Members of the Diocese of the South of the OCA have been so excited that Archimandrite Jonah Paffhausen was to be elevated to become the auxillary bishop in our diocese, to assist Vladyka Dmitri. About eleven days ago he was consecrated Bishop.
Yesterday, at the All American Council, he became the new Metropolitan! My first thought was: "But what about the Diocese of the South?" But what's good for us (I suppose I need to stop saying "us" since we've moved and are now with the Antiochians...) can be good for the whole OCA. Here is a humble man who just a few weeks ago was an archimandrite (head of a monastery), and now he is to serve the whole OCA.
The full story is at the OCA website, of course, and Ancient Faith Radio has some excellent podcasts. I particularly liked listening to the talk he gave a couple of days ago before his elevation. He seems humble and I don't know that he was necessarily expecting this. But I don't know anything. I'm just watching from afar.
It seems to me that His Beatitude looks shocked, though.
Let us all faithfully keep this man in our prayers.
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Metropolitan Jonah (I love saying that!) is a dear friend of our parish, being a seminary buddy of our priest, Fr. James Bernstein. Consequently, he's been up here a lot, giving talks, or just showing up as he travels. Believe me, what you hear in these speeches is genuine.
To this day, my favorite quote of his is from a retreat several years ago, when one of my friends asked him if he had any words for mothers. His response was that being the mother of young children is one of the most ascetic disciplines there is. All of us mothers grinned and got teary...somebody got it, and that somebody was a monk.
Axios, Axios, Axios!
Many Years!
Axios!