"There Are Friends Who Are True Friends, and There Are Friends Who Are Closer than a Brother."

May 12, 2022.

I was beginning my research in all earnestness for my PhD dissertation, which would eventually carry the very long title of “The Impact of Post-1960s Immigration to Germany on the Self-Perception and Religious Experience of Aramean Families of Syriac Orthodox Faith."

I had landed in Germany shortly before that sunny May day, and had now received my first confirmation for an interview with a member of the Syriac Orthodox Church at Mor Had Bschabo Syriac Orthodox Church in Pohlheim-Hausen, Germany. It wasn’t a priest I would be interviewing, which disappointed me a bit, but because, as I later found out, the local priest’s German wasn’t very good, the deacon of the church would meet with me. My sister had arranged the meeting via an acquaintance, a local ice cream shop owner who was also a member of the Syriac Orthodox Church.

So in I walked with great trepidation. I had been in an Eastern Orthodox church before (usually for weddings or funerals in my husband’s family), but never in a Syriac Orthodox church. I met Mshamshono (or Deacon) Yuhanun Savci. Some of this initial meeting with him I have described before, so I won't repeat it. You can read it here:

Moving to Orthodoxy

·

January 25, 2023

On Epiphany Sunday, January 8, 2023, after 45 years as an Evangelical believer, I was chrismated, i.e., I was anointed with the Holy Myron oil as a confirmation of the Holy Spirit by Abuna (Father) Zmargdos at St. Mary’s Syriac Orthodox Church in Glendale, Arizona, and became a member of the Syriac Orthodox Church of Antioch, the second-oldest church af…

I know I wrote also here about Mshamshono Yuhanun Savci, whom I met that day.

Three Years of Encountering Orthodoxy - an Anniversary to Remember!

·

May 12, 2025

This may be an old story for some of you. But since it is already May 12th in my home country of Germany, and some of you may not know this yet, I want to share that three years ago, on May 12, 2022, I walked into my first Syriac Orthodox church. And boy, oh boy, was it a life changer.

So rather than repeat the initial story of our meeting, I wanted to share a bit of what I see having come out of this initial meeting now over four years ago. Just yesterday, July 22nd, I congratulated Mshamshono Yuhanun on the eighth anniversary of his being ordained a full deacon in the Syriac Orthodox Church. I didn’t know him then, but I have seen pictures from that day when His Eminence Mor Philoxenus Mattias Nayis raised him to the level of clergy.

A full deacon or Mshamshono Evangeloyo (“Gospel Deacon”) is the lowest rank of the clergy in the Orthodox world. While their role is limited in comparison to a priest, they are able to do a lot of things a subdeacon wouldn’t be able to do, e.g., receive the blessing to proclaim the Holy Gospel during the Holy Qurobo, carry the Gospel Book in procession, or chant the Gospel from the ambo or sanctuary according to local custom. At the altar, he might stand inside the sanctuary throughout the Anaphora and assist the priest directly during the Eucharistic sacrifice, or assist in the distribution of Holy Communion.

Now, typically, in the Orthodox world, a man is ordained deacon on his way to becoming a priest. There are men who remain deacons for a number of reasons. Likewise, in Mshamshono Yuhanun’s case, he remains a deacon. I am writing this hesitantly because I would love to see him ordained to the priesthood. Let me tell you why.

I have known him for over four years now. He was instrumental in my path to holy Orthodoxy. The many conversations we had were key to my changing my mind on what constitutes the true faith. He would pepper me with documents to read and review and then quiz me on whether I had understood them. He would connect me to other people to speak to when I had various questions, and he felt they were better equipped to help me in that particular area.

Just today, I was speaking with a mutual friend, and I mentioned that I don’t typically call him Mshamshono or Malphono (meaning, an authoritative teacher of the faith), Yuhanun, but just Yuhanun. That is not because I don't respect him, his office, or his accomplishments (he has published a ton of books), even though he often accuses me of that when we joke around 😀.

Yuhanun has become much more than a deacon or a teacher to me. He has become a mission-critical part of this convert’s life and, even more so, a friend that is closer than a brother (thank you, King Solomon, for giving me the words). I honestly feel that we are bonded for life because of the connection we have built over our shared faith. Without him, I doubt I would have understood half of what I wanted to learn about the Syriac Orthodox Church. Now these learnings have deeply shaped me as a follower of our Lord.

In return, though, I have often given him unsolicited feedback on the difficulties I perceive in the Syriac Orthodox Church. At first, after we had met, his answers may have been dismissive (and honestly, we had many fights along the way), but now I often notice that he takes what I say into consideration. I have seen him soften on a number of stances and begin to rethink other questions, based on our conversations.

In particular, on the topic of the role of women in the church, I appreciate his becoming an advocate for women in many areas. He will often come back now and say, “Elke, it can be ascribed to tradition.” Small t tradition, not Holy Tradition. And here we meet. Whether or not something will change in my lifetime, I can’t say. But I love to have a brother in Christ who will listen and respond with love and patience. There are many areas where the body of Christ could be strengthened by returning women to meaningful participation in the life of the church beyond cooking amazing meals and singing beautifully in the Holy Qurobo.

Having said all that, my daily prayer is that he would be ordained as a priest in our holy Syriac Orthodox Church sooner rather than later. His contribution to not just my spiritual development but that of many other Elkes or even just younger people within our church could be immeasurable in the life of the Church in Germany and neighboring European countries. His knowledge of the faith, the Syriac language, and the Syriac liturgy is phenomenal, and it shows.

Nick and I were able to have dinner with Yuhanun and his lovely wife, Julyet, last year when we were in Germany, and we would be so honored to be invited to another dinner to celebrate Yuhanun’s ordination. (Hint, hint, Sayedna Mattias!)

This is not my usual post, but it’s an important one to me to make sure you understand the deep impact this deacon has had on my life. May the Lord raise up many more Mshamshone like him. Please pray with me that the Lord would see fit to elevate him to the priesthood and that we would get to rejoice with him and Julyet and their family!