On July 1st, on the 4th Sunday after Pentecost our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy at St. George’s Church.
After the Gospel lesson Fr. Igor lectured on the Divine Liturgy and was telling about the rites of the Communion of the faithful. He pointed out that today’s custom to receive Communion under both species and from the chalice on the spoon developed some time around 10th century AD. In the early Church people received Communion right from the altar and took the Body of Christ by hands and then received the Blood of Christ drinking from the chalice. Nowadays this is done only by clergy in the sanctuary while lay people receive Communion in the nave and from the priest holding the chalice and distributing the Body and Blood of Christ with the spoon.
This Sunday we had some more people attending our temple due to the absence of Sunday Liturgy at the Holy Annunciation Church in Flushing.
After the Liturgy Fr. Igor and parishioners enjoyed our common trapeza prepared by our good cooks.

On June 10th, on the Sunday of All Saints, or on the 1st Sunday after Pentecost, our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy at St. George’s Church.
During his homily after the Gospel lesson Fr. Igor continued his talks on Divine Liturgy. The present topic was about the Lord’s Prayer. The priest initiating that prayer by the congregation exclaims: “And vouchsafe us, o Master, that boldly and without condemnation we may dare to call upon Thee, the Heavenly God as Father and to say”. He asks to be worthy to refer to the Almighty God as to our Father. Fr. Igor said: “We have to say that it was a new thing in the time of Christ, to refer to God as to the “Father”. Nobody has done this before Jesus. Nobody could dare to call God his Father. But Jesus did, and He called God His Father using an Aramaic word “Abba” meaning “Daddy”, an intimate word for one’s father. This is why many Jews were amazed and scandalized that Jesus called God His own Father, making Himself equal to God. But Jesus was God and had a right to do so. But what about us? The Lord wanted to teach us also to refer to God as to our Father. Why? Because God created us and loves us and also because through Jesus Christ Who, being the Son of God, became the Son of Man, all of us became members of God’s household, children of God through adoption… The words of the Lord’s Prayer are simple but important. They express the praise of God and petitions for our main spiritual and earthly needs.” Fr. Igor further shortly interpreted the main prayer of the Christian people.
After the Liturgy Fr. Igor and parishioners had our common meal outside of the church.

On June 5th Rector of St. George Church, priest Igor Tarasov and the Church Warden, Olga Roussanow attended a lecture of a well-known Russian Orthodox theologian and missionary, Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev. The meeting was held at the hall of St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York.
Fr. Andrei Kuraev is a famous modern theologian, an author of the number of books and articles and a professor of the Orthodox schools of high learning in Moscow. It was his first visit to the United States.
The lecture was organized by the Youth Department of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA and gathered around one hundred people, most of them young. Fr. Igor Tarasov asked the first question regarding Fr. Andrei’s view of the present state of the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia, as well as in the world. To answer that, Fr. Andrei gave a long and detailed speech on the situation in the Church life, changes in dogmatic, liturgical, disciplinary and social aspects in modern Orthodoxy. He named a number of challenges the Russian Church faces on today’s world, including secularism, Islamic expansion and the lack of spiritual demands among the Russian people.
Fr. Andrei answered many more questions, some of them being interesting. For instance, when asked whether salvation is available only to the Orthodox Christians, he pointed out that only God can grant salvation. It is also an individual thing. “Let us not worry about salvation of other people, but about whether I am going to be saved,” – said Fr. Andrei. One of the most memorable statements Fr. Kuraev made at this meeting was the following: “Everyone should do the right thing at his or her position, work and serve the Lord and neighbor, and let God worry about everything else”.
At the conclusion of the lecture Fr. Igor and Olga Roussanow purchased the books of Fr. Kuraev and personally expressed their gratitude for his coming to New York.
 

