IN THE NEWS: Poland, Ohio, Indiana, Texas
Gorlice, Poland: Saint’s US descendants participate in 100th Anniversary
September 6, 2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the martyrdom of Saint Maksym [Sandowicz], who was executed by local authorities in Gorlice, Poland at the outset of the First World War.
The anniversary was especially meaningful for Archpriest Daniel Ressetar, retired OCA priest, of Harrisburg, PA and his grandson, Dimitri Ressetar, who are Saint Maksym’s great nephew and great great nephew respectively. Together with other descendants of Saint Maksym—including granddaughter Wiera Sandowicz-Bakowska, Warsaw, Poland, and great grandson Alexei Sandowicz, Vladimir, Russia—they participated in the weekend celebration and services at Holy Trinity Church, Gorlice, Poland. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Sawa of Warsaw and All Poland presided. His Eminence, Archbishop Adam of Przemysl and Nowy Sacz, and numerous priests, deacons and faithful also were among those who participated in the celebration and venerated Saint Maksym’s relics, which were available throughout the weekend.
The celebration also marked the 20th anniversary of Saint Maksym’s glorification by the Orthodox Church of Poland.
Lima, OH: St. Moses the Black Brotherhood to hold annual conference October 3-5
Over 2000 years ago, a young Virgin and her divine Child found refuge in Africa from threatening forces. Since that time, Christianity has developed extensive roots in Africa. Saint Anthony and the Desert Fathers kept the Church from worldliness and preserved the spiritual gifts. Saint Athanasius helped write the Creed. Saint Cyril defended Christ and His Mother. The African Martyrs gave the Church courage, while the African Mothers gave the Church philosophers like Saint Katherine and hermits like Saint Mary of Egypt and Saint Sarah of the Nile showed the path of contrition, redemptive suffering and repentance.
Today, this ancient fountain of spiritual life beckons all Americans to row into deeper waters – the waters of the ancient Christian movement.
To promote cultural understanding, Christian unity, and informed dialogue among blacks and whites in Lima, Saint Stephen Church will be the site of this year’s Ancient Christianity Conference October 3-5, 2014. The conference is sponsored by the Brotherhood of Saint Moses the Black, a nationwide organization of African American Orthodox Christian leaders. Among the topics featured is ancient Christianity’s kinship with historic African-American spirituality. Presenters include Archpriest Moses Berry and Priests Jerome Sanderson, and Maximos Cabey. Other presenters include Priest Nathaniel Johnson, Dr. Carla Thomas, Mother Katherine Weston, Rodney Knott, Paul Abernathy, Photios Meirthew, and Turbo Qualls.
A highlight of the conference will be the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, sung together by all in attendance, on Saturday, October 4, at 9:00 a.m.
Registration is $100.00, with scholarships available. Payments should be sent to the Brotherhood of Saint Moses the Black, PO Box 1887, Anniston, AL 36202-1887.
Additional information may be found at http://mosestheblack.org.
Ft. Wayne, IN: “Image and Holiness” theme of second annual Eastern Christianity Symposium October 17-18
On October 17 and 18, 2014, Saint Nicholas Church, Ft. Wayne, IN, and the University of Saint Francis will cosponsor their second annual symposium, the theme of which will be “Image and Holiness.”
“One of the best known elements of the Eastern Orthodox tradition is our iconography,” said Saint Nicholas’ Rector, Archpriest Andrew Jarmus. “We are going to discuss the Church’s theology of the icon with an added dimension. As we learn about the basic principles of Eastern Christian iconography, we are also going to consider what these teachings imply about our day-to-day lives as Christians. What is the ‘take home lesson’ in our theology of the icon?”
Speakers at this year’s symposium include Orthodox Christian author Priest Oliver Herbel, Priest-in-Charge of Holy Resurrection Mission, Fargo, ND, and noted iconographer Priest Nazari Polataiko, Secretary of the Orthodox Church in America’s Archdiocese of Canada.
Father Andrew noted that “attendance at the Saturday portion of this symposium is worth five Continuing Clergy Development hours with the OCA’s Office of Continuing Education.”
More information about the “Image and Holiness” Symposium may be found at http://www.stnicholasonline.org/resources/news/257-2014-symposium-image-and-holiness.
Houston, TX: “The Silent Holocaust” theme of conference on persecutions in the Middle East
On September 5, 2014, the Orthodox Clergy Association of Houston and Southeast Texas held a special town hall gathering at Saint George Antiochian Orthodox Church to discuss “The Silent Holocaust: The Persecution of Christians in the Middle East, and What We Can Do About It.” Approximately 300 members of the Orthodox Church in America, the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, the Serbian Diocese of Midwestern America, and the local Coptic and Syriac dioceses—including 16 priests—participated. Also in attendance was James Cargas, who is running for election.
Among the four speakers was Hieromonk Bashar [al-Shamany] of the Syriac Orthodox Church, originally from Mosul, who spoke about the current situation in the Middle East. Father Bashar’s family are currently among the thousands of scattered refugees. He gave a moving presentation in Arabic, during which he said of the scattered refugees, “the scorched earth is their bed and the cold winds are there blankets.”
Presentations were followed by question and answer sessions. In response to the question, “what we can do about it,” a number of actions were offered, including ever-deepening prayer for those who are suffering, increase awareness by simply discussing the matter of the persecutions across the Middle East, offering donations to International Orthodox Christian Charities [IOCC], as well as direct communication through calling, writing and meeting with local politicians. A collection was taken to aid IOCC in its relief efforts among the suffering refugees dispersed throughout the Middle East.
At the conclusion of the town hall, Trisagion Prayers for those who have died during the horrendous persecution were offered.