Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

            We enter now into the second week of the Great Fast. The first week was filled with so much richness… services everyday including the penitential Canon of St Andrew of Crete which sets us on our Lenten journey in just the right way. St Andrew’s Canon places before us so many highlights from the Scriptures, illustrating warnings for us of those who fell off of the right path toward God and also inspiring us with those who overcame everything to draw closer to God. We also were blessed with the consolation and strengthening of the Holy Gifts provided for us in the beautiful Presanctified Liturgies celebrated this past week. And having now come to the end of the first week, we celebrated on Sunday the ‘Triumph of Orthodoxy’ in which all the icons were set out on display – proclaiming and verifying the both the proper understanding of the reality of God having become incarnate, taking upon Himself and thereby sanctifying materiality… as well as the Church’s triumph over those heresies which would negate Christ’s true and full nature.

            And so now, we move forward into this second week… I pray that the good start we may have made amid that richness of the first week will stay with us. Hold fast and don’t fall backward… press forward in heeding the call of the Church to draw ever closer to Christ our God. This is what our Lenten fast is all about – drawing closer to Christ. May God give you grace and strength to assist you in that good effort!

            Our weekly Bible Study will resume again this week. Due to the Wednesday evening Presanctified services, during Lent we will be moving the class to Tuesday evenings at 7pm. We are continuing our study of the Gospel of St John the Theologian. All are invited to attend. The Zoom link is: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89738164102. 

Fr Andrew’s Catechism classes will also resume this week. These will continue to be at 6pm on Thursday evening. These classes are designed to prepare our Catechumens toward baptism, but any and all are invited to attend. This is a great forum for strengthening your understanding of the Orthodox faith and Father also provides an ‘open mike’ for questions of all kinds. The Zoom link is: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81421729353

            Our Saturday afternoon class at 2pm in the Church Hall will take place this coming Saturday. We will be starting a new text and topic of discussion… we’ll be studying the book ‘Repentance’ by Archimandrite Seraphim (Papacostas).

            Services this coming week include: Presanctified Liturgy on Wednesday and Friday at 6pm. And a Memorial Liturgy Saturday morning at 9am. Our usual Saturday evening Vigil service will be at 4pm and Sunday Liturgy at 9am.

            All are encouraged to sign up for the 14th annual Lenten Retreat which will take place at the New Cathedral in San Francisco on Sunday March 30th. The day will begin with Divine Liturgy in English at 7:30am followed by interesting and edifying talks about the history and highlights of Orthodoxy here in California. Register before March 16th to take advantage of a discounted price. The link for the event and registration is here: 2025 Lenten Retreat.

Also, mark your calendars for Tuesday April 1st... That evening at 6pm our Archbishop Kyrill will be with us for the service of Holy Unction - the anointing for physical and spiritual health. All baptized Orthodox Christians over the age of 7 who have had a recent confession may partake in the anointing for the healing of soul and body.

Before signing off, I share with you below a sermon given for the feast of the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy by the much beloved elder Archimandrite John (Kresiankin) of the Pskov Caves Monastery. I pray that you will find it interesting and inspiring. If you would like to get a glimpse into the life of the monks and elders of the Pskov Caves, there is a wonderful documentary which captures their life during the time of Fr John Krestiankin and other saintly figures. Pskov Caves Monastery(English Subtitles).

God bless you,

Fr Martin