy 10:00am
040506070809
Commemoration of the Departed
Liturgy 10:00am

Vespers 6:00pm
10
Meatfare Sunday
Hours 9:30am

Baptism, Liturgy 10:00am
111213141516
Vespers 6:00pm
17
Cheesefare / Forgiveness Sunday
Hours 9:30am

Liturgy 10:00am
18
Great Lent
begins
The Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete I-II 6:00pm
1920
The Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete III-IV 6:00pm
212223
Vigil 6:00pm
24
Triumph of
Orthodoxy
Liturgy 10:00am
252627
Presanctified Liturgy 6:30pm
282930
Commemoration of the Departed
Vigil 6:00pm
31
St. Gregory
Palamas
Hours 9:30am

Liturgy 10:00am
      

Sundays and major feasts are in red. Fast days are shaded.

February 23, 2024

Thirty-eightth Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday February 24 Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday February 25 Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 5

Reminders:

Saturday 4:30pm Adult Discussion Group. Catechumens should attend and all are welcome. Wifi is available.

Catechumens meet after Coffee on Sunday, Wifi is available. Again all may attend

You could Zoom into both of these!

This is Sunday School Sunday!

Father Alexander has made a request on the behalf of a new parishioner:

Dear Father,
Your blessing!

I'm writing about one of our newest parishioners - Anna Terekhova from Berdyansk. She is the woman who lives in Bedford that Julian the Catechumen has been kindly giving rides to.

On her request, I introduced her to everyone last Sunday during the coffee hour. She is looking for a job. In Ukraine she used to work as a nurse. Here in Halifax, she has received a "Food Handler Certification". She is looking for some kind of job in a restaurant, cafe, or bakery; alternatively, she can take care of the elderly, wash the dishes, do cleaning (in a house or a hotel) etc. She is looking for an employer who could potentially help with obtaining permanent residency in Canada.

In case people have any suggestions for her, her email is: a.terekhova.71 (at) gmail.com.

I hope there is some way we can help Anna. We are blessed to have people coming to us from Ukraine, Russia and other countries.

This week of the Publican and Pharisee is a Fast Free week. That means that meat, eggs and dairy etc. are eaten even on Wednesday and Friday, which are normally fasting days. That tells us that next Sunday, March 10 will be Meat-fare, the last day to eat meat before the Lenten Fast and that the Sunday after, March 17 will be Cheese-Fare, the last day to eat cheese, eggs and other dairy products before the Lenten Fast. It's all happening in our parish. The following OCA site will explain fasting and help us understand it: https://www.oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox- faith/worship/the-church-year/lenten-fasting.

We, the three priests of the parish, being optimistic, have proposed a heavy schedule of Lenten Services. Optimistically, they will all be served; realistically, there may be changes, so please listen for announcements.

Listen carefully to the Gospel this Sunday, it's the Parable that Jesus used to teach about the arrogance, self-aggrandizement of the Pharisee and the humility, modesty, and unpretentious stance of the Publican. Jesus was telling this story in front of Pharisees who knew that He was telling it for their benefit - I'm sure He hoped they would learn, but their arrogant stance probable prevented any learning, I know it does with me.

Remember that Great Old Testament Book for Great Lent - the Book of Psalms. If you don't know the Psalms, you are in for a surprise. They are attributed to David the young Shepherd but were added-to by others. Every emotion possible is reflected in these incredible poems. Try them and see; we use them in the services all the time.

Schedule of services for Great Lent and Passion Week 2024

Monday - March 18
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete (parts 1 and 2 without Compline)
Wednesday - March 20
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete (parts 3 and 4 without Compline)
Saturday - March 23
6pm Vigil (Vigil is Vespers plus Matins with a Gospel)

First Sunday in Lent - March 24
10am Divine Liturgy First Sunday of Great Lent Triumph of Orthodoxy
Great Vespers 6pm
Wednesday - March 27
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - March 30
10am Liturgy Commemoration of the Departed (prepare and bring your list of departed)
6pm Vigil

Second Sunday in Lent - March 31
10am Divine Liturgy Second Sunday of Lent
Wednesday - April 3
6pm Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - April 6
6pm Vigil (Cross brought from altar for the Veneration of the Precious Cross)

Third Sunday in Lent - April 7
Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, Veneration of the Precious Cross
10am Divine Liturgy Third Sunday of Lent
Wednesday - April 10
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Saturday - April 13
10am Liturgy Commemoration of the Departed (prepare and bring your list of departed, Orthodox and others)
6pm Vigil

Fourth Sunday in Lent - April 14
10am Divine Liturgy St. John of the Ladder
Wednesday - April 17
6pm Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete
Thursday - April 18
6pm Presanctified Liturgy
Friday - April 19
6 pm Akathist to the Most Holy Mother of God
Saturday - April 20
6pm Vigil

