Church Anniversary in Calgary

On December 2nd and 3rd, the faithful of “St. Andrew's” Parish of Calgary put on their festive attire to welcome His Grace Ioan Cassian and the guest priests who came to partake in the joy of their community's anniversary. On Saturday evening, Vespers was celebrated by the Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Canada, surrounded by a group of priests: Fr. George Bazgan, diocesan vicar, Fr. Dean Calin Mărincaș, Fr. Vasile Moisi, Parish Priest, Fr. Lucian Moldovan, Fr. Lucian Constantin, Fr. Ciprian Roman, Fr. Gheorghe Petrovan and Fr. Cristian Bujor. At the end of the religious service, Father George Bazgan addressed a word of spiritual exhortation, saying: “The Church anniversary is a moment of retrospective, thinking about where we started and what we have achieved so far, as well as one of perspective, of projecting into the future the objectives that are to be achieved. We are in the period of our spiritual journey of fasting that precedes the Feast of the Nativity of Jesus Christ. It behooves us to prepare our treasuries so that when the old Joseph and the Virgin Mary knock on the door of our soul and ask, ‘Is there room here?’ we open and welcome the Child Jesus into our souls and families, offering Him gifts like the Magi of the East."

The evening ended with the traditional agape, prepared with great skill by the ladies’ society of the host parish.

On Sunday morning, His Grace Ioan Casian was greeted by the sobor of priests and faithful present with the bishop's hymn. In his sermon, the hierarch said:

“We are in an important period of preparation for the celebration of the Lord’s Nativity or Christmas. Unlike the other fasts, this one is marked by a feeling of joy because its finality is the revelation of the Child Jesus. This Sunday's Gospel reading tells us about the healing of the blind man in Jericho. Learning from those around him that Jesus is passing by, the blind man addresses this prayer: ‘Have mercy on me, Son of David.’ The Saviour stops and asks him: What do you want from Me? The blind man replies: Lord, that I may see. The Saviour tells him: your faith has made you well, which means that He confirms that in order for God to work in man's life, man needs to have openness to God, to His grace."

After the final blessing, the festive Agape was offered with great dedication by the tireless ladies of the parish. During the meal, Fr. Vasile Moisi, the parish priest, read an article reviewing the events related to the Great Union of 1918. His Grace Ioan Casian thanked Father Vasile, the members of the Parish Council and the ladies' society for the beautiful welcome and organization, wishing everyone a Christmas fast with spiritual achievements and the celebration of the Lord’s Nativity with health, peace, and joy.