Checking on Our Neighbor

The importance of keeping an outreach list

It has grieved me to read about the countless individuals who have passed away alone, their families prevented from being at their bedside for those final moments of life. Not being able to hold the hand of a beloved parent or relative, during their last breath, has got to be one of the most painful moments in the life of any family, but magnifying it by hundreds seems unimaginable.

As a priest, visiting the sick and dying has always been one of the most important ministries I’ve carried out. I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve visited by their deathbed, reading the Prayers for the Departure of the Soul, and comforting them in their last moments. Witnessing countless individuals holding the hand of their family member, and sharing how important they were in their life, is so critical to what it means to be human.

My own mother died in my arms, many years ago. As her breathing became ever more labored, I held her hand, and whispered in her ear how grateful I was for having had her as my mother. I remember kissing her on her cheek, moments before she died, assuring her that I loved her, and that she would ever remain in my heart, and in my prayers.

Think of the countless lonely people who are sequestered in their homes and apartments, desperately fearing for their own future, while missing the companionship of their friends and neighbors. Think of all the single people whose social life has been based in the local church, now deprived of their spiritual family, as well as the Eucharist. All this, without even having the hope that the locked doors of neighborhood businesses, coffee houses, restaurants, churches, and even neighborhood parks, may open for another month or more.

What can we do? I for one have created a contact list, with the names, email addresses, and telephone numbers of people I care about. I have been making a concerted effort to call or email everyone on that list at least once every week or two. I want to let them know that I have been thinking about them, and praying for them. I want to let them know that I covet their prayers, and that I miss them.

When we hear that the suicide rate is rising accross the nation, we have got to realize that there are many individuals who have lost hope, and in their loneliness, are near to giving up. Knowing this, we must let this serve as a catalyst to action. Just because we may have family around us, does not mean they do. Now is the time for us to let those who mean so much to us, know we care!

With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon

Thursday April 9, 2020 / March 27, 2020
Sixth Week of the Great Lent. Tone one.
Great Lent. By Monastic Charter: Food without Oil
St. Matrona of Thessalonica (4th c.).
Martyrs Manuel and Theodosius (304).
Venerable John the Clairvoyant of Lycopolis, anchorite of Egypt (394).
Venerable Cyricus (Quiricus), monk, of Thrace.
Prophet Hanani (Ananias).
Venerable Paul, bishop of Corinth (ca. 925).
Venerable Paphnutius, disciple of St. Anthony the Great (4th c.).
St. Ephraim of Rostov (1454).
Venerable Alexander, abbot of Voche, near Galich (on the Volga) (16th c.).
St. Anthony, metropolitan of Tobolsk (1740).
Icons of the Most Holy Theotokos on Mt. Athos “Glykophylousa” (“Sweet-kissing”) and “Of the Akathist”.
St. Rupert, bishop of Salzburg (718).
Martyrs John and Baruch (Greek).
St. Eutyches, monk (Greek).

The Scripture Readings

Isaiah 65:8-16

8 Thus says the Lord:

“As the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, ‘Do not destroy it,
For a blessing is in it,’
So will I do for My servants’ sake,
That I may not destroy them all.
9 I will bring forth descendants from Jacob,
And from Judah an heir of My mountains;
My elect shall inherit it,
And My servants shall dwell there.
10 Sharon shall be a fold of flocks,
And the Valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down,
For My people who have sought Me.

11 “But you are those who forsake the Lord,
Who forget My holy mountain,
Who prepare a table for Gad,
And who furnish a drink offering for Meni.
12 Therefore I will number you for the sword,
And you shall all bow down to the slaughter;
Because, when I called, you did not answer;
When I spoke, you did not hear,
But did evil before My eyes,
And chose that in which I do not delight.”

13 Therefore thus says the Lord God:

“Behold, My servants shall eat,
But you shall be hungry;
Behold, My servants shall drink,
But you shall be thirsty;
Behold, My servants shall rejoice,
But you shall be ashamed;
14 Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart,
But you shall cry for sorrow of heart,
And wail for grief of spirit.
15 You shall leave your name as a curse to My chosen;
For the Lord God will slay you,
And call His servants by another name;
16 So that he who blesses himself in the earth
Shall bless himself in the God of truth;
And he who swears in the earth
Shall swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My eyes.

Genesis 46:1-7

Jacob’s Journey to Egypt

46 So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2 Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

3 So He said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. 4 I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.”

5 Then Jacob arose from Beersheba; and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob, their little ones, and their wives, in the carts which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 So they took their livestock and their goods, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and went to Egypt, Jacob and all his descendants with him. 7 His sons and his sons’ sons, his daughters and his sons’ daughters, and all his descendants he brought with him to Egypt.

Proverbs 23:15-24:5

15 My son, if your heart is wise,
My heart will rejoice—indeed, I myself;
16 Yes, my inmost being will rejoice
When your lips speak right things.

17 Do not let your heart envy sinners,
But be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day;
18 For surely there is a hereafter,
And your hope will not be cut off.

19 Hear, my son, and be wise;
And guide your heart in the way.
20 Do not mix with winebibbers,
Or with gluttonous eaters of meat;
21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,
And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.

22 Listen to your father who begot you,
And do not despise your mother when she is old.

23 Buy the truth, and do not sell it,
Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.

24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,
And he who begets a wise child will delight in him.
25 Let your father and your mother be glad,
And let her who bore you rejoice.

26 My son, give me your heart,
And let your eyes observe my ways.
27 For a harlot is a deep pit,
And a seductress is a narrow well.
28 She also lies in wait as for a victim,
And increases the unfaithful among men.

29 Who has woe?
Who has sorrow?
Who has contentions?
Who has complaints?
Who has wounds without cause?
Who has redness of eyes?
30 Those who linger long at the wine,
Those who go in search of mixed wine.
31 Do not look on the wine when it is red,
When it sparkles in the cup,
When it swirls around smoothly;
32 At the last it bites like a serpent,
And stings like a viper.
33 Your eyes will see strange things,
And your heart will utter perverse things.
34 Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,
Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:
35 “They have struck me, but I was not hurt;
They have beaten me, but I did not feel it.
When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?”

Do Not Envy Evil Men

24 Do not be envious of evil men,
Nor desire to be with them;
2 For their heart devises violence,
And their lips talk of troublemaking.

3 Through wisdom a house is built,
And by understanding it is established;
4 By knowledge the rooms are filled
With all precious and pleasant riches.

5 A wise man is strong,
Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength;