The Orthodox Church was founded by our Lord Jesus Christ and is the living manifestation of His presence in the history of mankind. The Orthodox Church is evangelical, but not Protestant. It is Orthodox, but not Jewish. It is Catholic, but not Roman. It isn’t non-denominational – it is pre-denominational. It has believed, taught, preserved, defended and died for the Faith of the Apostles since the Day of Pentecost over 2000 years ago.
Several themes emerge as the story of St. Raphael's life unfolds. The first is the mysterious way in which God led him from his native homeland to the shores of the American continent. The second is his submissive attitude to the providence of God. And the third is his love for the people of God. Though during his lifetime he was neither a wonder-worker nor a clairvoyant elder, St. Raphael embraced a life of total abandonment of self for the service of God and his fellow man: a life of true spiritual asceticism.
(from The Life of Our Father among the Saints Raphael Hawaweeny)
Our Father among the Saints, Raphael (Hawaweeny), Bishop of Brooklyn, was the first Orthodox Christian bishop consecrated on American soil. Traveling throughout the continent in the first years of the 20th century, he founded thirty parishes in North America. His feast day is celebrated in the Antiochian Archdiocese on the first Saturday of November. St. Raphael, a man of angelic name and apostolic fervor, was influenced by many cultures. He was born and raised in the Middle East, educated by Greeks at Halki and by Russians at Kiev, and he spent the last nineteen years of his life as a missionary in North America.
Troparion - Tone 3
Rejoice, O Father Raphael, adornment of the holy Church! Thou art champion of the True Faith, seeker of the lost, consolation of the oppressed, father to orphans and friend of the poor, peacemaker and good shepherd, joy of all the Orthodox, son of Antioch, boast of America. Intercede with Christ God for us and for all who honor thee.
25 Apr 2024 at 5:57pm
In today's edition of "Father, Speak a Word," Fr. Gregory Jensen and Fr. Anthony Perkins talk about the temptation of betraying their own callings by idealizing a romantic vision of monasticism and either trying to impliment it in their parishes or "wagging their tales" after it. They use Fr. Gregory's "Father, speak a word" substack article "Puppies Wagging Their Tales; Some thoughts about the...
24 Apr 2024 at 10:29am
The Way of Ascetics; Tito Colliander Chapter Twenty-Six: ON THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE
... The narrow way has no end: its quality is eternity. There every moment is a moment of beginning-the present includes the future: the day of judgment; the present includes the past: creation; for Christ is timelessly present everywhere, both in hell and in heaven. With the coming of the One, plurality disappe...
21 Apr 2024 at 10:59am
Homily on the Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt
Fr. Anthony compares the lives of the Theotokos and St. Mary of Egypt, noting that our path looks much more like that of the latter, especially given our culture's immersion in social media, consumerism, aggressive politics, and pornography. Thank God that he has given us His Way of salvation despite all this!