HOLY MATUSHKA* OLGA, AMONG THE SAINTS

The departed handmaiden of God, Matushka Olga Nicholai, a Yup'ik Eskimo from the village of  Kwethluk on the Kuskokwim River in Southwest Alaska, will be numbered among the Orthodox saints at a future Rite of Glorification at a yet to be determined date, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America announced November 9.  Her humility, her generosity, her piety, her patience and her selfless love for God and neighbor were well-known in the Kuskokwim villages during her earthly life.  Her care for comforting the suffering, the grieving as well as victims of sexual abuse has also been revealed after her life by grace-filled manifestations in which she has appeared to the faithful throughout not only Alaska, but all of North America. The first peoples of Alaska are convinced of her sainthood and the great efficacy of her prayers. The announcement from the Holy Synod of Bishops of The Orthodox Church in America went on to state that we "do hereby decide and decree that the ever-memorable Servant of God Matushka Olga be numbered among the saints.  With one mind and one heart, we also resolve that her  honorable remains be considered as holy relics; that a special service be composed in her honor; that her feast be celebrated on November 10 and the Feast of All Saints of North America, the Second Sunday after Pentecost; that holy icons be prepared to honor the newly-glorified saint; that her life be published for the edification of the Faithful; and that the date and location of the Rite of Glorification be communicated to the Clergy, Monastics, and Faithful of our Church in due time." 

Glory to God, who is wondrous in His saints.

(Adapted from the Orthodox Church in America)

*Matushka is a title of honor accorded to the wife of a priest, and comes from Russian, literally meaning "mama."  It is said that this term, Matushka, is used more often in the diaspora than in the homeland. The Orthodox Faith entered North America in Alaska through the work of dedicated Russian monks,  and the Orthodox Church in America, to which Saint Brendan the Navigator Church pertains,  is the direct descendant and beneficiary of those Russian missionary efforts. The corresponding title for Matushka in jurisdictions with a Greek origin is Presvitera, and in Arabic ones, such as the Antiochian Orthodox Church, it is Khouria. Despite the different cultural expressions, the Orthodox Church is the same in every country. It is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.