On April 10, on the Fifth Sunday of Lent our parishioners gathered for the liturgical celebration in our temple. Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. After the Gospel lesson he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! On the Fifth Sunday of Lent we hear again, for the second time, that our Lord Jesus Christ is foretelling His death and sufferings. In this way we, little by little, are being prepared for the days when we are going to commemorate the holy Passions of the Lord. These days are coming soon. Next Sunday will be the beginning of them. We will observe the feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem. And following that feast we will enter into the Passion week. The Lord says, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of God will be betrayed…” (Mk. 10, 33). We are also going up to Jerusalem, we do it in a spiritual way”.
“Today’s Gospel is also telling us about the difference between the ideals of the Christian teaching and the ideals of worldly life. The Lord rebuked His disciples, James and John who wished to be given the seats closest to the Lord in His Kingdom. He said to them, “Whoever desires to become great among you shall be yours servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all” (Mk. 10, 43-44)”.
“Today we also honor Venerable Mary of Egypt. She was a great sinner who became a great Saint. There is no such thing as sinless life, but there is no such sin that cannot be forgiven if the sinner repents. Mary being a harlot for 17 years (from the age of 12 to the age of 29) repented and became a greatest woman-Saint. We usually like to say that people don’t change. But here is an example of a person who totally changed her life. If you read the life story of St. Mary of Egypt you can be convinced of that. When she could not enter the church in Jerusalem because some unknown force prevented her to do so for the reason of her impurity and sinfulness, she prayed to the Most Holy Mother of God in front of Her icon outside of the temple. The Blessed Mother told Mary that she must repent and listen to Her. After she repented, received the Mysteries of Penance and Communion, Mary heard the call of the Mother of God, “Cross the Jordan, and you will find true peace”. She crossed the river of Jordan and spent the rest of her life in the desert”.
“The life of St. Mary teaches us that the true and everlasting values are quite different from those of the world. Mary of Egypt went out into the desert and had nothing. She had no friends, no home, no possessions, no clothes and almost no food. The world looked for pleasure, the satisfaction of the senses, money and power, but St. Mary had no money, no property and no power in the world. Today’s Gospel confirms the choice of St Mary, for it says that those who wish to be great must be servants. This is the opposite from all the ways of this world. But our Lord preached this and St. Mary lived by this”.
“As we said, the Church calls St. Mary “the greatest of Saints”. The use of this word “great” may surprise. In everyday life, we use “great” in other meanings. The world speaks of “great politicians” “great soldiers”, “great movie stars”, “great sportsmen”. But the Church calls St. Mary of Egypt “great” and all the centuries after she lived we ask for her prayers, but not for prayers of any politician or soldier or movie star or sportsman. Let us then think more carefully when we use this word “great””.
“Last week, reading penitential Canon of St. Andrew, we encountered the words “great merchant”. The Canon says that if someone would live a godly life, acquire the divine grace, such person will become a “great merchant”. Ven. Andrew composing the Canon took that image from the Gospel parable of a merchant seeking a precious pearl (Mt. 13, 45-46). Jesus telling that parable compared His Heavenly Kingdom to a precious pearl and a person who seeks it to a merchant. Thus, really great merchant is someone who would seek and find God’s Kingdom, a holy person. Such person like Ven. Mary of Egypt”.
“And as we approach the days of the holy Passions of Christ, the feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, let us also think of the words of the Mother of God, which led Mary to her salvation through repentance and her greatness: “If you cross the Jordan, you will find true peace”. These mysterious words are today also addressed to each of us; the interpretation of their mystery is open to the souls of each of us, but only if we ask the Mother of God and St Mary to guide us. And then we shall find our own “entry into Jerusalem””.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us pray to the Most Holy Mother of God and to Venerable Mother Mary of Egypt to assist us in our journey to our own Jerusalem!”

During the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Rector had a petition for the suffering country of Ukraine and its people. He also added a commemoration of the “suffering Ukrainian land” at the Great Entrance.

The choir prayerfully performed penitential hymns during preparation for Holy Communion.

