On January 19th Orthodox Church celebrates great feast of the Theophany, or Baptism of the Lord. Our parish had a beautiful celebration of that holy day led by our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov. He served the Divine Liturgy at St. George Church. Following the Gospel lesson the Rector preached a homily in Russian.

In his homily the Rector preached about the great mystery of God’s Incarnation which is celebrated during our major winter holy days – the Nativity and Theophany. Again he recalled that those two feasts used to be celebrated together because celebrating Incarnation we celebrate the Theophany – God being with us, appearing to the world. As we have been dying in Adam, we became alive in Christ. This is why we also need true Theophany which is to see Christ in our lives and to follow Him. We need to pray that we may receive the fruits of the saving endeavor of the Lord. What does it mean? It is not enough to declare that we are Christians. It is not enough to say, “I believe in Christ!” It is not even enough to be baptized, for many of us were baptized in the young age. We need to follow Christ and make our lives following Him. Let us remember that we are not alone but God is with us.
The Rector also wished that holy water being blessed today in our temples and at different fountains of water may assist us with divine grace and grant us God’s blessing and help needed for our health in the body and salvation in the spirit.

The choir prayerfully performed hymns of the feast during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the Prayer behind the Ambo the Rector performed the Great Blessing of water.

Following the Liturgy dismissal the Rector and the altar servers came before the icon stand and performed the rite of glorification singing the troparion, kontakion and magnification of the Theophany. Then Fr. Igor congratulated parishioners on the occasion of the great holy day.

On January 14, 2018, on the Sunday before Theophany, as well as feasts of the Circumcision of the Lord and of St. Basil the Great, we had a beautiful celebration at St. George Church. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. Following the readings from the Sacred Scripture he preached the following homily in English:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today we have a combined celebration of at least three feasts. On this day we celebrate Circumcision of our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as commemoration of St. Basil the Great. And today is Sunday before the Theophany. In addition, many of us remember that today is the civic New Year, so-called the “Old New Year”. First of all, let me tell you that the New Year’s Day is not so important for the Church celebrations. It is not even something absolute or unchangeable. The New Year in Byzantine Empire was on September 1, the way it is still observed in our Church calendar. Our ancestors, ancient Slavs celebrated their New Year on March 1. It was rather Western European custom to begin the New Year in January, as we do now. This is why the New Year’s Day is not so important in the Church than celebration of other, more religious feasts.”
“Our authentic Christian and folk tradition knows three winter holy days celebrated on the row: Nativity, Circumcision and Baptism of Christ. And the period of their celebration is called “Sviatki” in Russian tradition. Today we are in the very middle of that festal period. We just finished celebrating Christmas and are preparing to celebrate Theophany. Between those great holy days we have today’s feast of the Circumcision. Sometimes we may hear that our people are wandering why we, the Christian Church, celebrate the Circumcision of Christ, since we don’t practice circumcision.”
“To answer that question we should look at all these three winter holy days as connected and proclaiming for us one great message: God became Man, God came to the world; He did it to save mankind. This is why Nativity and Baptism of Christ used to be celebrated on one day and was called the Theophany. This was done in the Ancient Church, but later the Church decided to introduce a separate feast of the Nativity to replace a popular pagan celebration in honor of the sun. Therefore, the idea of both Christmas and Theophany is that God became Man, appeared to the world to save it. And becoming Man, He had to follow the rules given by God Himself to the men. One of those rules was to circumcise male children after 8 days of their birth. This was in the Covenant between God and Abraham and this was in the Law of Moses. And Child Jesus had been circumcised on the 8th day of His birth. It took place, and we commemorate it. And this commemoration teaches us to follow the rules of the Church. Jesus followed the rules of the Old Testament Church although He was to establish the Church of the New Testament. So we should now obey all the rules of our Church. The Saint whom we honor today, St. Basil the Great, was, by the way, a prominent maker of the different Church rules. His memory today also reminds us of those important things.”
“Today’s feast offers us a great mystery to reflect on: Infinite and Eternal God becomes a little Child and does not despise to be circumcised. But keeping in mind His future, we understand that Jesus also did not despise to be crucified. Thus, circumcision was only the beginning of His humble service and sacrifice for the human race. Today’s hymn calls Jesus an “eight-day-old by Mother and beginningless by Father”. This is the mystery of our faith: a beginningless and endless God becomes a Man, He condescends to our nature to save it. This is why today’s troparion says, “glory to Thine Providence, glory to Thine condescendence, o only Lover of mankind!””
“This is why, dear brothers and sisters, we celebrate today’s feast. And again, it is not a separate feast but a part of our wonderful celebration of the Incarnation of the Lord. Today’s Sunday Gospel lesson is telling us about St. John the Baptist who was preparing the way for our Lord Jesus Christ. St. John called the people saying, “Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight” (Mk. 1, 3). We are also called. We called to open our hearts to the Lord, to prepare ourselves for His coming and to prepare ourselves to follow Him. Let us recall the events of the Nativity. When our Lord was about to be born into the world, the Holy Family came to Bethlehem but could not find any place to stay. Human dwellings shut their doors for the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph. This was because the human souls were also closed for the Son of God coming into the world. Let us not repeat what those people did in those times. Let us open our souls to follow Him, so that “whoever believes in Him may perish but may have eternal life” (Jn. 3, 16).”

