On May 18th-19th our Holy Apostles community welcomed Fr. Sergius, 16th Abbott of St. Tikhon's Monastery & Seminary.
Fr. Sergius visited our community at the invitation of our Ladies Philoptochos Society. He brought with him a myrrh-streaming icon of St. Anna (the grandmother of Christ), as well as many relics of various saints.
Significantly, Fr. Sergius also gifted our Holy Apostles community with relics of 3 of the very Apostles themselves! St. James, St. Peter & St. Andrew! This is a mighty and incredible gift indeed!The relics of the Apostles for our community is significant for two reason (amongst more):
1. Relics of the Apostles themselves- when a church receives relics of saints, they are oftentimes of more contemporary saints and not connected with the patron of the parish. A parish may be called St. Demetrios or St. Anna, but rarely if ever do the relics in the altar match the patron on the door. We however were given relics of the very Apostles and eye witnesses of God incarnate (Jesus Christ). Furthermore, these Apostles are our very patrons! This is indeed a rich blessing.
2. Relics are normally conferred on a parish upon consecration- It is typical for a church community to receive relics from the local bishop upon the consecration (sacramental blessing) of a church building & altar. All consecrated altars in the Orthodox world have relics of saints within them. For many church communities, it takes decades to have a full consecration (and therefore to receive relics). Our Holy Apostles community has only been in existence for 17 years, 8 years with a proper name. To receive these relics is an incredible blessing!