Mitred Archpriest Sergei and Matushka Genevieve Glagolev

Mitred Archpriest Sergei Andreievich Glagolev (1928-2021)

and

Matushka Genevieve (born Brunarsky) Glagolev (1924-2022)

The following summary biography includes elements from an article by Vladimir Morosan.

Glagolev family history

Sergei Andreievich Glagolev was born into the Glagolev family, in which there were 20 generations with Orthodox Christian priests (stretching as long ago as the 15th-16th centuries). The family has also had significant musical gifts, and Sergei Andreievich would be no exception.

His paternal grandfather, Peter Glagolev, who lived in Kostroma, Russia, 340 km (211 mi) northeast of Moscow, married the Princess Vera Telepneva, and he broke with family tradition in that he was never ordained to the Holy Priesthood. He did, however, serve as a church musician in Kamensk, near Rostov-on-the-Don. Peter and Vera Glagolev’s son, Andrew Glagolev, Sergei’s father, initially went to military school, and he fought on the German front during World War I. When the front collapsed and the Bolsheviks seized power in 1917, he joined the Cossacks in the south of Russia, and he fought with General Vrangel’s army. Eventually, he was evacuated to Constantinople, Turkey (formerly the Ottoman Empire), along with multitudes of other refugees.

After making his way to Paris, France, Andrew Glagolev completed music courses at the Sorbonne, amidst the difficult circumstances of the Russian emigration. While in Paris, he and his Cossack friends, who were excellent horsemen, were recruited by Tom Mix’s Circus to play the “Indians” in mock battles with the “cowboys”. Because he knew how to play a variety of instruments, Andrew secured a position in the circus band, and the circus became the means by which Andrew Glagolev could emigrate to the USA. At that time, the USA was hesitant to accept Russian émigrés for fear of Communist infiltration of the labour movement.

Thus, Andrew Glagolev arrived in the USA in 1925, where he settled in the Chicago, Illinois, area. In nearby Gary, Indiana, Father Benjamin Kedrovsky, who ministered to a large community of Galician émigrés, that was centred at the Protection of the Theotokos Church (Saint Mary’s), was in need of someone who had a knowledge of Church music. Thus, he turned to Andrew Glagolev, and recruited him to be the parish choir director, as well as the teacher of choral singing, Russian language and catechism in the parochial school. This parish belonged to the North American Diocese of the “Russian Mission” which had recently taken the name “Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church of North America” (ROGCCNA).

In this new environment, Andrew applied his musical skills in this Orthodox Church community. Soon, he married Magdalena Wachnowsky, and their son Sergei was born the next year.

Early life of Sergei Andreievich Glagolev

On 13 August, 1928, Sergei Andreievich Glagolev was born in Gary, Indiana, to Andrew P and Magdalena (born Wachnowsky) Glagolev. A daughter, Irene Andreievna, was born in 1930. Their children were raised as Orthodox Christians in the ROGCCNA.

Sergei Andreievich grew up in the midst of the rich musical life surrounding the Gary parish of the Holy Protection. His first musical memories were of this parish and this city. The choir not only sang in church, but also in concert competitions ; there was also a band, and a theatre group.

After the family moved to Cleveland, Ohio, Sergei's experience in the secular and religious musical world continued and developed as he took part in the choral activities in and around the Saint Theodosius Cathedral there.

Saint Theodosius Cathedral, Cleveland

It was in this parish that the young Sergei had his first choral experience at the age of 7 or 8. He sang in a church choir that included men, women, and boys. There, at the Saint Theodosius Cathedral, he participated not only in the full choir, which sang all Sunday Divine Liturgies and Vigils on the eves of major feasts, but also in the small group that sang Vigils on Saturday evenings. This small group improvised harmony from the square-note melody-only books (an older style of musical notation). At the same age, the young Sergei had begun taking piano lessons and, following in his father’s footsteps, he learnt to play the trombone, the trumpet, and the French horn.

In 1941, Sergei’s father, Andrew, was ordained to the Holy Priesthood, and he was assigned to serve at Saint Michael’s Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Saint Michael's Church, Pittsburgh

There, Father Andrew’s brother-in-law, Ivan Wachnowsky, served as the choir director. However, because of a disagreement between the new priest and the choir director, the latter stepped down, and so it fell to the 13-year-old Sergei Glagolev to direct the choir. Father Andrew would come to the choir rehearsals and sternly observe while the young lad worked with the choir.

Sergei played in the high school band, and he sang in the high school choir. In high school, the choir was fond of singing works by A Gretchaninoff, P Tchaikovsky, P Chesnokov and other Russian Orthodox composers that had been arranged as “choral anthems”. Many of the same pieces were sung in church as well. By the time he had reached high school, Sergei’s musical knowledge already exceeded what was being taught in high school music theory courses, so he began to take private lessons.

Higher education

After graduating from high school in 1946, Sergei continued his involvement in music while he attended Oberlin College (southwest of Cleveland, where he used the opportunity to participate in the US Navy’s V-12 officer training programme, and at the same time took advantage of the excellent music programme. At Oberlin, he was exposed to a great variety of choral music, including the works of J S Bach and other masterworks of other composers. He would later recall that during his student days at Oberlin College, he first developed what he called his “love affair” with words and music — the “incredible marriage” of language and music found in the works of J S Bach, for example.

Oberlin College

The deep awareness of the harmony or wedding of the words with the music became an ongoing theme throughout his subsequent teaching of liturgical music and its interpretation : the syntax of the text must not deny what the musical phrase is trying to say ; on the other hand, the music must not conflict with the syntax and rhythm of the language. This was also reinforced by his experience of observing his father, who spent many hours teaching his choir members the meaning of Church Slavonic texts that they otherwise did not understand.

During World War II, some of the early experimentation had occurred with the use of the English language in Orthodox services. While attending chaplains’ services in the armed forces, young men discovered that there were other Orthodox peoples besides those of their particular ethnic group. During the time of the "Russian Mission", Bishop Tikhon (Belavin) already encouraged the use of the English language in the parishes. However, the local consequences of world events impeded the immediate development for some time. Later, in the Russian “Metropolia”, efforts to incorporate some English language into the services had begun under Metropolitan Theophilus (Pashkovsky) and later continued under Metropolitan Leonty (Turkevich). Similar efforts were underway in the Syrian Antiochian Archdiocese and in the Albanian Archdiocese.

In 1948, the “Federated Russian Orthodox Clubs” (FROC) had funded the publication of an English-language Divine Liturgy music book, which had been compiled by Father Andrew Glagolev on the basis of Isabel Hapgood’s “Service Book of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic (Greco-Russian) Church” of 1906. Miss Hapgood's service-book is still in use in some parishes, and it is frequently used for reference. Likewise, the music book of Father Andrew is still to be seen in some parishes. Father Sergei recalled that while he was still in Oberlin College at Lorain, Ohio (west of Cleveland), he had been asked by his father to prepare the choir in Lorain to sing an entire Divine Liturgy in English, a “first” that initially caused a considerable amount of resistance.

After 2 years at Oberlin, and being motivated largely by his interest in church music and at the encouragement of his father, he enrolled in Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in New York City. In 1948, Saint Vladimir’s Seminary was located in Manhattan. There, in addition to his seminary studies, Sergei was able to study at the New York University and Juilliard, and to complete a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education in 1949, as well as the theological degree at the seminary. During these years, he also participated in church choral activities in the New York City area.

