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BERALD OP TB:I S1'. SAVA CHURCH OP BOSTON

OCTOBER 1995

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CPIICKA lIPABOCJIABHA UPKBEHA OIIIIITlfiIA HOB. CABA"

"~L ~(I\H1" ~rrhimt ®d~ooox 0111urd1.

OF BOSTON

33 W. Water street, Wakefield, MA 01880Phone: 617-246-9663

Raspored BogQs1uzenja

Subota 4. novembar u 9:00 - ZadusniceNedelja 5. novembar u 10:00 - Sveti Apostol JakovSreda 8. novembar u 9:00 - Sveti Dimitrije - MitrovdanNedelja 12. novembar u 10:00 - Sveti Kraj MilutinUtorak 14. novembar u 9:00 - Sveti Kosma i Damjan - VraciCetvrtak 16. novembar u 9:00 - Obnovjenje Hrama Svetog

Velikomucenika Georgija ­Djurdjic

Nedelja 19. novembar u 10:00 - Sveti PavleUtorak 21. novembar u 9:00 - Sabor Svetog Arhangela Mihaila

ArandjelovdanPetak 24. novembar u 9:00 - Sveti Kraj Stefan Decanski i

Sveta Kneginja Milica ­Mratindan

Nedelja 26. novembar u 10:00 - Sveti Jovan Zlatousti(osvecenje Kapele Sv. Save)

Schedu1e of Services

Saturday, November 4 at 9:00 - Memorial Saturday (parastos)Sunday, November 5 at 10:00 - st. JamesWednesday, November 8 at 9:00 - St. Dimitrios the

MyrrhflowingSunday, November 12 at 10:00 ·- St. King MilutinTuesday, November 14 at 9:00 - Sts. Cosmas and DamianThursday, November 16 at 9:00 - Renovation of St. George

the Great Martyr ChurchSunday, November 19 at 10:00 - St. Paul the ConfessorTuesday, November 21 at 9:00 - Synaxis of St. Archangel

MichaelFriday, November 24 at 9:00 - St. Stevan of Decani and

St. Princess MilicaSunday, November 26 at 10:00 - St. John Chrysostom

(consecration of our chapel)

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CPllCKA lIPABOCJIABHA UPKBEHA OIIlIlTlmA -oa CABA"

H~L ~ll\Hl" ~£rbimt 09rtqnbnx QII}11rrq.

OF BOSTON

33 W. Water Street, Wakefield, MA 01880Phone: 617-246-9663

Dear parishioners,

With God's help and the blessings of St. Sava, the longawaited dream of the Boston Serbs is realized; we finallyhave our own place to gather for worship and to be with oneanother. Congratulations to you on this great achievement!I would like to once again thank you all for your generoussupport. It really couldn't be done without you. Manythanks to all of those who donated liturgical items whichare necessary for church services. Now that we have our ownchurch, I am inviting you to attend services as frequently aspossible.

In the past few weeks our parish has been very active.In addition to church services, our Sunday School programbegan for our children. If you know of any other childrenwho may be interested, please refer them to our parish.There has been a rise in interest for an adult religionclass. If you would like more information on this, pleasesee me. We are also always looking for new choir membersto join us on Sundays. See Katarina Miljkovic, our choirdirector, for details.

Our parish started collecting money, clothing, food, andmedicine for the refugees from Krajina and Bosna. To date,we have collected and sent 150 boxes of clothing, as wellas, $4,485. We are continuing with these efforts because theneed of our sUffering people is great.

I would also like to remind you that our annual meetingand the election of officers will be held on Sunday,November 12th after the Divine Liturgy. All members pleaseplan to attend. .

