New RWRV Mission in Ohio

The first service was held at the new St. Mary of Egypt Western Rite Orthodox Mission in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Oct. 16, 2012. The priest is Fr. Joseph Gingrich, formerly serving in the Carpatho-Russian Diocese.

photo: Fr. Joseph Gingrich

Contact information for the Mission is as follows.
St. Mary of Egypt Orthodox Mission
6128 Hamilton Ave. Apt.14
Cincinnati, OH 45224
Priest: Rev. Fr. Joseph Gingrich
Email: g420155@yahoo.com
Telephone: (315) 717-2824
Call if coming. (secured building--you have to be let in).


We wish Fr. Joseph, his matushka, and the Mission all success in Christ.

New WR Ordination for England

On October 5, 2012, in the church of St. Ambrose of Milan, Putnam Valley, New York, Fr. Anthony (Bondi), Pastoral Vicar for Western Rite in the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, presented to His Grace, Bishop Jerome of Manhattan, Vicar Bishop for Western Rite, Thomas Harry Cook of Nottingham, England, for ordination to the Holy Priesthood.

above: Fr. Thomas Cook

Father Thomas was ordained in the Roman rite by Bishop Jerome, with Fr. Irenaeus Watson representing the priests of the Vicariate. Fr. Thomas will be Rector of St Edmund the Martyr Orthodox Church. He is the first Western Rite priest to be ordained by ROCOR for England. Fr. Thomas is married to matushka Jane and they have three children. Fr. Thomas has been Orthodox for six years and holds a B.A. with Honors from King's College, University of London, and a Certificate in Orthodox Christian Studies from the Institute for Orthodox Christian Studies, Cambridge. He will receive his M. Div. in December. The criminal background check required of all Western Rite clergy prior to ordination was completed by the Nottinghamshire police in June of 2012.

Ad multos annos, pater!

Contact information:
The Rev. Thomas Cook, rector
St Edmund the Martyr Orthodox Church
7A Victoria Street, Gedling
Nottingham, Notts. NG16 1HG
United Kingdom
phone 441159384742
email: tomharrycook@ntlworld.com

WR Conference 2012 a Great Success

above: Old Roman Rite Liturgy, August 9, 2012, in the borrowed Roman Catholic church at the Mt. Alvernia Retreat Center, Wappinger Falls, New York.

The RWRV (ROCOR Western Rite Vicariate) Conference 2012 has just ended. I was sent a number of photos from the Conference, which may be viewed here:

http://bit.ly/O2KOZN



Metropolitan Hilarion, first hierach of the Russian Church Abroad, was with us for each of the four days of the Conference, as well as Bishop Jerome of Manhattan. This was a great blessing for everyone. I believe that the success of the Conference can be gauged by the fact that, after four days of a brutal schedule of four services per day, tightly sandwiched between mealtimes and work sessions, with scarcely an hour to call one's own, most or all of us were still full of energy on the last day, and were in fact disappointed the Conference was over too soon!



above: The reading of the holy Gospel, Fr. Deacon David Jackson of Putnam Valley, New York.

The sender of these photos intended to concentrate on the Aug. 9 Liturgy, I believe, but I eagerly awaiting photos from the other Liturgies, all of which were wonderful. Also, I anticipate receiving group photos from the Conference to post here.

The Conference fitted us, in a sober manner, to go and do evangelical work in the spirit of Christ and the Holy Apostles. May God bless our Western Rite clergy to fulfill such a lofty calling, for the salvation of as many as God may send to us.



above: Reader Nicholas brings the pax Icon out to be venerated by the faithful.

by Hieromonk Aidan+
a grateful participant

Hat tip: Fr. Wade Miller, photographer

Western Orthodox Crozier Style

Two styles of bishop's crozier or staff have been known in the Western Rite. Both are very old and venerable usages.

Before the Schism of 1054, the bishop's crozier most often had a Tau-shaped head. Here is a picture of a typical Western Orthodox crozier top:


(above: Typical old Roman rite crozier, from Cologne, Germany, circa 1000 A.D.)

The other style, which is known to have been used prior to the Schism, is the shepherd's crook style.

The first predominated before the Schism, the second after the Schism.

Hat tip to Christopher McAvoy of Pennsylvania.

P.S. Old style Western Rite bishop's vestments:

New Ordination Announcement

Received on April 17 (new style), 2012, from Father Anthony (Bondi), Pastoral Vicar for the RWRV:

"With the Blessing of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, Reader Matthew Floyd will be ordained a deacon (5/19) at St Ambrose of Milan, in Putnam Valley, NY. by His Grace, Bishop Jerome. Fr Deacon Matthew is appointed to assist Fr Steven (Tolbert) Rector of St Brigit of Ireland in Claymore, OK."

