sloth, faintheartedness, lust of power, and idle talk. +

But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience

and love to your servant. +

Yes, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sin and not to judge my brother,

for You are blessed from all ages to all ages. Amen +"

(Prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian )

Dear Friends,

The season of Great Lent is upon us. This season of renewal gives to us the chance to focus on those things that are "most needful." As a wise pastor said to me, "one must never journey into the heart without taking the protective care of the grace of God".

When I was a young man I would drive my car. . .very fast. Growing up in California gave me a good excuse to drive in a wreck-less manner. Only God knows of the many times I took chances.

Oh, how the times have changed. I have learned to slow down. I am not perfect at this but I have less of a speedster mentality, since life is going by so quickly in this age of instant everything. I have missed many a good thing do to my impatience.

During lent, let us slow down and spend more time with our Lord. We can discover God’s love for us as we slow down.

"The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our protector. Come, behold the works of the Lord, The wonders He wrought on the earth. When He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He will break the bow and shatter the weapon; And He will burn up the shields in fire. Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us, The God of Jacob is our protector." (Psalms 46:8-12)

May the beauty of heaven consume you, Fr. David

Greetings!

When I was a young boy (5 yrs old) I was a bit too curious. I remember asking my mother what kind of creature lives in a mud hive? I found out it was a yellow jacket home and I was told to stay away from it. But my curiosity was overwhelming and I decided to toss a rock at the nest to see what would happen. I quickly found out. Immediately a swarm began attacking me. I ran into the house and went into my room so I could deal with the pain. There was no way I was going to tell my mom about my disobedience.

Another moment I experienced would change my life. My family was visiting my grandmother in El Paso, Texas. My family made plans to go to Juarez, Mexico to have dinner. Driving over the bridge from the U.S. to Mexico was confusing. We went from houses made of stone (in the U.S.) To houses made of tin and plywood. It was a visual contradiction.

We drove the streets of Juarez and ended up at a Mexican resturant . The waiter set us next to the window where I could see the street. At the end of the meal we were served dessert. I happened to look out the window and saw a young boy clad only in his underwear. Even at my young age I knew something was amiss. I asked my parents why he was on the streets in his underwear. I was told to eat my dessert and to quit staring outside the window. The boy I saw through the window would forever change my perspective on how I would see life.

There are some who will never see the suffering of those less fortunate. Surely, there is something we can do. If we would but open our eyes God will reveal to us someone, or some situation, that we can bring the love of God and act of mercy to those less fortunate.

"Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we SEE You

hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we SEE You

a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we SEE

You sick, or in prison, and come to You? And the King will answer and say to

them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of

these My brethren, you did it to Me." (Matthew 25:37-40)

January, 2013

TROPARION of EPIPHANY

"When thou, O Lord, wast baptized in the Jordan, the worship of the Trinity was made manifest! For the voice of the Father bore witness to thee, and called thee His beloved Son! And the Spirit, in the form of a dove, confirmed the truthfulness of His Word, O Christ our God, who hast revealed thyself and hast enlightened the world, glory to thee."

Greetings!

It is amazing how one drop of water can bring safety and comfort to those thirsting in the desert.

"O God, my God, I rise early to be with You; My soul thirsts for You. How often my flesh thirsts for You In a desolate, impassable, and waterless land."  (Psalm 62: 1,2)

Every year we send out an Epiphany letter to our flock. In this Epiphany letter is a service for the "Blessing of the Living Area". On the letter at the bottom, we print a cross. On this cross we place a drop of blessed water. We ask the participant to cut out the cross ( which has the drop of water) and place the cross in a cup of water. We then provide a short service for the prisoner to bless their living area.

Why do we do this? Those we minister to are spread across the United States. Many are not close to a priest and are always a minority in the prison population. Therefore we provide a service that can be done as a lay person.

Prison is a very barren land. It is no "cake walk" to survive in a prison enviroment. Robberies, assaults and murder are common in the prison. Words cannot express how much the inmates rely upon this one drop of water to bring the miracle of the manifestation of Christ to their enviroment.

Please pray for prisoners and for their salvation.

"Therefore, when the time came for the Virgin to give birth, and since because of the great multitude there was no place in the inn, the Virgin’s circumstance constrained them to enter a cave which was near Bethlehem. Having a shelter a stable of irrational beasts, she gave birth there, and a swaddled the Infant and laid Him in the manger (Luke2:1-7). From this, the tradition has come down to us that when Christ was born He lay between two animals, an ox and an ass, that the words of the Prophets might be fulfilled: "Between two living creatures shalt thou be known" (Abbacum 3:2) and "The ox knoweth his owner and the ass his master’s crib (Esaias1:3)

But while the earth gave the new-born Savior such a humble reception, Heaven on high celebrated majestically His world-saving coming. A wondrous star, shining with uncommon brightness and following a strange course, led Magi from the East to Bethlehem to worship the new-born King. Certain shepherds who were in the area of Bethlehem, who kept watch while tending their sheep, were suddenly surrounded by an extraordinary light, and they saw before them an Angel who proclaimed to them the good tidings of the Lord’s joyous Nativity. And straightway, together with this Angel, they beheld and heard a whole host of the Heavenly Powers praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men" (Luke 2:8-14) (The Great Horologion)

