Wish List for St. George Orthodox Serbian Church
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The Voice † of St. George Summer2018 St. George Serbian Orthodox Church Western American Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church in North & South America Table of Contents: 3. Father Bratso’s Letter to the Parish. 4. Communique of the Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church. 7. Upcoming Pilgrimages. 9. Kosovo and Metohija: Between a Brutal Reality and a Normative Sanctity. By Bogoljub Sijakovic. 14. Morava news by Cristina Dukovich. 13. St. George Calendar of Events 16. St. George Parish News 18. On Second Commandment by Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov). 22. Zoe means life! Our Christian Initiative. 23. Our Graduates. 24. Из Америке до Кајмакчалана. Above: Father Velimir and Father Bratso serving Divine Liturgy Top right: Icon of Vidovdan (6/28), which will be celebrated on 6/24 26. Become a Festival Volunteer & Sponsor Front page: Pascha/Easter Service at Saint George 27. Manastiri Skadarskog jezera Diocesan Bishop: The Right Rev. Bishop Priredio: Predrag Grozdanić. Dr. Maxim (Vasiljevic) 29. Глас Цркве да се даље чује by Никола Diocesan website http://westsrbdio.org Ивановић ___________________________________________________________ Photography: Reader Radomir 30. Wish List for St. George Serbian Editors: Father Bratso, Ana Sedy, N. Valenti Orthodox Church. Mail your materials to Natalia Valenti at 31. Church Slava 2018. [email protected] FATHER BRATSO’S LETTER TO THE PARISH That we be in the same mind and the same judgment “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together conversing with the use of a mobile looking for the servants of the Lord, device reported lower levels of empa- we need more servants of our Lord! thy. Our Sunday luncheons are a very Our membership in the community important opportunity in overcoming and positions on committees and this challenge. After the Divine Litur- boards (councils) are a function. gy, we should all head to the hall to ‘break the bread’ and eat together. Contrary to belief, our parish Instead of sitting with the same per- membership and membership on any son at the same table Sunday after committee, organization or board Sunday, may I suggest to change that (council) is not a position and inactive habit and sit down at a different table, stance just to be fulfilled by mere Biblical approach to community and eat lunch with someone you presence, but it is function to be car- life, communication haven’t visited in the past. ried out. We function as baptized Or- St. Paul the apostle to the Gen- thodox Christians, as members of the Feel free to reach out to me. tiles and the founder of the church in royal priesthood, to proclaim the Gos- No concern is too small, no question Corinth, wrote these words to the pel of Christ, to help each other grow is unimportant, no suggestions are members of the Corinthian local in the grace and knowledge of Jesus unheard! church calling them to work together Christ. This requires growth, engage- on living and experiencing commun- Volunteers are scarce; I am looking ment, dialogue, questions and an- ion with God and each other. St. Paul for servants of the Lord swers but above all, prayer and a vi- deeply cared for this community that Another challenge for our sion. community is finding volunteers to was growing, but also was facing vari- Our vision ous challenges. work at various events that we have; We too as local community of simple tasks, such as setting up ta- Often, I hear talks about the St. George are growing, but we also bles, serving, cooking, etc. are in need vision of various people that have ac- face some challenges. By the glory of of volunteers. Often times, we have complished certain things in life. For God, we continue our ministries in short-term involvement but not much me, as an Orthodox Christian priest, terms of spiritual education, outreach, for the long-term. This could be there is only one vision that guides and activities, both social and liturgi- caused by lack of proper training, me in fulfilling all other tasks. This cal. overwhelming strain of tasks or there vision is our procession into the King- Challenges however, come to could be more underlying problems dom of God. This encompasses pray- us as a product of our modern way of that need to be addressed. er, participation in the sacraments living. We rely more and more on so- Our volunteers are a vital part (mysteries), reading of the Bible and cial media and communication via of our ministry. Let me point out and Holy Fathers, etc. electronic devices. This has positive recognize that some of you have God’s call; my call and negative effects. The positive ef- brought your friends to work with fect is that we are able to let you, you at our events. That is a fantastic I invite you all, my dear members of our community, know idea! Two thumbs