Christ is Risen! The Fourth Sunday After Pascha The Sunday of the Paralytic Hieromartyr Patrick, Bishop of Prussa and the Priest-Martyrs Acacius, Menander and Polyaenus with him; Venerable Cornelios of Komelsk; Grand Prince Dimitry Donskoy of Moscow Jesus Heals the Paralytic Introduction The fourth Sunday of Holy Pascha is observed by the Orthodox Church as the Sunday of the Paralytic. The day commemorates the miracle of Christ healing a man who had been paralyzed for thirty-eight years. The biblical story of the event is found in the Gospel of John 5:1-15. Background Close to the Sheep's Gate in Jerusalem, there was a pool, which was called the Sheep's Pool. It had five porches, that is, five sets of pillars … [Read more...]

Jonathan Pageau, the iconographer who created the wood icon of Christ pulling St. Peter out of the water, suffered severe flooding in his home when a nearby levee broke. He is in need of help. The Parish Council decided the best way to help him would be through financial donations. If you could help Jonathan please make a check out to St. Peter's with the notation Pageau on it. We will collect them and consolidate them in one one check then then contact Jonathan to see how to get it to him. We feel an obligation to do this because of the superb work he did for St. Peter's when he created the icon. Years from now, especially as Jonathan's reputation grows, the full import and quality of his carving will be even more apparent. See … [Read more...]

Christ is Risen! Truly He has Risen! The Third Sunday of Pascha Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women, Pious Joseph of Arimathaea and Righteous Nicodemus The Myrhh Bearing Women The third Sunday of Holy Pascha is observed by the Orthodox Church as the Sunday of the Holy Myrrhbearers. The day commemorates when the women disciples of our Lord came to the tomb to anoint his body with myrrh-oils but found the tomb empty. As the woman wondered what this meant, angels appeared proclaiming that Christ had risen from the dead. Of those whose names are known are the following: first of all, the most holy Virgin Mary, who in Matthew 27:56 and Mark 15:40 is called "the mother of James and Joses" (these are the sons of Joseph by a … [Read more...]

Christ is Risen! Truly He has Risen! The First Sunday after PaschaSunday of Thomas the Apostle Great-martyr Irene of Thessalonica; Venerable Euthymios, bishop of Maditos in Thrace Though the doors were shut at the dwelling where the disciples were gathered for fear of the Jews on the evening of the Sunday after the Passover, our Saviour wondrously entered and stood in their midst, and greeted them with His customary words, "Peace be unto you." Then He showed unto them His hands and feet and side; furthermore, in their presence, He took some fish and a honeycomb and ate before them, and thus assured them of His bodily Resurrection. But Thomas, who was not then present with the others, did not believe their testimony … [Read more...]

Pascha (Passover) The Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Pascha Holy Week comes to an end at sunset of Great and Holy Saturday, as the Church prepares to celebrate her most ancient and preeminent festival, Pascha, the feast of feasts. The time of preparation will give way to a time of fulfillment. The glorious and resplendent light emanating from the empty Tomb will dispel the darkness. Christ, risen from the dead, cracks the fortress of death and takes "captivity captive" (Psalm 67:19). All the limitations of our createdness are torn asunder. Death is swallowed up in victory and life is liberated. "For as by a man came death, by a man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ … [Read more...]