326. Saturday Midnight: Paschal Procession, Matins and Divine Liturgy of the Resurrection

GREAT AND HOLY PASCHA!   Christ is risen! Truly he is risen! Father Alexander Schmemann called our Orthodox Paschal celebration “an explosion of joy”. Words are inadequate to describe the services. They speak for themselves. (Every time I preached on Pascha I wished I hadn’t.) Here are a few Paschal videos. There is so much […]

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325. Great and Holy Saturday Morning: Vesperal Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great

Brothers and sisters, there is a whole lot going on this morning, so pay attention. This Liturgy begins as a celebration of Christ’s victory over Satan and death “down below”, and by the middle we’re celebrating the Resurrection here on earth, even though it hasn’t happened yet. (Although of course it has, and we all […]

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324. Great and Holy Friday Night Matins: The Lamentations Service

Please get to church tonight. If you cannot, please find yourself a place to worship live-stream tonight. This is much too beautiful to miss – my favorite service of the year. Is this a funeral service? Is this a resurrection service? The answers are: Yes! We stand before the bier on which Christ is laid […]

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323. Great and Holy Friday Afternoon: Great Vespers of the Taking Down of Christ from the Cross

At last! a Holy Week service (and the only one) that is “in sync” with the time of day. We’re going to cover: 1 The ceremonies, 2 The Scripture readings. Beginning with last night’s Procession of the Body of Christ and continuing through Pascha, the ceremonies are intended to involve us more fully in these wonderful closing events of […]

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