Fifth Sunday in Lent - April 21
10am Divine Liturgy St. Mary of Egypt
Wednesday - April 24
10am Presanctified Liturgy
Friday - April 26
6pm Matins
Saturday - April 27 Lazarus Saturday
10am Liturgy with Baptism of Catechumens
6pm Vigil with Blessing of Palms

Passion Week
Sunday - April 28
10am Divine Liturgy Palm Sunday Procession with Palms
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Monday
Holy and Great Monday - April 29
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Tuesday
Holy and Great Tuesday - April 30
6pm Bridegroom Matins of Wednesday
Holy and Great Wednesday - May 1
6pm Holy Unction
Holy and Great Thursday - May 2
10am Vesperal Liturgy Great Thursday Mystical Supper of Christ
6pm Reading of the 12 Passion Gospels
Holy and Great Friday - May 3 Great Friday
2pm Great Vespers
6pm Matins and procession of the Shroud
Holy and Great Saturday - May 4
10am Vesperal Liturgy
11pm Matins and Liturgy of Pascha (blessing of baskets)

Sunday - May 5
Bright Resurrection of Christ
4pm Agape Vespers (blessing of baskets)
Monday May 6 - St. George
10am Liturgy

May God Bless us all,
Love in Christ,
-- Father David

February 16, 2024

Thirty-seventh Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday February 17 Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday February 18 Zaccheus Sunday
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 4

I'm sorry that the Bulletins stopped. The modem supplied by Bell, suddenly stopped working. They tried all sorts, (those ladies in the Philippines are very kind and patient), eventually sending a technician and then sending another technician. Now it is working, well not that modem but another one that they sent.

When we reach Zacchaeus Sunday, we know for sure that Great Lent is getting near, and that's the truth - it is. Great Lent begins after Vespers on Forgiveness Sunday, that's March 17.

Father Stelian and Matushka Lena have both returned to their house in Ottawa to hasten the selling of that property. They can't make offers on houses nearby to Halifax before the sale of their house in Ottawa. Subdeacon Michael, Maria and their family are now settled in Hammonds Plains, as is Subdeacon James, Katy and their little family.

Listen carefully to the story of Zacchaeus and see how Zacchaeus went from being a tax collector to eventually becoming the Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine. Sins can be forgiven with true repentance.

That brings me to the problems of Confession time. All of us sin in small ways like being impatient, losing temper sometimes, or a hasty rebuff. That is why we all (priests as well!) go to confession about once a month - to clean out the cobwebs from our souls. Think about it; do it. It is the Orthodox thing to do! No one will judge you; no one will notice you - once a month and Communion every Sunday.

Love to all. May God bless each of us,
-- Father David

February 9, 2024

Thirty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday February 10 Discussion Group 4:30pm
Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday February 11 Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 3
Sunday School
after coffee Catechumens

Wednesday February 14 6:00pm Vespers with Litia

Thursday February 15 The Meeting of our Lord, God, and Saviour Jesus Christ in the Temple
10:00am Liturgy

May God bless all of us.

February 3, 2024

Thirty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday February 3 Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday February 4 Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 2

January 26, 2024

Thirty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday January 27 St. Sava of Serbia,
St. Nina, enlightener of Georgia

Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday January 28 St. Paul of Thebes,
John Calabytes "The Hut Dweller"

Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 1

Monday January 29 Vespers 6:00pm

Tuesday January 30 St. Anthony the Great
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

Catechumens meet after coffee this Sunday.

This Sunday I am going to make a remembrance of the Feast of St. Nina (Nino) The Enlightener of Georgia (which is actually celebrated the day before). We have Georgians who faithfully attend the parish and Georgian is one of the languages we hear when we recite the Lord's prayer Sunday by Sunday. Please be sure to specially greet the Georgians at coffee time this Sunday. Georgia is very special to me; I have visited there several times and still have friends there with whom I communicate regularly. It is an incredible country and I love it. On my second visit, I was privileged to serve with His Holiness Ilia II in his cathedral in Tbilisi. That was a memorable occasion. I was privileged to present to His Holiness, a hand written icon of St. Silouan the Athonite; he gave me a silver bracelet, like the ones he presents to those he baptizes. His Holiness speaks English perfectly.

I look back at that time and thank God for the privileges he has granted me, including the Georgian friends I have met and still hold dear. We are blessed to have on our altar, myrrh from St. Gabriel Urgebadze, of Georgia, whose Icon graces our Georgian corner. A saying of St. Gabriel: "If you could see what grace descends during the Divine Liturgy in church, you would gather the dust and wash your face with it!"

Good news from Ryan and Jessica: Ivan's new brother Andrei Seraphim has been born.

