{"id":8403,"date":"2020-04-07T09:57:45","date_gmt":"2020-04-07T13:57:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/?p=8403"},"modified":"2020-04-07T09:57:45","modified_gmt":"2020-04-07T13:57:45","slug":"st-peter-newsletter-april-7-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/st-peter-newsletter-april-7-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Peter Newsletter April 7, 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Entrance of Our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ into Jerusalem
Palm Sunday<\/h2>\n

From Fr. Hans:<\/b> <\/p>\n

This week and next we will feel the estrangement from our parish most deeply. Missing Holy Week and Pascha Services rank close to unthinkable, something we would never do expect in the most dire circumstances such as war or pestilence.<\/p>\n

Well, the pestilence is upon us.<\/p>\n

Think of this as a kind of involuntary Lent, or even more accurately as an involuntary deepening of Lent. Lent is a period of voluntary deprivation, a forgoing of things common in our lives in order to foster a greater awareness of our dependence on God.<\/p>\n

Impositions like not being able to attend Church, being confined to our homes all day long (curbs on mobility is difficult for us to bear), not knowing the the future might hold cause us to think more of our own mortality and God at the same time. <\/p>\n

Take the frustration you feel and deepen prayer and self-reflection. Pray more, pause to think and evaluate the important things more. This time compels us to do so, just like Lent.<\/p>\n

And remember that deepening your prayer will also direct you towards greater purification of the heart. This deeply spiritual work also changes the world around you in strong but usually imperceptible ways. It’s one way we defeat the pestilence around us. It may even be the strongest way.<\/p>\n

I am including the information for Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday below as a reminder of both what we will miss this year but what we will celebrate in full next year. Below I will include the instructions on how we will celebrate these important services through live streaming.<\/p>\n

Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom<\/h4>\n
\"The
The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Palm Sunday<\/h2>\n

On the Sunday before the Feast of Great and Holy Pascha and at the beginning of Holy Week, the Orthodox Church celebrates one of its most joyous feasts of the year. Palm Sunday is the commemoration of the Entrance of our Lord into Jerusalem following His glorious miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead. Having anticipated His arrival and having heard of the miracle, the people went out to meet the Lord and welcomed Him with displays of honor and shouts of praise. On this day, we receive and worship Christ in this same manner, acknowledging Him as our King and Lord.at the Virgin would show her. A voice replied to her from on high: “If you cross the Jordan, you will find rest.”<\/p>\n

The biblical story of Palm Sunday is recorded in all four of the Gospels (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-38; and John 12:12-18). Five days before the Passover, Jesus came from Bethany to Jerusalem. Having sent two of His disciples to bring Him a colt of a donkey, Jesus sat upon it and entered the city.<\/p>\n

People had gathered in Jerusalem for the Passover and were looking for Jesus, both because of His great works and teaching and because they had heard of the miracle of the resurrection of Lazarus. When they heard that Christ was entering the city, they went out to meet Him with palm branches, laying their garments on the ground before Him, and shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he that comes in the Name of the Lord, the King of Israel!”<\/p>\n

Read more about Palm Sunday on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Lazarus Saturday<\/h2>\n
\"The
The Raising of Lazarus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On the Saturday before Holy Week, the Orthodox Church commemorates a major feast of the year, the miracle of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ when he raised Lazarus from the dead after he had lain in the grave four days. Here, at the end of Great Lent and the forty days of fasting and penitence, the Church combines this celebration with that of Palm Sunday. <\/p>\n

In triumph and joy the Church bears witness to the power of Christ over death and exalts Him as King before entering the most solemn week of the year, one that leads the faithful in remembrance of His suffering and death and concludes with the great and glorious Feast of Pascha.<\/p>\n

Read more on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Archdiocese Instructions for Celebrating Lazarus Saturday, Palm Sunday and Holy Week<\/h2>\n

LAZARUS SATURDAY<\/strong><\/p>\n