Services Cancelled This Weekend

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Last night a parishioner contacted the clergy to report the sudden development of flu/cold-like symptoms. 

The parishioner attended the Sunday liturgy on March 8 and Mr. Tolstoy’s funeral service on March 10. The parishioner was not able to get tested but following medical advice is under self-quarantine for the next 2 weeks and would like our community to be aware.

While there is no proof of COVID-19, out of an abundance of caution and deep love and care for our parishioners, we therefore, with the blessing of His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, have decided, effective immediately, to suspend all services and activities this weekend and go into office telework mode.

If you are experiencing symptoms, please seek medical help immediately. Otherwise, please stay home, keep social distancing, avoid travel and public gatherings, and follow the CDC guidelines. We, at St. Nicholas, will monitor the situation and keep our community informed of the next step. We ask all parishioners to inform those who are not on this mailing list of these developments. 

Suspending all services and the Sunday Liturgy is one of the most difficult decisions that we have ever had to make. We never thought that we would reach the point of not having the liturgy at our beloved St. Nicholas, but Great Lent reminds us all of the sacrifices that we need to make in order to persevere and prevail and to continue to strengthen our faith regardless of the circumstances. It is our highest duty to safeguard you and your families and protect those who are weak and the most vulnerable. It is also our responsibility as community leaders to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and avoid public gatherings. We ask for your understanding and support! 

The challenging times of today and tomorrow and the suspension of all services are going to be hard on every one of us, including our St. Nicholas Cathedral which relies solely on the generosity and help of our parishioners. Financial difficulties caused by today’s situation are unavoidable and will be felt. If you would like to give online to support the cathedral, please visit our website or send a check. 

We continue to pray for your good health and well-being and ask all of you to join us in our prayers and seek His guidance and protection during these difficult times. Please, stay safe and protected, continue to pray at home, use online resources for spiritual education, stream/“attend” online liturgies by the Orthodox Churches ‪on Sunday morning, and make sure to check our cathedral's website and Facebook page for updates.

Let us prevail through these challenges! 

With love in Christ,

Metropolitan Tikhon

Fr. George

Fr. Valery

Claire Nobles, President

Service Schedule Change for This Weekend

Dear Parishioners,

The service schedule for this weekend has been changed. Due to the state of emergency in the DMV area, services on Friday and Saturday are canceled. We will have a Single Divine Liturgy on Sunday, March 15 at 9:00 AM.

Coffee hour is canceled, but our volunteers will have snacks for you to take home with you after the service.

Stay home if you feel sick or you are concerned about the risk of virus exposure.

Please, call those parishioners who are not internet users to inform them of the changes.

With love in Christ,

Fr. George, Fr. Valery

Claire Nobles, President

Announcements for Week of March 15

A Prayer for Healing for These Times

Again we pray that our God, the lover of humankind and physician of souls and bodies, would heal those infected with the coronavirus, protect all who are at risk of infection, especially those with weakened immune systems, and bless all government officers, doctors, scientists, and medical professionals who care for the sick, develop vaccines, and develop guidelines for stopping the spread of the disease. O Merciful Lord, hear us and have mercy!  

Currently at St. Nicholas Cathedral

SOCKS!

Thanks again to all those who contributed to our socks collection for the needy in our area. We collected nearly 400 pairs of socks! That’s a wonderful response from our parish. In a few months, we plan to announce another type of collection effort for the needy, so stay tuned! Anyone who is interested in helping to organize these kinds of missions projects, please email Candice Johnson at ceinarjohnson@gmail.com or Susan Rudy at susan-rudy@msn.com.

Stewardship and Fundraising News

Stairs Repair Fundraising Campaign

The Cathedral would like to thank the generous donors who last week contributed $10,000 to the Stairs Repair Project. The donation was made “In Honor of Past and Present Clergy, Choir and Laity.” We are blessed to have this continuing generosity for a critical need at St. Nicholas!

Choir Fundraising Campaign

Dear Parishioners,

As you know, St. Nicholas Cathedral has been working hard to improve the quality of our choir and liturgical experience. Our efforts to excel have become even more intense in light of the upcoming celebration of the 90th anniversary of St. Nicholas Parish and the 50th year of Autocephaly of the OCA (Orthodox Church in America). We would like to acknowledge and thank our music conductors and all members of the English and Slavonic choirs for their dedication and commitment!

Since February 2019, Benedict Sheehan, Orthodox composer and conductor, and music director at St. Tikhon’s Monastery and Seminary (https://www.benedictsheehanmusic.com/), along with his wife, vocalist and music educator Talia Maria Sheehan, have been coming regularly to the Cathedral to conduct a series of workshops. Their expertise and hard work have made significant improvements to our liturgies.

Given the choir's importance to the parish, Jonathan Russin, Esq., a St. Nicholas parishioner for decades, has started a fundraising campaign to improve the choir and ensure its integration into a larger DC professional music community. 

To support the efforts, Mr. Russin and an anonymous donor have generously donated $10,000 each ($20,000 total) and encouraged at least 9 more people to contribute/match this donation. He urges other faithful to contribute as much as they are able.

Last Sunday, February 23, the project was presented to the Cathedral community during coffee hour and was met with great support and enthusiasm both financially and organizationally.  As such, Matushka Valerie and Fr. Yaroslav Sudick pledged $1,000 each, and an anonymous parishioner wrote a check for $500. Talks are under way to identify a possibility of hosting a concert in DC in the early part of December to promote the choir and supplement our fundraising efforts. 

