COVID in Holy Cross Monastery

At least 19 of the monks are ill, some seriously. Archimandrite Seraphim and two monks have been hospitalized though their prognosis is favorable. Due to this serious situation the monastery has been temporarily closed to visitors. Prayers are urgently requested.

Details here.

HT: ByzantineTexas

Athos (Full Documentary)

Ruins of previously unknown monastery accidentally found in Georgian forest

Story with lots of cool photos. They don't even know it's name.

Schema-Archimandrite Gabriel (Bunge) on Monasticism and Relations with the Roman Catholic Church

The outstanding Swiss theologian and patrologist Schema-Archimandrite Gabriel (Bunge) has met with the brethren of the Dormition Kiev Caves Lavra. The meeting took place on October 18 as part of Archimandrite Gabriel’s pilgrimage to the Holy places of Ukraine, reports Lavra.ua.

The distinguished guest was introduced by Archimandrite Amvrosy (Makar), rector of the Church of St. Ambrose of Milan in the Italian city of Milan. The priest told the brethren about the life of Schema-Archimandrite Gabriel, his thirty-six years of ascetic life in the mountains of Switzerland and that today he is abbot of the Monastery of the Exaltation of the Cross in Lugano (southern Switzerland), and author of a number of books on monasticism, and pastor to many spiritual children.

The talk began with questions on Fr. Gabriel’s life in the mountains. The schema-archimandrite related how he got acquainted with the Orthodox tradition and Orthodox monasticism.

“My first contact with Orthodoxy was in 1961 in Greece. By that time I had already joined a Benedictine monastery and nearly half our brethren followed the Eastern liturgical tradition. That monastery wanted to become a bridge between the East and the West. I studied a great deal and read the writings of the holy fathers. With the blessing of my confessor I became a hermit in the ‘80s and I still live in a skete which is located 900 meters (c. 2952.76 feet) above sea level. I tried to imitate the fathers of olden times in my life. I wrote and published books to inspire Western people—all of us need to return to our roots. From the very beginning I realized that the West was separated from the East. Even many hierarchs of the Roman Catholic Church referred to the teachings of the fathers of the Eastern Church, but, nevertheless, the Roman Church went its own way,” said Schema-Archimandrite Gabriel.

In 2010 Fr. Gabriel (Bunge) was received into the Orthodox Church, but, according to him, in spirit he had always been Orthodox before and had always wanted to partake in the holy sacraments of the Orthodox Church.

“I stood with one foot in the East, the other in the West. For many years I longed to visit the Kiev Caves Lavra, and to venerate the Kiev Caves fathers, and to pray to them. Once in some antique shop I bought a cross with particles of relics of twelve Kiev Caves saints in it. Their names were written there. The cross dated back to 1791. It is a mystery how that cross ended up in the West, but the relics which it contained were of no particular value for the shop staff. Now that cross stands on my table and I pray to the Kiev Caves fathers every day. And today I am very happy and delighted to have this opportunity to visit the Kiev Caves Lavra,” he continued.

Answering the question on the prospects of the reunification of the Eastern and Western Churches, Fr. Gabriel emphasized that “there is no theological sense in the dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church. Catholics must return back to the Church. My teacher and professor who later became Pope Benedict XVI understood many things but did nothing. The Orthodox Church has preserved the Liturgy and the monastic tradition, while the Roman Catholic Church is currently moving towards Protestantism rather than returning to Orthodoxy. The real problem of this division is not in the differences—it is in the incompatibility. The Greek and Roman cultures in the first millennium were different yet compatible with each other.”

The theologian also drew the brethren’s attention to the vital topic of the place of monasticism in the modern world: “Modern people want monks to answer their spiritual questions, not national and political ones. Monks are separated from this world and they live their own lives which are different from the life in the world. Such life enables them to gain wisdom which is not of this world—and this is precisely what people are waiting for. Many come to me too and expect me to answer their questions. And I have to tell them what they need to do and what not to do.”

Speaking on whether modern monasticism should take the anchoretic or cenobitic path, Schema-Archimandrite Gabriel explained: “Monasticism began not with the cenobitic tradition. The first monks were anchorites, but they always had a teacher. Both paths are good. It all depends on the calling from God in each case. The Church has a place for everybody! And the Lord saves us not individually, but all together!”

At the end of the meeting assistant abbot of the Kiev Caves Lavra Archimandrite Anthony thanked Fr. Gabriel for his visit and for answering the topical questions and conveyed to him greetings from the monastery’s abbot, Metropolitan Paul. After that a general picture was taken to remember the meeting.

