Synaxis Press is a monastic publishing house. It is a missionary outreach of The Canadian Orthodox Monastery of All Saints of North America. It is operated by the brotherhood with the intention of keeping the prices as low as possible. We endeavour to provide quality Orthodox Christian reading material, both for your own edification, and to help you witness to the Orthodox faith. All titles are carefully selected for purity of Orthodox content and complete conformity with the holy and God-bearing fathers of the Church.

Our goal is to be the most dependable source of pure Orthodox Christian reading material in Canada and America. Your purchase of books from Synaxis Press makes you a participant in the missionary outreach of The Canadian Orthodox Monastery of All Saints of North America and helps sustain the Monastery.

Ten volumes of this series are currently available. Each volume contains the lives of twelve saints, one for each month of the year, told for young readers. Volume Five contains lives of British saints, and Volume Seven contains the lives of 27 of the greatest Holy Fathers of the Church, together with a brief history of the city in which each one lived and worked. Number of pages varies. Ten volumes available.

Volumes 1-6 and 8-10 $4.00

Volume 7 $5.00

Written for young readers and arranged so that it can be used as a "Life of Christ," and as a church school text.

$8.00

This simply written narrative of the creation of the world is illustrated to be used as a colouring book. The simplified text is accompanied by the full text from the Orthodox Septuagint Old Testament. 27 pages.

$4.00

Illustrated with Orthodox Christian themes, this delightful book permits small children to learn about the faith while learning the "ABC's."

$4.00

ORTHODOX CHURCHES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

COLOURING BOOK

This children's colouring book features selected drawings of Orthodox Christian Churches from Russian, Greece, Serbia, Alaska, Canada and many other countries around the world. Helps give children a broader understanding of the Orthodox Church as reaching out to all nations.

$4.00

GREAT SERBIAN ORTHODOX FRESCOES

COLOURING BOOK

The drawings in this colouring book feature simple drawings of actual frescoes from the great Serbian Orthodox Monasteries, many of them in Kosovo-Metochia. This colouring book is of great cultural and historical value.

$4.00

The only truly North American original Orthodox children's book. This beautifully illustrated book contains charming stories of a family of Orthodox children in Alaska who are part Tlingit Indian and part Russian.

$10.00

This excellent instructional book, written by the late Metropolitan Philaret of New York, covers a wide range of subjects affecting teenagers and young adults in our present times. It is excellent for church schools.

$4.00

The life of Bishop Innokenty Veniaminov (St Innocent), the enlightener of Alaska. This volume, illustrated with historic photographs, line drawings and maps, is written in an easy to read, non-academic manner. Includes St Innocent's work Indication of the Way Into the Heavenly Kingdom, the first piece of literature to be written in a native language in North America, this book explains, in simple, direct terms, the path of the Orthodox Christian life in Christ.

$7.00

Translated and printed in honour of the 1000th anniversary of the "Baptism of Rus'," this volume contains the lives of the saints and wonderworkers of the first great North Slavic monastery, and one of the holiest places of pilgrimage for Ukrainian Orthodox Christians. 68 pages.

$5.00

A special collection of the "Fools for Christ's Sake." This collection is arranged in chronological order, to show the continuity of this great prophetic ministry from the earliest centuries to the present. Beautifully illustrated. 91 pages. (Also available in French)

$5.00

The Spiritual Meadow is the "Palestine Patericon" and features brief lives and sayings of the desert fathers of ancient Palestine and Gaza. Includes instructive monastic parables and moral fables used to teach young monks just beginning their monastic journey. Nicely illustrated, this edition includes a foreword and prologues which give a clear explanation of monasticism, and a history of the foundations of Orthodox Christian monastic life. An index of the main ancient monasteries of Palestine makes the text easier to follow. The copious footnotes which have been added are fascinating and invaluable, illuminating the times and historical personalities involved in the stories.

[New Edition Available, January, 2003]

: $10.00

This clear, simply written book contains a section on the Orthodox teaching about the nature and work of the angels, which is very useful for church schools.

The second section of the book contains deeply inspirational prayerful contemplations for each day of the month. The role of the guardian angel in our daily lives becomes clear and meaningful with the reading of this work.

$10.00

The Orthodox Christian teaching about the life and history of the Most Holy Theotokos is found in part one of this moving book. Part two contains a prayerful contemplation on the Theotokos for each day of the month. These "contemplations" are written in such a way that they provide an explanation of (1) the Old Testament prophecies about the Holy Virgin; (2) the New Testament Scripture about the Holy Virgin and; (3) the meaning of the Church hymns and our special veneration of the Holy Virgin. These explanations answer many of the Protestant attacks against the Holy Virgin, and provide Orthodox Christians with sound explanations so that they may practice the Orthodox faith with greater understanding.

$10.00

A collection of short inspirational readings, one for each day of the month. Written by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo's son. This small booklet is a good travel companion. The contemplations are based on the glory of nature and God's creation.

$5.00

Both inspirational and theological, this book is written at an advanced level. It is an excellent source book for the parish priest and teachers of Bible study groups and higher level church school classes. 58 pages.

