What joy of life does not come without grief? What glory stands unchanged on earth? All ages are submissive to death. But the death of death is different. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His venerable ones. Serafima became an angel during her lifetime. Seraphim means fiery, and she burned with love for God like a torch, showing her neighbors the way to Him. Like a six-winged seraphim, she worked for Him in six hands. She had time for both the neighbors and those afar: she managed to feed hundreds of the poor, and to bring whole villages to Christ, at the same time not to miss church services. It is unknown when she slept. However, life was not too kind to her – the Lord tested her with sorrows more than once. But she learned the main thing in Orthodoxy – to forget about oneself. And the Giver of life did not wait long to take her to a better world, for she was already worthy. At the last service for her, all the priests of the Manila deanery prayed. Because of the strict quarantine, only the closest relatives were able to participate in the burial, but thousands of people in different parts of the world with prayers helped the angels carry Seraphim’s soul to a place where there is no illness or sadness.

A great test has befallen us. Our irreplaceable employee of the Department of charity and social ministry, Seraphima Anape, died in a car accident. She devoted herself to serve God and her neighbors. Thousands were cared by her. Paradise is for such people and the Lord knows the best time to take them. But we ask for your prayers for her family, her children, for everyone for whom this is an irreparable loss, and for the repose of her soul. Memory eternal ☦️

The Exaltation of the Precious Cross of the Lord is the patronal feast of the oldest Orthodox church in the Philippines in Siniloan (Laguna). It is already celebrated here for the 26th time by the Orthodox community headed by Archimandrite Philemon (Castro), accepted into the Russian Orthodox Church last year from the Patriarchate of Constantinople. This time, Fr. Filimon was co-served by the dean of the Manila Deanery, Hieromonk Alexey (Lapshin).

September 21 is the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. This is the beginning of our salvation and beginning of the circle of the church year. The fruit of many generations of Her holy ancestors, the Most Holy Virgin became a refined diamond combining all the virtues, an example of perfection of a human being.

A patronal feast has been celebrated today in the parish of Nativity of the Mother of God in Arakan. The service was led by priest Fr Moses Cahilig and deacons Nicolas Salgado and Ambrose Sumagaysay

A multi-day seminar on the basics of Orthodoxy was held in the province of Zamboanga del Norte. The head of the missionary department of the diocese, priest Moses Kahilig, together with Elijah Aleria and Maria Kahilig, visited the Dipolog city to teach the faith to the people, who previosly asked to be accepted into Orthodoxy from the non-canonical monophysite church.
Previously, due to pandemic restrictions, their training could only be done remotely.

In the end of the seminar 12 people were baptized in the waters of the West Philippines sea.