Finally, on November 26, 1995, our church will beconsecrated during the Divine Liturgy by His Grace BishopMitrofan. This is a glorious event for our parish and weshould all come together to celebrate this day with ourBishop. A luncheon will be held after the Divine Liturgy atthe Knights of Columbus Hall in Wakefield.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Aleksandar Vlajkovic

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CPllCKA llPABOCJIABHA EllAPXHJA HcrotIHOAMEPHtIKATHESERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH - DIOCESE OFEASTERN AMERICA

The RJ. Rev. Mitrofan, Diocesan Bishop

THE CHURCH RELIEF COMMITTEE2110 Haymaker Road, Monroeville, PA 15146

V. Rev. Dragoljub C.MaUch Robert Rode Stone, EsquireChairman, (412;'372-4454 Co-Chairman, (412) 391-5540

FAX (412) 372-4454

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Heroso Ilpeocaenrrencrso, Enacxonrocnonaa MHTpoq,aH HOn60p EnapXHje sanOMoh J136ernHIIa xene na BaMHjroIUIHje 3aXB3JIe sa »IweM nneMeBHTOMnapy on $ IqOf)!l9eJx>HlIY sa nOMoh H36ernHIIa Hnenor Hamercrpananaor CpnCKor Hapona aa TepHTOpHjH6HBwe HnaHalIIlbe JyroncaBHje, D0ce6HOBocae H Xepneroaaae H Cpncze Kpajaae.

MonHMo ce Tocnony na Bac6oraTOaarpana saBawenneMeHHTO yqewhe y OOOMBaXHOM H3ajenHHtlKOM nonyxsary nay6naXHMo 60n Hnarae name crpananae6pahe Hcecrapa.

XBArrA BAM J1 EOr HEKA BACEJIArocnoBJ1.

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SEND ALL CHECK TO: Diocesan Church Relief CommitteeAttention: Nell Kozlina, 1608 Main Street, Aliquippa, PA 15001

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CPllCKA UPABOCJIABHA UPKBEHA OlllIITlffiA "CB. CABA"

"~t. ~11\1ll" ~trhinll @rf~DbDX Cllllurr~,

OF BOSTON

33 W. Water Street, Wakefield, MA 01880Phone: 617-246-9663

SPISAK PRILOZNIKA ZA DOBROTVORNI FOND EPARHIJE ISTOCNOAMERICKEOD 26 AVGUSTA DO 24 SEPTEMBRA

1. Milutin Matin2. Vera & Paul Hess3. Dmitar & Petra Brujic4. Srdjan Nickovic5. Milan & Dushanka Bjelotomic6. Ivanka Cvijanovic7. Jasmina Spector8. Mirjana Kondic9. Vera & Aleksandar Velickovic10. Zoran Zvonar11. Kiyoshi Igusa & Gordana Todorov12. 'David & Nada Sizemore13. Peter & Mimi Gregory14. David & Slavojka Sheehan15. Gregory & Mirjana Bishop16. Bette Denich17. Igor Najfeld18. Milan & Linda Obradovich19. Alexander Pancic20. Brian Milos21. Olga Rakich22. Serbian American Alliance (SANE)23. Dusan & Violeta Stanojevic24.' Rev. Aleksandar & Vera Vlajkovic25. Predrag G. Kovijanic26. Alexander Trbovich27. Mladen Spajic28. Zoran Coric29. Predrag Savic30. Costas & Olympia Statis31. Sinisa i Svetlana Mesarovic32. Sally Radovick33. Alex & Ljilja Grkovic34. Rasko Ojdrovic & Miljana Bovan35. SANE36. Anonymous

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CPEHH, A BEPA'JE CrrOPE~HO"!

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To Tii >KenHM Ii noaapanrsav.

EUUCKOU' Huxonaj, "cUI,,,,"

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miracles, butbysomething~moved theirhearts about him.•. Ifyouaskanyone whoknew Archbishop John what it was lhatdrewpeople tohim-and stilldrawspeoplewhoneverknew him-d1e answer isalwaysthesame: hewas overflowing with love; hesaaificed himself Cor hisCellow menoutoCabsolutely unselflSh love for God and forthem. This is why things were revealed tohim which could not get Ihrough 10 otherpeople and which he could never haveknown bynatural means."