Following the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector expressed his gratitude to Tatiana Migal for bringing an old and beautiful family icon of the Annunciation to the church. That icon was placed on the holy altar and remained there for the Divine Liturgy. After the Liturgy the icon was presented to the faithful for veneration.

Then the Rector had a speech regarding some suggestion he heard from one of the parishioners asking for the usage of Russian language for homilies. Fr. Igor pointed out that some of our parishioners, especially the newly converted persons, do not understand Russian while probably all our Russian-speaking parishioners can understand English. Given such situation, it is preferred that the sermons should be proclaimed in English. However, we are open for further discussion of that issue. The Rector also made the announcements about the future celebrations of the Holy Week and Pascha and regarding the importance to receive the Holy Mysteries of Penance and Eucharist in these special days of Lent.

After the Divine Liturgy the Rector performed the Sacrament of the Anointing of the sick. All persons who desired to receive that Mystery participated in the service and were anointed with the blessed oil.

On April 7 Holy Orthodox Church celebrates feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Mother of God. On that day Dean of Eastern States of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, Priest Alexey Paranyuk celebrated his 10^th Anniversary of priestly ordination.

Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov visited S. John the Baptist Church in Little Falls, NJ where Fr. Alexey is serving as the Rector. Our parish priest concelebrated Vespers with Divine Liturgy at that temple. Service was attended by Hieromonk Stephen (Bushman) and by a number of faithful.

Following the dismissal of the Liturgy Fr. Igor greeted our Dean on joyful occasion of his anniversary of priesthood. He pointed out that Fr. Alexey was ordained on a special feastday commemorating the Annunciation, the Good News that our Lady conceived the Child, the future Savior of the world. The whole priestly ministry is a proclamation of the Good News, of the Holy Gospel to the faithful. And in the course of 10 years Fr. Alexey had such an opportunity to be a messenger of the Gospel, as well as to serve God and the people.

As a sign of appreciation, Fr. Igor presented the Dean with a special gift – a pectoral cross having the engraved images of 12 major holy days of the Church year. He also wished Fr. Alexey that that cross would remind him of the great sacrifice he has to offer bearing his cross as a priest, a family man and a human being. Such sacrifice is demanding but it is also delightful, especially if we remember about the joy of the holy days reminding us about the rejoicing events of our salvation.

At the end of the service Archpriest Igor Tarasov proclaimed the Polychronion to Priest Alexey.

On Wednesday of the 5th week of Lent the Church celebrates a special service known as St. Mary’s Standing. Great penitential Canon of St. Andrew of Crete is read in its entirety during that service. This Canon is composed as a conversation of a person with his own soul. It reveals that often we imitate sinners mentioned in the Scripture but do not wish to follow the steps of the righteous ones. It also calls us to bring the fruits of repentance and not to exalt ourselves.

This year, according to the liturgical statutes, that service was moved to Monday evening because on Wednesday evening the Church will celebrate vigil of the Annunciation. Therefore, celebration of St. Mary’s Standing was held on Monday, April 4. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov led the service at St. George Church reading the Canon.