The choir prayerfully performed hymns dedicated to St. Basil the Great and to the feast of the Circumcision during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector preached a brief sermon in Russian addressing the main ideas of his English homily.
Following the Rector’s sermon our sacristan Andrew Malyshev congratulated Fr. Igor on the occasion of his birthday. Parishioners presented the Rector their gifts, among which was an artistic portrait of Fr. Igor created by Vitaliy Malyshev. Traditional Polychronion (“Mnogaia leta!”) was proclaimed.

At the request of Malyshev family the Rector also performed a memorial service (Litia) in commemoration of Maria Malyshev’s deceased mother Irina.

Our celebration continued at the trapeza table where the Rector and parishioners enjoyed delicious meals and a nice company. The toasts to the Rector had been made and Fr. Igor was presented with a birthday cake.

On January 7 Russian Orthodox Church observes feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, also known as Christmas. Most of our parishioners, as well as some visitors to our temple gathered at St. George Church for the celebration of this great holy day. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. After the Gospel lesson the Rector proclaimed Christmas Sermon of Venerable Father Isaac the Syrian.

During the preparation for Holy Communion the choir beautifully performed different liturgical hymns of the Nativity.

After the Liturgy dismissal the Rector and altar servers performed the rite of glorification singing the troparion, kontakion and magnification of the Nativity before the festal icon in the middle of the church.

Following the Liturgy the Rector greeted the faithful on the occasion of the great holy day of God’s Incarnation. He preached a short sermon expressing a desire that we may keep the Newborn Infant Jesus in our hearts all the time, not just during Christmas celebration. He called the faithful to imitate righteous Joseph, the head of the Holy Family who preserved and defended Infant Jesus. Remembering that if we receive Holy Communion, we receive Jesus Himself physically and spiritually, we should keep Him and His grace just as like on this holy day, so the Lord may be in our hearts and stay there all the time.

Our celebration continued at the trapeza table where the Rector and parishioners enjoyed delicious meals and a nice company. A toast was raised in honor of Fr. Igor on the occasion of his successful defense of the doctoral thesis and awarding him a PhD in Theology.

On December 31, 2017, on the Sunday before the Nativity, St. George Church parish family had a nice celebration. In the absence of the Rector he Divine Liturgy was served by Priest Mark Rashkov.
Following the Gospel lesson Fr. Mark preached a homily.
The choir beautifully performed the hymns of the feast.
After the liturgical celebration parishioners labored together to decorate the Christmas.

On December 26, 2017, the Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov presented his doctoral thesis at the Academic Council of the Kievan Theological Academy. The dissertation topic is “Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church in the United States from the Middle of the XX century until Our Days: Internal Life and External Activity”.
After a proper procedure the thesis had been successfully defended before the Academic Council and Fr. Igor awarded a degree of the Candidate in Theology (equivalent to a PhD).

On December 25 the Orthodox Church, according to Julian calendar, celebrates feast of St. Spyridon the Wonderworker. On this day Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov attended the patronal feast celebration at St. Spyridon Church in Kiev, Ukraine.

The Divine Liturgy was headed by His Excellence, Mitrophanus, Metropolitan of Luhansk and Alchevsk who was co-served by the Rector of St. Spyridon Church, Archpriest Nicholas Danylevych, and other clergy, among whom was our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov.

Following the Gospel lesson Metropolitan Mitrophanus preached a homily about St. Spyridon’s life and his significance for the Orthodox Christians.

After the Liturgy the clergy performed a prayer service to St. Spyridon along with the procession around the temple in which an icon and the relics (a shoe) of the Saint were carried.
At the end of the temple celebration the Rector of the church, Fr. Nicholas expressed his gratitude to the visiting clergy, among them to Fr. Igor who came from the United States to participate in that celebration.

Patronal feast celebration continued at the Parish center where the clergy and parishioners enjoyed delicious meals and a nice conversation. Among the guests was the Consul of Greece to Ukraine  with his family. The toasts in honor of many persons present were raised and traditional Polychronia (“Mnogaia leta!”) performed. At the end of the trapeza parishioners enjoyed singing Ukrainian folk songs.