FROMKHARKOV TO SHANGHAIArchbishop John was born Michael

Maximoviteh onJune4, 1896,in theprov­inceoC Kharkov in southern Russia. In hisCamily's ancestry was a saint Saint JohnMaximoviteh of Tobolsk, who reposed in1715 andwascanonized in 1916.

While growing up,Michael immersedhimselCin thelives oCsaints, not onlystudy­ingthem with a passion butalso striving 10emulate them. At Khatkov University hespent more time reading lhese lives thanattending classes; nonetheless he was anexcellent studenL

In 1921,during the Russian CivilWar,Michael and· hisCamily wereevacuated toP·~I~de, Yugoslavia, where he aucndedtheUniversity ofBelgradeandgradlJ4l,ed in1925 in IheCaculty of theology. In 1926hewas tonsured a monk withthe nameJohn,afterSaintJohn Maximovitch of Tobolsk.At thesametime hewasmadea hietOdea­con, and the Collowing year a hiClOmonk(priest-monk). From 192910 1934 he was ateacherand tutorat &he Serbian SeminaryofSaintJohn IheTheologian inBito!.Thereheserved the DivineLilutBY inGreekforthelocal Gn:dc and Mac:edonian communities,whohad the grealeSt esteem (or him.

In 1934 it was decided 10 raise Kaero­monk John 10 the rantof bishop. As (orFather John himself, nolhing was fanher(romhismind.AladywhoknewhimreJarcshowshemethimat thistimeon a streeu:arin Belgrade. Hetold bet tha1 he was in IOwnbymistake, having:bcen sent (or inplaceofsomeodlcrHieromonkJohnwhowas 10 beconsc:c:I3Ied bishop! When she sawhim therat dayhewormed bet that&he situationwas worse &han hehad Ihought: it was himIhcywished10 maIcc bishop! Wbca he hadprotcs&cd thatthiswas out or &he question,

since he hada speech deCect andcould notenunciateclearly, hehadoniy been IOld tha1theProphet Moses hadhad the samediffi­culty.

FatherJohnwasconsecrau:d bishoponMay28,1934,andassignedtothedioceseoC Shanghai. Heanived inShanghai in lateNovember, on the Feast of theEntranee ofthe Mother of God into the Temple, and(ound a largecathedr3J uncompleted andajurisdictional conflict 10 resolve. The rustthing hedidwas 10restore church unity. HeestablishedcontactwithSerbs.Greelcs. andU1a1inians. He paidspecla1 auention 10 re­ligious ectueation and madeit a rule 10 bepresent it the oralexaminations of theeat­echismclasses inalltheOr1hodoxscboolsinShanghai. HeatoncebecameaprotecIOI'ofvarious clwitable andphilandJropic s0cie­tiesandactively participated in their work.especially after seeing the needy circum­stances in which the majority of his flock,refugeesCromtheSovietUnion.wetep1ac:ed.Heneverwentvisiting fortealO therich.buthewas 10 beseenwherevet there was need,regardless oC timesandweather.

BishopJohnofficia!ed in theShanghaicathedral everymorning andevening, evenwhensick.Hecelebrated theDivineLiturgydaily, ashewas10 doCor therest ofhislife,and iCCor somereasonhe ~.Jld-not serve,he would still receive Holy Communion.NoMauer wbcre hewas, he would notmissa service.

Heworeclothing of thecheapest Chi­nese Cabric, and soft slippers or sandals,always without socks no Mauer what theweather.HeoCtenwentbareCOOl,sometimesaflCt having given hissandalsaway10somepoorman. Heevenserved theLiturgy bare­foot, Cor which hewas severely criticized.

Driven by divinelove, he visited thesickevery singleday. hearinC confessionsandgiving HolyCommunion.lClhecondi­lionoCa patient should bcccmc critical, hewould go 10 him at any hourof thedayornight 10 pra), at his bedside. CountlessmiraclesoChca1ing were pcdonnCdtJvoughhisprayers. During theJapane:seoc:c:upationorShanghai. it was exuanely dangerous 10

walk ontheSb'CC1Satnight.and mostpcoplelOOk care10 be homebydart. BishopJohn,however, paying no heed 10 the danger,continued to visitthesickand need)' at anyhouroCthe night.andhewasnever IOUched.

