Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings in the Name of the Lord.
Holy Week begins this coming Saturday, April 16! Please be sure and read through the emailed version of this newsletter, because we not only have the schedule for all the beautiful services and important activities of Holy Week, we also have important information about events that will be taking place after Pascha, like The Pascha Book Study, The Annual Talent Show, Camp St Raphael, and The Parish Life Conference. And speaking of The Parish Life Conference, we now know that’s when Jerry Juliano will be ordained to the Holy Diaconate. The service will be at St George Cathedral in Wichita, Kansas, on Saturday, June 18. Information about discount hotel reservations is available in this edition of The Happy Priest, so make all those travel arrangements, and be ready to shout Axios! for Father Gerasimos.
OUR CALENDAR
Fasting Days
During Great Lent, we abstain from meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish, wine, and olive oil Monday through Friday, with a blessing for wine and olive oil on Saturday and Sunday. If you need to modify the fast in any way, please check with your spiritual father.
Daily Services
Monday, April 11 to Friday, April 15
Orthros 5am
Vespers 5pm
If you plan on attending the daily services, it’s generally a good idea to check the day before to make sure that the service will be offered. Sometimes pastoral situations require a change of plans and the service cannot be offered on that particular day.
THE HOURS
Seth Hart will be at the online chanter’s stand, offering the First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Hours this week on ZOOM: First Hour, 6:30; Third Hour, 8:30; Sixth Hour, 11:45; Ninth Hour, 3:45.
Topic: St. John the Forerunner Orthodox Church – Typika and Daily Hours. Please see the emailed newsletter for login information.
Seth Hart is continuing to read the Hours and stream them to Zoom. (See the schedule above.) During Lent, the Hours include additional psalms and, at Sixth Hour, a reading from the Prophesy of Isaiah. Praying together online is nice, but praying together in person is even better, so for the remaining Fridays of Lent, Seth will be reading Sixth Hour at 11:45 in the nave. The service is about 30 minutes, so if you’re in the area, feel free to drop by for a “lunchtime” prayer. Additionally, Ninth Hour on Wednesdays is always read immediately before the presanctified liturgy, at around 6:30, so that service will not be streamed.
Lenten Services
Monday, April 11
Great Compline at 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, April 12
Orthodoxy 101 at 7:00 p.m. in the common room at the Parish House.
The topic will be the Divine Worship of the Church. Online participation will also be available through the Zoom link in the emailed newsletter.
Wednesday, April 13
Wednesday, April 13 Pre-Sanctified Liturgy 7pm
Masks will be required at this service.
Thursday, April 14
Bible Study at 7:00 p.m.
Topic: St. John the Forerunner - Bible Study. To participate, please see the Zoom link in the emailed newsletter.
Saturday, April 16
Lazarus Saturday
Orthros 6am
Divine Liturgy 8am Masks will be required at these services
St. Thomas School at 4:00 p.m.
Great Vespers at 6:00 p.m.
This will be the final opportunity to participate in the Mystery of Holy Confession prior to Pascha.
Sunday, April 17
Palm Sunday
Orthros at 8:00 a.m.
Church School at 8:15 a.m.
Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m.
Fellowship Hour at Noon
Bridegroom Orthros 6pm
ST THOMAS SCHOOL
On Saturday, April 16, Father Deacon Michael Coleman will lead the discussion of Chapter One, pp 16-42 in Volume One, “Early Christianity” https://theforerunner.squarespace.com/blog/2021/5/9/orthodox-christianity-vol-iii-ch-2.
In order to participate online, send an email to remote.meetings@theforerunner.org by this coming Thursday, April 14. You will also need to keep your camera on during the session.
THE SCHEDULE FOR HOLY WEEK
If you have the Archdiocesan Holy Week Service Book, attached to this week’s Happy Priest is a guide for using that volume in our Holy Week Services.
Monday, April 18
Great and Holy Monday
Presanctified Liturgy at 6:00 a.m.
Masks will be required at this service.
Bridegroom Orthros at 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, April 19
Great and Holy Tuesday
Presanctified Liturgy at 6:00 a.m.
Masks will be required at this service.
Bridegroom Orthros 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 20
Great and Holy Wednesday
Presanctified Liturgy at 6:00 a.m.
Unction Service at 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, April 21
Great and Holy Thursday
Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil with Washing of Feet at 6:00 a.m.
Service of the Twelve Gospels at 7:00 p.m.
Friday, April 22
Great and Holy Friday
Royal Hours at 9:00 a.m.
Descent from the Cross Vespers at Noon
Service of Lamentations at 7:00 p.m.
The Tomb Vigil Begins at 9:00 p.m.
This service runs from 9:00 p.m. on Friday, April 22, to 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 23. Participants sign up for one-hour slots during which they read the New Testament out loud in the nave. If you would like to be a part of this beautiful tradition, sign up using the link provided in the emailed newsletter. In order to have the service, though, we need the schedule to be full by the beginning of Holy Week, Saturday, April 16.
Saturday, April 23
Great and Holy Saturday
Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil with Baptisms at 8:00 a.m.
Masks will be required at this service.
Paschal Service at 11:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 24
Great and Holy Pascha
Agape Vespers at 2:00 p.m.
If you wish to read the gospel in a language other than English, please contact Father Aidan before Saturday, April 16.
