Although the narration’s in Russian, after the first minute, there aren’t “talking heads”, so, it’s worth watching for the visuals. The video’s introduced by Fr Dmitri Sydor of the MP, the leader of the pro-Motherland Carpatho-Russian Orthodox nationalists. They want an autonomous Zakarpatya at least, although independence would be better (that would get them definitively out from under the Uniate boot).
BMD
After 105 years, the curtain came down at Holy Annunciation Macedonian Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church in Steelton PA. The final liturgy there was yesterday, Sunday 27 May 2012. There’s no further information publicly available.
BMD
On Sunday, an 11-mile journey over the mountains reawakened a custom at St John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Mayfield PA. About 30 participants, both local and visiting, gathered after the Liturgy to walk from the cathedral to St Tikhon of Zadonsk Orthodox Monastery in South Canaan Township in Wayne County, where the 108th annual pilgrimage is under way. After the liturgy, Protodeacon Joseph Matusiak, 37, said, “St Tikhon Monastery was founded in 1908 by a priest from this parish”. The pilgrimage used to be a tradition, but it had fallen into abeyance since the 1980s, after a division between the two communities. Matusiak went on to say, “A bridge has been built. This pilgrimage is part of that, walking in the footsteps of our forefathers”. He added that he hoped that the “grassroots” casual gathering of walkers would become a yearly tradition, joking that it’ll take that long to recover from the long, hilly, walk.
Fr John Kowalczyk, public relations director of the monastery, said that the people from Mayfield weren’t the only pilgrims headed to St Tikhon Monastery, saying, “There are people who are going to be travelling from different parts of the United States to arrive at St Tikhon’s. For the day, they are finding some solace and some peace to break from the regular mundane routine of a life filled with all sorts of anxiety. It’s an opportunity to pause and reflect on one’s spiritual life”. Events at the monastery shall continue on Monday with Divine Liturgy at 07.30 EDT at the Monastery Church. Hierarchical Divine Liturgy is set for 10.00 EDT at the open pavilion church. At 13.30 EDT, the Akathist to St Alexis will be sung at the church, and at 14.00 EDT, a service of Thanksgiving to the Most Holy Theotokos and anointing of the sick, infirm, and of all pilgrims is planned at the Monastery bell tower. Vespers at 16.00 EDT will conclude the pilgrimage.
27 May 2012
Wilkes-Barre (PA) Citizens Voice
http://m.citizensvoice.com/news/church-monastery-reconnect-through-pilgrimage-1.1321439
Voices from Russia 
Fr Aleksei Chumakov’s Statement on President Obama’s “Support” of Homosexuals is Impermissible Rightwing Filth and Shames Christ’s Church
Tags: 2012 US Presidential election, Barack Obama, cartoons, Christian, Christianity, Eastern Orthodox Church, editorial cartoons, Hilarion Kapral, History of the Eastern Orthodox Church in North America, Metropolitan Hilarion Kapral, Moscow Patriarchate, Obama, Orthodox, Orthodoxy, political commentary, politics, President, Religion, Religion and Spirituality, Republican, Republican Party, right-wing, ROCOR, Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, United States, USA
You know what to do… vote for the President… or we’ll get the world of The Handmaid’s Tale… it’s our choice…
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Read this. I’ll keep it simple and sweet… had Fr Aleksei merely commented on homosexuals, without mentioning President Obama, it’d be an acceptable part of the debate on a moral question. NOT “correct”… NOT “what the Church teaches”… but “acceptable”. He was definitely trying to influence people to vote against President Obama and to vote for Wafflin’ Willy. President Obama’s stance is MUCH more nuanced than what this rightwing jabronie trumpets in his post. To be blunt, the pastoral situation that he describes has been in existence for at least fifty years in the larger urban centres, and doesn’t exist yet in most rural areas, even now. It is NOT the creation of Barack Obama, NOT AT ALL.
In short, Rev Chumakov attacks the President for no good reason, which is impermissible in a cleric. Note well that he does NOT tell you that President Obama’s opponents want to shred the social safety net, turn over more of our society’s resources to the already-bloated fat-cats, and wage endless and pointless wars in foreign parts for their profit and benefit (should I mention Wafflin’ Willy’s dodging of the draft?). That being said, no Orthodox cleric is allowed to attack the civil authority as he did. Orthodox priests should stay out of politics… His Holiness has said that many times. Had he only mentioned the homosexual issue, it’d been within the acceptable limits of debate in the Church (not correct, not Churchly… but “acceptable”)… by mentioning the President, and by blaming the problem on the President, it was an impermissible politicising of a moral issue.
There’s a silver lining in this… such lying on the part of the rightwingers means that they’re scared of the President winning re-election. Come November, you DO have a choice. Vote for the President… it’ll be a vote for society that’s more just than that proposed by his greedster opponents. Don’t argue with rightwing scummers like the Rev Chumakov… all it’ll do is frustrate you and make you do something silly… mark that ballot in November. Don’t be misled by self-interested priestcraft…
Metropolitan Hilarion should make this jabronie rewrite this with all allusions to the President and other political figures and situations dropped. Now, that’s Christian… NO cleric is allowed to publicly state a political preference… that’s our special calling as lay people. Priests are figures of unity in Christ, not of partisan divisiveness… and our hierarchs should see to it that all priests follow that. I think that’s fair. This undisguised plug for the Republican Party should be taken off the ROCOR website… the sooner, the better.
Monday 28 May 2012
Albany NY
A Note from Abroad:
A Kitchen Cabinet member said:
I agree wholeheartedly. That’s why this is so nasty and obscene. Stick to the moral issue and leave the politics to us, Father. That says it all…
BMD