On September 1, on the 10th Sunday after Pentecost we had a usual celebration in our church. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy.
After the Scripture readings Fr. Igor preached a sermon interpreting the Epistle lesson. He pointed out that in the assigned reading St. Paul is telling the Christians of Corinth that they differ from the Apostles by their way of life. He exclaims, “We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ!” (1 Cor. 4, 10). If we tried to understand these words literally, we could think that St. Paul gives an option to be fools in Christ or to be wise in Christ. However, it is easy to understand that he is sarcastic.
Fr. Igor continued saying, “Corinthian Christians who were relatively new community founded by St. Paul himself, became relaxed and attempted to combine Christian faith with some luxury of secular life. They tried to be Christians and preserve some worldly attitude. This is why St. Paul uses irony and sarcasm. He hopes that it could be a good medicine to cure spiritual weaknesses of his followers in Corinth. He says, “We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ! We are weak, and you are strong! You are distinguished, but we are dishonored!” (1 Cor. 4, 10). And he goes on telling that the Apostles, including himself, hunger and thirst, are poorly clothed, are beaten and homeless. They labor, working with their own hands. They are persecuted and reviled (1 Cor. 4, 11-12). At the same time Christians of Corinth are not suffering these misfortunes, but think that they are still good followers of Christ. This why the Apostle does not condemn them directly but teaches that they are wrong. You cannot be a good Christian and not suffer for Christ. You cannot serve two masters, as the Lord Himself said (Mt. 6, 24).”
“Nowadays many Christians and even Christian communities believe that they can adopt their Christianity to modern life, to the demands of the secular world. They think that they can combine Christian faith with the worldly existence. They abbreviate church services, make their temples comfortable, allow the people to indulge themselves. Some of them now agree to bless same-sex marriages or pray for the pet animals. In one of such ‘churches’ a couple of years ago a minister gave Communion to a dog. They probably think that they are ‘wise in Christ’ for they wish to be ‘popular’, ‘close to the people’, to attract today’s people. Thus they may think that they are strong and distinguished. And we, Orthodox Christians who do not wish to do such things, are viewed as ‘fools’, as ‘weak’. Well, the same way the Apostles were viewed.”
“But even among us, Orthodox, sometimes there is a spirit of the early Corinthian church. We have a temptation to combine our Christianity with the secular values. This is why we have different problems in our parishes. Something resembling the situation of St. Paul and other Apostles may be seen in our Church life in this country. Many our priests are not supported by their parishes, but have to labor, work with their own hands or other talents. On their time off they take care of the parishes, come to serve the Liturgy. But some parishioners have their requirements they set for the clergy. Similar situation as described today by St. Paul.”
“However, St. Paul uses these words of irony, as he himself says, “not to shame” but “to warn” his disciples in Corinth. The Corinthian Christians were his spiritual children. As in the family, so in the Church, children need parental guidance. Same in our Orthodox communities, in our parishes, people need guidance from the clergy. Since St. Paul founded the community in Corinth, he is the father of the Corinthian Christians. As such he finishes today’s Epistle lesson with the words, “Therefore I urge you, imitate me” (1 Cor. 4, 16). This would mean that Corinthians should imitate the Apostles, become fools in Christ, become persecuted and endure sufferings for Christ’s sake. They should abandon their way of life and follow the example of St. Paul and other Apostles.
Fr. Igor finished his homily saying, “Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us imitate St. Paul and other holy Apostles who imitated our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us not fool ourselves that we may be good Christians and serve the world, combine our faith with secular values. Let us remember who our fathers are and be their followers.”
After the Liturgy the Rector celebrated a short memorial service (Litia) for the repose of our long-time parishioner Vladimir (Walter) Soho and Fr. Igor’s grandmother Catherine (Kateryna) Tarasova.
Following our services we enjoyed coffee and refreshments kindly prepared by our ladies.

On August 28, on the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God our Parish family had a solemn celebration. The Divine Liturgy was served by St. George’s Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov.
After the reading from the Gospel Fr. Igor preached a homily about celebrated holy day. He said, “Today we celebrate the most important feast in honor of the Most Holy Mother of God, Her Dormition. This is the day when our Lady fell asleep and ended Her earthly life. She was taken up to heavenly glory along with Her soul and body. Holy Scripture does not tell us about the last days of the Most Holy Mother of God. In fact, it does not tell about Her much at all. This is why the Protestant churches which do not recognize any other sources of Revelation except the Bible, do not honor Theotokos at all. But we, Orthodox Christians, acknowledge two sources of God’s Revelation, Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. While the Scripture does not tell us about today’s feast, it is very much described in the writings of the holy Fathers of the Church, it is very much mentioned in the Holy Tradition. Thus, let us recall what the Tradition tells us about it.”
