Reader Silouan Takes Some Steps

It is Monday, November the 17th. This is the first posting to Orthodox Parker since February.

The Adult Sunday School class I mentioned in February went well. I taught the class for a month and people enjoyed it and were very receptive.

Life at Saint Marks continues apace, as always.

My friend, Brother David Felker, a Benedictine Oblate, saw my waffling about the path to possible ordination and said one day: "We're going to make you a Reader this month!"

So, when Bishop Basil visited our humble parish, I was tonsured as a Reader and Acolyte. It was a very peaceful, joyful and fulfilling experience.

And it wasn't without some humor.

From my past experience as an Anglican / Episcopalian and also my experience at Saint Catherine's Greek Orthodox Church, I mistakenly believed that I was supposed to sit with the rest of the congregation and be called forward to be tonsured.

I believed that there was no way they would let me back into the altar area without being tonsured first. But, this is the Western Rite, not the Byzantine Rite. And this isn't the Episcopal Church.

I should have known better.

I was sitting near the back of the parish when a subdeacon came to fish me out of the assembly of the faithful and back to the sacristy.

Where I proceeded to fumble into a cossack and surplice.

Fr. Connelly wryly said: "I thought you said you were an experienced acolyte."

To which I responded "Well, my experience was as an Anglican, and these days Anglicans are loosey goosey."

Nevertheless, it was very moving to be tonsured. I sat next to Mr. Wooley, a former Deacon at Saint Mary's Anglican Catholic Church.

When I used to visit Saint Mary's during those days I was still longing to be Catholic, I would always see Deacon Wooley's smiling face.

Now, I was sitting next to him. A great honor.

Mr. Wooley was tonsured alongside me.

My First Reading was on Sunday, November the 9th. It went well, but with the following bump in the road:

The morning I was supposed to read, I was at church before Sunday School and I went to inspect the pulpit where the Epistle Reading takes place. I had dutifully practiced my reading the week before.

My friend Andrew showed me the large Book of Common Prayer used for Readings. I left with the impression that the book would be open to the proper reading and all I had to do was to step forward and do the deed during the Divine Liturgy.

It was Trinity 20 and the reading was from Ephesians, the fifth chapter beginning with the 15th verse.

But when the time during Divine Liturgy came, I strode forward and started to read . . .

The book was open to a reading in Maccabees!

But I recovered well, grabbed a smaller book of Common Prayer, quickly found the reading and finished the task.

Back in the Sacristy, some of the deacons joked "The hazing has only begun!"

I am enjoying my life at present. My new job is going well, and I have a Christian boss.

I work five minutes up the street from my home.

My relationship with my wife and my kids is also going well.

My in-laws, who are terrific people, have moved from Monte Vista to a location five miles away.

This means more dates with my wife!

It's hockey season again. My Avalanche aren't playing so well at present, but as I've said before, bad hockey is better than good football.

The Broncos are playing well, and so are the Nuggets. So I'm having fun with that.

My Rockies traded away Matt Holiday to the Oakland A's.

In a fallen world, there is always at least one fly in the ointment.

Nevertheless, all things considered, I am truly blessed.

Columba Silouan