9,

With the comingof the communists,the Russians in China were forced onceagain to flee, most oC them through thePhilippine Islands. In 1949 approximately5,000 rdugees from theChinese mainlandwere living inan International Refugee Or­ganizationcampontheislandofTubabao inthePhilippines. Bishop Johnhimself went10 Washington. D.C.,10 get his people 10

America. He stayed Cor many days in suc­cession inthewaiting room oC them~ofexternal affairsuntil heexrracled theper­mitforhisthousands ofrefugees 10come totheNewWorld. includingthesick.whichnoonehadmanaged 10 dopreviously.

APOSTLE TO WESTERN EUROPEThe exodus of his flock from China

accomplished, BlessedJohn(bynow raised10 the rank oC Archbishop) was given in1951 a newfieldCor his pastoral endeavor.hewassent10 the Archdiocese oCWescemEurope, withhisS!= rU'St inParis,andlaterin Brussels. In Western Europe, hetooJc adeepinterestnotonlyin theRussians of theDiaspora, Cor whomheexerted himselCtire­Jessly inlaborssimilar10 those forwhich hehadbeen known inShanghai,butalso in thelocal inhabitants. His reputation forholi.ness spread among the non-C>rthodox I!'well as theOrthodox population. Inoneofthe Catholic churches oC Paris, a prieststrove10inspirehisyoungpeoplewiththesewords: "You demandproofs,yousaythatnow there are neilher miracles norsaints.Whyshould I give you theoretical proofs,whentodaytherewalksinthescrceuofParisa Saint-Saint Jean Nw Pieds (Saint JohntheBareCoot)."

As bishopof Western Europe, Aid\­bishop Johndemonsttated a Car-seeing ap­ostolic vision of thespreadof~y innon.Qnhodox lands. While in France, heoncesaid: ''Goda1Jowed theRussianRevo­lution 10take Place.inorder thattheRussianChurch mightbecome purged andpurifaedand that the Onhodox Faith might bedis­seminated across the whole world. •• TheChu.n:h isOne,buteachnation hasitsowncalling wilhin tha1 Oneness."

Once he was asked: "Nearly all the .peoples of the earth have had the Gospelpeached 10 them. Doesthismean thatil's&heendor the WClrId, as &he saipcuresflY?""No," he replied, -rbe Gospel or Christ

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icon made in preparation for the canonization of Blessed John (scheduled for summer, 1994)- ..

mustbepreached throughout theworldinanOrthodoxcomeu. Onlythenwilltheendcome."

This vision wasreflectedinArchbishopJohn's pasroral approach to individuals,brotherhoods, and young churches whichwere struggling tobring Orthodoxy tonewlands.Hisapproach isespecially insbUctiveto us as Orthodox Christians in the NewWorld, and therefore we will attempt todescribe it at somelength.

In 1952,ayearaftercomingtoWesternEurope, Archbishop John paid an unex­pected visitto the Dutch Orthodox. Monas­tery of SaintJohn the Baptist, on his owninitiative. This monastery, composed ofDutch converts to Orthodoxy, had as itspurpose theOrthodox mission to theDutchpeople, translating theDivineServicebooksintoDutch, andcelebrating theentire dailycycle of services in the Dutch languageaccording to theTypicon. ArchbishopJohninspected the monastery's whole church,the altarand all thatwas on it, the servicebooks,theicons. He stayedfor an hourormore and seemed very pleased with themissionary laborsoftheFathers there.Thenhesaidtothem, "U'youareever in difficul­ties, youcan come tome," and heleft

In 1953 themonastery and the wholeDutchOrthodox Church was in trouble.TheolherEascemOnhodoxChurchesfailedto appreciate theneed for the existence of aDutch Orthodox Church forconverts. TheDUlCh Church asked Archbishop John tobecome theirbishop, which he did inJanu­ary,19S4. ThismeantrealproleCtion fortheDutch Orthodox Church for as long as hew~alive. Hedefended the use of the Dutchlanguage forOnhodox SttYkes and otheradaptations to the Dutch situation, and hefought fortheyoung andvulnerable DutchOnhodox community against all kinds ofattacks.

