October 12, 2012
Nyack, NY: On the First Day of the Joint Pastoral Conference, Visiting Hierarchs Greeted the Delegates, and the First Lectures were Delivered

On Thursday, October 11, the joint pastoral conference of clergy of the Eastern American Diocese and the Moscow Patriarchate, dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the Reunification of the Russian Church, began at Holy Virgin Protection Church in Nyack, NY. The conference opened with a Divine Liturgy, led by diocesan secretary Archpriest Serge Lukianov. The Liturgy was sung by the diocesan Holy Myrrhbearers Women’s Choir.

The First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, His Eminence Hilarion, Metropolitan of Eastern America & New York, began the conference with an opening address.

With the blessing of His Holiness, Patriarch Kyrill, His Eminence Pavel, Metropolitan Ryazan and Mikhailov, arrived for the start of the conference, leading a delegation of Russian clergy to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Reunification. His Eminence was accompanied by Archpriest Alexey Olhovnikov (cleric of the Ryazan Metropolia) and Abbess Eugenia (Sviridovsky), rectress of the Vysha Holy Dormition Convent.

While still a bishop, Metropolitan Pavel served as Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA from 1991 to 2000, and so, for His Eminence, the anniversary of the Reunification of the Russian Church in the homeland and abroad is an event both understandable and significant and, in light of his eight-year tenure in the U.S., also long overdue.

"In recent years, many of our people have been moving abroad, and they always ask if they can attend church in foreign countries, where they can pray, and if they can confess and commune. And today there is no such barrier for us, the kind of barrier that only a few years ago we could not circumvent," noted Metropolitan Pavel. "I remember my stay in the United States, my interactions with the bishops, priests, and parishioners of the Russian Church Abroad, who long before the signing of the Act [of Canonical Communion – ed.] longed for unity. I think you all remember Bishop Mitrofan (Znosko-Borovsky, +2002). We met more than once, and he spoke about how even his predecessors dreamed that this barrier would be broken down, that we might serve and pray together.

"Truly, today is a day of great joy for us, because we can be together. But along with this joy, we – Orthodox Christians in America and Russia – face common problems. It is important for all of us to perform missionary work, bringing the Gospel to all people, because the secular life affects all of us."

Metropolitan Pavel compared the work of a priest, who works to cleanse and spiritually heal man’s soul, with that of a doctor or surgeon, who rejoices when he sees people regain their strength, newly healthy and happy.

"You know that there exists, among Americans as well as Russians, this line of thinking: Why do I need to go to church often? It’s enough to believe in your heart. In these cases, I often say that to believe in one’s heart is important, but then let us not go eat ‒ let us take our breakfast in our hearts, let us dine in our hearts. They reply that we can’t do that! Yes, the body must be nourished, but why don’t people want to feed their souls? And the soul is nourished in church, where the particular grace of the Holy Spirit is at work. One more example, just to be clear: we all have cell phones. The way in which they were designed roughly resembles man. Let’s use our phone, but never charge it. What happens? And they answer: ‘Battery is dead’. So too the soul dies, if it is not recharged with God’s grace in Church. It is precisely for this reason that the Orthodox Church and faith in Christ will always be a human need, if man wishes to live.

"But the Church offers us a worthy life not only on earth, but reminds us that Christ’s promise will be fulfilled in us: ‘I am with you, even unto the end of the world... Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world,’ Christ the Savior says to us. He suffered for us, He restored the broken bond between man and God, He made it possible for us to live worthily on earth and enter into the Heavenly Kingdom. Meanwhile, very little is asked of us: that we live worthily, live according to the commandments, not lie, not murder, believe in Christ; and then a path will open before us that leads to a spiritually healthy life on earth, as well as life eternal."

Metropolitan Pavel then presented the rector of Holy Virgin Protection Church, Archpriest George Larin, an icon of the Synaxis of Saints of Ryazan, on which are depicted 101 saints, who lived in Ryazan and have been glorified among the saints.

The current Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, His Eminence Justinian, Archbishop of Naro-Fominsk, touched on the topic of evaluating the path the Church has walked, both in the homeland and abroad. Archbishop Justinian also expressed his desire that a potent theological studies center be opened at Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, where the historical patterns and developments of the past and of recent years of now-united Russian Church life can be examined and evaluated.

A series of lectures was then initiated by the rector of St. John the Baptist Cathedral in Washington, DC, Archpriest Victor Potapov, who delivered a lecture entitled: "Icon of Unity: The Myrrh-Streaming Iveron Icon of Hawaii."

After lunch and a lively discussion, the diocesan media office organized an exclusive commemorative group photo of all of the delegates to the pastoral conference, with Holy Virgin Protection Church acting as the backdrop.

After the break, Archpriest Alexander Golubov, cleric of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA, delivered a lecture entitled "Reconsidering the Past, Reclaiming the Future: A Challenge for the Present."

After concluding the lecture portion of the first day of the joint pastoral conference, the delegates departed for a cruise on the Hudson River. Present on the cruise were several high-ranking representatives of the Russian Federation’s General Consulate, the Orthodox Church in America, the Association of Russian Explorers, St. George’s Pathfinders, Russian House "Rodina". Mr. Mark Selawry, President of the Fund for Assistance to ROCOR, delivered a special address to the gathered delegates, thanking them for their work on behalf of Christ’s Holy Church.

Photos of the first day of the conference

Photos of the cruise around Manhattan

Media Office of the Eastern American Diocese