Although the feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist is not one of the twelves great feasts of the Orthodox Church, nevertheless it is considered a great feast, as the Baptist was called by the Lord the greatest of men who had every been born.  The feast commemorates several things.  First of all, it is a day of great sorrow, that the holiest of men was put to death, not due to any fault of his won, but due to lust and envy.  Also it signifies the death of a man who connected the Old Testament with the New.  He himself stated that he had to become smaller while Christ would become greater.

The feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos has always been celebrated with great solemnity in the monastery.  Traditionally, it has been tied into our St. Job of Pochaev Pilgrimages on Labor Day weekend, and even if the afterfeast of the Dormition ended before Labor Day weekend, we would still keep blue vestments and sing hymns of the Dormition together with the Pochaev Icon and St. Job.
 
           

The Holy Trinity Monastery has renewed the practice of serving the Lamentations and Burial of the Most Holy Theotokos in our monastery.  Forty years ago, the English language mission of the monastery, served by Hieromonk Ioannikiy and then later the late Archpriest Laurence Girard served this service in English at the conclusion of the regular All-Night Vigil in the cathedral of the monastery.  After a few years, unfortunately, the practice stopped.
 

There are antecedents of the Orthodox feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord in the Old Testament feast of the harvest.  For this reason, it is the tradition to bless the first fruits on this feast which comes towards the end of the summer, at least in the northern hemisphere.  Such was the influence of Orthodoxy on the common people in old Russia, that pious Christians would not eat any fruit until it had been blessed on this feast.  In our world of supermarkets and globalization, when fruit can be purchased at any time of year, this has lost meaning among most people. 

            The Church year has four fasting periods, or periods of time of abstention from dairy products and all other animal products.  Occasionally fish or seafood is allowed, depending on the strictness of the fast.
 
            

The clergy and parishioners of the Church of the Holy Great-Martyr and Healer Panteleimon in Hartford, CT recently celebrated their patronal feast day. Bishop Luke of Syracuse, vicar of the Eastern American Diocese, came to share in the joy of the feast. Praying alongside the hierarch on Saturday, August 8, at All-Night Vigil and on Sunday, August 9, at Divine Liturgy were parish rector Dionysy Nalitov and Protodeacon Peter Markevich (cleric of Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY, accompanying His Grace).

On July 28 (N.S.), the feast of Equal-to-the-Apostles, Grand Prince Vladimir, His Grace, Bishop Luke, our abbot, presided at the hierarchal liturgy.  During the Liturgy, after the consecration of the Holy Gifts, Vladyka ordained to the deaconate, Subdeacon Paul Siewers, from the ROCOR mission of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.  Fr. Deacon Paul then remained in the monastery for two weeks to practice, serving every day with the monastery clergy.
 

Since its inception as a feast in the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, after their canonization by the Church, the memory of the Royal Martyrs of Russia, has been solemnly kept by the monastery.
 

OPEN LETTER
to
The Honourable Gavin Newsom, Governor of California
from
His Eminence Kyrill Archbishop of San Francisco and Western America
in light of the decree issued by the Governor of California
that forbids choral singing in churches.

Your Excellency,

I hereby express my protest against the recent prohibition of liturgical singing in houses of worship, which is an infringement of the rights and religious freedoms of the clergy and faithful of the Western American Diocese of the Russian Diaspora, the other Local Orthodox Churches, performing their ministry in this state, as well as other religious bodies.

On the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, July 12 (N.S.), which also was a Sunday this year, the monastery brotherhood had the joy of the tonsure to the sub deaconate of one of our own, Monk Paisios.  He was tonsured during the Hours by our abbot, His Grace, Bishop Luke. 
 

Book Trailer - St Ignatius (Brianchaninov), Harbor for our Hope: On Acquiring Peace Amidst Suffering.