Our Lady of Kazan Skete (Santa Rosa, California)

Our Lady of Kazan Skete
Jurisdiction	West, OCA
Type	Female Skete
Founded	1983
Superior	Abbess Susanna
Approx. size	~7 nuns
Location	Santa Rosa, California
Liturgical language(s)	unknown
Music used	Russian Chant
Calendar	Revised Julian
Feastdays celebrated	8 July
Official website	none

Our Lady of Kazan Skete is a monastic community for women in the Diocese of the West in the Orthodox Church in America. It is located in Santa Rosa, California. The community was founded in 1983 under the auspices of His Grace Bishop Basil of San Francisco and the West at St Eugene's Hermitage, and is now under the omophorion of Bishop Benjamin, located it's own property in Santa Rosa, California.

The community consists of women living the monastic tradition of a Christ-centered prayer life for the monastic members.

History

In 1980, a new chapel was begun at St. Eugene's Hermitage. This chapel was to incorporate a cupola from the belltower of Holy Trinity Cathedral in San Francisco, California. Three years later, Mother Barbara (Johnson), the former abbess of Holy Assumption Monastery, took up residence with a number of nuns at St. Eugene's Hermitage. This sisterhood was called the Community of the Holy Cross. Work on the chapel was completed in 1988, and was consecrated in memory of St. Sergius of Radonezh. Coincidentally, the completion was in the same year as the Milennium of Russian Orthodoxy.

After 13 years of monastic struggle at St. Eugene's Hermitage, the Community of the Holy Cross moved to Santa Rosa, and were placed under the patronage of Our Lady of Kazan. Soon after, the newly-founded Monastery of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco moved into St. Eugene's Hermitage.

In 2005, the Skete was visited by Bishop Benjamin of Berkeley.

Abbesses

• Mother Barbara (Johnson), 1983-~2005
• Mother Susanna, ~2006-present.

External links

• OCA Listing of Monastery