Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings in the Name of the Lord.
Great Lent begins in just one week, so we need to have all our plans in place for fasting, for helping others, for giving, for confession, and for participating in the Lenten services. Please get in touch with your spiritual father if you need any assistance in getting all that figured out.
Our Calendar
Fasting Days
From Monday, March 11, through Sunday, May 5, the traditional fasting discipline is that we will go without meat (beef, pork, chicken, and fish with backbones; though there is a blessing for fish on the Feast of the Annunciation, March 25); we will add dairy products, oil, wine, and hard liquor to that list beginning Monday, March 18. Women who are pregnant and children who are still growing do not keep the full fast. If you need to modify the fast for any other reason, please speak with your spiritual father.
Daily Services
Monday, March 11—Friday, March 15: Orthros 5am; Vespers 5pm (please remember that if you plan on attending the in-person services, it’s always a good idea to check the day before and make sure the regular schedule will be observed).
Fr. Andrew, Seth Hart, and Matthew Groh and many other folks continue to broadcast daily readings from spiritual books online. They are now reading “Wounded By Love: The Life and Wisdom of St Porphyrios”. The schedule is as follows: M-F at 12pm.
Also, our online team will now be reading the Daily Synaxarion on Discord. Just look for this channel: #synaxarion
Thursday, March 14
The Bible Study, New Testament Edition 7pm You can access this group on Discord
Saturday, March 16
St Thomas School 4pm
Great Vespers 6pm
Sunday, March 17
The Sunday of Forgiveness
Orthros 8am
Divine Liturgy 10am
Fellowship Hour Noon
Forgiveness Vespers No later than 1pm
Monday, March 18
Great Compline 7pm
Tuesday, March 19
Great Compline 7pm
Wednesday, March 20
The Pre-Sanctified Liturgy 7pm
Thursday, March 21
Great Compline 7pm
Friday, March 22
The Akathist Hymn 7pm
St Thomas School
On Saturday, March 16, St Thomas School will be hosting our first Catechumen Cohort Check-In. This session is designed for all the catechumens, their sponsors, and for everyone is in interested in becoming a catechumen or a sponsor. We will be looking at the calendar together, answering everyone’s questions, and generally just getting a read on how everyone is progressing on their journey to full reception in the Church. Please plan on joining us at 4pm in the Parish House.
A New Women’s Group
Marla P. is working hard at putting together a new women’s group. It already has a patroness—the newly glorified St Olga of Alaska—and there are already lots and lots and lots of opportunities for service and fellowship. If you would like to learn more about the group see the “St Olga’s Women’s Group” section on Discord.
Membership Update
This past Saturday, we made seven people catechumens: Luke L. and his two children; Micah R.; Eric F.; Charlotte W.; Michael J. Please be praying for all these folks and for their sponsors as they prepare to be fully received into the Church.
Coming Up
The next Saturday of Souls will be March 30, and we will also offer those services on April 6 and June 22. On those Saturdays, we pray for our departed friends and loved ones, but we also prepare for our departure from this life, and our Burial Society can help us with a lot of those practical details. Members of the society will be present on March 9 and April 6, along with a representative from Beck Funeral Home, and they can answer all your questions and help get you started on that process that so very many of us just try to postpone (on those Saturdays, a light breakfast will also be provided). Since there are four Saturdays of Souls, our hope is that all of us will attend the Divine Services on at least one of those days, so look at your calendar and go ahead and pick a Saturday on which you can join us.
The archdiocese expects all of us to make our confession prior to Pascha. Here in our parish, we do not offer the Mystery of Holy Confession during Holy Week, so that means we have eight weeks to get that done. Of course, two months seems like a long time, but it will go by very quickly, so we need to plan ahead. Holy Confession is available on Saturday evenings after Great Vespers or just about any other time with a specific appointment (our priests do not hear immediate-request-on-the-spot confessions).
Our Moment of Grace and Courtesy
We should always put something in the offering bowl whenever we attend the Divine Liturgy. Even if we support the parish through automatic bank draft, we should still place something in the offering bowl, because it's not just about supporting the parish, it's about expressing our on-going gratitude to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
an unworthy priest
aidan