“According to the ancient Christian tradition, the Most Holy Mother of God lived in the household of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian to whom our Lord Jesus Christ entrusted His Blessed Mother when He was dying on the cross. St. John and the Blessed Mother lived in several places, but later She came back to Jerusalem, to finish Her earthly life at the holy place of Passion and death of Her divine Son. The Most Holy Mother of God attended the place of the Lord’s Tomb where She prayed. One day holy Archangel Gabriel appeared to Her at the Lord’s Tomb and announced that shortly She is going pass away. The Blessed Mother prepared for that day. Now a great miracle happened: all holy Apostles were taken by invisible angelic force and arrived in Jerusalem around the bed of the Blessed Mother to farewell Her. She fell asleep at the third hour which is in the morning. After that holy Apostles buried Her conducting the funeral rites. The burial procession went through the city of Jerusalem. Some Jewish people hostile to the Christians attempted to attack the Apostles but the procession was miraculously enveloped with the cloud, so they could not see and find it. All they did is to hear the chants of the funeral prayers and hymns sung by the Apostles. One of the Jewish priests named Apphonias reached the procession and tried to overthrow the coffin with the holy body of the Theotokos. But the angel invisibly cut his hands off. Apphonias repented, was healed and followed the procession becoming a zealous follower of Christ.”
“After the body of the Most Holy Mother of God was buried, She appeared to the Apostles when they came back to the house to eat together. The Holy Mother said to them: “I will always stay with you!” On the eighth day after the Falling Asleep of the Most Pure Virgin holy Apostle Thomas arrived in Jerusalem. He desired to venerate the holy body of the Most Holy Mother of God. When the Apostles opened Her tomb to let St. Thomas to venerate the relics, they discovered that it was empty. Our Lord Jesus Christ did not allow His Mother’s body to stay in the tomb but took it to the heavenly glory.”
Concluding his sermon Fr. Igor said, “Thus in the Most Holy Mother of God the statutes of nature are being overcome, She did not die, She fell asleep to be in the Kingdom of Her Son. Death is conquered again. As the Son of God and Son of Mary conquered death by His own death in His holy Resurrection, so He conquered death in His Mother’s Dormition. Death is a result of sin. Thus, let us fight the sin to acquire life. It is hard, but if we do fight the sin God is coming to help. He will make miracles for us. In today’s feast we hear about a number of unbelievable miracles. We may even say that the whole story is so unbelievable. But even in our own life God can perform wonderful and incredible things to make us alive in His heavenly Kingdom. Let us strive for it with the help of the Most Holy Mother of God who is saving our souls from death.”
After the Liturgy the Rector congratulated parishioners on the occasion of the great holy day of the Blessed Mother. He reminded that we finished Dormition fast and now are able to enjoy the celebration. However, we should not get too relaxed but continue our spiritual efforts directed towards our salvation.

On August 19, on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, we had a solemn celebration in our church. St. George’s Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. After the reading from the Gospel he preached a homily about the holy day event. Fr. Igor said,
“Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord is one of the very important among the holy days. Today we celebrate a miraculous change which was manifested by our Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples on the Mount Tabor. Taking Peter, James and John to that high mountain, He transfigured before them. As the Gospel states, “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light” (Mt. 17, 2). Before that they knew Jesus to be a great Teacher, a wonderworker, the Messiah promised by the Old Testament. But they did not fully realize that He was the Son of God and God Himself. At the Mount Tabor Jesus revealed who He really was. Thus the Apostles could see the glory of the true God, the light shining from the divine nature.”
“No one ever saw God. God’s essence and nature is incomprehensible to our limited mind. However, God revealed Himself and showed some part of His nature to certain holy people. In the times before Christ, God appeared to Moses and Elijah. Holy Prophet Moses could see God. God appeared to Moses as the burning bush or a cloud. But God also showed Moses Himself in a special, mystical way, as the Scripture tells “from behind”, because a man cannot see God and live. Holy Prophet Elijah was also blessed by seeing God who revealed Himself in a breath of the calm wind. These were the men of the Old Testament whom God blessed with His appearance. And it was not accidental that those two holy men appeared on the Mount Tabor to converse with Jesus when He transfigured before His disciples. Moses and Elijah represented the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament which were fulfilled in Jesus.”
