September 15, 2015
Howell, NJ: Metropolitan Jonah & Bishop Nicholas lead Patronal Feast of St. Alexander Nevsky Diocesan Cathedral

On Friday the 11th and Saturday the 12th of September, festivities were held at St. Alexander Nevsky Diocesan Cathedral in Howell, NJ in honor of the church’s Heavenly patron. On September 11, prior to the start of the All-Night Vigil, His Grace Nicholas, Bishop of Manhattan, accompanied the wonderworking Kursk Root Icon of the Mother of God to the cathedral.

On September 12, the very day of the feast, the clergy and faithful greeted His Eminence, Metropolitan Jonah, who celebrated the festal Divine Liturgy. His Eminence was co-served by His Grace, Eastern American Diocesan vicar Bishop Nicholas, New Jersey dean Protopresbyter Valery Lukianov, Archpriest Mark Shinn (rector of St. Andrew’s Naval Cathedral in Philadelphia, PA), diocesan secretary Archpriest Serge Lukianov, Archpriests Liubo Milosevich (rector of Holy Trinity Church in Vineland, NJ), Rafael Melendez (Albanian Orthodox Church), Boris Oparin (rector of St. Joasaph of Belgorod Church in Brooklyn, NY), and Leonid Goferman (rector of Holy Virgin Protection Church in New Brunswick, NJ), Hieromonk Yeliferiy (Skiba; cleric of "Inexhaustible Chalice" Church in Brooklyn), Priests Seraphim Chemodakov (cathedral cleric), Dmitri Don (rector of Sts. Cosmas & Damian Church in Passaic, NJ), and James Doughtery, Protodeacons Nicholas Lukianov, Leonid Roschko, and Paul Drozdowski (cathedral clerics), and Deacon Petr Utkin (cleric of Holy New Martyrs & Confessors of Russia Church in Brooklyn).

At the Little Entrance, for his longtime service to the Holy Church, Fr. Leonid Goferman was elevated to the rank of archpriest.

A multitude of the faithful from New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania gathered in the cathedral for its patronal feast day, to pray before the Protectress of the Russian Diaspora, and to lift up their prayers to the Holy Right-Believing Great Prince Alexander Nevsky. That day, many of them communed of Christ’s Holy Mysteries.

Specially commemorated at the Great Entrance on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of his blessed repose was Bishop Alexander (Mileant), formerly of Buenos Aires & South America.

Upon completion of the service, Metropolitan Jonah addressed the faithful with a sermon:

"The Holy Right-Believing Prince Alexander Nevsky was a faithful Orthodox Christian from his youth; he defended the unity of the nation, the culture, and the Church; he loved his homeland deeply and stood firmly against her enemies," His Eminence said. "His courage should inspire us, modern-day Christians, who are called upon to do battle with external and internal enemies of the nation, the Church, and our salvation. At the end of his life, the Great Prince Alexander Nevsky accepted the spiritual calling of the monastic life, and thus began to defend his people through prayer. We must remember all of the warriors who labor in the monasteries, who do battle with the invisible enemy, and follow their courageous example. Living in our world, we must always be warriors like them; we must never surrender to enemy forces – the spirit and influence of the world – which lead us away from the true path of salvation.

"In order to be a Christian today and stand in opposition to the world, we must be brave," continued Metropolitan Jonah. "Christianity cannot be politically corrupted, but modern culture refuses life according to Christian morality… And so each one of us, no matter which continent we live on, no matter which social group we belong to, must stand firm for the integrity and purity of our Faith and our culture."

The traditional procession was held around the cathedral with the Kursk Root Icon. Parish schoolchildren participated in the procession, holding icons.

On behalf of Metropolitan Hilarion, Bishop Nicholas sincerely congratulated Metropolitan Jonah and the clergy and parishioners of St. Alexander Nevsky Diocesan Cathedral on the occasion of the feast; the protodeacons and choir intoned the Polychronion for the serving clergy, those who labor and pray in the celebrant cathedral, and the namesday celebrants themselves. His Grace recalled the words spoken by the Heavenly patron of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral: "God is not in strength, but in truth." "The Mother of God is with us in her Kursk Root Icon," said Bishop Nicholas. "God’s Mother contained within herself and gave birth to the Son of God – Jesus Christ, the Light of Truth. This Truth, about which St. Alexander Nevsky spoke, came to earth through her. Let us repeat and defend these words of the saint, living in a manner befitting Orthodox Christians, and supporting one another in this endeavor."

Bishop Nicholas called on the faithful to pray for their diocese and for the Synod of Bishops, "that we might all live in truth, through the prayers of St. Alexander Nevsky."

In honor of his festal service, cathedral dean Fr. Serge Lukianov presented Metropolitan Jonah with an icon of St. Alexander Nevsky.

The cathedral sisterhood prepared a delicious and bountiful luncheon for the clergy and parishioners in the larger parish hall.

Media Office of the Eastern American Diocese