ST ANDREW UKRAINIAN 2015 AND (PASCHA) SCHEDULE

REMINDER: NO WEEKDAY MORNING LITURGIES DURING LENT Schedule is subject to change – Please check weekly bulletin for updates DATE TIME COMMENTS Pre-Sanctified Liturgy Every 6:30pm Starting February 18 After Sorokousty – List of first names Sorokousty (Saturday 2/21, 2/28, 3/7, 3/14, 9:00am only (please use envelope morning Liturgy) 3/21, 3/28 Liturgy dated February 1, 2015) Annunciation of BVM Tuesday, March 24 at 6:30pm (English) Holy Day of Wednesday, March 25 at 9:30am (Ukrainian) Obligation

HOLY MISSION With Fr Yaroslaw March 27, 28, 29 Times will be listed in the weekly bulletin. Shurdrak (Retired)

Saturday, March 28 Normal weekend Liturgy schedule – Blessing Sunday, March 29 of willow branches at all Liturgies March 30 6:00pm Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts March 31 6:00pm Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts April 1 6:00pm Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts with Liturgy of St Basil the Great & Washing the Feet Time to be Holy Thursday April 2 (Thursday services held at St announced Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral) and Reading of 12 9:00am

April 3 (No dairy or meat Vespers; Exposition and 5:00pm permitted on this Veneration of Shroud day.) CONFESSION April 4 1:00pm to 2:00pm – Saturday only 9:00am Vespers; Divine Liturgy St Basil 3:00pm Blessing of Baskets (Ukr) April 4 5:00pm Blessing of Baskets (Eng) All Day No meat products Resurrection of Our Resurrection Matins with Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom Lord, Christ 7:00am with Myrovanya (Ukrainian with Pascha (Easter) April 5 Choir)

Divine Liturgy of St John (No during 11:00am Chrysostom with Myrovanya only.) (English) EVENTS/ACTIVITIES – Mark your Calendar! More Details to Follow:  PASKA SALE – Saturday, March 21 AND Saturday, March 28  – Sunday, April 12  PARISH EASTER DINNER/SVIACHENE – Sunday, April 26  FIRST RECONCILIATION – May 3  MOTHER’S DAY – Sunday, May 10

 SUNDAY – Sunday, May 24

The three pillars of Lent are Fasting , Good Works (Almsgiving) , and Prayer … This year, let Lent make a difference in your life!

2015 AND PASCHA

It’s always a good practice to pray before we contemplate repentance and get serious about Great Lent. So let’s begin with the Lenten prayer of Saint (source: www.stsophiaukrainian.cc) O Lord and Master of my life, drive from me the spirit of indifference, despair, lust for power and idle chatter. Instead, bestow on me, Your servant, the spirit of integrity, humility, patience and love. Yes, O Lord and King, let me see my own sins and not judge my brothers and sisters, For You are blessed for ever and ever. Amen.

The four weeks which precede Great Lent are considered preparatory, a forerunner to Lent. These four weeks, along with the eight weeks of Lent, are characterized by the Church as , meaning "thrice-", a name which has no bearing on the substance of Lent itself. The four weeks preceding Lent are known as: Sunday of the Tax Collector and Pharisee (from the Parable), Sunday of the Prodigal Son (from the Parable), Sunday of Meat (the Final Judgment), Sunday of Cheese (Adam's expulsion from Paradise). The Six Sundays of Great Lent are Sunday of Orthodoxy, St Gregory Palamas, Veneration of the Cross, St John of Climacus, St Mary of Egypt and Palm Sunday. Which is then followed by . The then lasts from the Sunday of St Thomas (Sunday after Easter) to the Sunday of All Saints. The period from Easter to Pentecost is 50 days.

LENT is a time for us to grow prayerfully, personally, and powerfully in our relationship with God. Great Lent is a 40-day period when we prepare ourselves for the Great Resurrection. During this time we follow the footsteps of Jesus who spent 40 days and 40 nights in the desert…our goal is to meet the risen Lord Jesus, who reunites us with God the Father. During Great Lent, the Church teaches us how to receive Him by using the two great means of repentance – prayer and fasting. This year, imagine that this Lent is going to be different from every other Lent you ever experienced…imagine that God is going to help transform our lives, leading us to greater freedom, greater joy, and deeper desire for love and service. This can be a wonderful season of grace for us if we give ourselves to it. Lent is about God’s great desire to bless us. (Source: Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton Newsletter Vol 2 Issue 5)

Preparing for Confession (Reconciliation) – During Lent we are called to reform our lives and become holy. We do this by focusing on God through prayer, treating others well, and changing our negative behavior. Confession is not only a spiritual cleansing, but a spiritual awakening. We must acknowledge our sins and take responsibility for our actions and consequences. To make a good confession, five things are necessary: (1) examine your conscience thoroughly; (2) be sincerely sorry for your sins; (3) resolve to amend your life; (4) confess your sins to the best of your ability; and, (4) complete the penance given to you. (Source: same as above)

What’s in a Name: Pascha or Easter? The theological name for the Feast of the Resurrection is Pascha. From its form, we can see that the Greek word comes from the Hebrew Pesach (). Christ’s saving passion, death and resurrection are the fulfillment of the Passover of Israel into freedom. Pascha is the new creation, the eighth day on which all things are made new. We read the Prologue to St. John’s (John 1: 1-17) on this day, emphasizing the new beginning. Many European languages use the original term: Pascua, Pâques, etc., since in , the season is called Tempus Paschale. While Easter will probably remain the common designation for the season in the English-speaking secular world, it seems appropriate for Christians to use the more theological term Pascha, especially when referring to the celebration of the mysteries of our salvation. (source: www.stsophiaukrainian.cc)