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Celebrating 100 years
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| John Usalis/Staff PhotoThe Very Rev. Archpriest Emil Hutnyan, pastor of St. Andrew Orthodox Church, Maple Heights, Ohio, presents the homily during the 100th anniversary Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at St. Michael Orthodox Church in Mount Carmel Sunday. |
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St. Michael marks joyous occasionMOUNT CARMEL — St. Michael Orthodox Church has survived 100 years as a faith community in Mount Carmel, which is not an easy task for any church, though according to the honored guest at Sunday’s celebration, there are many reasons why the parish has lasted a century.
His Grace, The Right Reverend Tikhon, bishop of the Orthodox Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania of the Orthodox Church in America, spoke during the anniversary banquet at Lazarski’s Banquet Hall in Mount Carmel about the struggles and crosses that any family has over time, including a parish family, but also about the way those crosses can be overcome.
“Our Lord Jesus Christ gives us the grace and mercy to bear those crosses and pass through those struggles with joy and thanksgiving, and that’s what’s been accomplished in this holy parish for the past 100 years,” said Bishop Tikhon to the almost 200 people at the dinner. “The hardships of life have crashed in on the faithful and the clergy who have served the parish, but the clergy and their faithful have borne those temptations and passed through them through their life of prayer, through their love for one another, through the following of the commandments of Christ, which give us that strength and power to pass through anything that comes before us. Not even the power of the enemy can overcome the life and the light that Our Lord Jesus Christ offers to us. That’s a precious gift that we have to preserve.”
The jubilee celebration began Sunday morning with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the church with Bishop Tikhon as the main celebrant. As he entered the church, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by parishioners Rachel Rebuck, 16, and her sister, Alexandra Rebuck, 17, both of Danville, who presented the bishop with a bouquet of red roses in the vestibule. After accepting the flower, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by St. Michael parish council president Stanley Zbicki, Kulpont, who held a loaf of bread and salt to be blessed. The bread symbolizes that Jesus is the “Bread of Life” and that Christians should be the leaven to the world, while the salt signifies Jesus’ words to His followers that they should be the “salt of the earth.”
As he moved into the church, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by the nine priests who concelebrated the liturgy with him, including the Very Rev. Archpriest Michael H. Evans, pastor, who held a ceremonial cross to give to the bishop and made the official welcome on behalf of the church and its parishioners.
After accepting the cross, Bishop Tikhon said, “Thank you, Father, it’s a great joy to be here on this historic event in the life of this parish. We pray that the Lord will bless us and give us great joy as we celebrate the Divine Liturgy and honor all those who have labored for this parish and continue to do so.”
Bishop Tikhon walked to the front of the nave and stood on a platform to be vested to celebrate the Divine Liturgy. As Archdeacon Nicholas Terenta prayed near the iconostasis, or icon wall, Subdeacons Abraham Labrada and Joshua Smith assisted the bishop in putting on the liturgical vestments. After the reading of the Hours (Matins), the Divine Liturgy began. The people received a blessing from the bishop as he held the trikiri (trikirion) and dikiri (dikirion), the liturgical candelabra used by the bishop. The trikiri has three candles and symbolizes the Trinity, while the dikiri with its two candles symbolize Jesus Christ’s two natures as perfect God and perfect man.
The homilist for the Divine Liturgy was the Very Rev. Archpriest Emil Hutnyan, pastor of St. Andrew Orthodox Church, Maple Heights, Ohio. The first thing Father Hutnyan mentioned that Father Evans and his wife, Matushka Sonya, had become grandparents after their daughter-in-law, Jennifer, gave birth to a daughter on Saturday. Jennifer and her husband, Michael Evans, live in Mechanicsburg.
“Here we are to celebrate 100 years. We’re here to celebrate the joy. We’re here to remember the cross on which Our Lord was crucified, which is not an instrument of torture but a reason for joy,” said Father Hutnyan.
During the homily, Father Hutnyan used the parable of the wedding feast as being symbolic of Heaven, and noted that the Divine Liturgy provides a taste of that heavenly wedding feast.
“In a sense for those of you who come here every Sunday, we believe that the Divine Liturgy is a feast day every blessed Sunday and holy day,” he said to the faithful, who filled the church to standing room only. “We are here to gather at the Lord’s table and partake of the eternal food that he has given to us. We call it the ‘Bread of Eternal Life.’ In other words, Holy Communion. In a larger sense, the wedding feast continues for all time in heaven.”
Father Hutnyan encouraged the almost 150 people in attendance to fill the church every Sunday and holy day and remember the great mystery that occurs at every Divine Liturgy. He said it is important to stay close to Christ and His Church to overcome the “passions,” or sins, that are in the soul that draw each person away from God.