$5.00

Since 1972, Archbishop Lazar has given a lecture, with slides, entitled "The Icon as Scripture." This important dimension of the meaning of the icon is often overlooked, or not well defined. "The icon is another one of the languages into which the Bible is translated," Archbishop Lazar observes. This important book is copiously illustrated with reproductions of icons and line drawings to emphasize aspects of the icon. Contains an added chapter on the development of icons of the Last Judgment, and the text of Dr. Alexandre Kalomiros' landmark treatise, "The River of Fire."

New Expanded Edition $15.00

This series of talks, questions and answers begins with the Archbishop's discussions with teenagers in Thessaloniki, Greece. It continues with the discussions at spiritual evenings with people from a broad spectrum of society. The talks, questions and answers were tape recorded and transcribed, translated into English and edited for publication. This is a highly useful collection which deals with the problems faced by Orthodox Christians in their daily lives.

$5.00

Contains scriptural answers to twelve of the questions most frequently raised when sectarians attack the Orthodox faith. It is an invaluable guide for the missionary, church school teacher, Bible study group or parent. 42 pages.

$5.00

Now combined, Point of Faith Nr. 2 and Nr. 10: INFANT BAPTISM and BAPTISM AND ECONOMIA

The section on INFANT BAPTISM contains a complete explanation of the Orthodox Christian practice of baptizing infants. This booklet also contains an explanation of the meaning of baptism itself.

The section ON BAPTISM AND EKONOMY is a simple, straightforward exposition of the Orthodox Christian doctrine and teaching, directly from the canons and holy fathers of the Church. This booklet is not intended to negate the application of "ekonomia", but to help maintain sound doctrine and the dogmatic principle involved.

$5.00

A comprehensive discussion, from Holy Scripture, of our veneration of the Virgin Mary as "ever-virgin," and "Mother of God." This booklet answers many of the questions asked by sectarians about our veneration of the Theotokos, such as, `Who were the brothers of Jesus?' and `Who was the sister of Mary mentioned in scripture?'

$3.00

A collection of articles on fasting, selected for the fact that they make a direct, practical application of the Orthodox teaching of fasting to our daily lives. The articles are written at several levels, and contain a very complete scriptural teaching about fasting and its meaning. A complete schedule of fast days and instructions for a proper lenten observance is contained at the end of the book.

$5.00

A summary of the Orthodox Christian understanding of the nature of angels and their work with mankind. Examines scriptural references to angels. $3.00

This educational booklet is especially designed for church school teachers and parents. It offsets some of the sectarian ideas on the subject, and helps us better understand our Saviour's command to pray, "Deliver us from the evil-one."

$3.00

7. THE SCRIPTURAL AND SPIRITUAL MEANING OF

ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN MONASTICISM

A scriptural and patristic homily on the Biblical and traditional basis of Orthodox Christian monasticism. This booklet explains monastic spiritual terminology and gives an insight into the monastic struggle.

$4.00

8. THE MEANING OF SPIRITUAL STRUGGLE (ASCETICISM) AND MYSTICISM IN THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH

Orthodox Christianity has no mysticism in the Western sense of the word. All Orthodox spiritual work and theology are practical, as well as mystical. Indeed, the mysticism of Orthodoxy is pragmatic and communal. Since, however, the word "mysticism" is often misused in relation to the standard Orthodox Christian spiritual life, a clear definition of the proper terms is needed in an Orthodox context. This work, actually titled "The Living Theology of Orthodoxy," provides a profound scriptural and patristic explanation of the meaning of the concepts of asceticism or "spiritual struggle." It is especially valuable in refuting the attacks of "evangelical" Protestants against the mystical aspects of Orthodox Christian spiritual life.

$4.00

9. OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCES:

THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN TEACHING

(by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo)

This sound scriptural and patristic refutation of the occult and "New Age" teachings about "out of body experiences" is especially needed at a time when members of a new age cult have infiltrated the Orthodox Church under the guise of "conversion to Orthodoxy," and are seeking to spread their pernicious arcane teachings among Orthodox people. This valuable and urgently needed discussion is well documented from the Holy Fathers of the Church. $4.00

This booklet correctly sets forth the Orthodox Christian teaching on the Holy Mysteries and refutes the heretical teaching of "seven sacraments." It also gives a simple and direct discussion of the meaning of grace. This is a very important work. It combines a treatise by the pre-revolutionary Russian patristic scholar and theologian V. Rev. Taras Kurgansky with a valuable preface by noted Canadian Orthodox theologian Archbishop Lazar Puhalo.

$3.00

12. THE SPIRITUAL AND SCRIPTURAL MEANING OF THE CYCLE OF ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN DIVINE SERVICES

A beautifully written, inspirational work. This booklet gives a vivid commentary on the struggle between the chaos of our world and the peace and harmony of God's Kingdom. It demonstrates how the Orthodox cycle of divine services is designed to free us from the bondage of the "world" and make us participants in the inner peace and joy of the Heavenly Kingdom so that we may be "in the world, but not of the world."