Source.

Head of Antiochian Archdiocese Calls for Monastic Revival

Now there is a post title I never expected to see on this blog. Details can be read here.

Lazarus Saturday

Commemoration of the dead at Optina.

Consecration of the Altar and Chapel of St. Michael the Archangel at Optina

Geeks for Monarchy: The Rise of the Neoreactionaries

Many of us yearn for a return to one golden age or another. But there’s a community of bloggers taking the idea to an extreme: they want to turn the dial way back to the days before the French Revolution.

Neoreactionaries believe that while technology and capitalism have advanced humanity over the past couple centuries, democracy has actually done more harm than good. They propose a return to old-fashioned gender roles, social order and monarchy.

You may have seen them crop-up on tech hangouts like Hacker News and Less Wrong, having cryptic conversations about “Moldbug” and “the Cathedral.” And though neoreactionaries aren’t exactly rampant in the tech industry, PayPal founder Peter Thiel has voiced similar ideas, and Pax Dickinson, the former CTO of Business Insider, says he’s been influenced by neoreactionary thought. It may be a small, minority world view, but it’s one that I think shines some light on the psyche of contemporary tech culture.

Enough has been written on neoreaction already to fill at least a couple of books, so if you prefer to go straight to the source, just pop a Modafinil and skip to the “Neoreaction Reading List” at the end of this post. For everyone else, I’ll do my best to summarize neoreactionary thought and why it might matter.

Read the rest here.
HT: The Anracho-Monarchist

The Consecration of a Convent Chapel

September 3rd at Holy Trinity Monastery (Convent)

News from Mt. Athos

Two stories, both of which are disturbing.

First schismatic monks (radical old calendarists) violently attacked police who were sent to evict them. And secondly, European leftists are continuing to press (with some success) court cases against the monks for their thousand year tradition of excluding women from the Holy Mountain.

More bad news

I have received the following email from the Hermitage of the Holy Cross.

At around 6:00 AM on Pentecost Sunday, a fire burned down the Convent of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary as well as the attached candle factory, which were located on the grounds of the Hermitage of the Holy Cross. By the grace of God, the fire caused no injuries to Mother Theodora or to any of the Hermitage community members, although the damage to the Convent is totally irreparable and nearly everything in it was destroyed. It is not yet clear what started the fire, but in the words of Mother Theodora, "God has allowed this so that we will repent for our sins." We will post updates to this page and to the main Hermitage website as more information becomes available.

In the meantime, Mother Theodora is left with no cell, no means of livelihood and only the clothes on her back. She is in great need of everyone's prayers as well as whatever financial assistance you are able to give. You may make your donations on the Hermitage web site or by mailing a check with "Convent Rebuilding Fund" in the memo line to:

Hermitage of the Holy Cross
Attn: Gift Shop
505 Holy Cross Road
Wayne, WV 25570-5403

Thank you, and may God reward you for your prayers and kindness!

Optina Monastery: Scenes from the first week of Lent

Forgiveness Sunday at Optina Monastery

Court: Law barring monks from making coffins is unconstitutional

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that monks at St. Joseph Abbey near Covington should be allowed to sell handmade caskets from their monastery, despite opposition from Louisiana's funeral home directors who claimed a sole right to sell caskets in the state. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court's decision to strike down a state law limiting casket sales to licensed members of the funeral industry.

The decision marks a victory for the Benedictine monastery, which has struggled for several years for the right to sell simple, wooden caskets built by monks in a woodshop to fund their medical and education needs. In 2007, the State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors ordered the abbey to cease sales after a funeral home owner filed a formal complaint.

Read the rest here.

Photos From The Hermitage of The Holy Cross

I draw the reader's attention to some wonderful photos from the recent pilgrimage weekend and the Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross which can be found here. Also please take note that the monastery is now publishing the English language translation of Everyday Saints and Other Stories. It has been one of the best selling books in Russia.

A Year in the Hermitage of The Holy Cross (WV)

A great video on Orthodox Monasticism.

On a wing and a prayer: The extraordinary hanging monasteries that cling to the sides of cliffs

See the story and remarkable photos here.

Valaam Step to the Skies

Click over to youtube to watch all seven parts.

Winter in the Vvedensky Monastery in the Optina Hermitage

The Russian title is Farewell to Winter.

Optina: Vespers for the Feast of the Presentation of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Temple