Day 74: First Day at Kodiak

(Postcard image: Holy Resurrection Cathedral in Kodiak, Alaska. Fr. John can be seen checking his iPhone on the far left.)

We arrived mid-morning in Kodiak, took a cab from the ferry port to the airport, and rented a car. Several of the local clergy were gathering there to welcome Metropolitan Jonah who was due in shortly. We met Fr. Gerasim. Father and I are to travel together in the Kuskokwim region in a few weeks. It seems he knows several of our Penn State students, as well as Darren and his dad, Fr. Rodney.

The beautiful wooden chapel at St. Herman's Seminary.

Our B&B wouldn’t be ready until mid-afternoon, so we drove around a bit to get oriented. It was easy to find both Holy Resurrection Cathedral and St. Herman’s Seminary, located in downtown Kodiak.

St. Herman’s relics are in repose in the cathedral. The church was unlocked for us, allowing us to venerate them. We then walked over to the seminary to appreciate the log-cabin style architecture of the seminary chapel.

Both the cathedral and the chapel have icons of St. Wasyl (Vasyl) Martycz. He is a recently proclaimed martyr by the (Orthodox) Church of Poland. He served in Alaska and in Osceola Mills, PA before returning over seas to be martyred in Poland after the end of WWII. Our own parish is privileged to have his relics. Because we were able to take photos, we now have prototypes to have an icon painted of St. Wasyl for Holy Trinity.

Our B&B is about 6 miles out of town. It is called “A Smiling Bear” and there are large carved, smiling wooden bears on the lawn. Actually, Matushka and I have never stayed in a B&B before. Darlene, the owner, is full of energy, a former state trooper. In addition to getting ready for us, her home is listed on the following day’s Garden Tour. So, she is very busy.

Metropolitan Jonah presides at the Akathist to St. Herman at Kodiak. Joining Fr. John in prayer just four hours earlier, were the faithful of his own parish of Holy Trinity back home, celebrating the very same akathist for the first time together.

At 6 p.m. (18:00), there was an Akathist to St. Herman at the Cathedral. Metropolitan Jonah presided. At least three different indigenous languages were used besides English, Slavonic, and Greek. Following the service, the reliquary was opened for veneration and the faithful were anointed with holy oil. Native Alaskan and European faces filled the Cathedral. It had been sunny yesterday afternoon in Kodiak, so the littlest Orthodox were able to play on the church lawn to get their wiggles out.

The most touching image I have is that of an older woman, standing over the reliquary and slowly making the sign of the cross over St. Herman, several times. I thought of the woman in Ekaterinburg making a similar action over the faithful about a month ago as this latter-day myrrhbearer brought her tears to St. Herman.