Peace to you, dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

May we share with you the small travel-report we received from father Vitali Gavrilov of the parish of Transfiguration in Tuim.

Many of our parishioners live quite far from us. Well, what is “far”? Here in Siberia, everything is “far.”  Or… maybe not far. Just a few hundred miles — and we are already there.

So last week I needed to visit a lady who is our parishioner; her name is Maria, she lives in the village of Sukhovo. It is about 750 kilometers (465 miles) away from Tuim.  This is my responsibility!  So in the early early morning we got into a car and drove off.  The roads in our Siberia are ambiguous.  Sometimes you have to drive for a very long time.

But be that as it may, we arrived in the evening.  Before that, sister Maria, finding no place for herself, left the house many times and gazed steadily at the road, waiting for us at the gate. The meeting was with tears and joy.

And then the amazing began.  After all, we were traveling with the goal of visiting our parishioner, to give her Holy Communion and to instruct in the faith, supporting and comforting her. But there are eight people came to her house.  These were the neighbors who were also waiting for us.  Using this wonderful opportunity, I talked with them for two hours, told them about the Church and her sacraments, about our Lord Who gave His Church authority to baptize new people and to forgive sins. Then I explained why now I can’t give Holy Communion to everyone.  But I can teach them, and then, after baptism (or confirmation, if someone was already baptized), I can give them Holy Communion. All people listened attentively, asking questions, and these were really good questions.

Do you know what happiness is for a priest when people listen to him?

Well, after this long conversation, I served the Mass, with music (my wife Anna brought a small battery-powered synthesizer).

And in the morning, before we were about to leave, one woman brought us a basket of domestic eggs and asked me to come to their house and to bless her family. I went to visit this family immediately. I talked with people, encouraged them and said the blessing.

The owner of this house is 88 years old; she is very kind and wise.  She asked me to give her confirmation as soon as possible, she said that she understands how important the Eucharist is, and that she believes that it is the true Body and true Blood of Jesus Christ.  I promised her and others that I would soon come to Sukhovo again and begin to instruct them, and then later I would conduct a rite of confirmation to all diligent students.

There are some very old people in the village who are already preparing to leave this world, and I will do everything I can so that they will be saved.

And then we were still talk for a long time. Because of that, we were not able to leave in the morning, but left only in the evening, before which we ate delicious properly made donuts. 🙂

Before we left, the villagers again said that they are waiting for us. Now I worry more, and I pray for those who want to be in the Church, but live so far from us.  I ask all of you to pray for these people, and I also ask the Bishop to let me visit regularly not only Angarsk and Buryatia, but also the village of Sukhovo.

Please pray for the Lutheran mission in Siberia and for safe travels of the priests.

“Faith and hope”

Please see attached photos. 

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Peace to you, dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today, in accordance with her calendar, the Church celebrates the day of Saint James the Apostle.

Of course, in some parishes, this holiday (like the others that fall on a weekday) is moved to the nearest Sunday.

But we congratulate you today, and may we bring to your attention an excerpt from the sermon by our Bishop Vsevolod, that he read in the parish of Saint James the Apostle in Novokuznetsk.

Saint James became the first martyr of the twelve apostles. But we know practically nothing from the Scriptures about his life and ministry. The Book of Acts only tells us about his death, and even so briefly, as if by chance:

At that time, King Herod raised his hands to some of the Church members to make them evil, and killed James, the brother of John, with the sword.

Acts 12:1-2

The compilers of the Church lectionaries had to add a few verses from the previous chapter [Acts 11:27-30] to this reading so that it would not look too short. Even though the history of collecting of relief during the famine under the days of Claudius Caesar has no direct connection to James the Apostle.

Although it is possible that among the priests who received this relief, there were those ordained by Saint James. After all, it was through the apostolic ordination that the Church received her first bishops and presbyters (and she is still standing in this continuous line of succession from the apostles).

Against this Church, King Herod (the grandson of the most “famous” of the Herods — one who killed the children of Bethlehem), “raised his hands”, and some Christians were arrested and Saint James was executed. Here is a description of his death: “and killed James, the brother of John, with the sword”; there are seven words in Greek and six in Russian.