$3.00

13. THE MYSTERY OF LOVE AND MARRIAGE

(Archbishop Lazar Puhalo)

Vladika Lazar's popular talks for young people on the mystery and meaning of love and holy marriage. This booklet is a superb gift to those who are planning to marry, or for newlyweds. Vladika gives a penetrating Orthodox Christian understanding of the mystery that will elevate the way a couple view their own relationship.

$4.00

For years, Orthodox Christian people have been reading a completely fictitious explanation about the regular memorial services for those who have fallen asleep. The actual explanation of the holy fathers and the apostles has not been presented. A fake "homily" attributed by an ancient Gnostic writer to St Macarios of Egypt has been circulating in spite of the fact that it is absolutely known that the "homily" was not written by St Macarios, and that the document contains heretical teachings and Gnostic doctrines. In the point of faith booklet, Archbishop Lazar gives us the actual Orthodox Christian patristic and apostolic explanation of the 3rd, 9th and 40th day services for the reposed, and clearly exposes the heresies in the fake "Makarian homily."

$2.00

His eminence presents an explanation and defence of Orthodox Christian systematic prayer. The volume contains Vladika Lazar's extemporaneous presentation at the 1999 St Gregory Palamas Conference. Vladika explains the patristic teaching about guarding the mind and relates it to the actual physiology and functioning of the human brain to demonstrate the astonishing understanding that the desert fathers and mother had.

$5.00

At last, a truly patristic discussion of this important subject. The "traditional teaching" on this subject can only be that which the holy fathers taught in clear, unequivocal terms. This booklet will help to deliver Orthodox Christians from the dark superstitions and heavy Latins Scholastic notions on these subjects, that have been passed off as "traditional Orthodox teachings" for so long.

$4.00

A truly patristic, Orthodox study of this vital subject, free of all apocrypha, allegories and fables. This book has been highly praised by Orthodox theologians in several jurisdictions. Contains copious quotations from the greatest fathers of the Church.

$5.00

A great modern Church father and saint demonstrates the vitality of the main dogmas of the faith and reveals how they apply to the real, daily lives of Orthodox Christians. Includes his response to Immanuel Kant's idea that the dogmas are a hinderance to natural morality. 175 pages. This volume also contains a refutation of the dishonest and heretical attack against Metropolitan Antony by the late neo-Gnostic philosopher, Fr. Seraphim Rose.

$15.00

FATHER SERAPHIM ROSE AND THE DOGMA OF

REDEMPTION: A STUDY IN NEO-NESTORIANISM

by the late Metropolitan Philaret of New York, Archbishop Vitaly of Canada, Archbishop Lazar of New Ostrog, Bishop Gregory of Manhattan, Bishop Varlaam of Vancouver, Rev. Dr. Michael Azkoul and Dr. George Gabriel.

This book is of considerable importance. It contains the responses of hierarchs of Fr. Seraphim Rose's own jurisdiction. Indeed, the members of ROCOR whose articles appear here are among the only actual theologians in that jurisdiction. The late neo-Gnostic philosopher Fr. Seraphim Rose never fully comprehended Orthodoxy, and never understood Orthodox Christian theology or the holy fathers. His critique against St Antony Khrapovitsky's masterful THE MORAL IDEA OF THE DOGMA OF REDEMPTION more clearly demonstrates this than most of his other scholastic writings. In his critique against St. Antony, Seraphim Rose clearly crosses the line into neo-Nestorian/neo-Monophysitism. This fact is clearly demonstrated by this assembly of learned and skilled Orthodox Christian theologians. Fr Seraphim created great havoc, spiritual devastation and misunderstanding with his mixture of Latin Scholasticism, Gnosticism and theosophical rationalism. In his book, Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future, he assembled a series of long ago exposed "urban legends," and re-interpreted them with a theosophical rationalism, passing them off as having some sort of "reality." In his critique of Metropolitan St. Antony's work, he demonstrates an utter lack of sound Orthodox Christian theological understanding.

This anthology of responses by outstanding theologians both inside and outside of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad (ROCOR) is indispensable to anyone wishing to find their way through the contradictory and conflicting maze of writings in the Orthodox Church in North America today.

$5.00

Aspects of the Orthodox Christian understanding of the events in the Creation Narrative of Genesis, with explanations from the fathers of some difficult and frequently misinterpreted verses of Genesis.

$5.00

A careful and patristic explanation of the meaning of the Gospel According to Matthew. These powerful sermons were delivered by Archbishop Lazar on Sundays and weekdays, and transcribed from audio tapes. Volume one contains the sermons for chapter 1-6 of Matthew's Gospel. These sermons have been hailed by many as one of the best and clearest expostions of Matthew's Gospel available today.

$5.00

ASPECTS OF THEOSIS:

THE PURIFICATION AND SANCTIFICATION

OF THE HUMAN INTELLECT.

(by Dr Kharalambos Anstall)

Beautifully written treatise on the doctrine of theosis. This doctrine, so fundamental to the Orthodox Christian understanding of redemption and salvation, is often presented in too complex a manner. While it is necessary for all Orthodox Christians to understand the concept, it has seldom been presented in a manner which is accessible to the ordinary reader. Dr Anstall has presented the doctrine in a clear, concise form which should be easily comprehended by most readers. $5.00

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO:

AN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE

(by Rev. Dr. Michael Azkoul)

A summary of the profoundly scholarly work The Influence of Augustine of Hippo on the Orthodox Church. Fr Michael Azkoul has provided a series of brief summaries on four of the chapters of his larger work. These summaries are simplified for the average reader. Fr Michael, a renowned patristic scholar looks at the heresies of the controversial new-Platonist philosopher Augustine of Hippo, and examines the sorrowful influence he has had on the Christian faith.