“We must have love for each other, love for those who visit us in our homes, love for those who will hopefully come for another hundred years to St. Michael’s, love for those who we meet in the byways of life,” he said. “Pray for Father Michael, Matushka Sonya, and the faithful of the parish so that they continue to hear the word of God and keep it.”
At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Tikhon made three special presentations. The first two were to Zbicki and choir director Peter Yastishak for their hard work in support of the parish and of Orthodoxy. The third presentation was a synodal award to Father Evans signed by all of the bishops of the Orthodox Church in America, recognizing his dedication and holiness as pastor. Father Evans celebrates his 20th anniversary as pastor of St. Michael’s in October.
The Divine Liturgy was followed by a short reception in the church hall, after which everyone traveled to Lazarski’s for the banquet. After the singing of “O Lord, Save Thy People” and the Lord’s Prayer, Bishop Tikhon gave the invocation. Sandra Tosca, daughter of Stanley Zbicki, led the anniversary toast and introduced the special guests at the dinner.
The first speaker was Mount Carmel Mayor Kevin Jones, who presented proclamations to Father Evans and Zbicki on behalf of the borough, state Sen. John Gordner and Rep. Robert Belfanti. As a special treat, Jones gave Father Evans the “key” to the borough.
Also presenting the parish with a proclamation was Northumberland County Commissioner Chairman Frank Sawicki on behalf of the board of commissioners.
Other speakers included the Very Rev. Archpriest John Kowalczyk, chancellor, Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania; the Very Rev. Archpriest Michael Hatrack, dean of the Frackville Deanery and pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Orthodox Church, Minersville, and Assumption BVM Orthodox Church, Saint Clair; Father Evans and Bishop Tikhon, who gave the benediction.
“I knew of Mount Carmel, but now that I’m here, I see the people who live in this town. I know the priest who serves the parish, and I see how connected we all are as human beings, and particularly in the Church,” said Bishop Tikhon, noting that it was his first visit to Mount Carmel. “We are joined in the bond of love in Our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In his comments, Father Evans said, “I’ve had four parishes in the coal region area, and I’ve found people in the coal region are very hard people. They were hard because they were raised hard. But one thing about the coal region people is that they know how to pray. They just don’t say they’re going to pray for you and forget about it. They don’t say they’re going to pray and then don’t do it. They pray for you. They’re prayerful people. Sometime I’d be behind the iconstasis and I’d here whispering. I’d look out and I’d see people praying, especially in Mount Carmel. They were praying. They were praying for everybody.”
His Grace, The Right Reverend Tikhon, bishop of the Orthodox Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania of the Orthodox Church in America, spoke during the anniversary banquet at Lazarski’s Banquet Hall in Mount Carmel about the struggles and crosses that any family has over time, including a parish family, but also about the way those crosses can be overcome.
“Our Lord Jesus Christ gives us the grace and mercy to bear those crosses and pass through those struggles with joy and thanksgiving, and that’s what’s been accomplished in this holy parish for the past 100 years,” said Bishop Tikhon to the almost 200 people at the dinner. “The hardships of life have crashed in on the faithful and the clergy who have served the parish, but the clergy and their faithful have borne those temptations and passed through them through their life of prayer, through their love for one another, through the following of the commandments of Christ, which give us that strength and power to pass through anything that comes before us. Not even the power of the enemy can overcome the life and the light that Our Lord Jesus Christ offers to us. That’s a precious gift that we have to preserve.”
The jubilee celebration began Sunday morning with a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the church with Bishop Tikhon as the main celebrant. As he entered the church, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by parishioners Rachel Rebuck, 16, and her sister, Alexandra Rebuck, 17, both of Danville, who presented the bishop with a bouquet of red roses in the vestibule. After accepting the flower, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by St. Michael parish council president Stanley Zbicki, Kulpont, who held a loaf of bread and salt to be blessed. The bread symbolizes that Jesus is the “Bread of Life” and that Christians should be the leaven to the world, while the salt signifies Jesus’ words to His followers that they should be the “salt of the earth.”
As he moved into the church, Bishop Tikhon was greeted by the nine priests who concelebrated the liturgy with him, including the Very Rev. Archpriest Michael H. Evans, pastor, who held a ceremonial cross to give to the bishop and made the official welcome on behalf of the church and its parishioners.
After accepting the cross, Bishop Tikhon said, “Thank you, Father, it’s a great joy to be here on this historic event in the life of this parish. We pray that the Lord will bless us and give us great joy as we celebrate the Divine Liturgy and honor all those who have labored for this parish and continue to do so.”
