Tag: ordination

Unity and life -a “prairie Pascha” (reflection on the 50th anniversary of Holy Resurrection in Saskatoon, and the ordination of Fr. Johnathan Goosens, and Dn. Edwin Hay)

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As many of you know, last weekend I was in Saskatoon at the parish of Holy Resurrection. The wonder is that what I witnessed and participated in, was that of the unity and life of our Church.

The very fact that we were celebrating the 50th anniversary of Holy Resurrection, a community that had very humble beginnings (not unlike many other communities in our Archdiocese, including our own), and that we were present to shout “Axios” (worthy) for the ordination of Dn. Johnathan Goosens to the priesthood, and our own (by extension) Subdeacon Edwin (Cam) Hay to the diaconate, was truly amazing enough. Yet, there was something even more amazing than this.

Surrounding our beloved Archbishop Irénée were 11 priests and 9 deacons, (from Manitoba to BC) and about a hundred faithful, all offering our thanksgiving to God for what He has done, and what He is doing. Truly this speaks volumes to the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in our Church, and the unity of our faith.

Fr. Matthew Francis (Holy Apostles Mission in Chilliwack BC) described the weekend as being something like a “prairie Pascha”! No words could be truer. Indeed at Pascha, there is an unparalleled sense of unity and even a kind of closeness that sees no one as being a stranger, having experienced and participated in the Lord’s joyful and radiant victory over sin and death. This brings to mind the verse from the Paschal canon which beautifully exemplifies this, “let us call brothers (and sisters) even those who hate us, and forgive all by the resurrection, and so let us cry, Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life.”

This victory lavished upon all humanity in the Lord’s saving Pascha, is an event that should permeate every moment of our lives (especially when we celebrate the divine liturgy, a “little Pascha”). For the Lord in His love and work for us, has brought into harmony the discordance of our broken and individual lives, and by effect brings us in harmony with our family, friends, strangers and even enemies. Although I did not know some of the clergy or faithful there: I was as close to them as if they were indeed my own brothers and sisters. Although I might had had disagreements with some of clergy and faithful: we were in perfect accord. Although I hadn’t seen some of the clergy and faithful in years: I was as close to them, as if they lived next door. Truly it was paschal in every way. 

Of course we all had to go our own way back to our own lives, homes and parishes. Yet beyond the celebration of an amazing and miraculous 50 years, and the ordination of a priest and deacon, what was experienced, was that which is at the heart of our life as Christians – the proclamation of Gospel and the Lord’s saving work for humanity, and our unity with and in the Lord and His faithful, being members of His Body, the Church – regardless of where we came from, what we do, or even if it wasn’t Pascha. 

May the Lord grant us the eyes of faith to see this Paschal unity and life in even the most isolated and lonely movements of our lives; regardless of where we are, or day or season it might be! And may the Lord grant many years to the clergy and faithful of Holy Resurrection in Saskatoon, and to the newly ordained priest Johnathan , and deacon Edwin, and their family’s!

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

“For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Reflection on ordination and Christmas.

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Last week’s ordinations of Protodeacon Edward Jordan to the priesthood and the reader David Pasivirta to the diaconate in Calgary was truly remarkable in so many ways; yet nothing new, in that they were the continuation of a beautiful pattern of ordinations that have marked the life of our blessed Archdiocese – especially in the last few years (including our own Dn. Greg, and Dn. John). 

Any ordination is wonderful! Indeed a profound blessing that strengthens the Church’s proclamation of the Lord’s saving love, and verifies His abiding presence, even if there are  only “two or three”  gathered together in His name (Mt. 18:20). What is interesting, is that the majority of these men and their families were quite content in doing what they were doing – serving God and neighbour alike in serving their communities and even the Church as a whole; humbly with no other motive than to be Christians. 

The Gospel that was read for Fr. Edward and Dn. David’s ordination (Luke 14:1-1) provided a context that qualified their (and others) ordination.  In the second part of this Gospel, the Lord offers a parable that contrasts the expectations of honour and authority, with demonstration of humility. 