$5.00

According to Gnostic doctrine and pagan Egyptian and Chaldean myths, when a person died, his soul encounters demonic judgment stations, variously called "archons of the astral spheres," "the forty-two nome gods of Egypt," "aerial toll-houses," "customs houses" or "astral travel gates." Popular in pagan peasant societies, especially those under the influence of Bogomilism and other Gnostic heresies, this pagan myth has infiltrated Orthodox Christian literature via the biographies of Gnostic mystics. It was introduced into English language literature through a neo-Gnostic sect in America. Rev Dr Michael Azkoul examines one of the touchstone books of this new Gnosticism and uncovers the essential fallacies and inner contradictions, as well as the less than honest "scholarship" that went into the production of that work.

$5.00

A vital survey of the Orthodox Christian doctrine of justification and theosis. Justification by faith, theosis by truly living the faith and constantly growing spiritually in the grace of the Holy Spirit.

$3.00

A beloved and respected Orthodox theologian refutes the Juridical Theology of the Latin West and the Scholastics within the Orthodox Church, presenting an Orthodox point of view. $5.00

A demonstration of the radically different approaches to theology between Orthodox and non-Orthodox Christianity.

$4.00

THE IMPACT OF BYZANTINE CHRISTIAN

THOUGHT ON MEDICINE

(By Archbishop Lazar Puhalo)

This scholarly study reveals how the Orthodox Christian struggle against Gnosticism in the first four centuries A.D. saved the ancient Greek medical texts and helped advance medicine. It also contains the lives of the three women Holy Unmercinary Physicians, whose histories have been totally neglected since the fall of Constantinople.

$10.00

THE TALE OF BASIL "THE NEW"

AND THE THEODORA MYTH:

STUDY OF A GNOSTIC DOCUMENT AND A GENERAL SURVEY OF GNOSTICISM

One of the leading experts in Gnosticism provides this study of a sometimes popular myth of evident Gnostic origin. This tale, the author argues, worked its way into the Slavic collection of Lives of Saints inadvertently. The author presents a convincing argument that the "Tale of Elder Basil the New" is of Bogomil origin. The author documents the origin of the "aerial toll-house" (telonia) myth from its Gnostic sources. A fascinating historical study.

$5.00

ON CONFESSION AND THE POWER TO REMIT SINS ACCORDING TO ST SYMEON THE NEW THEOLOGIAN

(by George S. Gabriel, Ph.D.)

Complete with the Homily of our Holy Father, St Symeon the New Theologian translated from the Greek by George S. Gabriel. This fascinating and powerful discussion of the Mystery of Confession is vital for our times.

$4.00

A spiritual study of the beginning and end of our earthly world. Contains a discussion of the events leading up to the reign of Antichrist, Antichrist himself, the nature of his reign and the final consummation of the ages. Edited and footnoted by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo, based on material gathered by the late Archimandrite Panteleimon Nizhnik and Vladika Lazar.

The book contains an important prologue by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo, and intriguing and informative footnotes. $5.00

Archbishop Lazar's lectures on Orthodoxy and modern physics. A profoundly spiritual refutation of the confused contentions of Fundamentalists and modern Scholastics. Archbishop Lazar demonstrates the falsity of the idea that there is a necessary conflict between Orthodox Christianity and modern science. He traces the history of the idea of such a conflict. This book is a much welcome answer to the confusion created in the minds of many of our educated young people by the Fundamentalist and Scholastic confusion about this subject. Young people are reassured that, contrary to the obvious conclusion from Fundamentalist views, one does not have to choose between God and truth.

$5.00

This book was actually written in 1969-70, before Vladika Lazar was ordained to the diaconate. It was edited in 1974 and appeared in serialized form in two or three journals in the early 1970's. While other writers have borrowed from it over the year (usually without giving credit), most of the beautiful and powerful commentaries of His Eminence on the sections of the Liturgy have not appeared in print before. This is an excellent text for adult church schools and for seminarians. It makes a convincing case that the Divine Liturgy is the oldest form of New Testament Scripture, and demonstrates the complete unity between Scripture and the Divine Liturgy. The commentaries bring forth the vital, living, mystical aspect of the Orthodox Divine Liturgy.

$5.00

An encyclopedic survey of the lives and teachings and the most notable theologians and holy fathers of the Byzantine era.

$5.00

Fr John Romanides has been heralded as "the most important dogmatic theologian in the Orthodox world." Professor Andrew Sopko presents a scholarly, eminently readable examination of this profound and complex theologian. His famous debates with the scholastics in Greece and his well founded insistence that the Roman Empire did not vanish until the fall of Constantinople (Byzantium was only a cultural era in the Roman Empire), are all discussed in this important work.

