St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church

And about the ninth hour she went down into the garden to walk there. And she saw a laurel-tree and sat down underneath it and besought the Lord saying: O God of our fathers, bless me, and hearken unto my prayer, as thou didst bless the womb of Sarah, and gavest her a son, even Isaac. And looking up to the heaven she espied a nest of sparrows in the laurel-tree, and made a lamentation within herself, saying: Woe unto me, who begat me? And what womb brought me forth for I am become a curse before the children of Israel, and I am reproached, and they have mocked me forth out of the temple of the Lord? Woe unto me, unto what am I likened ? I am not likened unto the fowls of the heaven, for even the fowls of the heaven are fruitful before thee, O Lord. Woe unto me, unto what am I likened ? I am not likened unto the beasts of the earth, for even the beasts of the earth are fruitful before thee, O Lord. Woe unto me, unto what am I likened ? I am not likened unto these waters, for even these waters are fruitful before thee, O Lord. Woe unto me, unto what am I likened ? I am not likened unto this earth, for even this earth bringeth forth her fruits in due season and blesseth thee, O Lord. And behold an angel of the Lord appeared, saying unto her: Anna, Anna, the Lord hath hearkened unto thy prayer, and thou shalt conceive and bear, and thy seed shall be spoken of in the whole world. And Anna said: As the Lord my God liveth, if I bring forth either male or female, I will bring it for a gift unto the Lord my God, and it shall be ministering unto him all the days of its life.

The Protoevangelium Gospel of St. James

Dearly Beloved in the Lord,

Do you remember the summer of 2017, when we were introduced to Atrium Building, orgionally built as the Western Garden Center in Sandy, Utah?

Do you remember how filled with joy we became, at the prospect of this unique structure, with it’s beautiful landscape, might become our new church home?

Do you remember how we imagined the vast, interior space and pictured in our minds, a lovely sanctuary, a ballroom, classrooms, offices, a kitchen, and room to spare?

Do you remember all of that?

We visited the Atrium. We prayed about the Atrium. We sat in its parking lot, collectively for hours on end.

Do you recall how disappointed and crestfallen we felt when the property, seemingly in our grasp did not materialize and the deal that we worked very hard to finalize collapsed in an instant?

We worked the numbers. We decided we could stretch ourselves and commit to the dream. We worked together for this common goal and the desire to have a church and worship God and celebrate His love.

That was a difficult hit and a great disappointment.

Can you think back, just last week, at the Tables Extraordinaire, when we announced, out of the blue, and completely from left field, that the owner of the Atrium contacted us and was ready to talk? He was willing to make a deal. He was ready to sell his building.

You may recollect that I announced: that, with the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah, and with the wisdom of our Parish Council, and through the research and dedication of our Real Estate Ministry Team, and through the prayers of your priest and our congregation, we made an offer on this property.

Do you remember all of that?

Good.

Because as of yesterday afternoon:

The St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church of Utah is now UNDER CONTRACT to purchase the Atrium property at 9201 South 1300 East in Sandy Utah!

How does that sound as your new church address? Prayerfully and gratefully, let that sink in for a moment, and let it warmly wash over you.

Now that you’ve enjoyed that moment, you may now ask “What does that mean and what will the immediate future hold for us?” Allow me, as I collect myself while writing this message to you, to share some critical information. This is not an exhaustive treatise of the process, for much, much more details will be forthcoming. This is just a celebratory overview.

So, we made an offer to purchase the Atrium Property for the asking price of $2.95 million dollars. After a flurry of activity between buyer and seller for last week or so, this offer was accepted and your parish council president, Dr. Charles Beck was the final signature on the contract to purchase.

We are now in our 90 Day Due Diligence Period. This means, that for the next three months, we will be:

Having the building and grounds inspected.

Working the details of financing.

Working with the City of Sandy, Utah for our Conditional Use Permit to operate a church on that property.

Inform the neighbors of our plans and intentions, and obtain their approval.

Inform His Eminence with the details of the transaction and seek his approval per the UPR of the Archdiocese.

Call for a Parish Assembly, also, per the UPR of the Archdiocese to vote on the actual purchase of the property. You, the Stewards and voting members of St. Anna’s, as the voice of the parish, have the final say if this purchase happens or not.

Following the 90 Day Due Diligence Period, we then wait until the designated time, per the contract to close on the property. This is where our deal is unique and beneficial to both parties in the transaction: We will close at the end of October, 2019. That is not a typo. In October of 2019, we will take possession of the property. “Why a long, full year,” you may ask? That is a fair question.

Atrium Weddings has bookings through October of 2019. They would like to honor those contracts and offer their services as a reception center. I must say that the brides who have booked their weddings at the Atrium would also like to have their contracts honored, and not be forced to look for new locations.

As for us, we will enjoy a solid year of raising funds, building enthusiasm, taking our time in design and planning, and not rushing anything. When the time comes for us to make the move, everything will be set in place. Did I mention we will be actively raising funds for the following year? We will work prayerfully and diligently, to shrink our mortgage before it even exists. And for that to happen, it will take everyone of us.

