In this Issue:

• Message from the Rector • Announcements

• Nativity Epistle by Metropolitan

Hilarion of New York

• Forgiveness Sunday by Father Alexander Schmemann • Origin of the Feast of Christmas by Antony Bassoline

• Русский уголок • January/February Calendar

This newsletter is published by the

Holy Theotokos of Iveron

Russian Orthodox Church

A Parish of the Western American Diocese

Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia

ROCOR Official Website: http://www.synod.com

Parish Website: http://www. orthodoxhawaii.org

All services are held at 845 Queen Street,

Honolulu, Hawaii

���� Our Church

Our church is located at 845 Queen Street just a block and a half Ewa of Ward Avenue.

The Sunday services are as follows: Hours at 9 a.m. followed by the Divine Liturgy at 9:30 a.m. All Saturday evening services begin at 6:15 p.m. unless otherwise specified in the calendar.

Confessions are heard after the Saturday evening Vespers services or by special prior arrangement during the Hours on Sunday.

Parking is a problem at the church during the week. There are only three reserved parking places for us there. On Saturday evenings and on Sundays, however, only a few neighboring businesses are operating.

Note also that most of our evening services begin

after 6:15 p.m., and that metered stalls on Ward

Avenue and on Coral Street are free after 6 p.m.

Parish Dues:

$25/month for families; $15/month for single members; $10/month for students. In addition, members are encour-aged to pledge monthly contributions towards paying the church’s expenses. All donations are tax deductible.

Dues and pledges may be mailed to our treasurer: Dr Natalia Zagorski, 329 Ilimalia Loop, Kailua HI 96734.

Checks should be made out to: The Russian Orthodox

Community of Hawaii.

January/February 2017

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Holy Theotokos of Iveron

Russian Orthodox Church

845 Queen Street #101

Honolulu, Hawaii 96813

Priest Athanasius Kone, Rector

(808) 256-9482

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Dear Parish Ohana,

Saint John of Kronstadt wrote, “To heal a person is the greatest thing one can do and excels all other virtue, because among the virtues there is nothing higher or more perfect than love for one's neighbor.” If it is a great thing when we heal one another, how much greater is it for us to consider the great healing started with the Nativity of Christ. This event marks for us the Divine Economy of God, the incarnation of the Word and the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. It represents for us the moment when Christ, in His great love began the healing of humanity. When he took upon Himself flesh and dwelt among us. As the Akathist hymn to our Lord Jesus Christ proclaims, “Seeing the

strange Incarnation of God, let us alienate ourselves from this vain world and raise our mind to

things divine. To this end God descended to earth, that He might raise to Heaven us who cry to Him:” Truly the feast of Nativity is a moment of rejoicing and thankfulness for Christ’s Incarnation, but it has also become a period when it is increasingly difficult to “alienate ourselves from this vain world and raise our minds to things divine.” Thus ‘this season’ also becomes a remembrance to examine how well do we hear the Gospel. Do we hear the Gospel merely with our ears or can we hear it with our hearts as well? How does our inner life affect the Word of God when we do hear it? When the Word comes, do we hurry it off, do we kill it, or does it live in us and thrive in our hearts. Have we waited for the descent of Christ and His Word and prepared ourselves for it so it may safely find a place to take root in our hearts? In truth, when this happens it is because we have done the work needed to prepare ourselves to be hearers of the word. This does not happen by accident or happen-stance, but only with God’s help are we able to tune our inner lives to Gospels frequency. St. John of Kronstadt sums this up, “Watch your heart during all your life, examine it, listen to it, and see what prevents its union with the most blessed Lord. Let the be for you the science of sciences”

With love in Christ, Father Athanasius

Forgiveness Sunday by Father Alexander Schmemann

In the Orthodox Church, the last Sunday before Great Lent – the day on which, at Vespers, Lent is liturgically announced and inaugurated – is called Forgiveness Sunday. On the morning of that Sunday, at the Divine Liturgy, we hear the words of Christ: "If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses..." (Mark 6:14-15) Then after Vespers – after hearing the announcement of Lent in the Great Prokeimenon: "Turn not away Thy face from Thy child for I am afflicted! Hear me speedily! Draw near unto my soul and deliver it!", after making our entrance into Lenten worship, with its special memories, with the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian, with its prostrations – we ask forgiveness from each other, we perform the rite of forgiveness and reconciliation. And as we approach each other with words of