He did the same for the OrthodoxChurch of France, composed of convertsfrom among theFrench people. In 1957 hemetthis Church'sfounder, thetalented andcreative Father Eugraph ~aJevskY; andtwo years later, at its ~uest. he lOOk theFrench Church under hisarthpastora1 pro­r.ection andcare. Hebecame veryactiveinhelping the budding Church, visiting itsparishes,blessingcbapels,ordainingprieslS,and Leaching at the Church's theological

schoolofSaim-Denis.BeingfleentinFrench,hecelebrated theDivine Liturgy thatFatherEugraph had researched and revived: theancient Gallic Rite of Saint Germain ofParis. usedinFrance before theChurch wassubjected to theSee of Rome.

Interestingly, although ArchbishopJohn hadbeen appointed as thelocal rulingbishopof theFrenchChurch,hedidnotatall tty to placeit under hiscontrol or undersome foreign bureaucracy. The FrenchChurch. Archbishop Johnbelieved. had 10havea bishop from among itsownpeople.and\he obviouschoicelayinFalherEugraph.Unfonunately, with theexception ofMetro­politan Anastassy,whosoonretired, all thehierarchsofArchbishopJohn'sChurch were

unwilling 10participate inFatherEugraph'sconsecration. As one Frenchman noted.however: "Nothing made ArchbishopJobn

. abandon an action when hedecided it wasthewill of God."Having been bythis timestationed in San Francisco. he meant toconsecrate Father Eugraph in that city'scathedral: and. against outspoken opposi­tion. hemadeFather Eugraph a bishop withthe helpof a Romanian hierarch whom hehimself had consecrated (Bishop Theophillonescu). At the consecration in the SanFrancisco Cathedral. he performed thean­cientGallicLlturgy.It was nothing lessthanrevolutionary to have-in this immigrantRussian church-such a strange yetsplen­didservice in the French language.

Why had Archbishop John been soldamant in helping &hcFrcnch Churchapinst aU opposition? He knewhe had10~ andcam (orevt:rJ smalJMtempt 10RSIClrC WCSlCmEul'ope10berburiedOnho­doz herilage. Univen:alOrIbodoxy had re­turned 10 the West. and it bad 10rand andcherish itsspiriIuaJ roots &here if it was 10thriveandSJOW. In 1960, wtWescrving theUlUrJ>' ofSaint Ocrmain (or &he rust time.ArchbishopJohnp-eached 10thefaithful o(France:--vlesinc:ad)'andwannI)'wish thatthe Orlhodox Faith, ruml)' restored inFrance,will once again become theFaith oftheFrench people as itisof theRussians, theSerbians, and the Greeks. May OrthodoxFrance berebom,andmaytheDivine bene­diction beupon thisOrthodox France!"

One ofArchbishopJohn's rU'St actsasbishop orwestem Europe was10establishthe proper foundation forthe veneration ofWestern saints in the Onhodox Church. In1952 hecompiled a list of Western saintswhountil thenhadnot been venerated bytheEasternChurch.Thishepresented tohisfellow hierarchs, saying that these saintsshould beglorified equallywithothersaints:andthelistwas approved.

ArchbishopJohn believed that. inwhat­everland anOrthodox Christian found him­self. itwashisresponsibility toveneralCandpray to itsnational andlocalsaints. Wher­ever Archbishop John had been-Otina,France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy.Serbia.Tunisia-he hadresearched theJivesofthelocalOnhodox saints. Hehadgonetothechurcheshousing their relics.performedservices intheirhonor,andaskedtheOnh~doxpriests !here todo likewise. By the endof his )ifc. his knowledge or saints, bothWestern and Eastem. wasseemingly limit­less. AsanapostJe.hecalJed uponeach localsainthe learned about. each newbrotherorsister in lhe Body 0( Christ. 10 provideheavenly help inevangelizing new lands.

