A Radio Interview

A Radio Interview With Hieromonk Seraphim Rose

Recorded at the St. Herman of Alaska Monastery on November 4, 1981.

The interviewer, Fr. John Ocana, was at that time hosting a weekly radio show on Orthodox Christianity.

FJ: Good morning. This is Fr. John Ocana of the Antiochian Orthodox Church of the Redeemer in Los Altos, California. (1)  Last week we were speaking about St. Seraphim of Sarov and the ascetic life in the Orthodox Church.  My guest this morning is Hieromonk Seraphim of the St. Herman of Alaska Monastery in Platina, California. Good morning, Father.

FS: Good morning, Father.

FJ: For the benefit of our radio listeners: Fr. Seraphim is a hieromonk, and perhaps many of you are not familiar with this term. Father, perhaps you can explain to us: What is the meaning of a hieromonk? What does a hieromonk do?

FS: A hieromonk is simply a monk who also happens to be a priest, and his function is the function of a priest.  In the monastic community, he, in alternation with the other priests of the community, serves the Liturgy.  At times, as is the case in our monastery, he might serve Liturgy for mission parishes outside of the monastery.

FJ: We are speaking about – as I said before – the ascetic life.  Perhaps you can explain to our radio audience some of the aspects of the ascetic life and what is the meaning of this life-style for our world today.  Perhaps you can help our radio listeners to understand what is this ascetic life?  What do you actually do? What is your goal in life as a hieromonk?

FS: Perhaps a more understandable term than ascetic might be simply the life of struggle.  The monastic life is the life of Christian struggle.  There are many forms in which a Christian can struggle, and the monastic life is one of these.  Historically, the earliest age of the Church, during the first three centuries, was the age of martyrdom.  Those Christians who went willingly to suffering and death for the sake of their faith in Christ, and who refused to bow down to the pagan idols, were performing a struggle.  Later on, when the Church became officially recognized and therefore more subject to being influenced by the world, there were men and women who went away from the world into the deserts, and that was the beginning of what we know now as the monastic life.

FJ: I know that the monastic life and the monastic tradition is part of the Orthodox tradition.  I was thinking this morning about the impact of the ascetic life on the life of the Church, and the life of us as individual Christians.  What do you feel are some of the benefits that the Christian community derives from having people like yourself in the monastic life?  What do we receive from that, if I can put it in those terms?

FS:  Well, first of all I would say that the monk is really no different from other Christians, in the sense of being a struggler, because Christianity is not possible without struggle.  We receive from our Lord Jesus Christ salvation.  And then, as St. Paul says, it is required for each one to work out [his] salvation with fear and trembling. (2)   Therefore, each Christian must be a struggler in order to receive, to appropriate to himself, this salvation which is given to us by Jesus Christ.  And the monk is simply one who has committed himself to a particular way of life which is directly bound up with this kind of struggle.

FJ: Can you share with us some of the principles of the ascetic life?  What are some of the guidelines that you follow, which help you to live this way of life?  And what precisely is the goal?  What are you trying to achieve in this way of living?

FS: Well, the monastic, whether male or female, is leading a life which, to the best of our ability, is one of regularity.  This involves a definite discipline of attendance at Church services, of performing a rule of prayer, of nourishing our minds and hearts with the word of God and the writings of the Holy Fathers.  And this is the same kind of disciplined life which Orthodox Christians in the world also live, according to their ability – or should be living.  One can say that if the monastic of our times has something to show to the rest of the Christains, it is this showing forth of the disciplined life to which everyone is called according to their strength, and which might inspire them when they see a particular class of people who are devoting themselves entirely to this.

FJ: I would like to be a little bit more specific.  How do you, as an Orthodox Christian, put on Christ? (3)   How is this done within your way of life?  Perhaps you can share with us some of the guiding principles, or some of the sayings of the Fathers of the Church, that help you to understand and to live this life more fully.

FS:  Well, in the monastic context, we make a point of first of all of putting off  our own will, which means submission to the authority of spiritual fathers, to the abbot. The Christian in the world has the same concept of obedience – though not in such a direct form – because he must be obedient to Christ, to the Church, to the authority of the Church.  So this is something which happens in the life of everyone, but the monastic has this particular form of very strict obedience to the abbot or his spiritual father.  The particular benefit which a monk or nun derives from obedience is directly related to the quality of his spiritual life.

     We can see in the example of the Saint you talked about last week, St. Seraphim of Sarov, that he – living in the desert, in the wilderness – could have acquired great spiritual benefit perhaps even without someone over him to whom he had to be submissive; but unless his Christian life had been tested by this particular virtue of obedience, we might not have been quite so certain as to what state he was in.  For example, it happened that some of the brothers in the monastery complained that he was not coming to the services like the other monks (he was living outside the monastery in a cell in the wilderness), that he was living a life too remote from them, that he was perhaps falling into the danger of trusting himself, and therefore the brethern asked the abbot to force him to come to the monastery.  The abbot did this: he sent word that he was to come to the Liturgy to receive Communion, and so that the brethern would not be scandalized.  St. Seraphim, hearing this, instantly obeyed.  He came without saying a word, because he was at that time living a life of total silence; he came in obedience to the monastery and in accordance with the will of the abbot, and acted just like the other brothers.  Thereby he showed that he had humility; because, if he were unwillingly to obey, it would mean that there was pride in him.

     For people living in the world this might seem an advanced thing to understand, but it is not so at all, because this virtue of humility is basic to all the other Christian virtues.  It is revealed in one's willingness not to trust oneself, but rather submit to the will of one's superior.

FJ: That's an interesting concept and an interesting aspect of the Christian life.  Perhaps you can share with us a few more of the virtues that a monk develops in this form of life, that we as Christians must also develop.