Working with church choirs provided a rich opportunity to practice the teaching methods he had learnt in the classroom. At that time, the choir director at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary was Sergei Troitsky, who was also the choirmaster at Holy Protection Cathedral on East 2nd Street. The cathedral choir rehearsed twice a week, and the singers were paid. This arrangement enabled students like Sergei to make some money while they completed their studies. On other occasions, he would also go uptown to the parish on 125th Street, because this was the church attended by the famous composer Alexander Tikhonovich Gretchaninoff. Already aged 85, the venerable composer would sit in a chair and listen to the choir rehearsals. In those days, Sergei had frequent contact with A T Gretchaninoff, whom he admired and whose friendship he valued greatly. During this time he also had the experience of singing under the direction of Robert Shaw, a well-known director of choirs and orchestras. He founded the Collegiate Chorale and the Robert Shaw Chorale.

Bereavement, 1949

In 1949, Sergei’s younger sister Irene fell asleep in the Lord, at the age of 19.

After the Funeral Services for the Burial of a Lay-person, her body was interred at the Orthodox section of the Elmwood Cemetery of Lorain.

Service as a choir-master

After his graduation, because he was as yet too young to be ordained to Holy Orders, Sergei was sent first to Holy Assumption Church in Clifton, New Jersey, and then to Detroit, Michigan, in order to become the choirmaster. This was a typical arrangement for seminary graduates at the time.

The choir in Detroit Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral in Detroit, where he had been recruited by Father Vladimir Lilikovich, had an excellent choir, and a long tradition of professional choir directors. The choir rehearsed twice a week, and it swelled its ranks from students at the parish’s Russian School. The parochial school met daily for an hour-and-a-half, and the studies included the Russian language, Orthodox catechism, and church singing.

It was there, in 1950, that Sergei met Genevieve ("Gerry") Brunarsky.

Genevieve-Evgenia's early life

Genevieve Brunarsky was born on 27 March, 1924, in Detroit, Michigan. Her parents had previously emigrated from Galicia in the [, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austria-Hungary Austro-Hungarian Empire], in a region that later became part of Poland. They had another daughter, Olga, and a son, John. Although she was also known as Genevieve (an American-sounding name), at baptism, she was given the name Evgenia. Even so, at school, her teachers and classmates took to calling her Gerry, the nickname by which she was known for the rest of her life.

Gerry and her siblings were raised as Orthodox Christians, and they were formed in worship and understanding at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral in Detroit.

As a little girl, one of her favourite things to do was to sneak into the wedding celebrations in the parish hall with her friends. Her mother was typically the one who did much or all of the cooking for these events. In the typical fashion of Orthodox Christian families, the parish Temple was at the centre of family life (not on the periphery).

After completing her primary and secondary education, Gerry worked as a switchboard operator and as a receptionist at several businesses in the Detroit area. This experience prepared her well for similar work later in life.

Gerry sang in the choir at the Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, and that is where she would eventually meet Sergei Glagolev, the young newly-appointed choral conductor.

Sergei worked diligently with the large and dedicated parish choir, and he quickly developed it into one of the best parish choirs in the country. As a young, handsome choir director, Sergei surely could have had the pick of any of the eligible young ladies of the parish, and although it may be said to have come to pass, it was not without work. His eye fell on Gerry, who, initially, was not impressed. However, although it was not exactly "love at first sight" for them both, their friendship did begin and develop quickly. They were engaged and married within months of their first date.

Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral, Detroit

Marriage, 1951

On 23 January, 1961, Sergei A Glagolev and Genevieve Brunarsky were married at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral in Detroit.

Diaconal ordination, 1951

After their marriage, Sergei Andreievich Glagolev was ordained to the Holy Diaconate in late 1951.

In time, they received from the Lord 3 children : Christine, Marina and John.

Presbyteral ordination, 1952

Then, on 12 July, 1952, Deacon Sergei A Glagolev was ordained to the Holy Priesthood. At that time, on the "Old Style", that day would have been the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul.

Pastoral service

After the ordination, the Priest Sergei A Glagolev was assigned as an associate pastor at the cathedral, while he continued to lead the choir at the major services, and to teach at the parish school.

It is important to understand that, as is often the case with other well-known clergy, much more information is available with regard to Father Sergei than is the case with Matushka Genevieve. It is necessary to recall that without her constant presence and support, Father Sergei would not have been able to provide as much as he was able to provide to the Church. It was always obvious to see when they were together that he had been truly supported by his wife, whom he loved profoundly from the first. Indeed, Matushka Gerry considered her role as Matushka to be a true partnership alongside her husband, and she lived her life accordingly.

Bereavement, 1953

On 12 May, 1953, the Priest Andrew P Glagolev (1898-1953) fell asleep in the Lord in Lorain, Ohio.

On 15 May, 1953, after the Funeral Services for the Burial of a Priest, his body was interred in the Orthodox section of the Elmwood Cemetery of Lorain. Arrangements were prepared by the Rusynyk-Yurch Funeral Home.

Lorain, Ohio, 1953

Soon afterwards, the young Priest Sergei Glagolev was assigned to succeed his father as the rector of Saints Peter and Paul Church in Lorain, Ohio. This also gave him the opportunity to comfort and take care of his mother. Father Sergei’s mother remained close to the young Glagolevs in her widowhood.

Saints Peter and Paul Church, Lorain, Ohio

Father Andrew had been a strong advocate of the use of the English language in the services of the Church. As previously mentioned, he had published a book of the music of the Divine Liturgy in English in 1948. More than 65 years later, this book was still to be found in use in some parishes. Father Sergei followed his father’s pioneering work and in 1953, he wrote an article for the “FROC Journal” that pointed out his father’s vision concerning the future use of the English language, and how it was correlated with the evangelistic mission of the Orthodox Church in the North American land.

This particular vision regarding the language of worship has been at the heart of the Orthodox way from the earliest times : the Holy Gospel, the Holy Scriptures, and the worship of the Church must be understood by the people. It was for this reason that the Georgian alphabet was developed as early as the 5th century, and the translation of the Holy Scriptures and liturgical texts began. It was for this reason that the missionaries, Saints Cyril and Methodius, developed a written language for the Slavs so that they could understand the Holy Scriptures and the services of worship without first having to learn the Greek language. It was for this reason that Saint Innocent (Veniaminov) and others translated the Scriptures and liturgical texts into Alaskan languages. It was for this reason that the Valaam Monastery on Lake Ladoga translated the Slavonic texts into the Finnish language ("Suomen kieli"). It was for this reason that the Scriptures and liturgical texts were long ago translated into the Romanian language, and why the Romanian Orthodox Church has had for a long time the ability to read and pray in Romanian. Any change is difficult for Orthodox Christians to accommodate, but the movement towards the translation of scriptural and liturgical texts into the spoken and understood language has always been fundamental.

Encino, Tarzana, 1955

The interest raised by the article led to a call from the Bishops’ Council (Synod of Bishops) of the ROGCCNA 2 years later, during which they asked Father Sergei to make a beginning of a new Orthodox mission in the rapidly growing suburbs of Los Angeles, California. This mission would exclusively use the English language for worship. In 1955, the parish of Saint Innocent in Tarzana, California, was established. This parish is situated in Tarzana, which is adjacent to Encino, and both are suburbs to the north of Los Angeles.

This presented an opportunity to begin anew with young Orthodox families, transplanted from the “ethnic” communities of their parents, who otherwise would likely attend services only a few times a year in a more traditional parish that used a language they did not understand. For the most part in North America, by this time, second- and third-generation families had lost their ability to speak easily (if at all) in their ancestral languages.

Thus, the mission of Saint Innocent became the focus of Father Sergei’s pastoral and musical activities for the next 20 years. The mission had begun with 17 parishioners meeting for services at a funeral parlour in Encino, California. The parishioners then built a Temple in Tarzana, California.