“…When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The paradox is that those who would normally be honoured as having or wanting authority, are the ones who end up bearing the shame of exalting themselves; yet those who humbly recognise that they have no authority, let alone honour, that end up being glorified, “for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Although I don’t know everyone who has been ordained in the last year or so, I do  know more than a few of them. In these cases, I have never observed the  desire for honour or authority, or the expectation that they could better serve the Lord by being ordained. Rather, these men and their families (like Fr. Edward, and Dn. David and others) have only ever sought to serve, and serve, and serve the Lord and His Church, as labourers, council members, deacons, choir directors, camp counselors, friends, doctors, and teachers. Although their contributions were (and are) profoundly important, there always was (and is) a willingness to defer to the honour and authority, of those whom they serve, with no expectations of doing bigger and better things. .

To be honest,  if I told Fr. Edward, Dn. David, Fr. Gregory Wright or Theodore Matson (St. Herman’s in Langley BC) a year ago –   that they would be ordained this December, they would have thought I was crazy.  Or to put it in the context of the Gospel read at the ordination – if they were told that they were to occupy the “best places”at the wedding feast,  that it our Divine Liturgy, they would have thought a huge mistake was made. For they all humbly recognised the honour and graciousness of occupying even the “lowest place”at this feast!

I can think of no better gift  in which to be set aside and consecrated –  for it is nothing less than the love of God and neighbour (Jn. 15:12-13). I can think of no better quality in which to be honoured and exalted – for it is nothing less than the desire to serve rather than be served (Mk. 10:45). I can think of no offering better leaders in which to bear witness to the saving work of the Lord – for it is nothing more than what the Lord does for all humanity (Mt. 19:28-30). 

It is something to consider that these ordinations share the very same content of Christmas, as manifested in the humility and condescension of the Lord. It is humility – rather than honour or authority – that reveals the Lord’s love;  through these gifts, qualities and its witness. For it is the Lord who willingly  takes  “the lowest place” in “taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.” And  in His boundless love, He voluntarily takes on humanity’s shame, dishonour (not honour), and disdain (not exaltation) going even lower, “being found in appearance as a man became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross”. It is this humility that is the context for His glory and honour, as  “God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name” (Phip. 2:6-9).The wonder is that this honour and authority is bestowed upon us by the grace of the Holy Spirit – elevating us to the   “best spaces” sharing in His divine life as  “a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people” (1 Pet. 2:9)

This season (as does all scripture) sets forth the template and standard for our life in Christ – and especially for those who are called to serve Him, in serving the Church, the Body of Christ.  The ordination of  Fr. Edward, and Dn. David, and all those new deacons and priests (including our blessed deacons at St. Nicholas) is the revelation of what God is doing for us – as witnessed in their humility and desire to do nothing less than to serve God and neighbour alike.

May the Lord open our hearts, that we might see the lengths that the Lord goes to save us, in his humble nativity; and see the humility of  Fr. Edward and Dn. David as revealed in their ordinations. So that we might truly be exalted and saved in that divine love and by that “grace divine which always heals that which is infirmed, and completes that which is lacking…” and which elevates those who humble themselves, to find the  love of God even in those “lowest places”. 

May the Lord grant the newly ordained Fr. Edward, Matushka Victoria, and the Dn. David and Diakonisa Lauren – and their families many blessed years!

Something more than just an heirloom (+Archpriest Nicolas Boldireff)

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This past week the Archpriest Nicholas Boldireff fell asleep in the Lord after a lengthy illness. Fr. Nicholas was the longtime pastor of Christ the Saviour Orthodox Church in Toronto and Holy Virgin Mary Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Los Angeles (CA); and although  I never really knew Fr. Nicholas personally well, (even though I had served with him as a young server, and deacon)  there is Nonetheless there is something very personal that I share with him. 

There is an informal tradition in the Orthodox Church that when a priest is ordained, the pectoral cross given to him, is one that has been handed down to him from another priest (sometimes this isn’t practical so a new cross is given). This was the case for me at my ordination a decade ago. The cross that Vladika Irénée put around my neck (and also my brother’s neck at his ordination) was my father’s cross, that was passed to him by the newly departed Fr. Nicholas; that was passed to Fr. Nicholas by his father (Archpriest Oleg +1997), that was passed to Fr. Oleg at his ordination (and so on). There is something quite beautiful that this same cross (a simple pewter three bar cross) has been worn by more than a few priests for over a hundred years; yet it is  more than just an heirloom passed from priest to priest. It is also a witness Apostolic tradition (the word trandition literally means passing on) and the unity of those called to  “be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Tim. 4:12) in service to the Body of Christ as priests (in fact in the slavic tradition this scripture is written on the back of some pectoral crosses). 

