July 10, 2011 • 4th Sunday after PentecostVen. Anthony of the Kiev Caves, Founder of Monasticism in Russia (1073). Holy 45 Martyrs at Nicopolis in Armenia. including Leontius, Maurice, Daniel, Anthony, Alexander, Anicetus, Sisinius, Meneus, Verelad, and Timothy (319). Martyr Apollonius of Sardis (3rd c.). Martyrs Bianor and Silvanus of Pisidia (4th c.). 10,000 Fathers ofthe desert and caves of Scetis

martyred by the impious Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria (398). St. Silouan of the Far Caves in Kiev (13th-14th c.). The Placing of the Precious Robe of the Lord at Moscow (1625). New Hieromartyr Joseph, arcbpriest of Damascus, and companions (1860). Sts. Parthenius (1905) and Eumenius (1920), restorers of Koudouma Monastety on Crete. Synaxis of All Saints of Vatopedi. Mt.

Athos. (Gt. Cal.: St. Gregory, bishop of Assos near Ephesus [1150].) “Konevits” Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos.

Announcements We now have a bin in the dining room for those who wish to donate for the hungry. Fr. Basil’s class on Corinthians continues Wednesday evening at 4 o’clock.

The icon on the front is by the hand of by Alla Melnichenko, of Mzyk, Belarus (www.redbubble.com/people/allamel)

St. Luke Orthodox Christian ChurchDiocese of the South, Orthodox Church in America

The Rev. Father Basil Henry, Priest1415 Woodstock Ave. • Anniston, Alabama • www.stlukeanniston.org/

basilncana@yahoo.com • (256) 235-3893

This Week’s Scripture, Service and Fasting ScheduleMon, 7/11 Tues, 7/12 Wed, 7/13 Thurs, 7/14 Fri, 7/15 saT, 7/16 sun, 7/17

No ServiceS

Matins8 a.m.

Bible Study4 p.m.

Matins8 a.m.

Matins8 a.m.

Great vespers4 p.m.

Divine Liturgy10 a.m.

Romans 12:4-5,15-21

Romans 14:9-18

Romans 15:7-16

Romans 15:17-29

Romans 16:1-16

Romans 8:14-21

Romans 10:1-10

Matthew 12:9-13

Matthew 11:16-20

Matthew 12:38-45

Matthew 12:46-13:3

Matthew 13:4-9

Matthew 9:9-13

Matthew 8:28-9:1

Galatians 1:11-19

(St. Vladimir)

Hebrews 13:7-16

(Holy Fathers)

John 10:1-9(St. Vladimir)

John 17:1-13(Holy Fathers)

St. Olga, Princess of

Russia St. Veronica

Synaxis of the Archangel

GabrielSt. Nicodemus the Hagiorite

St. Vladimir the Great

St. Julia of Carthage

Holy Fathers of the First Six

Councils

Service times are subject to change. Please check with Fr. Basil if in any doubt.

~3~

Great Vespers“Lord, I Call”

Sunday (Tone 3)Lead forth my soul from prison, that I may confess Thy name!By Thy Cross, O Christ our Savior, death’s dominion has been shattered; the devil’s delusion destroyed. The race of man, being saved by faith, always offers Thee a song.

The righteous await me, till Thou shalt reward me.All has been enlightened by Thy Resurrection, O Lord. Paradise has been opened again. All creation, praising Thee, always offers Thee a song.

Out of the depths have I cried unto Thee, O Lord; O Lord, hear my voice!

I glorify the power of the Father and the Son. I praise the authority of the Holy Spirit. The undivided, un-created Godhead, the consubstantial Trinity which reigns forever.

Let Thine ears give heed to the voice of my prayer!We bow down in worship before Thy precious Cross, O Christ, and we glorify and praise Thy Resurrection. For by Thy wounds we have all been healed.