Upon establishing the mission, the first thing that Father Sergei organised was the choir (“even before a parish council”), which he taught and rehearsed, while the actual services were directed by another priest. Throughout these years, Father Sergei’s musical activities took on a supremely practical dimension : when something needed to be sung in English, he composed it, or he arranged it, or he adapted it. He commented that “It was easier to sit down and write something than to go look for it somewhere. And at that time, what was available in English was very limited”. This pattern would not stop. He continued to be active as a composer for the remainder of his days, in the course of which he created at least 200 works.

Father Sergei during a choir-rehearsal

Most of Father Sergei’s musical works were written in response to specific needs or for specific occasions (church music workshops, liturgical institutes, or special services, such as the Memorial Day pilgrimages at Saint Tikhon’s Monastery in South Canaan, Pennsylvania).

Serving in the newly-constructed Temple in Encino

Contact in his seminary days with Father Alexander Schmemann and the latter’s explorations in the field of liturgical theology played an important formative role in Father Sergei’s future pastoral service in the California suburbs. For example, it was in this community that the long-established Russian practice of celebrating the Pre-Sanctified Liturgy in the morning was first reconsidered and returned to its logical place in the evening (since it is based on Vespers, and the rubrics expect a later time to begin). Once the change was made to English, things “began to happen” liturgically. As Father Sergei said about the Lesser Entrance :

 When we come into God’s presence (in the Entrance), He reveals Himself by the living Word, Jesus Christ, who 
 comes to speak to us by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Wow ! All of a sudden, a different understanding of the 
 Divine Liturgy, that this isn’t some kind of ‘proscenium event’, where we all sit or stand and watch something 
 that’s happening, but that we are all involved in the living Christ, all leading to the Eucharist, which 
 fulfills our life with the knowledge of Truth in this world and life everlasting in the world to come, by
 God’s Grace.  This was a different vision, which happened in the 1950s, and I thank God that He allowed me 
 to be part of it.  The English vernacular, the liturgical renewal, Eucharistic awakening, and the growth of 
 the suburban missions throughout the USA in large part began as the ‘Encino Movement’, as this California 
 endeavour was called.

The Temple, constructed in Encino in 1956, suffered a fire in 1969. The new Temple was constructed in 1972 at a new site in Tarzana.

Saint Innocent Church, Tarzana, California

At Fort Ross with Bishop Theodosius of Alaska, 1960s

Father Sergei (top row, second from left) with Bishop Theodosius (Lazor) of Alaska at historic Fort Ross in the late 1960s. Others in the photo include (far left) Subdeacon (later Bishop) Alexander Golitzin, and (second from right, top row) Father (later Bishop) Boris Geeza ; altar boys in front of Father Sergei are George Golitzin and John Glagolev.

With Archpriest Alexander Schmemann in Los Angeles, 1960s

Father Sergei Glagolev (right) with Father Alexander Schmemann (centre), Dean of Saint Vladimir’s Seminary, and Father Dimitri Gisetti of Los Angeles in the 1960s.

1962, File:Father Sergei, Edward Stuyak, Philp Tamoush, Nicholas T Geeza discussing music

During these years, and during the subsequent years, Matushka Gerry worked countless hours preparing food and hosting parish events, as well as offering gracious hospitality in her own home. She became an accomplished cook and baker. She adapted and perfected recipes for kulich and cheese pascha, and many other ethnic and personal favourites over the years, which her guests eagerly anticipated and appreciated.

Saint Vladimir's Seminary Alumni Association photo 1962

San Francisco, 1973

In 1973, Father Sergei was called to serve as chancellor of the Diocese of the West and as dean of Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco. However, the stress of his responsibilities as chancellor and as dean in the Diocese of the West contributed to his suffering a heart attack.

Transfer to New York, 1976

Therefore, in 1976, after he had recovered from the heart attack, Father Sergei was transferred to New York, where he was assigned to Holy Trinity Church in East Meadow on Long Island. From Long Island, Father Sergei began to teach liturgical music at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary. He regarded the opportunity to teach as “a great blessing, which allows one to learn and grow, being forced to think things through, presenting ideas, and then learning from the feedback when students respond”. He taught 2 days a week, and he covered such subjects as “Interpretation of Liturgical Music”, “History of Liturgical Music” and “Composition”.

In 1976, Father Sergei travelled to Valparaiso, Indiana, with Father Alexander Schmemann for a gathering for a Liturgical Institute there. Father Alexander wrote about Father Sergei in his diary :

 My companion, Father S. G., nice, modest, genuine, has the radiance of real Orthodoxy.  I thoroughly enjoy his company – everything 
 is easy and light in his loving, open-minded, joyous presence.

Bereavement, 1977

In 1977, Matushka Magdalena Glagolev, Father Sergei’s mother, fell asleep in the Lord.

After the Funeral Services for the Burial of a Lay-person, her body was interred also in the Elmwood Cemetery in Lorain, Ohio, beside the graves of her husband and daughter.

Grave-marker for Archpriest Andrew, Matushka Magdalene and Irene Glagolev, Ohio

Fire

It was after the Glagolevs had settled on Long Island that they suffered from a catastrophic house fire which incurred serious losses. On that particular week-end, they were in Washington, DC. This fire caused the long-lasting serious economic difficulties of the Glagolevs as well.

Matushka Genevieve-Gerry began work at the chancery, 1981

In 1981, Matushka Glagolev began to work as the OCA chancery receptionist/secretary at the head office in Oyster Bay Cove near Syosset. It was during the tenure of Metropolitan Theodosius (Lazor) that she was hired both to fill a need, and to help to supplement the family’s small and limited income.

She was entrusted, also, with maintaining the clergy records at the Chancery, which she did assiduously and meticulously. Despite the amount of work that passed over her desk, it was always clean and orderly at the end of every day. Matushka Gerry was the kind and helpful voice who answered the phone, and she was the "face" of the OCA that welcomed visitors. Through this work, she got to know much of the clergy and their families who called or visited the Chancery. She became for them a friendly, empathetic, albeit principled, mother figure.

Father Sergei continued to teach ; leading the Fellowship of Orthodox Stewards, 1981-1986

Also in 1981, in addition to teaching music at both Saint Vladimir’s and Saint Tikhon’s seminaries, Metropolitan Theodosius (Lazor) assigned Father Sergei to serve as the first Director of the "Fellowship of Orthodox Stewards" (now the "Stewards of the Orthodox Church in America"). Established in 1980, the Fellowship of Orthodox Stewards (FOS) has been the main programme for regular annual voluntary donations of The Orthodox Church in America.

Gifts to the FOS were intended for the direct support of the budgets of the "ministries/departments" of The Orthodox Church in America. The FOS Executive Director was to be responsible to the metropolitan, and to work directly under the guidance of the OCA’s chancellor. The work involved identifying, cultivating and soliciting gifts through personal visits, telephone contact, and mail. It also required developing local parish and regional FOS volunteers to assist in the identification and cultivation of new FOS members. There was also travel across North America because of the great importance of personal contact.

This change relieved him of the daily parish responsibilities, and it allowed him to focus even more on teaching. While teaching, he specialised in homiletics, liturgical theology and sacred music.

Nevertheless, after 5 years of intense work and travel, it became necessary that Father Sergei retire from active pastoral service, which he did in 1986. However, he remained active in many ways, including teaching, visiting communities, and leading the singing at the Domestic Chapel of Saint Sergius in the Residence of the Metropolitan at Oyster Bay Cove (Syosset), New York.

