St. Ignatius of Antioch, Twin Falls, Celebrates 30th Anniversary

During the weekend of December 15–17, 2023, St. Ignatius of Antioch Orthodox Christian Church in Twin Falls, Idaho, celebrated its 30th anniversary. His Grace Bishop Anthony graciously joined Fr. Michael and Khouria Maria Habib, clergy,  parishioners, friends, and family members from local and surrounding communities for the celebration.

The parish warmly received Sayidna for Vespers on Friday night, which was followed by an encouraging talk from Sayidna and wonderful fellowship over dinner. “There’s a simmering arrogance in our world that wants to take on the role of God and rely on science and technology to give us our meaning,” His Grace stated:

The American dream has changed from seeking virtue to seeking self …. The Church does not believe in the progressiveness of society that comes via science and technology. We believe this life will end. We believe in the Kingdom. Historical progress is not the answer; the mystical progress – process – of growing into the likeness of Christ is the life we follow …. All of us come here with different histories and they’re melted together into the history of the Church. We should love the time we’re in, and not wish we were in a different time. God knows better than we do.

Sayidna was also kind enough to meet with the parish’s growing young-adult group for a questionand-answer session, in which he imparted additional wisdom: “A mistake is something you did; it’s not who you are. If you sin, confess it, and move on. Leave it alone … . Christ has always been turned toward you. He’s just waiting for you to turn toward Him.”

Two parishioners, Brent (Theodore) Butler and Stephen Basaraba, were tonsured readers at Sunday’s Hierarchical Divine Liturgy. Finally, at the banquet that followed, several parishioners, including one of the parish’s ten current catechumens, shared their stories of coming to Orthodoxy and how they came to call St. Ignatius their home parish. May God grant St. Ignatius Orthodox Church – along with the other parishes of our great and growing Archdiocese – many, many years!