Brothers and Sisters,
Christ is Risen!
This coming Saturday, would be a great time to start attending St Thomas School. That’s because we’re starting Volume II of the series that we use as a textbook—Orthodox Christianity by Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev. All of the volumes in the series are available through Christ the Lightgiver Bookstore, so pick up a copy of Volume II and join us at 4pm in the Parish House.
We’ve already started getting ready for the next steps in our Building Program, and the way we’re doing that is through Prayer and Fellowship. When it comes to prayer, we’re asking everyone to purchase a copy of The Temple Akathist and to offer that service at home once a week. To help with that discipline, a recording of The Akathist is now on Discord. Just look for it in the Resources section. When it comes to fellowship, we want everyone to participate in a St Eanswythe Meal each montn. St Eanswythe has been, for many years, the Patroness of our Building Program, and she’s the focus of our fellowship efforts. The choir just recently had a St Easnwythe Meal during their weekend workshop with Benedict and Talia Sheehan, and you can see that photo on Discord.
Our Calendar
Fasting Days
Wednesday, May 17, and Friday, May 19
Daily Services
Monday, May 15-Friday, May 19:
Orthros 5am
Vespers 5pm
Seth Hart and friends will be at the online chanter’s stand offering the First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Hours this week.:
1st hour: 6:45 a.m.
3rd hour: 8:45 a.m.
6th hour: 11:45 a.m.
9th hour: 3:45 p.m.
Join the Daily Hours on Discord.
Fr. Andrew, Seth Hart, and Matthew Groh and many other folks continue to broadcast daily readings from spiritual books online. They are currently reading Commentary on Psalm 118 by St Theophan the Recluse. The schedule is as follows: M-F at 12pm.
Please see the emailed version of the newsletter for the link to join the Trapeza Readings on Discord.
Tuesday, May 16
Orthodoxy 101 7pm
You can access the group on Discord.
Wednesday, May 17
The Pascha Book Study 7pm
You can access the group on Discord using this link in the emailed version of the newsletter.
Thursday, May 18
The Bible Study, The New Testament Edition 7pm
You can access the group on Discord using this link in the emailed version of the newsletter.
Saturday, May 20
St Thomas School 4pm
Great Vespers 6pm
Sunday, May 21 The Sunday of the Blind Man
Orthros 8am
Divine Liturgy 10am
Fellowship Hour Noon
Akathist to the Mother of God, Nurturer of Children 1pm
st. thomas school
On Saturday May 20, DeAnne Maisano will lead the discussion on Chapter 1 of Volume II, “Background: The Tabernacle and Solomon’s Temple”. Online access is available on Discord; like to participate online, you still need to sign-up ahead of time. Just send an email to remote.meetings@theforerunner.org by Thursday, May 11, to reserve your spot.
coming up
The Pascha Book Study is now in its fifth and final week. During the last two sessions we have been talking about practical steps we can take based on the conversations we have had thus far. Also, this coming Wednesday, May 17, the final night of the study, all the presentations will be available in print (thanks to Christ the Lightgiver Bookstore). Finally, we will have a follow-up session on Wednesday, May 31; for this session, we will ask folks to submit questions and comments ahead of time, and it will be in person only to better facilitate our work together.
On Thursday, May 25, we will celebrate the Feast of the Ascension. We will offer Great Vespers on Wednesday, May 24, at 7pm, and then on Thursday, we will serve Orthros at 6am and Divine Liturgy at 8am. Come join us as we celebrate the triumphal entry of our Risen Lord and Master into the Kingdom of Heaven.
On Saturday, May 27, we are going to have our first Blessing of Animals. May 27 is the feast day of St Melangel of Wales; she had a special relationship with rabbits. However, there are a great many saints that have had close relationships with all sorts of animals, and the birds and the beasts and the creatures of the sea are going to be redeemed along with all of us. Also, we already bless domestic animals when we do House Blessing each year, so bringing our pets to the parish for a blessing is just a next, natural (pun intended) step.But, of course, we want everyone--humans and pets--to participate in the blessing in a way that is safe and healthy, so we consulted with Jason Foster, a member of our community who's been a vet for a number of decades, and we put together the following guidelines. Please read through them carefully:
-The blessing will take place outside. Animals will not be allowed either in the Parish House or the Long Hall.
- We will gather in the area between the Long Hall and the Parish House at 4:30pm on Saturday, May 27. The service will be the Ninth Hour, and it will most likely take about 20 minutes.
- All small animals (cats, gerbils, lizards, guinea pigs, hamsters, snakes, etc) must be in containers, and they must stay in those containers while they are on parish property.
-All dogs must be on leashes, and they must be leashed the entire time they are on parish property. Young children should not be allowed to control dogs; a responsible adult must handle the leashed dog. Also, if you have a dog that is aggressive or nervous or that does not interact well with humans or other animals, please do not bring it to the parish. We will be happy to bless aggressive and anxious dogs at their homes.
-Domestic farm animals (goats, sheep, pigs, cattle, horses) are welcome, but they must remain in the trailers or vehicles in which they are transported.
-There should not be any contact between any of the animals while they are on parish property.
-All dogs and cats must be vaccinated. Dogs must have had Distemper (DHPP), Kennel Cough (Bordetella) and Rabies. Cats must have had Feline Distemper or upper respiratory vaccine (FVRCP) and Rabies. If you have questions about any of those vaccinations, Jason Foster has indicated that he will be happy to communicate with you on our parish Discord platform. If your dog or cat does not have all those vaccination, and you would still like the animal to be blessed, you are welcome to attend the service, but the dog or cat must stay in your car. One of the priests will bless the animal while it is in the car.
-Please bring water in a bottle or a bowl for your pet.
-Please bring plastic bags and be prepared to clean up after your pet when they have a bowel movement.
That may seem like a lot, but it's pretty normal pet stuff, and it will ensure that our Blessing of Animals is a beautiful service that honors the Most Holy Trinity. And, notice, it is a worship service--that means we're not organizing a temporary dog park or a petting zoo. We're going to read prayers, bless all the animals with holy water, and sing some hymns. Then those of us who do not have pet responsibilities will go into the Long Hall for Ninth Hour and Great Vespers--and Great Vespers will feature hymns that have been specifically composed for the occasion. If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch with Father Aidan or Jason Foster.
OUR MOMENT OF GRACE AND COURTESY
After Fellowship Hour, please remember to return all your plates and coffee cups to the kitchen in the Long Hall. The folks who serve on our Fellowship Hour Teams will have a much easier day if they do not also have to try and round up each of the plates and cups that we leave out on the picnic tables or in all the different rooms of the parish house.
Things That Make Priests Happy
Blessing Nick and Stephanie C. on their 21st anniversary; singing with the choir; talking with Jordan C. and Olivia C. about Roy R. and Dale E. ; singing with the choir; agreeing with Natali P. that the UPS Store used to be a really lonely place; singing with the choir; listening to Karen M. and Benedict and Talia S. talk about bridges; singing with the choir; arriving just in time to see Ed C. and Ray W. and Mike B. and Collier W. and Fredrick L. install the Memorial Garden Cross (and just in time for the beer party); singing with the choir; finishing school; watching the raindrops on the green moss, up against the dark trunks of the trees.
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 Christian Perez; our Webmasters are Lily Halsey and Seth Hart; our Keeper of Lists is Father Andrew Wilson; our Roving Reporter is Vic Sage, at our international headquarters, all the liftmen have golden tassels on their caps, and our Spiritual Advisor is Elder Galaction of the Holy Mountain.