“With the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ into the world, God revealed Himself in a very comprehensible and accessible way. He became man, so we could see God in our form. And Transfiguration of our Lord had to teach His disciples of the mystery of the union of human and divine natures in Christ.”
“There are many different ideas about God. Some philosophers or other intelligent people may imagine God to be some universal force or some worldly order. But such God is not personal. We believe that God is a Person, the one to whom we can refer, with whom we can speak. And in Jesus Christ who became one of us, a partaker of the human nature, we find such personal God much easier. Also, through His taking up the human nature and interweaving it with His divine nature, we may become the partakers of the divinity. As we all created in the image of God, through Christ we may acquire the likeness of God.”
“This is what is called by the Fathers the process of deification or theosis. Human nature becoming divine. This teaching was elaborated by the Holy Fathers of the III and IV centuries, especially by St. Athanasius of Alexandria. Interestingly that this teaching is not very much remembered or used by Protestants and Roman Catholics, by Western Christians. It is known that today’s Western world likes to talk about the dignity of man and to extol humanity. But this is a secular way of praising the human nature, the so-called humanism. It desires to serve man and to forget about God. It strives to praise human nature with all its weaknesses and passions, a nature corrupted by sin. Our Eastern Orthodox Church adheres to the teaching of the Fathers which extols human nature in a Christian way. We say that man is called to become like God not by being proud and sinful, but through the pious life, through the partaking of divine nature, through the acquiring of divine grace in our Lord Jesus Christ. What could be more honorable for a man than an idea of becoming like God? But that way of deification is the way of piety, spiritual and sacramental life in our Lord Jesus Christ, life in which we hear the beloved Son of the Father. It is the way of Transfiguration, a movement from below to above.”
At the end of the Liturgy Fr. Igor, according to the Church pious tradition, blessed the fruits brought to the temple by parishioners.

On August 4, on the 6th Sunday after Pentecost we had a service in our temple celebrated by our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov.
Following the readings from the Scripture Fr. Igor preached a homily. He pointed out that today’s Gospel lesson is telling about healing of a paralyzed man. But before making that man well our Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed that the sins of that man are forgiven.
Fr. Igor continued, “This reading teaches us that our illnesses are caused by sin. Mainly, of course, our infirmities are not because of our personal sins, but rather the effects of the sinful state, a sin that is all around us in the world and to which we are subject.”
“Medical science tells us that many illnesses are the result of bacteria attacking a weakness in our bodies. Such a weakness may be inherited, or perhaps that weakness comes in old age when our bodies began to fail as they wear out. In both cases we may see that illness is caused by a corrupted state of humanity where a spiritual failure causes physical imperfection.”
“On the other hand, a sickness may be the result of overeating or an unhealthy diet. Then again it is a result of sin called gluttony. It may be the result of using of alcohol or drugs. Then it is a sin of drunkenness or debauchery. Some of us get sick because of a lack of physical activity. Then it may be a sin of laziness. Finally, our illness such may also be the result of a state of mind. Then various sins of our mind, sins of thought and heart make us unhealthy. This is why today’s Gospel does not tell us about any particular cause of the man’s illness. But it shows that he was paralyzed not because of bacteria, old age, unhealthy diet or poor mental state, but because his sins were not forgiven.”
“Our body and our soul are very much connected. They both compose a human person. This is why we should always remember to take care of ourselves, to love ourselves. That means to love our souls and our bodies. If our souls are healthy, not burdened by unforgiven sins, our bodies would be much healthier. And on the opposite, if we live in sins and vices, we should not expect our bodies to be well.”
“Today the Orthodox Church honors the holy memory of St. Mary Magdalene – the woman, called by the Lord Himself from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Tradition tells us that she was immersed in sin. Scripture mentions that Jesus expelled seven devils from her (Mk. 16, 9). Those devils could be understood as seven deadly sins or vices. After that Mary Magdalene received healing. And she sincerely began a new life and never turned away from the path. She followed Jesus along with His Apostles and served Him. She was faithful to the Lord not only when He surrounded by enthusiastic crowds passed through the cities, winning for Himself the glory of a miracle-worker. She was with Him also when He, humiliated and crucified, hung in torment upon the Cross. This is why the Lord, knowing her faithfulness, appeared to her first, and considered her worthy to be first proclaiming His Resurrection. She announced the news of Christ Resurrection to the Apostles. And later she was proclaiming the Gospel in the world, preached Christian faith to the people, especially in Italy and in Rome. This is why Mary M. deserved to be honored as a Saint Equal to the Apostles.”
