Sermon for July 3rd, Second Sunday of Matthew & Sunday of the Synaxis of All American Saints
Icon venerated at the Liturgy, 3 July 2016 (click to enlarge)
Two Gospel readings today: the normal reading for the Second Sunday After Pentecost (Matthew 4:18-23) and also for The Synaxis of All American Saints (Matthew 4:25-5:12). The Synaxis of All American Saints is observed on this Second Sunday After Pentecost in many Orthodox churches in the United States, especially in the OCA (Orthodox Church in America). It comes a week after the Sunday of All Saints, which makes so much sense – to celebrate the saints of one’s own country a week after celebrating the saints of the universal church.
Reference is made in the sermon to the Chinese pianist Zhu Xiao-Mei and the film documentary, The Return is the Movement of Tao. The film is not available online, but a trailer for the DVD release (which includes a complete live performance of the Goldberg Variations in Bach’s own St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, Germany) is available online:
Another little trailer of her recording of Bach’s The Art of Fugue is here:
