Final preparations for the 109th Annual Pilgrimage to Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk Monastery here over Memorial Day weekend, May 24-27, 2013, are underway.

“It is always a joy to welcome hierarchs, clergy and faithful from the Orthodox Church in America, other Orthodox jurisdictions and guests from near and far,” said Igumen Sergius, the Monastery’s Abbot.

A detailed schedule of the weekend’s divine services and other events is available in PFD format.

In related news, Saint Tikhon’s Seminary will hold its 71st annual Commencement on Saturday, May 25. The day will open with the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 9:00 a.m. and continue with graduation ceremonies at the Monastery Bell Tower at 1:00 p.m.

Saint Tikhon’s Monastery is the oldest Orthodox Christian monastic community in North America.  Saint Tikhon’s Seminary, established in 1938, is celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2013.

On May 9, 2013, Archpriest Leonid Kiskhovsky, Director of External Affairs and Interchurch Relations for the Orthodox Church in America, was awarded the Shapagat (Mercy) Award from the President of Kazakhstan for his work on behalf of Religions for Peace and the Congress of Traditional Religions in Kazakhstan. Dr. William Vendley, Secretary General, was similarly honored. Receiving the award on behalf of Father Leonid, who was unable to attend the award ceremony due to a prior commitment, was Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary.

The Award was sponsored by Byrganym Aitimova, Ambassador of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Kazakhstan to the UN, and Kairat Umarov, Ambassador to the United States. Also in attendance were members of the Senate of Kazakhstan and the Ministry of Religious Affairs, various members of the Religions for Peace, and notable religious figures from New York. The occasion marked the Tenth Anniversary of the Congress, which has grown from 17 religious leaders in Kazakhstan to over 150, and has involved such notable Orthodox Christian leaders such as His All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and His Holiness, Patriarch Kyrill of Moscow.

“Father Leonid has been involved with this group from its inception and they have had notable success in a very religiously tolerant Kazakhstan with low levels of religious violence in a country that is 60% Muslim,” said Father Eric. “The award recognized their groundbreaking work and the involvement of Religions for Peace.”

The Canonsburg “O” Club of Saint John the Baptist Church here sponsored the Fellowship of Orthodox Christians in America’s annual national basketball tournament May 17-19, 2013. Twenty-four youth and adult teams representing six states competed in several divisions—bantam girls and boys, junior girls and boys, senior men, and super-senior men. In addition to regular games, clergy foul shot and 55-plus foul shot contests were held.

The weekend opened with a pizza party and ice cream social. Games were played on Saturday at Canon-McMillan High School and North Strabane Intermediate School. Following Saturday evening Great Vespers, some 300 youth and adults attended the awards banquet and dance. Following the Sunday morning Divine Liturgy, championship games were played.  Taking top honors in each division were the Canonsburg Bantam Boys and Saint Alexander Nevsky Bantam Girls, Allison Park, PA; Saint Alexander junior boys and junior girls; the senior men of Saint John the Baptist “O” Club, Campbell, OH; and the FOCA All Stars Super Senior Make-Up Team.

Founded as the Federated Russian Orthodox Clubs in Pittsburgh, PA in 1927, the FOCA today serves as an arm of the Church and is especially engaged in youth ministry, missions, and related ministries. It maintains junior and senior chapters in numerous parishes across the US. Additional information may be found on the FOCA’s web site.

A photo gallery may be viewed on the OCA web site and OCA Facebook page.

On April 15, 2013, Dr. James S. Taylor, PhD, and Saint Tikhon’s Seminary 2012 Alumnus Deacon Joel Wilson opened the “virtual doors” of Saint Raphael Orthodox Online Homeschool to the public. Named for Saint Raphael of Brooklyn, “the shepherd of the scattered sheep of North America,” the founders, along with parents, students, and teachers, intend the program to be a continuation of Saint Raphael’s literal journey to minister to Orthodox Christian faithful who a century ago were scattered across cities and small rural towns across North America. The new school offers a near-complete integrated curriculum within all four of its programs - Nursery, Elementary, Middle School, and High School. Currently all courses are taught by Dr. Taylor, who has many years of on- and off-line teaching experience in the classical Christian education community. However, the plan for the Spring 2014 semester includes making the curriculum comprehensive by hiring others to teach Math, Greek, Latin, and the higher Sciences. Enrollment for both the Summer and Fall semesters is now open, but space is limited. For additional information, please visit their web site  or Facebook page.

According to the OCA Chaplain (MAJ) USA George Hill, Command Chaplain, Third Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, NC, SGT Matthew Pochepko, an Orthodox Christian serviceman serving in Afghanistan, recently was awarded the Purple Heart by the Task Force 101 Commanding General, Major General James McConville. Matthew, a member of Saint Michael Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Baltimore, MD, and a Cavalry Scout leader from A Troop, 1st Squadron 89th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division out of Fort Drum, NY, was wounded in action while leading a reconnaissance patrol in Paktika Province Afghanistan. At the front of his formation, he was attacked by PKM machine gun crossfire from two different enemy locations, said Father George.