On April 3, on the Fourth Sunday of Lent, Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov headed the Divine Liturgy in our parish temple. After the Gospel reading he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today we came to the celebration of the Fourth Sunday of Lent. On this day the Church offers us a Gospel story about casting out a demon from the young man, about a healing. It was done by the power of Jesus, but also through the faith of that young man’s father. Thus, the Gospel of today tells us about the importance of our faith”.
“On this Sunday the Church also honors the memory of St. John Climacus, or Venerable John of the Ladder. He was a knowledgeable monk in the monastery on the Mt. Sinai who wrote a book of guidance for the monks on how to ascend spiritually to heaven. That ascending was described as the steps, thus it was called the “Ladder of Divine Assent”, or “Ladder of paradise””.
“God wants our faith. But we should realize that our faith is not sufficient. The father of the young man exclaimed, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mk. 9, 24). On one hand, our faith is too little. On the other hand, if we live by faith, lead a spiritual life, then we see how far we are from perfection. Same with our sense of sin. The more we repent, the more we understand how many sins we may commit”.
“The ladder leading to perfection is impossible to finish ascending. Because God is on the top of that ladder. But it is possible to get to many higher steps. The more we strive to get the more we achieve”.
“However, climbing the ladder of divine ascent is very difficult. On the icon that we have today in the middle of the church, we may see that some people climbing the ladder are being thrown down by the demons. They fall from the steps. This happens because on our ascent we encounter temptations, difficulties and obstacles. It is important for us not to lose the perspective, but to fix our eyes on our goal which is God Himself or His eternal Kingdom. We don’t have to look at the obstacles, at the wind, at the temptations, but to look at Christ. Let us recall how Holy Apostle Peter was trying to walk on the water. First he did, but very soon he became distracted by the wind and he began to sink. If he looked not at the wind but at Jesus Christ who was waiting for him on the boat, he could successfully go on the waters to His Master”.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us persist in our ascent, in our spiritual life, looking at Jesus Christ. Let us believe and, realizing that our faith is weak, let us ask God like the father of the possessed young man did, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!””

During the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Rector had a petition for the suffering country of Ukraine and its people. He also added a commemoration of the “suffering Ukrainian land” at the Great Entrance.

The choir prayerfully performed hymns dedicated to Venerable John Climacus during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the dismissal the Rector made some announcements regarding our April service schedule. He also reminded the parishioners to receive the Holy Sacraments of Penance and Eucharist during the remainder of Lent and before Pascha.

Following the Liturgy the Rector celebrated a Prayer service of Thanksgiving requested by Tatiana Migal. After that service we had coffee and refreshments enjoying simple but delicious meals and a nice company.

On March 27, on the Third Sunday of Lent we had a nice celebration at St. George Church. On that Sunday the Orthodox Church venerates the Holy Cross.

Before the reading of the Hours the Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov solemnly transferred the cross from the altar to the middle of the church and placed it on the stand.

Following the Hours the Rector served the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. After the Gospel lesson he preached the following homily:

“Today we approached the middle of our Lenten journey towards the Holy Passions and Resurrection of our Lord. On this Third Sunday of Lent we venerate the Holy Cross, the precious and life-giving tool of our salvation. In today’s Gospel reading we heard the words of Christ, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Mk. 8, 34). These words mean that every journey of a man to the true God and every way to man’s salvation is the way of the Cross”.
“We know that our Lord Jesus Christ had to make His way of the Cross when He was condemned to death. There was no other way to save the human kind. In the same fashion, there is no other way for us to attain blessed eternity if we do not take up our own crosses and if we do not follow the Lord. But again, thinking of the Lord we recall that after the painful way of the Cross, after the terrible crucifixion, after the death on the Cross, there came glorious and radiant Resurrection of our Lord. Without the Cross there was no Resurrection. This is why today we sing, “Before Thy Cross we bow down in worship, o Master, and Thy Holy Resurrection we glorify”. In the same way, without our own crosses there won’t be for us eternal blessedness with the risen Lord”.
“Thinking of the things necessary for salvation, we recall that the first condition for a man to be saved is to receive Baptism. The Lord made it clear saying, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mk. 16, 16). But another necessary thing to be saved is to carry the cross. According to Ven. Ephrem the Syrian this the “second Baptism”. He wrote, “Two baptisms are necessary for the righteous and for the sinners, and one cannot save without another”. Our “second Baptism”, according to St. Ephrem is our sufferings for Christ, our confession of Christ, our life in Christ. This why we heard in today’s Gospel lesson, “Whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels” (Mk. 8, 38). Thus, not just being baptized and formally declare our faith in Jesus Christ, but a true life in Christ, true confession of Him before other men, before “sinful and adulterous generation” is a condition for our salvation”.
“Throughout the whole history of Christianity those who truly followed the Lord were persecuted. Those persecutions were different but they always took place. Nowadays they are done in many ways. Not long ago there were fierce persecutions of the Christian people in the Middle East where our brethren in faith were murdered, tortured and killed all the time. Nowadays those Christians are still in danger. But, on the other hand, many other forms of persecution are being employed against us. The war in Ukraine is one of the examples of such persecution, although it is indirect. But still, the churches are being destroyed and people who are baptized, Orthodox people, suffer great afflictions and dangers. In addition, in the whole world there exists a modern-day heresy of worshiping man. It is a cult of man along with his sins and deviations. It is an idea that the society has to serve man and his desires without serving God. And who does not wish to adhere to this heresy is being persecuted”.
“Dear brothers and sisters! The Lord said, “In the world you willhave tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (Jn. 16, 33). Let us then be of good cheer!Let us be courageous and not become frightened by those persecutions for after the Cross always comes holy Resurrection. Let us then confess our Lord without being ashamed of Him in this sinful and adulterous generation. Let us take up our cross and follow Christ. Let us follow Him into blessed eternity!”