FS: Well, closely bound up with this idea of obedience is this idea of not trusting oneself, not trusting one's opinions.  This does not mean that one is in a state of total confusion.  It means that there is somewhere in oneself a humility that refuses to take one's own opinions as the ultimate law.  Of course, in the Orthodox Church we have the whole hierarchy and discipline of the Church, which gives to us the basic belief and way of life that we have.  Therefore, our life is constantly being tested against this measuring stick.

     It so happens that, in the Western world especially, the habit of placing to much trust in one's own opinions, in one's own way of thinking, has led to the formation of many sects, each one of which promotes simply the personal opinion of the person who founded it.

FJ: We certainly see within many churches in the Western world a division according to various denominational lines, and I know that the Orthodox Church does not consider itself a denomination.  Perhaps you can share with us some thoughts as to why the Orthodox Church does not consider itself just one more denomination among other Christian groups.

FS:  Well, historically one can trace back from the present-day Orthodox Church and go back all the way to the Apostles.  One can trace the teaching of the present-day Orthodox Church and go all the way back through the Holy Fathers of the Church and the Ecumenical Councils, again to the Apostles.  And in fact, one can even trace such things as the Church vestments and services back through the earlier Church to the fourth century and even beyond that.  This is a very persuasive thing.  For example, the Orthodox Church in Uganda was formed, not by missionaries coming from outside, but by two Anglican seminarians, who, investigating the history of the Church, found that historically the Orthodox Church was the only one which was tied to and came down in a straight succession without change from the age of the Apostles.

FJ: One of the things that we spoke about earlier, Father, was prayer, and the role that prayer has in [the] life of a monk.  Could you speak a little about this?  We also spoke about your praying for the world.  I found this very interesting.  Can you share some of those thoughts with your audience?

FS:  Yes, of course. A monk is free to pray more than the ordinary layman is able to, because the whole monastic life is centered around the Church services, which we have in the morning, in the evening, and at various times of the day.  Therefore, he prays with the cycle of the Church's services.  And a special part of his prayers is the prayer, both in Church and in his own cell, for others.  In the world, people are not usually so free to devote time to praying for others; but the monastic has the opportunity to devote himself to this kind of prayer.  In his prayer in the desert, away from the ways of the world, he can call to mind those who are in various conditions of suffering, sorrow, or struggle.  Often those people in the world have no one to have sympathy on them in their struggles.  The monastic is one who can do this.  We receive mail from people all over the world telling about their needs and their struggles, and therefore we take this obligation upon ourselves of praying for them, asking God's mercy upon all those who are in conditions of need throughout the world.

FJ: I can see that our time is just about up.  Father, I'd like you to share with our radio audience some last thoughts that you might have for them this morning.

FS: I would encourage people to become acquainted with the monastic tradition of the past, because this is not so much a special way of life as it is a way of preserving true Christianity in the midst of the temptations which inevitably come from the world.  If one reads, for example, the Life of a struggler like St. Seraphim in more modern times, or the Lives of the saints of the desert in the early centuries of Christianity, one finds there a simplicity and a warmth, and a basic Christianity that is so easily clouded over by the influence of the world upon us.  Therefore, the reading of such texts as the Lives and the sayings of the Desert Fathers is something that can, I think, open up and strengthen true Christianity in people today.

FJ: Father, I would like to thank you very, very much for being with us this morning.

FS: Thank you.  

Special thanks to Fr. John Ocana for granting permission to print this interview, and to Fr. Paul Baba, now the priest of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church in Cedar Rapids, who recorded it and provided us with the tape recording.

1. At the time of publication of this edition (2001) he was pastor of St. Herman of Alaska Church in Sunnyvale, California, of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.
2. Philipians 2:12
3. Galatians 3:27

Report by Abbot Gerasim

Excerpts from Autobiography of neo-Platina's abbot Gerasim Eliel.  Be aware he is in world-Orthodoxy and pro-MP (Moscow Patriarch).  Reader be aware of his perspective.

The excerpts I've chosen to copy here are the parts that tell his story of Platina 1980 – 1983

Abbot Gerasim's observations about Platina and Fr. Seraphim.  Obviously his perception of Fr. Seraphim was restricted to a superficial level -- I can't think of another word to describe it.  Superficial.  But his report is nevertheless true, and of interest to us.  

from his Autobiographical Sketch 

Abbot Gerasim (Eliel) 

Updated June 6, 2011 

My First Visit to the St. Herman of Alaska Monastery in July, 1980 

On July 6, 1980, during our summer in Calistoga, [OCA] James Paffhausen and I, with the blessing of  [OCA]  Priest John Newcombe, drove four hours north to the St. Herman of Alaska Monastery.  This proved to be a very pivotal event in my life's path.  I found the monastery to be very strange at first, but I was intrigued because I saw that they were living the type of life that I had been reading about and that I longed to emulate.  When we arrived, the monastery was desolate. After Small Vespers and an evening meal we retired until around 10:00 p.m., at which time an All-night Vigil with Divine Liturgy was served. The singing was rather plain and brisk, bats flew through the temple a few times during the service. The church had never been finished, tar paper could be seen on the walls and ceiling behind the studs and rafters, stubs of candles burned on several second-hand candlestands, the church was lit with oil lamps that were filled at least once during the Vigil, and the entire church was censed several times during the course of the service.  Since this monastery was in the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, James explained that we were not to receive Holy Communion. This service may seem simple in retrospect, but at my impressionable young age, diligently pondering the monastic life, here I tasted what I had been seeking. After the Divine Liturgy there was a simple meal in a refectory whose walls contained iconographic sketches that had never been finished. I witnessed the monastic life in a small skete secluded in the mountains, on a feast honoring the Forerunner of the Lord.  At that time there were very few places on the West Coast where one could attend an All-night Vigil in English, let alone on a weekday and lasting most of the way through the night.  The fact that this monastery was not in communion with either the OCA or the Moscow Patriarchate and the rustic facilities was hard to accept at first.  