Thanks be to God. Axios. Dignus est!

Upcoming Western Rite Ordinations in ROCOR

From rwrv.org, the new website of the Russian Western Rite Vicariate:

"With the Blessing of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, The Rev Andrew William Winters will be ordained a deacon [March 23rd] and a priest [March 24] this month at St Ambrose of Milan, in Putnam Valley, NY. by His Grace, Bishop Jerome. Fr Andrew is appointed Rector of St Cyril of Alexandria in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

"With the Blessing of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, The Rev David Kinghorn will be ordained a priest on May 26th at St Joseph of Optina, in Virginia Beach, VA. by His Grace, Bishop Jerome and the gracious consent of their Rector Fr Seraphim Stephens. Fr David is appointed Rector of St Cuthbert in Pawtucket, Rhode Island."

Blogger's note: The ordination form appearing in the "St. Osmund Pontifical" (10th-11th c. Roman rite pontifical from Anglo-Saxon England) is, unfortunately, incomplete. However, what remains of it, matches perfectly the ordination form as printed by Hittorp. And in Hittorp's form, we have, at the beginning of the ordination service, an Acclamation:

Acclamation

¶ The bishop exclaims:

Is he worthy?

R. He is worthy!

Is he righteous?

R. He is righteous!

Is he worthy?

R. He is worthy!

Is he righteous?

R. He is righteous!

Is he worthy?

R. He is worthy!

Is he righteous?

R. He is righteous!

Bishop: May God make him persevere worthily and righteously in His service for ever.

R. Amen.

New Website for ROCOR Western Rite Vicariate (RWRV)

From Priest Anthony Bryant of St. Katherine's Church in South Carolina:

"His Grace, Bishop Jerome, just approved the launch of a new website to officially represent ROCOR Western Rite Vicariate around the world via the Internet. We've put some emphasis on the Directory at first, including those locations outside of the USA, so we can help get the word out about these locations for people to visit and/or share with their friends who may live near one. Please also keep these communities in your prayers...many of them are new missions and could use all the encouragement, prayers, and visits they can get. Over time, we hope to turn this website into a valuable resource for the RWRV and aid with the building up of Western Rite Orthodoxy. Here's a link to the new official website:

http://www.rwrv.org/

Blogger's comments: Thank you, Father. "Prospere procede et regna!" (Ps. 44)

Morning, Evening Prayers Text Completed

Work on the Morning and Evening Prayers document has been completed. The document gives domestic daily prayers in Latin and English, from sources approved in Sept. 2008 in the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia for Orthodox Christians of the Western Rite. It has been made available for free download on the internet:

http://tinyurl.com/7kn627r

Drawn from source manuscripts of British Isles origin, the prayers show a mixture that was achieved historically when the Celtic traditions in the Isles met with the Roman traditions brought in by the great missionary saint, Augustine of Canterbury.

In Anglo-Saxon England, it was very common in books of domestic (extra-liturgical) prayers to show Celtic prayers and Roman or Gregorian prayers, side-by-side. The spirit of the prayers was felt, it would seem, to be one, and so both traditions were easily and naturally drawn upon for the private devotions of the Anglo-Saxon Christians in the centuries before the Norman invasion. These devotions and prayers were maintained, preserved, and used in daily life long after the Norman invasion as well.

The morning and evening prayers are drawn from three important sources: the Book of Cerne, the Ancren Riwle or Hermitess' Rule, and the printed Sarum Primer. They appeared in an initial edition in "Orthodox Prayers of Old England" (Third Edition 1999), which remains in stock but will one day be replaced by a fourth edition to be produced under the authority of the Russian Church Abroad. Perhaps the fourth edition can be published by Jordanville, or by the St. Nicholas Monastery in Ft. Myers, Florida.

New Priestly Ordination in RWRV

From Father Anthony (Bondi), Pastoral Vicar to the Metropolitan for Western Rite:

"This morning at 10am [Friday, February 17, 2012 - Ed.] His Grace Bishop Jerome of Manhattan ordained Fr Deacon Steven Tolbert a priest at St Ambrose of Milan Orthodox Church in Putnam Valley, New York in the Western Rite. Fr Steven will be assigned as the Rector of St Brigit of Ireland Orthodox Church, South Claremore, OK. He and his family will take up residence there after Pascha. Of note: Fr Steven is the first priest ordained from minor orders up through the priesthood using the ancient Roman Rite. May God grant him many years!"

Many years - Ad multos annos!