Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

and the joy of the bishop's visit

On Sunday August 6, 2023, St. George and St. Andrei Saguna Romanian Orthodox Cathedral of in Windsor, Ontario enjoyed the episcopal visit of His Grace Ioan Casian, the Romanian Orthodox Bishop of Canada who officiated the Divine Liturgy with Protosingelos Corneliu Andrașco, parish priest. The answers at strana were given by Cristina Seys and the Armonia Choir of the Cathedral, which impressed with its softness and warmth.

On the anniversary of the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the parish, together with the relics of St. George, protector of the Cathedral, given by the hierarch to this community, another patron saint was added, St. Andrei Şaguna, whose relics were brought and given by His Eminence, Laurentiu, Metropolitan of Transylvania.

In the homily at the end of the Divine Liturgy, the hierarch of Canada said:

"On Sundays and church feasts, now at the Transfiguration of the Lord, we can greet each other as on Easter night with the greeting Christ is Risen! and to answer Truly He is risen! Why this joy? Because in the experience described in this episode, we contemplate the moment of man's encounter with God and the moment of the revelation of the true identity of our Savior as the Son of God. This revelation speaks to us precisely about the fact that even in time, before his death with the body, man approaches divinity. We can speak here of the anticipated experience of God's eternity and glory even here on earth. We see the same thing at the time of Christ the Savior's baptism. The disciples are given the opportunity as much as it is within their human power, as the troparion of the feast says, to contemplate the glory of the divinity of the Savior Christ to see that He is not a simple prophet or a right man of the Old Testament or a patriarch, but the Son of God Himself incarnated for us and for our salvation.”

The hierarch continued: "Only three of the Apostles whom the Savior will choose will witness this miracle - Peter, James and John. St. John Chrysostom explains why the Lord chooses the three: Peter had this zeal for God manifested by the fact that he threw himself into the water when he recognized the risen Lord (...); John is the beloved disciple whom Christ loves and whom God loves and introduces into His most intimate mysteries (...); and Jacob is chosen because he is a prompt man like Peter, which is seen in the answer given to the Savior regarding his and John's request to sit on His right and left side. He answers that they are ready to drink the cup that Christ will drink and to be baptized with the baptism with which He will be baptized."

To entry into the Kingdom of Heaven cannot be done without the sacrifice, death and resurrection of Christ: "St. Peter makes an observation - said the hierarch of Canada: Lord, it is good that we are here; if you wish, I will make three huts here: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. But Christ the Savior does not answer St. Peter. Two of the saints of the Church - Cyril of Alexandria and Leo the Great - explain this non-response of the Lord. The apostles could not remain in the heavenly tabernacles before the passion, death, resurrection, and victory over death and corruption accomplished by our Savior Jesus Christ. Only after His death and resurrection will the Kingdom of Heaven be accessible to man."

"A miracle is happening on Mount Tabor. The cloud covers the disciples, and a voice is heard: This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him. It is the moment when the identity of the Savior Christ as the Son of God is confirmed and shown as the way to follow for the acquisition of salvation. That is why obedience was and is so important in the Christian tradition. Just as the Son of God fulfills obedience to the Father in sending Him for the salvation of man, so also man by obeying Christ and following His way becomes like the Son and becomes an 'another christ' adding himself to Him and becoming a new branch grafted onto the trunk of the Church which is the Body of Christ. Man's obedience to the Word of God means 'a repetition' of the identity of the Savior Christ. Each of us who listens to Christ becomes 'another christ'. We become brothers of the Savior Christ through obedience, we become sons and daughters of God."

"The difficulty of seeing God face to face, observed on Mount Tabor with the three disciples, is also seen in the event of St. Paul encounter with God on the road to Damascus when he was going with letters of punishment against the Christians. He sees a bright light, falls face down and hears a voice: Saul, Saul why are you persecuting me? To his question: Who are you, Lord? hear the answer: I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads. And St. Paul getting up blind from the ground regain his sight only at the moment of the baptism he receives from Ananias. The encounter with God makes Paul see really as he should. Paul was not physically blind before but spiritually because he did not see the reality of this world from the point of view of the true God, from the point of view of God as the Holy Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit."

"This great celebration of the Transfiguration shows us in a definite way that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. We hear the voice of the Father Who testifies to this. The apostles are strengthened in their faith in our Savior Jesus Christ as the Son of God, a faith passed on to the Church and to us throughout the ages. This celebration shows us the finality of man - that is, deification. The true face of man is radiant with divine light. God's grace enables man to grow to the stature to which he was called to rise through union with God and to shine like the way God intended man from the beginning."

The hierarch addressed warm wishes, on the celebration of 105 years since the laying of the foundation of this parish, to those who are now carrying on what was started so generously and enduringly by the first Romanian families. Their work and dedication remain for today's generations an exceptional model that must be followed.

Next, the hierarch wished Rev. Protosyncellus Corneliu many blessed years on his 40th birthday. Similar wishes were made by the entire community present at the religious service.

Thanking the hierarch for his paternal care and the joy of serving together, Father Corneliu expressed his personal and community desire to make this cathedral a model of service and well-functioning.

(notes by Carmen Ognean)