Bishop Tikhon walked to the front of the nave and stood on a platform to be vested to celebrate the Divine Liturgy. As Archdeacon Nicholas Terenta prayed near the iconostasis, or icon wall, Subdeacons Abraham Labrada and Joshua Smith assisted the bishop in putting on the liturgical vestments. After the reading of the Hours (Matins), the Divine Liturgy began. The people received a blessing from the bishop as he held the trikiri (trikirion) and dikiri (dikirion), the liturgical candelabra used by the bishop. The trikiri has three candles and symbolizes the Trinity, while the dikiri with its two candles symbolize Jesus Christ’s two natures as perfect God and perfect man.
The homilist for the Divine Liturgy was the Very Rev. Archpriest Emil Hutnyan, pastor of St. Andrew Orthodox Church, Maple Heights, Ohio. The first thing Father Hutnyan mentioned that Father Evans and his wife, Matushka Sonya, had become grandparents after their daughter-in-law, Jennifer, gave birth to a daughter on Saturday. Jennifer and her husband, Michael Evans, live in Mechanicsburg.
“Here we are to celebrate 100 years. We’re here to celebrate the joy. We’re here to remember the cross on which Our Lord was crucified, which is not an instrument of torture but a reason for joy,” said Father Hutnyan.
During the homily, Father Hutnyan used the parable of the wedding feast as being symbolic of Heaven, and noted that the Divine Liturgy provides a taste of that heavenly wedding feast.
“In a sense for those of you who come here every Sunday, we believe that the Divine Liturgy is a feast day every blessed Sunday and holy day,” he said to the faithful, who filled the church to standing room only. “We are here to gather at the Lord’s table and partake of the eternal food that he has given to us. We call it the ‘Bread of Eternal Life.’ In other words, Holy Communion. In a larger sense, the wedding feast continues for all time in heaven.”
Father Hutnyan encouraged the almost 150 people in attendance to fill the church every Sunday and holy day and remember the great mystery that occurs at every Divine Liturgy. He said it is important to stay close to Christ and His Church to overcome the “passions,” or sins, that are in the soul that draw each person away from God.
“We must have love for each other, love for those who visit us in our homes, love for those who will hopefully come for another hundred years to St. Michael’s, love for those who we meet in the byways of life,” he said. “Pray for Father Michael, Matushka Sonya, and the faithful of the parish so that they continue to hear the word of God and keep it.”
At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, Bishop Tikhon made three special presentations. The first two were to Zbicki and choir director Peter Yastishak for their hard work in support of the parish and of Orthodoxy. The third presentation was a synodal award to Father Evans signed by all of the bishops of the Orthodox Church in America, recognizing his dedication and holiness as pastor. Father Evans celebrates his 20th anniversary as pastor of St. Michael’s in October.
The Divine Liturgy was followed by a short reception in the church hall, after which everyone traveled to Lazarski’s for the banquet. After the singing of “O Lord, Save Thy People” and the Lord’s Prayer, Bishop Tikhon gave the invocation. Sandra Tosca, daughter of Stanley Zbicki, led the anniversary toast and introduced the special guests at the dinner.
The first speaker was Mount Carmel Mayor Kevin Jones, who presented proclamations to Father Evans and Zbicki on behalf of the borough, state Sen. John Gordner and Rep. Robert Belfanti. As a special treat, Jones gave Father Evans the “key” to the borough.
Also presenting the parish with a proclamation was Northumberland County Commissioner Chairman Frank Sawicki on behalf of the board of commissioners.
Other speakers included the Very Rev. Archpriest John Kowalczyk, chancellor, Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania; the Very Rev. Archpriest Michael Hatrack, dean of the Frackville Deanery and pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Orthodox Church, Minersville, and Assumption BVM Orthodox Church, Saint Clair; Father Evans and Bishop Tikhon, who gave the benediction.
“I knew of Mount Carmel, but now that I’m here, I see the people who live in this town. I know the priest who serves the parish, and I see how connected we all are as human beings, and particularly in the Church,” said Bishop Tikhon, noting that it was his first visit to Mount Carmel. “We are joined in the bond of love in Our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In his comments, Father Evans said, “I’ve had four parishes in the coal region area, and I’ve found people in the coal region are very hard people. They were hard because they were raised hard. But one thing about the coal region people is that they know how to pray. They just don’t say they’re going to pray for you and forget about it. They don’t say they’re going to pray and then don’t do it. They pray for you. They’re prayerful people. Sometime I’d be behind the iconstasis and I’d here whispering. I’d look out and I’d see people praying, especially in Mount Carmel. They were praying. They were praying for everybody.”
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