On June 3rd, on Pentecost Sunday when the Church celebrates the great holy day of the Most Holy Trinity, we had a solemn service at St. George’s Church. Before the celebration, according to our pious custom, our temple was decorated with the greenery. Our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov celebrated the Divine Liturgy and Vespers with the kneeling prayers.
After the reading from the Gospel Fr. Igor preached a homily. He pointed out that the story about the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles is presented in today’s Epistle reading. The Gospel of today tells us about our Lord preaching about the future gift – the Holy Spirit which was not yet given, saying: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (Jn 7, 37). Fr. Igor stressed that the important word here is “thirst”. He said: “People who thirst for spiritual life need to come to Jesus and He will give them the gift of the Holy Spirit, the “living water”, so they themselves will become the source of that water flowing from their hearts. If we are thirsty in our physical life, we need to drink. And if we do, we enjoy drinking and quench our thirst. Nowadays it is a common belief that you need to drink a lot of water in order to be healthy. It is doubtful, but many people follow that, and you see many young people walking with the bottles of water and drinking all the time. Such people probably do not enjoy drinking and do not really thirst. They act according to their rational thinking. Similar things happen with spiritual matters. You need to thirst, to strive for spiritual things in order to live spiritually. But it has to be a real thirst, a true desire coming out of your heart. Otherwise you use your mind to be spiritually “filled”: you go to the church, or belong to the Church because you know that it is good for you. But you do not really enjoy it. Church services are boring for you, thus you wish to miss them. Or if you receive Sacraments you do it because your mind tells you that it is good. Many Christians (especially in the Western Church) receive Communion frequently, even every day. But do they really thirst for that? Do they really prepare for that? Aren’t they like those people drinking water all the time without being really thirsty? Therefore, you need to thirst for the church services, for the Sacraments, for prayer. You better receive the Sacraments less frequently, but with more preparation and more spiritual joy.” Fr. Igor noted that he does not wish to discourage faithful to receive Communion frequently, but wants them to have a real desire and proper preparation for each reception of the Eucharist. For some individuals it means to partake not every week, for some it may still be every Sunday.
“Today is the birthday of the Holy Church of the New Testament,” – said Fr. Igor. “The Church includes all its members: Saints, living and departed. And it is living due to the Holy Spirit abiding and dwelling in it. Let us then ask the Holy Spirit, the Heavenly King, Comforter, the Spirit of truth to come and dwell within us and to cleanse us from all impurity and to save our souls!”
After services of the feast Rector and parishioners had a luncheon at our favorite Pier 25A restaurant. We enjoyed delicious meals and a nice company.

On May 27th, on Sunday of the Holy Fathers of the 1st Ecumenical Council, we had a Divine Liturgy celebrated in our church. The Liturgy was served by our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov.
After the Gospel lesson Fr. Igor continued his lectures on the Liturgy. This time he explained the meaning of the petitions of the Litany before Communion. That litany (or ektenia) is also called the Litany of Asking (or Beseeching). In that litany we ask the Lord for a number of things which represent our different needs. To the priest’s (or deacon’s) appeal “Let us ask of the Lord” at the end of each petition, the choir (or the congregation) responds: “Grant this, o Lord!” Fr. Igor pointed out that the needs described in those petitions are, first of all, spiritual needs. In the beginning of the Liturgy and even later, in the course of the service, the priest may pray for the earthly things like peace, unity, for the people traveling, for the sick and so on. Now, at this point when we are preparing to receive holy Communion, we are asking to grant us spiritual blessings. We need them to be worthy to receive the Eucharist. Fr. Igor further described the petitions and their meaning in detail.
After the Liturgy parishioners enjoyed delicious trapeza on the church property.

On May 24th of this year we celebrated great holy day of the Ascension of our Lord. Our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov served solemn Divine Liturgy at St. George’s Church.
After the reading of the Gospel Fr. Igor preached a homily. He reminded that this year feast of the Ascension falls on the day of St. Cyril and Methodius, the Enlighteners of the Slavs. It is the name day of His Holiness, Patriarch Kirill. The mission of the two holy and Equal to the Apostles brothers was very important for the Slavic people who received the translation of the Scripture and main liturgical books in their language.
Further, Fr. Igor preached about the Ascension of the Lord. He noted that Ascension could be viewed as a sad event because the Lord is leaving His Disciples. But the feast is, in fact, very joyful. There are at least, three reasons for that. First, the Lord does not leave the Apostles as orphans. He promises to send the Holy Spirit. That promise was fulfilled in 9 days. Secondly, we should be glad for the Lord who accomplished His mission of Redemption and now is returning to His Father, to be in heaven, at the right hand of God. Jesus goes where He was from the beginning. And thirdly, He goes to heaven to prepare there a place for us. “Thus, having a place reserved for us in heaven, let us try to collect for ourselves treasures in heaven, not on earth”, – said Fr. Igor.
At the end of the Liturgy the Rector proclaimed the Polychronion (singing of “Many years”) to His Holiness, Kirill, the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus’.

