Fund for Assistance to the ROCOR

Paschal celebrations at Holy Trinity Skete in Mexico

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Mexico City - Beginning early Saturday morning and continuously over the course of eight hours, clerics of Holy Trinity Skete (Sagrado Skiti de la Santisima Trinidad) in Mexico City greeted dozens of families coming to have their kulichi, Paschal eggs, paschas, and traditional foods blessed, which they later shared with their friends and relatives.

Pascha in Haiti

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Miami - Every year, on Great & Holy Saturday, in the parish of Saint Moses the Ethiopian in Fontamara, Haiti, after the Matins service, the Orthodox Mission of the Russian Church Abroad has baptized children, youths, and adults from different parishes throughout Haiti who were ready to receive baptism. This year, thirty-eight catechumens were baptized into the Orthodox faith.

Christ is Risen!

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0400

Dear friends,
In these joyous days, we ask you to consider how much Christ’s Holy Church means to us, and how difficult it would be to greet Pascha without being able to attend services in one’s home parish.
This was the situation once faced by our ancestors, who sought to escape the Communist regime in Russia. Through endless tribulations and tears they founded their new parishes where we pray today; they donated their last pennies to their dearly beloved Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia and, thanks to them, today there is a Russian parish in nearly every state.

Five Days of Salvation - an essay on St. Herman's youth conference

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

Every winter, the St. Herman’s Orthodox Youth Conferences are held on the America’s East and West Coasts. There, for their fortification in the faith and the salvation of their souls, pastors of the Church gather members of the younger generation.
This year, the “western” conference was held in Sunnyvale, CA. Over fifty college and high school students were in attendance. All were united by their shared faith, Church, and desire to learn something new. But this gathering also answers one of the most burning questions of youth: where and how to find upstanding peers. Many young people find friends here – those who are older find their sweethearts. “Walk not in the counsel of the wicked,” wrote King David, and for Orthodox youth this conference is a deserving worthy alterative to secular get-togethers.

Fr Nektariy, monastery survive Mexico earthquake, struggle to go on without help

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0400

A powerful 7.4 earthquake shook Mexico on Tuesday spared the small ROCOR mission in Mexico City, headed by Archimdnrite Nektariy (Haji-Petropoulos).
“Thanks to God nothing very serious happened,” wrote the abbot to the Fund for Assistance in an email.

“All our religious items fell to the ground, icons, bookshelves, lampadas, candelabra, furniture, kitchenware etc. Lots of broken glass and loose bricks everywhere; the major damage was in the cupola. Phone lines, Internet and electricity were interrupted for many hours. But all our parishioners are fine, just very scared. We have already had 15 aftershocks. “