WESTERN AMERICAN DIOCESE: 24 March 2024
The Cathedral of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" will host a conference on the 30th anniversary of the canonization of St John (Maximovich) by the Russian Church Abroad

In anticipation of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the canonization of St John of Shanghai and San Francisco the Wonderworker, a Lenten conference-retreat will be held on Sunday, April 21, 2024, at the Cathedral of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow” in San Francisco, CA.

The theme of the retreat is “The Aroma of Holiness: Vladyka John,” and is aimed to help prepare the faithful for the 30th anniversary of the canonization of St John, to be held on Saturday, June 29, 2024. There will be four presentations in the first half of the day: “The Beginning Years” – Elena Perekrestov; “St John's Teaching on Prayer” – Priest George Kaplanov; “Saint John and the Forgotten Western Saints” – Reader Basil Thompson; “St John's Teaching on the Divine Liturgy” – Archpriest Peter Perekrestov. The two keynote talks will be held in the afternoon: “The Vladyka That I Knew” – Reader Vladimir Krassovsky (St John's altar server, choir director at Holy Virgin Cathedral) and "’Everyday Saints’ in My Life” – Archpriest Stefan Pavlenko (Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary Alumni President and Rector of the Church of All Saints of Russia in Burlingame, CA). As a bonus, participants will be able to see about 14 minutes of historical footage of St John, from both open sources and a unique private collection. For more information and to register, go to: https://2024lentenretreat.tilda.ws.