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 4)If Thou observest transgression, Lord, O Lord, who shall

stand? For with Thee is propitiation.When divine desire fell upon thee, O venerable one, thou didst consider passionate attachments to the world to be harmful; therefore, thou didst forsake thy homeland and arrive on the Holy Mountain. There, in the midst of the fathers, O Anthony, thou didst shine forth in virtue like a beacon. Entreat Christ, Whom thou hast served from thy youth, that He save and enlighten our souls!For Thy name’s sake have I waited upon Thee, O Lord; my soul

hath waited upon Thy word; my soul hath hoped in the Lord.When thou wast set afire by the love of Christ, O ven-erable one, thou didst despise the wisdom and glory of this world as things that pass away. Therefore, thou didst make a cave for thyself, and in it thou didst struggle like an incorporeal being. As a result thou wast granted from on high the honors of the bodiless ones. Standing with them before the throne of Christ, pray that He save and enlighten our souls!

From the morning watch even to the night, let Israel hope in the Lord!

When thou didst receive divine love in thy heart, O father, thou didst enter a dark cave as though it were an all-splendid bridal chamber, and there thou wast enriched with the understanding of ineffable things, to behold the things of the future as though they were present, which thou then didst explain to all. Entreat Christ, Whom thou hast served from thy youth, that He save and enlighten our souls!

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 5)For with the Lord there is mercy and with Him is plenteous

redemption, and He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.O venerable Father Anthony, thou didst illumine thy mind with the grace of the Holy Spirit, and with fore-sight thou didst prophetically predict the wrath of God that would fall upon the Orthodox. Therefore, thou didst entrust to Simon the defense against the enemies, and before the construction of the church thou didst foretell that he would be laid to rest therein. Therefore, we praise thee as a mediator of good things for all, and ask that through thee we may receive great mercy from God.

O praise the Lord, all ye nations, praise Him, all ye people!O venerable Father Anthony, thou didst fulfill the commandments of Christ, the true Shepherd and Teacher, and show forth love even after thy departure. By thy prayers thou didst transform the deadly illness of the slothful Erasmus, giving him time for repen-tance, and guiding others to chastity. Entreat Christ that our souls may be saved!For His mercy hath been confirmed upon us and the truth of

the Lord remaineth forever.O venerable Father Anthony, with God’s help thou didst steer the ship of thy mind with chastity, and didst safely sail across the passion-laden deep of the sea of this life. Thou didst attain the calm haven of Paradise, where the saints dwell and the righteous rest. We beseech thee to pray with them that we may also obtain rest therein.

~4~

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 6)Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit…

Thy way of life and thy labors for God were difficult, as the fathers of the Holy Mountain learned. Therefore, in accordance with God’s providence, they sent thee back to thy homeland, saying: “Go, child, that through you God may be known there by those who did not know Him!” When thou didst arrive, thou didst enlighten thy native land and became a leader, bringing a multi-tude of monastics to Christ. Therefore, pray that we who celebrate thy falling-asleep may be preserved un-harmed by the Enemy, and that our souls may be saved!

dogmatIKon (Tone 3)Both now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

How can we not wonder at thy mystical childbearing, O exalted Mother, for, without receiving the touch of man, thou gavest birth to a Son in the flesh, O im-maculate Virgin. The Son born of the Father before eternity was born of thee at the fullness of time, O honored Lady. He underwent no mingling, no change, no division, but preserved the fullness of each nature. Entreat Him to save the souls, O Lady and Virgin and Mother, of those who confess thee in the Orthodox manner, to be the Theotokos.

old testament ReadingsVenerable anthony of the Kiev Caves

The Wisdom of Solomon (3:1-9)The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the fool-ish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in the fur-nace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them. In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them for ever. Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, because grace and mercy are upon his elect, and he watches over his holy ones.

The Wisdom of Solomon (5:15-6:3)The righteous live for ever, and their reward is with the Lord; the Most High takes care of them. There-fore they will receive a glorious crown and a beautiful diadem from the hand of the Lord, because with his right hand he will cover them, and with his arm he will shield them. The Lord will take his zeal as his whole armor, and will arm all creation to repel his en-emies; he will put on righteousness as a breastplate, and wear impartial justice as a helmet; he will take holiness as an invincible shield, and sharpen stern wrath for a sword, and creation will join with him to fight against the madmen. Shafts of lightning will fly with true aim, and will leap to the target as from a well-drawn bow of clouds, and hailstones full of wrath will be hurled as from a catapult; the water of the sea will rage against them, and rivers will relentlessly overwhelm them; a mighty wind will rise against them, and like a tempest it will winnow them away. Lawlessness will lay waste the whole earth, and evil-doing will overturn the thrones of rulers.

