I pray this finds you well and enjoying the many blessings of the Lord! 

To stand in front of the Holy Altar Table and preside over the Eucharist as a priest is the greatest gift that God has bestowed upon me. For almost four years now, I have had the blessing to do so as the pastor of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church. Words can barely capture how grateful I am to Christ for allowing me to serve in this capacity at the Church dedicated to His Most Blessed Mother .
 
Prior to my ordination and assignment to the Annunciation I did not understand the meaning of "fatherhood." While people would quite often refer to me as "father," the word represented little more than an official title. As a parish priest, however, I experienced "fatherhood" and finally understood and appreciated its significance. 
 
For the first time in my life I was entrusted with the care of a family. By allowing the Holy Spirit to descend upon me, ordaining me to the holy priesthood, God, who is "Father" of all, expected me to reflect the love and care He shows the world within the context of my parish family. This has not been an easy calling. 
 
By looking upon the faces of my congregation, by listening to the worries of the young and old alike, by participating in the joys and sorrows of our people, I have discovered so much about my own person. Above all, the greatest lesson that I have learned during my time as the pastor of the Annunciation is that our Lord God always finds a way to fill in our countless shortcomings if we make an effort to remain faithful to Him and to speak the truth of the Gospel in love. 
 
This Sunday, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America will celebrate the Divine Liturgy and preside over the Holy Eucharist at the Annunciation Church. During the Divine Liturgy, His Eminence will ordain the Reverend Deacon Chrysostomos Gilbert to the Holy Priesthood. In the days after his ordination, Fr. Chrysostomos will assume the pastoral care of our parish. This will mark a glorious day in the history and legacy of the Annunciation!
 
Fr. Chrysostomos is a man of God and above all, he is a person of love. I encourage you to reach out to Fr. Chrysostomos and to actively support his ministry. Grant unto him the same joy that you have bestowed upon me; help him come to experience the meaning fatherhood by welcoming him and allowing him to become a part of your life and the life of your loved ones and friends.
 
In closing, I want to express my wholehearted thanksgiving to you for all that you have done for the Church of the Annunciation. I want to also ask for your forgiveness if I have hurt you in any way and to ask you to pray for me, 
 
Nathanael, 
The unworthy monk and presbyter
 
Bio of Fr. Chrysostomos Gilbert

 

Rev. Father Chrysostomos Gilbert was born on March 15, 1985 in Spokane, Washington. His parents are Rev. Father Matthew and Presvytera Dionysia Gilbert of Salt Lake City, Utah. Father Chrysostomos is the eldest of six children, followed by his younger siblings: Christina, Christian, Andrew, Aaron and Anthony.

 

From a very young boy, it was very evident that Father Chrysostomos felt called to a life in the Church. He began serving in the altar along the side of his father at the age of four years old. He loved serving in the altar, but in addition, he took a special love to the hymnology of the Orthodox Church. Father Chrysostomos was truly inspired, and thus, at the age of 11 years old, he chanted his first liturgy all by himself in Greek on August 15, 1996. From this moment forward, he began learning and chanting all the services at his father's church, Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Price, Utah.

 

After finishing high school in Utah in 2003, Father Chrysostomos set out to Hellenic College/Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology to fulfill his dream of becoming a priest in the Greek Orthodox Church. This is something he had dreamed since he was a little boy. During his time at HC/HC, he was very active in the spiritual and academic life of the school. Father Chrysostomos was a chant group later for several school years, as well as, class president during his last two years of Holy Cross. He also spent several summers as a camp counselor at several Metropolis summer camps, which also included Ionian Village.

 

Father Chrysostomos graduated from Hellenic College in Brookline, Massachusetts with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies in 2007. In 2010, he graduated with the degree of Master of Divinity from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. During the fall of 2010, he began his second Master degree, Master of Theology, from Holy Cross.

 

Father Chrysostomos was ordained to the Holy Diaconate on January 9, 2011 by His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver at the Assumption of the Theotokos Metropolis Cathedral in Denver, CO. After spending one more semester at Holy Cross, he left Boston to attend school at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki during the 2011 and 2012 school year. During this time, he also served as a deacon to His Eminence Metropolitan Barnabas of Neapolis and Stavroupolis.

 

After leaving Thessaloniki, Greece in July 2012, Father Chrysostomos was assigned to be an assistant to His Grace Bishop Andonios in the Office of the Chancellor, and also as a deacon of the Archdiocese in September of 2012.