The monastic brotherhood then consisted of Abbot Herman, Hieromonk Seraphim, Riassaphore-monk Peter (now Hieromonk Juvenaly), and perhaps three other brothers. Later that morning after resting, James and I went on a walk with Father Seraphim along the county road that passes through the monastery land. We each had partially developed thoughts about the monastic life. Everything that Father Seraphim said was very inspiring. I think that he was happy to speak with a couple of young people who were seriously interested in the monastic life. Our encounter and conversation that day was pivotal in my own life. I observed Hieromonk Seraphim as a teacher of the Orthodox Faith and of the spiritual life. I saw that I had much to learn from him and from the unpretentious way of life at this monastery. At one point in our walk James bluntly told Father Seraphim that we were intending to start a hesychast monastery. I gulped.  At the time James did not know how absurd this sounded.  Hieromonk Seraphim, silently saying the Jesus Prayer as he walked, then gently spoke about sobriety and the need to think humbly of ourselves.  He recommended reading The Arena by St. Ignatius Brianchaninov (which James had in his collection) and began to speak about delusion or prelest. (I later witnessed Hieromonk Seraphim responding in a mild way to a number of other people who came to talk about exalted themes like hesychasm). This day marked a milestone in our lives and a very important point in our spiritual development. Later in the morning we had a talk with Abbot Herman who made recommendations about what we should do at our campus, how we should gather to pray, and how we should organize talks.  He offered to help us out with some literature.  I kept all these ideas in my head.  The next year I continually reflected back on my visit to the monastery as a model of what I wanted in the monastic life. 

   

Visit of Hieromonk Seraphim Rose to UCSC 

Our Orthodox Christian Fellowship began to grow.  That small group eventually produced a large number of clergy and monastics, including Hieromonk James Corraza of the Old Joy of All Who Sorrow Cathedral in San Francisco, California. 

On May 15 Hieromonk Seraphim Rose was invited to visit our university to address our World Religions class taught by Noel Q. King.  Two guests from the future Evangelical Orthodox Church, Marion Cardoza (later Priest Seraphim Cardoza of Rogue River, Oregon [ROCOR]) and his friend Daniel Ogan (afterwards an iconographer) also attended Father Seraphim's talk.  It is amazing how pivotal this talk proved to be for Marion Cardoza, John Christensen, James Corraza and others.  I think that we had studied hard, and were ripe to hear a living word.  I had always treasured this talk which was taped by James Corraza and distributed widely among friends.  Seven years later I was instrumental in seeing this lecture being printed as a separate book entitled God's Revelation to the Human Heart.  

St. Herman of Alaska Monastery 

I reached St. Herman of Alaska Monastery in Platina on the afternoon of July 28 [1981] en route to Portland.  Neither Abbot Herman nor Hieromonk Seraphim were there at that hour—only a few novices.  I decided to stay to help prepare for the 1981 St. Herman of Alaska summer pilgrimage.  I was quite happy and willing to contribute my efforts;  I looked forward to participating in the Divine Services and experiencing the monastic life.  However, I had no intention of staying at the monastery.   I looked forward to being involved in establishing the monastic life with Hieromonk Anastasy as my instructor and spiritual father.  

Pilgrims began to arrive just before St. Herman’s feast day from all over the West Coast and even overseas.  [ROCOR] Bishop Alypy of Cleveland visited on the feast day and [ROCOR] Bishop Laurus of Holy Trinity Monastery visited later in the week.  The feast was followed by a week of  classes on the Orthodox Faith and was designed to present the foundations of the faith primarily to converts and cradle Orthodox who wanted to know more about their faith.  There was a decided missionary tone to the "Pilgrimage."  The curriculum consisted of Church history, Orthodox doctrine, liturgics and chanting, and an explanation of the Book of Genesis by Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose).  Priest Alexey Young, who was very close to Fathers Herman and Seraphim, came from Etna and gave several of the classes.  There was also a slide show about Valaam Monastery and its elders.  This was accompanied by music of the monks of Old Valaam singing Valaam chant.  Since St. Herman of Alaska had laid his monastic beginning in that monastery, this slide show helped to give a background and context to the whole week.  This also was one of the things that most intrigued me: pictures and stories of the way monks lived in a traditional monastery, especially one such as Valaam where [MP] Bishop Mark had laid the beginning of his monastic life.  Here I encountered a context in which I could learn all about the teaching of the Church, and in which I could participate in the full cycle of services in the English language.  There was a daily explanation of the lives of the saints and the scripture readings.  The monastery was remote and cut off from the world.  I felt peace here.  It was also important to me that they were actively disseminating the Orthodox Faith.  

I talked to Hieromonk Anastasy on the telephone and, as he had not made any arrangements for me in Portland, I was in no hurry to go.  Finally, one day one of the monks sat next to me and asked me what I was going to do.  He asked if I had thought about staying at the monastery.  Of course, I had, but I knew that my family would be absolutely against it.  I also did not think that my spiritual father would give me his blessing to stay.  It should be stated that there were people, both pilgrims and monks who regularly bad mouthed the Moscow Patriarchate and the OCA from almost the first day that I came to the monastery. People around the monastery pejoratively called the OCA "the Metropolia."   They called the Moscow Patriarchate the "Soviet Church."  [MP] Bishop Mark had told us that not only ROCOR but Abbot Herman as well was "making politik," as he would express himself.  So there were a number of different reasons that I hesitated to join the monastery.  I talked with the Abbot, Father Herman, and asked him if it was possible for me to stay.  He told me that I could and that he would be happy to talk with Hieromonk Anastasy.  One day we  called him from Redding.  I asked his blessing to stay at the monastery.  He gave his blessing but, I could sense, very reluctantly.  I do not believe that he ever had full confidence in Abbot Herman.  