Fr. Igor concluded his sermon saying, “Having an example of St. Mary Magdalene and coming to an understanding that our bodily weaknesses are the result of our sin, let us ask the Lord’s help. Let us ask Him to forgive our sins in the holy Mystery of Confession. Let us use that great medicine, that healing Sacrament. Let us also fight our sins and bad habits to be freed from possible sicknesses of the body which may be caused by our wrong behavior. And let us then follow our Lord Jesus Christ to His eternal glory.”
After the Liturgy dismissal the Rector reminded everybody that there was a special collection for the church maintenance fund was taken. He asked the people to be generous supporting the church, especially due to a need to repair the fence and the gate on the parish property.
Following the service Fr. Igor and parishioners enjoyed refreshments at our coffee hour.

On July 28th on the 5th Sunday after Pentecost the Church also celebrated feast of the Holy Equal to the Apostles Prince Vladimir. We had a solemn service at our temple headed by our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov.
Following the Scripture readings Fr. Igor preached a homily in which he greeted parishioners on the occasion of a triple celebration: Sunday remembrance of Christ Resurrection, feast dedicated to the holy Fathers of the first six Ecumenical Councils, as well as the feast of St. Vladimir. The Rector recalled that these days all the Russian Church celebrates 1025th Anniversary of Christianization of Kievan Rus’, a jubilee of our Christianity. In his sermon Fr. Igor compared the first Gospel reading of the 5th Sunday and the historical facts of the spiritual life of the Eastern Slavs before and after embracing Christianity. Fr. Igor said,
“Today’s Gospel concerns casting out of demons from two possessed men. It tells us that the demons entered into a herd of swine and then it tells us of the suicide of those swine. We should note that the people in the country of the Gergesenes keeping the swine were disobeying the Jewish law. That is why they begged Christ to leave their area, practically chasing the Son of God away. That makes us think that the disobedience of these people explains why two of them became possessed”.
“Thus, we learn that disobedience of God leads to misfortune. So as a life without true faith.”
“These days we celebrate an anniversary of the Baptism of the Russian lands. We may see that before becoming a Christian nation the Eastern Slavs living in Kievan Rus’ led a life full of misfortunes, crimes, superstitions and abuses. But after receiving holy Baptism prince Vladimir totally changed. Although many other people of Rus’ in the course of history still sinned, committed crimes and iniquities, the whole mindset of the Russian people changed after the Baptism. Our ancestors became a part of the European, Christian world, of the Christian civilization. God also blessed the Russian lands by allowing them to flourish under the rule of the Orthodox tsars and emperors. But when the Russian people turned away from the true faith, life in the country became full of sorrows. Famine, wars (one of which was fratricidal), abuses, persecutions of the different social classes, economical problems – all these misfortunes fell upon the Russian land and its inhabitants.”
“But the lesson of today’s Gospel is also important for every nation. If a nation lives in true Christian faith, cherishes right values and obeys the God’s law, then it enjoys a relatively good and prosperous life. It becomes blessed by God. But if a nation lives in the darkness, it suffers from many misfortunes. Such a darkness can be either paganism or atheism or any false religion. Nations living with the false beliefs, with the wrong values become corrupted by sins and iniquities; they experience social tension, wars, economic problems, abuses and crimes. They resemble those swineherd of today’s Gospel who felt sorry for the swine perished in the lake and begged the Son of God to leave their city.”
Fr. Igor concluded his homily saying, “Therefore, let us learn from today’s Gospel to be faithful to God, to obey His law and to cherish the true moral values given to us by the Lord. Let us also follow the example of the Holy Equal to the Apostles princes Vladimir and Olga who enlightened Eastern Slavs with Christian faith. Let us remember that their own lives changed after embracing Christianity. Life of the whole nation of Kievan Rus’ changed after becoming a Christian country. Let us spiritually belong to that Christian family held by the holy Russian Orthodox Church, a family born from the baptismal font of St. Vladimir. In this family we will be blessed by God, protected by the Most Holy Theotokos, by the intercession of the Saints. And further we may become saved and inherit eternal life promised to those who know the true God and His Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.”
At the end of the Liturgy Fr. Igor greeted our Warden and Choir director, Olga Roussanow on the occasion of her past name day. A “Mnogaya leta” hymn was sung in her honor. Then priest and the altar servers performed an office of glorifying in front of the icon of St. Vladimir, singing troparion, kontakion and magnification in honor of this Saint.
