November 13, 2013
San German, PR: Metropolitan Hilarion celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Mission of St. John of the Ladder

On Sunday, November 10, during his Archpastoral visit to Puerto Rico, the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Mission of St. John of the Ladder (San Juan Climaco) in San German.

The small church was filled with parishioners and many local non-Orthodox people who were invited to come to the parish and experience an Orthodox Liturgy for the first time. "Orthodoxy is not very well known here," said Archpriest John Moses. "The purpose of this weekend was to introduce the locals to Orthodoxy, and I think that it went really well."

His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, was co-served by Archpriest Juan Carlos Rios (rector of Holy Protection Mission in Kissimmee, FL), Archimandrite Maximos (Weimar; abbot of Holy Cross Monastery in East Setauket, NY), and Archimandrite Nektarios (Harding; cleric of Holy Protection Mission), Fr. John Moses, parish rector Priest Gregorio Justiniano, Hieromonk Silouan (Justiniano; ceric of Holy Cross Monastery in Setauket), and Hieromonk Tikhon (Gayfudinov; Metropolitan Hilarion’s cell attendant).

During the Sixth Hour, the Metropolitan tonsured Seraphim Justiniano to the rank of reader. Seraphim is the son of Fr. Gregorio and has also been the parish’s chanter for several years, faithfully singing the services in Spanish.

During the Little Entrance, Fr. Gregorio was awarded the kamilavka for his dedicated service to the Holy Church, especially in his homeland of Puerto Rico.

Fr. Juan delivered a sermon after the reading of the Gospel, in which he called upon the faithful to follow the example of the Holy Apostles, whom the Lord commanded: "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15).

Upon completion of the Eucharist, His Eminence ordained Subdeacon Isidoro Valle, a native Puerto Rican, to the diaconate. The newly ordained Deacon Isidoro will fulfill his service at Holy Protection Mission in Kissimmee, FL.

The Divine Liturgy was served primarily in Spanish, with some English. Metropolitan Hilarion pronounced several exclamations in Spanish and performed most of the Eucharist in Spanish. Many of the local faithful were touched by His Eminence’s special effort to reach out to them in their own tongue. "It was a very important thing for me to hear the Metropolitan serving in my language. It made me feel respected," said Fr. Isidoro. "I spoke to some of the people who were not Orthodox and they were very much impressed by this – ‘He came and spoke to us in our own language,’ this is all that you heard them saying."

After the Divine Liturgy, the First Hierarch greeted the parish community and expressed his sincere joy at visiting Puerto Rico. His Eminence especially greeted all of the visitors who came to an Orthodox service for the first time, encouraging them to return and discover more about the True Faith of the Apostles. He also congratulated Fr. Gregorio on his well-deserved award and wished him renewed spiritual strength to continue his salvific missionary labors on the island.

In turn, Fr. Gregorio thanked his ruling bishop for taking the time to visit Puerto Rico and spiritually fortify his flock, that they might remain steadfast in their faith and attract others to Orthodoxy.

A diocesan Gramota was awarded to Fr. John and Matushka Alexandra Moses for their exemplary work with the Volunteers in Mission (VIM) Program. Fr. John led a group of volunteers who spent a week helping the mission prepare for the Metropolitan’s visit.

This was the fourth work trip organized by VIM since its conception in 2011. All of the members who participated in the VIM project in Puerto Rico were awarded Certificates of Appreciation from the First Hierarch.

A fiesta was organized on the grounds of the mission, featuring native Puerto Rican music and cuisine. The purpose of the fiesta was to introduce the Puerto Rican people, specifically those living in San German, to Orthodoxy. "We wanted to show the people of my community that our Church is a free Church," said Fr. Gregorio. "We can share music, art, and cuisine without sinning. The Protestant denominations in Puerto Rico teach the people that having a glass of wine or listening to secular music is a sin. One of the most beautiful things about Orthodoxy is that we believe in freedom, which has been given to us by God. The Orthodox Faith does not look down upon the local culture, but instead it embraces it."

Metropolitan Hilarion remained in San German until the following day before continuing to the country’s capital city of San Juan, where he will remain until his departure on Wednesday, November 13.

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