Paschal Picnic at 3:00 p.m.
CONSTRUCTION NEWS
Weather permitting, we should be able to park on the new lot this coming weekend. However, there will still be work crews on the property for some time to complete landscaping and electrical work. So, during that time, there are some things we will all need to continue to do:
First of all, we should keep praying for the entire process: for our project manager, for the construction company and their workers, and for our parish council who will be overseeing the whole effort. Our prayers will keep everyone safe and ensure that the project is completed successfully.
Second, parents and godparents and grandparents will still need to be vigilant. None of the work will take place on Sundays; however, there will be equipment parked on the property; lots of earth will be moved; there will be construction fencing and porta-pottys and all sorts of items that are attractive and intriguing to young children. The general rule at our parish is that our children must be in our direct line of sight at all times; this rule is going to be even more critical while the parking lot is being replaced.
Finally, quite a few of our folks have been parking off-site while the construction project is going on. Hopefully, we want need to do that any longer, but, just in case we do, those instructions are in the letter attached to this newsletter. But, if you arrive on a Sunday, and you cannot find a place to park on our property, then you need to know that, while it is legal to park in the surrounding neighborhoods, (1) you cannot park within four feet of a private driveway 2) you cannot park on the bridges that cross North Winecup Trail and Big Sur Drive, and (3) you must park in the same direction as traffic is flowing. Parking your car in those ways and in those locations could lead to a ticket.
COMING UP
St Thomas School has just begun its second two-year cycle. It takes just about two years to go through all five volumes that are used in the program (all of which are available through Christ the Lightgiver Bookstore), so this would be a great time to start consistently attending one of the very best Orthodox Adult Education programs in the country. The class meets at 4pm in the parish house (online access is also available), and, this week, the super fun and truly funky Father Deacon Michael Coleman will be leading the discussion of Chapter 1 in Vol I, on Early Christianity.
Confession - Our Archdiocese expects that each of us will make our confession before Pascha. In our parish, we do not hear confessions during Holy Week, so that means we have until this Saturday, April 16, to participate in that Holy Mystery. Confession is offered each Saturday evening after Great Vespers or just about any other time by specific appointment.
The Pascha Book Study will begin on Wednesday, April 27, and it will meet each Wednesday evening through May 25. Father Andrew Wilson and Father Michael Coleman will be leading the group, and this year’s study will bring to a close our year long exploration of the theology and practices associated with death in Holy Orthodoxy. With the help of several selections, the group will take a guided tour of the funeral service itself, beginning with Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev’s overview from his Orthodox Christianity series. Along the way the group will focus on the prayers and hymns unique to the service, while also reading St. Gregory of Nazianzus’ funeral oration for his friend, St. Basil the Great, perhaps the best example of a eulogy in the Orthodox tradition. Finally, the study will end with a look at grief through a letter of consolation sent by St. John Chrysostom to a spiritual daughter whose husband had died. There is no single text to purchase for the book study, but a packet of materials will be printed and available in the bookstore for only the cost of what it took to get them printed.
Our annual talent show gives parishioners a chance to share and celebrate each other's unique gifts, experiences, and creations. Do you have something to share or perform? Get details and sign up here: https://forms.gle/nbFPgeCsyUsBHc4Y9. The show will happen on Sunday, May 15th, from 12:30 - 2 pm (give or take depending on the number of submissions). If you have questions, reach out to Rigel - his contact information is in the emailed newsletter.
Camp St Raphael 2022 - Camper Applications are available online at https://www.campstraphael.org at Noon on February 1st. Remember spots are reserved on a first come first serve basis, so don’t delay. Session One is June 26th through July 2nd, and Session Two is July 3rd through 9th. This year CSR will be at the new location in Kingston, Oklahoma. Scholarships are available through the parish, so if you need assistance in order to send your child to camp, please speak with Father Aidan or Father Andrew.
The Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America’s Parish Life Conference will be hosted by St George Cathedral in Wichita, Kansas, from June 15th through 18th. Jerry Juliano will be ordained to the Holy Diaconate at the closing liturgy for the conference. Hotel reservations may be made at Reservations: Hyatt Regency https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/group-booking/WICRW/G-GEC.
OUR MOMENT OF GRACE AND COURTESY
It’s time to start getting ready for Holy Week and Pascha. Here are the third and fourth Pascha Moments of Grace and Courtesy:
Please remember to bring extra food for the Paschal Feast early Sunday morning. Godparents, if this is your godchild's first Pascha, please teach them about the feast and encourage them to bring food and join in. If you have friends who have been visiting the parish but aren't yet catechumens, please let them know about the feast so they can participate.
Please do not bring food that requires cooking or warming up or extensive preparation; there simply isn't room for that in our kitchen. Also, if you bring food that requires refrigeration, you also need to bring an ice chest; there simply isn't room in our refrigerator.
An unworthy priest,
aidan
The Happy Priest is a publication of Life At A Dead Run Media, which is a subsidiary of One Take Productions. Our IT Guy is Jerry Juliano; our Webmaster is Seth Hart; our Keeper of Lists is Father Andrew Wilson; our Roving Reporter is Spark Brushel, in this year’s Rouketopolemos, we’re rooting for St Mark’s Parish, and our Spiritual Advisor is Elder Galaction of the Holy Mountain.