Vashon Island's LGBTQ+ residents and allies remain united after the head of a local Russian Orthodox monastery, the All-Merciful Savior Monastery, spent the early weeks of June filming identifiable residences that displayed Pride flags, all while he cited Bible verses as voiceover.

The Vashon Beachcomber's Elizabeth Shepherd broke the news that Abbot Tryphon had posted a YouTube video showing Pride flags above the Vashon Center for the Arts and on private properties.

"The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate," Tryphon said in the video, which was filmed from the window of a slowly moving car. "Everyone proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord; though they join forces, none will go unpunished."

Shepherd reported that the second video Tryphon uploaded had a picture of him in front of a Pride flag with text that said "The Source of All Evil" in large red letters. The videos have since been removed from YouTube, but according to the Beachcomber, Tryphon noted he had seen "more Pride flags and Gay flags than American flags," and he claimed that a "dark and diabolical" new religion had officially replaced Christianity in the US.

"This incident is a booster shot to our community," one member of Not On Our Island, told the SGN. "It woke us up." Not On Our Island formed shortly after Tryphon's videos went viral, and it works to make Vashon Island a safer and more welcoming place for all.

"When we first got together with a small group, one of the people there pointed us to Not In Our Town, and we decided that would be a great model," the member said, referring to a movement that focuses on putting an end to hate, racism, and bullying while building safe and inclusive communities for everyone.

NOOI focuses on "inclusivity and kindness — all the good mushy stuff," the member said. The group has held three meetings since its June formation, and 46 people have attended one or more events.

"We set up a landing page . . . to date we've received 146 messages, with some people saying they're supporting allyship," the NOOI member said, adding that last month they heard from many community members who were upset about Tryphon's actions.

The NOOI member said Tryphon's actions brought up concerns from members of other marginalized groups, and many allies attended the first meeting.

Tryphon apologizes
Tryphon posted an apology video to his YouTube page, in which he said his actions have obviously hurt people on Vashon Island, and that his intent was not to personally attack or point fingers at anyone.

"It was a mistake on my part to take video footage or photographs of people's private property. Again, this was not meant as some sort of public embarrassment or humiliation or calling out of any individual, and it certainly was not fueled by any personal animosity or hatred of any one individual," Tryphon said in the apology video. "I apologize for this lapse in judgment on my part."

In the video, Tryphon explained that he wasn't trying to justify his actions, but rather asking the community for forgiveness.

The SGN reached out to the monastery, but Tryphon is currently recovering from surgery and was unable to speak. Another monk, who refused to provide his name to the SGN, said that Tryphon's apology was not taken well as people accused him of being insincere.

"Not everybody who is Homosexual, Queer . . . disagreed with Father Tryphon. There were some that were sort of upset by it, and others who were not," the monk told the SGN, adding that many people were upset by how Tryphon's actions were blown out of proportion.

"There wasn't any attempt to sit down and talk. He said something, he published this, and then the reaction was sort of turned into a political rally and there wasn't anything involved whatsoever, and not everybody was basically on the same page — both Queer community and not, [it] was turned into a political rally type thing," the monk said. "Things like this happen sometimes, what can you do?"

NOOI will continue to hold community meetings. Local artist West McLean designed NOOI posters that have been distributed and are now hanging in 36 businesses. The NOOI member said another 83 posters were picked up by individuals to hang at their homes, with Vashon Print and Design offering them at a cost.

The group is working to set up a showing of the original Not In Our Town documentary at the local theater, and are planning a nonviolent communication event — in collaboration with other organizations — with a certified nonviolent communication speaker. The event, titled Connecting Across Differences, will be produced by Vashon Center for the Arts and is slated for September 2025.

NOOI encourages Vashon residents to become involved by purchasing an NOOI poster and placing it in a prominent setting in a home, business, or organization, and by attending the next NOOI meeting.

To show support for NOOI, visit www.notonourisland.org.