The German At the conclusion of the service we once again approached the holy icon, offering our final veneration. I joined the other monks, but I could not look upon her, shamed as I was. I prostrated, kissed the base of the holy icon, turned, and left the chapel. Wandering
Creating harmony out of chaos The inevitability of death is particularly difficult to face for most Americans, as we’ve become a people that eschew traditional funerals, preferring to “celebrate the life of our loved one, while disposing of the body, and banning any sign of death from the memorial service
must be grounded in the love of Christ If she be true to herself, the Church acts with an authority that is grounded in love. She holds within her realm the authority to make her people the children of God. She has the authority to forgive, and the capacity to
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood Inside the Great Lavra One’s first sighting of the Great Lavra is overwhelming. Constructed over a thousand years ago to withstand attacks by pirates, Latins, and Muslim invaders, it looks like the ancient medieval fortress town that it is. When entering the main
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood The Holy Community Arriving in Karyes, Father Basil and I proceeded to the Holy Community in order to present our passports and visas, thus gaining official entrance to the Holy Mountain, the world’s only monastic republic. Mount Athos is governed by an assembly
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood The Holy Mountain In May of 1989, a little over a year after moving to Vashon Island, my friend Father Basil Rhodes took me on a month’s journey to Greece. We spent time in Athens and Thessaloniki, before heading for our ten day
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood (part 4) The Move to the Island After packing our belongings we returned to the island from Oregon, with the camper so full we scraped the bottom as we drove onto the ferry. We gave thanks to God as we stood on the
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood (part 3) The House in Medford With the prospect of winter ahead, we knew our days of camping had come to an end. Visiting a small Orthodox mission parish in Medford, Oregon, we were invited to move into the vacant house next door,
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood (part 2) The Search In early 1987, after receiving a blessing from our bishop to relocate the monastery, we rented a storage unit in Santa Rosa, packed away our library, icons, and furniture, and left the Bay Area in search of our promised
And the flowering of a monastic brotherhood (part 1) In many ways this monastery was founded as one would plant a garden. The germination took place in a small blue collar house in a poor part of Richmond, CA, in 1983, where we struggled in a neighborhood constructed for ship