And that is all we know about Saint James from the Scriptures. The early Church writers contradictory tell us about the guard who was captured by the apostle’s preaching so much that he publicly confessed his faith in the Lord Jesus and was executed with the one he guarded. Was it happen? Maybe.

But still, it is written so little! So little we know about the apostle! And I realized that this is because the greatest saints are almost always invisible. In the same twelfth chapter of Acts, much more is written about Herod. Earthly rulers always produce much more noise than God’s saints. The people glorify these rulers, the crowds shout to them (as they shouted to King Herod): “This is the voice of God, not of a man” [Acts 12:23], they get public adoration, they are named as “fuhrers,” “lifelong leaders” and “fathers of nations.”

Around them always there are a lot of those who want, if not “to sit at their right hand and at the left” (these places have long been occupied), then at least to snatch a small piece of a celebration of life, constantly hovering around them.

In our world, the most popular persons are obvious sinners, who are demonstrating their permissiveness. But I do not envy them: celebrity and authority impose too much imprint on a person, and it is doubtful that those who are caught in such nets will be able to save their souls. King Herod could not.

Once, brothers James and John both dreamed of such human glory [see Matt. 20:20-28]. But the Lord graciously chose another way for them. Following that way, Saint James refused a human glory and obtained the glory of God. He suffered death from the earthly king and entered the eternal kingdom of the King of Kings.

Please pray for the Lutheran clergymen and laypeople in Siberia.

“Faith and hope”

Please see attached photos from the parish of Saint James in Novokuznetsk.

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Peace to you, dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Our Church is very serious about her liturgy and, therefore, only ordained ministers serve the liturgy and distribute the holy sacrament.

The laymen can help at the liturgy (for example, to open the altar gate and to light the altar candles). The laymen can also read the Scriptures during matins and vespers. Such laymen are called “subdeacons” or “readers.” To become a reader, a man needs to receive a special blessing.

Last Sunday in the parish of Saint Andrew our bishop, Vsevolod, conducted the rite of blessing of subdeacon for Seminarian Yury Kulikov.

Yury Kulikov (born in 1982) is a real Siberian: he grew up in Olekminsk in Yakutia (the north-eastern part of Siberia). Yakutia is officially the coldest place on earth, with winter temperatures there reaching -80F.

Following graduation from the State Pedagogical University in Yekaterinburg in 2003, Yury worked as a schoolteacher.

Being a member of the Baptist congregation in Yekaterinburg from 1999, Yury assisted a pastor there, leading the youth ministry. Continuing his theological self-education, Yury grew increasingly dissatisfied with Baptist “theology,” a path which finally led to his confirmation in the parish of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (SELC) in 2015.

Yury entered the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Novosibirsk at 2016. So, now he is in his third year of studies.

Yury’s wife, Ekaterina, currently works as a schoolteacher at the state elementary school in Novosibirsk. Yury and Ekaterina have 3 children: David (born in 2005), Kristopher (born in 2006), and Maria (born in 2013).

During the order of blessing of subdeacon, Bishop Vsevolod said:

“Beloved brother, God the Father revealed the mystery of salvation, and completed it through His Son Jesus Christ, Who became Man and, after He told us all, has entrusted to the Church the responsibility to preach the Gospel to all creation. Becoming a reader, you will proclaim the word of God, assisting the Church in the fulfillment of this duty. You will obtain a special mission in the community of God’s people and will be assigned to service of the faith, rooted in the word of God.

“For you will proclaim the word of God in the liturgical assembly, will teach the faith among children and adults, and prepare them to receive the sacraments properly. You will also proclaim the message of salvation to people who does not already know it. Thus, with your help people will come to know God the Father and the Son, Whom He sent, Jesus Christ, and obtain the eternal life.

“Proclaiming the word of God to others, you take it in obedience to the Holy Spirit and attentively consider it every day, so that you may fully experience its living and sweet action. With your whole life imitate our Savior Jesus Christ!”

Please pray for the Siberian Lutheran clergymen and their helpers. Especially pray for subdeacon, Yury Kulikov, and his family.

“Faith and hope”

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Please see attached photos.