Listen therefore, O kings, and understand; learn, O judges of the ends of the earth. Give ear, you that rule over multitudes, and boast of many nations. For your dominion was given you from the Lord, and your sov-ereignty from the Most High, who will search out your works and inquire into your plans.

The Wisdom of Solomon (4:7-15)For old age is not honored for length of time, nor mea-sured by number of years; but understanding is gray hair for men, and a blameless life is ripe old age. There was one who pleased God and was loved by him, and while living among sinners he was taken up. He was caught up lest evil change his understanding or guile deceive his soul. For the fascination of wickedness ob-scures what is good, and roving desire perverts the in-nocent mind. Being perfected in a short time, he ful-filled long years; for his soul was pleasing to the Lord, therefore he took him quickly from the midst of wick-edness. Yet the peoples saw and did not understand, nor take such a thing to heart, that God’s grace and mercy are with his elect, and he watches over his holy ones.

~5~

apostichaSunday (Tone 3)

The sun was darkened by Thy Passion, O Christ, but all creation was enlightened by the light of Thy Resur-rection. Accept our evening song, O Lover of man!

The Lord hath become King; with beauty hath He clothed Himself.

Thy life-bearing Resurrection, O Lord, enlightened the whole universe, recalling Thy creation. Delivered from Adam’s curse, we sing: “O Almighty Lord, glory to Thee!”

For He hath established the world, which shall not be moved.Thou art the changeless God, Who, suffering in the flesh, was changed. Creation could not endure seeing Thee on the Cross. It was filled with fear while prais-ing Thy patience. By descending to hell and rising on the third day, Thou hast granted to the world life and great mercy.

Holiness belongeth to Thy house, O Lord, unto length of days!Thou didst endure death, O Christ, to deliver the race of man from death. Thou didst rise from the dead on the third day, raising with Thyself those who knew Thee as God and enlightening the world. Glory to Thee!

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 6)Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit…

Wondrous is the influence and great the faith that thou hast acquired, O venerable Anthony, emulating the Prophet Elijah; for he drew down fire from heaven to consume the sacrifice, while thou didst draw down fire from heaven by thy supplications, to consume and cleanse the place where thou didst desire to build the all-glorious temple of the Sovereign Lady and Theoto-kos. Therefore, blessing thee as one who dwells with the venerable and emulates the Prophets, we pray that thou dost entreat Christ that our souls be saved.

theotoKIon (Tone 6)Both now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

My Maker and Redeemer, Christ the Lord, was born of thee, O most pure Virgin. By accepting my nature, He freed Adam from his ancient curse. Unceasingly we magnify thee as the Mother of God! Rejoice, O celestial Joy! Rejoice, O Lady: the Protection, Inter-cession and Salvation of our souls!

tropariaSunday (Tone 3)

Let the heavens rejoice! Let the earth be glad! For the Lord has shown strength with His arm. He has tram-pled down death by death! He has become the first-born of the dead! He has delivered us from the depths of hell and has granted the world great mercy.

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 4)Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit…

Having left the turmoil of the world, you renounced the world to follow Christ in accordance with the Gospel. Living a life equal to the Angels, you reached the quiet haven of the Holy Mountain of Athos. With the blessing of the Athonite fathers, you came to the hills of Kiev, where you labored with love and illu-mined your homeland. There you led a multitude of monastics to Christ showing them the path that leads to the Kingdom of Heaven. Venerable Anthony, pray to Him that our souls may be saved!

Resurrectional dismissal theotokion (Tone 4)Both now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

The mystery of all eternity, unknown even by Angels, through thee, Theotokos, is revealed to those on earth: God incarnate by union without confusion. He volun-tarily accepted the Cross for us, by which He resur-rected the first-created man, saving our souls from death.