As for our present location, Fr, John Evans, the pastor of St. Thomas More has been notified that we will execute the second option on our lease. We will remain at St. Thomas More until we occupy the space; OUR SPACE at the new location of St. Anna’s; no longer the Atrium by that time.

I must add, that Fr. John expressed his joy and excitement for us. He and his community have been more than accommodating, more than generous, more than kind, and better Christian brothers and sisters to us than we could have been imagined or expected. Lord bless their lovely hearts!

I also add that His Eminence Metropolitan Isaiah was thrilled and overjoyed to hear the news that this parish, barely four years in existence, has risen to such a challenge and is ready to take such a step. This is all to the glory of God and through the prayers of our matron St. Anna. Really, the bishop was quite pleased.

I also wish to inform you that our good friend at Sandy City, Councilwoman Kris Nicholl was ecstatic when I informed her of this wonderful news. Though we will go through a rigorous process to obtain the proper permits to alter the space and occupy the building, the City of Sandy welcomes us enthusiastically with open arms. They appreciate the diversity we provide and look forward to our civic participation and active involvement in our local community. Kris said that she was praying that this would work out for us, ever since it fell through last year. She is a true friend of St. Anna’s.

Our parish council president, Dr. Charles Beck, the co-chairs of our Real Estate Ministry Team, Chuck Karpakis and Joe Sasich, and I admit, myself, worked tirelessly for the past several days to get us to this point. I also extend my appreciation to Mr. Lon Clayton, the current owner and original builder of the Western Garden Center/Atrium, for entrusting to us the joy of his life’s professional work.

The building was originally constructed as a nursery – a garden center. We cannot escape this obvious connection to the life of St. Anna, as she prayed, in her garden, for the joy of a family and the gift of a child, as mentioned in the above-referenced verses from the Deuterocanonical Gospel of St. James. I informed Lon that we will maintain and celebrate the original intent of his building. Because, after all, a church dedicated to St. Anna is, ultimately a Garden Center. I love and very much appreciate the symbolism of this connection. It was meant to be. No question.

I close this long, long, happy, happy message with this: prayerfully consider that after we received the precious relic of our dear St. Anna, we began our monthly celebration of Paraklesis Services dedicated to her. It was barely a week after our first service, that we were contacted by the owner’s broker that this property was going back on the market, and that they wanted us to know in advance.

Our St. Anna is active and present in the life of this community. We are her children and we have been entrusted to her spiritual care. We honor her, as we adore her daughter and as we worship her Grandson, our Lord Jesus Christ.

The days, weeks, months and years ahead of us will be filled with great excitement and joy. We’ll always be working on some project or another, and we will hit snags and obstacles along the way. We will approach our peaks and valleys, and our successes and our (God forbid) whoopsies with love, humility, faith and guidance from above.

Look at that picture at the top of this message. Imagine – Take down that sign. Place a cross on the top of the building. Fill it with Spirit-filled worshipers. Imagine the possibilities and the blessings. That is our church.

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we are under contract to purchase the property that we have dreamed about for quite some time. It is located in the area we desire, within a price we can afford, complete with a building we can occupy and can accommodate future growth.

Praise be to God!

Thanks be to St. Anna!

With humility, congratulations are to be offered to you, our parish, who has thus far committed about $1.3 million towards this effort.

For us, this is history in the making and an indication for greater days to come.

Wow, that’s quite enough for now. I am so grateful, humbled and overwhelmed by all of this.

Holy Ancestor of God, St. Anna Pray for Us!

With Much Love in Christ,

Fr. Anthony

These are pictures of our celebration of the Divine Liturgy at the Atrium on September 17, 2017.

P.S. Orthodox Married Life is Tonight, Friday, October 12th at 7:00 pm. Baby Sitting is Provided.

“But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David’ they were indignant. ‘Do you hear what these children are saying?’ they asked him. ‘Yes,’ replied Jesus, ‘have you never read,
‘’From the lips of children and infants you, LORD, have called forth your praise’?” – Matthew 21:15-16

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Just this past evening, we had a living room full of GOYANs over to the house for our first monthly meeting of the school year. Every month, we gather in someone’s home for a Bible Study, fellowship, fun games and wonderful discussions. We also get together once a month for outside activities, such as outreach projects, spiritually educational opportunities, or, just to have fun together in Christ’s presence.

I look forward to, and cherish this time of year: when the ministries of the church resume and there is life in our classrooms, hallways and homes. Everything we do, say, act, pray, sing, laugh about and cry about, flows from the altar. We are a Eucharistic gathering of people, and as the chalice of our Lord’s precious and life-giving sacrifice is poured out for our blessed consumption, so also is every activity that takes place within the context of our St. Anna calendar of events.

Primarily for me, within our selection of programming, is our youth ministry. I love having the children gathered in Sunday School, worshiping in the church, engaging with one another and making their relationship with Christ, a priority in their young lives.

The above-referenced verses from St. Matthew underscore the deeply grounded faith of innocent children and warn against the possible perils of longevity. Not longevity in righteousness, but the danger of being given more than enough time to grow cynical, cool down, become hardened and lose precious faith.

Seeing the GOYANs, fill our chairs and couches with their bodies, and listening to them fill the air with their comments, questions and laughter, was a powerful witness and an incredible blessing.

