April 9, 2012
Brooklyn, NY: Double Anniversary of Ordination on the Feast of the Annunciation – An Article by a Parishioner of "The Inexhaustible Chalice" Church

On Saturday, April 7, on the great feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, parishioners of the Church of Our Lady "The Inexhaustible Chalice," celebrated the coinciding of ordination anniversaries – ten years since the ordination to the diaconate of the rector, Priest Vadim Arefiev, and nine years since the ordination to the priesthood of his second priest, Priest Paul Ivanov.

The priests have been laboring for two years together in the same vineyard of Christ, and hadn’t even suspected the possibility of such a coincidence.

The small church cannot fit all those who come there desiring to pray, and for that reason the priests received a blessing from His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, to serve two Liturgies on Sundays and great feasts. By the grace of God, the church is full for every service.

For several weeks in a row, Priest Ilya Gun has been helping at the parish. Despite his 86 years, he is spiritually and physically vigorous. Fr. Ilya tries to prayerfully read the entire cycle of services in the church. When he visits our community, it is highly likely that one will find him in church at any point in the day, quietly reading a canon, the kathismas, or teachings from the Old Testament. The brethren of Mercy House react touchingly to him: "His simply cannot not be praying!" said Mercy House’s Head Brother, Oleg Komarin, about Fr. Ilya.

Owing to the petitions of the Orthodox Business Association (www.NashGolos.org), our communities recently received permission from the city government to serve the Paschal divine services and procession in local Seaside Park, on the corner of Ocean Parkway and Surf Avenue. This will be the first Orthodox Pascha of its kind in New York City’s history.

"This service, under the open sky, in the church not-made-by-hands, can be a missionary undertaking for us and a wake-up call from the Creator to the many denizens of the godless Brighton Beach!" Fr. Vadim said to his parishioners.

We ask your holy prayers, dear readers!

Parish Historian
http://www.svxram.org/church/help.html

Photos: Russell Rowland

Media Office of the Eastern American Diocese