Response to the Decree of Election

“Lord, You have been our refuge in all generations” (Ps 89).

In his farewell address to the Church in North America, our father among the saints, the Blessed Tikhon of Moscow, Enlightener of North America said that “it is evident that the Lord God helped us” (New York 7 March, 1907). In response to the election of the faithful of Canada, and of the Holy Synod of The Orthodox Church in America, and in direct response to the paternal love, support and admonitions of our beloved father, His Beatitude Metropolitan THEODOSIUS, I find that this simple, profound statement burns into the very heart of my being as I stand before you today. In response to these demonstrations of God’s Will acting, I now dare to make those very words of St Tikhon my own: “It is evident that the Lord God helped us!”

The life of this Archdiocese of Canada has been far from easy. It has been one of knowing want, dissention, strife, and discouragement. It has suffered polemics and division within and without over the years, and has been at the mercy of all sorts of foreign catastrophes, upheavals, and misunderstandings. However, that this Archdiocese exists today, that it continues to live in attempted fidelity to the saving Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ, that by the mercy of God this Archdiocese has come to this moment, should be ample evidence that “it is evident that the Lord God helped us”.

It is with great thankfulness for the help of the Lord God, for the mercy, and saving love of the Lord God which is so freely given to me, to my brothers, and sisters, to our whole Archdiocese, that I undertake the task of being the ruling Bishop of Ottawa, and of Canada. By this time I should not be unaware of the work to be done. Our father, Metropolitan THEODOSIUS, has by inspiration of the Lord broken me in over the last three years by making me his administrator. I believe I know something of the immense work needed to bring Canada fully to Christ. But I am equally aware of the immense, immeasurable Grace that we as an Orthodox People have known in Canada: the Grace given to the faithful – those known, and unknown, those who from generation to generation have been faithful to Jesus Christ, and who have brought us to this historic day by their prayers, tears, love, and repentance.

It is true that in our history there has been a great amount of suffering, and deprivation. If ever there were a tree thoroughly pruned, that is us! But it has been a history filled with brilliant lights as well. We cannot forget the long pastorate of Archbishop Arseny who as Archimandrite and Bishop preached and taught from his centre in Winnipeg, and became known as another Chrysostom. We cannot forget the many priests who laboured in Christ’s vineyard, often near starvation among hungry people. There have been very many: bishops, priests, deacons, lay people, who have steadfastly clung to Jesus Christ and have declared His love by their lives. And I do not want us to forget the struggles of the families of all those priests, and faithful who shared not only the hardships, but also the experience of God’s love in action.

As you can see, and most of you know very well, my beloved, our past has been difficult, and I really do not expect that the present or future will be much easier. And yet, in the face of such a prospect, it is important not to be overwhelmed. Although any one of us alone would certainly be tempted to despair, we must never believe that we are working alone. The Bishop does nothing alone, and neither does any one of us. This ministry of building up the Body of Christ, of saving souls, is our work. We do it all together. It is true that the fallen world is not too friendly to our Lord Jesus Christ. It is true that there are many huge obstacles for us. The powers of darkness attempted to extinguish the light of Christ. But it is this same Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is our Life; it is He who will accomplish His will in us, and do the work by the Grace of the Holy Spirit which otherwise seems so impossible. It is in Jesus Christ that we find the resources necessary – like the five loaves, and two fishes of the Gospel – to feed, to care for, to clothe, to heal, to love, and to make known the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ to this hungry, naked, unloved, unsaved land.

Our father St Tikhon said that “the light of Orthodoxy is not lit for a small circle of people” (New York, 17 March, 1907). How often have we been told the opposite by one source or another in Canada during our lives? But “the light of Christ is not lit for a small circle of people” but for all people, for all our land, for all our world. That is exactly the direction of the Gospel. But, my beloved, for this light to be seen, and to give life, this light of Orthodox Christianity must be lit in us. It is in us that the light of Christ must be held high for all to see. And it is not held high by fancy talk, by eloquent preaching, by clever teaching, unless it is demonstrated in concrete acts of love in everyday life, minute by minute.

St Tikhon once again reminds us today: “It is our obligation to share our spiritual treasures, our truth, our light, and our joy with those who have not these gifts. And this duty lies not only on pastors, and missionaries, but on lay people, for the Church of Christ, in the wise comparison of St. Paul, is a body and in the life of the body “every member takes part” (New York, 17 March, 1907).

Our holy father and founder of the Church in Canada also tells us that taking part in the “life of the body” and the work of sharing our treasures requires three specific areas of effort: first, personal missionary effort in the society in which we live. Second, monetary support for the Church, and for the service to the “needs of the saints” (the faithful). (Yes, the saints do speak of money needs in the Church!) Third, “Prayer to the Lord that He might establish, and increase the Church, and that He might teach the word of truth, and reveal to those who know not Christ, the Gospel of righteousness” (New York, 17 March, 1907).

And so, my beloved, this is your, my, our work. It is the Lord’s work, and it is that which enables you, me, us to say: “It is evident that the Lord God helped us” along with our holy father Tikhon.

And now, as we step forward together in Christ, as we together set our hand to the plough, let us also once again recall the instruction of our first elder, and missionary, St Herman, the Elder, and Wonder-worker of Alaska. It is he who with others planted the Holy Cross in North America, and it is he who by his prayers also helps us now as we lift it high here in Canada. It is he who says to you, and to me: “From this day, from this hour, from this minute, let us love God above all”.

† Archdiocese of Canada - Orthodox Church in America