Father Anthony

Eternal Memory to our Beloved Metropolitan Andrew

June 6, 2021 By The Deacon

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

To all faithful and Orthodox Christians,

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church Scarborough, English Language Orthodox Church Toronto, Orthodox Services in English Earlier this evening, our beloved Metropolitan Andrew reposed in the Lord.

By the mercy of God, he served the Divine Liturgy at Holy Nativity Convent in Boston on Saturday morning. Later that day, he suffered a heart attack and received immediate care at the hospital. He was monitored throughout the day. Then earlier this evening, Metropolitan Gregory was able to read the “Prayers of the Departure of the Soul” and be by his side in his final moments.

In July of 1968, he entered Holy Transfiguration Monastery and was ordained deacon in November of 1972; he was raised to the episcopy in March of 2013. Having served Christ’s Holy Church for over 50 years, may our Saviour grant him rest among the just.

God grant unto our father and chief-shepherd, Andrew, Metropolitan of Toronto, eternal memory!

Fr. Anthony
Fr. Protodeacon George

Holy Week message from Father Anthony: “Behold, we go up to Jerusalem”

April 27, 2021 By The Deacon

Dear and faithful Orthodox Christians,

We have entered together into the sacred time of Holy Week, and begin to hear the Scripture readings and hymns of the holy Passion of Our Saviour. In the Matins of Holy Monday we chanted, “Our Saviour said to His Apostles along the way, ‘behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be delivered up, as it is written concerning Him.’ Come therefore, with minds purified, let us go with Him.”

Throughout Great Lent, having prepared ourselves through fasting, confession, almsgiving, prayers, and good works, we stand as the ten Virgins in the parable, watching intently for the Bridegroom who comes in the middle of the night. And so, each night of this week, let us keep Vigil in our homes, in our Churches, and in our hearts, patiently attending with prayer the coming of Our Lord. Let us keep watch, guarding ourselves, and together go up with Christ to Jerusalem commemorating His saving Passion, sacrifice upon the Cross, and holy Burial. That we may be found to be faithful servants, and that He may open to us the doors to enter the mystical Wedding Feast.

I would ask each of us to pray for one another, and for our beloved Metropolitan Andrew, that together we may experience a soul profiting Holy Week, receive enlightenment through the hearing of the Scriptures, and share together in the light of His holy Resurrection from the dead.

Metropolitan Andrew sends his love and episcopal blessing to all of us that we have a blessed Holy Week.

With prayers, in Christ,
Father Anthony

On Blessing Candles on the Meeting of the Lord in the Temple

February 13, 2021 By The Deacon

Dear and Faithful Orthodox Christian,

We shall soon arrive at the Fortieth Day since the Nativity of Our Saviour. In fulfillment of the Law, Our Lady, the Mother of God together with Joseph, bring Our Saviour to the Temple, and there takes place the Encounter of the Lord with Saint Symeon and Saint Anna the Prophetess. Saint Symeon beholding Him, reveals that Christ is a ‘light of revelation to the Nations, and the glory of Thy people Israel.’

This Monday is the great Feast of the Meeting of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple, and we will celebrate with the All-night Vigil and Divine Liturgy in the Cathedral on Sunday night. At that celebration, we will also keep the very ancient tradition of blessing candles which we will then distribute to the faithful.

As we all prepare for the Feast, please read this short excerpt from a Homily of Saint Sophronius of Jerusalem which he gave on this day back in the early seventh century.

Many Years for the Feast!
Father Anthony

On Blessing Candles for the Feast of the Meeting of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Temple
By St. Sophronius of Jerusalem + 638 AD

Our lighted candles are a sign of the divine splendour of the one who comes to expel the dark shadows of evil and to make the whole universe radiant with the brilliance of His eternal light. Our candles also show how bright our souls should be when we go to meet Christ.

The Mother of God, the most pure Virgin, carried the true Light in her arms and brought Him to those who lay in darkness. We too should carry a light for all to see and reflect the radiance of the true light as we hasten to meet Him.

The Light has come and has shone upon a world enveloped in shadows; the Dayspring from on high has visited us and given light to those who lived in darkness. This, then, is our feast, and we join in procession with lighted candles to reveal the light that has shone upon us and the glory that is yet to come to us through Him. So let us hasten all together to meet our God.

The true Light has come, the light that enlightens every man who is born into this world. Let all of us, my brethren, be enlightened and made radiant by this light. Let all of us share in its splendour, and be so filled with it that no one remains in the darkness. Let us be shining ourselves as we go together to meet and to receive with the aged Symeon the Light whose brilliance is eternal.

Rejoicing with Symeon, let us sing a hymn of thanksgiving to God, the Father of the light, who sent the true Light to dispel the darkness and to give us all a share in his splendour.

Through Symeon’s eyes we too have seen the salvation of God which he prepared for all the nations and revealed as the glory of the new Israel, which is ourselves. As Simeon was released from the bonds of this life when he had seen Christ, so we too were at once freed from our old state of sinfulness.

By faith we, too embraced, Christ, the salvation of God the Father, as he came to us from Bethlehem. Gentiles before, we have now become the people of God. Our eyes have seen God incarnate, and because we have seen him present among us and have mentally received him into our arms, we are called the new Israel.

Never shall we forget this presence; every year we keep a feast in His honour.