It is a kind of inheritance that I consider every time I put on this particular cross (which came back to me when my brother received my father’s gold cross), as it speaks to something greater than just being a special heirloom. It is a witness of the responsibility that is given to priests at their ordination (in general), and my father, Fr. Nicholas and his father (in specific); and their voluntary struggles as His servants which manifested that the Lord’s “strength is made perfect in weakness” and  “that the power of Christ” not only rested upon them, but was also displayed (around their necks) for the world around them. (2 Cor. 12:9). Indeed this inheritance conveys something more than just an spiritual significance, but rather something that is very tangible and real; and thus profoundly personal – As real as the simple worn out and crudely mended cross that I wear on special occasions; and as real as that same cross which was Fr. Nicholas’ (and my father’s and his father’s etc.) personal and spiritual inheritance when he (and they) were called to serve the Lord as His priest. 

Ultimately this particular cross (and all crosses whether they were passed down or were brand new) express that the“message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Cor. 1:18). This is a constant source of inspiration for me, as it was for  Fr. Nicholas and those who preceded him. Although I might not have known Fr. Nicholas as much as I would have wanted to; the love of God who by The Cross drew all peoples to Himself (Jn. 12:32), has also drawn me to know him through his priesthood, in ways more personal than words can convey.

Truly may his memory be eternal, and the Lord grant him the Kingdom of Heaven.
Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen! Христос воскресе! Воистину воскресе!

Yet another new Deacon.

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It is a pretty good indication that our Church is doing what it is supposed to be doing, when we gain three deacons in the course of week. For those keeping score, that is four in less than a year – Glory to God!

Last Sunday, Vladika Irénée was in Hamilton On. at the parish of St. Maria of Paris (home of our dear brother Fr. Yuri Hladio) to ordain James Dale to the Holy Diaconate. 

I first met the newly ordained deacon James back in 1982 when he started coming to (and was received into the Orthodox Church) at the Holy Transfiguration mission in Ottawa (now the Annunciation Cathedral) where my father was serving. I also attended some classes with him at St. Paul’s University and incidentally but nonetheless remarkable James also introduced me to punk rock- for which I am eternally thankful. James’ love of God and neighbour truly has guided him and his wife (Diakonisa Martha) to a life of service; becoming a cornerstone of St. Maria’s in its early days, and an example of Christian life for many new converts. It is only fitting that his service has been now “set apart” and offered to the Lord in the Diaconate, as a witness of the Lord’s love for us, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve” (Mk.10:45) May the Lord grant him and his wife, many blessed years in service to His Body, the Church.

Ordination of John Schantz to the Holy Diaconate.

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By God’s grace and mercy, the faithful of St. Nicholas of Narol, welcomed back, his Eminence Archbishop Irénée, for the blessed ordination of John (Dayrl) Schantz to the Diaconate. 

On a beautiful sunny and warm spring morning (Saturday April 6th) Vladika Irénée served the Divine Liturgy with the faithful of St. Nicholas, and other Orthodox parishes. Joining Vladika in the service was the Archpriest Gregory Scratch (parish rector), the mitred Archpriest Serhii Kashyrets, the Archpriest Roman Pavlov, the Priest Matthew Beynon (both from Holy Trinity Sobor), the Priest Stephen Sharman (St Nicholas of Narol), Protodeacon Edward Jordan (St. Aidan’s Cranbrook BC) Deacon Denis Letunovsky (St Seraphim of Sarov Rawdon, QC), and the Deacon Greg Wiebe (St. Nicholas) Archpriest Anthony Esterbrooks (Retired) Dn. John Kavalas (St. Demetrios GOA – not serving) 

During the Liturgy, the Priest Matthew Beynon was awarded the Gold Cross, and the Priest Stephen Sharman was awarded the Kamilavka.