The choir prayerfully performed the hymns dedicated to the Holy Cross during preparation for Holy Communion.

Following the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector and the altar servers came out of the sanctuary before the stand in the middle of the church and venerated the Precious Cross.

On March 20, on the Second Sunday of Lent, Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy in our parish temple. After the reading from the Holy Gospel he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today is the Second Sunday of Lent on which we read the Gospel lesson about healing of a paralyzed man (Mk. 2, 1-12). On this Sunday the Church also commemorates St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessalonica who was one of the Church Fathers. St. Gregory lived in the 14th century and became known for his writings about the divine grace, about divine energies and for his teaching that through the feats of piety a person is able to attain a similarity of God, to undergo so called «deification» (theosis). Honoring of this Saint on the Second Sunday of Lent is not accidental, for during Lent we are called to the endeavors of piety. On this Sunday we also commemorate Venerable Fathers of the Kiev Caves who also are the examples of piety. Their example shows how people can engage in a life of piety and dedicate their lives to the Lord and then attain holiness and deification”.
“In today’s Gospel lesson (Mk. 2, 1-12) we also heard about a certain feat, an endeavor performed by the four men who brought a paralytic to Jesus. In order to reach Christ they had to get on the roof of the house where Jesus stayed and taught. They had to lift their sick friend to the top of the house, then to uncover the roof and to let down the bed with the paralytic. Can you imagine what had these people done? Isn’t that a heroic act? And as we read in the Gospel, the Lord saw their effort, saw their faith and forgave the sins of the paralytic and then He healed him (Mk. 2, 5-11). As we can see, a feat of faith, a persistence and a labor performed by those four people became the reason for their friend or relative to be healed”.
“Dear brothers and sisters, this reading from the Gospel teaches us to perform a labor in order to achieve spiritual goals.It teaches us to be decisive and to engage in the feats of piety. The works and efforts are necessary to acquire the divine grace. Of course, the divine grace is a gift and it is given not because of our merits, but by the blessing of God Himself. However, many of the gracious gifts of God cannot be bestowed upon us without our efforts and without our labor to attain them. It is especially true when we speak of our salvation. Although it may sound strange, but God cannot save us without our desire to be saved. God needs our co-operation in the great work of our personal salvation“.
“The Lord says, “The Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force” (Mt. 11, 12). These important words teach us to make efforts, to spiritually fight for our salvation. And that struggle for salvation involves both our soul and our body. Ven. Isidore of Pelusium interpreting those words of the Lord wrote that the Kingdom of Heaven is taken by those who force their body to fasting, chastity, and any kind of virtue, who submit the body to the laws of spirit and make it assist them in virtue. This is why in today’s Gospel lesson, the Lord took care of both the soul and the body of the paralytic. Jesus first forgave his sins and then healed his body. Let us remember that at the end, in the eternity we are going to exist with both our body and soul. We often forget about that when we speak about spiritual matters. We do remember about immortality of the soul, but we should always remember that our bodies will be resurrected before the Last Judgment to follow into life eternal“.
“The Lord shows His glory in both the souls and the bodies of His great Saints. It is not accidental that the remains of many Saints can be incorruptible. Speaking of the venerable ascetics of the Kiev Lavra we should recall that their relics are kept in the monastery caves. When the monastery was restored after the Communist persecutions, many of the skulls of those ascetics began to flow with myrrh. Isn’t that a manifestation of the divine glory in God’s Saints? “God is wonderful in His Saints” (Ps. 67, 36)“.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us continue our endeavor of Great Lent, performing spiritual labor, making efforts of body and soul for our salvation, for the achievement of Heavenly Kingdom, so through our pious life the Lord may perform the wonderful works of His Providence!“