Message from the Rector

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reconciliation, the choir intones the Paschal hymns, filling the church with the anticipation of Paschal joy. What is the meaning of this rite? Why is it that the Church wants us to begin Lenten season with forgiveness and reconciliation? These questions are in order because for too many people Lent means primarily, and almost exclusively, a change of diet, the compliance with ecclesiastical regulations concerning fasting. They understand fasting as an end in itself, as a "good deed" required by God and carrying in itself its merit and its reward. But, the Church spares no effort in revealing to us that fasting is but a means, one among many, towards a higher goal: the spiritual renewal of man, his return to God, true repentance and, therefore, true reconciliation. The Church spares no effort in warn-ing us against a hypocritical and pharisaic fasting, against the reduction of religion to mere external obligations. As a Lenten hymn says: In vain do you rejoice in no eating, O soul! For you abstain from food, But from passions you are not purified. If you persevere in sin, you will perform a useless fast. Now, forgiveness stands at the very center of Christian faith and of Christian life because Christianity itself is, above all, the religion of forgiveness. God forgives us, and His forgiveness is in Christ, His Son, Whom He sends to us, so that by sharing in His humanity we may share in His love and be truly reconciled with God. Indeed, Christianity has no other content but love. And it is primarily the renewal of that love, a return to it, a growth in it, that we seek in Great Lent, in fasting and prayer, in the entire spirit and the entire effort of that season. Thus, truly forgiveness is both the beginning of, and the proper condition for the Lenten season. One may ask, however: Why should I perform this rite when I have no "enemies"? Why should I ask forgiveness from people who have done nothing to me, and whom I hardly know? To ask these questions, is to misunderstand the Orthodox teaching concerning forgiveness. It is true, that open enmity, personal hatred, real animosity may be absent from our life, though if we experience them, it may be easier for us to repent, for these feelings openly contradict Divine commandments. But, the Church reveals to us that there are much subtler ways of offending Divine Love. These are indiffer-ence, selfishness, lack of interest in other people, of any real concern for them -- in short, that wall which we usually erect around ourselves, thinking that by being "polite" and "friendly" we fulfill God’s commandments. The rite of forgiveness is so important precisely because it makes us realize – be it only for one minute – that our entire relationship to other men is wrong, makes us experience that encounter of one child of God with another, of one person created by God with another, makes us feel that mutual "recognition" which is so terribly lacking in our cold and dehumanized world. On that unique evening, listening to the joyful Paschal hymns we are called to make a spiritual discovery: to taste of another mode of life and relationship with people, of life whose essence is love. We can discover that always and everywhere Christ, the Divine Love Himself, stands in the midst of us, transforming our mutual alienation into brotherhood. As l advance towards the other, as the other comes to me – we begin to realize that it is Christ Who brings us together by His love for both of us. And because we make this discovery – and because this discovery is that of the Kingdom of God itself: the Kingdom of Peace and Love, of reconciliation with God and, in Him, with all that exists – we hear the hymns of that Feast, which once a year, "opens to us the doors of Paradise." We know why we shall fast and pray, what we shall seek during the long Lenten pilgrimage. Forgiveness Sunday: the day on which we acquire the power to make our fasting – true fasting; our effort – true effort; our reconciliation with God – true reconciliation. Introduction to the DRE/OCA 1975-1982 Forgiveness Sunday Vespers.

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Nativity Epistle of His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad

Moved by the most profound feelings of fraternal love and joy for the Savior of the World born in Bethlehem, I congratulate the archpastors, clergymen, monastics and all the faithful flock of the Russian Church Abroad on this great and holy feast of the Nativity of Christ!

O, blessed Nativity night!

On this holy night, the Son of God meekly descended to Earth and was born in a humble Bethlehem cave. He brought news of the Salvation of all mankind, and by His example of humility and self-sacrifice pointed the way to eternal blessedness. The angels praised the Birth of Christ with the words, “Glory to God in the Highest, peace on Earth and good will toward men!” (Luke

2:14). The whole world, heeding this wondrous song, became a form of temple and altar, where a unique Divine service was invisibly being performed, during which divine hymns from the heavenly abodes merged with those of suffering humanity.

In our troubled days, when the Gospel commandments of patience, humility and brotherly love resound with particular force, we bear witness to internecine strife, brutal persecution of Christians, all forms of political fervor and social discord. The human heart races at the mere thought of these great tribulations. We cannot help but pose the question: is this how the world is to honor its God, its Creator and Savior? As we celebrate this holy event, let us lift up our prayers for brotherly unity and understanding, for patience and mutual respect within society, and for peace among nations. Let us unite in our churches during these days, leaving aside at least for a while our earthly cares and troubles, let us offer the God-Child our fervent faith and hope in salvation, let us fill our lives with Christian virtues.

