“Build the house, that I may take pleasure in it, and that I may be glorified.”
– Haggai 1:8
Dearly Beloved in the Lord,
Realizing that you are accustomed to my message coming to you in the middle of the night, or awakening Friday mornings to find your Weekly Bulletin, placed in your in-box, I went to sleep last night after a wonderful day. I couldn’t even find the energy to send out a simple announcement. Not that I’ve traveled too far from Utah, and my current Time Zone is only one hour off, but the last couple of days have been filled with so many magical hours, that I’ve been too zapped at night to write even a single word.
As I write this message to our dear, St. Anna friends and family, I’m in Portland, Oregon; leaving this evening and returning home in time for a lovely wedding at Holy Trinity Cathedral. I’m here with my mom and cousin, having come to visit my Uncle Bill Zakis, my mom’s oldest brother who just turned 94-years-old. I’ve spoken about, and written about my uncle before. He is one of the most influential figures in my life.
Born in a tiny, coal mining town in Wyoming to immigrant parents with no education, we went on to become an internationally-known geologist and engineer. He didn’t travel the world with his family, we worked all over the world with his family. He and Aunt Virginia, together with their four children would live in places like New Guinea, Australia, Iran, Dubai, Argentina…oh, and New Mexico & Colorado. When they would come to Salt Lake City to visit family, the stories of their adventures were highly anticipated. Every detail of their every mundane, daily activity was like a fictitious novel to the cousins who simply went to school, did yard work, and played soccer – all without the assistance of servants and “house boys,” like our “royal family” experienced.
So, just like a child, once again, I’ve been able to sit with my uncle, now confined to a wheelchair, and listen to his stories. Funny thing, though, he hasn’t mentioned instances like his perilous escapades on rope bridges, interactions with cannibals, connections with billionaire sheiks, finding oil wells with hand-made maps and gut instincts, or putting out explosive fires with technical skill and more gut instincts.
At this time in his life, these things seem to be unimportant. He talks about Hanna, Wyoming, the place where he and his siblings were born. The little place where my papou (grandfather) built a life and where my yiayia (grandmother) built a home. There are nearly 16 years separating my mom and my uncle; they lived almost entirely different lives in that little town. Uncle Bill was off to WWII before my mother was even out of elementary school. But there are so many things that unite their experiences. I’ve learned more about those experiences in these past two days, than I have in a life time.
What has struck me so beautifully, however, is the one thing through time, circumstances, adventures, deaths, laughter, tears, and every day living…is faith. My grandparents were people of devout faith in God and love for their Church. In my own recollection, Yiayia was constantly quoting scriptures, chanting hymns and reflecting upon the lives of the saints. She was constantly in prayer, and we knew not to interrupt her as she spoke to Theouli (God) throughout the day.
This is the immigrant faith that was delivered upon the shores of this great nation and eventually found its way to central Wyoming, and ultimately to Salt Lake City.
This is the story of my family. This is the story which mirrors the families of many people we know. This is a portion of our spiritual family’s history. To the people in my past, and the people in your past, we owe a great debt of gratitude in delivering up, a life connected to God. And to those of us, who came to a path, leading to the Kingdom of God, without prior example, you are to be blessed for introducing such a gift to your own children and continued progeny.
Indeed, I’ve been given the gift of vibrant and living faith from family that I know, and have never known. They sacrificed that my children may also know the Lord, worship in His House and receive His precious Sacraments. I’ve been sitting in the room of a luxurious, retirement center in the beautiful Northwest, learning to truly, appreciate, the gifts I’ve been given and the responsibilities I’ve been given in order to perpetuate, share and grow our Orthodox Faith.
So then, here is where my message transforms into a commercial. Please, stay with me. This is important.
We all have history. We all have a past. We all have roots. But sometimes we are given the opportunity to write history, create a future, and establish roots for future generations. As we, the faithful of St. Anna’s begin this process through our Capital Campaign, we are given the blessing to further-establish a spiritual home of prayer, inclusiveness, Holy Tradition, joy and primarily, the Orthodox Faith.
In order that we can all take part in this mission and progress with a united purpose, we are hosting six gatherings where we can break bread, learn of our mission, and charge forward with a collective fire and enthusiasm. We’ve mentioned these gatherings before, but in today’s bulletin, the specific dates, times and locations are included. Please, please, please, look at the times and choose one. There is ample opportunity for each and every member of our community to be intimately included in our efforts.
All events are at private homes and businesses except for a luncheon that will take place after the DAYTIME CELEBRATION OF THE PARAKLESIS ON MONDAY, AUGUST 7TH AT 10:00 AM. If you don’t want to come out at night, please join us for this gathering. It is expected to be our largest of the six.
But again, please, please, please pick one, participate and get engaged in the process. At each of the six gatherings, you will receive a most valuable, precious and historic gift that will help to inspire us through the process of establishing a permanent place for our church. You really won’t want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
So now, we’ll make our own history and carve out our own adventure. Traversing the globe won’t be necessary. What is however necessary, is re-discovering the faith that brought our Church to the far-reaching outposts of this nation, and will eventually plant a permanent home for our parish in the southern portion of the Salt Lake Valley.
With Much Love in Christ,
Fr. Anthony