In Preparation for the Feast of the Monastery »
Posted on July 29, 2010 in Pilgrimage to the Skete of St. Anna, 2007 - 0 COMMENTS
Our First Day at the Skete
by Rev Fr Chris Flesoras
It’s about 9:30 PM here at the Skete. The day has recently come to a close with the Service of Great Compline. Josh just finished uploading a writing on our travel website and is now talking to his father, Fr. Nectarios who is currently in Ghana on a mission trip with OCMC (technology is truly amazing). Harrison washed dishes, started a fire in the furnace so that we have warm water for a shower, and fed the cats, now sits writing a list of those to be commemorated in Liturgy tomorrow morning at 5:30AM, celebrating the Feast of St. Christina the Great Martyr. I sit in our guest room, having showered for the evening, getting ready to do a bit of reading, and take a few moments to write of our day.
We awoke this morning to the sound of bells at 6AM. We had about 20 minutes to prepare ourselves for the Divine Liturgy. The celebrant for services for the Skete varies from Sunday to Sunday. This affords the brothers of the various households the opportunity to share in the responsibilities of not only their households, but also of their greater community, the Skete of Saint Anna. To our surprise and great joy, it was a day on which Father Theophilos was assigned to serve as the liturgist for the Skete. Even more of a blessing was learning that Divine Liturgy would be prayed in the Chapel of the Holy Fathers of the Skete of Saint Anna, the Chapel is favorite of the Brotherhood and pilgrims on account of the beautiful iconography, which we as a parish had the opportunity to partially fund by offering $25,000 in 2005.
Services were beautiful, attended by about 15 brothers and about 15 pilgrims. The prayerful and sweet voice of Fr. Theophilos was complemented by a fellow monk, Fr. Dionysius (one of the best chanters that I have ever heard) of the Brotherhood of the Church of St. George under the spiritual care of Fr. Gabriel who is currently serving as the Diakios of the Skete. Although the music for Liturgy was quite ornate, it clipped along at a fine pace, which placed us in main complex of the monastery for hospitality by 8:15, after we had received a blessing from father, our antidoron, and a demitasse cup of holy water.
Josh and Harrison sat outside with fellow pilgrims while I was escorted in to sit with the brothers. As a visiting priest, I was seated next to the elder of the community. After a few brief introductions, the conversation shifted to the parish that I serve, the name of our bishop, what the weather was like in California, and…the familiar question from past visits to the Skete, why I didn’t have a beard. Thankfully, Fr. Theophilos came in toward the end of the questions, which meant that my Greek got me through seemingly unscathed and that we would now enjoy (in this order) a Greek coffee, a shot of tsiporo, water, and a cookie for dunking.
Once we concluded our time together, Fr. Theophilos, Josh, Harrison and I advanced back to the house of the Theophileon Brotherhood for a bit more coffee and another cookie. As we concluded our coffee, a knock was heard from the iron door to the patio. We welcomed two visitors to the house – Harrison washed the plates, Josh got and filled the water glasses and retrieved a few cookies and I made the Greek coffee.
One of our guests was from Thessalonica while the other was from Germany. It was a quick stop to greet Fr. Theophilos as they prepared to climb to the top of Mount Athos, about a 5 hour hike from the Skete. To Josh’s great surprise, the pilgrim from Germany studied at the University of Texas at Austin! Not only did Josh affirm the greatness of God, but also that of his home state of Texas as he flashed the longhorns sign to the Texas alum!
As our guests departed, Joshed picked up the kitchen and then went to work on the computer, uploading and cataloging photos, while Harrison went to the garden to pick vegetables for lunch to then wash and prepare them. My time would be spent weeding in the garden. While we worked on our specific tasks, Fr. Alipios, a fellow monk and friend of Fr. Theophilos came by for a visit, a cup of Greek coffee and a few vegetables. By the time each of us finished our tasks, Fr. Alipios had departed, Fr. Theophilos had prepared three types of fish to compliment Harrison’s Greek salad, some bread, a piece of fruit and a glass of wine.
Lunch was most enjoyable spoke of so many things, laughing at time, and even singing a few hymns toward the end of our meal. We then picked up the table, cleaned our plates, sat outside for a short while and then returned to our rooms for rest until vespers at 4:30.
As we processed to the chapel for vespers, we heard the chimes ring again for Fr. Symeon. At his point, they were processing him toward the grave. In the distance, about 50 meters below us next to the main church is where was being buried. And, in three years, his bones will be taken up by his household, washed with wine, and then placed in the ossuary next to the cemetery. Eternal be his memory!
At the close of Vespers, we went to the iconography studio. Here we enjoyed a cup of Greek coffee prepared by Harrison, along with a few cookies and a glass of water. Father Theophilos then allowed Josh to interview him regarding the process of writing icons. It was a fascinating discussion that we were able to record as well as capture with still photos. What also made this discussion most special for us was that Fr. Theophilos is currently working on the icon of the Dormition of the Theotokos for our parish. It’s about 2/3 complete and it’s beautiful!
Following our discussion, we advanced to our final meal. This evening we enjoyed some fish from lunch, fresh tomatoes and melon from the garden. It was time for Apothipnon (the After Dinner Service of Compline). Again, a most beautiful service as Fr. Theophilos led us in worship to close our day. And, it is at this point in our evening that I begin and conclude my writings of our second day at the Skete.