ASAINT INAMERICABlessed John wasappointed 10thedi~

cescofSanFranciscoandWestetn Americain November, 1962.Suddenly the RussianOrthodox community in San Francisco,.partly composed o( people whom he hadrescued from Communist China, becamealive. Donations poured in for the buildingoflhenew"Joy ofAllWhoSorrow" calJ1e..

dra!. Fellowships andcharities were eslab­Iished, and church activity in general in­creasedinawaveoCenthusiasm.Now inoldage. Archbishop John did not s1acIccn hispace atall. butc:ontinued visiting and pray­ing(orpeople in need dvoughoul the dayand nighL Onebishop whowas~10himsaidtha1. ithehimsdfwere to try 10followArchbishop 101m's schcduJe. he would bedead within two weeks.

kbishopdSlnFnncisco,Archbishop10hnputsreatemphasisonthevenerationofall thesaintsofAmc:rica. including themostlocaloraU saints, theNativeAmerican PeaertheAleut. whosulI'ered martyrdom in SanFrancisco. Archbishop 10hn had an espe­ciallygreatdevotion toBlessedFatherHer­man ofAlaska as aparron of theAmericanOrlhodox mission. In 1962.whenpresenledwilh anicon ofBlessed Herman depicted ina halo, the Archbishop did not hesitalC tovenerate andpraybefore it.despite thefactthatFather Herman wasnotyetcanonized.On the anniversaty of Blessed Hentian'srepose in 1965. he made this veneration'public by bringing the icon intolhecathe­dralandhaving the choirsingthetroparionhymn to thesainL At the sameservice heexpressed his hopes for America throughthe heavenly in~ion of Blessed Her- ,man. Hetried togetother hierarchs to takepart ina jointcanonization of Father Her­man. which finally occurred in 1970. fouryears afaer Archbishop John'sdealh.

Althoughhamperedbyalimiledlcnowl­edgeor English, Archbishop 10hn was de­termined thatthe fullness of Orthodoxy bemadeavailable toAmericans intheirnativeIOnguc. Whenhecameto SanFrancisco,the local church publication P'avoslavnyBlogovcstnik (Orthodox Mustn,t') hadbeensolely inRussian. Hesaidhewanted atleast oneanicle inEnglish 10beinclUded ineach issue. He was SO ldarnantthat not asingle issue be without an English IIt.icIcthathewould callbleat nightorearlyinthemoming 10makesurethe·anic:1e had beensubmiued 10 the press. The main wriacr oCthese ankles was an American convert toOnhodoxy,the(utureFathc:rSalphimRose.

At the beginning or 1966 ArchbishopJohn decreed that an English UlUrJ>' beservedintheSanFranciscocathedra! onthefll'St Sundayoreverymonth; and hehimselfcclebraled the fll'SlsetVice. Hewasverysup-

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ponive of the efforts of thenewly formedFather Herman BrolheriJood 10inlrod," Or­thodoxy 10 Amc:ricans. rustlhrough a cilY­storefront Onhodox book and icon cenLe:'(the fllSt of its kind in America), and thenthrough Orthodox publications inEnglish.

These aw:mpts of Archbishop John tomake Orthodoxy available to theEnglish­speaJcing world maynotseem impressive tothe reader or the present day, now that somuch Onhoclox malCrial has come out in

• English. Butonemust remember &hat. untilArchbishop John came10 thecathedral inSanFrancisco.evetything there was inRus­sianorSlavonic, andnoonehadthe vision10see thatanythingelsewas needed. AtthaItime, very (ew Americans were conveningto Orthocloxy,and those who didwere usu­ally intellectuals who learned Russian orGreekand lOOk theirplaceasfOSlUchildrenin ethnic Orthodox communities. Arch­bishop10hnwas truly apioneer inhiserronto tum thissituation around. and itiscertainthat hewould havedone much. much morehadhebeen granted to live longer here inAmerica.