“Reading the psalms beautifies the souls. It drives away the demons, shatters the darkness, makes everything holy, puts the devil to shame, reveals God”Kiev Caves Paterikon

~6~

Divine Liturgy of St John ChrysostomBeatitude Verses

SundayBlessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.

O Christ, Thou hast cast out of Paradise Adam, the forefather, who had set aside Thy commandment. And in Thy compassion, Thou hast made to dwell therein the thief confessing Thee upon the cross and crying; Remember me, O Savior, in Thy kingdom.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.O Giver of life and Lord, Thou hast condemned us having sinned to the curse of death. And suffering in Thy sinless body Thou hast made mortal men live crying: Remember us also in Thy kingdom.Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.O Lord, risen from the dead, Thou hast raised us from passions by Thy resurrection. And Thou hast de-stroyed all the might of death. Therefore we cry with faith to Thee: “Remember us also in Thy kingdom.’Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,

for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.By Thy three days’ burial hast Thou, making them live, raised those lying dead in hell. And Thou as good hast poured forth incorruption upon us who at all times cry with faith: ‘Remember us also in Thy kingdom.’

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves

Blessed are you when men shall revile you and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake.By thy sacred prayers, O God-blessed one, the cunning serpent is slain and the malice of those who demanded of thee a sign is destroyed, for thou art God’s favorite, radiating with light, and in thy faithfulness, unshakable.Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven.Assiduously ploughing the fields of thy soul, and most wisely sowing the multi-fruitful seeds of virtues, thou, O sacred Father, hast harvested the rich bounty of abundant healings.

Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit…Helped, O holy Father, by the strength of the Spirit, thou hast subdued the might and the power of the en-emy, and in honor of thy victory thou hast been re-warded, O holy one, with the bright gift of miracles.

Both now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.The Lord is with thee, O most pure one! As it was well pleasing to Him, to be with thee O Maiden, so by thine intercessions He hath delivered us all from the reign of the deceitful one; wherefore from generation to generation we dutifully call thee blessed.

tropariaSunday (Tone 3)

Let the heavens rejoice! Let the earth be glad! For the Lord has shown strength with His arm. He has tram-pled down death by death! He has become the first-born of the dead! He has delivered us from the depths of hell and has granted the world great mercy.

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 4)Having left the turmoil of the world, you renounced the world to follow Christ in accordance with the Gos-pel. Living a life equal to the Angels, you reached the quiet haven of the Holy Mountain of Athos. With the blessing of the Athonite fathers, you came to the hills of Kiev, where you labored with love and illumined your homeland. There you led a multitude of monas-tics to Christ showing them the path that leads to the Kingdom of Heaven. Venerable Anthony, pray to Him that our souls may be saved!

KontakiaSunday (Tone 3)

On this day Thou didst rise from the tomb, O Merci-ful One, leading us from the gates of death. On this day Adam exults and Eve rejoices. With the prophets and patriarchs they unceasingly praise the divine maj-esty of Thy Power.

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 8)Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,…

Having loved God above all from your childhood, O venerable one, you surrendered yourself to Him and followed Him with all your soul. Despising the mate-rial things of this world, you made a cave in the earth, where you fought the good fight against the invisible Enemy. Like a brilliant sun you illumined all the ends of the earth, and with rejoicing you passed into the

~7~

heavenly chambers. Now as you stand with the Angels before the Throne of the Master, remember us who honor your memory as we cry to you: “Rejoice, our Father Anthony!”

SteadaSt pRoteCtReSS (Tone 6)Both now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Steadfast Protectress of Christians, constant Advocate before the Creator; despise not the entreating cries of us sinners, but in thy goodness come speedily to help us who call on thee in faith. Hasten to hear our peti-tion and to intercede for us, O Theotokos, for thou dost always protect those who honor thee!

prokeimenonSunday (Tone 3)

Sing praises to our God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!

Vs: Clap your hands, all peoples! Shout to God with loud songs of joy!

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 7)Vs: Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

epistle ReadingSunday

The Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Romans (6:18-23)Brethren, being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to in-iquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves

The Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Galatians (5:22-6:2)Brethren, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuf-fering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temper-

ance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one an-other, envying one another.