Life in the Monastery 

I stayed the first few months at the monastery soaking in the monastic life without making any commitment.  In late November, 1981 I petitioned to be accepted as a novice.  On the feast of St. Herman of Alaska, celebrated there at the monastery on December 12/25, 1981, I was clothed as a novice.  I was very happy at that time.  I lived that first winter in an unheated cell.  I would put on several coats and use extra blankets to stay warm but I had my own partitioned cell, my icon corner, and spiritual books.  I had only one robe.  My life was centered around the Divine Services, my obediences, and my prayer rule.

During my novitiate I performed the usual obediences of a novice: I cooked, cleaned the church, cut firewood, helped in carpentry and construction projects, made elementary automotive repairs, etc.  In the spring of 1982 I began building a new set of cells which due to my lack of experience had many shortcomings.  However, as the future showed, this experience proved to be valuable. 

I soon began to assist with research for the monastery publications. I was gradually trained to do post-production work on the monastery publications, such as collating, stapling and cutting.  Later I was instructed how to use the old letterpress. Late in 1981 I began to help with research for the book Russia's Catacomb Saints. I would cross-reference citations and facts, analyze sources, write synopses of periods of persecution, movements in the early years of the Soviet regime and episodes in the life of the Church. I enjoyed this work very much. During the first two years I spent at the monastery my involvement with missionary trips to Redding, Etna, and Medford was very limited. Since I was a young novice, I was kept out of harm's way. Gradually I was included and often this involved the showing of slide shows on Holy Places in America, Valaam Monastery, Mount Athos, the New Martyrs of Russia, or some other theme.  

An important aspect of my monastic experience began during the fall of 1981.  After Compline the brothers were given an opportunity to have "revelation of thoughts" with Hieromonk Seraphim.  Although Father Herman was the abbot, Hieromonk Seraphim more often heard the confessions of the brothers and the revelation of thoughts.  This helped to lift the burden from my soul on a daily basis.  This continued regularly four or five times a week until mid-August, 1982.  At the same time, I became accustomed to going to Confession.  I did not have much experience with confession with Hieromonk Anastasy.  I think that he realized that I had to become at home in the Church first and that this was very foreign to me.  It was very hard in the beginning to accept correction.  Hieromonk Anastasy also had been reticent to correct me as was Abbot Herman later.  I distinctly remember that at one point during the first six months I made the remark to Hieromonk Seraphim during Confession that I was like everyone else.  I remember hearing him sigh.  I believe that he made a remark to the extent that this showed what a long way I had to go.  When I realized what I had said, my conscience stung.  I was very embarrassed.  I also had a number of lessons to learn in asking blessings to undertake some project.  Once when I was making some simple furniture item out of leftover wood, Hieromonk Seraphim asked me what I was doing.  When I explained, he asked, "Did you get a blessing to do this?"  Of course, I had not.  

Central to our monastic life was the monastic cell-rule of prayer.  At a certain point each monastic aspirant would be assigned a prayer rule.  It was the practice of the monastery for each monk to retire to his cell in the evening and there do his cell rule.  Because of the absence of electricity, it fit well with our life to perform our cell rule in the evening after Compline.  It was not easy to accustom myself to this.  I did not have good habits of self-discipline. It also kept the brothers from talking after evening prayers which were read in common in church.  We also had the habit that when we drove to Redding or on any journey that we would begin the journey with the Optina five hundred prayer rule.  This also brought a blessing on the journey and limited talking.  During Father Seraphim's lifetime when we went on any long trip, we would also bring the Horologion, Menaion, and Psalter and read the Vespers or Matins service that would otherwise have been omitted.  This produced in us a monastic world view and helped with our identity as monks.  Fundamental to our monastic formation were the evening talks that were delivered in the refectory primarily by Abbot Herman.  After the reading would finish, we would all be gathered around the table.  I soaked up every word that he or Hieromonk Seraphim had to share.  Sometimes I would record it in my journal that evening or during the next day.  In 1981–82 we did not have any editions of the Lives of the Saints, the Synaxarion or the Prologue.  Abbot Herman was able to share substantially the entire life of a saint or a righteous one from recent times without a text or notes.  He had a superb gift for relating the lives of the saints and the righteous ones of recent times.  His memory was very sharp and he was able to involve his listener in what he was trying to emphasize.  For those who listened intently it was quite an education.  The first books that I read at the monastery were Abba Dorotheos of Gaza, The Arena: An Offering to Contemporary Monasticism, Unseen Warfare, Spiritual Homilies of St. Macarius of Egypt. 

Hieromonk Seraphim Rose 

Hieromonk Seraphim was usually the first or second one to church every morning. He often began the morning prayers himself in the Narthex. He would serve Matins without fail every day unless there was a literal all-night vigil which would be too much stress on his physical condition.  At times he would come to the cliros during Matins and help to lead the singing, either reading the canon in Slavonic or translating verses on the spot into English for the instruction of those gathered.  Every day, regardless of whether the Divine Liturgy was to be served or not, he would give a sermon on the theme of the daily Epistle or Gospel reading.  The Divine Liturgy was always served on Saturday and Sunday.  

He had great love for the nature that surrounded the monastery.  I reveled in this, too.  Up until I was ordained a priest, I would regularly take a book and hike up our mountain every Sunday, feast day or whenever I had the chance and find some new secluded spot in which to pray and read.  In October 1981 we were able to hike to the top of Mount Yolla Bolly (8,000 ft) located about twenty-five miles from the monastery.  Here at the top Fr. Seraphim read about the ascetic feats of the western desert dwellers of the Jura Mountains as we sat atop that chilly peak.  It was a beautiful glimpse of the world that he loved and which greatly impressed itself on me. 

