Weekend Wrap Up

Posted on by Fr. Peter
This was a busy weekend here in the village. Saturday was spent getting things ready for the Liturgical celebrations of the weekend. Things needed to be cared for in the church and I spent sometime with one of the ladies that cleans the church. It is always nice to chat with people in an informal setting. Saturday night of course brought the Patriots game. I am suffering from a cold so I did not stay up and watch the entire game. I went to be secure in the knowledge that they would win and they did. Now it is on to the next game. Before the game we celebrated Great Vespers. When I first came here we did this service every Saturday and then we stopped when people stopped coming. Now we have decided that we need to start again and pray that people come. One more person this week so we are off to a good start. Unless there is a feast day it is a short service of about 30 minutes. Nice way to end the day and prepare for Liturgy. We end the service with an anointing of the sick and time for confession.

Sunday morning the usual services. Orthros at 9am followed by Liturgy at 10. We had a nice group for Liturgy. The count was 41! Our usual is 35 so this was good. You can listen to my homily here. Before Christmas we began streaming our Liturgies using uStream. Although not many tune in to watch during the live broadcast many watch the recorded version. Not many Orthodox Churches in the US currently stream their Liturgies and I felt that this is something that we could do without much cost to the parish. It took some fancy wiring to get the wireless signal to the church but we did it. The camera is not in the best place it could be so we are working on that. It is a work in progress. There is a link on the blog for the liturgy or you can view Sunday’s recorded Liturgy here.

After Church we have a coffee hour, another thing we began when I arrived here. This is a great time and almost everyone comes down to the hall for coffee and a little snack. It gives me a chance to talk with people and welcome new folks to the church. People hang around for about an hour or so and then go on their way. The rest of the day was spent cleaning up and resting to try and fight off this cold. I made a nice beef stew and enjoyed that before hunkering down for the night. Maybe I will post the secret recipe.

The week ahead is busy. Right now it is snowing out so I am not sure what today will bring. I am supposed to do a house blessing tonight but we left it open due to the weather. I have another blessing tomorrow afternoon, an appointment with one of my directees for spiritual direction and Friday night is movie night here at church. On top of all this the Parish will have its General Assembly on Sunday so things need to be readied for that. So not real busy but busy enough.

Going Green

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Much is being made of going green and the need to protect the environment. Orthodox theology would agree with this mandate to go green. We all need to do what we can to help conserve energy and our precious natural resources. In the village a few months back they started what is called “single stream recycling” we all got a 90 gallon recycle bin on wheels and we put all recyclables in this bin and it is picked up every two weeks. In the first month of the program we went from 32 tons to 59 tons of trash that did not go into the landfill that is big.

In todays edition of the Scotsman there are some suggesitons of what you can do to make your life a little greener:

1. Recycle household waste using facilities provided locally
2. Turn the tap off when brushing your teeth
3. Switch to using energy-saving light bulbs
4. Leave the car at home at least once a week and cycle, walk, share a car or use public transport more often
5. Use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable ones
6. Reuse carrier bags when you shop
7. Buy more seasonal and unpackaged food
8. Hang your washing up to dry rather than using a tumbler dryer
9. Organise or volunteer in an environmental project in your local community
10. Pay back the environmental impact of any flights you take and choose not to fly when there’s a suitable alternative.

These are just some suggesitons but we all can do some of them. Last month I switched all of my lamps to the energy bulbs and they are actually brighter than what I had before and they will last longer. I have also decided that I will only have the lights on in the rooms I am in, and I have turned the heat down a little and put a sweater on. There are many other things we can do if we just think about it. I also bought some bags from the grocery store to reuse when I shop, now I just need to remember to bring them with me when I go. Okay so not a perfect program but we are getting there. How many of us leave our computers on all the time? When you go to bed do you shut it off or let it run? Try turning it off at night for a month and then check your electric bill, you will see a difference. Just think going green also includes more green in your pocket.

Alexy II’s Overtures Raise Hopes

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Russian Orthodox Invites Catholic Prelate to Study Joint Pastoral Work

MOSCOW, JAN. 9, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow sent Benedict XVI New Year greetings by way of the representative of the Catholic Church in Russia — a gesture the Holy See official said points to a tendency toward collaboration.

At the end of the celebration of the Jan. 7 vigil of Orthodox Christmas in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow, the patriarch talked with the apostolic nuncio to the Russian Federation, Archbishop Antonio Mennini, and with recently appointed Archbishop Paolo Pezzi of the Mother of God Archdiocese.

Archbishop Mennini told Vatican Radio that Alexy II offered his congratulations to Benedict XVI, expressing as well his closeness and fraternity.

“The patriarch beckoned the new archbishop of the Archdiocese of the Mother of God and me to approach. Together, we kissed the cross with which the faithful had been blessed,” Archbishop Mennini said. “After I’d introduced the new archbishop, the patriarch told him he was open to meeting with him soon, not only to get to know him better, but also to study together common pastoral projects benefiting the faithful of the region of Moscow.

“He said that the faithful who live in the region of Moscow are entrusted as much to my pastoral care as to yours and because of this we have to work and collaborate together.”

Alexy II then asked them again to offer the Pope his fervent best wishes for the New Year just begun. The patriarch added that “his sentiments and those of the Russian Orthodox Church are inspired by motives of great respect and great fraternity,” Archbishop Mennini continued.

The papal representative in Russia said he thinks this gesture “confirms a tendency toward collaboration that can be seen not only on a theoretical level, but also on a practical level.”