It is something of a marvel, that it was less than eight months ago that Vladika Irénée was last at St. Nicholas – also for another ordination – Dn. Greg Wiebe. Indeed, this fact was not lost on his Eminence, as he noted in his sermon “there are churches that devour priests and clergy… this church produces them”. The newly ordained Dn. John, Matushka Robyn Sophia, and their four daughters, have with love and thanksgiving served the various needs of St. Nicholas for more than a few years; and truly this ordination is a confirmation of the Lord’s saving grace. In them, this service, has been “set aside” and offered to the Lord in thanksgiving through the laying on of hands; that the Lord, Himself, might reveal His saving service to us, through the newly ordained Deacon’s hands.. 

May the Lord grant many blessed years to Vladika Irénée, blessing him with peace and wisdom as he criss-crosses the Archdiocese in service to the Lord. May the Lord grant many blessed years to the newly ordained Deacon John, his wife Matushka Robyn Sophia, their children Ann-Christina (and husband Jesse), Olivia, Adrianne, and Emily; and may the Lord grant many blessed years to the clergy and faithful of St Nicholas in their continued love and dedication to the Lord. 

Hierarchical liturgy with Archbishop Irénee, and the Ordination of Greg Wiebe to the Diaconate.

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To an outside observer, many of the liturgical elements we do at any service might seem “over the top ” ritual, full of pomp and circumstances – but when a Bishop is serving, it can seem truly all the more bizarre. I suppose that one can be left with the impression that these “over the top” rituals are just nostalgia for the glory years of Imperial Russia or Byzantium. Of course this is always a temptation (which I am all to often reminded of), but if we invest ourselves into the fact that these rituals are the expressions of our love of the Lord, they don’t seem to be as strange or inconsistent with anything else we do. 

The presence of a Bishop at any given service (and especially at a Liturgy) is an apostolic icon of the fullness of our faith.  We see this rooted in scripture with St. Paul’s instructions to Timothy and Titus, and  reflected in early Church documents like the Didache (1st century) or Justin Martyr’s apologies on the faith  (2nd century). In these (and many more writings) we see the that the Bishops (or overseers ἐπίσκοπος) manifest the unity of the faith, not as an administrative and social position, but rather through the  through the historic, liturgical, scriptural, and spiritual life they embody. The short form for this is “Apostolic succession”   where each canonical Bishop can trace their vocation back through time to the very apostles themselves. 

It is in this that we find ourselves not in the presence of a CEO, or guru (God forbid), but rather in the presence of a man who conveys the same  living “tradition” (2 Tess. 2:15) and teachings of the twelve apostles; and even of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ. As St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote in the 1st century “Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be, even as where Christ Jesus is, there is the catholic (whole and undivided) church” (Epistle to the Smyrnaeans).

This understanding of the whole and undivided Church in the presence of a bishop, was manifested last weekend on the Soul Saturday before Pentecost, as our long time choir director Greg Wiebe, was ordained to the diaconate by Archbishop Irénée. It is truly wonderful and witness of the saving work of the Lord at St. Nicholas (and the Archdiocese as a whole); indeed the willingness of men (like Greg) and their families to respond positively, like the prophet Isaiah to the call of the Lord; “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us? (Is. 6:8) is a manifestation of the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. Not in some mystical or spiritual way only, but tangably in the pastoral and liturgical life of the Church. 

In this context we were given the opportunity to see those rituals that surround us when a Bishop is serving, and at the ordination of a deacon; not as Imperial nostalgia, or “over the top” liturgics, but rather an expression of the honour to the apostolic proclamation of the Lord’s saving victory over sin and death.  Truly it is a blessing that we can not only bear witness to this proclamation, but participate in it. 

May the Lord grant many blessed years to Vladyka Irénée, blessing him with peace and wisdom as he criss-crosses the Archdiocese in service to the Lord. May the Lord grant many blessed years to the newly ordained Deacon Greg, his wife Amanda, their children Kayla, William, and Hannah; and may the Lord grant many blessed years to the clergy and faithful of St Nicholas in their continued love and dedication to the Lord. 

(Photo credits. Tina Wiebe photography, Igumen Vladimir (Lysak), Archpriest Gregory Scratch)