St. Simeon Skete, Taylorsville Kentucky USA

With St. Simeon, the God receiver, as our patron, the skete seeks to practice the ideals found in our Rule, The Thousand Day Nazareth. In simplicity and poverty, the skete embraces the struggle of inner life through the practice of the Prayer Rope.

See our website at www.nazarethhouseap.org

Donations should be addressed to: Nazareth House Apostolate, 185 Captains Cove Drive, Taylorsville, Kentucky 40071.

Important Notice: All writings, posts, graphics & photographs in this blog are the copyrighted property of (unless otherwise indicated) Nazareth House Media, a division of Nazareth House Apostolate and cannot be copied, printed or used without written permission from NHA Media, Taylorsville, KY.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

We're Back...

Dear Friends,
I am sorry for the lapse in posting, there has been so much going on at our NHA Headquarters in Kentucky that my attention has been diverted. But we are hopefully back to full swing.

First, thank you for your best wishes and prayers, Fr. Seraphim is resting at the hermitage after hospitalization this weekend and subsequent surgery. All is well, he is recovering.

At the onset, I must admit I was frightened and not sure what was in store for him.
Once we arrived at the ER and preliminary tests proved that his situation wasn't life threatening,
I decided to make the best of the long hours in the ER and put on a "Vomit Bag Puppet Show". Fr. Seraphim is most disturbed he was "out of it" and unable to enjoy the show.

Second, if you have not given to Keep St. Laurence House in operation in Freetown, please do so today. The clock is ticking fast and James and the family in Sierra Leone are poised to be evicted within a few short days. Please contribute to keep our rental operations center one more year. WE NEED YOUR HELP! March 1st is almost here!

Last week began with a group from the Southern Nazareth House Chapters (Georgia/North Carolina) dropping in
to help clear the NHA Headquarters' property from the Ice Storm Damage. The place literally looked like a war-zone with trees everywhere.



As always, our team in Sierra Leone works in solidarity with the American team. Little Roo in Salone pretends he, too, his helping Claudio & Carroll trim the damaged limbs. Claudio using chainsaw in Kentucky

Roo using toy chainsaw like Claudio in Freetown

Carroll using chainsaw in Kentucky


Roo using toy chainsaw like Carroll in Freetown.


After a week of hard work and GREAT fellowship the clean up was tremendous. The grounds look 100% better.

We really have a great group of people -more like family - working together that make up Nazareth House. A team composed of people all over the United States blended with the Nazareth House team in Sierra Leone. One big family.

When the guys realized that the Jonah House wash machine had bit the dust and had no more use it in, they tossed it over the fire escape



and purchased us a new one for the Retreat Center! What a great body of friends this Nazareth House venture has. Caring for each other across borders, across oceans, its what it is all about. Loving thy neighbor. Helping out wherever the need. Child or adult, working together.



As always, nights at the Nazareth House Retreat Center (Jonah House) are ended around the fire pit enjoying each others company.