$20.00

A study "on spiritual being and life according to the fathers of the Orthodox Church." This booklet was written by one of Canada's foremost philosophers. David Goa teaches comparative religion at the University of Alberta. He has a deep and loving knowledge of the holy fathers. His writing is lucid and highly readable.

$3.00

AN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN UNDERSTANDING OF HISTORY

The meaning of history, the role of the Orthodox Church in the process of history, Church, society and history and many other questions are examined in this excellent treatise by one of Canada's foremost philosophers and teachers of the Orthodox Christian tradition.

$3.00

A careful study which demonstrates the radical difference between the sober asceticism of the Orthodox Church and the delusional mysticism of the Roman Catholic orders.

$5.00

This study was published in Greece with the blessing of Archbishop Christodoulos of Athens. It was translated into English by a professor of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary in Boston. A timely addition to Orthodox literature in an era of confusion and contradiction.

$10.00

An extract from Archbishop Lazar's famous lecture on the purpose and meaning of human gender. The lecture gives a clear and convincing explanation of the reason women are not ordained to the liturgical priesthood, without exalting men above women or demeaning women. It gives new understanding to the meaning of the lives and prophetic roles of the Old Testament women such as Sarah and Hannah, who are often forgotten as prophets. The explanation of the transition, through Anna and her daughter the Theotokos, from the revelation of the fallen Church of the Old Testament to the revelation of the restored Church of the New Testament, is especially powerful.

"MALE AND FEMALE CREATED HE THEM"

An Examination of the Mystery of Human Gender

This book is volume two of the St Maximos the Confessor Seminary Studies on Gender and Human Sexuality. Written in Dr Anstall's clear, crisp style, this book could not come at a better time. This is a profound theological study of the mystery of human gender, and yet it is accessible to all readers. Dr Anstall has become one of the most popular teachers and lecturers in the Orthodox Church today, and his writings have added greatly to the often scant collection of truly Orthodox writings which fully reflect the patristic tradition and a clear understanding of Holy Scripture. A teacher of New Testament Greek and Orthodox theology in Salt Lake City in America, Dr Anstall is also a founding member of The Nemanjic Institute for Serbo--Byzantine Studies and a director of the St Maximos the Confessor Seminary in Canada. His frequent lectures in Canada, at the annual Summer Institute in Orthodox Christian Spirituality held at the Canadian Orthodox Monastery of All Saints of North America, attract a special following.

This new title by Dr Kharalambos Anstall belongs in everyone's home library, and all priests will benefit from it in their pastoral work.

This book is volume three of the St Maximos the Confessor Orthodox Seminary series Studies on Gender and Human Sexuality. Greek theologian George Gabriel refutes the pernicious teaching that marital sex is "unclean," and can be justified only on the grounds of obtaining a pregnancy. This Gnostic idea is being spread by some teachers in the Orthodox Church in our time, who base themselves on the heresies of Augustine of Hippo. George Gabriel's refutation also constitutes an excellent homily on the beauty of a loving marriage.

Vladika Lazar's popular talks for young people on the mystery and meaning of love and holy marriage. This booklet is a superb gift to those who are planning to marry, or for newlyweds. Vladika gives a penetrating Orthodox Christian understanding of the mystery that will elevate the way a couple view their own relationship.

$5.00

A very scholarly study by the most original and creative Orthodox Christian theologian of our era. This book explores an often overlooked aspect of the vital theology of the Orthodox faith.

$10.00

Contains the Akathist, the Dismissal Troparion and Kontakion and Megalynarion of the feast of the "Joy of Canada." Also included are the Troparion and Kontakion for All Saints of North America, and complete instructions for serving an Akathist alone. 24 pages.

$5.00

A complete service of Paschal Matins and the Paschal Liturgy. This large format, large print book contains the complete service, with all the special hymns and antiphons of the feast. It is designed for the use of the congregation where congregational singing allows the people to participate. However, it is useful for the congregation to follow the service even where chanters or a choir perform the service.

PARISH HYMNAL: $6.00

PRIEST'S SERVICE BOOK: $6.00

Prepared for busy families who want to pray together at their icon corner even when the children have stacks of homework and parents have to work late or bring work home. $4.00

1. MELETI (Spiritual Talks): The truth about Nazareth, Herod the Great and Herod Antipas. A clear picture of the town in which Christ grew up. Nazareth was a suburb of one of the most important Roman cities in the Near East. Who was Herod the Great? Hear the fascinating story of his rise to power, his friendship with Antony and Cleopatra and how he saved his crown and his head after opposing Caesar. What happened to Herod Antipas and Herodias after the beheading of John the Baptist? This is a fascinating and informative talk that will enliven the Gospel narrative about John the Baptist and about the whole nativity sequence in the Bible. The Meleti is by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo.

$5.00

2. EMBRACE SIMPLICITY: The Monastery of All Saints of North America. A video produced by the Chinese National Broadcasting Network on the Monastery of All Saints of North America near Vancouver, B.C. The work of the monastery and Archbishop Lazar Puhalo. This video has beautiful photography of the monastery. Interviews and commentary by the Archbishop and the monks are in English, though the narrative is in Mandarin Chinese. A fascinating video which has been translated into three dialects of Chinese and broadcast both on Canadian Chinese television stations and on the Chinese National network in China.