All the while, Matushka "Gerry" continued to work as receptionist and filing-clerk at the chancery's central office. She was so respected that someone playfully gave her a name-plate for her desk that read "Mother Superior". She was highly respected for her personal integrity, her dignity and professionalism.

In recognition of her dedicated labours for the Church over many years, she, personally, was awarded several gramotas by the Holy Synod of Bishops, including one on the occasion of her 80th birthday.

Matushka Gerry at work in the chancery

Active retirement, 1986 and later

While he was the director of the "FOS", Father Sergei was able to travel and to present liturgical music workshops all over the country (and continent). He estimated that he had participated in 40 or 50 such workshops. On some occasions, he directed the “pick-up choir” for the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and other services on Memorial Day at Saint Tikhon’s Monastery, for which he had written many special settings.

In his retirement, Father Sergei continued to lecture and to write. He held the title of Professor Emeritus of Saint Tikhon’s Seminary ; Lecturer at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary ; Visiting Professor at Saint Herman’s Seminary in Kodiak, Alaska.

Father Sergei continued to teach at both the seminaries up until 1990, when he had to undergo by-pass surgery. After that, his regular teaching activities had to be curtailed.

Canadian workshops, 1990, 1993

On 30 November and 1 December, 1990, Father Sergei was able to lead a music conference attended by 45 persons at the Holy Trinity Bukowinian Sobor in central Ottawa, Ontario. The theme was “Music as Orthodox Worship”. The participants came from Québec City, Sherbrooke, Montréal (in Québec), Ottawa, Kingston, Belleville (in Ontario), Winnipeg (Manitoba), and Vancouver (British Columbia). Father Sergei stressed the importance of acquiring a proper theological understanding about the form and function of our sacred singing, and its right place in our Church’s worship :

 It is necessary that the true inner logic of our worship and liturgical singing be restored : the logic of its 
 kerygmatic, didactic and prophetic function.  Our singing must make sense.  Each part must be in its correct 
 place so that the structure of the words of the prayer may be heard and understood by all present.  It is 
 important that we develop an appreciation for balance and also a proper mixing of textures.  He stressed the 
 importance of discrimination, and of having a sharp sense of continuity with what and who have gone before us.  
 Our church singing must be comprehensible, and no way distort or distract from the meaning of the words.  In 
 order to do this, we must be careful about correct breathing and clear pronunciation of words.  We must take 
 care to follow the natural pulses of the words and pay attention to the syntax of the sentences.  We must be 
 careful about pitch, intonation, cadences, pauses, inflection, accents, and nuances.  
 
 The use of music with words is closely related to iconographic painting.  In every way the correct theology of 
 the Church is to be conveyed to the viewer and to the listener.  The singing must convey the elevated 
 utterance of our dialogue with God.  We must sing only in the context of such a dialogue, and never without 
 it.  Our ecclesiastical singing is not for entertainment.  The function of ecclesiastical singing is to 
 glorify God, and along with all creation to thank Him in a hymn of praise.

Father Sergei was assisted by Matushka Mary Tkachuk, who shared her own experience in choir-direction. She offered some suggestions about how the quality of our church music might be improved. She presented a method by which non-musicians could learn to give the pitches, and there was included a practical demonstration about just how to do this.

At the conclusion, the Archpriest John Scratch said, “We have been blessed, we have been enriched [...] your words have stirred in us something of the sublime”.

On 15-17 October, 1993, Father Sergei led a second singing workshop in Ottawa, Ontario. Participants came from British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec. Included was an open lecture about Byzantine and Russian music which was given at Saint Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church. As before, and thanks to the Archpriest Oleg Kirilov, the workshops were offered at Holy Trinity Bukowinian Orthodox Sobor in the city-centre. There was plenty of singing music scores which participants could take to their parishes. Father Sergei conducted the singing at the Saturday Vespers and the Sunday Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at the Annunciation to the Theotokos-Saint Nicholas Cathedral in the Glebe district of Ottawa. Father Sergei’s enthusiasm and his knowledge were inspiring.

Father Sergei Glagolev, Icon of Saint Nikolaj (Velimirović)

Father Sergei knew Saint Nikolaj (Velimirović) when, as a bishop, he was teaching at Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary in the 1950s.

Father Sergei, Matushka Gerry, at Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Education Day, 1990s

1999 speech at the Twelfth All-American Council

During the Twelfth All-American Council (Sobor) held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 25-30 July, 1999, Father Sergei asked Metropolitan Theodosius whether he could address the brother clergy at a special clergy breakfast following liturgy. As Archpriest John Memorich (who shared the copy of the speech) commented, Father Sergei was aware of his fragile health, and he wanted to speak before he might not be able. The speech follows :

Your Beatitude, most respected Archpastors and Bishops, beloved pastors and brothers in Christ : Christ is
in our midst !

How good it is on this last day of the last All-American Council of this millennium for us to come together
as the brotherhood of archpastors and pastors, to break bread together in ‘agape’ – the meal of love – the
logical extension of the Holy Eucharist we have celebrated together ‘in behalf of all and for all’. And may
the Council end today with the warm brotherly embrace of one another – having been enabled by the Spirit’s
Grace not simply to know ‘about’ each other, but to know each other more profoundly, perhaps even deeply
enough to care.

Yet love – more especially Christian brotherly love – is always a risky business. Love (and this ‘knowing
each other’ is akin to love) makes us vulnerable. Love leads us to the Cross. There is no other way to
pastor, let alone live the Christian life.

Many years ago, the late Archbishop John of San Francisco sent me as Chancellor of the Western States
to confirm on his behalf a young priest as parish pastor. I could see that the parishioners seemed
to like the young man, and so I was emboldened to ask one of the men on the Parish Council how the
priest was doing during his first year in the parish. The man sighed and said, ‘Oh, he’s alright,
I guess, but all he ever talks about is love’. What else is there to talk about, I remember thinking,
God the Father having delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the Kingdom of the Son
of His Love (Colossians 1:13). ‘Owe no one anything except to love one another ; for he who loves another has
fulfilled the law [...] love does no harm to a neighbour ; therefore love is the fulfilment of the law’
(Romans 13:8,10).

But I knew where that parishioner was coming from : all that talk about ‘knowing each other, loving one
another’, made him feel vulnerable. Why not talk about the ‘rules’ – surely, that feels more ‘religious’ :
what makes us more ‘Orthodox’, – the rules, you know : when to stand, sit, kneel and cross yourself,
what not to eat and when, what text to use, what not to omit, how to dress, for whom you can or cannot
pray – you know, the rules.

I invited the same Archbishop John to address the San Francisco Cathedral Sisterhood during one Great Fast –
it was his Cathedral, and he knew the women well. He spoke for more than an hour about the meaning of
Christian fasting. At the end, a cathedral lady stood up and protested, ‘But, your Eminence, you have
not told us what we can or cannot eat !’ With a deep sigh – and yet with a twinkle in his eye, the
Archbishop answered, ‘Dear ladies, don’t eat each other’. [At this point the clergy all laughed loudly
and Father Sergei said off the cuff, ‘It’s true, it really happened ; you can’t make things like this up’.]
‘Above all things’, Saint Peter says to the newly baptised in Christ, ‘have fervent love for one another,
for love covers a multitude of sins’ (I Peter 4:8).

I remember reading for the first time the story of the Grand Inquisitor, in Dostoyevsky’s Brothers Karamazov
while still in seminary in the 1940s. You remember how furious the old Cardinal was over our Lord Jesus
appearing in his city and upsetting his rule of law and order with all that sweet talk about beauty, love,
and forgiveness. Our Lord answered his accuser’s tirade with the kiss of peace. In the end, it is not
‘heresy-cleansing’, but beauty that will save the universe. Christ is the Light, and in the beauty of
His Light shall we see light.