"Where might men find true rejoicing, Songs of love that angels sing  

Joy we find in sacred stable God incarnate reigning King

Come ye shepherd come ye wisemen

Come all those who search to sing

Songs of joyfull birth triumphant

Songs of joy to newborn king

Circumstance of humble birth our God desires all to see

Nature sings with simple song The song of praise to newborn King

Sacred Virgin pure and Holy, doth not grieve the stables cold

for radiating sun of beauty God of love she can behold

Angels gazed with look of awe in stables den of royal grace

In the arms of Holy Virgin those who seek may find their place

Circumstance of humble birth our God desires all to see nature sings with simple song the song of praise to newborn King"

(by Fr. David, Advent 1985)

Merry Christmas and a Happy New 2013!

Fr. David and Conccetta

Fellowship of St. Silas

(Psalms 90:12)

Dear Friends,

Recently, I was invited to a homeless breakfast which was served at a local park. When I first arrived there was only a couple of homeless people and I wondered where the whole group was. I was told that 15 to 20 usually attend. Within a very short span of time the area had 15 homeless people who came for a short devotional and breakfast.

What really broke my heart was the daughter of one of the homeless men. His daughter lived next to the highway in a homeless camp ground. I did not probe the young lady with questions, I simply listened to her story. It seems that she has lived on the streets for quite a long time. My heart was pierced with her situation. How, I wondered, could a young 16 year old endure the stress of living on the streets? I never heard her complain or say why she was out on the streets, only that she was thankful for a hot breakfast.

During this season of renewal (Advent) may we always be mindful of the poor. Our Lord said in Matthew 25: 44-46:

"Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?

Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’"

Please pray for the homeless, poor and those in prison. This is part of the Gospel of life which we Christians are encouraged to help.

"Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted." (Hebrews 2:14-18)

Dear Friends,

To most of us the word penitentiary means a place to confine those who have broken the law. However the word "penitentiary" comes from the base word, penance. Penance is an act of atonement. Some call penance a renewal of our baptism. Through repentance and confession we renew our commitment to Christ.

Many go to prison just to do their time. In fact, many who go to prison do not get better, they become more hostile and corrupt. These are not the ones we try to minister to. Most of those in the Fellowship of St. Silas want to use their time to pursue virtue and prayer.

I recently received a letter from a prisoner who is using his time to renew his life to Christ. This is the "life blood" of this ministry.

"Thank you for your ministry to those of us who are incarcerated! I received your September pastoral letter, and I looked back in my mail log and found that I haven’t written to you for a long time. I truly found your letter of great encouragement to me. In my (now) eleven years plus of incarceration, I am astounded that 99% of the time people are "imprisoned" by their actions, thoughts and to use the Orthodox term, their "passions" while they are in prison. The process of becoming free on the "inside" is either beyond their thinking, or they don’t want to make a serious commitment to spiritual change. Some are too "cool" to be seen in a church setting, or getting caught reading a bible - or even worse- praying. I am so grateful to have become part of the Orthodox Christian Church!"  (Paul in Oregon)

Thank you for helping us bring the Light of Christ to those who change through penance and find love for your forgiving Lord.

pour out my supplication before Him; I shall declare my affliction in His presence.

When my spirit fainted within me, Then You knew my paths; For on the way

I was going, they hid a trap for me. I looked on my right, and saw There was

no one who knew me; Refuge failed me, And there was no one who cared for

my soul. I cried to You, O Lord; I said, "You are my hope, My portion in the

of the living. Attend to my supplication, For I was humbled exceedingly;

Deliver me from my persecutors, For they are stronger than I. Bring my soul

out of prison To give thanks to Your name, O Lord: The righteous shall wait for

me, until You reward me." (Psalm 141)

Greetings in Christ love!

All of us are prisoners in one way or another. Some are imprisoned to money. Some are imprisoned with hate. Some are imprisoned with a sense of having no self-worth. The list could go on endlessly. When the Psalm speaks about, "Bring my soul out of prison" it is not referring to concrete walls. This Psalm speaks about believing we can be freed from the shackles of feeling abandoned by God.

"All we like sheep have gone astray. Man has gone astray in his way, and the

Lord delivered Him over for our sins. Although He was ill-treated, He opened

not His mouth. He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent

before his shearers, so He opens not His mouth." (Isaiah 53:6,7)

Our Lord knows your suffering. He suffered for us. He knows the pain of mankind. It is far easier to fall in hopelessness rather than climb the ladder of hope. Here is a letter I just received.

"I truly believe that we all go through the wilderness, and at times we just need to confess and repent and get back to living for the Lord. I have fallen a little , but I have come back to living for the Lord. It has been hard to get back to the proper obedience that I was in at one time, but I will do it!"

(David in Wisconsin)

As long as we breathe and pray we can live with hope. Hope is not being weak, rather it is a ladder of faith which removes us from the condemnation of our minds and hearts.

May the beauty of heaven consume you. . .Fr. David