The Latest Issue of Russkiy Pastyr, No. 40, is Out

The latest issue of the Russian-language Orthodox pastoral magazine of the alumni of Holy Trinity Monastery is primarily dedicated to the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia of 2001 and the election of the new First Hierarch, and also to Metropolitan Anthony of blessed memory towards the 80th anniversary of the establishment of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.

The editor's foreword straightforwardly writes about the "break-off" from the Conciliar Church and the reactions of the sober pastors to this phenomenon. In the column "Sermons," the remarkable sermon of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco on Apostle Matthew is published for the first time. In this sermon, remarkably discovered on the day of the election of Metropolitan Laurus, St. John states that the Church will never be impoverished: "The history of the Church shows that there are no replacable persons in the Church, and the Holy Spirit always find a way to fill the ranks..." Further in the "Sermons" section is a sermon by Bishop Mikhail (Gribanovsky): "What is Church Consciousness [Tserkovnost’]?"

In the section "Pastoral Theology" are two articles: "Prayerful Preparation for Liturgy" of protopriest Eugene Popov (from his "Letters on Orthodox Pastoral Theology of 1877) and "The Orthodox Pastor and Apostasy," a chapter of a newly-published book of Protopresbyter Valery Lukianov "Joy in the Lord."

Of great interest is the articles of St. John (Maximovich) on the fundamental ideas of the theology of Metropolitan Anthony (Khrapovitsky) of blessed memory. The great miracle-worker and saint defends his Abba. An article by Protopriest Nikolai Artemov on "Stavroclastic Heresy?" is also an apologetic work on the theology of Metropolitan Anthony, while the memoirs of Archbishop Nathaniel on Metropolitan Anthony introduces a personal, human element in the cycle of articles on the Metropolitan of blessed memory.

An article by Protopriest Lev Lebedev on St. Nicholas in Russia is lively and profound, with suffering and love for the holy man of God and the Russian people. The spiritual son of Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose) of blessed memory, Priest Alexei Young, writes on the royal path of his spiritual father and mentor.

In the section "Witnesses Speak," the reader is offered an interview with nun Seraphima, the spiritual daughter and preserver of the legacy of the famous church writer Bishop Varnava (Belyaev). Nun Seraphima died in 2001 in Kiev. An article by Priest Igor Krivonogov is devoted to his spiritual father, Protopriest Anatoly Yakovin, well known to many clergymen of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia.

As always, the journal includes questions and answers on liturgical practice and letters to the editor.
Price: US $10.00, which includes shipping (subscription for one year is US $20.) The Russian-langue Journal may be ordered from:
RUSSKIY PASTYR
475 26th Avenue, #2
San Francisco, CA 94121, U.S.A.