St Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary - News Releases 2004 Lenten Retreat at St Vladimir's Seminary A Day of Prayer and Teaching

Crestwood, NY—Approximately 100 people attended the annual Lenten Retreat at SVS on Saturday, March 27, 2004. The morning began with Divine Liturgy followed by a Lenten brunch. Afterwards, attendants congregated in the Metropolitan Philip auditorium to hear Fr Paul Lazor, associate dean for student affairs and rector of Three Hierarchs Chapel, speak on the theme of "Repentance in the Christian Life."

The crux of Fr Lazor's talk was that repentance is not just part of the Christian life, it is the Christian life. Skillfully weaving scholarship, personal anecdotes, and a lifetime of pastoral experience, he provided his audience with a vision of life as turning oneself away from sin and towards God. He compared, for example, St John the Baptist's call to "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand," with Judas's remorse, despair, and suicide. The first, he said, is a challenge to change our minds, our thoughts, and our way of life to seek the Kingdom of God, while the second is just a "bad feeling," which did not move Judas to action or to reform. Repentance is not just feeling—it is action, and a lifetime of action. Sacramental confession is a signpost on the road to the Kingdom of God; it helps us rid ourselves of the thoughts and habits that keep turning us away from God.

A spirited question and answer session followed the presentation, which touched upon contemporary concerns of abuse and confidentiality, as well as the wide variety of practices encompassed by sacramental confession in the Orthodox Church. On this latter point, Father Paul spoke about the challenge of our current situation: "We [Orthodox Christians in North America] are in the only place in the world where all of the different ways are practiced at the same time. This means that we have to discuss the different practices and come to a greater understanding of how they arose."

Fr Lazor gave his talk in two separate presentations, with the Sixth Hour of prayer and a snack in between. The day ended with a closing prayer, and some participants returned later that evening for a 6:30 P.M. Vigil. The Lenten Retreat, hosted annually by SVS, is free and open to the public. It typically draws a large number of participants from a wide radius who find the retreat a valuable day of learning and prayer during the Lenten season.