I wonder what Ivan thinks of his new brother. Has he met him yet? We will certainly welcome him into the Church and into the parish when the time comes. Congratulations and Thanks be to God that he was delivered safely.

Now we are waiting for altar boy Mark's brother to arrive. God bless Katerina and Sergey for a safe delivery.

We now have Wifi in the church. How very modern of us. How do I know? I was there to let them on this Thursday morning as two gentlemen installed it, with great difficulty - mainly in the drilling of the hole in the wall to let the cable in. It's digital, optical, much more modern than my apartment.

Here are the photos of the blessing of the Water on Theophany and the adventure into the water to retrieve the cross https://photos.app.goo.gl/ypjQb82eXhexFVdn9. There were not quite as many young men chasing the cross as last year, but there was fun. The waters of the Atlantic Ocean got blessed and 4 young men got wet. I'm going to put Sergey in charge of the blessing of the Atlantic; next year he will decide how and where it will happen. I hope also that we can have a similar ceremony for the Mission on Cape Breton, after all they are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean.

May God bless all of us,
Love in Christ,
-- Father David

(PS The waters didn't part!)

January 18, 2024

Thirty-third Sunday after Pentecost

Friday January 19 Feast of Theophany
Liturgy and Great Blessing of Waters 10:00am

Saturday January 20 After-feast of the Theophany & Synaxis of St. John the Baptist
Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday January 21 After-feast of the Theophany & St. George the Chozebite
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 8

On Wednesday, I received a document from Archbishop Irne, transferring Father Stelian Liabotis from the Holy Annunciation Cathedral in Ottawa, Ontario, to the parish of St. Vladimir 'Prince' of Kiev in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Therefore, I would like everybody to welcome Father Stelian and Matushka Lena officially into our midst.

I want to point out that Father Stelian was ordained before Father Alexander and so appears in our title banner before Father Alexander. This does not mean that Father Alexander is in any way replaced or reduced, he is listed under Father Stelian due to order of ordination.

Father Alexander with Taran (Silouan) and Jarod (Michael) are travelling to Cape Breton to serve Liturgy and bless water. There will not be the opportunity for rescuing the Cross in Cape Breton, but I've promised Mary that next year at their celebration of Theophany it will be an entirely different matter. They now have time to collect fluffy warm towels for the dippers.

In our case: After the Liturgy, we will go to the place chosen by Subdeacon David where we will toss in the cross after the blessing of the Atlantic Ocean and see which of the young men (and young women) find it (we'll attach fishing line to it just in case no one finds it!). BRING WARM TOWELS - I don't want anyone freezing or catching a chill.

May God bless all of us and keep us in His love,
In Christ,
-- Father David

January 12, 2024

Thirty-second Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday January 13 Apodosis of the Nativity of Christ
Vespers 6:00pm

Sunday January 14 Circumcision of the Lord
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Tone 6

Monday January 15 St. Seraphim of Sarov and Forefeast of Epiphany
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

Thursday January 18 Eve of the Theophany
Vespers and Liturgy and Great Blessing of Water 10:00am

Friday January 19 Feast of Theophany
Liturgy and Great Blessing of Waters 10:00am

Our celebration of the Nativity of Christ was a splendid occasion. Starting with Confessions at 9pm and starting Matins followed by Liturgy at 9.30, we managed to have a house full. Someone passed the comment, "Standing Room Only!" and that is the truth. Father Jean-Baptiste, wrote: "We heard you were sold out, last night. No tickets left." and that is again the truth. Glory to God!

It has been good having Father Stelian with us over Christmas. Subdeacon Michael and his family are with us permanently now. Maria has taken Timothy back to Ottawa just to finish packing up their home. They have bought a home here. Matushka Lena will be here; their home has yet to sell in Ottawa. Prayers are in order!

I want to thank you for the gifts I received. There was the gift from the parish and others. Thank you! I'm absolutely sure that Father Alexander would want me to say thank you on his behalf as well. We are looking forward to the time when Vladyka Irénée Transfers Father Stelian to us; all in God's time. (We will have to redesign the business cards.)

Please take note of the services leading up to Theophany and I will remind you again that it is customary for Orthodox homes to be blessed each year at Theophany. More on that and more on the blessing of the Ocean and the cold dip.

Members of the Mission on Cape Breton should take special note of the Feast of The Venerable Seraphim, Wonderworker of Sarov, the patron saint of the Mission. We will be serving Liturgy on Monday morning. Please make sure you pray with us, even if you can't get to the church.

Master and Lord of Heaven and Earth and King of the ages. Deign to open the door of repentance to me, for in anguish of my heart I pray to Thee, our true God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Light of the world. Look upon me in Thy great loving-kindness and accept my prayer. Incline Thine ear to my prayer and forgive me all the evil that I have done by the abuse of my free will.

