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September 7, 2011
Jordanville, NY: Celebrations in honor of St. Job of Pochaev were held in Holy Trinity Monastery

Every year in September, on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend, Holy Trinity Monastery triumphantly celebrates the memory of the monastery’s Father and Heavenly Intercessor, St. Job of Pochaev. This year, the celebration of St. Job took place on September 3rd and 4th.

The divine services were led by the monastery abbot, Archimandrite Luke (Murianka), co-served by visiting clergy: Archpriest Wsewolod Drobot (rector of the Nativity of the Mother of God Church in Albany, NY), Eastern American Diocesan secretary Archpriest Serge Lukianov, Archpriest Michael Taratuchin (rector of St. John of Kronstadt Memorial Church in Utica, NY), Priest Evgeny Shchukin and Deacon Philosoph Ullman (clerics of the Montreal & Canadian Diocese), and monastery clergy.

On Saturday, on the eve of the feast, the clergy and worshipers who had gathered at Holy Trinity Cathedral set off for the monastery cemetery to the Dormition Church to greet the Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God. Upon returning to the main cathedral, Fr. Luke led the faithful in singing the akathist to the great God-pleaser St. Job before the icons of the Pochaev Mother of God, the Kursk Root Mother of God, and St. Job. All of t he faithful received copies of the Kursk Icon in honor of the 75th anniversary of the blessed repose of Metropolitan Antony (Khrapovitsky), first Primate of the Church Abroad. The festal All-Night Vigil was then served.

On Sunday morning, the early Liturgy was celebrated in Holy Trinity Cathedral’s lower Church of St. Job of Pochaev. The festal Divine Liturgy in the upper church was celebrated by Fr. Luke, co-served by the above-mentioned clergy. During the Great Entrance, Archbishop Nikon (Rklitsky; formerly of Washington & Florida) was commemorated, on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of his blessed repose.

With the blessing of Fr. Luke, during the communion of the clergy, Fr. Serge Lukianov delivered the following sermon:

We’ve gathered today in this holy monastery to honor the holy God-pleaser St. Job of Pochaev and venerate the copy of the wonderworking Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God. Today we also prayerfully commemorate the 35th anniversary of the blessed repose of Archbishop Nikon, one of the most outstanding hierarchs of the Church Abroad.

 

The feast of St. Job has been celebrated for centuries in Holy Russia. In one of his remarkable sermons, Archbishop Nikon spoke about the history of this national feast day:

 

"Once, not long before the Great War, tens of thousands of worshipers would gather at the Pochaev Lavra for [the great feast of St. Job of Pochaev]. Then-Archbishop Anthony of Volyn, future founder of the Russian Church Abroad, would summon the faithful to the Pochaev Lavra on these days. And these feasts were dear to the hearts of the people. Having persevered the harsh summer, having gathered their harvests in the fields, farms, and gardens, the Orthodox residents of these western lands, oppressed by their heterodox neighbors, came fervently to the Pochaev Icon of the Mother of God and to St. Job of Pochaev in his grandiose Dormition Church."

 

And we, brothers and sisters, living abroad, far from our homeland, have continued this good tradition, for decades gathering here, at Holy Trinity Monastery, filling this marvelous Holy Trinity Cathedral to capacity. But why are we here? Why should we gather here every year? We came to this holy monastery to drink from the spring of eternal salvation.

 

As administrator and ruling bishop, Archbishop Nikon elevated the Diocese to great spiritual heights, because he supported his clergy with fatherly love and summoned the people to the Holy Church. If people would live in the Church and by Her laws, then life on earth would no longer be difficult, because all of Church life is built on prayer and obedience. If we will attend services often and repent of our sins, then everything else will be added to us. Our common life in the Church is a reflection of our internal spiritual life. If within us are love and co-suffering, then we will strive to help and support one another. If in our souls we will harbor envy and pride, then we will foster only vengeance and jealousy, to the rejoicing of the evil one, who ceaselessly seeks to tear apart the one Church – the raiment of Christ.

 

Archbishop Nikon said that, "The Holy Church is the true Teacher of life – She teaches Her children how rightly to live and how rightly to die. In this grace-filled School of life the Teacher is Christ Himself, Who invisibly abides in His Church and, through His Apostles and Saints and through the very life of the Church, teaches the world His teaching: ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen’".

 

Let us continue the legacy bequeathed to us by those countless elders, who for decades labored in this holy monastery. Indeed, many of us remember such beacons of Orthodoxy, such shining examples of piety, as Metropolitan Laurus, Archbishop Vitaliy, Archbishop Averky, Archimandrites Panteleimon, Vladimir, Anthony and Sergius, and we often feel like orphaned children because these beacons are no more. But this is not really the case. They are here, they are with us! They lay at rest in the monastery cemetery, in the crypts, and even the holy walls of this church are filled with their rich spirit of love for Christ and the Holy Church. Ceaseless prayer in this holy monastery is the legacy bequeathed to us by our elders. If we will pay frequent visits to this monastery and draw from this grace-filled spring, then life on this earth will no longer be difficult and, God willing, we will be able to live together eternally with all the saints and our holy fathers.

 

May the Lord God help us, by the prayers of St. Job of Pochaev, to become worthy heirs of these holy elders and Archbishop Nikon, spreading the Gospel of Christ throughout the land. And if we accept this cross and dedicate our lives to serving Christ and His Holy Church, then we will become worthy to bear the name of Christian and will be saved and, in the words of St. Seraphim of Sarov, thousands around us will be saved. Amen.

Upon completion of the Liturgy, a moleben with procession around the cathedral was served. After the service, Fr. Luke greeted his co-brothers and all of the faithful on the occasion of the feast and thanked everyone for their prayerful participation in the feast of St. Job of Pochaev. On behalf of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, Fr. Serge greeted Fr. Luke and the monastery brethren. He also called upon all of the pilgrims to support the monastery: "In these difficult times, we must provide major financial aid to our monasteries, so that our monks may continue to unceasingly pray for our salvation and for the whole world."

After lunch, everyone gathered at the monastery cemetery for a panihida for Matushka Elizabeth Olhovsky (wife of monastery cleric and guardian of the Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God Deacon Nicholas Olhovsky), who reposed on September 8, 2010. Fr. Luke led the panihida, co-served by several of the clergy.

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