In the autumn of 1981 Hieromonk Seraphim taught a class every other morning from his notes for a summer seminar that he had begun four or five years previously.  This course eventually became dubbed as the "Orthodox Survival Course."  It was his analysis of the history of Western philosophy, political history, and religious development from the time of the Great Schism.  He felt very strongly that an acute analysis in this manner showed the fruits of the schism of Rome from the Church and how the consequences of this schism are expressed in the history of Western culture.  In the following spring Hieromonk Seraphim sought to include me in the classes that he was teaching to one Seminary student who was taking correspondence courses through the Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville.  Father Seraphim had questioned me several times whether or not I felt I was being challenged.  I was actually afraid that he would send me back to the university, which I do not believe was his intention but which was my greatest fear.  We also had classes in Russian which were crucial in providing me continuity with the one year during which I had studied Russian in the university.  At the same time I made it a discipline that whenever Hieromonk Seraphim or anyone else was reading in Slavonic on the cliros that I would walk over and look on at the text.  By the mid 1980s I was able to translate Slavonic into English without much difficulty.  The illness and repose of Hieromonk Seraphim was a great tragedy in my life.  It left us all stunned.  It happened so unexpectedly.  At first I did not suspect anything serious.  It seemed that he merely had a bad case of constipation.  He took a turn for the worse.  The heat in the valley was intense, approximately 115° F, and therefore we did not want to make him worse by taking him to Redding.  When we finally did the news was shocking: a section of his large intestine had ceased to function.  An operation began immediately.  Gangrene was already setting in and peritonitis of the stomach cavity developed.  It affected all his internal organs.  Having only one functioning kidney from an early age his system was not sufficiently strong to battle this condition.  Within several days Hieromonk Seraphim died.  

Abbot Herman and I drove back in the hearse from Redding to the monastery on September 3 with Father Seraphim's body in a coffin.  When Archbishop Anthony and Bishop Nektary arrived, Abbot Herman spoke to them about the details of the funeral and burial.  I was to be tonsured a reader on that day.  However, I stated that I did not want to become a reader, but rather that I wanted to be a monk.  I clung steadfastly to my desire for the monastic life that I had formed under the direction of Hieromonk Anastasy, [MP] Bishop Mark, and my first year at the monastery.  The funeral was attended by approximately 120 people.  I was so overwhelmed by all those events that I do not remember many details.  I remember Hieromonk Anastasy came for the funeral.  Before the Divine Liturgy, Novice Stephen and I were tonsured riassaphore-monks at the coffin of Hieromonk Seraphim by Archbishop Anthony.  In the monastic tonsure I was given the name Gerasim, with St. Gerasimus of the Jordan as my monastic patron and receiving this name in honor of Archimandrite Gerasim (Schmaltz) who had settled at Monks' Lagoon and devoted his life to the veneration of St. Herman of Alaska.  It was in such a context that I embraced the monastic life. 

Change 

Soon things began to change in our St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood.  More brothers came, our conditions were very crowded.  We were busy with our publications, including Russia's Catacomb Saints.  We spent a good deal of time that long, dark autumn with the regular celebration at sporadic times of the Divine Liturgy.  Gradually I began to participate more and more in the administration of the monastery.  Our abbot was frequently absent on little excursions here and there.  This was a pattern which would continue to develop until he was forced into reclusion in April 2000.  There were no longer two experienced monks here capable of guiding me in the  monastic life and providing stability in the monastery.  Now there was only one priest in the monastery to conduct the Divine services and to serve the Liturgy.  

We scrambled to salvage Hieromonk Seraphim's legacy.  We attempted to patch together projects that he had left unfinished.  In late 1982 discipline in the monastery gradually started to wane.  This was a process which extended over many years.  We no longer experienced the same regular instruction.  I began to have serious doubts about how I would remain in the monastic life.  I remember becoming habitually angry or wrathful.  I recall it being a long, wet and lonely autumn in 1982, and a few months later the monastery church would burn down.  I had a temptation to leave at the end of November.  But I did not know where to go?  To what other monastery could I go?  (We were quite prejudiced toward the New Calendar, so that eliminated a number of options).  I wanted to live a real monastic life; I saw that our monastic life was beginning to crumble. 

full 35 page bio posted here

https://rocorhistory.blogspot.com/2020/05/bio-gerasim-eliel-platina-history.html

In Memory by SIR

In 2009 SIR published Fr. Seraphim's article on the Royal Path with their footnotes.  I post this here partly so you can see how narrow is view of the SIR perspective of Fr. Seraphim.   ~jh

https://www.hsir.org/pdfs/2009/09/02/20090902aRoyalPath%20Folder/20090902aRoyalPath.pdf

Here is their introduction to the article:

_______________________________________________

In Memory of Hiermonk Seraphim (Rose) on the 

Twenty-Seventh Anniversary of His Holy Repose

August 20, 1982 o.s.

The Royal Path

True Orthodoxy in an Age of Apostasy

Source: Ὀρθόδοξος Ἔνστασις καὶ Μαρτυρία, Series 1, Nos. 26-29 (January-December 1992), pp. 3-16.

HIEROMONK SERAPHIM (Eugene Rose in the world) was born in 1934 of Protestant parents, in California. He studied at Pomona College in Los Angeles and received an M.A. from the University of California at Berkeley.

Philosophical by nature and thirsting for the Truth, after a long and wandering search, he discovered it in Holy Orthodoxy, which he eagerly embraced (in 1961), literally dedicating himself to it. His profound study of the works of the great Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky contributed to this, as did the friendship and bond that he formed with Gleb Podmoshensky, then a student at the Holy Trinity Orthodox Theological Seminary in Jordanville, New York, and subsequently his fellow ascetic, Father Herman.