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

alleluia VersesSunday (Tone 3)

Vs: In Thee, O Lord, have I hoped; let me never be put to shame!

Vs: Be Thou a God of protection for me, a house of refuge, in order to save me!

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves (Tone 6)Vs: Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments.

gospel ReadingSunday

The Gospel according to St. Matthew (8:5-13)At that time, as Jesus entered Capernaum, a centu-rion came forward to him, beseeching him and say-ing, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress.” And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” But the centurion answered him, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come un-der my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who fol-lowed him, “Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.” And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; be it done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

~8~

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Caves

The Gospel according to St. Matthew (4:25-5:12)At that time, great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decap’olis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan. 

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him.  And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Venerable anthony of the Kiev Cavesaint Anthony of the Kiev Caves was born in the year 983 at Liubech, not far from Chernigov, and was named Antipas in Baptism. Possessing the fear of God from his youth, he desired to be clothed in the monastic schema. When he

reached a mature age, he wandered until he arrived on Mt. Athos, burning with the desire to emulate the deeds of its holy inhabitants. Here he received monastic tonsure, and the young monk pleased God in every aspect of his spiritual struggles on the path of virtue. He particularly excelled in humility and obedience, so that all the monks rejoiced to see his holy life.The igumen saw in St Anthony the great future ascetic, and inspired by God, he sent him back to his native land, saying, “Anthony, it is time for you to guide oth-ers in holiness. Return to your own Russian land, and be an example for others. May the blessing of the Holy Mountain be with you.

Returning to the land of Rus, Anthony began to make the rounds of the monasteries about Kiev, but nowhere did he find that strict life which had drawn him to Mt. Athos.

Through the Providence of God, Anthony came to the hills of Kiev by the banks of the River Dniepr. The forested area near the village of Berestovo reminded him of his beloved Athos. There he found a cave which had been dug out by the Priest Hilarion, who later became Metropolitan of Kiev (October 21). Since he liked the spot, Anthony prayed with tears, “Lord, let the blessing of Mt. Athos be upon this

spot, and strengthen me to remain here.” He began to struggle in prayer, fasting, vigil and physical labor. Every other day, or every third day, he would eat only dry bread and a little water. Sometimes he did not eat for a week. People began to come to the ascetic for his blessing and counsel, and some decided to remain with the saint.

Among Anthony’s first disciples was St Nikon (March 23), who tonsured St Theodosius of the Caves (May 3) at the monastery in the year 1032.

The virtuous life of St Anthony illumined the Russian land with the beauty of monasticism. St Anthony lov-ingly received those who yearned for the monastic life. After instructing them how to follow Christ, he asked St Nikon to tonsure them. When twelve disciples had gath-ered about St Anthony, the brethren dug a large cave and built a church and cells for the monks within it.

~9~

After he appointed Abbot Barlaam to guide the brethren, St Anthony withdrew from the monastery. He dug a new cave for himself, then hid himself within it. There too, monks began to settle around him. Afterwards, the saint built a small wooden church in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God over the Far Caves.

At the insistence of Prince Izyaslav, the igumen Barlaam withdrew to the Dimitriev monastery. With the blessing of St Anthony and with the general agreement of the brethren, the meek and humble Theodosius was chosen

as igumen. By this time, the number of brethren had already reached a hundred men. The Kiev Great Prince Izyaslav (+ 1078) gave the monks the hill on which the large church and cells were built, with a palisade all around. Thus, the renowned monastery over the caves was established. Describing this, the chronicler remarks that while many monasteries were built by emperors and nobles, they could not compare with those which are built with holy prayers and tears, and by fasting and vigil. Although St Anthony had no gold, he built a mon-astery which became the first spiritual center of Rus.

