The great feast of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple was celebrated at the monastery with the usual solemnity that characterizes our divine services.  We were graced with what has become almost traditional, the presence of His Grace Bishop Nicholas of Manhattan for the All-Night Vigil. Vladyka is usually invited to serve in our parish in Syracuse, and so he breaks up his journey there from New York by staying in the monastery for the evening.  

On the weekend of November 3-4, 2018, the parish of St. John the Baptist in Washington, D.C. organized once again their annual pilgrimage to the monastery to honor the memory of Brother Jose Munoz, the ever-memorabel guardian of the Myrrh-Streaming icon of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.   As is known, Brother Jose was murdered on October 31, 1997, and the icon was “lost,” its location being unknown until this day. Through God’s mercy, a copy of the icon from Hawaii streams great quantities of myrrh and for the past number of years has been taken around many Orthodox parishes around this country and others, for the spiritual consolation of the faithful.  And so, this weekend, also the icon was brought here by Fr. Athanasius Kone, our parish priest in Honolulu.

On September 26th the usual vigil for the great feast of the Exaltation of the Lord was served with its highlight being the service of the Exaltation or Elevation of the Cross.  Usually this service is performed by bishops in their cathedrals, but it can also be done by archimandrites.

From the Western American Diocese:

To My Eminent Brother Archpastors, Honorable Fathers, Dear Brothers and Sisters:

The 20th century was a difficult time for Orthodox Christians on the territory of the Russian Empire, which became the USSR after the Great War, the October Revolution and Civil War. But the more the Church endured persecution, the brighter the lanterns of faith and piety shone in the Russian land. From the Tsar and the members of the Royal Family close to him in spirit, from archpastors and simple monastics, priests, deacons to laypersons came forth a powerful spiritual army of the Church Militant. 

From the Western American Diocese: 

Standing before God in prayerful solidarity with our long-suffering brethren of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, headed by His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufry of Kiev and All Ukraine, who, being revered and respected throughout the whole of the Orthodox world, is primate of the only recognised canonical Orthodox Church of Christ in Ukraine, we, the members of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, which carries out its ministry in the lands of North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other nations of the West, ministering to numerous emigres from the lands of historic Russia and their descendants, express our profound indignation at the blatant violation of the Holy Canons by the Orthodox Church of Constantinople.