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As we enter the new year of 2017, I ponder the humility of God Who became Man and cannot help but remem-ber the humility of His Holiness Patriarch (Saint) Tikhon. One hundred years ago, after his election at the All-Russian Local Church Council, he meekly accepted the wooden staff of the Primate of the See of Moscow, Metropolitan Peter. Let us turn our attention to the im-age of this holy hierarch-confessor, who together with the entire Russian Church ascended the Golgotha of sorrows and humiliation! In those horrifying years, a special host of martyrs for the faith rose up, passing through fire and water, enduring abuse and injury, chains and imprisonment, “tortured, not accepting de-liverance; that they might obtain a better resurrec-tion” (Hebrews 11:35). In the spiritual achievements of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon and the martyrs of the 20th century, a profound love for God and neighbor was revealed, and also unlimited devo-tion to the Will of God. May the self-sacrificial podvig of the martyrs who suffered in the years of godless persecutions serve as an example of faith and piety not only for us, but for all Orthodox Christians!

As we noetically kiss the holy manger of Bethlehem, let us piously pray to the Divine Child that this 21st century, in contrast to the last one, will be a time of building the Church and of mankind turning to God, that the seeds sown by the suffering of the Holy New Martyrs and Confessors of Russia will continue to bring forth abundant fruits of faith, hope and love in human hearts. Let us pray to Him that He grant us spiritual peace and true Christian life, so that we would be to our neighbors a “light of the world” (John 8:12) and the “salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13).

With love in the Incarnate Lord,

+HILARION, Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia

Nativity of Christ, 2016/2017

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Origin of the Feast of Christmas By Antony Bassoline

The celebration of the birth of Christ has become the most obvious religious-based public festival of American life. Its arrival in December is prepared for months in advance. It is the one event which generates the most anticipation and to which the most tradition and custom have attached themselves. Individual homes and whole cities dress up for Christmas. In popular western sentiment it has eclipsed the greater feast of the Resurrection, and has completely dwarfed its twin festival, the Theophany.

But how did we get a feast of “Christmas”?

What was its original purpose? How does it actually fit into the life of the Orthodox Christian Church?

The Christian Church in the first three centuries of its existence knew of only one great festival, Pentecost (by Pentecost is here meant the complete celebration of the Christian Passover from the cross and resurrection to the 50th day commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit). Every Sunday was considered a feast in that it was a gathering to proclaim the mighty redemption brought by the death and resurrection of Christ. This festival of redemption was realized weekly by the Holy Eucharist, the presence of the victorious Risen Christ in the midst of the assembly. It was realized yearly in the great Paschal Feast in the administration of baptism. We see that in this ancient period the interest and emphasis was not at all on the historical facts concerning what happened to Jesus, but rather how what happened to Jesus now happens to those who join His Church; how the new believer dies and rises to new life in Christ through baptism and how in the Eucharist the believer participates directly in the sacrifice of Christ.

In time the celebration of martyrs’ days, that is, the yearly anniversary of a martyr’s death, came to be celebrated. But these festivals were local and usually conducted at the martyr’s tomb.

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It is not until the Fourth Century that the idea of celebrating occasions in the earthly life of our Lord started to become popular. Much of this is due to the Local Church of Jerusalem. Special celebrations which were devised on the actual or supposed sites of the events of the life of Christ lent themselves particularly well to the celebration of historical remembrances. Thus interest developed in where Jesus was born, where He grew up, where He performed His miracles, etc.

It is to the Local Church of Rome, however, that we must give the credit for the origins of the feast of the birth of Christ. But on what was this feast based and why was December 25th chosen as the day for its celebration?

The actual historical facts surrounding the birth of Christ are clouded in mystery. No one really knows when Jesus was born. Only certain facts can be deducted from the biblical account and from history. For one thing, Jesus was definitely born in B.C. (Before Christ!). This is known because Herod the Great died in 4 B.C., and Herod figures in the account of the Nativity given by St. Matthew. Jesus was definitely not born in winter. St. Luke mentions that the shepherds were staying out in the pasture land with their flocks, an event that does not take place in winter. We must look elsewhere for the origin of the late December celebration of the Nativity.

We find the origin of the winter feast of the Nativity not in the historical facts available concerning the birth of Christ, but in a curious astronomical phenomenon. In late December we reach the shortest day of the year with more hours of darkness than daylight. From this point the hours of daylight become gradually longer. This observable phenomenon was given a religious significance in the pagan Roman world. It became the feast of Sol Invictus (the Unconquerable Sun). It was popularly celebrated in Rome during the last two weeks of December, called Saturnalia. What better time for the Christians to celebrate the coming of the true unconquered “Sun”? Thus the feast of Christmas was born; the celebration of the dawning on the world of the “Sun of Righteousness”.