During the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Rector had the petition for the suffering land of Ukraine and its people. He also added a commemoration of the suffering land of Ukraine at the Great Entrance.

The choir beautifully performed Psalm 33 during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector made some announcements and wished the faithful a spiritually fruitful passing of the Lenten journey.

In our desire to support the suffering people of Ukraine, our St. George Church decided to assist in spiritual needs. We sponsored a donation of “Medical Prayer Books” to be distributed in the hospitals in the city of Dnipro, Ukraine.
Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov forwarded the donation and issued a special letter to the Dean of the City Hospitals, Archpriest George Zakharchenko.
Fr. Igor expressed a heartfelt desire that the All-Merciful Lord, through the prayers of the Holy Physicians, the Healers and Unmercenaries, may support those who suffered as a result of the military attacks and that He may strengthen those who are rendering medical assistance risking their lives in the time of war in Ukraine.

Желая поддержать страждущий народ Украины, наша община святого Георгия решила оказать помощь в духовных нуждах. Мы оплатили пожертвование особых «Медицинских молитвословов» для больниц города Днепра.
Настоятель нашего храма, протоиерей Игорь Тарасов направил пожертвование и обратился с особым письмом к Благочинному городского больничного округа, протоиерею Георгию Захарченко.
Отец Игорь выразил сердечное пожелание, чтобы Всемилостивый Господь, молитвами святых врачей, Целителей и Бессребренников, поддержал тех, кто пострадал в результате военного нападения и подал силы тем, кто оказывает медицинскую помощь во время войны в Украине, рискуя собственной жизнью.

Please, be advised that our schedule for Sunday, March 20 had been changed. The Hours and Divine Liturgy will begin at 9 am.