Your continued support is much needed and appreciated! The Cathedral can accept both personal checks and donations of stock in publicly traded companies. If you would like to contribute, please write "choir projects" in the notation area. Donations via credit cards/Square are also accepted. Please make sure it goes to the Choir Donation when paying at the candle counter.

In Christ,

Fr. George, Fr. Valery

Claire Nobles, President

Updated Coronavirus Guidelines

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

As we continue our Lenten Journey to Pascha, we ask that all faithful continue to pray for those afflicted by the virus that they may be comforted and healed and the task force and medical professionals working to combat and control the spread of the virus be granted strength and wisdom.

At St. Nicholas we will continue with the celebration of Divine Liturgy and other services. However, we now are increasing our warning to our most vulnerable parishioners and attempting to reduce the possibility of infection to others.

The Flu and Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak continues to evolve daily and hourly with cases now identified in DC, MD, and VA and in our own neighborhood, Christ Church in Georgetown. 

1.   Based on the outbreak patterns of other countries, we can expect the number of infected in the US to rise substantially in the next few weeks.

2.   We know that those who are infected with Coronavirus generally do not show symptoms for five days. This means that members of our communities, and even St. Nicholas parish, may already be infected and not be aware.

3.   Avoiding crowds and staying at home is one of the best ways to protect yourself from infection.

4.   Do not touch your face—eyes, nose, or mouth.

5.   If you feel ill or are coughing or sneezing, do not leave your home. Please notify clergy if you or someone you know is homebound or in protective self-isolation so that we may pray for them.

6.   If you are over 60 and/or have an underlying chronic health condition, or if you are any age and your immune system is suppressed, strongly consider staying at home. Watch a liturgy online or read the liturgy at home. Ensure that you have at least two weeks of food and health supplies at home.

7.   If you are in a high-risk group and decide to come for Divine Liturgy, consider coming ONLY for Holy Communion and leaving immediately after. The crowds at liturgy and during Coffee Hour make it difficult for you to protect yourself.

8.   While receiving Holy Communion, put your head back, open your mouth wide, and do not close it until priest puts Holy Body in your mouth and removes the spoon, so you will receive Holy Communion without touching the spoon with your lips.

9.   Everyone traveling internationally, please refrain from coming to church services for a period of fourteen days (noted COVID-19 incubation).

At St. Nicholas Cathedral, we will be taking these measures to reduce risks:

• Encourage parishioners to bow rather than kiss when venerating icons, the cross, and the Holy Communion chalice.

• Clergy and Laity practice meticulous handwashing and use of sanitizer gel.

• Exclude physical contact, such as hugs, kisses, and handshakes, with clergy and other parishioners. The clergy will not offer their hands to be reverenced and will refrain from touching the faithful when giving a blessing.

• Staff our Candle Counter with two volunteers, both wearing gloves, one to handle cash and the other to handle prosphora.

• Remove all memorial and blessing booklets, as well as prayer lists, as these are a risk to Candle Counter volunteers and the Altar Servers who touch them.

• Remove service booklets, although you are welcome to bring your own.

• Use a paper towel or gloves to touch anything—door knobs, chairs, tables, coffee dispensers.

• Use only pre-packaged snacks, tea, and non-dairy creamer at Coffee Hour.

• Extra cleaning and sanitizing of the church before and after Coffee Hour.

These preventive measures are temporary and are in response to a public health crisis. We should support each other and those who make the choice to refrain from participating in the traditional liturgical practices and take precautions.

Extra cleaning of the church - before and after the Vespers and the Divine Liturgy – remains mandatory at St. Nicholas.

We are grateful to our staff and volunteers for their efforts.

Please, find the link to the latest from the #1 expert in USA, Dr. Fauci, at

https://twitter.com/drdenagrayson/status/1237754073602015235?s=21&fbclid=IwAR2QQzAWHDPhQ_ISiskEP6nKV9z-HGN5GC4Ja8lUonAVx53Pmpv81YDBm7o

Follow CDC for the guidelines at

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html?s_cid=+fb_covid_19&fbclid=IwAR2L_HrQq-vs2TvoMhoaUJJfETFW0oraXPOB8WK7hcA-_4ZAnbMFTMGq6qI

Please, do share these guidelines with any, especially elderly, parishioners, who may not have internet access.

With love in Christ,

Father George Kokhno

Father Valery Shemchuk

Parish President Claire Nobles

ETERNAL MEMORY - Vladimir Tolstoy

ETERNAL MEMORY!

With the Saints give rest, O Christ, to the soul of Thy servant,  where there is no pain, no sorrow, no sighing, but life everlasting. 

Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in tombs bestowing life.

Our dear long-time parishioner and the servant of God Vladimir Tolstoy fell asleep in the Lord on March 6th. On behalf of the clergy, the parishioners, and the parish council we would like to extend our condolences to the family and friends of Vladimir.

Schedule of Services at St. Nicholas Cathedral

• Sunday, March 8

• 10:30 AM - The casket with the body of the newly-departed Vladimir will be brought into the church and be present during the second Divine Liturgy, served by Metropolitan Tikhon.

• Tuesday, March 10

• 11:00 AM - Funeral Service

• 1:00 PM - Interment at Rock Creek Cemetery

Kingdom of Heaven to Vladimir and May his Memory be Eternal!

With deepest condolences and love in Christ,

Father George and Father Valery

Claire Nobles, President