Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!
Peace be with you all and the blessing of Our Lord Jesus Christ!
From the bottom of my heart I congratulate you with the annual celebration of the Heavenly Patron and the Protector of one of the oldest Patriarchal parishes in Canada!

Saint James, the Apostle and the first bishop of Jerusalem.

Saint James, whose memory we venerate today, is the Apostle and the first bishop of Jerusalem and of our Church. He is one of the sons of Joseph the Betrothed – the guardian of the Mother of God – and, therefore, is the relative of Jesus Christ Himself!
Being a step-brother of Jesus Christ, St. James is close to God not only through earthly bonds: he possesses the same spirit, as that of Jesus Christ. This is the spirit of love and sacrifice.
Today he calls us all to become the kinsmen and relatives of Jesus Christ. In order to be able to perform this, we need to meet only one condition: the will of God should be obeyed and everyone should live according to the Christ’s commandments.
Being a bishop of the Holy Church of Christ, St. James takes care of it, and, in particular, of its unity. He watches closely and judges strictly about how we behave in the Holy Church and this, primarily, is his duty as a bishop, for the word “bishop” is translated from the Greek as “a supervisor “!
When during the Apostolic period certain problems arose in the Church, Saint James presided over the first Ecumenical Council in Jerusalem. This Council’s main verdict was devoted to the question of the procedure of introducing to the Church those pagans that become Christ-believers.
The holy hierarch of Jerusalem summons us all to unite around Jesus Christ in worshiping Him, and to make sure that everything that we do in the Church is being done according to the will of the Holy Spirit.
As the Apostle of Christ from among the 70, St. James continues to spread and preach the Gospel. In one of his epistles we read that the faith without good deeds is dead: “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. …” (2, 14-26) Such faith without good deeds he in another place calls “a demonic faith.”
Saint James teaches us to be patient (5,7), and reminds us that “the Judge is standing at the door”: “Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.” (5.9). He calls us to pray for one another, and is himself constantly praying for us, too. According to his words, “the prayer of a righteous person has great power”: “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” (5, 16) We, in our turn, feel that his powerful prayer brings us a lot of good.
Let, through the intercession of St. James, this temple always be filled with those who are praying to our Lord and with the admirers of the memory of this wonderful Apostle of God, the relative of Jesus Christ and the very first Hierarch of Our Church!
I prayerfully wish you all good health and many years of life and call God’s blessings upon all of you! Amen! (November 3, 2013. St. Jacob’s Orthodox Church, Mundare)