Another pointabout Archbishop Johnthathas relevance to the American Onh<rdox mission is that he said lhere was "nosuch thing" as separaled Church '1urisdic­tions." Although in an old-c:alendar. anti·

"sovietChurch,heconce1ebra1edwilhcletgyfrom new-e:aJendar Churches andfrom theofficial Church inRussia. which wasat thattime under Soviet domination. He evencommemorated the Patriarch of Moscow.Alexis I,alongwithhisown chiefhierarch,Metropolitan Anastass)'. All these actionswere considered absolutely taboo bymanyof hisfellow bishops. butArchbishop John(ollowed hisconscience. not thepanyline.

Thiswas oneo( thereasons why,lllheend of his lite. Archbishop John endured afierce persecution.ditected againsthim byataction within hisown parish andinstigatedandenc:ouraaed by someofhisown brotherbishops. Itisa sad indic:lmentagainSl usOr­thodolt Amcric:ans thatthistrue Aposl1eandSainthadtoundergo theworsttribulation ofhislifeduring the relatively brier time (only1hreeandaha1(ycars) helivedhere inAmer­ica-andnotat thehandsofAmericansecu­larism or liberal politics or themass media.butat the handsof0r1h0d0x Christians likeourselves,whodidnathingworse Ihan listen

10public"church" opinion.Blessed John's persecution began

when a document began 10 be circulatedworldwide bypeople in the CIurch, accus­ing himof having communist sympathies.Whenthisfalled 10oust him!rom hisepis­copalposition, he was forced 10appear inpubliccoW't toanswerchargesofconceal­ing financial dishonesty by the parishcouncil. The IriaI lasted three days andmade front-page headlines. AU of &he ac­cusedwere completely exonerated, but the8CCusmcontinued 10inventnew charges,making appeals 10thecourtalmostuntil&hetimeof Archbishop1ohn's'deadL

ItbrokeArchbishOp10hn'sheart10seesuchathingperpetrated byhisownbrothersin the faith and in theepiscopacy. To Oneclose parishioner he was known 10 havesaid, "I am alone in all this." He was fol­lowinghisMaster Christ 10Golgotha.andlikeHimheforgave his tormentors. Whenaskedwhowas 10blamefor a11&he churchdiscord that hadoccurred, he replied sim­ply."Thedevil."

A SEEDPLANTED INAMERICAN SOIL

On1u1y2(1une 19bythe1ulianQllen­dar). 1966, at the conclusion of a Lilt"3Y.•that he celebrated in Seaule, ArchbishopJohn spentthree hours prayingin &he altar.He then went 10 his room in the parishbuilding near thechurch. A&r a few min­uteshadpassed,hewasheard10fall Havingbeeit plac.ed inachairby &hose whozan 10helphim,hebreathedhislastpcacetulJyandwithlittleevidentpain.

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Evidently Archbishop 10hn had fore­seen his end some months in advance. InMay he had IOld a woman whom he hadknown formanyyears,"I willdie soon. attheendof]une •••not inSanFranc:isa>,butinSeattle." Again, on theevening beforeheleft for Seattle, he aslOnished a man forwhomhe had just done a church servicewiththewords, "Youwillnotkissmyhandagain."

The day after his death, Archbishop1ohn's body arrivedat the San Francisa>caL~,and therebegana vigilthatwas10lastforoverfourdays.Inall thesedaystherewas an extraordinary oucpouring of love.Everyone suddenly discovered himselfanorphan.for10each lheArdlbishophad beentheODeperson mostnear,mostunderstand­ing,mostloving.Hardenedenemiescameto beg forgiveness in death ofamanwhohad heldno iii-will for themwhileliving.