On March 13, on the First Sunday of Lent, also known as celebration of the Triumph of the Orthodoxy, St. George parish had a nice liturgical service. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. After the Scripture readings he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today is the First Sunday of Lent, the feast known as the Triumph of Orthodoxy. Celebrating that solemnity we should ask ourselves what is the meaning of this word – ‘Orthodoxy”. Orthodoxy means right or correct teaching. A literally translation from the Greek tells us that it is “the right glory”. And since in the matters of faith the whole glory belongs to God, the Orthodoxy is a correct worship of God”.
“We are first of all Christians, followers of our Lord Jesus Christ. But every human teaching can be altered, perverted or deviated. Take any teaching in religion, politics or philosophy. It may have so many alterations, interpretations and doctrines. It is so in any area of human thought. And it is so in religious matters. Unfortunately, many people follow different religions, have many ways of attempting to understand the supernatural and to reach the Supreme Being. A lot of people on earth do not follow Christ. And even in the true faith in Christ we see many different and separate teachings and Church denominations. Thus, we need a correct understanding, interpretation of the teaching of Christ. Such a correct and true teaching, a right way to the Lord is Orthodoxy”.
“One of the most important parts of the Orthodox teaching is Incarnation of God. The Orthodox Church teaches that the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, took our flesh, became Man. Jesus Christ being one Person has two natures: divine and human. Some false teachings called heresies taught differently about the Incarnation of the Son of God and about His natures”.
“Another important aspect of Orthodoxy is especially celebrated today. We commemorate the victory of the Orthodox teaching regarding the holy icons. Again, many people in the past did not understand how we can venerate the images. And today a lot of non-Orthodox people do not grasp the idea of the holy icons being venerated. The Orthodox Church teaches that because Jesus being God is also Man, we can picture Him in a human form. Those pictures are the holy icons. We can see God through them”.
“In today’s Gospel lesson one the Apostles of Christ, Philip told another disciple, Nathanael, “Come and see” (Jn. 1, 46). He was answering to the doubts of Nathanael regarding the Messiah who came from the town of Nazareth. Nathanael was wondering how can “anything good come out of Nazareth” (Jn. 1, 46). It seems that Nazareth did not have the best reputation. But Jesus did come from that town. He lived there and was raised there as a Man. In the same way some people can be asking, “How can we worship God who is Man”? Or, “How can we picture God who is invisible?” These are the questions coming either from those who honestly wish to believe(like Nathanael who was an Israelite with no deceit) or from those who believe incorrectly (like heretics)”.
“We Orthodox can answer to both repeating the words of Philip, “Come and see”. Let them come to the Orthodox church and see the holy icons. Let them see our faith in all its beauty. Let them see our services and the people praying the true God incarnate.”
“God did come in an accessible and even human form. This is why He can be pictured as Man. But even before the Incarnation of Jesus, God did appear to the people in a human form. If we recall the Old Testament, God appeared to Abraham as the three men, or the three Angels. Abraham hospitably received them and we in the Orthodox Church have a very beautiful and mysteriously spiritual icon of those three Angels known as the Old Testament Trinity. It is one of our most beautiful icons, especially the one written by the famous Russian iconographer, Venerable Andrew Rublev. If God did so to Abraham, why we should not image Him in Jesus Who was a true human being? Jesus did not just appear in human form but He did become one of us. Therefore we have a right to picture Him as such”.
“Dear brothers and sisters! Despite the doubts of man (including the doubts of Nathanael) there is a true teaching of Christ saying that God became Man and we venerate His image. We venerate not wood and paint but the One pictured on and by them. And doing so, keeping this Orthodox faith we may see in the future the divine glory, “heaven open, and the Angels ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” (Jn. 1, 51).

During the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Rector had a petition for the suffering country of Ukraine and its people. He also added a commemoration of the “suffering Ukrainian land” at the Great Entrance.

The choir prayerfully performed the 33rd Psalm during preparation for Holy Communion.

After the Ambo Prayer the Rector performed prayer service of the Sunday of Orthodoxy solemnly declaring the Orthodox faith and proclaiming eternal memory to the champions of that faith and the Polychronion to the Church hierarchy and Orthodox Christians.

At the dismissal the Rector congratulated the parishioners on the completion of the first week of Lent and wished them to continue an endeavor of further observance of the fast. He also made some announcements.

