Saint John of Kronstadt

Every December 20th we - especially Cheryl and I - commemorate the Repose of St. John of Kronstadt. It is a very special day for us, because St. John fell asleep in the Lord on this date in 1908, and we visited the monastery in St. Petersburg, Russia in the summer of 2008. As I knelt before his tomb in the basement of the monastery an idea just like a voice came into my head - "Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could be chrismated into the Orthodox Church on the centennial of his death?" Immediately I thought - "That would be too much to ask of our priest, or even to imagine!" - so I put the idea out of my mind. But a few months later, in October, our priest came up to me after Divine Liturgy and said - "I think you're ready to be chrismated. When would you like it to be?" I gulped in amazement and said - "How about in December?" And he replied - "Alright. What date would you like?" So I suggested the date of St. John's repose in the Lord, and he agreed. So we were received into the holy Orthodox faith on the 100th anniversary of this saint's repose!

Why had I chosen St. John of Kronstadt as my patron saint? As you can read in the above article, St. John cared greatly for the poor and oppressed, even for criminals, in the Kronstadt suburb of St. Petersburg, Russia:

"He conducted divine services daily and offered prayers for the faithful. He called all who rarely receive Holy Communion to prepare themselves and live their lives in a Christian way so that they could receive more often. Listening to Fr. John, many people changed their lifestyle, repented sincerely, and joyfully received Holy Communion on a regular basis.

"At that time the government exiled murderers, thieves and other criminals to Kronstadt. Life was horrible for the exiles. Even children of exiles would become thieves and criminals. He would go to their dugouts, hovels and shacks to visit with them. Not satisfied with staying for five or ten minutes to administer some rite and then leave, Fr John believed he was coming to visit a priceless soul, his brothers and sisters. He would stay for hours, talking, encouraging, comforting, crying, and rejoicing together with them.

"From the beginning he also concerned himself with the material needs of the poor. He would shop for food, go to the pharmacy for prescriptions, to the doctor for help, many times giving the poor his last few coins. The inhabitants of Kronstadt would see him returning home barefoot and without his cassock. Often parishioners would bring shoes to his wife, saying to her, 'Your husband has given away his shoes to someone, and will come home barefoot.'

"He would also write articles for the newspaper exhorting the people of Kronstadt to 'support the poor morally and materially.' These appeals touched the hearts of many and Fr. John organized many charitable efforts. Realizing that his individual charity was insufficient for aiding the needy, he founded the Orthodox Christian House Parish Trusteeship of St. Andrew the First-Called. This brotherhood coordinated many charitable efforts throughout the city and helped many needy people."

Cheryl's patron saint is the Holy New Martyr Elizabeth, sister of the Empress Alexandra. The Bolsheviks tortured and murdered both women after the 1917 revolution. Princess Elizabeth, as she was then called, was married to Duke Sergei who was murdered by an anarchist's bomb. This moved the godly Elizabeth to give away all her wealth, become a nun and establish a shelter for women of the streets, the poor and orphans. We were blessed to also visit this convent in the summer of 2008. So perhaps now you can better understand why we are ministering to "the poor, the lame, the maimed and the blind," to ex-convicts, murderers, former thieves, drug dealers, addicts and prostitutes in Pittsburgh's depressed inner-city Hill District. Pray for these people, and that we will be able to share with them the love of Christ and His redemption!

(Linked to www.Hosken-News.info of 20 Dec. 2014.)