We are pastors because we are called to be ‘people-persons’. Surely, we love liturgy as life, for in
worship we are called into the very glory of Christ’s presence. But liturgy and life is also a relationship :
to the Holy Trinity, to the Theotokos and all the angels and saints, and not least, a relationship to each
other, to those who worship with us and those who do not, those within and without liturgy and life.
Having offered up the whole cosmos as an act of love in Christ ‘in behalf of all and for all’, and having
called to mind each and all, the faithful respond, ‘and all mankind !’ Here we have to be mindful :
I remember years ago how Charlie Brown so succinctly paraphrased a Dostoyevskian phrase : having had
enough of Lucy, he cries out, ‘I love all mankind, it’s people I can’t stand !’ It’s easy to love the
presbyterium, the Brotherhood ; it’s the ‘brother’ who’s hard to take.

I read recently an excerpt from Saint John Chrysostom’s Johanine commentary on Our Lord’s restoration and
commission of Saint Peter (John 21). ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me ?’ – our Lord asks Saint Peter thrice
(thereby absolving the three-times denial). ‘Yes, Lord, You know that I love You’. Saint Peter replies thrice.
‘Then feed My Lambs. Tend My Sheep. Feed My Sheep’. Of course, Jesus knows Peter loves Him. Chrysostom says
Our Lord here speaks of His own love for each and every member of His Precious Body the Church – and those
who are yet to come, as well as those who are yet to turn away from their denial – for all, in behalf of all.
Our Lord is saying to Saint Peter – and thus to all who pastor : Love Me – love My Sheep. Love Me – feed My Lambs.
Love Me – tend to My Sheep. Love Me – feed My Sheep. If you love Me, you must love them with My love.

Returning from the reconstruction of Saint Catherine’s Church of the Orthodox Church in America’s Representation
in Moscow last month, our delegation stopped briefly in Helsinki for a visit with Metropolitan Leo and the
vibrant Orthodox Church of Finland. The Finnish Orthodox woman who was guiding us on the Metropolitan’s
behalf was giving us some insights into Finnish character. She remarked that Finnish representatives who
are sent to Western Europe and North America have to take special courses in small talk and pleasantries
because trivial conversation is not part of Finnish national culture. She demonstrated with an anecdote
about a Finnish couple who was married for 48 years. One evening the wife burst into tears and could not
be comforted. After much prodding by her bewildered husband, she blurted out that on their wedding day,
he told her that he loved her, but has never said he loved her ever since. ‘Darling’, said the husband, ‘if I
ever change my mind, I’ll tell you’.

As you know, Saint Herman, our first North American Saint, was from Valaamo in Finland (thus he was probably
a man of few words). Yet you see how in Christ he adapted to the needs of his Native American people.
For the cover of the Akathist of the Canonisation of Saint Herman of Alaska in 1970, Father Vladimir Borichevsky
chose a drawing of Saint Herman giving cookies he baked to delighted Aleut children. In Christ, he found ways
to tell his new American family that he loved them. He showed them that he loved them. Of course, you know
that no matter what we do, somebody is going to criticise. Father Borichevsky was lambasted. Of all the writings
we have about Saint Herman, surely baking and giving cookies to delight children hardly depicts the sanctity
of the man ! It doesn’t ? The critic completely missed the point, didn’t he. Didn’t he ?

Please, dear brothers, don’t wait any longer to tell the flock Christ has entrusted to you, that you love them.
Show them that you love them. And when they stray, gather them together, and bring them back to Christ.
‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me ? Then tend to My Sheep’.

I am an old man, and our Lord may not give me another chance to speak to you. Later, when people might ask
what I had to say, tell them that all I ever talked about was love.

God bless you each and every one.

Pray for me, a sinner.

Thank you for your patience.

Matushka Gerry's experience and perspective

In a letter to Mother Christophora, Abbess of Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, Matushka Gerry related the following thoughts about being a Matushka :

 A wise old Anglican Priest told me to work with the people, but that I should never be in charge.
 I took his advice and it worked out.  For me, I was just one of the bunch but worked with the 
 ladies.  My role turned out to be just being friendly to everyone in the parish.  I never ignored 
 anyone.  I tried to be good to everyone even to those who were difficult, and there were many.

In many unique ways, Matushka Gerry had a profound impact on Church life and countless persons and she served as a role-model for generations of clergy wives.

To the end of her earthly life, she sent out handwritten notes and prompt thank you cards, prized by recipients. She was distinguished by her personal devotion to God and His Church, and to her husband and family and friends, as well as by her dignified bearing and exceptional beauty (interior as well as exterior) even as a nonagenarian.

50 years of marriage, and of priestly service, 2001

In 2001, Father Sergei and Matushka Genevieve (Evgenia) marked the 50th anniversary of their marriage, as well as the 50th anniversary of Father Sergei's ordination to the Holy Diaconate and to the Holy Priesthood.

The Glagolev Family, 2001

In 2002, to mark the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the Holy Priesthood in 2001, the “PSALM Music Press” published a collection entitled “Fr. Sergei Glagolev, Selected Orthodox Sacred Choral Works”, vol. 1, available from “Musica Russica”, from “Seraphim Six Productions”, and from Saint Tikhon’s Monastery Bookstore. A CD of his works, entitled “Lay Aside All Earthly Cares”, was recorded by Cappella Romana, which was based on that collection.

During the course of their marriage, Father Sergei and Matushka Genevieve received from the Lord 3 children, and and then 4 grandchildren.

Meeting Metropolitan Gregory (Tatsis)

In 2005, Saint Tikhon's Monastery at South Canaan, Pennsylvania, celebrated the 110th anniversary of its founding. On this occasion, Father Sergei led the singers during the annual May Pilgrimage. Father Sergei was ready and willing to do this on many occasions, both here and elsewhere.

Leading the singers at the May Pilgrimage, 2005

Faculty of the 2006 PSALM Music Conferernce, Cicero, Ohio

(Front right : Father Sergei ; Archbishop Job (Osacky) of Chicago ; Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko)

Father Sergei with Vladimir Morosan (member of PSALM, founder of "Musica Russica"

Father Sergei, making a presentation

Retirement of Matushka Genevieve, 2006

On Thursday, 13 April, 2006, Matushka Gerry Glagolev marked the 25th anniversary of her employment at the chancery office of The Orthodox Church in America. It was later announced that Matushka Glagolev would retire on 15 July, 2007. Matushka Gerry had never been added into the pension programme of The Orthodox Church in America by either of 2 chancellors (despite her repeated requests for such a consideration). Thus, she was ineligible for a retirement pension. However, in recognition of her many years of faithful service in the chancery, the “Organisation Task Force” recommended that she be kept on the payroll of the Church, after her retirement, at a rate that would be equal to what she would have been eligible for had she been in the pension programme. A letter of agreement effective with her retirement was given to her that promised to pay her this monthly amount until her death. With her agreement to such a plan, it was understood that she would no longer be part of the health and life insurance of the Church (the rules of participation are particular, limited, and strict). This goodwill gesture on the part of the Church was appreciated and gladly accepted by Matushka Gerry. It is to be remembered that this occurred at a time when the administration was suffering from substantial economic difficulties. Matushka Gerry's work was truly valued not only by the administration itself, but by the bishops, clergy and others who very often depended on her to know where to find important information.