$5.00

3. THE LITURGY, PART 1: THE LITURGY AS THE BOOK OF REVELATION. This important Meleti (spiritual talk) by Archbishop Lazar Puhalo explains the Divine Liturgy in the context of the Book of Revelation and demonstrates how the Book of Revelation is best understood through the Liturgy itself. The talk was given at St Nicholas Church in suburban Vancouver, and utilizes the icons and iconostas to show have every aspect o f the layout of the Orthodox Church unfolds the meaning of the Apocalypse, or Book of Revelation.

$5.00

4. THE LITURGY, PART 2: The meaning of the vestments and the position of the priest. $5.00

5. THE LITURGY, PART 3: The Orthodox Divine Liturgy as the First Gospel. The Liturgy is older than the New Testament canon. It gives us a real and vital synthesis of the Gospel of Christ as received and understood by the Apostles and first Christians.

$5.00

100% pure, hand dipped beeswax candles, made by the monks of The Monastery of All Saints of North America. The pure, fragrant candles, made exclusively from beeswax from Northern Alberta's Peace River country, come in several sizes and sell for $12.00 a pound (Canadian) or $10.00 a pound (American). Write for details .

Canadian $16.00 a pound

American $10.00 a pound

SYNAXIS:

THE CANADIAN ORTHODOX THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL

Synaxis regularly publishes a collection of theological papers. These include informative studies on monastic development, Orthodox spirituality and other theological subjects.

Each issue: $8.00

Produced to help raise funds for the St Tikhon Summer Camp, these two delightful little booklets feature recipes from Eastern Europe.

1. St Tikhon's Parish Ethnic Cookbooklet, contains recipes for a full meal from each of five countries in the Balkans, as well as Byelorussia and Russia. Included are recipes from Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece. $3.00

2. "The Princess Andiyski Collection." This booklet contains a selection from the handwritten recipe collection of the late Princess Helen Andiyski, her mother and grandmother. Interesting notes were penned in the margins of this collection, and these have been included with the selections. $3.00

Proceeds from the sale of these two cookbooklets go to the summer camp programme. Your purchase of these booklets is a donation which will help provide a summer camp facility which serves children of refugees and newly arrived immigrants from Eastern Europe, without charge.

This wall calendar features the traditional Orthodox Christian dates. The appointed Scripture readings for each day are given on that date, together with a selection from the saints' feasts for each day. Major feast days are highlighted, and all fast days are indicated with clearly visible shading.

The dates on this calendar are clear and easy to read. The secular date is given in larger type, set above the Orthodox Christian Calendar date, which is set in a smaller type.

Calendars are $6.00 each. Regular bookstore discounts apply to bookstore orders.

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE HISTORY OF

THE CANADIAN ORTHODOX MONASTERY OF ALL SAINTS OF NORTH AMERICA AND THE CENTRE FOR CANADIAN ORTHODOX STUDIES.

In the year 1968, during a visit to Mount Athos, Lev Puhalo and Vasili Novakshonoff developed the idea of founding a Canadian Orthodox Monastery. Discussions with some of the monks on the Holy Mountain brought to mind the fact that monasticism is very much at the heart of the development of national Orthodoxy in every country where the faith has flourished. Since both men had resolved on a monastic life, and both were passionately dedicated to the ideal of Canadian Orthodoxy, they decided to place their hope on God and attempt the foundation of a monastic house which would dedicate its energies first to the monastic rule and secondly to the advancement of the Canadian Orthodox reality.

Since some of the monks on Athos had advised them not to delay, but to act at once on their calling, Lev and Vasili at once set about to develop their plan. Having no financial resources for the undertaking, they began their struggle in a tiny hut east of Rosedale, British Columbia. The building had only a dirt floor and in the late autumn of 1969, they built a platform of scrap lumber over half the floor. The other half remained dirt. During the first winter, which was exceptionally cold and damp, the two strugglers found that their roof had several leaks. That year witnessed a number of ice and snow storms in the upper Fraser Valley region, and the two strugglers endured much from the cold winds which blew through the poorly built walls of the skete. Since the building was uninsulated and had no source of heat, they stretched two sheets of plastic over a rope line, placed a small kerosene burner between them, and these two make-shift tents became the first cells of the first Canadian Orthodox monks.

The kitchen of this poor skete was in the area with the dirt floor, and consisted of only a coleman stove and a single tap with cold water. There was no other plumbing. In these conditions, Vasili and Lev translated the life of St Theophil, the Fool for Christ of the Kiev Caves and the life of Blessed Xenia (both published at Jordanville, New York), and a significant portion of the History of Russian Imperial Coronations for the Russian Orthodox Youth Committee.