“The first round knocked the mine clearing device from his hand and another round pierced his right arm,” Father George continued. “He stayed in the fight, disabling one of the crew served machine gun locations and then was given medical care from his team medic. He was taken to Craig Hospital at Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, where he was presented with the Purple Heart…. Shortly afterward I had the privilege of giving him Holy Communion. He is the epitome of a hero for our Country and the Church.”

Fr. Steven Voytovich with the Rev. Deryck Durston, ACPE’s Interim Executive Director.

On May 13, 2013, the Board of the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE) unanimously approved the application forwarded by the Orthodox Church in America’s Department of Institutional Chaplaincies seeking formal faith tradition membership in the organization.  The original application had been submitted to ACPE in December 2012.

ACPE primarily certifies clinical pastoral education supervisors who run CPE programs and accredits training programs they conduct.  The organizaton held its annual conference in Indianapolis in mid-May.

ACPE was formed in 1967 to bring together two organizations—the Council for Clinical Training and the Institute for Pastoral Care, both established in the mid-1930—and several faith-based accrediting bodies, including Lutheran and Southern Baptist associations. The latter became denominational representatives as merger discussions continued. The National Council of Churches and the Association of Theological Schools played roles in the merger process.

“In fact it appears that all were on board to come together, and brought along representatives of the council and the institute toward a formal merger plan over developing a ‘federation of accrediting bodies,’ representing the other popular plan to move forward,” said Priest Dr. Steven Voytovich, Director of the OCA Department of Institutional Chaplaincies.  “Due to the ‘denominational’ participation early on in its formation, faith group membership and representation is unique and formally structured in ACPE as compared to other credentialing bodies (APC, AAPC, ACCA, CPSP). Even though their governance is being restructured, denominational representation remains one of four ex-officio board members. The OCA has joined approximately 30 faith groups in taking the step of formal membership in order that faith traditions continue to be a vibrant presence in the clinical training arena.”

A main function of the OCA Department of Institutional Chaplains is to review and process requests for formal endorsement for men and women to serve in non-military institutional settings such as hospitals, hospices, long-term care, emergency response, corrections, and other settings, and to approach credentialing bodies for certification as chaplains, CPE supervisors, and pastoral counselors.

“The Department also seeks to support endorsed persons in their ministry contexts. Recommendations for endorsement are forwarded by this department to the Office of the Metropolitan,” Father Steven continued.  “ACPE membership represents another formal step this department has taken to be an active presence in the pastoral care and counseling community in our country and beyond.”

According to Father Steven, “a formal endorsement process was instituted by the OCA in 2003, and the OCA became a recognized Endorser in the Commission on Ministry in Specialized Settings in 2005.  The OCA joined the Association of Religious Endorsing Bodies (AREB) in 2007.”

Father Steven, who currently serves as AREB Chair, shared the importance of our Orthodox witness in this greater caregiving arena as a means to fulfill in part the OCA’s mission “to be the Body of Christ in North America” and, as noted in the Tomos of Autocephaly, to “maintain direct relations with all other Churches and confessions, Orthodox and non-Orthodox alike.

“It is a blessing to be able to support our mission in this very meaningful way,” he added.  “The OCA currently has about a dozen endorsed chaplains serving across the country in a variety of settings, and holding a broad spectrum of certifications from among the credentialing bodies.  All the endorsers meet during these national conferences with credentialing body leadership.

“The Rev. Deryck Durston, Interim Executive Director of ACPE, has pushed to have endorsement formally brought into that office during his ten-year tenure in the ACPE national office,” Father Steven continued.  “Even though he will soon be leaving his director role, Rev. Deryck will continue to be the ACPE consultant for endorsement. AREB is grateful for the working relationship with all the credentialing bodies to assist those seeking certification to obtain proper endorsement, and for the formal nature of this relationship with ACPE.”

Additional information on the work of the OCA Department of Institutional Chaplaincies may be viewed here or here.

In the wake of the tornadoes that devastated the suburbs of Oklahoma City, OK on Monday, May 20, 2013, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, has called upon all faithful Orthodox Christians to offer prayers for those who lost their lives, their families, and everyone touched by the tragedy.

“We call upon everyone to remember in their prayers the victims of the Oklahoma City Tornado and those whose lives have been affected by this disaster,” said Metropolitan Tikhon. “We ask that our risen Lord will bring comfort to those who have lost everything—including loved ones—as well as the responders who continue to search for survivors. May our Lord grant eternal rest to those who lost their lives in the tragedy, and may He comfort those so afflicted.”

The Orthodox Church in America has three communities in Oklahoma—Holy Apostles Church, Bixby, OK; Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Hartshorne, OK; and Saint Basil the Great Mission, Weatherford, OK — none of which were affected.  Updates will be posted should further information be received.

The faithful are encouraged to offer financial assistance through established agencies that already have a presence in the affected area, and to check the web sites of International Orthodox Christian Charities [IOCC] and the Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve [FOCUS] for additional opportunities to help.