Holidays
Spring in Russia has three major holidays. The first is Easter, which fell on the same Sunday in both the Eastern Orthodox and Western church calendars. The Russian people decorate eggs for Easter and then take them to church to have the priest bless the eggs. In our churches, members give them to one another. Just before Easter the stores sell sets of colorful plastic “sleeves” that fit around the eggs. These are immersed into hot water and they shrink around the egg. There are many themes to choose, from church art to nature scenes to cartoon characters. Easter Sunday is one of the few Sundays that it is fairly easy to get people to visit our church. We had four visitors—more about them in the “New Faces” below.
The second spring holiday is May 1, Labor Day, which fell on a Saturday. We had Monday as a holiday as well. Workers all over Moscow begin as soon as possible in April to clean up the city. They sweep everything, including the dirt, to remove the winter guck. Curbs, iron fences (which are everywhere), and children’s play areas get a fresh coat of paint. The smell is so strong and unusual that we think it must be about 100% lead! Traditionally this is the time that gardens at the dachas are planted, so church attendance can suffer.
May 8 is also a holiday, “Victory in Europe,” with a big parade at Red Square and fireworks. It is so nice to see how they revere their war heroes. Moscow is enjoying an early spring, so these two holidays were well-timed for people planting their gardens.
New Faces
Easter seems to be a natural time for people to be more willing to attend church. We were blessed with several visitors. Oleg and Ira attended worship for the first time. They were regular members of our first home group several years ago but the birth of their little girl kept Ira from visiting. Now little Lika (short for Angelica) is healthy and able to go places. Two other visitors came, the son of a regular member and also a part-time worker for the Christian Academy.
Costya (our minister) and Ira have neighbors who have been part of their home group. Recently one family and another lady visited with us when we had church at Costya and Ira’s home. The following Sunday the same family came with them to our place for church. The husband likes to practice his English with us, and their college-age daughter is taking English classes at school. Sue roomed with the wife at the last women’s seminar.
Sheri, her roommate Masha, and church member Sarah are working with several fellow teachers. They had a party and supper a few weeks back and plan another get-together soon, before Sheri returns to the US the middle of June.
Constantine receives his Master's of Divinity
Our minister Constantine (Costya) has been working toward his MDiv degree for several years. On Sunday, May 16, he was in Vienna, Austria, for his graduation celebration with TCM. He was one of 29 graduates.
Church Hosts
Yuri and Katya, a young family with four children (and awaiting number five any day), have worshiped with us several times. Recently they invited us to their new home for worship. Yuri works in construction and has built a huge three-story house. The first floor is completely open and ideal for church, with no interior walls, and several large windows. He says they could host 60 people! Our worship time was followed with a cook-out; Yuri grilled four kinds of meat, including rib of lamb. We kidded him that he was celebrating Passover.
We enjoyed a fine fellowship. The only down-side is their location. It takes about two hours to get to their house on the metro, much less time in a car. It was an enjoyable day of worship, fellowship, and eating together.
New Friends
Recently we were invited to visit a family at their dacha. Sergei and Oksanna are the parents of Nastya, Sue’s private student. We had gotten acquainted with Oksanna when Sue was making arrangements for Nastya’s lessons and deciding on a textbook. We had a fantastic weekend with them plus Daniel, their young son.
They have a beautiful new home, about a 45-minute drive from where we live. While we were together, we played lots of games with them and their son Daniel, walked in the nearby woods, and ate fresh charcoal-grilled fish and shashlik. Oksanna had questions about why we are in Moscow and said she would be willing to visit our home group or church one of these days.
John met a couple in Riga who worked in a church that he attended. Pasha and Tanya decided to move to Moscow to work with other couples in the region where John lives. The couple visited our church on the day that John Turner preached. We ordered pizza for a quick meal before sending John and Costya on their way to Vladimir.
Visitors from America
Three representatives from our home church, College Heights, were able to visit the last week in March. Wade Landers (Missions Team minister) along with Dr. Larry and Wesena Jordan were a great encouragement to us and also Sheri and John. They were able to meet church members, friends who attend our home group, and see the school where we are part time teachers. We were blessed by their fresh look at our ministry and suggestions for some new approaches.
Our church was blessed with another visitor, John Turner, a minister from America, who preached for us one recent Sunday. John was on his way to lecture at the TCM extension school in Vladimir, a city about three hours from Moscow. John encouraged the members to develop personal relationships and use them to share their faith.
The Wolfe family continues to grow
Our youngest son, Kevin and wife Alicia, got the exciting news that a little boy, is waiting for them at the House of God’s Love in Taiwan. His name is Titus Andrew Wolfe. They are waiting now for a court date in Taiwan. They may get to fly to Taiwan the first of August, but there are many variables that will determine the “gotcha” date. We will soon have 4 grandsons and 4 granddaughters! We are so blessed!
Summer Plans
We will be in the US this summer for five weeks, from the middle of July until the middle of August. This won’t be a formal furlough, but Rex will speak one evening at the School of Missions at Lake James, Indiana, in July. The rest of the time we hope to visit with family and friends.
Blessings from Rex and Sue