Our heartfelt congratulations to Tara, who has just been received as a catechumen into Christ’s one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church here at Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church / Cloud-Bearing Mountain Retreat. Tara has now begun a period of guided formation and education, and will be baptized and chrismated at a future date. She comes to us from a lifetime in the Roman Catholic Church after having discovered the beauty and faithfulness of Holy Orthodoxy during a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.   We were also recently blessed by a visit from Fr. John and his family from Hol ..read more

My name is Father James Krueger. I serve as Rector at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center and Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. In this episode, I reflect on nature, both nature “out there,” what we regrettably and soullessly call “the environment,” and also nature in its philosophical / theological sense. As it turns out, the two are related, and when we fail to make this connection we along with the environment suffer. Click to Learn More The post Video Reflections: Nature appeared first on Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retr ..read more

My name is Father James Krueger. I serve as Rector at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center and Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. In this episode, I begin to address the matter of truth. Is truth an idea or an opinion, or is it rather something that we encounter and seek to live in harmony with? If the latter, the true Church would be that Christian body that not only has unbroken historical continuity with the Church of the apostles. It would also be that body in which each of its members are continually encouraged and led into this ..read more

My name is Father James Krueger. I serve as Rector at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center and Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Many people I work with struggle with a deep suspicion of religious forms. Here, I offer this second of two reflections on the role of religious forms, particularly Orthodox Christian tradition, in our growth as Christians. Along the way I reflect on the forms of nature, human society and institutions as a part of nature, and the God whom we worship specifically as Creator. Click to Learn More The post V ..read more

My name is Father James Krueger. I serve as Rector at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center and Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Many people I work with struggle with a deep suspicion of religious forms. Here, I offer this first of two reflections on the role of religious forms, particularly Orthodox Christian tradition, in our growth as Christians. Along the way I reflect on the forms of nature, human society and institutions as a part of nature, and the God whom we worship specifically as Creator. Click to Learn More The post Vi ..read more

My name is Father James Krueger. I serve as Rector at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center and Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. Here, I provide a brief introduction to this series of video reflections in which I hope, by God’s grace, to address questions about contemplative prayer as it is practiced in its native ecosystem of the Orthodox Church. Other common concerns and questions pertinent to contemporary westerners exploring Orthodoxy and a life of prayer will also be addressed. Click to Learn More The post Video Reflections ..read more

Click to Learn More The post Holy Week & Pascha (Easter) 2023 at Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center & Saint Herman of Alaska Orthodox Church appeared first on Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center ..read more

Our 2023 schedule of retreats, programs, and church services can be viewed and downloaded here. Download (PDF, 183KB) Click Here to Contact Us or Register for a Programs The post 2023 Schedule of Christian Retreats appeared first on Cloud-Bearing Mountain Christian Retreat Center ..read more

A recent letter from Metropolitan Nicholas and the Council (Sobor) of Bishops to the Western Rite Communities of the ROCOR is below. You may also open the PDF document to view the original. We are grateful for the pastoral guidance provided to us by our bishops, and are pleased at the election of Metropolitan Nicholas to take the seat of our beloved Vladyka Metropolitan Hilarion after his repose. May Metropolitan Hilarion’s memory be eternal, and may God grant Metropolitan Nicholas many years! Archpastoral Letter to our dearly beloved flock of the Western Rite Dear in the Lord fathers, brot ..read more

Below is a recent epistle from the ROCOR Council (Sobor) of Bishops upon the election of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas as the seventh primate of the Russian Church Abroad. In the letter, our bishops address the promising expansion of Holy Orthodoxy in the West, as well as the tragic situation in Ukraine, calling emphatically for peace. To the Pastors, Monastics and the Pious Children of the Church Abroad: Beloved brethren and sisters! We, the Hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, having assembled together in Sacred Council on the eve of the Ecclesiastical New Year ..read more