The vigil culminated in the funeral,during which nearly two thousand peopleoverflowed the largecathedral, theirnum­ber not diminishing for ·over six hours.There was a feeling of quiet joy, eventhoughthewholecongregation,aswithonevoice, was literally heaving withwaves ofloud sobs. When the body was carriedthree timesaround the cathedral after thetune:al, it was a veritable triumphal pro­cession. In the words of FatherSeraphimRose, who was present, "It was as it onewereauending, no longer &he fune:al of adeceased hierarch, buttheuncoveringoftherelicsofanewlyproclaimed sainL•

Thenextmorning,peoplewetealreadyat Alchbishop1ohn'ssepulchuundcmealh

the eathedraJ, praying 10him for hisinler­cession. In a pleadingvoicetheyspoketo

.the blessed one just as theyhadwhenhewas alive.Thus began Archbishop John'sposthumous veneration. Miracles beganhappening at hissepulcher, many ofwhichhavebeenrecordedandpublished;andupto thisdaytheycontinue10occurinthelivesof thosewhocallonhis heavenly help.

Archbishop 1ohn-a wonder-workerandapostJeofthesamestatureaslheancientsaints-bas walked the same Americanstreets that we walk. In laying his holy,incorrupt relics10rest on our ownsoil, hehasplantedaseedforthefuture blossomingorAmericansanctity. Butitisaseedthatwemustwaterwithour bloodandlCarS, fortofollow inhisfootsteps means10rollowJesusChrist Himself on the path 10 Golgotha,crucifying ourselves Out or love forGodandneighbor, and,whenbeing aucitled byothers,toendureitallinlhespiritotundyingdevotion.

FatherDamascene Christensen isamonJcoflhe Saini Herman of Alaska Monastery,Platina,California: lheeditorofTheOrtho­dox Word, and lhe auJhor of Not otThisWorld: The Lif~ and Teaching of FatherSeraphim Rose. ~: ~.•

Themainsource forthisarticle hasbeenthePrima Vila(F"ust Life)ot Alchbishop 10hnbyFatherSeraphimRose.ForthecomplClC!eXt of this Vita, together with numeroussource materialson Archbishop John'slite,SJ::eBlessedJoM 1MWOnUrworker(Sainl .Herman Bnxhethood, 1987).

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12

.CHRISTIAN CHARITY, COMPASSION AND MERCY

.'-. Just as, therefore, it is a vice of the stomach to retain and not distribute food,.and thus cause injury to the whole body; so likewise it is a vice to the rich whenthey retain among themselves those things which they possess for this injuresthem and others.

St. John Chrysostom. .

There are necessities without which life is impossible, for example, the fruitsof the earth are necessary, and if the earth does not produce, life is impossible.Clothing to cover us, a roof and walls, shoes-these belong to the necessities,but all other possessions are superfluous.

St. John Chrysostom

Behold how only a few things suffice for you; nor does God ask much of you.Seek as much as he has given you, and from that take as much as is necessary;the superfluous things which remain are the necessities of others. The super­fluities of the rich are the necessities of the poor. They who posses superfluities,possess the goods of others.

St. John Chrysostom

I know that God has given us the use ofgoods, but only as far as is necessary;and He has determined that the use be common. It is absurd and disgraceful forone to live magnificently and luxuriously when so many are hungry.

Clement ofAlexandria

Instead of giving to the poor man out of what is yours, you are but restoringsomething of that which belongs to him- For you have appropriated to be yoursalone the things that were given as a common possession for the use of all. Theearth belongs to all, not merely to the rich; yet those that enjoy their heritage arefewer than those that do not enjoy it. Consequently you do but pay a debt,instead of bestowing an alms.

St. Ambrose

Then they (the philosophers) regarded it as the office (requisite) ofjustice thatone should hold what is common, th3;t is, what is public, as public property, andwhat is private as one's own. The latter institution, indeed, is not according tonature; for nature has poured forth alrthings as a common gift for all. Thus Goddecreed all things to be produced in such a way that there would be a commonsubstance for all, and that the earth might be a kind of common possession forall. Nature, therefore, is the mother of common right, appropriation (usurpa­tion) (the mother) of private right.

13 St. Ambrose

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