Catechumens meet after coffee this Sunday. Join them and Learn about Forgiveness Sunday.

A note from Daniel Wilband:

Dear all:

Christ is born! We will resume our meetings this Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 4:30 (before Vespers) in the church basement. We'll continue from there as usual, on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of each month.

For now, we'll continue our ongoing discussion of the structure, history and spiritual meaning of the Divine Liturgy. This week, we will pick up where we left off, with the Cherubic Hymn, and see how far we get. I've attached some relevant chapters from Fr. Lawrence Farley's book, for those who don't have a copy.

For those at a distance, we will stream our discussion here (https://meet.google.com/moc-uqzu-pam). The church basement has recently had a major tech upgrade, and if we can figure out how to use it, the streaming should be much higher quality.

Believe it or not, we are not all that far off from the pre-Lent period, around which time we will take up a different reading to discuss. Stay tuned.

Love in Christ, Daniel

So there's the Bulletin for this week. Next week will be busy. Please come to as much as you can. Don't forget you will need to collect Holy water.

Love in Christ,
-- Father David

January 5, 2024

Thirty-first Sunday after Pentecost

Saturday January 6 Matins 9:00pm
Followed by Liturgy of Christmas

Saturday January 6 NO Vespers

Sunday January 7 NO Liturgy

Monday January 8 Synaxis of the Theotokos
Liturgy at 10:00am

Metropolitan Tikhon - Nativity of our Lord 2023

To the clergy, monastics, and faithful of the Orthodox Church in America, my beloved children in the Lord,

Christ is born! Glorify him!

At the Vigil for today's feast, we sang with the words of St. Germanus of Constantinople: "Today the Virgin gives birth to the Maker of all. Eden offers a cave and a star discloses Christ, the Sun, to those in darkness" (second sticheron at the aposticha).

In a supreme paradox, the created world today offers shelter to the one who contains all things in the palm of his hand. Coming among us in obscurity, "born of a woman, born under the Law" (Gal. 4:4), in the form of a tiny baby, "in the form of a servant" (Phil. 2:7), hidden in a dark cave, nevertheless he shines his light upon our gloom.

Becoming small, he allows us to touch his greatness. Clothing himself in our weakness, he permits us to rest in his strength. Embracing obscurity, he brings enlightenment to the ends of the earth. Ministering as a servant, he shows his love as our Master, our Lord, and our King.

In our present day, as the gloom waxes and the darkness closes, as "wars and rumors of wars" abound (Mt. 24:6), the icon of the Nativity - Eternity laid as a baby in a crib, Salvation in the form of a newborn child, Redemption in the weakness of infant flesh - is as timely as ever. As an American hymn writer wrote over a century and a half ago, in the dark streets of Bethlehem, "the hopes and fears of all the years" are met together on the night of the Savior's birth. If we seek an answer, a solution, to the questions of our age and every age, that Answer, the very Word of the Father, can be found lying in a manger, sleeping, yet with his heart awake (Songs 5:2); resting in his tiny human body, but at work as God (Jn. 5:17).

Once the wise men journeyed, not to meet Herod in his court of splendor, nor to seek Caesar on his Roman throne, but to find a Child in his Mother's arms. Likewise, we do not seek peace, salvation, and joy from the hand and works of "princes and sons of men" (Ps. 145:3), but from the Lord who appears to us in silence, showing us the way of humility, stillness, forgiveness, meekness, and mercy.

Today, as we join the righteous Joseph, the magi, and the shepherds in worshipping the Lord at his Nativity, enthroned in the lap of his Mother, we place our trust in his care, his providence, his justice, which transcend all human comprehension. Setting aside our own righteousness, we repent and embrace the peace and silence of the manger. Setting aside the grand and distracting worries of the world, we concern ourselves with generosity and forbearance towards our brethren and neighbors.

As St. Porphyrius of Kavsokalyvia writes, "Only prayer, silence, and love are effective." Resting in prayer and silence, through faith and trust we encounter the love of the one who became flesh for our sake, in whom every conflict and battle ceases, the Peace and Power of God, come to reign in our hearts through his Incarnation. May we always accept that love with repentance, humility, and gratitude, and joyfully share it with others, this day and every day. To Christ our God and Savior, born this Christmas day, be all glory, together with his Father who is without beginning and his All-holy Spirit, unto the endless ages of ages. Amen.

Christ is born! Glorify him!

I remain as ever,
Sincerely yours in the joy of our newborn Lord and God and Savior,

+ Tikhon
Archbishop of Washington
Metropolitan of All America and Canada

Next week Fast Free!

Merry Christmas!
Love in Christ
Father David & Father Alexander
Grant Peace, Lord! Please protect the innocent!

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