New Skete Monasteries News

  By Ralph Karow Toward the end of June, we had a bit of a lull at the puppy kennel, so Br. Luke decided to take his retreat then instead of in August, when the rest of the monastics go on retreat. At that time, we’d most likely have a couple of litters, along with some dogs in heat, and we would need all hands on deck. It was a good plan, and Br. Luke had arranged for Iris, Fuller, and Amira to each reside with a monk for the week, but his new puppy, Greta, would need to stay at the kennel. The night before he left, however, Iris went into heat and would now have to be at the kennel. That got me off the hook, since I was supposed to take her, but now I felt sorry for Greta, and since I had already moved furniture out of my room to accommodate both Iris and Habibah, I didn’t have a good enough excuse to leave Greta in the kennel with a clear conscience. Habibah loves puppies, and I had been using her to socialize all of the litters since November 2021, so I didn’t foresee any pro...

By Carl Patka, Lay Delegate   With the blessing of Brother Christopher and the support of the New Skete Chapel Community, I attended the All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) as a lay delegate.   The Council represented the 14 dioceses of all the churches and monasteries in North America, including Canada, Mexico, and the United States, in a beautiful hotel conference space over five hot days from July 18 to 22 in Baltimore, Maryland.     The theme of the All-American Council was “Becoming Vessels of Grace.”   In his opening address, his Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon said that while the Council on the surface looked like any large conference organized into many days of business meetings, the gathering was really like that of a large family, similar to his own Packard family reunion.   He said that   “we gather as Christians, as individuals of varied background, culture, and genealogy who yet share one common bond and sea...