The Unclouded Day in Alaska
The Unclouded Day
Bishop Maxim’s 2024 visit to the Alaskan churches and monasteries and the consecration of the Holy Trinity Church on Spruce Island.
Bishop Maxim of Los Angeles and Western-America visited the city of Anchorage and monasteries on Spruce Island near the Kodiak Island. The visit took place from 10 to the 14th of August. Bishop Maxim was accompanied by Fr Blasko Paraklis and Fr Vasilije (Gavrilovic). The pilgrimage started with the Holy Liturgy at the Anchorage Holy Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church. The Liturgy assembled the small Serbian community living in the most northern part of our Holy Diocese. Priests from various Orthodox Churches served with Bishop Maxim, partaking, together with the faithful, in the Body and Blood of our Lord. After the Liturgy, all partook in a wonderful fellowship.
In classic Alaskan fashion, it was questionable whether the evening jet could even land in Kodiak. An early autumn storm had kicked up winds gusting over thirty miles an hour. Visibility was limited. The marker for the change of seasons in Kodiak is the fireweed which grows on the island beaches. Locals had been lamenting that it had already begun its annual turn from lush green to salmon red. Even if the plane landed, the monks wouldn’t be able to meet their bishop at the airport. The storm was simply too strong for the passage from Spruce Island to Kodiak. Their skiff bobbed at its mooring fifteen miles away in Sunny Cove. By the mercy of God, the skies parted enough to allow Bishop Maxim, Hieromonk Vasilije, and Archpriest Blasko to land in Kodiak at 6:30 pm on Saturday, August 10, 2024.
Sometimes failed plans offer new opportunities. Long time parishioners of St Peter’s Serbian Orthodox Church in Fresno, CA and now relocated to Kodiak, Ron and Radmila Tarailo, filled the breach to meet the bishop and take him and fellow travelers directly to the relics of St Herman at the Holy Resurrection Cathedral in Kodiak. After venerating the Wonderworker of Alaska and being treated to an authentic Serbian style meal at the Tarailo’s home, the bishop’s entourage was free to rest with hope that the coming night would bring a calming of wind and sea.
Indeed, the clouds lifted early the following morning, allowing passage to the women’s monastery on St Nilus Island for the Sunday Liturgy. Part of the beauty of Alaska for the Orthodox is that liturgy is not limited to the eucharistic assembly within hallowed church walls. All creation has its own doxology to offer. Humpback whales tossing on the surface of the water went before the trusty Makai, a landing craft skippered by monastery neighbor Dean Wilson, giving signs of welcome to the bishop and his retinue. Finally, in the cozy little chapel of St Nilus the nuns, monks, and pilgrims welcomed their bishop and the accompanying fathers before beginning the hierarchical liturgy.
Reflecting on Romans 15, Bishop Maxim emphasized the eucharistic tenor of the phrase, “therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us.” (Rom 15:7) To paraphrase the bishop’s words, “We receive the presence of one another even as we receive the eucharist. We are to make room for the other inside ourselves. Unity in Christ, in the Church, involves an overlapping of being. This is the kind of unity we are called to.” Thankfully, on this day as over the past seventeen years, our Father Bishop’s presence among us has not been a mere formality, but an event when those gathered drew closer to one another.
In monasteries, it is often noted that the trapeza meal is an extension of the liturgy. The body is fed while the soul gains nourishment through a spiritual reading. Further, it is a time of sharing space and for profitable story-telling. The nuns hosted its second formal trapeza meal in their new building on this Sunday and the freshly painted but still stark walls received the warmth of a truly joyful gathering. Looking out the windows onto the Gulf of Alaska, sunny skies shone down on the now white-capped seas. The new building is indeed a formidable shelter from the storm.
This year’s visit of Bishop Maxim was undertaken with the particular aim of consecrating the monks’ newly completed chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity on Spruce Island. For this purpose, last minute preparations were begun Monday morning. Bishop Maxim lent his artistic talent in sketching icons of the four evangelists which would be set atop each of the four corner posts of the wooden altar. Mother Neila of St Nilus Skete finished sewing the katasarkion or first covering of the altar. The rite of consecration is a baptism of the church. Its altar and walls are saturated with holy water, anointed with Holy Chrism, and prayed over as they are prepared for the Divine Liturgy. After the baptism and anointing, the altar is then clothed first with a fitted white cloth and then with a colored vestment. In this case, green for the feast of Pentecost.
Brother Herman and a pilgrim Olaf Borg were faced that Monday with the challenge of picking up the hand-made, hickory altar top, which was expected to arrive in Kodiak from Montana. The skies had cleared but the wind had changed direction and picked up to over thirty miles an hour, blowing warm air off the mainland. It was going to be the windiest day the young skipper had ever faced. Responsible for logistics at the monastery, Hieromonk Andrew was imploring everyone he knew for prayers that the UPS supply chain stay on schedule. Thankfully it did and Br Herman and Olaf made a protracted but triumphant crossing of a serious body of Alaskan waters.
In a case of graceful serendipity, Jesse Michael Mears had returned to Kodiak for a visit at exactly this time after his family moved to California nearly two years ago. Jesse had worked as foreman on the foundation and played a central role in the project all the way through the placing of the gold dome.
Truth be told, his job on this Monday was to remove the roof jacks atop the tower that had supported him during the placing of the dome two years before. Impeccable timing allowed him to clear the roof jacks and take part in the consecration.
