The feast of St. John Jacob of Neamt was an opportunity of meeting and spiritual joy for the Youth of the parishes of the Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas located in Midwest USA. At the Holy Trinity Church in Troy, Michigan, the ROYA youth organized a spiritual evening on Friday, August 3, 2018, on the occasion of the feast of St. John Jacob, the 20th century Romanian saint who spent 22 years in the desert of Jordan River in the Holy Land. His life entirely devoted to God was revealed to believers by the discovery of his holy uncorrupted relics in 1980.

After the service of the Akathist, the youth presented the life of the Saint and then recited several poems from his wonderful writings. At the end of the event, all the faithful were blessed with the opportunity to venerate the saint’s monastic cap, which is kept at the St. Sabbas Monastery in Harper Woods, Michigan.

The Feast of St. John Jacob continued at the Faith and Heritage Center in Allegan, Michigan, the future Monastery of the Protection of the Mother of God on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, 4 to 6 August 2018. More than 20 young people from the US and Canada, as well as other faithful, took part in the celebration of St. John Jacob. The young people wanted this meeting to be first and foremost a chance to meet, but also to pray and give glory to God for all His blessings.

The second patron of the monastery, St. John Jacob, was honored on Saturday with the service of Vespers and on Sunday, by singing together at the Divine Liturgy. There have been talks about the life, work and teaching of the Saint by reading manuscripts, letters and poems, written by St. John Jacob's hand, which are in the archives of the Metropolia in Chicago. The young people read many of the poems and talked about their significance. They enjoyed and marveled to hold poems in the original manuscripts of St. John Jacob. Moreover, they had the chance to venerate a priest's belt of the Saint, which made them feel even closer to St. John Jacob. On Sunday evening, the people prepared a campfire, continuing the joy of being together on this blessed place. The feast ended on Monday, August 6, with attendance at the Divine Liturgy on the day of the feast of the Lord’s Transfiguration.

The three days passed quickly, with the young people leaving with the promise of meeting again on the occasion of the next events: the Labor Day weekend, the ROYA Conference in October, the winter camp for young people in the days after Christmas.      

Bogdan Manga and Andrei Mărginean