Lev was ordained deacon in 1972 and served for a year in Alaska before returning to Canada to resume the development of the first Canadian Orthodox Monastery. Serving as a missionary deacon in the Russian Church, Deacon Lev travelled literally tens of thousands of miles on Greyhound buses over the next five years, lecturing and giving talks in Russian Orthodox parishes for the young people. During these years, he developed a deep feeling for isolated Orthodox Christians living in areas where regular church life was not available to them. His ministry to isolated Orthodox Christians was to become a central feature of the Canadian Orthodox Monastery of All Saints of North America, and Fr Lev became the first Orthodox missionary in modern times to seek out and serve isolated Orthodox Christians in Canada and America. This ministry was financed entirely by the Monastery, with no donations or help from any other sources.

The second monastery site was somewhat more substantial than the first. It consisted of a tiny four room cabin in the mountains above the Chilliwack River valley south of Chilliwack, B.C. There was no plumbing or running water in this building either, but it was insulated and had a sound roof. The development of the first Canadian Orthodox monastery continued on this site in 1973. It was at this time that Synaxis Press was founded to become the first Canadian Orthodox publishing house. The Canadian Slavonic Historical Society was also chartered by Fr Lev and Vasili, and it was the forerunner of today's St Maximos Centre for Canadian Orthodox Studies. Publication of The Canadian Orthodox Missionary began in 1973, and the first edition of the Synaxis Theological Journal appeared in 1974. This latter journal is today published as Synaxis: The Canadian Orthodox Journal of Theology.

During these first years of the new monastery, the monks heated and cooked with an ancient wood stove. Deacon Lev cut and split many cords of firewood each fall, and in 1974 installed a pipeline bringing cold water into the monastery from a spring on the mountainside above the monastery building. This second monastery would never have hot water or indoor plumbing.

Vasili continued with full time secular employment in order to finance both the monastery and the mission to isolated Orthodox Christians. Fr Lev built a chapel onto the monastery for regular services, and this chapel would become the site of the first English language Orthodox parish in Western Canada. These were years of hard work and struggle for the monks. Their mission and goals were not understood by ultra-ethnic jurisdictions and the idea of Canadian Orthodoxy was strongly resisted. American based jurisdictions did not seem to recognize Canada as an independent nation. Thus, the struggle was carried on alone and only by the labour of two monks in a mountain valley in British Columbia. At the same time, Deacon Lev was one of the most active Orthodox Christian missionaries in North America. He often travelled as much as 10,000 miles on Greyhound and other busses during a year, giving talks at Orthodox parishes, helping isolated Orthodox Christians in small communities and speaking to many non-Orthodox groups about the Faith. Many people were converted or returned to Orthodoxy by his tireless but exhausting efforts. All this activity was financed by the monks from their own labours.

In 1980, a small group of Canadians of Romanian descent, living in the Chilliwack area, came to the monastery and asked if they could worship in the monastery chapel. At this time it became necessary to provide a priest for the community and, since Deacon Lev was of Serbian descent, the monks turned to Bishop Iriney of the Free Serbian Orthodox Church. Bishop Iriney, who was himself quite missionary minded, agreed to ordain Deacon Lev as priest for the new parish and for the monastery. While the non-Serbian parish (and the later additions to the mission) could not, according to the constitution of the Serbian Church, be enrolled officially in the Serbian Church, Bishop (later Metropolitan) Iriney was determined to make the mission possible in any way he could. On ordaining Deacon Lev to the priesthood in March, 1981, he also tonsured him with the name Lazar. Fr Lazar later tonsured Vasili with the name Varlaam. The first Canadian Orthodox parish, the first English language parish in Western Canada, began regular service in April, 1981, and was named St Tikhon's in memory of the martyred Patriarch Tikhon, who had been bishop of Canada in 1905, and chartered many of the Ukrainian/Russian parishes in Western Canada.

In 1983, Fr Lazar volunteered to help a group of Serbs in Los Angeles establish a new parish, named for St Peter of Cetinje, where services would be served half in English, half in Old Slavonic. One of the early convert members of this parish was Makary Armstong. Makary moved to the monastery in 1984 during a time of great struggle. Work in the monastery was heavy as everything was done by hand. The publications of the monastery were prepared on a typewriter at the time, and the acquisition of an electric typewriter was considered a great breakthrough. Makary took on the labours of this life in the isolated monastery with great patience and zeal. Coming from Los Angeles to an isolated mountain cabin in Canada, often frequented by bears, was a dramatic change, but he adapted with faith and dedication. Makary soon learned to bathe in a cold mountain stream, where a small stone dam had been built to form a pool. The Monastery was re-wired to accommodate and electric stove in 1980, and the purchase of an electric stove for cooking was considered a great blessing, as less firewood was consumed, and more time could be dedicated to publishing and other work.

When Fr Lazar was called upon to go to New Grachanitsa, north of Chicago to found the St Sava Serbian Orthodox Seminary for the New Gracanica Metropolitanate, Metropolitan Iriney ordained Fr Varlaam to the priesthood to serve the St Tikhon Parish.

Fr Lazar spent most of the next three years at New Gracanica, and during this time, he rebuilt the St John the Baptist parish in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and trained its present priest, Fr Rafael Abraham, whom he had ordained by the Greek Church, since the Serbian Church constitution did not provide for the maintenance of non-Serbian parishes.