When young people are around, they remind you that their pure love for Christ must be protected, inspired and stoked.

They surprise you with wisdom beyond their years, impress you with the recall of sacred knowledge and enlighten you with their creativity.

They call you back to worship as they worship, feel as they feel, receive as they receive and find joy where they find joy.

They inspire because, though their lives may not be burdened with the responsibilities of adulthood, their days are no less chaotic, their stresses are no less significant, and their challenges are no less daunting.

Their social lives may be in upheaval, their confidence may be in the cellar (I wanted to write “in the toilet,” but that would be crude) and their self-worth may be in doubt. But they push back against emotional tsunamis as best they can and carry on with their day.

Remember, puppy love is still love…to a puppy. Being young and a teenager is not easy.

To be sure, I pray that our young people continue to grow in Christ, in their Orthodox Christian identity and in their calling to serve humanity with dignity, sacrifice and love.

If you want to be hopeful, spend time with our young people. They offer great hope for the future of our church, community, nation and world.

If you want to be humbled, spend time with our young people. They remind you that the responsibility of teaching and raising them cannot be accomplished outside of being an actual example to them. “Do as I say, not as I do” does not cut it. Not even close.

If you want to be energized, spend time with our young people. Their zest for life, their unrealized potential and their anticipated trajectory feeds the soul and energizes the spirit.

If you want to be happy, spend time with our young people. Laugh with them, let them laugh at you, and marvel at their satirical skills. Kids are sharp.

So, with all that said, I prayerfully ask that you allow me the selfish opportunity, together with our youth advisors and volunteers, to have even more kids at these events. Please inspire your children to make Church,

Sunday School, GOYA and JOY priorities in their lives.

As ministers to your children, we compete with their schoolwork, sports, arts, work schedules, civic activities, family obligations and well-earned leisure time. That is a lot to fight against, as we are working to introduce Christ into their lives, foster that relationship and give it a chance to sustain.

That’s quite a list of competing interests. So please…please, Moms and Dads, don’t make us compete against you, too!

Please take the time from your busy and exhausting days to get your kids to as many youth activities in the church as possible. Please take the time to arrange rides, prepare your schedules and make the spiritual well-being of your family, a high priority.

Tonight was fun. We enjoyed a roomful. Should have had a houseful. God willing, next time!

I’ve added to this message a couple fliers about some upcoming Youth events: our Pumpkin Nights gathering at the end of the month (just for fun) and our GOYA Fall Retreat to be held in November (for fun and spiritual growth).

Speaking of the Fall Retreat, you should all know that the children, themselves requested another opportunity, beyond the annual Lenten Retreat, to get away, gather together and grow in Christ. That tells me that our children are wanting for Christ’s presence in their lives, and desire to go at it, surrounded by their friends. So because of their initiative, we added this new, annual event to our calendar of youth activities. God bless them!

Thank you for the opportunity to serve the spiritual needs of our kids, and for the blessing to be a part of their lives. When the chief priests and the teachers of the law heard the children singing praises to Jesus, they grew sour and acted out in indignation. Let’s follow the lead that our children provide. And let us remain young in heart and youthful in our approach to Christ.

Who is teaching who?

With Much Love in Christ,

Fr. Anthony

And Don’t forget, Tables Extraordinaire is this Saturday Evening. Please support our Women’s Ministry Team as they support our Building Fund!

And as a reminder, Orthodox Married Life (OML), our ministry to Married/Engaged Couples begins Friday, October 12th at 7:00 pm.

A Thank You Note…

Dear Choir, Chanters and Singers of Hymns,

I just wanted to send this note of appreciation to let you know how much I value your prayerful preparation, unassuming sacrifice and the sharing of your talents, as you sing God’s praises in the midst of our precious congregation.

Next Monday, October 1st is the celebration of St. Romanos the Melodist, the patron saint of Orthodox Church Musicians. Though there have been many hymnographers who have dedicated themselves to articulating the sacred theology and doctrine of our ancient, Orthodox Christian Faith, St. Romanos stands out for his righteousness, humility, miraculous abilities and prolific writing. He penned, through God’s inspiration, well over 1,000 hymns in throughout his ministry of song.

But without you; our choir and our chanters, the work of St. Romanos would be relegated to a museum or dusty library. You bring to life his precious work. Through your collective voice, you lift words from the page, and place them in the ears and hearts of worshipers.

You transform text into inspiration. You allow us to communicate with angles. You guide us, you lead us, and you encourage us to sing out…and our parishioners join you, as best they can.

Since the Sunday closest to the Feast of St. Romanos is elevated as “Church Musician Sunday,” this coming Sunday is a day that is prayerfully dedicated to you.

We will graciously and thankfully pray for you. And of course, those very prayers will be carried to the throne of God upon the chariot that is fashioned by the wave of your collective voice.

God has placed the gift of music in your hearts. And unselfishly, you share that gift with us, as you profess His glory.

Thank you for your commitment and thank you for your love of the Lord. Thank you for the music you provide. I remain,

With Love in Christ,

Fr. Anthony
On Behalf of our St. Anna Parish