In 1963, they founded the St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood for the purpose of missionary work. In 1965, with the blessing of their spiritual Father, the most holy Archbishop John (Maximovich) of San Francisco (†1966),

For a biography of St. John of San Francisco, see The Life and Conduct of Our Father Among the Saints, Saint John the Wonderworker, Archbishop Of Shanghai and San Francisco (Etna, CA: Center for Traditionalist Orthodox Studies, 1996); http://hsir.info/p/h4 See also “A Miracle Which Confirms the Traditional Church Calendar” (http://hsir.info/p/yp).

they began publication of the well-known periodical, The Orthodox Word.  Publishing this periodical was a veritable feat, when we bear in mind that, up until 1981, it was typeset manually and printed on a hand-operated press.  In 1969, they founded the Monastery of St. Herman of Alaska in Platina, a wilderness region in Northern California, and in 1970 they received the monastic schema.

Father Seraphim was given a blessing to live in a small hut, where he followed a very strict ascetical regimen, praying, studying, and writing, until 1977, when he was ordained a Priest by the virtuous Bishop Nektary of Seattle, of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad (†1983), a disciple of the renowned last Elder of Optina, St. Nektary (†1928).  Thereafter he worked more in a missionary capacity until his holy repose on August 20, 1982 (Old Style), at the age of only forty-eight.

Father Seraphim harmoniously combined in his person an asceticism astonishing in our days with freedom from anger, meekness, humility, silence, unceasing prayer, profound love, and spiritual discretion.

Recently a monastic from Serbia has written: “The Athonite hesychast and instructor of the prayer of the heart Bishop Amphilocius [Amfilohije] once said that Fr. Seraphim was granted the greatest gift that a man can be granted on earth—the gift of spiritual discernment.”

 “Fr. Seraphim Rose: Ten Years Later,” The Orthodox Word, Vol. XXVIII, No. 4 (165) (July-August 1992), pp. 161-162.

He was particularly distinguished for his gift of eloquence and wisdom, as attested both by those who knew him and by his numerous writings, a large part of which remains still unpublished.  In these writings “we find not only his profound education and his wealth of knowledge, but also the ever-living and flourishing spirit and Grace of our God-bearing Fathers, the ‘mind of Christ,’ and a strong nisus towards a life that is lofty and fully consecrated to our Life-giving Savior”—the apocalyptic and prophetic dimension of our Holy Faith.

Metropolitan Cyprian of Oropos and Phyle, “†Ἱερομόναχος Σεραφεὶμ (Rose)” [†Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose)], Ἅγιος Κυπριανός, No. 166 (October 1982), p. 128. 

His knowledge of many languages, and especially his deep knowledge of Russian, impelled him to produce a multitude of very noteworthy translations, in order to make the treasures of the Fathers known in the New World.  “In his short life, Father Seraphim offered himself for the glory of God and the salvation of his fellow men. His preaching ministry helped many people to find the way to Orthodoxy and their salvation, while his literary activity included hundreds of articles and dozens of books that bear witness to his anxiety to preserve and transmit genuine, traditional Orthodoxy.”

Petros Botses, “Ἱερομόναχος Σεραφεὶμ (1934-1982)” [Hieromonk Seraphim (1934-1982)], Ὀρθόδοξος Τύπος, No. 534 (February 4, 1983), pp. 1, 3.

It was precisely this anxiety, coupled with his healthy and pure zeal, that prompted him to write the following article, among others. His love for the true Faith, which he expresses in this article, and, at the same time, his anguish and distress over the discernible trend among traditionalist Orthodox (in America, Greece, and elsewhere) towards an inordinate zeal marked by extremist tendencies, with very grievous consequences at an ecclesiological and at a practical level, is set forth with clarity, candor, and profundity. The timeliness of this article remains undiminished, even though almost thirty years have elapsed since it was written (in 1976).

If the sacred struggle for the Faith is to succeed, it must be conducted “properly” and “lawfully.” The most important thing is to protect and preserve the Faith from the insidious pollution of heresy and to witness to it in a Patristic, traditional, and Orthodox spirit. The message of Orthodox resistance on the part of those who abide by the Traditions of the Fathers must not be sullied by injudicious activities and unsound ideas.

The path of moderation, the Royal Path, which the late Father Seraphim chose and which he consistently followed in matters of Faith, did not please everyone. 

Many who belonged to “official” Orthodox Churches enmeshed in the ecumenical movement considered him a “dangerous fanatic,” although they admired his spiritual greatness and praised his otherwise indisputable contribution to Orthodoxy. Others, distinguished by their “zeal not according to knowledge,” denounced him as a betrayer of Orthodoxy!

Father Alexey Young, “For His Soul Pleased the Lord,” Orthodox America, No. 2 (22) (August-September 1982), p. 9

Such has always been the “lot” of those who follow the royal path of moderation and discretion....

Let the present article http://startingontheroyalpath.blogspot.com/2009/08/royal-path.html be considered a very small tribute to the memory of the late Father Seraphim, this year being the twenty-fifth anniversary of his holy repose, let his holy and discerning zeal be a shining example for us, and let his holy prayers guide us on the “Royal Path.”

St. John finds lost money

Testimony about Fr. Seraphim

Orthodox Word Magazine 1983

Letter to Editor 

    While living at the St. Herman of Alaska Monastery, in February, 1982, I accompanied Hieromonk Seraphim of thrice-blessed memory to Redding , Calif., where he gave a lecture at the St. Herman of Alaska Winter Pilgrimage and celegrated the Diving Liturgy the following day on the feast of the Meeting of the Lord at the Surety-of-Sinners Mission Parish.

