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Dear Parish Faithful,
As we marked the fortieth anniversary of the repose of Fr. Alexander Schmemann on Tuesday, I returned to his Journals and found this entry dated Tuesday, May 18, 1982:
Long letter from Father K[ostoff]: "I would like to at least - though superficially - let you know how absolutely important my three years of study under your guidance and in your presence were to me both intellectually and spiritually. I eagerly absorbed or attempted to do do so to the fullness of my capacity, that vision of the Church and simply of life itself which you presented to us at all times in the chapel and the classroom. For me, personally, and Deborah has expressed the same feelings, this was an encounter with an authentic vision, thereby making it not only inwardly convincing but also lasting and influential."
With many "ups and downs" it has been my goal over the years to remain loyal and committed to the liturgical and eucharistic revival that I was blessed to be made aware of as a seminary student at St. Vladimir's. Therefore, I am in no way blowing my trumpet with quoting my own letter to Fr. Alexander. Nor am I retreating into the pleasant realm of nostalgia. All I did was absorb a vision and practice of the Liturgy from the seminary that was imparted to us by Fr. Alexander in the chapel and the classroom. I then brought this vision and practice with me to the parishes in which I have served beginning as far back as 1981. And I have been here since 1989.
My concern at this point in my life is this: Has Fr. Schmemann's vision been retained and still put into practice after all these years? Is it still alive and well? His "restoration" of the early Church's liturgical theology was often enough misinterpreted as an "innovation." Is that happening today, as a certain reactionary resistance to Fr. Schmemann's revival/restoration has seemed to settle in even in the Orthodox Church in America? If Fr. Schmemann's legacy is being slowly abandoned, what are the reasons for this, and what is it being replaced with?
Immersed in these thoughts, I then almost immediately received this email letter from an old friend, a woman who studied and graduated from St. Vladimir's in the same year that I did. Her letter brought to the surface some of the very things that I was concerned about. Here is her letter, only slightly edited to eliminate some personal comments she made to Presvytera and me. Regardless of what she may say about me and our parish, her letter is really a tribute to Fr. Schmemann, in that forty years later here is someone else who not only remembers Fr. Schmemann, but is also so grateful for his legacy to the Church. Her letter is therefore both very encouraging, but also discouraging; a reaction that you may agree with:
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Dear Fr. Steven,
I was happy to see that your parish streams its services, so I joined in. Needless to say, I was not disappointed. I love the way that you always keep the doors open, and say all the prayers aloud. With rare exceptions, that’s virtually unknown around here, despite the fact that our bishop went to St. Vladimir’s for a while, and that both the last dean and present dean of St. Tikhon’s are both graduates of SVS. I don’t know, maybe this distinctive liturgical practice isn’t taught/stressed/practiced anymore there either? On the 40th anniversary of his repose, I wonder how much of Fr. Alexander’s legacy is actually preserved by graduates of St. Vladimir’s, despite the lip service. But I digress.
I noticed in your parish how active a role that women played, reading the epistle and even serving as “out-of-altar” girls. That was a nice touch. The choir sounds good, I see catechumens - always a good sign - and lots of communicants. I don’t know if anyone has told you, but it was very difficult to hear your sermon on the stream. I couldn’t figure that, since the epistle reader had been standing in the same place, and was very clear. Maybe you should look in to that. Anyway, you seem to have built a very good parish there. I wish such a parish existed in my area. There is just a different “culture” around here; Orthodox yes, but different from what I was used to. I thought that things would eventually change, but it’s apparently not in the cards. So my heart was cheered to know that the OCA that I joined at SVS nearly 50 years ago still lives and flourishes! I hope that you are not the only faithful and true son of St. Vladimir’s still left out there.
Read more of Fr Steven's meditations about Fr Alexander Schmemann
Commemorating 40 Years from the Repose of Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann (SVS)
The 12 All-American Councils of Father Alexander Schmemann (OCA)