After the service parishioners enjoyed delicious food, including Georgian meals prepared by the Kay family. Fr. Igor greeted Olga Roussanow at the table and proposed a toast to her past name day celebration.

Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov is very glad to share good news of his achievement with the parishioners and friends of St. George Church. He recently completed his studies at Kiev Theological Academy in Ukraine. On June 7, 2013 Fr. Igor successfully defended a thesis in Church History before the Academic council and was awarded a diploma with honors.
Graduation ceremony took place in Kiev Cave Lavra on Friday, June 14. A prayer service of thanksgiving was celebrated by the Academy Rector, His Eminence, Anthony, Metropolitan of Boryspil. Following the service His Eminence had an inspiring speech about the tasks and mission of the educated clergy of the Orthodox Church. Then graduates received their diplomas along with the blessing of the Metropolitan.
Upon his return to the United States Fr. Igor was congratulated by His Eminence, Archbishop Justinian. Our pastor was also greeted by our parishioners who welcomed him back at our Sunday Liturgy on June 30 and a coffee hour which took place after the service.

On May 26, on Sunday of the Paralytic we had a celebration at our St. George Church. It was headed by our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov. Fr. Igor returned after a two week trip to Kiev, Ukraine.
Following the reading from the holy Gospel the Rector preached a sermon. He discussed the miraculous healing of the paralytic performed by our Lord Jesus Christ. In particular, Fr. Igor pointed out that the state of the paralytic reminds us of the state in which the whole human kind was living before Christ. It was due to sin.
Fr. Igor said, “The human kind was spiritually paralyzed. It needed a Savior, a great Healer. But who could become such a Healer, such a Savior? In many legends and myths the people whom we call the Gentiles thought that it should be a great man, a hero. Other people, the Jews, who believed in one God and had a prophecy of the Messiah, also believed that such Messiah should be a human person. However, it was impossible for any man because human kind is sinful. It could be done only by God, but God willed to do it by becoming also a Man.”
“The whole attitude of waiting for a man, for a hero to save is reflected in today’s Gospel. The paralytic says, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up…” (Jn. 5, 7). He put his trust on men and he was unsuccessful for many years. He should have learned from the Scripture saying, “Do not put your trust in princes, in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation” (Ps. 145, 3)”.
“Jesus was the Son of God, thus He could help the paralytic. So, He can help all the people in need, in sufferings, in pain. For He even conquered death.”
“On the other hand, the people who follow Christ, who are united with Him, can also become the partakers of His power. They continue His miracle working and the mission of salvation. In today’s Epistle we heard that Holy Apostle Peter was able to heal the paralytic also. And he was able to raise a recently dead young woman. St. Peter healed by the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 9, 34). And it is not accidental that today’s Epistle mentions that the followers of Christ were already called “Saints” (Acts 9, 32). People dedicated and belonging to God are saints. Such people are able to conduct the divine grace and the will of God. If we put our trust on God, He can act through such men.”
Fr. Igor concluded his homily saying, “Let us put our trust in God. Let us be faithful to our calling as Christians. Let us strive for being the partakers of our Lord’s grace and the conductors of His power. Let us also acquire this power in the Church where we can meet the people dedicated to God, the Saints of our days. The Church is our House of mercy, our healing place, a place of God’s graces. Let us belong here and become a part of our Lord’s Resurrection.”
After the Liturgy Rector and parishioners enjoyed delicious meals at our common coffee hour.

On May 6 the Church commemorates Holy Great Victorious Martyr George. It is a Patronal feast of our Parish.This year it fell on the Bright Monday, the second day of Pascha.
St. George parish family had a solemn and beautiful celebration. It was headed by our Archpastor, Most Rev. Justinian, Archbishop of Naro-Fominsk. His Eminence arrived at 10:30 AM and was greeted by our Parish Warden Olga Roussanow at the entrance to the temple. Archbishop Justinian entered the church where he was met by the clergy. He then celebrated solemn Divine Liturgy. The Liturgy was concelebrated by our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov; Representative of the Russian National Council at the UN, archpriest George Roshchin; Chancellor of the Patriarchal Parishes, hegumen Nikodim (Balyasnikov); Secretary of the Archbishop, archpriest Eugene Goncharenko; clergy from the ROCOR: hieromonk Eutychius (Dovganyuk), hieromonk Zosimas (Krampis), and priest Aleksiy Paranyuk; cathedral protodeacon Igor Panachev and deacon Rodion Shamazov.
