Priests bless Lake Glacier to bring prosperity to city

YOUNGSTOWN — Praying for prosperity of Youngstown and asking for blessing of its people, members of the Eastern Orthodox Clergy Association conducted a Blessing of the Water ceremony Sunday near the shore of Lake Glacier in Mill Creek MetroParks.

About a dozen priests and some 40 people participated. A large flock of geese and some ducks contributed sounds of nature to the outdoor service.

In the service, the priests were “praying for the park and those who use it, for government officials and the military.” They asked for the “blessing of the Jordan to sanctify these waters” and contribute “to healing of soul and body” of all those who “touch and partake” of the water.

The Rev. Thomas Constantine, pastor of St. John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Church in Boardman, said Eastern Orthodox parishes usually have the ceremony at individual churches.

“We’ve never done it in Youngstown, though I’ve participated in services in Fort Wayne, [Ind.],” Father Constantine said. “And in Tarpin Springs in Florida, thousands attend the service.”

Father Constantine said the Blessing of the Water relates to the feast of Holy Theophany, observed Sunday, which commemorates not only the baptism of Jesus but the revelation of Jesus as divine and as part of the Holy Trinity.

“It’s seeing Jesus as God and the powers on high,” Father Constantine said. The Father (God), Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit were present at the baptism. “Part of the blessing involves tossing a cross into the water,” Father Constantine said.

The priests, acknowledging the baptism of Jesus, noted that “today we are delivered from darkness and bathed in the light of God” and that the “way is open for salvation.”

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.