It is doubtful that anyone could have valued Matushka Genevieve as much as did Father Sergei. She was always Father Sergei’s support in all his labours. She also shielded him when he was reluctant to decline a request or speaking invitation in his later years. In what some regard as a typical Orthodox characteristic, Matushka Genevieve spoke honestly, directly, forthrightly, without dissimulation, all rooted in kindness, respect and graciousness.

Matushka Glagolev

When time allowed, the Father Sergei and Matushka Gerry enjoyed the occasions on which they could travel abroad (sometimes as a part of "work"). Their destinations included Russia, the Holy Land, Egypt, Greece, Eastern and Western Europe, the Caribbean.

60th Anniversary, 2011

The last journey abroad took them to Paris, France, where they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in January, 2011.

Matushka Gerry was an entertaining raconteuse. She would regale friends with stories of her childhood, of her experience of Church life over many decades, and even of encounters with certain Hollywood celebrities while she lived in California.

Order of Saint Romanos, 2014

On 24 September, 2014, the Archpriest Sergei Glagolev was one of 4 initial recipients of The Orthodox Church in America’s "Order of Saint Romanos", which was awarded by the Holy Synod of Bishops “for his lifetime of musical contributions as a singer, choirmaster, composer and teacher”, and for pioneering “the use of English in liturgical services, of which many are now classic parts of the repertoire of parish choirs”. The other recipients were the Archpriest Igor Soroka, David Drillock, and Walter Shymansky.

At Holy Trinity Church, East Meadow, New York, Sunday, 2016

Order of Saint Romanos, 2017

On Sunday, 4 June, 2017 (the Great Feast of Pentecost), Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard) celebrated the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Holy Trinity Church, East Meadow, New York.

During the Divine Liturgy, Metropolitan Tikhon awarded the Archpriest Sergei Glagolev the right to wear the mitre (an award given to priests primarily by the Russian Orthodox Church). This mitre was given exceptionally, in recognition of his many years of outstanding service to The Orthodox Church in America (along with his wife). Metropolitan Tikhon also spoke about Father Sergei and Matushka Genevieve’s life-long devotion to and service in the Church.

Award of the mitre

OCA Archives 2018 presentation about Father Sergei (Archivist Alexei Liberovsky, right)

Father Sergei with Serge Liberovsky, 2018

Move to California, 2 anniversaries

In 2020, Father Sergei and Matushka Genevieve Glagolev marked the 69th anniversary of their marriage. As one of their beloved friends remarked, even though they had now moved from Long Island, New York, to Santa Cruz, California, they still celebrated in an Italian restaurant.

At the 69th anniversary

Glagolevs 2020 Paschal pascha Glagolevs 2020 Pascha

70th anniversary, 2021

In 2021, Father Sergei and Matushka Genevieve marked the 70th anniversary of their marriage.

January in California

Later, because of failing health, Father Sergei was admitted to a hospice which was near the home of his and Matushka Genevieve's daughter.

Repose of Father Sergei, 2021

On Wednesday morning, 1 September, 2021, Mitred Archpriest Sergei Glagolev fell asleep in the Lord in Santa Cruz, California.

Following his repose, Panikhidas (Memorial Services) were served several times for the newly-departed servant of God.

His body was then transported to Saint Tikhon's Monastery at South Canaan, Pennsylvania, where he and Matushka Gerry had previously purchased graves.

Father Sergei in the coffin in the Temple

On Friday, 10 September, 2021, at 7:00 p.m., the Funeral Service for the Burial of a Presbyter was served in the Catholicon of Saint Tikhon's Monastery by Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard). He was assisted by Archbishop Michael (Dahulich) and Alexander Rentel (chancellor of The Orthodox Church in America), by Priest Alessandro Margheritino (Secretary of The Orthodox Church in America), and by 4 other priests and 2 deacons. At this service, Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard) gave a eulogy.

The Funeral service (left) ; venerating the body of Father Sergei afterwards (right)

On Saturday, 11 September, 2021, at 9:00 a.m., the Primatial Memorial Divine Liturgy was served by Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard). He was assisted by Archbishop Michael (Dahulich), 12 priests and 2 deacons. During the Divine Liturgy, Archpriest John Jillions (former Chancellor of The Orthodox Church in America) preached a homily. At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, Archbishop Michael (Dahulich) of New York and New Jersey gave a eulogy.

Matushka Evgenia Glagolev and her children make farewells and prayers before the Divine Liturgy

During the Primatial Memorial Divine Liturgy

At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, a final Memorial Litya for the Departed was served by the coffin, at the conclusion of which Metropolitan Tikhon gave another short talk. The "Last Kiss" was given to Father Sergei. Afterwards, the body of Father Sergei Glagolev was borne around the Temple, and then taken to the cemetery of the monastery for the interment.

At the interment in the cemetery

Repose of Matushka Genevieve-Evgenia, 2022

On Monday, 23 May, 2022, Matushka Genevieve (Evgenia, "Gerry") Glagolev fell asleep in the Lord in Santa Cruz, California. She reposed at home, where she was surrounded by family.

During the days that followed, after prayers were said privately, her body was transported to South Canaan, Pennsylvania, in advance of the funeral services.

On Monday, 6 June, 2022, at 10:00 a.m., at Saint Tikhon's Orthodox Monastery, South Canaan, Pennsylvania, the Memorial Divine Liturgy was served in the Monastery's Catholicon of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk by Archbishop Michael (Danhulich) of New York and New Jersey and 2 archpriests. Immediately afterwards, the Funeral Service for the Burial of a Lay-person was served in the Temple.

At the conclusion of the funeral service, before the last farewells, Archbishop Michael (Dahulich) gave a eulogy.

Funeral Service of Matushka Genevieve Glagolev, Saint Tikhon's Monastery

After the conclusion of the funeral obsequies, the body of Matushka Genevieve-Evgenia Glagolev was interred beside the grave of her husband in the cemetery of the monastery.

Reflections

Mitred Archpriest Sergei Glagolev was a retired priest of The Orthodox Church in America. He is significant (amongst many other things) for his pioneering work of introducing the English language into Orthodox Church services and for composing suitable musical arrangements. He also established the first all-English-language community in southern California. He later established a financial support programme for The Orthodox Church in America, the “Fellowship of Orthodox Stewards”.

With regard to the period in the lives of Father Sergei and Matushka Genieve Glagolev when there were great difficulties, there are some who would recall a saying which aptly describes the tactics of the enemy of our race : "no good deed goes unpunished". However, their trust, confidence and hope in the Lord enabled them to pass through these difficulties without losing the underlying joy which has been characteristic of them.

The nature of the workshops

As Dr. Vladimir Morosan wrote,
Anyone who ever attended one of Father Sergei’s liturgical music workshops will recall the energy, joy,
and sincerity with which he spoke about the Orthodox liturgy, worship, and liturgical singing. The repeated
themes of these workshops, which he revisited time and again — liturgical movement, sacred song, the power
of the sung word — made the hearers understand that there is no more exalted activity that human beings
can engage in than to stand in the presence of the Living God and to lift up their voices to Him in
prayerful, musically elevated utterance. Yet the Orthodox expression of this utterance is unique. Other
faiths have 'religious music', but the Orthodox have 'sacred singing', he would say. What is the difference ?
It becomes apparent when we understand that in Orthodox worship we do not pray unless we sing, and we do not
sing unless that song is prayer. The prayer-book of the Orthodox Christian Church is basically a song-book ;
and the sung psalms are a prayer-book.

