We couldn't have started without you!

It's almost the middle of August already! Summer is flying by. We wanted to show you how donations from the last couple of Bridegroom's Banquets are being put to good use. The chapel renovation project is underway. 

The day before renovations started, after Divine Liturgy, some of our regular guests stayed behind to help us remove the last remaining things from the chapel. 

On August 1st, the crew arrived bright and early as we prayed Matins in our new outdoor tent-chapel (we've been calling it our "tabernacle"). Over the next few days, as nuns crossed the street from the monastery to poke their heads in the chapel, we were amazed to see the place we know so well looking so different, stripped down to its frame. 

In a photo below, you can see what the pitch of the new ceiling will be like. You can also just barely see in the back that the bathroom and meeting room/confessional in the vestibule are coming into existence. We are looking forward to having a space in our chapel for those who pray with us to be able to visit after liturgies without disturbing the silence of the chapel or having to go out in the rain, snow, or cold. 

Throughout the first week, we slowly adjusted our "tabernacle" to better meet our needs. We added a smaller tent in the back, to block the low evening sun from roasting us during Vespers. We got some more bins to keep our liturgical books out of the rain and humidity. We also added some lights after praying the Paraklesis to the Theotokos with flashlights the first night of the Dormition Fast. We're slowly figuring out how to wander in the wilderness, exiled from our chapel. It's definitely an experience we are going to remember for a long time!  

Now, we are in the second week of praying in the "tabernacle," and we discovered that the tent we have used for years for Girls' Camp is no longer waterproof. There's always some new adventure. The bottom photo shows our attempts at protecting our things from the leaky roof. 

Of course, we could not have started this exciting process without the help of all of our benefactors. We are so grateful and can't wait to be able to pray with you in our newly renovated chapel once it's finished. 

There are many more projects we'll need to do in the future, as well as maintaining our day-to-day life, and we rely on God to provide for us for all of it. The most significant way we are supported is through our Bridegroom's Banquet which is coming up in less than a month on Saturday, September 10th. If you'd like to come, please register by August 29th. Donations will be doubled up to $100,000. 

For those who live far away and are unable to attend the event in person, donations can be made online here. Donations can also be mailed to us. Please mark it "Bridegroom's Banquet" so that it will be doubled by the matching fund. Our address is Christ the Bridegroom Monastery, 17485 Mumford Road, Burton, OH 44021. 

Thank you for your help and prayers! We are praying for you!

Mariapoch Pilgrimage is Coming Up!

 

Pilgrimage is less than two weeks away!

We'd like to invite you to join us at this year's Eparchial Pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Mariapoch, from August 13th to the 14th. Please see the flyer in this post for the schedule and details. 

We will be cantoring some of the services, leading the teen and children's activities on Sunday, and helping out in some other ways as well. We're looking forward to being with you. 

Some volunteers are still needed to staff the Shrine's gift shop. Please send us an email (christthebridegroom@gmail.com) if you are willing to volunteer for part of the time.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our eparchy to gather together and for anyone who's interested  to come and pray with us. The pilgrimage is open to all, not just members of the Eparchy of Parma. We hope to see you there!

Summer at the Monastery, Getting Ready for Chapel Renovations, and the Bridegroom's Banquet

It's summer at the monastery! We just wanted to show you some of what's been going on so far this summer. It's been very full and very beautiful. 

Mother Theodora's hard work in our gardens has been very fruitful, and she's gearing up to start canning green beans, and salsa, and all kinds of other wonderful things. 

The flower gardens are moving through the many phases of summer blooms.

We've also been enjoying the wildlife around the monastery. Some baby foxes were born on the grounds earlier this summer, and we've been watching them grow up.

Many of the nuns are going on their annual home visits and retreats during the summer months.  

Mother Natalia and Olivia spent part of their recent monthly poustinia backpacking in Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania. 

Early next week, chapel renovations will begin, and we'll be evicted to pray in the "wilderness" of our parking lot and at the Shrine of Our Lady of Mariapoch.

(If you are planning on coming to pray with us soon, please note that we'll be praying Matins, the Hour at noon, Vespers, and Compline under a tent in our parking lot, and Divine Liturgies will be at the Shrine.)