On the Cheesefare Sunday the Church commemorates the exile of Adam from paradise. This day is also known as the Forgiveness Sunday because Orthodox Christians ask mutual forgiveness before they begin the spiritual journey of the Great Lent. On this day, on March 6, St. George parish had services in our temple. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov celebrated the Divine Liturgy. After the Gospel lesson he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! We reached today’s day, the Sunday of Cheesefare, a day right before we begin the Great Lent. This day is also known as Sunday of Forgiveness. The Gospel reading today is teaching about forgiveness. The Lord says, “If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Mt. 6, 14-15). Thus before we start the spiritual journey of Lent, we need to forgive others their faults against us”.
“Dear brothers and sisters! Those words of Christ were said right after He taught His Disciples and other people listening to Him how to pray. He taught them the most important prayer known as the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father”. And we know that every time we pronounce that prayer, we say, “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors”. Therefore, the Lord interpreted those words by saying that if we do not forgive men, God will not forgive us. This is why in our Orthodox tradition we ask today each other for forgiveness. We do it as a ritual and many of us attend special service, today’s Vespers that ends with the Rite of Forgiveness”.
“Of course, it is easy to perform that ritual of mutual forgiveness today and tonight, but it is very difficult to really forgive. These days, when many people are shocked and frustrated by the war on the lands of historical Rus’, it is almost impossible to preach forgiveness. Some people are blinded by error, some are outraged by the events taking place. Some are furious that lots of people perish in that conflict, that the civil objects are attacked and even some churches are damaged. There are two sides of the conflict, and both may belong to the Russian Orthodox Church. How to forgive? But we should”.
“Any war conflict is evil. And evil originated from the fall of mankind. On this day the Church commemorates Adam’s expulsion from Paradise. Adam and Eve committed the first and original sin. Therefore, the Lord expelled them from Paradise. From that moment of the fall and from that time of the expulsion mankind began to live committing evil things – murder, larceny, fraud, adultery – you name it. Humans began to start wars, to hurt and to oppress each other. The first murderer was the son of Adam, Cain who killed his own brother Abel. Human kind became plunged in evil deeds. Only our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ could save us from that sinful condition, from that terrible spiritual disease. He did, but we still engage in hostility, murder and all other sins”.
“How to forgive our debtors, those who really trespass against us? How to forgive if your loved one is killed? Using our human mind and our human forces it is really impossible. But it is possible with divine grace, with the help from God. When Adam and Eve trespassed against God, when they broke the only God’s commandment in Paradise – God was ready to forgive them. The Holy Fathers say that God was waiting for their repentance. However, they did not repent. Instead, if you read the Bible, the Old Testament, you recall that Adam accused Eve that she gave him the forbidden fruit to eat. And he also blamed God saying, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate” (Gen. 3, 12). So God is to blame! And Eve said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate” (Gen. 3, 13). So, both of them blamed somebody else instead of saying, “Forgive me!””
“God still offers us a possibility to ask for forgiveness. We have the Holy Mystery of Penance, of confession. If we fall into sin, we can come and confess. God is always waiting for our repentance, He is ready to forgive. It is us who need to ask. Unfortunately, lots of people in the world do not wish to respond to God’s offer of forgiveness. They continue to do evil, to turn away from God and His love, from His mercy and compassion. Just like Adam of old they blame others and thus they are being expelled from blessedness – here and maybe in eternity”.
“Another thing is that it is us who need to forgive others. Now, as we said, that is much more difficult. But let us ask ourselves: if God Himself who is infinitely higher than us, who is totally without sin or blame – if He is ready to offer us His forgiveness – why we, who are sinful and corrupt, who are infinitely lower than Him – why we do not try to forgive? If it is hard, let ask for His help. That is why, dear brothers and sisters, today when we ask for forgiveness, others respond, “God will forgive!” then only they add, “And I do forgive”. Our forgiveness, even it seems to be impossible or unreachable, is based on God’s forgiveness. Only with Him we are able to reach that blessed virtue of compassion and capability to forgive”.
“Even if we are outraged by evil in the world, by the offenses or trespasses committed against us or against other people whom we love, let us recall Jesus. Our Lord gives us His great and brightly shining example: when He Himself was put to death, unjustly condemned and brutally killed – He said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Lk. 23, 34)”.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us worthily prepare for Lent by asking God to forgive us and by attempting, at least trying, to forgive others – of course, with God’s help. Let us ask Him to comfort us in our desire to be forgiving and to begin Lent with His benevolent blessing!”

During the Litany of Fervent Supplication the Rector had a petition for the suffering country of Ukraine and its people. He also added a commemoration of the “suffering Ukrainian country” at the Great Entrance.

During preparation for Holy Communion the choir prayerfully performed the hymns of repentance.

Following the Divine Liturgy the Rector performed Vespers with the Rite of Forgiveness. After the singing of the Great Prokimenon he changed his priestly vestments to the Lenten color of black.

After the dismissal of Vespers Fr. Igor preached a sermon in Russian about the importance of forgiveness at the beginning of Lenten journey towards Holy Pascha.

Following the services of this special day Rector and parishioners joined at the Blini Luncheon. All of them enjoyed delicious meals, especially the Russian blini prepared by Olga Roussanow and the Georgian khachapuri prepared by Liana Sukhishvili.