On May 20th, on Sunday of the Blind Man, Rector of St. George Church, priest Igor Tarasov celebrated the Divine Liturgy.
After the Gospel lesson Fr. Igor lectured on the Liturgy. He discussed the conclusion of the Eucharistic canon. Following the invocation of the Holy Spirit upon the Gifts and after the Gifts are being sanctified, the priest continues the Eucharistic canon by commemoration of the Saints, living members of the Church and those who fell asleep. Since the sacrifice of the Liturgy is “on behalf of all and for all”, the priests commemorates different kinds of members of the Body of Christ: living, departed and the Saints in heaven. That prayer is said in a low voice but it is interrupted by a loud commemoration of the Most Holy Mother of God. The congregation responds to that exclamation with a hymn in honor of the Theotokos. In the usual time it is a very known hymn “It is truly meet…”. On the holy days or some other occasions we use some other, substitute hymns. During that singing of the hymn the priest continues to commemorate the Saints: St. John the Baptist, the holy Apostles, the Saints whose memory is celebrated on that day. Then the living and the dead are being also commemorated. At the end the priest exclaims: “Among the first, remember o Lord, our great lord and father…, the Patriarch of Moscow…” Thus, the Church hierarchy is being remembered. The congregation responds: “And each and everyone”. The priest finishes the commemoration with the blessing of the people, asking that the mercy of God be always with them. The people respond: “And with your spirit”. In this manner the faithful ask God to bless the priest with the grace necessary for the functioning of his office, ministry and for his dignity.
At the end of the Liturgy Fr. Igor reminded that on that very day the Church commemorates the Apparition of the Sign of the Cross in Jerusalem which took place in 351 AD. At that time in the 4th century the Church was suffering from the dangerous heresy of Arianism. The first Christian emperor, St. Constantine, died and his successor, emperor Constantius, became a supporter of the heresy. At that point the Sign of the Cross appeared in the sky over Jerusalem. Many people saw it. It was shining brightly and shimmering with all the rainbow colors. This event was recorded by the historians. Many Jews and Gentiles converted to Christian faith due to that miraculous sign. Fr. Igor further preached that such an event teaches us that people who have the true and firm faith may be able to see with the spiritual eyes. “Today’s Sunday of the Blind Man presents us a story about a person who was born blind but received his sight from Jesus. That man acquired both physical and spiritual sight, for he became able to see both the world around him and the Lord of that universe. He worshipped Christ. But the Pharisees being able to see physically, were blind spiritually, for they did not recognize Jesus as their Messiah. In our times, there are a lot of people who are unable to see Jesus as the Lord and Savior. And even if they would witness a sign like an apparition of the Cross in the sky, they would probably refuse to believe. You need not just physical vision to believe. If you have a spiritual vision, then you are able to see the signs of God’s presence in many things. Take the nature. If you explore it having faith you will see the Creator and His wisdom. Science along with faith is a great thing. But science without faith is a perfect evil. Therefore, let us cherish and keep the true faith and attempt to acquire and preserve the spiritual sight, not to be blind spiritually,” – said our Rector.
After the service, due to a gorgeous weather, Fr. Igor and parishioners enjoyed our common trapeza outside of the church, under the shadow of the old trees.

On May 13th, on Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, priest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy at St. George’s Church. On this day we also celebrated feast of the Holy Apostle James.
During his sermon following the reading from the Gospel Fr. Igor told about St. James, who was one of the 12 Apostles, the son of Zebedee and the brother of St. John the Theologian. He then continued his regular lectures on the Liturgy. This time he discussed the Epiclesis which means the invocation of the Holy Spirit to come and sanctify the Gifts on the altar, to make them the true Body and Blood of Christ. Fr. Igor pointed out that Orthodox Christians hold that the Epiclesis completes the mysterious change of the Gifts. Therefore, bread and wine offered at the Liturgy turn into the Body and Blood of Christ when the invocation of the Holy Spirit is performed. The priest blesses the bread and the chalice and then makes a bow or prostration before them as a sign of reverence before the Lord present there.
At the end of the Liturgy the Rector congratulated all the women and, especially, the mothers and grandmothers in the parish on the occasion of the Mother’s Day. The choir sang “Mnogaia leta” (“Many years”) to the mothers.