Message from Fr. Anthony on the Feast of Holy Theophany 2021

January 17, 2021 By The Deacon

Dear and faithful Orthodox Christians,

In today’s Gospel we heard the preaching of the Prophet, and Forerunner, Saint John the Baptist saying, ‘There comes One mightier than I…He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’ Saint John prepares the way for the coming of Our Saviour. The Great Feast of Theophany celebrates the appearance of God at the Jordan River, the establishment of Holy Baptism as the entry into the Church, and the worship of the Holy Trinity which was made manifest on this day.

We prepare for Theophany, by keeping a strict Fast on Monday, and participating in the Services on Monday and Tuesday to celebrate the Great Feast. Please join the Services that we will both live stream from the Cathedral, as well as through Facetime for Father Sergey’s Services.

The Service of the Great Blessing of the Waters will take place following the Liturgy on both Monday and Tuesday morning. Do you have some holy water at home? If you do have some from a previous service, I would encourage those praying with us at home to also sprinkle the holy water and chant with us the Hymn of the Feast, “When Thou wast baptized in the Jordan, O Lord”. You can listen to the Dismissal Hymn and Kontakion of Theophany chanted by the Choir of Saint Nicholas through the links below. You will also find the text below, or find it in your Prayer Book.

Many blessed years for the Feast of Theophany!

Father Anthony

Dismissal Hymn. First Tone
Listen Here
When Thou wast baptized in the Jordan, O Lord, the worship of the Trinity was made manifest; for the voice of the Father bare witness to Thee, calling
Thee His beloved Son. And the Spirit in the form of a dove confirmed the certainty of the word. O Christ our God, Who hast appeared and hast enlightened the world, glory be to Thee.

Kontakion. Fourth Tone. The Original Melody
Listen Here
On this day Thou hast appeared * unto the whole world, * and Thy light, O Sovereign Lord, * is signed on us who sing Thy praise * and chant with
knowledge: Thou hast now come, * Thou hast appeared, O Thou Light unapproachable.

Blessings on the Feast of our Saviour’s Holy Nativity in 2020

January 3, 2021 By The Deacon

Dear and faithful Orthodox Christians,

Christ is born! Glorify Him!

Together, let us all rejoice with great rejoicing as we celebrate the Birth of St. Nicholas Orthodox Church Scarborough, English Language Orthodox Church Toronto, Orthodox Services in English Our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ! Let us read together now the announcement of the Angel to the shepherds as recorded in the second chapter of the divine Gospel of Saint Luke:

“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

And we also say with them, ‘Glory to God in the highest!’ for Our Saviour was incarnate, and lived among us, through His sacrifice making possible the forgiveness of our sins, the reconciliation of God with men, and He showed us the most excellent way, that we also walk in peace and virtue to the great day of Salvation.

Our father among the Saints, John Chrysostom expounded to us in a sermon that he gave on December 20, 386 AD, that we pull down the wall that may still keep us from Our Saviour saying, “Farewell to the law courts! Farewell to the council chambers, and to daily business with its contracts and transactions! I want to save my soul!”. He gives us a word which I think is very helpful for our current situation. This year we are not able to all celebrate in the Vigil and Liturgy as we have in the past, we will not all be together to celebrate the feast with Nativity treats and singing of Carols. Yet we all remain united in Christ. Our community united in Christ through prayer, participation in the Services at home, through love and joined through Divine Communion.

As we celebrate in our homes, listen to these beautiful words again of Saint John Chrysostom, “The Magi came from Persia, you must come away from daily business and travel towards Jesus. The distance isn’t great, if we’re willing.” The point is, you don’t have to cross the sea, or traverse the mountain peaks, but if you sit at home exhibiting piety and much compunction… you can cut the distance of the journey. For “I am a God close at hand, and not a God far off,” (Jer 23:23) and “The Lord is near to all who call upon Him in truth” (Ps 145:18).

In the few days until Nativity, I would encourage everyone to read at home from the Gospels, Luke chapter 2, and Matthew Chapter 3. If you are with your family and children, gather them and read it together. And also each day to read or learn to chant these two sacred Kontakia hymns of the Forefeast and the Nativity written by Saint Romanus the Melodist. You can hear them chanted by the choir of Saint Nicholas through links below, and you can follow the words noted below, as well.

Kontakion of the FOREFEAST of Nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ

Kontakion of the FEAST of the Nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ

Our beloved Metropolitan Andrew sends his fatherly blessing to all of us, together with his encouragement that we pray for one another, and rejoice in the great mercy and love of God Our Saviour.

Christ is born! Glorify Him!

Father Anthony

Kontakion for the Forefeast of Nativity of our Saviour
Third Tone. On this day the Virgin.

On this day the virgin cometh to the cave to give birth to * God the Word ineffably, * Who was before all the ages. * Dance for joy, O earth, on hearing * the gladsome tidings; * with the Angels and the shepherds now glorify Him * Who is willing to be gazed on * as a young Child Who * before the ages is God.

Kontakion of the Feast of the Nativity of our Saviour
Third Tone. The Original Melody.

On this day the Virgin beareth the Transcendent in essence; * to the Unapproachable, * the earth doth offer a small cave; * Angels join in choir with shepherds * in giving glory; * with a star the Magi travel upon their journey; * for our sakes is born a young Child, * He that existed * before the ages as God.

Text copyright Holy Transfiguration Monastery; used with permission.