On August 31, the Holy Church celebrates the memory of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus. This was the namesday of the ever-memorable Metropolitan Laurus (Škurla; +2008) and Archimandrite Flor (Vanko; +2012). Metropolitan Laurus was abbot of Holy Trinity Monastery for 32 years; he and Fr. Flor were among the group of monastics who came from St. Job of Pochaev Monastery in Czechoslovakia and immigrated to the United States after World War II to join the brotherhood already established here by Archimandrite Panteleimon (Nizhnik; +1984).

Both fathers played a very important role in the life of the monastery. Fr. Flor worked many years in the maintenance of the monastery, whereas Metropolitan Laurus became abbot of the monastery upon the repose of Archbishop Averky (Taushev) in 1976. Of course, Metropolitan Laurus is well known as the primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, under whose primacy restoration of canonical union within the Russian Church was achieved.

After Divine Liturgy and a luncheon in the monastic refectory, Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America & New York, along with monastery clergy, served a panihida for the repose of both much-beloved fathers in our Faith. May their memory be eternal for their countless struggles for the sake of the Church and the monastery!

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