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I was born and raised in New Kensington, PA and was reared in Orthodoxy from birth at St. George where my great uncle, Fr. Nicholas Ofiesh, was the parish priest from 1916 until 1966. He retired shortly after my baptism in August of that year. Church was at the center of our lives
but things took an abrupt change in 1979 when the Antiochian Village began that summer and our parish was assigned a new, young and energetic priest, Fr. John Abdalah (now Bishop JOHN). With these two events, things went to a higher level. We always had Liturgy on Sundays, Friday Akathists during Great Lent, Holy Week starting on Wednesday, Sunday School, and Vacation Bible School; but now, the Village had morning Orthros, daily Vespers, weekday Liturgies and Feast Days, and morning programs filled with teachings we had never heard. What really blew me away was that the campers and counselors were the choir. Fr. John Namie taught us Byzantine Chant and we did it without a choir in four part harmony.
When summer ended, our new priest had Saturday evening Vespers, weeknight evening Liturgies, mid-week teen gatherings, Holy Week beginning on Palm Sunday evening, etc. I and others are truly thankful for all the clergy and faithful who kept the Church together for decades with limited resources or translations of Church School material, music, or liturgics - but things
were growing. Parishes began having young seminary educated clergy, and the Village truly made the Archdiocese smaller. We met campers, counselors, staff, seminarians, clergy from all over the Archdiocese and formed relationships that last until today.
We learned about our rich Christian heritage and about Antioch where the disciples were first called Christians and its early Saints Ignatius and Thekla. Antioch was a place of diverse cultures and languages but unified in Christ. That’s the spirit of Antioch!
It’s amazing for me as now a priest of over a thousand people with 800+ on a normal Sunday to see how the our Archdiocese has grown and changed from humble beginnings. I am always amazed at the awe newcomers have when they embrace the Church as though they are looking at a treasure of gold and jewels. It helps me not to take our treasure for granted.
As much as our Archdiocese has grown and prospered, I remember what I was taught at the Village and in my home parish, that is, not to get caught up in or be proud of our book knowledge or musical knowledge or the letter of the law but to live through serving others. For our Christ did not come to be served but serve. I thank God for the Village and its service to our youth and grateful for the vision of Metropolitan PHILIP. It is a true foundation for us to grow
upon and to take back to our parishes or the parishes we end up in.
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