Today marks the 77th anniversary of Archbishop Arseny (Chagovtsov) repose at St. Tikhons Monastary in 1946.

I served a liturgy for him this morning, and was struck by the Gospel reading for the day (Lk. 6:46-7:1) and the Lord’s words.

“why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.”

I am blessed to serve in a Church that has had (as far as I have been able to discover) about 35 + priests and bishops serve in.  This number has much to do with the fact that our parish was served intermittently by visiting clergy, from Winnipeg, Edmonton and  Minneapolis.  Before the  Liturgy, I considered how many of the pastors that served at St. Nicholas would have said “Lord Lord”.  Yet despite what they offered, many of their contributions have been lost to time, swept aside by the torrent of life. In stark contrast, Archbishop Arseny  stands out from this list of pastors.

Truly the foundation of God’s saving love as manifested in the Orthodox Church, that he laid, is something that has provided refuge from the storms of life for countless generations for over a hundred years – after all St. Nicholas is a strong and healthy parish, our Archdiocese is strong and healthy, not to mention St. Tikhon’s monastery and seminary is still going strong (Glory to God!) all despite the struggles associated with being an immigrant Church, the struggles against ethnic nationalism, the struggles of cultural assimilation, and we can say the struggles of rampant secularism.

There is something to be said about the fact that Archbishop Arseny not only heard the call of the Lord, but did what he was called to do! Although not recognized officially as a Saint, his life and legacy bears the mark of sanctity – the fact that I can bear witness to this as a priest who serves in a Church he served at, is indeed a reflection of God’s mercy, and his participation in it. By his prayers, may we continue the work he so tirelessly offered the Lord.

Blessed Archbishop Arseny, pray to God for us!