On the second Sunday after Pentecost, it is traditional in many national Orthodox Churches to commemorate all the “local” saints, those who have shone forth in their territory. Thus, the Church of Greece celebrates the Saints of the Holy Mount Athos; the Russian Church celebrates all the saints of Russia; and many parishes in this country have expanded this tradition to remember the Saints of North America, both known and unknown.

Although the Orthodox Church on the North American continent is still relatively young -- it was only in 1794 that Russian missionary monks came to Alaska, bringing the Faith to the Alaskan native people -- in the 200-plus years since then, a number of extraordinary individuals have distinguished themselves before God and have been recognized as saints by the Church. (Read more about the saints of North America and the process by which the Church glorifies them here).

As of today, the following names are generally recognized as members of the Synaxis or Assembly of North American Saints:

St. Innocent (Veniaminov), Enlightener of North America

St. Tikhon (Belavin), Enlightener of North America

St. Raphael (Hawaweeny), Bishop of Brooklyn

St. Nikolai (Velimirovich), Bishop of Zyca

St. John (Maximovich), Wonderworker of Shanghai and San Francisco.

St. Juvenaly of Alaska, Hieromartyr

St. John Kochurov, Missionary to America and First Hieromartyr under the Communist yoke

St. Alexander Hotovitsky, Missionary to America and Hieromartyr

St. Peter the Aleut, Martyr

St. Jacob Netsvetov, Enlightener of Alaska;

St. Alexis Toth of Wilkes-Barre, Confessor and Defender of Orthodoxy in America

St. Herman of Alaska, Wonderworker of All America.

The hymns heard on today’s program are taken from four CDs:

“Ten Years in Song: the Best of the Orthodox Christian Chorale of Metropolitan Detroit, 1992-2002”

“Byzantine Music in the New World: Orthodox Saints,” the Byzantine Chorus of the Sign of the Theotokos Church, Montreal, Canada, Vassilis Hadjinicolaou, director

“All Saints of North America,” the Choirs of St. Tikhon’s and St. Vladimir’s Seminaries, David Drillock, director

“The Eyes of All Look to Thee With Hope,” Monastery Choir of St. John of San Francisco (CD I-80). The latter item is available from www.musicarussica.com.

_Vladimir Morosan

6/27/2008