For his holiness of life, God glorified St Anthony with the gift of clairvoyance and wonderworking. One example of this occurred during the construction of the Great Caves church. The Most Holy Theotokos Herself stood before him and St Theodosius in the Blachernae church in Constantinople, where they had been mi-raculously transported without leaving their own monastery. Actually, two angels appeared in Constantinople in their forms (See May 3, the account of the Kiev Caves Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos). Having received gold from the Mother of God, the saints commissioned master architects, who came from Constantino-ple to the Russian land on the command of the Queen of Heaven to build the church at the Monastery of the Caves. During this appearance, the Mother of God foretold the impending death of St Anthony, which occurred on July 10, 1073.

Through Divine Providence, the relics of St Anthony remain hidden.

St. olga, princess of Russiaaint Olga, renowned for her wisdom and sobri-ety, in her youth became the wife of Igor, Great Prince of Kiev, who ruled during the tenth cen-

tury. After her husband’s death, she herself ruled capa-bly, and was finally moved to accept the Faith of Christ.She traveled to Constantinople to receive Holy Baptism. The Em-peror, seeing her outward beauty and inward greatness, asked her to marry him. She said she could not do this before she was baptized; she furthermore asked him to be her Godfather at the font, which he agreed to do. After she was baptized (receiving the name of Helen), the Emperor repeated his proposal of marriage.

She answered that now he was her father, through holy Baptism, and that not even among the heathen was it heard of a man marrying his daughter. Gracefully accepting to be outwitted by her, he sent her back to her land with priests and sacred texts and holy icons. Although her son Svyatoslav remained a pagan, she planted the seed of faith in her grandson Vladimir (see July 15). She reposed in peace in 969.

~10~

An Interview with Mother ChristophoraAbbess of Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Ellwood City, Pennsylvaniaby Teva Regule

Teva: First of all, I want to thank you for taking the time for this interview and sharing your thoughts with the read-ers of the St. Nina Quarterly. You grew up in the Church and for a time worked as a social worker prior to entering the monastery. How did you choose the monastic life?

Mother Christophora: I think the monastic life chose me. God makes a calling. To enter a monastery in the country we live in, the society we live in, the culture we live in, to leave everything behind and come and live like this—one has to be a little bit “crazy.” That is why I think that God has a lot more to do with it than we do. Women have so many opportunities these days in our country. In this time we can do almost anything that we want. With that being true and still choosing the monastic life, it’s something a bit different than what we have seen in the history of the Church before now. Let me explain what I mean by that. In some of the European countries or some of the generations before this, women, at a very young age—sixteen or seven-teen—would have to decide either, “Yes, I am going to get married”—probably to the boy next door or from the same village—or, “I don’t want to be married. I want to be a monastic.” It would have been pretty much that simple. Now, it is one choice out of one hundred to two hundred that we can have. All of the sisters here have come from very different backgrounds. I did grow up in the Church and I was always close to the Church. That makes me unique in this sisterhood. Many sisters—most—have come from non-Orthodox backgrounds. So it is still a mystery why I am here or why another sister is here and not anyone else from her peers, her family, or her parish.

That is why I think that it is God that does a lot of the choosing and we have to answer the call. He calls us but we have to answer it. For me, it was a natural progression from being in the Church, being raised in the Church, and liking the Church all my life. I never left it, although many people leave and hopefully come back. I did not have that experience. I just wanted more of it. Even though I was working professionally, I would have liked to work full time in the Church, but there wasn’t opportunity to do that as a woman.

Then I discovered that the monastic life really answered my desires. I was able to fulfill my yearnings and serve God in this way.

T.: Are there any similarities between your work as a social worker and the work that you do in the monastery?

M.C.: Many of the things that I learned and did in my profession—certainly, God has asked me to use them here. That is true of other sisters, also. When we become a monastic, our parents, family, friends may think that the education that they gave us is going to be wasted. But I would say quite the contrary. It is like the par-able of the talents in the Gospel. If God gives us some talents and asks us to serve Him, the talents are going to be multiplied in a monastery. I find myself drawing back on the things that I learned in the world and actu-ally use them. I was in the field of alcoholism and ad-dictions, and many people that come to the monastery to talk to me have some of this struggle in their lives, in their families. I know a little bit about it. At least I can direct them to help.

T.: If someone has never visited a monastery, they might wonder what your daily life is like. Would you describe a typical day?