On May 6th our parish celebrated Patronal fest of the Holy Great Martyr George. This year it fell on the 4th Sunday of Pascha, of the Paralytic. Our Rector, priest Igor Tarasov celebrated solemn Divine Liturgy. He was joined by other clergy who came to celebrate with us despite the Sunday duties at their places of service. The Liturgy was concelebrated by Hieromonk Eutychius (Dovganyuk), Hieromonk Zosimas (Krampis) (both from the ROCOR) and Deacon John Peters from St. Nicholas Cathedral.
Following the reading from the Gospel Fr. Zosimas preached a homily.
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 the other Russian churches of the area.
At the end of the Liturgy the Rector preached a brief sermon about our holy Patron, St. George. He stressed that this Saint has a great favor with the Lord and is honored in all the Orthodox nations, as well as among other Christians. A number of countries, regions or cities have him as their heavenly Patron. It is known that even some non-Christian people honor St. George. For instance, many Muslims come to a monastery in Turkey where they venerate the miraculous icon of the Saint, despite their religion which prohibits veneration of the icons. Fr. Igor congratulated all the parishioners and guests on the occasion of this joyful feast of the Victorious and Wonderworking Martyr George. He also expressed his gratitude to the clergy and lay people who came to share our joy on this special day. At the conclusion the Rector proclaimed a polychronion (singing of the “Mnogaia leta!, “Many years!”) to the hierarchy, present parishioners and guests and all the Orthodox Christians.
Celebration continued on the church property where our ladies and the youth organized a picnic. At this point we were happy to welcome the Rector of the Annunciation Church in Flushing, Archpriest Alexi Ohotin who came after the Sunday service in his own parish. Fr. Alexi joined us at the table and was asked to give a blessing of the trapeza. Everybody enjoyed delicious food, nice company, interesting conversations, as well as singing of the Russian and Ukrainian songs.

On April 29, on Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women, priest Igor Tarasov celebrated the Divine Liturgy at St. George’s Church.
After the Gospel lesson the Rector preached about the Divine Liturgy. Fr. Igor discussed the words of our Lord Jesus Christ pronounced during the Eucharistic Anaphora and taken directly from the Gospels: “Take, eat, this is My Body which is broken for you, for the remission of sins”, and “Drink of it, all of you. This is My Blood of the New Testament which is shed for you and for many, for the remission of sins”. These words are very important because they are the very words of Christ. And due to that Western theologians in the Middle Ages came to a conclusion that these words pronounced over the Gifts at the Liturgy change them over to the true Body and Blood of Christ. However, Eastern Orthodox Church never considered that. We always held that the whole Eucharistic Anaphora is essential for the mysterious change of the Gifts. And our common and strong belief is that the Gifts turn into the Body and Blood of Christ after the serving priest invokes the Holy Spirit upon them.
Fr. Igor also talked about an important part of Eucharistic celebration called the Anamnesis. It is translated from the Greek as ‘remembrance’. After exclaiming the words of Christ the priest in a low voice says that prayer of the Anamnesis. In the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom the priest says: “Remembering this saving commandment, and all those things which came to pass for us, the Cross, the Tomb, the Resurrection on the third day, the Ascension into heaven, the sitting at the right hand, and the second and glorious coming”. This short prayer is a sign of fulfillment of the commandment of Christ to make the sacrifice of the Liturgy in memory of Him. He left this Sacrament with us and ordered the Apostles to perform it. Thus we fulfill the will of the Savior, do it in memory of Him, as a commemoration of His life, death and Resurrection.
At the end of the Liturgy Fr. Igor preached a very short homily in Russian. He pointed out that in the former Soviet Union many of us who used to live there celebrated the Women’s Day, March 8th. Most of the countries emerged after the collapse of the Soviet state still celebrate that holiday. However, the idea and spirit of that Women’s Day is very strange to Orthodox Christians. Our women’s day is Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women. “Today we honor those holy women who were equal to the Apostles, who were the disciples of Christ. The Lord did not call the women to be the Apostles, but He did call them to the discipleship and a unique ministry. They helped the Apostles and served the Lord Jesus Himself. And they continued to serve Him after He died on the Cross. The Gospel tells us that those women came to the tomb early in the morning to anoint the body of Jesus with fragrant oils. And the Scripture tells us that those women became the first witnesses to the holy Resurrection of Christ. Therefore, the critics of the Orthodox Church who claim that we do not give women enough respect, are very wrong. Women were those to whom our Lord appeared first after His Resurrection. According to the Scripture He appeared to the Myrrh-Bearing Women. And according to the Tradition, He first appeared to His Blessed Mother.”
After the Liturgy Fr. Igor served a panikhida to commemorate the newly-deceased Nicholas Koretz, the brother of our parishioner and parish Treasurer Vera Koretz.
On this day our church services were not limited to our temple. At this point after Pascha we have a proper time for the commemoration of the deceased. Last Tuesday the Church celebrated the Memorial Day called ‘Radonitsa’. Therefore, priest Igor Tarasov visited Flushing and Cypress Hills Cemeteries where he served Litia and blessed the graves of our deceased parishioners, relatives of Vera Koretz and Natalia Soho.