On December 24, on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers, the Divine Liturgy at St. George Church was served by Priest Mark Rashkov who substituted for our Rector.
Following the reading from the Holy Gospel Fr. Mark preached a homily.
The choir prayerfully performed hymns of the festal season.

On Monday, December 19, the feast of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, the Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, His Grace, Bishop John of Naro-Fominsk led the Divine Liturgy at St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York. His Grace was co-served by our Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov, Chancellor of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA and by other clergy of the Patriarchal Parishes and the ROCOR. Our Parish Warden Olga Roussanow also attended that service.
At the Little Entrance, for their dedicated service to the Holy Church, Bishop John awarded clerics of St. Nicholas Cathedral, Priest Mark Rashkov the right to wear the gold pectoral cross, and Deacon Yulian Ryabtsev the right to wear the double orarion within the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA.
After the Cherubic Hymn, Bishop John ordained cleric of the cathedral, Deacon Dmitrii Schieffler to the Holy Priesthood.
At the conclusion of the Liturgy, His Grace and the clergy served a short moleben before the icon of St. Nicholas. Afterwards, Bishop John preached a sermon, expressed his gratitude to the clergy who came to celebrate the Patronal feast, and congratulated Priest Dmitrii with his ordination.
Interaction between the clergy and faithful continued over a festal meal in the cathedral refectory.

On December 17, on the 28th Sunday after Pentecost, we had a beautiful celebration at St. George Church. On that day the Church commemorates Great Martyr Barbara and Venerable Father John of Damascus. Liturgical service was led by our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov. After the Gospel lesson of the Divine Liturgy he preached the following homily in English:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today’s lesson from the Holy Gospel is about being grateful. Our Lord Jesus Christ healed ten lepers, but only one of them expressed his gratitude. Jesus sent them to the priests to confirm their healing, and only one out of ten came back to give thanks (Lk. 17, 15-16). If we would decide to give a very broad interpretation of that Gospel passage, we may say that this story is about our coming to God. Man was created to stay with God. Once man had sinned, his goal of life became coming back to God. Ten lepers represented sinful humanity that had been cleansed by the Savior, by the Son of God. But only one out of ten came back to give thanks for that beneficence. This one cleansed leper represents those who accepted the teaching of Christ and who really attempted to dedicate their lives to pleasing God, to be grateful to Him and to seek Him and His Kingdom.”
“Every day the Church commemorates a number of Saints whose life was dedicated to those important goals. Today we honor Great Martyr Barbara. She lived in the 2nd century in the Middle East and was born in a pagan family. Her father was a very rich and noble man who took a good care of his daughter but he was so overprotective that he kept her in a tower where she lived alone. Only her servants and teachers could come in. Barbara observed the world from the windows of her tower and she came to understanding that there must be one and true God who created this world. She made a decision to dedicate her life to Him. This is why Barbara told her father that she will not get married. Her father then changed his policy and allowed Barbara to get out of her tower, to meet people, make friends and become attracted to the life of this world. Being among different people Barbara met Christian believers and converted. Later she asked the workers who built a new bath in their palace to make three windows in the bath, instead of two. In this way she wished to honor the Holy Trinity, so the light would shine from the three windows like the three-sun light shines from the Triune God. She also drew a cross above the entrance to the bath. When her father returned home and saw these renovations, he was surprised, and Barbara told him about her faith and called him to renounce idolatry and to embrace Christianity. But her father became furious and was willing to kill his daughter. Barbara fled to the mountains and hid herself but later the father caught her and brought to the local pagan governor to be tortured. Barbara had undergone many sufferings but did not renounce Christ. Finally, she was beheaded, and her own father volunteered to execute the Great Martyr. Thus, dear brothers and sisters, St. Barbara was seeking her way to God. First intuitively, then being aware, she tried to find her way. And she did. Her strife to venerate the true God, the Holy Trinity and her sufferings and death for this true God was her way of coming over to Him.”
“Today we also commemorate Venerable Father John of Damascus. He also lived in the Middle East but later than Barbara, in the 8th century. At that time most of that area was conquered by Arab Muslims but many people preserved their Christian faith. Among them was John who even became a prime minister to the Caliph, a Muslim ruler. At those times Muslims were tolerant and allowed Christians to live and prosper in their countries. It was ironic that in the neighboring Christian state, in the Byzantine Empire, true Christians were persecuted because its Emperor Leo was an Iconoclast, held a heretical view that the icons may not be honored. Being sorrowful for the fate of Christianity and for the disrespect for holy images, John wrote three books defending veneration of the icons. The wise and God-inspired writings of John enraged the emperor. But since the author was not a Byzantine subject, the emperor was unable to punish him. The emperor then resorted to slander. A forged letter to the emperor was produced, supposedly from John, in which the Damascus official was supposed to have offered his help to Leo in conquering the Caliph’s capital. This letter was sent to the Caliph. The Caliph immediately ordered that John be removed from his post, that his right hand be cut off, and that he be led through the city in chains. That same evening, they returned the severed hand to Saint John. The Saint pressed it to his wrist and prayed to the Most Holy Theotokos to heal him, so that he could defend the Orthodox faith and write once again in praise the Lord. After a while he fell asleep and upon awakening, he found that his hand had been attached to his arm once more. After learning of that miraculous healing the Caliph understood that John was innocent. He offered him his position back. But John refused and decided to spend the rest of his life in the monastery. He became a monk in a famous monastery of St. Sabbas near Jerusalem. Where St. John composed a lot of great writings, including many Church hymns which we use in our holy services. Thus, dear brothers and sisters, St. John of Damascus was seeking God, desired to come over to Him. He wished to praise the Lord, to use his talent to compose beautiful hymns, pious services, as well as wise theological writings. And St. John did come to God, found his way to His Kingdom.”
“Dear brothers and sisters! Hearing the life stories of these two heroes of faith, these Saints whom we honor today, let us ask ourselves: are we seeking to come over to God? And if we are, what are we bringing to the Lord? St. Barbara offered Him her youth, her faith and all her life. St. John of Damascus offered Him his talent, his faith, his endeavors of asceticism, and finally, also his life. God gave us life, all various gifts both physical and spiritual. Let us in return bring him our gifts of faith, hope and love. Let us give Him thanks. Let us give Him prayers, fasting and works of charity.”
“This time of preparation for Christmas is known to be a time of giving gifts. One of our Nativity hymns says: “What shall we offer Thee, o Christ, Who for our sakes hast appeared on earth as a man? Every creature made by Thou offers Thee thanks: the Angels offer a hymn; the heavens, a star; the Wise Men, gifts; the shepherds, their wonder; the earth, its cave; the wilderness, a manger, and we offer Thee a Virgin Mother!” Yes, human race offered Him the Blessed Mother. But each one of us should offer his or her faith, gratefulness, piety and love. This would be a proper return to God and coming over to Him and His Kingdom.”

