Pastoral Messages

Christ is Risen! Christos Anesti! We have journeyed through Great Lent, experienced the events of our Lord’s passion during Holy Week, and arrived at His glorious resurrection on Pascha!... And yet we are still on quarantine, still unable to congregate and celebrate together, still experiencing church through a computer screen. It is hard, very hard. The joy of the resurrection is mixed with the sadness of isolation. The harmolipi (“joyful sorrow”) of Great Lent has extended past Pascha, and ... [Read more]

Saturday, March 21, 2020 Dear Beloved in Christ, It is with a heavy heart, but with firm resolution that I write to you today. Last night our civil leaders—who truly care for the well-being of our most vulnerable fellow citizens—spoke with one voice at a press conference. They gave a concerted plea (free of any threat of penalty), asking that we Oregonians remain home as much as possible, leaving only for essential errands or work, or to go to open outdoor spaces for refreshment. I ... [Read more]

“Home”—the word brings to mind a flood of thoughts, memories, and experiences. Where is your home now? Think about this for a moment… Is it here in the Portland area? Or are you a transplant who still has deep roots elsewhere? Perhaps you have two locations—a state or a continent away—which share the title of “home.” Or perhaps the thought of home brings up unresolved questions of identity and belonging. Where is your home? If your answer to this question comes quickly, that is a blessing. If ... [Read more]

My beloved sister, rejoice in the Lord. Today I received your letter full of love and piety. I threw up my hands with a fervent soul and ardent love, and I entreated the Lord with hidden shouts of my humble heart. “Hearken,” I said, “O sweet love, Jesus my Savior, the Light above all light, begotten of the beginningless Father; the knowledge and truth, my hope and solace, my strength and might, my love and illumination; hearken and send the light of Thy divine consolation to my sister, and ... [Read more]

Christ is born! Glorify Him! God has given us His saints as a testament to the extraordinary power and grace of a life that is entirely devoted to Him. The saints are witnesses (martyri in Greek) to His love, vessels of the Holy Spirit, grace-filled embodiments of Christ Himself. The blessing from the Divine Liturgy is shown in them: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit…” The saints are of the world, in that they have flesh ... [Read more]

What Child is this Who, laid to rest, on Mary’s lap is sleeping? This familiar Christmas carol poses an important question to us, as we progress through the Nativity Fast. What Child is this? Or more specifically, Who is the Christ Child? The answer will appear obvious to us; but let’s look a bit deeper. Before the existence of creation, of all matter, and of time itself, Jesus Christ was eternally begotten of God the Father. When the Trinity created the world, it was by God’s Word—the ... [Read more]

In October our Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew announced the upcoming canonization of five grace-filled, God-bearing saints of the Church from the 20th Century. Below are brief biographies, as well as sayings (italicized) from these blessed spiritual guides. Elder Joseph the Hesychast (+1959) is the spiritual father of Elder Ephraim of Arizona, who has founded 17 monasteries in North America in the last three decades. He lived a life of extreme asceticism and obscurity in the desert of Mount ... [Read more]

Dear Beloved in Christ, Last Sunday, in the homily I stressed that the Eucharist is the center of our life and of our very being. I also mentioned the importance of preparing to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. As I said on Sunday, the magnitude of the gift that we receive at the Holy Chalice is directly proportional to our preparedness: If we prepare little, we receive little, and vice versa. Here are the ways in which we, as Orthodox Christians, prepare to receive Christ. Please ... [Read more]

On October 20 we celebrate St. Gerasimos of Kefalonia, the patron saint of our metropolitan. St. Gerasimos is a wonder-working saint whose relics have remained incorrupt for nearly 500 years after his falling asleep! His relics are on the island of Kefalonia, on the western shore of Greece, where he founded a women’s monastery. St. Paisios of Mount Athos said that God has given the Orthodox the incorrupt relics of three saints to these islands – St. Spyridon on Corfu, St. Dionysios on ... [Read more]