    Shortly after Liturgy on the day of the Feast, Father Seraphim sent me together with several brothers to buy supplies and groceries for the monastery, entrusting me with $150.  Having brought a full shopping cart to the checkstand, I suddenly realized that I didn't have the money.  I was shocked, felt terrible that I had lost the money, and proceeded to blame and reproach everyone and everything else vocally and mentally.  We phoned the church and Father Seraphim told us to return.  When we had parked in the driveway, I started walking towards the church and met Father Seraphim alone halfway, and he said, "You have it right there," pointing to my chest.  "Archbishop John told me.  You didn't think of praying to him, did you?"  

    With self-assurance I felt my chest and with simultaneous joy and shame I found the money in a pocket which I thought I had certainly searched, and startled, I replied that, indeed, I hadn't prayed to Vladika John.  Father Seraphim them comforted me, explaining that after we had finished speaking on the phone, he had gone immediately to church on the left side of which there is a large portrait of Archibshop John together with his mitre and several other portraits and relics associated with his life and person and there he had asked Vladika John to help us find the money.  Archbishop John informed him that I had the money right in my pocket (under my very nose!).  

    Thus, through the intercession of God's righteous ones, a sure trial and temptation were transformed into a revelation of the mystery of holiness and grace.

Br. G.

source:  Orthodox Word magazine #111 July-Aug 1983

https://app.box.com/s/7wlvv5ntxyqtejac1jrwjhwm5pwh5s44 

Books Written by Fr. Seraphim Rose

Not listed in sidebar: parent post http://startingontheroyalpath.blogspot.com/2009/08/books-by-fr-seraphim-rose.html
This list is taken from Fr. Lawrence's blog, before he died in 2010

Books Written by Blessed Hieromonk Seraphim Rose 

Published Books by Fr. Seraphim
Unpublished Books by Fr Seraphim
Books translated, compiled and/or introduced by Fr. Seraphim
Unpublished books translated by Fr. Seraphim
Church services by Fr. Seraphim
Writings on Fr. Seraphim and his works

Published Books Written by Fr. Seraphim

Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future.  Platina, California: St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood (hereafter cited as SHB), 1975; revised edition, SHB, 1979 Pavoslavie i Religia Budushchago (Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future), Moscow, 1991. Pravoslavie i Religii Buduschchago (Orthodoxy and the Religions of the Future), Alma-Ata, 1991. The Soul After Death. SHB, 1980. Dusha Posle Smerti (The Soul After Death).  Moscow: Macaw & Co., 1991. Svatoe Pravoslavie XX vek (Holy Orthodoxy: The Twentieth Century). Donskoy Monastery, 1992.  Contains a brief biography of Fr. Seraphim, "The Orthodox World View," "The Holy Fathers: Sure Guide to True Christianity," "The Future of Russia and the End of the World," and Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future. Heavenly Realm: Lay Sermons of Fr. Seraphim Rose.  SHB, 1984. God's Revelation to the Human Heart.  SHB, 1987. The Place of Blessed Augustine in the Orthodox Church.  SHB, 1983. Weeping Icons of the Mother of God.  SHB, 1966.  Reprint of an article from The Orthodox Word. Father Gerasim: Guardian of St. Herman of Alaska.  SHB, 1983.  Reprint of an article from The Orthodox Word. The Holy Fathers: Sure Guide to True Christianity.  West Coast Orthodox Supply, 1983.  Reprint of an article from The Orthodox Word. Moje widzenie swiata (The Orthodox World View).  Translated into Polish by Jaroslaw Charkiewicz.  Bialystok, Poland: Fellowship of Orthodox Youth in Poland, 1993.

Unpublished Books Written by Fr. Seraphim

Nihilism: The Root of the Revolution of the Modern Age, and Other early Writings of Fr. Seraphim Rose.  Includeds Fr. Seraphim's chapter on Nihilism from The Kingdom of Man and the Kingdom of God, his essay "The Philosophy of the Absurd," his philosophical journal from 1960 to 1962, his letter to Thomas Merton, and other material. The Orthodox Patristic Understanding of Genesis.  Includes Fr. Seraphim's Commentary on Genesis, and his letter to the late Dr. Alexander Kalomiros on the Patristic refutation of evolutionism. The Orthodox World View: A Survival Course for the Last Christians. The course he gave at the St. Herman Monastery in 1975. Modern Links with the Holy Fathers.  Includes his writings about Archbishop Averky of Jordanville, Fr. Michael Pomazansky, Archimandrite Conastantine Zaitsev, Fr. Nicholas Deputatov, I.M. Andreyev, and Archbishop Andrew (Fr. Adrian) of New Diveyevo, together with Fr. Herman's biography of Ivan and Helen Kontzevitch. The Holy Fathers of Orhtodox Spirituality.  Includes the articles (The Holy Fathers: Inspiration and Sure Guide to True Christianity," "How to Read the Holy Fathers," and "How Not to Read the Holy Fathers." Aesthetic Theologhy: They Typicon of the Orthodox Church's Divin Services.  A series of articles he wrote in order to inspire Orthodox Christians to do the daily cycle of Church services.  Included practical guidelines and musical notation. Feasts and Holy Icons.  Includes his articles on the Weeping Icons of the Mother of God. Lectures of Fr. Seraphim Rose.  Includes "Raising the Mind, Warming the Heart," "God's Revelation to the Human Heart," "The Search for Orthodoxy Today," "Orthodoxy in the USA," "The Orthodox World View," "In Step with Saints Patrick and Gregory of Tours," "The Future of Russia and the End of the World," "The Orthodox Revival in Russia," "Signs of the Coming of the End of the World," and other lectures.