M.C.: It is probably quite like most people’s day in the home, except that it is punctuated by prayer—both formal and private. In our monastery, we start in the morning with a service at 6:30 a.m. We have matins and hours, and three days a week we also have a Divine Lit-urgy. So each nun rises before 6:30, depending on her prayer rule and her needs. Some wake up just a short time before 6:30 because they need more rest. Others wake up earlier and do prayers in their room for a longer period of time. We all come to church together. After the service we have some breakfast and then go on to do what we call our obediences, which are things that we are assigned to. The monastery is a family but also an institution, so there has to be some organization to get everything done. We have a rather large facility with a hundred acres. The building where our nuns live and where our church and our dining room are, is the size of a football field, so it is a lot of work to care for that.

~11~

In addition we have three guesthouses, flower gardens to tend and grass to mow. Each sister is assigned to be responsible for different areas of our home and for taking care of the guests. Some sisters clean the guesthouses, some answer the phone and the door. Others are cooking. Others are cleaning. Some work in the office or take care of the library. So each sister goes about her work. Because we are a small community of ten sisters, each sister usually works alone. In larger mon-asteries they would actually have workshops—fifteen people would be sewing all day. Imagine that. Here it is more likely that one sister is going to be sewing. We come together at noon for our midday meal, our main meal. During that meal there is a spiritual reading, which is customary in monasteries, so that we are thinking about spiritual things. We are feed-ing our souls as well as our bodies. After lunch all the sisters help to clean up and then go back to work. We can have some quiet time in the afternoon if we need. At 5:00 p.m. there is ninth hour, vespers, and compline. We finish by 6:30 p.m., we have something to eat and spend our evenings in quiet work and prayer. In the summer evenings, the sisters might work in the garden because it is cooler.

The sisters retire when they need to and start again the next morning. So when children visit the monastery and we tell them what we do, they are somewhat disap-pointed—dishes, vacuum, dust—things that they do. But each thing that we do is in the house of God. We have to remember that it is not just boring work, but that it is an offering of our labors to God and taking care of His house and being stewards of His house. We live here, but many, many other people visit. As a result, we have to keep the monastery in a special condition so when people come they can refresh themselves and find peace, harmony, and order. So in the atmosphere here, they can withdraw from the hassles of their life and be quiet.

T.: You mentioned monasticism in Europe. You had spent some time at Varatec Monastery in Romania, which is a large monastery, approximately four hundred nuns. It is lo-cated very close to Agapia, which is another large monastery. How would you compare the monastic experience in Roma-nia to this country?

M.C.: One of the similarities is that an Orthodox nun can go into any Orthodox monastery in the world and feel quite at home very quickly. That is a beautiful thing. In Orthodoxy, it is just one monastic life. So we could travel to any country and feel quite at home. With the Church’s liturgical cycle, although the time of vespers

might be different, the basic vespers would be the same. Even if we don’t understand the language, we would un-derstand where we are in vespers. . . .

The age of the monastery makes some difference. One thing I was very impressed by while traveling in Roma-nia—they often have public greeting rooms, large halls where guests are greeted and there are portraits of various abbesses on the wall, as well as a long list on a plaque of the abbess’ name and the dates of her tenure. The plaque was several yards long. I just stood there thinking that there is so much history they have behind them. In this country it is kind of like trail blazing, breaking ground. We can’t move forward without weighing how we want to do something in our monastery; whether it would be accepted by the neighbors (imagine that!)—a new mon-astery just telling the neighbors who we are and why we dress this way; how the Church would accept this in this country. These things would not even be a question in Eastern Europe. Monasticism has been there as long as the Church, and people are used to it. Here, we might be asked more frequently to visit a parish and talk about our lives, whereas in Greece or Romania that probably wouldn’t happen. If people wanted to hear about a mon-astery, they would go to a monastery for a visit.

To be continued next week

mother Christophora of holy transfiguration monastery

St. Luke orthodox Christian Church1415 Woodstock ave.anniston, aL 36207

Sase Orthodox Monastery, Vlasenica,

Bosnia-Herzegovinia, built in the 13th Century