Fr. Bill's Orthodox Blog – Orthodoxy from the Third Coast
Saints, Seasons, Society, Sins, plus Travels mostly to Greece and who knows what next? by Father Bill Olnhausen
The Divine Liturgy is always a festival event. Therefore on the penitential weekdays of Lent and also on the ordinary weekdays of Holy Week, there is no celebration of the full Divine Liturgy. The Anaphora (the consecration of the Holy Gifts) is omitted, and Holy Communion is received from that which was previously consecrated, […]
Read More »Introduction In our parish churches, Matins/Orthros is normally sung in the morning. So why, you may ask, are we now suddenly having it in the evening? Also and equally odd, why during Holy Week do we have Vesperal Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (obviously an evening service) in the morning? I’m really sorry you asked […]
Read More »Introduction Yesterday we celebrated the raising of Lazarus which was, as we sang, the “prefiguring of the General Resurrection”, when all mankind will be raised from death. “Those who have done what is good will rise to life, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.” John 5:29 Christ was demonstrating, […]
Read More »Now we begin our twice-daily commentaries on the services and themes of Holy Week and Pascha – based on talks I gave at these services during the twenty-five years when I was Pastor of Saint Nicholas Church, Cedarburg. Each year I’ve altered them just a bit as I’ve come across new information, to correct […]
Read More »I love this story. In the late Fourth Century monks from the Monastery of Saint Savas (Mar Sabas) * down below Jerusalem in the West Bank, spent Lent alone in the desert. A priest-monk Zosimas, walking alone one day on the Jordanian side of the river, to his surprise saw someone ahead of him. He […]
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