Published Books Translated, Compiled, 

and/or Introduced by Fr. Seraphim

Andrew of New Diveyevo, Archbishop.  The Restoration of the Orthodox Way of Life.  SHB, 1976.  Includes an introduction by Fr. Seraphim on Archbishop Andrew and Orthodox community life. Andreyev, I.M.  Russia's Catacomb Saints.  SHB, 1983.  Includes the Life of I.M. Andreyev and much more material by Fr. Seraphim. Averky, Archbishop.  The Apocalypse of St. John: An Orthodox Commentary. SHB, 1985.  Includesarticles by Fr. Seraphim on the Life of Archbishop Averky and on the intrepretation of the book of Apocalypse Barsanuphius and John, Saints.  Guidance Toward Spiritual Life.  SHB, 1990. Gretory of Tours, St.  Vita Patrum.  SHB, 1988.  Includes over 100 pages of introductory material by Fr. Seraphim on Christianity and monasticism in 5th- and 6th-century Gaul (France). John Maximovitch, Archbishop (now Saint).  The Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God.  SHB, 1978.  Includes an introduction by Fr. Seraphim on the theology of Archbishop (now Saint) John. Kontzevitch, I.M.  The Northern Thebaid.  SHB, 1975.  Preface and Epilogue by Fr. Seraphim. Metrophanes, Schemamonk.  Blessed Paisius Velichkovsky.  SHB, 1976.  Introduction and Service to Blessed Paisius by Fr. Seraphim. Nazarius of Valaam, Elder.  Little Russian Philokalia, vol. 2.  SHB, 1983. Pomazansky, Protopresbyter Michael.  Orthodox Dogmatic Theologhy.  SHB, 1984.  Includes a Life of Fr. Michael, extensive annotation, and appendix by Fr. Seraphim. ——.  Dogmaticheskoe Bogoslovie [Dogmatic Theology] St. Herman Brotherhood Russian edition, 1992.  Includes an appendix: "Report of Hieromonk Seraphim Rose to Bishop Nektary of Seattle on the Danger of the Resurgence among Orthodox Christians of the New 'Dogma' [of Redemption]." Rose, Fr. Seraphim, and Abbot Herman.  Blessed John the Wonderworker.  SHB, 1987.  Includes the Prima Vita of Archbishop (now Saint) John by Fr. Seraphim. Sava, Bishop of Edmonton.  Blessed John: The Chronicle of the Veneration of Archbishop John Maximovitch.  SHB, 1979. Seraphim of Sarov, St.  Little Russian Philokalia, vol. 1.  SHB, 1980.  Includes a brief Life of St. Seraphim by Fr. Seraphim. Syemon the Theologian, St.  The Sin of Adam.  SHB, 1979.  Introduction by Fr. Seraphim. Theophan the Recluse, St.  The Path to Salvation.  West Coast Orthodox Supply, 1983; reprinted by Conciliar Press under the title Raising Them Righ, 1989. Verkhovsky, Abbess Vera.  Elder Zosima: Hesychast of Siberia.  Nikodemos Orthodox Publication Society, 1979; revised edition, SHB, 1990.  Introduction by Fr. Seraphim.

Unpublished Books Translated by Fr. Seraphim

Dimitry Dudko, Fr.  Resurrection Sermons. Dorotheos of Gaza, St.  Spiritual Counsels. John Maximovitch, Archbishop (now Saint).  The Sermons of Archbishop John Maximovitch.  Serialized in The Orthodox Word. Paisius Velichkovsky, St.  Field Flowers and The Scroll (Little Russian Philokalia, vol. 4.  Seralized in The Orthodox Word. Seers of the Other World.  The Lives of saints who saw into the angelic and demonic realms.  Serialized in The Orthodox Word. Theodore the Studite, St.  Instructions for Monks.

Church Services Written by Fr. Seraphim

Service to St. Herman of Alaska (co-written by Fr. Herman Podmoshensky). SHB, 1970. Service to Blessed Paisius Velichkovsky.  In Schemamonk Metrophanes, Blessed Paisius Velichkovsky, SHB, 1976. Akathist to Blessed John (Maximovitch) the Wonderworker.  The Orthodox Word, nos. 123-125, 1985. Service to the New Martyrs of Russia (co-written by Fr. Herman).  1981, unpublished.

Writings on Fr. Seraphim and his Works

Brigid McCarthy, Nun.  "The Last Chapter in the Short Life of Father Seraphim of Platina."  The Orthodox Word, nos. 108-109 (1983). "Dusha Posle Smerti" (The Soul After Death).  Nauka i Religia (Science and  Religion), no. 5. (may, 1991). Damascene Christensen, Monk.  "Fr. Seraphim's Search for Truth." The Orthodox Word, nos. 108-109 (1983). ——.  "Fr. Seraphim the Philosopher."  The Orthodox Word, no. 136 (1987). ——.  "The Literary Inheritance of Fr. Seraphim Rose."  The Orthodox Word, no. 104 (1982). ——.  "Otets Serafim Roz: Kratkaya Biografiya" (Fr. Seraphim Rose: A Brief Biography).  Russky Palomnik (Russian Pilgrim), no. 3 (1991). Derugin, Priest Vladimir.  "Ieromonakh Seraphim: Ukhod Pravednika" (The Passing Away of a Righteous One).  Fr. Seraphim Memorial Fund, 1983. "Pravoslavi i Religia Budusschago" (Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future).  Pravoslavnoe Obozrenie (Orthodox Digest) (1983). Rose, Fr. Seraphim, "From the Chronicle of the St. Herman Brotherhood." The Orthodox Word, no. 125 (1985). Rossi, Vincent, The American Acquisition of the Patristic Mind." The Orthodox Word, no. 119 (1984). "With the Saints Give Rest…" Orthodox America, no 22 (1982). Young, Fr. Alexy, "A Mighty Pen Is Stilled."  Orthodox America, no. 22 (1982).

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