This understanding of the intimate link between text and music has informed Father Sergei’s work as a composer
of liturgical music. Amongst his favourite western composers are those whose work bore an intimate connection
with worship : Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Vivaldi (another priest who was a composer), and
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, the great choral master of the Renaissance. Amongst Russian composers, his favourites include Pavel Chesnokov, Victor Kalinnikov, Alexander Kastalsky
('a phenomenal influence, whose importance has yet to be appreciated'), and, of course, Alexander Gretchaninoff
('my old friend', who questioned the need to impose the German-style figured bass on Orthodox liturgical music).
Rather, he favoured a return to the principle of the 'ison', from where our liturgical polyphony began,
and which is reflected in some of his liturgical settings.

In Father Sergei’s view, congregational singing is a good thing, but it should not entirely supplant the choral
tradition of the Church. Traditionally, there has always been a richness, a variety of performing forces : the
choir, the people.

In his active retirement, Father Sergei has continued to lecture and write, as he hopes to share in shaping
the vision of the witness and mission of The Orthodox Church in America. Father Sergei is linked to the ancient
Russian Orthodox Church by family, to the Russian Orthodox mission in America by the days of his youth, and to
the aspirations of The Orthodox Church in America by his continuing endeavours.

David Drillock, former Provost and Professor Emeritus of Music at Saint Vladimir's Orthodox Seminary, wrote about Father Sergei :

From the mid-50s of the last century when Father Sergei Glagolev was called to organise the first English-speaking
Orthodox mission to the present day, he has pioneered the use of the English language in Orthodox liturgical
services. This has often required that he compose music for those services.

Although not a few Church composers and musicians have produced traditional ethnic church music set to English
words, so many times the result has been a hybrid product that when used in worship services can be described
as Greek or Russian services in English, but not English services. Father Glagolev pioneered the way for the
composition of church music in English that truly sounds 'English'. In his teaching he has always stressed
the importance of the union of text and melody ; music must not conflict with the syntax and rhythm of the
language ; and, on the other hand, the syntax of the text must not deny what the musical phrase is trying to say.

At his lectures of liturgical music at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary, Saint Tikhon’s Seminary, Saint Herman’s Seminary ;
at liturgical institutes and at workshops presented all over the country, his teaching of Orthodox liturgy,
worship, and liturgical singing has informed and inspired thousands of Orthodox faithful. In those lectures
and talks he has always stressed the importance of sacred song, encouraging all to participate in liturgical
singing, for, as he would say : 'There is no more exalted activity human beings can engage in than to stand
in the presence of the living God and to life up their voices to Him in prayerful, musically elevated utterance'.

Music that is used in Orthodox worship must also be able to reflect its liturgical use. Liturgical components —
litany, psalmody, hymnody — in many ways dictate their musical form and function. I had the distinct pleasure
and honour to have collaborated with Father Glagolev and Father Alexander Schmemann in creating and organising the
first summer Liturgical Institute of Music and Pastoral Practice at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary in 1978. It was
for several of these institutes that Fr. Sergei composed music that was based on considerations of both its
poetic form and its liturgical function : the Vesperal Psalm 'Bless the Lord, Praise the Name of the Lord' sung
at Matins, and the Communion hymn 'The Righteous Shall be in Everlasting Remembrance', to name just a few. These
compositions, using easily distinguished melodies, consonant harmonies, and rhythms that reflect spoken English,
capture the spirit and joy of Orthodox worship and invite the assembled Faithful to 'join in'. Such settings
employ the sound and the cadence of the English language as their starting point, yet remain true to the historic
musical tradition of our faith. These are the models for congregational participation in Orthodox worship.

A person that God indeed has blessed with so many gifts and talents, Fr. Sergei has always used these gifts as
a glorification of God Himself through his service to the Church—as singer, choral director, composer, and
pastor. His love for people, his compassion and generosity that he was so capable of giving to all those
who crossed his path, were a manifestation of his ability to see in each individual the face of Christ.
Father Sergei Glagolev was truly a man of God and an inspiration to all of us who have been personally
touched by his life, his teaching, and his love.

In recent years, Saint Vladimir's Seminary honoured Father Sergei on numerous occasions.

On 10 February, 2018, with Father Sergei in attendance, the Saint Vladimir’s Seminary Chorale performed select compositions by him at the "Orthodox Masterpieces" event at Three Hierarchs Chapel.

A few months later, the Seminary bestowed on Father Sergei the honourary degree of Doctor of Sacred Music.

In 2020, Saint Vladimir's and the "International Society for Orthodox Church Music" (ISOCM) celebrated Father Sergei's life and work at their joint Pan-Orthodox Music Symposium.

In retirement, Father Sergei partaking of the Holy Mysteries at Saint Laurence Church, Felton, California

Eulogy by Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard) at the Funeral Service of Father Sergei Glagolev

10 September, 2021

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

My beloved children,

We gather in this holy temple to offer hymns of falling asleep to the newly departed servant of God,
Archpriest Sergei, whose voice we hear echoed in the words offered at the beginning of this evening’s
service, words of the Holy Prophet David in his 118th Psalm : 'With my whole heart I seek Thee, let me
not wander from Thy commandments. I have laid up Thy word in my heart that I might not sin against Thee'
(Psalm 118[119]:10–11).

If we picked any verse from the Psalms, we might find that that particular verse applies exactly and
fittingly to the faithful servant of Jesus Christ and minister at the altar who now lies before us.
The reality of our common human condition has placed Father Sergei before us, bereft of glory and form,
as we sing. And yet, his face still radiates with life and with hope, as if he were speaking to the Lord :
'Deal bountifully with Thy servant, that I may live and observe Thy word. Open my eyes that I may behold
wondrous things out of Thy law' (Psalm 118[119]:17–18). Such words guided Father Sergei in his earthly life,
and I am confident that, just as he beheld wondrous things through his earthly eyes, he is now experiencing
the fulness of the heavenly glory that is welcoming him in the Kingdom.

The Orthodox Church in America has lost a great number of venerable clergy over the past year. Each of them
offered his particular gifts and talents to the Lord and to the Church, for which all of us are grateful.
Father Sergei’s gift to the Church was his heart : he sought the Lord with his whole heart, and his heart
was open to his brothers and sisters with an overflowing of love, compassion, and kindness. He both lived
and conveyed to others the words of the Psalmist : 'Let Thy steadfast love be ready to comfort me according
to Thy promise to Thy servant. Let Thy mercy come to me, that I may live, for Thy law is my delight'
(Psalm 118[119]:76–77). Father Sergei was ready both to receive and give the steadfast love of God, and
there is no doubt that he delighted not only in the law but in all those gifts which come to us human beings
from our bountiful and merciful Lord.

The Psalms that Father Sergei loved so much are given to us as a means of responding to all the conditions
of our human existence : despair and hope, sorrow and joy, despondency and faith, emptiness and glorious
worship. Most of us turn to the Psalms — as we turn to the Scriptures in general, or to the writings of
the Fathers — when the occasion presents itself, or when circumstances force us to seek out those sources
of consolation and hope. Father Sergei was one of those rare persons who needed no external incentive
to turn to the Psalms or to the other liturgical hymns of the Church. His very being seemed to pulse with
the exclamations of David : 'Oh, how I love Thy law ! It is my meditation all the day. Thy commandment makes
me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Thy
testimonies are my meditation' (Ps 118[119]:97–99).

Father Sergei would, of course, never utter such words himself. But those who had occasion to encounter him
could sense immediately that the very same heart that uttered those words was found in this man, this priest
of God, this friend of the Bridegroom. If there is one foundational element that defined Father Sergei, it
was that he was our friend. It did not matter where he was, or what he was doing, or with whom he was
conversing — in all those situations, even the most casual encounter would become the warm embrace of a
true friend.

