Metropolitan Jonah presides over Lenten retreat

On the bright, clear morning of Saturday, April 13 (March 31 O.S, the feast of the repose of St Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow), Metropolitan Jonah presided over a moving Liturgy at St John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Cathedral here in Washington. This beautiful Liturgy honored the memory and legacy of Bishop Basil (Rodzianko), who reposed in the Lord on September 17, 1999 after an extraordinary earthly life and ministry.

It was a great joy to attend this Liturgy, which Vladyka and the Cathedral choir served with deep reverence. The Cathedral was crowded with many people I had not seen before, and all the candle-stands around the main icons were filled to the brim with brightly burning candles, as if it had been a great feast day in the liturgical life of the Church! This was deeply moving, to see so many people coming to honor Bishop Basil’s memory.

The Cathedral is always an incredibly beautiful place, with wonderful acoustics for the choir and clergy singing the Liturgy, but during this Liturgy there was a profound spiritual presence which filled the Cathedral and animated those worshiping. I don’t know if anyone else felt this, but I discerned an overflowing, radiant grace throughout the Liturgy.

Following the Liturgy, we enjoyed a delicious Lenten lunch and wonderful conversation in the parish hall. I noticed that, again, there were many visitors to the Cathedral, including many parishioners from St Nicholas OCA Cathedral where I had my spiritual formation and where Metropolitan Jonah received me into the Church.

Then we headed upstairs to the parish library, the site of most of Vladyka’s Bible studies here, for his engaging two part Lenten talk, titled “Let us take refuge in the Lord”. This is the opening line of one of my favorite prayers by St Isaac the Syrian (alternately known as Isaac of Nineveh). Above you may listen to part 1 of the talk via the YouTube page for St John the Baptist Cathedral.

April 13: Third Annual Bishop Basil Rodzianko Memorial Retreat

Dear Friends,

I hope you have all enjoyed a blessed and contemplative start to your Lenten journeys!

I want to encourage all of you who are able to attend the Saturday, April 13 memorial Lenten retreat at St John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Cathedral here in Washington, D.C. in honor of the late and venerable Bishop Basil (Rodzianko). The Holy Archangels Orthodox Foundation of Washington, D.C. will sponsor this special event.

For those of you who may not have heard of this remarkable man, Bishop Basil was an Orthodox luminary of the last century whose extensive writings, radio broadcasts and travels contributed to the revitalization of Orthodoxy both in the last years of the Soviet Union and then following the collapse of communist regimes throughout Eastern Europe. Bishop Basil was my godmother’s spiritual father, and so I have been greatly blessed to hear many wonderful stories and anecdotes from her about his extraordinary life.

His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, former Primate of the Orthodox Church in America and Archbishop of Washington, will offer a talk centered around the Orthodox spiritual life titled “Let us take refuge in the Lord”. 

All are welcome to join us for the morning services before the talk. Matins begins at 7:40am followed by the Divine Liturgy at 9:00am. Lunch will be served at 11:00am, and the talk will commence at 12:30pm.

Interested clergy, students, professionals, Russian scholars, and Orthodox inquirers are encouraged to attend!

 If you would like to read more about Bishop Basil’s life and legacy, I would direct you to the following links:

1) The main website dedicated to Bishop Basil’s memory.
2) The chapter “His Eminence the Novice” by Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov) in the abbot’s bestselling book Everyday Saints.
3) In all humility, two brief articles which I wrote about him, which may be found here and here.

Here is the link to a Facebook event which I have created to spread the word about the retreat. For those who cannot access the embedded link, here it is unembedded:  
https://www.facebook.com/events/418810168214587/?context=create

I hope you will attend what promises to be a wonderful Lenten retreat dedicated to the memory of a venerable hierarch in our times!

Yours in Christ,

-Ryan