One the eve of the consecration, the Vespers service combined the service of the Dedication of the Church of the Resurrection in Jerusalem together with Pentecost, the feast of the new church. Rich themes of consecration and the unifying action of the Holy Spirit were chanted while Fr Vasilije had the opportunity to serve in the tiny house chapel of St Michael located in the main monastery building. After dinner, while Bishop Maxim and Fathers Blasko and Vasilije reviewed the rubrics for the following day, monastery carpenter Jason Dokken hollowed out a space in the center of the new hickory altar to house the relics. Meanwhile, monastery cook Fr Adrian orchestrated the coming festal meal and outdoor seating for the modest crowd expected from Kodiak and St Nilus Islands. It was a special joy for the monks to see Jason and Jesse Michael working together late into the night on the eve of the consecration to prepare the altar for the crowning of the church they had both worked on from beginning to end.
The unremitting winds of Monday subsided overnight, leaving the seas placid on the morning of the consecration. Archpriest Innocent Dresdow of Holy Resurrection Cathedral in Kodiak ferried pilgrims from town in his landing craft, St Seraphim, while Ron Tarailo piloted out his sport fishing boat. A particularly local custom is to set a fishing line en route to liturgy on Spruce Island and pick it on the way home. Ron was successful on this day and the ride home provided the bishop’s crew with an opportunity to pull in Alaskan halibut.
Early in the morning, the blessing of water was performed to provide ample amounts of holy water for the baptism of the altar and church. The consecration rite then began with a procession of the relics from the old chapel to the new. As the monastery is located on Spruce Island, it was only fitting that the relics be of St Herman of Alaska, who lived twenty years on the island. For the local Orthodox this is St Herman’s Land. During the procession each of the faithful carried a unique item to equip the new church, from candlestick to Gospel book, while the bishop held the holy relics above his head. The procession stopped first on the porch of the new church where a litany was intoned before circling three times around the church as on Pascha. Returning again before the front door a dialogue occurred as on Pascha: “Lift up your gates on high, and be lifted you everlasting doors, and the king of glory shall enter!” To which a voice inside questions, “Who is this King of Glory?” The dialogue resolves with the triumphant proclamation, “The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of Glory!” as the front door of the church swings open.
Upon entrance, the clergy immediately proceeded to the holy altar where the baptism and washing began accompanied by prayers and supplications. After the washing, the bishop anointed each of the four posts of the altar with chrism before marking all four sides of the church above the windows and doors. Meanwhile, a wax mastic was being heated up to seal the relics inside the Holy Table as well as glue the icons of the four evangelists onto the top of the altar. For this task, Subdeacon Michael Hoffman of Kodiak was chosen. An engineer, carpenter and jack of all trades, the 78 year old sub-deacon was a reliable choice. Moreover, almost forty years ago in November of 1984, Michael first arrived on Spruce Island to help the future Bishop Gerasim of Fort Worth and Abbot Damascene of Platina put the roof on the original monastery building. It was a poetic book-end to an era of service and friendship with the Alaskan monastics. The slow heating mastic was just the right consistency when the moment came to affix the icons of the evangelists and seal the relics. The vesting of the altar followed and finally, the placing of the Gospel book, altar cross, antimins, tabernacle, and candlesticks. Then began the thrice holy song of the angels: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal…” and the rest of the Liturgy.
The bishop served with infectious inspiration as the winds of Pentecost circulated through the newly baptized church. Built from local Spruce timber, the walls in the main body of the church have always had a fresh scent similar to pine. On the day of the consecration it seemed that the redolent mountain pine freshness had gained a special clarity. The rustic walls, the joyful faces of the people, and the vivid colors of the icons all spoke of something new and fresh.
August 13, 2024, provided a clear unclouded day. Just over 60 degrees, it was a perfect day to hold the trapeza gathering outdoors, where the shining golden dome and the beautiful landscaped hillside, meticulously labored over by monastery gardener Fr Moses, provided a sanctified atmosphere. After being filled to repletion with Alaskan salmon and other savories the synodia resorted to an old tradition of trading songs. Bishop Maxim began with traditional Serbian and Greek songs featuring an inspired solo by Fr Blasko. Sister Porphyria led the American side with a set of old Gospel songs with poignant themes like The Unclouded Day and Old Country Church. The enthusiastic assembly kept a steady beat with a lively clapping of hands. An especially delightful sight was to see the bishop’s new assistant, Fr Vasilije, chime in on the call and response parts of these American Gospel songs in which he appeared to be well-versed. Monastery neighbor Tatiana Rekow, originally from Kazakstan, then offered her beautiful singing voice for the Russian folk song, Oy, Moroz Moroz. Fr Innocent closed the gathering by leading an extended version of Amazing Grace in his rich baritone.
The visit of Bishop Maxim and the consecration of the Holy Trinity Church were clearly grace-filled events that helped to confirm the Alaskan monks and nuns in their calling on their respective islands and brought joy to the faithful from Kodiak and pilgrims from afar who joined in the synaxis. From the time of their arrival in Kodiak under stormy skies through their departure on a perfect, unclouded day, this special time seemed to be pointing to a day “where no storm clouds will rise.” The consecration marked the completion of a building project that spanned four years. The enterprise was one that drew in the free will offerings of people too numerous to name. The building of the Holy Trinity Church provided the opportunity for the faithful to take part in the creation of something beautiful for God. Thankfully, this offering has been completed and sealed by the grace of the All-Holy Spirit through the rite of consecration.
–Hieromonk Andrew