The choir prayerfully performed hymns dedicated to St. Barbara during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector preached a short sermon in Russian conveying the ideas of his English homily. He also congratulated our Sacristan and altar server Andrew Malyshev on the occasion of his past name day wishing him God’s blessings, a warm intercession of Holy Apostle Andrew, great success in his service to the Church and many happy years. A traditional Polychronion (“Mnogaia leta!”) was proclaimed.

Following the Liturgy the Rector performed a Memorial service (Litia) requested to commemorate the deceased members of the Malyshev family.

On December 10, on the 27th Sunday after Pentecost, Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy at our parish temple. On that day the Church celebrated feast of the Icon of our Lady of the Sign. The Rector preached a homily in Russian following the reading from the Holy Gospel.

In his homily the Rector interpreted the Gospel lesson assigned for this Sunday (Lk. 8, 10-16). He stressed that the woman who had been bent over for 18 years and who was healed by our Lord Jesus Christ is an image of the human race. The humanity had been bent over spiritually because of the condition called sin. Sin did not allow human beings to look at heaven. And in a physical sense mankind was suffering also because of sin, suffered infirmities and death. Citing St. Gregory of Nyssa the Rector pointed out that the humanity needed a Savior from that state. And that Savior, Redeemer and Physician came in Jesus Christ. However, sin still dominates over us if we give in and become slaves to our passions. Any sinful passion, any sinful habit deviates our soul and body, so they both suffer. Take any of them, for instance, drug or alcohol addiction: they ruin human life, bend it over, damage human soul and cause the body to suffer. Only divine grace can free us from such passions. We need grace, we need Christ. In the same way as He healed the woman in today’s Gospel, He may deliver us from our spiritual infirmity. To attain that we need to stay in the Church, which is a spiritual hospital.

The choir prayerfully performed hymns in honor of the Most Holy Mother of God.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector preached a brief sermon in English addressing the main ideas of his Russian homily. He also congratulated our young parishioner and altar server, Anton Malyshev, on the occasion of his past birthday. Traditional Polychronion (“Mnogaia leta!”) was proclaimed. At the end the Rector welcomed our former parishioner, Anastasia Flora who had moved to Dominican Republic and came to visit us on this Sunday.