up! By inviting coworkers and friends, to share this what services and events we’re hav- your friends to work with you, they vision with each other in unity of faith ing each week, etc. The negatives are have experienced the life of our com- being perfectly joined together in the that we are losing personal encoun- munity in action and fellowship. This same mind and in the same judgment. ters and face-to-face communication. truly distinguishes our parish from Let us work together, for only in such The research shows that people who many other parishes. It also assures a way will we be able to show others had conversations in the absence of our growth. the path that leads to the True Church mobile devices reported higher levels I personally look at our volun- of God – the Orthodox Church and of empathetic concern, while those teers as servants of the Lord. Yes, I am that we are true disciples of the Lord and spiritual children of St. Sava. 3 COMMUNIQUE OF THE HOLY ASSEMBLY OF BISHOPS OF THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH The public communiqué of the Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Ortho- dox Church from their regular meeting held at the Patriarchate of Pec monastery and Belgrade on April 29 – May 10, 2018 The regular meeting of the Assem- mission of the Serbian Orthodox at the end of the 19th and the dawn bly of Bishops of the Serbian Ortho- Church in the contemporary world, of the 20th century, in Kosovo and dox Church began on April 29, 2018 filled with both great spiritual chal- Metohija, and they are the follow- at the Patriarchate of Pec monas- lenges and temptations but also ing: tery with the joint serving of the ho- great possibilities for work on the ly hierarchical Divine Liturgy and spiritual renewal of the people. Grigorije of Pec, a monk at Mon- the invocation of the Holy Spirit and astery Pec, as Hieromartyr, whose continued at the Serbian Patriar- The most crucial decision was the liturgical commemoration will be chate in Belgrade, under the presi- decision of establishing new feast celebrated January 22/February 7; dency of His Holiness Serbian Patri- days in the calendar of the Serbian Vasilije, a baker from Pec, as a arch Irinej. Participating in the As- Orthodox Church, which in turn, martyr, whose feast will be celebrat- sembly were all diocesan hierarchs means in the calendar of the Ortho- ed April 29/May 12, of the Serbian Orthodox Church. dox Church as a whole. Namely, the Bosiljka Rajicic from the town of Assembly unanimously decided to Pasjana near Gnjilana, as a martyr, At the beginning of the meeting the canonize, add to the assembly of whose podvig will be commemorat- Patriarch addressed all the hier- saints, three individuals who, be- ed October 13/26, archs in attendance with introduc- cause of their firm commitment to tory remarks in which he pointed to their faith in Christ were killed by and those who suffered with them. the essential issue in the life and the Arnauts during the Turkish rule With the official liturgical glorifica- THE VOICE OF ST. GEORGE † SpringSummer 2018 4 tion and public proclamation of beautification of the Memorial an extremists continue their provo- these martyrs among our people, Church of Saint Sava on Vracar, on cations not only in Kosovo and Me- the Assembly crowned its work, at Christian education, on the work of tohija but also in the Diocese of the Church of St. Sava on Vracar, on the Holy Synod, the Patriarchate Vranje (Presevo); the Romanian the feast day of Burning of the rel- Administrative Board, the Founda- propagandists are intensifying ics of Saint Sava, May 10, 2018. tion for Kosovo and Metohija, the their actions against the canonical During the meeting of the Assem- benevolent foundations of the Ser- order of the Church in the Diocese bly at Pec Monastery, the hierarchs bian Orthodox Church of Timok and Branicevo, which visited Visoki Decani Monastery “Covekoljublje“, the pilgrimage they are doing in the framework of and Svete Vrace in Zociste near agencies “Dobrocinstvo“, the News ethnophylitism and the political Orahovac and the Serbian town of project of Romanian-ization of the Velika Hoca in the same region. Vlachs and the Vlach-speaking pop- ulation of Eastern Serbia; certain In hearing the reports regarding Bulgarian circles act similarly in the preparations for the celebra- the Diocese of Vranje (Bosiljgrad). tion of the 800th anniversary of the Particularly alarming is the state of independance (autocephaly) of the affairs in Montenegro, where the Serbian Orthodox Church, which state apparatus is conducting a dis- will be marked in 2019 and 2020, criminatory campaign against the the Assembly decided that during legitimate Metropolitanate of Mon- this year the 1,000th anniversary tenegro and the Coastlands and the of the Archdiocese of Ohrid be Diocese of Budimlje-Niksic, favor- commemorated in a prayerful and ing the insignificant dignified manner.