The feast was not originally called Christmas or Nativity, but Theophany or “Manifestation.” It celebrated the idea of Christ’s coming and manifesting Himself through several events of the New Testament and its timing was based on

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the feast of the Unconquered Sun. In the East this feast of the “coming” was generally kept on January 6th and in the West on December 25th. It did not originally concentrate exclusively on the birth of our Lord, but celebrated several aspects of His manifestation: the birth in the cave, the adoration of the Magi, the baptism in the Jordan, and the first miracle at Cana in Galilee. All of these themes came in one way or another to be associated with the feast of the Theophany. The East celebrated all of this on January 6th and knew of no feast on December 25th. (The Armenian Church to this day still celebrates the nativity and the baptism together on January 6th with no celebration whatsoever on December 25th.) Egeria, a nun from Spain, traveling in Palestine at the end of the 4th century mentions a great celebration of our Lord’s coming. Thus it was only later that the East and the West came to share both December 25th and January 6th. The East separated the Nativity from the Baptism, leaving the January date as the feast of the Baptism of Christ and accepting the December date as the feast of the Nativity. The West in turn added January 6th to its “Manifestation” celebration as the commemoration of the Adoration of the Magi.

Once this double feast, Christmas-Theophany, entered the life of the Church it became, like Easter-Pentecost, an occasion for the celebration of baptism. The feast of Christ’s coming was seen to be appropriate for the administration of the sacrament by which Christ would come to the new believer. Several relics in our present liturgical practice hint at the baptismal connections of Christmas and Theophany, as the long list of readings of the vigil of both days (meant to cover the time of actual baptizing), and the singing of the baptismal verse “As many as have been baptized into Christ” in place of the Trisagion. The strange notation in the liturgical books: “Nativity of our Lord . . . Three days Passover” and “Theophany of our Lord . . . Three days Passover” can only be explained in connection with the sacrament of baptism.

The hymns of both Christmas and Theophany reveal the origin of these days in the old winter festival of the Unconquered Sun. Note how many astronomical references we find in the Nativity Troparion: Christ is described as the “Sun” of Righteousness, who illumines those who worshipped stars (of which the physical sun is one). Jesus has come as the dawning from the East (as the sun does).

The Matins exapostilarion hymn speaks of: A newly risen day. Our Savior is the Dayspring from the East. Those who were in darkness and shadow found the Light.

Theophany is still known as “ton Foton” (feast of Lights). Its hymns also concentrate on astronomical themes. In Vespers Christ is described as “Bestower of

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light,” who desires to give light to those in darkness. In the Matins of the feast we find: “With Thy light that never sets, shine forth, O Christ.”

Unfortunately most of western society has reverted to celebrating the pagan winter holiday under the excuse of celebrating the birth of Christ. The Ro-mans had their Saturnalia, but modern man has his Santa, reindeer, drinking parties and material-ism to highlight his feast. In spite of all of this Christians are still called to celebrate joyfully in the Spirit, the coming of the Messiah. As the Chris-tians of old celebrated under the guise of Saturna-lia, so the modern Christian must still celebrate the true feast as the rest of our society keeps its pagan winter holiday. The Church at one time conquered and transformed that pagan holiday into the sublime celebration of the coming of the Sun of Righteousness. She still is challenged to transform and transfigure and to pro-claim that coming and to lead men beyond tinsel and cheap lights to the true mean-ing of this holiday: the glorification of the true Gladsome Light of the Holy Glory of the Immortal Father, heavenly, holy, blessed Jesus Christ.

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«Поиск истинной Церкви бесценен» (Часть 2)

Беседа с американским священником Серафимом Беллом Елена Хомулло

– А с какими трудностями пришлось столкнуться, когда Вы уже стали православным священником, находясь в Америке? – На самом деле, трудностей было немало. В течении многих лет я был пастором, имел ученую степень в богословии, со мной перешли в Православие более 120 обращённых, и на основании этого епископ принял решение посвятить меня в священнический сан сразу же. По моему мнению, это было не совсем верно, но Господь попустил по Своему Промыслу, значит, так и должно было произойти. Самым серьёзным испытанием для меня стало принятие сана.

Практически сразу стало очевидно, что, хотя я и мог проповедовать, исходя из знаний, которые почерпнул из Православной литературы, но стать духовным отцом, наставником пока был не в силах, не имел необходимого опыта. Православное мироощущение накапливается не так быстро и образуется не столько от изучения книг, сколько от длительного воздействия подлинной живой традиции, полного погружения. Поэтому я и пытался найти такое духовное образование. Вскоре мне подсказали обратиться к писаниям старца Софрония и учению святого Силуана Афонского. После прочтения жития Святого Силуана, я посетил монастырь старца Софрония в Англии. Вернулся оттуда только спустя несколько месяцев. Это поворотный момент в жизни – начало моего духовного становления. В это же время мы приняли совместное решение с семьей о переезде в Грецию, где в течение года пробыли в Салониках. Находясь в этой стране, мы погрузились в “живое сокровище Православия” – посещали службы, читали жития Святых, поклонялись мощам, получали ценнейшие советы от мудрых старцев, словом, были под сильным впечатлением. В течение этого времени мы посетили много монастырей, и я совершил около 12 поездок на Святую Гору Афон. Когда я готовился покинуть Грецию, настоятель монастыря, приснопамятный старец Джордж (Kapsanis), дал мне иконы, ладан, перекрестил и в благословение поведал: «Вы получили редкую честь побывать здесь, служа в монастыре и изучая традиции в непосредственной близости от Святынь. Теперь Вы должны вернуться в Америку и передать то, что получили».

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Эти слова послужили мощной духовной подзарядкой. После того, как мы вернулись в Америку, в течение последующих 10 лет, а то и более, я каждый год возвращался в Грецию и проводил нескольких месяцев на Святой Горе Афон или близ Салоник. – Вы также проводили миссионерскую деятельность в разных странах. Расскажите, пожалуйста, об этом опыте. Как люди различных культур со своими жизненными, социальными устоями и традициями воспринимают Учение Господа нашего Иисуса Христа? – Безусловно, для меня это было чудом и особой благодатью побывать с миссионерской деятельностью в нескольких странах – Гватемале, Непале и на Филиппинах. В каждой из этих стран я обнаружил, что люди имеют подлинный интерес к изучению Православия. Когда я бывал в различных местах в этих странах в одежде священника – в рясе и с крестом, люди подходил ко мне, чтобы спросить, кто я такой и какую религию исповедую. В каждой из этих стран я обнаружил, что «поля годны для сбора урожая», однако, очень немногие из православных христиан готовы служить в качестве миссионеров, из-за чего теряются многие возможности. Большую часть времени я провёл в Непале, и если бы я не заболел от отравления в долине Катманду, то всё еще был бы там. Непал – удивительная страна. Люди очень дружелюбные и искренне слушают проповеди о Вере. Основная часть людей является индуистами, но более в культурном отношении, чем в духовном. Однако в целом, если так можно выразиться, страна находится в духовном отношении на “темной стороне”. Эта сфера духа гораздо более заметна. Люди поклоняются многим идолам и богам. Одержимость демонами является обычным явлением. Поскольку не было никаких других православных христиан рядом, я был духовно угнетен. По этой причине не следует выполнять миссионерскую деятельность в одиночку на протяжении длительного времени. До сих пор каждый месяц я получаю электронные письма от людей в Непале. Очень надеюсь, что в будущем они смогут посещать богослужения в Церкви, в настоящий же момент ни одного храма там нет. Необходима команда православных верующих, которые жили бы там, каждый день служили, и тогда у населения была бы возможность прийти и посмотреть (или, как мы говорим, «попробовать и увидеть»).

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**ANNOUNCEMENTS**

•On Friday, January 6th, 2017, we will begin the services for the Great Feast

of the Nativity of Christ, starting with Royal Hours at 8:30AM, and then later in the evening, a Compline Vigil beginning at 9:30PM, immediately followed by the “Midnight” Divine Liturgy. This custom is followed by both Patriarchs of Jerusalem and Moscow.

•On Thursday, January 19th, 2017, the Great Feast of the Theophany will be celebrated. Divine Liturgy will begin at 8:30AM, followed by the blessing of the waters. On Wednesday evening, Jan 18, at 6:15PM, we will serve the Vigil.

•On Wednesday, February 15th, 2017, the Great Feast of the Meeting

of the Lord will be celebrated at 6:00AM. The Great Vespers will be served the previous evening, on February 14th at 6:15PM.

•Great Lent begins on Monday, February 27th, 2017.

•We will also have Divine Liturgies scheduled for: Wednesday, January 11 at 6:00am (14,000 Holy Innocents killed under Herod) Saturday, January 14 at 8:30am (Circumcision of Our Lord) Wednesday, January 25 at 6:00am (St. Sava of Serbia) ***Please see included calendar for additional service schedule***

Holy Theotokos of Iveron Russian Orthodox Church

845 Queen Street #101

Honolulu, Hawaii 96813

http://www.orthodoxhawaii.org

email: contact@orthodoxhawaii.org

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