At the Little Entrance Archbishop Justinian commending the great merits of our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov in his service to the Holy Church elevated him into the rank of an Archpriest.
Before the rite of the holy Communion archpriest George Roshchin preached a brief sermon about the life and endeavors of St. George.
Our temple was almost filled with the guests from other parishes, among whom were the youth representatives from St. Nicholas Cathedral headed by Igor Kochan, our friend and benefactor Captain Stelios Tatsis and some parishioners of other Russian and Greek churches of the area.
At the end of the Liturgy the clergy headed by His Eminence, Archbishop Justinian had a procession around the temple singing Paschal hymns. Archbishop blessed faithful with holy water. Following the Liturgy Most Rev. Justinian said a few words about our holy Patron, St. George. He also commended Fr. Igor and our parishioners for the continuing support of the Parish and preserving the church life in such difficult circumstances. He then congratulated all who celebrated their name day and proclaimed a polychronion (singing of the “Mnogaia leta!, “Many years!”) to them.
Celebration continued on the church property where our ladies and the youth organized a picnic. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor had a toast to the honor of His Eminence, Archbishop Justinian. He said that we all should attempt to imitate St. George who was victorious because he was following the greatest Victor, our Lord Jesus Christ Who was risen from the death conquering death and evil. As a small flock, we still have a hope to be victorious by the protection of St. George and by the power of the Risen Christ, as well as being under the omophorion of Archbishop Justinian whose name contains some hints of the victory. Holy king Justinian, the Archbishop’s patron, was a victorious and successful ruler. In addition, the Archbishop’s secular, baptismal name was Victor. We then hope that with such a victorious Archpastor we may be successful in our religious and parish life.
Everybody enjoyed delicious food, nice company, interesting conversations, as well as singing of the Russian and Ukrainian songs.

On May 5 of this year 2013 all Orthodox Christians celebrated the greatest holy day, the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Pascha.
Celebration at St. George Church began at 11:30 PM on Saturday, May 4. The church’s Rector, priest Igor Tarasov officiated at the Midnight service at the Lord’s Tomb and transferred the Shroud to the altar.
Right after midnight joyful Paschal celebration began. The priest assisted by the altar servers lead faithful in the procession around the temple. At the end of the procession everyone stood in front of the closed church doors where Fr. Igor began Resurrection Matins and proclaimed the Easter greeting, “Christ is risen” in Slavonic, English, Greek and Georgian languages. Faithful responded and sung Paschal troparion. Then the priest opened the doors of the temple and faithful entered into the church.
After Matins priest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. The Gospel lesson was traditionally read in several languages, namely in Greek, Slavonic, English, Serbian, Georgian and Spanish. Following the Gospel reading Fr. Igor proclaimed catechetical sermon of St. John Chrysostom on Pascha.
After the Liturgy the Rector greeted the people on the occasion of the greatest Christian feast and blessed Easter food.
Rector and parishioners continued their celebration of Pascha at the tables where they had an opportunity to enjoy delicious meals after the long time of Lenten restrictions.

                   CHRIST IS RISEN!              ХРИСТОС  ВОСКРЕСЕ!

During the Holy Week we had two services in our church. On Holy and Great Thursday, May 2, Rector of St. George Church, priest Igor Tarasov served Vespers with the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. This is the day when we commemorate the Last Supper and institution of the holy Mystery of the Eucharist.
On Holy and Great Friday, May 3, Fr. Igor served Vespers with the procession of the Shroud. Following the exposition of the Shroud in the middle of the church, the Rector preached a sermon about the holy Passions of our Lord Jesus Christ. He pointed out that sometimes we are tempted to think that Jesus suffered not as much as some people suffer from different diseases or tortures. These thoughts come into the minds when we see human sufferings. We should then remember that we all are sinful, and sufferings are the result of sin. But Christ was without sin. Yet He underwent terrible and humiliating sufferings. Even the thief who was crucified along with Jesus understood that. If one thief reviled Christ, another one whom we call the “wise robber”, rebuked his partner and said, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly… but this Man has done nothing wrong” (Lk. 23, 40-41). “Therefore, let us understand that these were the sufferings of God and the sufferings of an innocent Man. And, understanding that, let us appreciate what God has done for us.” – said Fr. Igor.
After the service of Vespers faithful venerated the shroud. The priest then prayed over the Lord’s tomb reading the Compline along with the Canon of Christ’s burial.