In 1985, the parish of St Nicholas in Langley, B.C. appealed to the monastery for help and for a priest. Metropolitan Iriney graciously consented to ordain Makary Armstrong to the priesthood so that the monastery could serve both Canadian Orthodox parishes, and St Nicholas Canadian Orthodox Church in Langley became the second English language Orthodox Church in the Western Canada. Makary was tonsured with the name Moses, and became the first priest to be ordained in the Cathedral of New Gracanica. Because of his purity and simplicity of nature, he soon became known as "the children's priest." Children not only loved him instantly, but felt confident in turning to him with their problems. Having a special gift for teaching the young, he began to write the children's corner section of The Canadian Orthodox Missionary, and developed the much loved "Canadian Orthodox Reader" column.

Because pure beeswax candles were not available, Father Varlaam conceived the idea of building a tiny candle factory. He wanted to have only hand dipped, pure beeswax candles in the two parishes and the monastery. The first candle factory was a six foot by eight foot shed. Eventually, Fr Varlaam found a regular source of highest quality beeswax in the Peace River country of Northern Alberta and the demand for his fragrant, perfectly formed candles began to grow. After an eight hour work day in the Fraser Valley Regional Library, Fr Varlaam spent another six hours in the evening making candles, and the candle factory, together with Synaxis Press became the mainstay of the monastery's income.

Because of the increase in non-ethnic parishioners and clergy, the Canadian Orthodox Monastery and its mission eventually passed, together with a segment of the Greek Traditionalist Church, into the Ukrainian Orthodox Church with whom the monastery was already in communion. The Ukrainian Orthodox was reborn in Ukraine under the venerable Metropolitan Mstislav, its first patriarch. At this time, Fr Lazar was consecrated Bishop, and later Archbishop.

The feast of the "Theotokos, Joy of Canada" was established in 1984, when Metropolitan Iriney presented the Monastery with a small icon of the Theotokos as a blessing to its Canadian mission. Fr Lazar composed an Akathist hymn for the icon, and the monastery chapel was named for "The Theotokos, Joy of Canada." This feastday became an important focal point for the development of the monastery's mission. It attracted pilgrims from various places in Canada and America and the spiritual talks that Fr Lazar gave at these events gradually developed into a full scale conference on important subjects of Orthodox Christian life.

With the help of several families from the two parishes, new construction was carried out at the monastery and a large chapel building was constructed. The monastery remained completely self supporting over all the years of its existence, and its only income has resulted from the works of the monks' own hands. Very few donations were received, amounting usually to less than $1,000 in any year. The exception was the generous efforts of the families in building the new chapel and library at the old monastery.

Fr Lazar had been consecrated bishop in 1990, after the jurisdiction had entered into the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Kiev. At about the same time, the monks felt a need to develop the monastery further, and with much prayer and fasting, and less than $5000 in the bank, they began to search for new property. When they were first shown the magnificent property that is now home to the monastery, it seemed an impossible dream. with an original asking price of over $750,000, the farm encompassed thirty acres a hay meadow and ten acres of the mountain behind. The main building, which had been severely damaged by fire, consisted of 8000 square feet, all divided into large rooms. It had previously been used as a training site for employees in the prison system. A second dwelling on the property comprises three thousand square feet, with the appearance of a skete on Mt Athos. A large barn, a small two bedroom farm worker's cottage and a workshop which is larger than the entire old monastery building completed the complex. The south border of the property, with the entrance, is bounded by a small river which usually boasts a salmon run in the fall. A second waterway divides the lawns and buildings from the hay meadows. All this might have seemed hopeless for the small brotherhood with so little material resources, but God had His own intentions. Fr Varlaam, with his usual optimism, was the most positive of all, and he prayed with special fasts daily. By God's working, an offer appeared on the old monastery, and it was sold for much more than could have been expected. At the same time, the price of the new property began to drop. Special features of the agricultural land law in the province, and the extensive fire damage to the main building caused one purchase offer after another to collapse, until at length, the monastery was able to purchase the property for $280,000. With the sale of the old monastery, a sufficient down payment was available. The Canadian Orthodox Monastery of All Saints of North America was able, by God's mercy, to take possession of the new property in November, 1991.

Vladika Lazar named the property itself "New Ostrog," after the famous Serbian Orthodox Monastery in Montenegro, and the candle factory was dedicated to the protection of St Vasili of Ostrog..

Since that time, the buildings have been almost completely restored, with the help of labour donated by various parishioners.

In 1994, His Holiness, Volodymir, Patriarch of Kiev and All Rus'-Ukraine, resolved to elevate Vladika Lazar to Archbishop, and consecrate Fr Varlaam as Bishop of Vancouver. Bishop Varlaam was consecrated in 1994.

With God's help, and the prayers of the faithful, the monastery continues to grow and thrive. The conference series, held under the auspices of the St Maximos Centre for Canadian Orthodox Studies, located in the New Ostrog complex within the monastery grounds, has become a standard feature of Canadian Orthodox life and development. By God's blessing, twenty-five years of lonely, patient struggle for the spiritual development of Canadian Orthodoxy has begun to bear fruit. The brotherhood looks forward with faith and assurance in God's mercy and help, to the future.

The monastery is now in the jurisdiction of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA).