June 21, 2012 A Week of American Orthodoxy: A Young
Adult Monastery Pilgrimage
From
Saturday, May 25 to Monday, June 3, Eastern American Diocesan youth
took part in a weeklong adult monastery pilgrimage. After the annual
Memorial Day Pilgrimage Weekend at St. Tikhon’s Monastery in South
Canaan, PA, a small group traveled from there to the nearby Holy
Protection Greek Convent in White Haven, PA. They spent a day there,
learning about the convent and helping on the grounds. After this,
the group traveled to St. Nektarios Greek Monastery in Roscoe, NY,
where they were joined by some seminarians from Jordanville and
spent two nights.
On Friday, June 1, the group arrived at
Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY where they were met by
many other young pilgrims and began to help set up for Pentecost
weekend, cleaning and preparing food. Ephraim Willmarth gave a tour
to those who had never visited, and even those who had been to the
monastery before had a lot to learn.
The pilgrims attended the full Vespers and
Matins for the Departed, and afterward enjoyed a cookout of fish and
veggie burgers. On Saturday, after the Liturgy for the Departed in
the Dormition Cemetery Church, the pilgrims continued helping around
the monastery and then had a talk with Hieromonk Cyprian
(Alexandrou).
Pentecost services began with the reading
of the Communion Rule in the Sts. John of Kronstadt & Rila Chapel in
the woods, followed by dinner in the monastery refectory and the
festal Vigil in the monastery cathedral. Several pilgrims joined the
monks and seminarians in the altar and on kliros. On Sunday, they
attended and took part in the Hierarchal Divine Liturgy and Great
Vespers, with most partaking of Holy Communion. The youth continued
to socialize at the monastery luncheon, and although many had to
leave back to school and work, some were even able to stay for
services on Holy Spirit Day on Monday.
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"Eastern American Diocesewww.eadiocese.org."
