Memory Eternal for our Br. Nikolai

[JMG]

Prayers for his family. I hope they are able to find peace even in this hard time.

[adauria]

He will be missed! I will smoke a bowl in his honor today.

-Andrew

[wosbald]

+JMJ+
Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei.

[Kerdy]

I get sad every time I think of Monarchist. I know he isn't, but I still get sad.

[JimVH]

I get sad every time I think of Monarchist. I know he isn't, but I still get sad.

Yep. I was sifting through a box in the garage this week and found an empty padded envelope left over from a tobacco sample Mon sent me some time ago. It all came back.

I was reminded of something else in that moment, too. I am amazed at the quality friendships I've made through CPS with a bunch of people I've never met face to face. Heck, I don't even know some of your real names and wouldn't recognize you on the street, yet you make a difference and honor me with prayer, support, and tolerance of my goofiness online.

Nikolai was a fine example of such. I am grateful he was put in my path.

[Irish-Dane]

I get sad every time I think of Monarchist. I know he isn't, but I still get sad.

Yep. I was sifting through a box in the garage this week and found an empty padded envelope left over from a tobacco sample Mon sent me some time ago. It all came back.

I was reminded of something else in that moment, too. I am amazed at the quality friendships I've made through CPS with a bunch of people I've never met face to face. Heck, I don't even know some of your real names and wouldn't recognize you on the street, yet you make a difference and honor me with prayer, support, and tolerance of my goofiness online.

Nikolai was a fine example of such. I am grateful he was put in my path.

Amen.

[Thoth]

Memory Eternal

(sad for us and happy for him)


Paraphrased from the Litany of the Departed basically sums it up for me

Graciously, O Lord, repose his soul in the bosom of our holy fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, sustain him in a green pasture, by the water of rest in the paradise of joy. The place out of which grief, sorrow and groaning have fled away, in the light of Your saints. Raise up his body also, on the Day which You have appointed, according to Your true promises, which are without lie....

For there is no death for Your servants, but a departure. Even if any negligence or heedlessness has overtaken them as men, since they were clothed in flesh and dwelt in this world. O God, as the Good One and Lover of Mankind, graciously accord, O Lord—Your servants, the Orthodox Christians who are in the whole world, from sunrise to sunset and from north to south.

Each one according to his name and each one according to her name, O Lord repose and forgive them. For no one is pure and without blemish even though his life on earth be a single day.

As for those, O Lord, whose souls You have taken, repose them, and may they be worthy of the kingdom of the heavens. As for us all, grant us our Christian perfection that would be pleasing to You, and give them and us a share and an inheritance with all Your saints.

[FredS]

I like that Thoth.

[revspipes]

This well and truly sucks.

I am glad his suffering has been turned to dancing. But it sure puts a heaviness over the day

Rev

[FredS]

Nicholas and his older brother Wally


(picture lifted from facebook and saved here for posterity)

[Cliff]

I second the prayer of Troth

[FredS]

Farmboys post for his Mom made me think of Mon. I still can't wrap my head around our new world where we have friends who we love and miss even though we never met in person on this side.

[coco]

Farmboys post for his Mom made me think of Mon. I still can't wrap my head around our new world where we have friends who we love and miss even though we never met in person on this side.

+1

[mont974x4]

I was thinking about Mon today while doing some menial chores about the house. I was wondering if we could do something to bless his family this coming Christmas season. Perhaps one of you who were closest to him could give us some ideas, and make sure whatever we do is appropriate and gets to them.

[OldWorldSwine]

I was thinking about Mon today while doing some menial chores about the house. I was wondering if we could do something to bless his family this coming Christmas season. Perhaps one of you who were closest to him could give us some ideas, and make sure whatever we do is appropriate and gets to them.

^^This.

[Thunktank]

I was thinking about Mon today while doing some menial chores about the house. I was wondering if we could do something to bless his family this coming Christmas season. Perhaps one of you who were closest to him could give us some ideas, and make sure whatever we do is appropriate and gets to them.

^^This.

It's incredibly hard to say this, but sadly, Br. Nikolai had no one left. Literally. Virtually all of his family passed away and he had no children of his own. To add insult to injury, he was reclusive for years on account of his monastic hopes which were complicated by his health and his church's irregular status. Thankfully, Br. Nikolai was willing to re establish relations with his former priest in a nearby ROCOR church after I, in concert with a distant person from his other distant bishop that seemed less than helpful to him, pleaded with him to accept the help from the ROCOR priest nearby. The local ROCOR priest went out of his way to help him in his final days and the local church from whom Br. Nikolai was estranged for years. They raised the funds to give him a proper Christian burial too. The state was going to cremate him. I spoke to the priest and he let me know that no one else was there for him at all. I was the only one who asked about him on behalf of you all. I only began to realize how important CPS was to him upon our last couple of conversations over the phone and it was very hard to contact him and nearly impossible to communicate with him in his final weeks.

[mont974x4]

I'm sorry, my friend, I didn't intend to cause any distress.


Sent by pony express.

[Thunktank]

I'm sorry, my friend, I didn't intend to cause any distress.

No need for any of that. It's just a sad thing to think about. I missed his funeral as I lost contact largely because he or I could barely talk with each other anyway toward the end. I'm glad I was there for him at the beginning of the end. I remember PMing him asking him to call me at 11 PM at night. Five minutes later he called and we talked for hours. I guess he felt he needed an invitation to speak. He shared so much, he was also afraid. Of course, I felt like child and not much use. More than once I called to be an encouragement to him only to have him seem to help me more.

[OldWorldSwine]

I probably haven't said often enough how much this place means to me.

Dang it.

[mont974x4]

Thank you for being gracious with me.


Sent by pony express.