Albany OCF

St. Jacob of Hamatoura

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 18:30:00 -0500

At Fr. Peter’s request, on December 11th we will join together for our last meeting of the fall semester to pray the supplicatory canon to St. Jacob of Hamatoura. He is a saint very close to my heart and you can read more of this great Saint’s life here.

Afterward, we will discuss the life of St. Mardarije of Libertyville, the first Serbian bishop to Canada and North America.

Akathist to St. Barbara

Wed, 04 Dec 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On Wednesday December 4th we will meet with Fr. Matthew for an akathist service for St. Barbara the Great-Martyr. This saint was born near Heliopolis, in modern-day Lebanon, and was martyred during the reign of Emperor Maximian (286-305). At the insistence of her pagan father, Dioscorus, who reviled her faith and, St. Barbara was presented before the pagan ruler, who demanded she deny Christ. Heroically, she did not budge, and after many cruel tortures she was beheaded by her father and gave up her soul to the Lord.

St. Barbara has a great many miracles attributed to her and is widely venerated throughout Lebanon and Greece. You can read more about her life and miracles here.

Thanksgiving Break - No Meeting

Wed, 27 Nov 2024 18:30:00 -0500

The week of Wednesday, November 27 we will not be having a formal OCF meeting due to our schools letting out for Thanksgiving break.

Great Vespers - Entrance of the Theotokos in the Temple

Wed, 20 Nov 2024 18:00:00 -0500

On the evening of Wednesday, November 20 we celebrate Great Vespers for the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos. You can read about the feast here.

Vespers begins at 6:00 and ends at 7:00. ~~Afterward, we will eat at the Chipotle on 17 New Scotland Ave, Albany, NY 12208. If you can’t make Vespers, please feel free to join us for food around 7:15.~~ Itinerary change: we will be eating a Fr. Manny style fasting buffet with Fr. John’s parish.

Man of God Viewing

Wed, 13 Nov 2024 18:30:00 -0500

On Wednesday November 13th we’ll be watching Man of God, a movie about the life of St. Nektarios of Pentapolis, with Fr. Manny at St. Basil’s in Troy. We will be joined by members of Fr. Manny’s parish. Given this meeting’s proximity to November 9th, the day of St. Nektarios’s repose, this is a wonderful opportunity to get together and pray his Akathist, share one another’s company, and enjoy a good movie.

With the Akathist and movie, expect the meeting to run until at least 21:30 EST (the movie’s run time is 1 hr 51 min).

Pain as the Experience of Christ

Wed, 06 Nov 2024 19:00:00 -0400

Today’s meeting is fairly open ended. Fr. John Vazquez will be speaking about a talk given by Fr. Silviu Bunta (Part 1, Part 2) in Ottawa for the Feast of St. Demetrios. Covered are the writings of Elder Aimilianos with a particular focus on The Way of the Spirit.

We’ll also be holding an impromptu OCF officer election on this day. Although we are meeting at 7PM, Fr. John’s parish has a Paraklesis to St. George at 6PM. Please feel free to attend.

Apostle Cleopas of the Seventy

Wed, 30 Oct 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On October 30th in the Holy Orthodox Church we commemorate Apostle Cleopas of the Seventy (and brother to Joseph the Betrothed) who, with the Apostle Luke, encountered the Resurrected Christ on the road to Emmaus. The Lord hid His identity from them and, “…expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27).

The veiling of Christ’s identity from the two traveling Apostles is a subject of St. Ephraim’s Hymnology (Hymn XV):

When the disciples' eyes were held closed,
bread too was the key whereby their eyes were opened
to recognize the omniscient:
saddened eyes beheld a vision of joy
and were instantly filled with happiness.

We will meet Fr. Gregory Potter at Christ the Savior Orthodox Church in Ballston Lake for an Akathist to the Apostles and to discuss the hymnology of St. Ephraim the Syrian.

St. James, the Brother of the Lord

Wed, 23 Oct 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On October 23rd in the Orthodox Church we commemorate St. James, the Brother of the Lord. St. James was chosen as the first Bishop of Jerusalem, presided over the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15), and died a martyr.

The Holy Apostle James authored an Epistle and composed a Divine Liturgy which served as the basis for the Liturgies of Saints John Chrysostom and Basil the Great. More can be read of him here.

