St. Barbara Orthodox Monastery
LATEST NEWS & POSTS
June ~ July 2026
The Monastery is now closed on Mondays.
July 1 Thank you to all who came out to support us at the VC Greek Festival!
For those attending Fr. Jude's Friday Bible discussion, the Scripture passages for this week are:
Joshua 24; 1 Samuel 8, 15, 25, 26:
With an emphasis on the following verses: 1 Samuel 8:4-22;
1 Samuel 15:19-22 & 32-33;1 Samuel 24: 8-21;
1 Samuel 26:10 & 21-25
June 29 Blessed Feast of Sts Peter and Paul!
June 24 As the sisters will be at the Ventura County Greek Festival this weekend, there will not be the usual Friends' Gathering on the last Sunday in June. God willing, the next Gathering take place on Sunday, July 26.
This Sunday, the sisters will worship at St. Demetrios Greek Church in Camarillo.
We hope to see you at the VC Greek Festival! The weather this weekend will be beautiful. Details here.
Read our latest newsletter here.
June 11 This Sunday, the 2nd Sunday after Pentecost, we celebrate the Synaxis of All Saints of North America.
Visit the sisters at the Ventura County Greek Festival (June 26-28th) and support St. Demetrios Orthodox Church in Camarillo. Details here.
June 8 Wishing you a blessed Apostles' Fast. Read a short reflection about the rhythm of the Orthodox Church's liturgical calendar and the Apostles' Fast here.
ST. BARBARA ORTHODOX MONASTERY
LIFE OF PRAYER
St. Barbara Orthodox Monastery is a women's monastic community of the Diocese of the West of the Orthodox Church in America, under His Grace, Bishop VASILY, bishop of San Francisco and the West.
The Monastery was founded in 1992 and has been located in Santa Paula, California, since late 2005.
The Sisters maintain a regular cycle of daily liturgical services and partly earn their living growing lavender and producing lavender products, selling solid wood caskets, and operating a small bookstore and online gift shop.
In our daily pursuits, we at St. Barbara Orthodox Monastery strive to embody the teachings of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Through prayerful devotion to the Holy Trinity, living in community, hospitality, and diligent labor, we seek to deepen our love for God and neighbor, endeavoring to make our monastery a prayerful and peaceful haven for all who visit.
THE LIFE OF ST. BARBARA
St. Barbara, a 4th-century martyr, embraced Christianity while sequestered in a tower by her wealthy pagan father, Dioscorus.
While gazing out of her tower and pondering what she saw, Barbara marveled at the inspiring beauty of nature she beheld, and reasoned rightly that there must be a loving Creator who was responsible for the beauty that thrilled her soul.
She learned about the Christian faith (possibly from her faithful attendants). The more she drank in the truths of the Faith, not only was her heart captivated by God's marvelous creation, but also by Christ's wondrous love and work of salvation on the Cross in our behalf.
She was secretly baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity in her father's absence by a traveling priest disguised as a peddler.
So strong was her love for Christ, that this young maiden was willing to suffer greatly and give up her own life for the truth of her new found faith.
LIFE AT THE MONASTERY
SCHEDULE OF SERVICES
Monday: Monastery is closed
Tuesday to Friday**:
7 am Matins
12:15 pm 6th Hour
5:30 pm Vespers
7 pm Small Compline or Spiritual Reading
**Friday
In addition to regular weekday services:
2:30-3:30 pm Catechumen class
with Archpriest Jude Lépine
4-5 pm Bible discussion. All are welcome.
For this week's Scripture passage and other info,
click here.
5:30 pm Vespers served by Fr. Jude (except for 6/26)
Saturday
7 am Matins
12:15 pm 6th Hour
6 pm Vigil
Sunday
9:40 am 3rd & 6th Hour
10 am Divine Liturgy
5:30 pm Vespers
PLAN A VISIT
If you would like to visit the monastery, please contact us ahead of time via email or phone. Everyone is welcome to attend the liturgical services in our chapel and to share in our common meals together.
There is no fixed fee for overnight accommodations, although free-will donations are gratefully accepted.
We ask that you dress modestly.