He mentioned a Dec. 28 meeting of a Catholic-Orthodox commission, planned some time ago, as proof of the common desire for collaboration.

Archbishop Mennini added, “It seems to me that there are no longer problems that the two sides cannot address openly and freely, without running the risk of breaking off relations, above all without running the risk of destroying the climate of trust and dialogue, based on reciprocal respect.”

ZE08010904 – 2008-01-09Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-21445?l=english

Bartholomew I to Visit Pontiff

Posted on by Fr. Peter

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 8, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI will receive in audience Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, who will visit Rome to mark the 90th anniversary of the Pontifical Oriental Institute.

The Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity confirmed the audience is scheduled for Thursday, March 6.

The patriarch will visit Rome for the celebrations of the anniversary of the foundation of the Pontifical Oriental Institute, entrusted to the Society of Jesus, and established by Pope Benedict XV in 1917.

Bartholomew I himself received a doctorate from the institute.

Benedict XVI visited the patriarch in Turkey in 2006, on the occasion of the feast of St. Andrew.

On Dec. 6, the Pope received a delegation from the Pontifical Oriental Institute and recognized that the role the institute provides has “an effective ecumenical value, because drawing from the heritage of wisdom of the Christian East enriches everyone.”

ZE08010807 – 2008-01-08Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-21436?l=english

New Hampshire

Posted on by Fr. Peter
So New Hampshire votes today! I am listening to NPR and it seems there are very long lines of people turning out to vote! I guess the weather is helping to get the vote out. If you are reading this and live in the Granite State go vote if you have not already done so.

Fr. Greg and I were going to be in New Hampshire today to podcast and cover the election for OCN but we both have funerals today so the election will take a back seat. I am sure we will cover the vote here in Massachusetts when that time comes next month.

Follow up from yesterday

Posted on by Fr. Peter
So it would seem I had 35 hits yesterday because I included Brittany Spears and Dr. Phil in my post. I wonder if I will get another 35 today because I did it again. No comments were left so I do not know if anyone read my ramblings. I also did not hear if Dr. Phil was able to get Brittany (another 35 hits) on the show. More to come…

Dr. Phil & Britany

Posted on by Fr. Peter
I usually have a lot of respect for Dr. Phil. I like to watch his show and he seems to really help people. Now I know that much of what he takes on is driven by ratings but I think he has stooped to a new level with this Brittany Spears business.

Rod Dreher has a posting about it on his Crunchy Con Blog.

I feel bad for any person that has to go through what that family is going through. With that said I believe that much of it is brought on by themselves. Brittany Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and that ilk all need help. I also find it amazing that we eat this stuff up! The other day I was watching the local news and it was breaking news about Brit going to the hospital. What about our men and women fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan? What about gas prices going up while the oil companies post record earnings? What about the presidential election? No we get breaking news about another famous person acting stupid. Sorry if this sounds harsh but like the stars that fall we bring this all on ourselves. We live to see news about the so called beautiful people. Tom Cruise and whats-her-name have a child before they are married, BAM breaking news. Tom Brady, and his this week girl friend, have a child before marriage, BAM, braking news. Three fire fighters get hurt last night fighting a fire and where is it? Buried in a little box on page whatever in the paper.

Where are our priorities? What do we believe? Go for it Dr. Phil, make all the money you can. When your show airs latter on this week I bet it will have the best ratings of any show you have done all season, but I don’t think I will be watching.

Iowa

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Well the first shots of the Presidential election season have been fired. The Iowa Caucus. Now I am not sure what happens at this event but it is traditionally the first test for candidates and as usually none of the front runners got the nod, who knows. Now the talking heads say the big test is New Hampshire.

It seems the election season get earlier and earlier each time round. I remember an episode from the West Wing. The President has just been re-elected (is that a hyphenated word?) and people started working on the next election. That seems strange. Anyway we are off and running. Actually we have been off and running for what seems like four years already.

We need to start paying attention to the candidates. I have not done much research as I usually wait till only the serious ones are left, well the ones who can get elected anyway. We need to pay attention to what they say. I told someone the other day that we need to read for ourselves what the candidates have to say and not listen to what other people said they said. We need to make up our own minds and let someone “spin” or if you believe Bill O’Riley “no spin” Read the candidates website and their official statements. Match their words with what we believe as Orthodox Christians or whatever we maybe. (I mean that in a nice way) I guess the bottom line is make up your own mind.

I try to stay on the fray of the political discussion and I do have some pretty hard and fast thoughts on things that I don’t always share. However, I feel this election will be one of the most important ones since reconstruction. Pay attention and make an informed decision. Don’t vote for the guy, or girl, that looks the best!

New Year Blessing

Posted on by Fr. Peter
I have noticed that several people have found the blog by searching for the New Year Blessing so I thought I would recycle this post. I also want to wish all of my readers a very Happy, Blessed, and Healthy New Year! Thank you for reading my words over the last year and also listening to my new podcast that was started this year.

I am off in a few minutes to a celebration of Hogmany and then back here latter on. Be safe today.

God, bless to me the new day,
never vouchsafed to me before;
it is to bless your own presence
you have given me this time, O God.

Bless to my eye,
may my eye bless all it sees;
I will bless my neighbor,
may my neighbor bless me.

God, give me a clean heart,
let me not from sight of your eye;
bless to me my family,
and bless to me my means.

Ancient Celtic Prayers collected by Alexander Carmichael (1832-1912), published in Carmina Gadelica (Edinburgh: Floris Books, 1992). These are prayers, hymns, and incantations collected in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland in the 18th century.

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