We will be meeting at Michael’s apartment in Troy to watch Prince of Egypt after Small Compline.

Martyr Longinus the Centurion

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On October 16th in the Holy Orthodox Church we commemorate the martyr Longinus the Centurion, who stood at the Cross of the Lord. You can read about his life and martyrdom here.

We will meet Fr. Manny at his church in Troy for a small meal.

St. Tikhon, Apostle to America

Wed, 09 Oct 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On Wedenesday October 9th in the Orthodox Church we commemorate the glorification of St. Tikhon, Apostle to America. This will be our first meeting with Fr. Peter in quite some time! He will be giving us a presentation of his trips to Russia.

Contemporary Elders

Wed, 02 Oct 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On October 2nd, we’ll meet with Fr. Manny in Troy to discuss the contemporary elders of the Orthodox Church. Please bring a fasting compatible snack that we can share!

We will hold an akathist service to St. Porphyrios and do an anointing with holy oil from his lampada. This great saint is a wonder worker and fervent intercessor for many before God. Father Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia is known for having used popular technologies, including the telephone and transistor radio, to bring God to his many spiritual children; and he is considered by many to be a patron of the sciences.

The much beloved book on his life, Wounded by Love, is highly recommended by many of our members.

The service was absolutely wonderful and we were joined by a number of parishioners. Thank you to Fr. Manny for preparing us a great quantity of amazing food and for hosting the service!

St. Sergius of Radonezh

Wed, 25 Sep 2024 18:30:00 -0400

On September 25th in the Orthodox Church we commemorate Saint Sergius the Wonderworker, Abbot of Radonezh. We will hold an Akathist to the Saint and discuss his life, miracles, and involvement in the Council of Florence. More can be read of the saint here.

St. Sergius is a wonderful inspiration to us in our studies at university and he intercedes for those who are struggling in education. Please plan to bring fasting-friendly snacks or prepare a small meal. Shoutout to Michael Golshteyn: he provided a lovely home-made meal for our meeting on the 18th. Thank you!

Akathist to St. Xenia

Wed, 18 Sep 2024 16:30:00 -0400

Tonight we will begin our meeting with an Akathist to St. Xenia of St. Petersburg, holy fool-for-Christ. St. Xenia is known to fervently intercede for those who ask for her prayers, and once in one’s life she never departs. More can be read of her here and also here. The service will conclude with an anointing with holy oil taken from her shrine in Smolensk Cemetery, St. Petersburg, Russia courtesy of Porphyrios.

We will have a small assortment of fasting-friendly snacks available as we discuss our faith and share our experiences. Time permitting, we may also watch The Prince of Egypt (1997 DreamWorks).

In other news, our fliers are in! These will be distributed as needed at tonight’s meeting. Please have them displayed on your campus by next week!

Fasting with St. Euphrosynos

Wed, 11 Sep 2024 19:00:00 -0400

On this day we commemorate St. Euphrosynos the Cook, a ninth-century ascetic who was mystically translated to Paradise while cooking for his monastic brethren. The entirety of the Saint’s life can be read here.

Our meeting will begin with the Service of Small Paraklesis to the Most Holy Theotokos. We will eat a small supper and discuss how St. Euphrosynos can be a model for our lives and how we as Orthodox Christians can meal-plan for fasting periods. Be ready to share a recipe!

Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God

Wed, 04 Sep 2024 18:30:00 -0400

Note the change in itinerary: we are no longer meeting with Fr. Manny in Troy. Please see above for updated information.

On the feast of the “Unburnt Bush” Icon of the Mother of God we’ll discuss how we Orthodox Christians venerate the Most Holy Mother of God: the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary.

Our meeting will begin with an akathist to the Mother of God and then we will discuss how we can grow closer to her in our lives.

Dinner plans are outstanding. Please consider bringing a fasting-friendly food item.

Fall 2024 Inaugural Meeting

Wed, 28 Aug 2024 18:00:00 -0400

Michael was kind enough to host a small get together in his apartment. We ate a small fasting dinner courtesy of him and then prayed Small Compline together.

We discussed placing posters around Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Union College, and Skidmore to find newly admitted Orthodox students.