We're so glad that this project is finally happening. Materials are being moved into the chapel, and we're packing up all of the liturgical books, icons, vestments, and well, everything. 

Stay tuned for renovations progress photos in the coming months. 

We spent a full day last week filming the new video that will premier at this year's Bridegroom's Banquet, "Receive the Gift: Reflections on Chastity."

We're so excited to share the video with you. It amazing to see how each of our reflections can come together into a single video and be shared with you all.

The Bridegroom's Banquet is coming up on September 10th. There's just one month left to register! The registration deadline is August 29th. 

All of the details about the event can be found on "The Bridegroom's Banquet" tab at the top of this page.

We've been doing lots of other things as well as maintaining our life of prayer and hospitality. 

In the midst of life feeling overwhelming at times, we have the consistency of prayer to bolster it all. We walk across the street to our chapel for compline each night as the sun sets, and there's peace in the air. 

Save the Date for our Fall Work Day

 

Save the date for our Fall Work Day! It will be September 17th, 2022. 

As usual, our work days start at 10am and continue throughout the day, with potluck lunch and dinner, as well as the opportunity to pray Vespers together and then relax in the evening. You can come for the whole day or just for part of it. 

Stay tuned for the opportunity to RSVP after August 22nd. 

"Receive the Gift" of Community at this year's Bridegroom's Banquet

 

One of the best parts of our annual Bridegroom's Banquet is that we get to be with so many amazing people for an evening. 

It's not your average fundraiser, but truly an experience of receiving the gifts the Father gives us so abundantly, especially the gift of community and friendship. 

It's truly overwhelming to see the beauty of the community of people who support our monastic life. 

Every year, we've seen this community grow, and we're looking forward to seeing how it will continue to flourish this year. 

Please help us grow this community by inviting your friends and family to join us for this year's Bridegroom's Banquet. 

The theme is "Receive the Gift: Reflections on Chastity," and we want to welcome as many people as we can into the great gift of how God gives us to one another.

This year's Bridegroom's Banquet is on September 10th. All of the details can be found here. There is no cost to register for the Banquet. 

The evening will include Vespers, dinner, the premier of our new video "Receive the Gift: Reflections of Chastity," a talk from Matt and Cameron Fradd called "Chastity -- Not just for Celibates," and time for rejoicing in God's providence together. 

Have you seen last year's banquet video?

As we get ready for this year's Bridegroom's Banquet (on September 10th), we're getting ready to film another video, and we wanted to make sure we share our video from last year, "Be Poor with Me: Reflections on Poverty." 

We are all currently in the process of praying about what each of us would like to say in this year's video "Receive the Gift: Reflections on Chastity." We are really blessed to be able to create these videos with our filmmaker friend David Bratnik. It's a really incredible way for us to get to share the fruit of our prayer and to show you a glimpse of our life. Our hope is always that the videos will inspire you to follow Christ our Bridegroom with your whole life, whatever that may mean for each person. 

We look forward to premiering a new video with you this year at the Bridegroom's Banquet. Please pray that it will bear much fruit. 

For details about the banquet and to register, please visit "The Bridegroom's Banquet" tab at the top of this page. 

The Eparchy of Parma's Family Camp is less than a month away!

Have you heard about the Eparchy of Parma's Family Camp yet? It will be held right across the street from our monastery. 

Among the new endeavors of the Eparchy of Parma this year is the Family Camp, which will be held on the grounds of the eparchial jewel and pilgrimage place, the Shrine of Our Lady Mariapoch, July 14-17, 2022 in Burton, OH.

Come and discover the fullness of eastern spirituality, in prayers and in sharing how the Word of God is acting in your life with fellow Byzantine Catholic families from across the eparchy. Enjoy an extended weekend with your spouse while your children have fun with our camp staff playing games and activities as well as spiritually growing in the Byzantine Catholic faith.

All families will camp on the grounds of the shrine, so bring a tent or camper for the weekend. Food will be provided by the eparchy.

Family Camp is open to all families, not just those in the Eparchy of Parma. 

Please visit this link for more information and to register.

We hope to see you there, and we are praying that this event will be an enriching experience for everyone who comes, as well as for their parishes when they return home.