Ordination of new assistant pastor is reflection of church’s growth

Deseret News ^ | 12-13-2015 | Peter Samore

[NRx]

SALT LAKE CITY — He wears a long beard and a long, black cassock wherever he goes, which often produces stares from inquisitive onlookers.

“People were welcoming … curious about who I was because of what I was wearing, but weren’t afraid to have a conversation,” said Rev. Father John Mahfouz.

He wears the traditional, ascetical garb of the Orthodox Christian Church which he says has helped him, his wife and young children fit in in Salt Lake City.

“We feel that this is a good place to raise a family,” Father Mahfouz said. “So, we’re very happy.”

On Sunday, the Los Angeles native was ordained a priest by His Eminence, Metropolitan Joseph Al-Zehlaoui — the archbishop of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America — at Saints Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church.

In an ancient ceremony during the Divine Liturgy, Father Mahfouz was led into the sanctuary to kneel before the altar. By laying his hands on Father Mahfouz’s head, Metropolitan Joseph prayed that God would bless the newly-ordained so that he can “stand in innocence before thine altar, to proclaim the gospel of thy kingdom … to offer unto thee spiritual gifts and sacrifices.”

Then, the archbishop bestowed new vestments upon Father Mahfouz as the packed church shouted “he is worthy” in English, Arabic and Greek.

Father Mahfouz will serve as the parish’s assistant pastor, having served as a deacon there for the past 14 months.

[NRx]

AXIOS!

Lots of photos at the linked site.

[doug from upland]

The funny characters can be removed when cut and paste posting, if you erase the dashes, apostrophes, and quotation marks, and then replace from your own keyboard.

[HomerBohn]

Use this instead:

http://dan.hersam.com/tools/smart-quotes.html

[HomerBohn]

Hooray for the Orthodox Church. A ‘refreshing’ change from the new religion promulgated by the Vatican and its Vatican II.

[Larry Lucido]

I think I've seen the Father in gold on the left before. He was wearing black last time.

[doug from upland]

great