Archdeacon Sorin Mihalache stayed in southern California several days. It was a great blessing for him to reach our Romanian Orthodox communities on the west coast, especially those in the Los Angeles area.
He participated in the Divine Liturgy at the parish in Sacramento, Holy Resurrection, on Wednesday, for the feast day of the Elevation of Holy Cross, and later in the evening he held a conference with the theme: “Great are You, Lord, and wonderful are Your works! The formidable encounter between patristic reflection of Orthodox Christian theology and recent discoveries in cosmology and neuroscience.”
An 8-hour workshop on improving attention was held at Elevation of the Holy Cross Romanian Orthodox Church in Upland on Saturday. Fr. Archdeacon pointed out the ideal traits and disposition that we should all aspire towards to improve our attention as much as possible. Another positive aspect of the workshop was the interaction between the participants. The workshop was designed in such a way that the scientific information is proven or exemplified through the different activities that the participants performed during the workshop. Throughout, the participants were interested and captivated by the topics discussed.
The following day, Sunday, the Divine Liturgy was held at the same parish, the Elevation of the Holy Cross, where Fr. Archimandrite Nikodim was accompanied by Archdeacon Sorin Mihalache, Rev. Teodor Gîrlonța, and Rev. Iustinian Deac. The sermon was given by Fr. Archdeacon Sorin. He mentioned that three kinds of temptations can burden people in terms of understanding and living the Holy Scriptures: ignoring the meanings, forgetting their application, and insensibility (routine - one knows the meanings and practices them, but without feeling, without living, like the Pharisee compared to publican). Jesus said: if he wants (man is not forced, just as parents must not force the child but bring him to want Jesus). To renounce the self, the selfish self in the pursuit of pleasure is not enough - non-Christians like Marcus Aurelius and the Buddhists did it too - the Christian must take up his cross (sin quickly tires the one who carries it). And the cross must be received with joy in passion and suffering.
At the end, Fr. Archimandrite Nikodim thanked Archdeacon Sorin, for the time spent with their community on Sunday and Saturday. A communal meal followed when Archdeacon Sorin continued the dialogue with the people.
On Wednesday evening, after the visit to Las Vegas, Fr. Archdeacon Sorin also held a conference at All Saints Parish in North Hollywood, where Fr. Iustinian Deac together with the parishioners listened to him with great interest. Thank God for everything!
Participant