Father Sergei was, of course, very accomplished in many fields, particularly the field of music and liturgy,
to which he devoted all of his life. He was the first in many of those accomplishments : the first to establish
an all-English Liturgy, the first to serve as Director of the Fellowship of Orthodox Stewards, one of the first
to receive the recently established Order of Saint Romanos the Melodist. In his humility, Father Sergei would
never dwell on such accomplishments but would rather devote his energy to a more difficult task, one which very
few of us can accomplish : that is, the difficult and Christ-like effort to place the other in the first place,
rather than oneself. In this, he provides us with the model of true friendship.

The world we live in is broken and fragmented. We all know this and each of us, perhaps, believes that we
have the solution to this brokenness and fragmentation ; or if we don’t have a solution, we lament and complain
about the sorry state of affairs of the world. In either case, we tend to search for healing in the very
brokenness itself : getting caught up in political opinions, being spell-bound by the ephemeral relations
found on social media, or simply becoming trapped in the web of our own addictions and fantasies.

It was not so with Father Sergei. He was one who could pierce through the fog of our mental delusion and
heart’s confusion by reminding us of the reality of true friendship and the power of love. He did this not
with his words or by exhortation but by his very life. He did, of course, speak very eloquently, as he did to
his brother clergy at the 12th All-American Council in Pittsburgh, when he reminded us of the ascetical nature
of love. He said : 'Yet love — more especially Christian brotherly love — is always a risky business. Love
(and this "knowing each other" is akin to love) makes us vulnerable. Love leads us to the Cross. There is no
other way to pastor, let alone live, the Christian life'.

In the few days since his passing from this earthly life, I have received many testimonials about the grace-
filled effect that Father Sergei had on those who encountered him, even if that encounter was very brief.
I heard from the man who, as a youth, participated in a service during the Paschal season at Saint Tikhon’s
Monastery, and there beheld the light of the Resurrection in Father Sergei’s face as he sang at the kliros.
I heard from a former member of the Metropolitan Council who, at the outdoor Liturgy at Saint Sergius Chapel,
when Father Sergei was to receive the Saint Romanos award, assisted him from the car to the walled garden
where the service was being held ; she was overwhelmed by the radiance of love, peace, and joy that radiated
from the frail priest she was escorting. Each of these, among many other examples that each of us may have
experienced ourselves, give expression to the love of God that was transmitted to us through Father Sergei’s
very presence.

In this, he reveals that he was a true follower of the commandment of our Lord, who says to all of us :
'This is My commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this,
that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth
I call you not servants ; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth : but I have called you friends ;
for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen Me, but I have
chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain :
that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in My name, He may give it you. These things I command you, that
ye love one another' (John 15:12–17).

Father Sergei followed this commandment, and he did so even more clearly as a priest of 70 years. This is
powerfully revealed in his answer to a fellow priest who asked Father Sergei what had made him decide
to become a priest. Father Sergei related that his father was the priest at Saints Peter and Paul in Lorain,
Ohio. And one day in his youth, after Liturgy, he and the other kids all went out to play while the adults
held their annual parish meeting inside the church. Father Sergei, however, was interested to see what was
going on inside the church. So he pulled up a garbage can, climbed on top of it, and peered through the
window. There he beheld all the parishioners, seated in the pews, with his father at a small table in front
of the iconostasis. The young Sergei was shocked to see all these people who were yelling at and complaining
to his father — ranting and having what they saw as their chance to be heard. As he looked in horror at his
father just sitting there, taking all that abuse and not saying a single word, Father Sergei said, 'That was
the moment I knew I wanted to be a priest. Because if my father, who was a good man and a good priest, could
sit and endure all the abuse and accusations railed against him, there really must be something to the Holy
Priesthood'.

The priest who related this story to me referred to Father Sergei a 'dear friend, a mentor, and a priestly
archetype'. He was indeed an archetype, and not only for this priest. He shared his Christ-like love with
his beloved wife, Matushka Genevieve, for over 70 years ; she was his co-laborer and co-sufferer in his
pastoral ministry, but shared as well in the joys of that ministry, together with their children and the
entire extended family.

And so, on behalf of the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America, represented this evening
by His Eminence Archbishop Michael of New York and the Diocese of New York and New Jersey, and on behalf of
all the clergy, represented this evening by so many of Father Sergei’s brothers and concelebrants, I offer
my sincere condolences to Matushka Genevieve and the family. But I also offer our gratitude for the life
and example offered to us in Father Sergei.

May his memory be eternal, and may he now experience the divine reality of the words that were offered on
his behalf at the burial service this evening :
'In faith and hope and love,
In meekness and purity and priestly worth,
Uprightly you discharged your sacred functions, O memorable one.
Therefore the eternal God whom you served
Shall Himself establish your spirit
In a place of brightness and beauty, where the righteous rest,
And you will receive pardon and great mercy at the judgment seat of Christ'. (Troparion, Tone 2)

May his memory be eternal !

Writings

• "To Serve" : a 1986 address by Father Sergei Glagolev

• ‘Some Personal Thoughts on the Composition of Liturgical Music’ in “Jacob's Well” (Spring/Summer, 1997)

• Video : A talk by Father Sergei in Minneapolis at the celebration of the 127th anniversary of Saint Mary’s Cathedral Choir (2014)

• Audio recordings of a lecture and a pastoral discussion by Father Sergei at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary (2016)

The Music of Father Sergei Glagolev

The following compositions were presented by Father Sergei at workshops sponsored by the New York-New Jersey Diocese (The Orthodox Church in America). Graciously, he has offered his music for free distribution. Using an “Adobe Acrobat” reader, these pieces can be viewed and printed, which can be downloaded without cost from this site :

• 1) “Blessed be the Name of the Lord”

• 2) “Alleluia”

• 3) “Bless the Lord” (First Antiphon from the Divine Liturgy : for Cantor and Chorus)

• 4) “Saint Simeon’s Prayer”

• 5) “All of Creation Rejoices” (from the Liturgy of Saint Basil)

• 6) “Bridegroom Exapostilarion” (Thy Bridal Chamber)

• 7) “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silent” (Vesperal Liturgy of Holy Saturday, p. 1)

• 8) “Let All Mortal Flesh” (Vesperal Liturgy of Holy Saturday, p. 2)

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Father Sergei Glagolev's ordination to the Holy Priesthood, 52 of his works were published in the collection : "Father Sergei Glagolev : Selected Orthodox Choral Works", vol. 1 (Felton, California : Orthodox Liturgical Singing in America, 2002).

Most of them were recorded on the CD "Lay Aside All Earthly Cares" (2005) by the Capella Romana Choir (Portland, Oregon) under the direction of Dr. Vladimir Morosan.

In 2020, Saint Vladimir's Press produced : “Prayer, Music and Joy : Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Archpriest Sergei Glagolev” (Yonkers, NY : SVS Press, 2020).

Discography :

• "Triumph of Orthodoxy Vespers (excerpts) : Service of the First Sunday Evening in Great Lent", Sergei A Glagolev, conductor (Southern Los Angeles, California : California Orthodox Choir, 1964) (recording)

• "An Oral Interview with Father Theodore (Frank)" (Crestwood, New York : Saint Vladimir's Theological Seminary, New York, Oral history program, 1983)

• "Prayer and Liturgical Singing : Pastoral Discussion" (Crestwood, New York, 1999)

• "Music and the Liturgy" (Crestwood, New York, 2000)

Father Sergei, Matushka Genevieve