Great Lent is a time to come back to Paradise, to the place where our Lord Jesus Christ dwells. We do this not by dying physically but by dying to sin.
I’ve compiled this booklet is to help you to prepare for the Sacrament of Confession, a rite that helps us to die to sin.
Just click the link to read it:
May your lenten journey be joyful!
Your Pastor, Father Steven
“This is the acceptable time. This is the time for repentance. Let us offer our virtues to God as gifts, and set aside the works of darkness, by putting on the armor of light as the apostle Paul proclaims. As the Lord killed the enemy by fasting, so let us also come to destroy his arrows and spears, saying: get behind me, Satan! when he comes to tempt us.”
—Matins of Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Jesus leads Adam & Eve back into Paradise
During Great Lent our Lord Jesus Christ invites us to re-enter Paradise. Join us for services during the first week of Great Lent to begin your spiritual journey into God’s Kingdom.
Sunday, March 13
Forgiveness Vespers, following 9 am Divine Liturgy, with the Rite of Forgiveness
Monday, March 14
Canon of St. Andrew of Crete 6:00 pm
Tuesday, March 15
Canon of St. Andrew of Crete 6:00 pm
Wednesday, March 16
Confessions 4:30–5:30 pm followed by the Liturgy of Pre-sanctified Gifts 6:00pm
Thursday, March 17
Canon of St. Andrew of Crete 6:00 pm
Friday, March 18
Confessions 8:30 am, followed by the Liturgy of Pre-sanctified Gifts 9:00 am
Saturday, March 19
Confessions 4:00 pm and also following Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, March 20
Divine Liturgy 9:00 am Sunday of Orthodoxy
Sunday, March 20
Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers 4:00 pm at St. John the Baptist Carpatho-Russian Church, 364 Mill Hill Avenue, Bridgeport, CT 06610
This week we Orthodox Christians celebrate the Feast of Epiphany (January 5th–6th). On this feast, we remember when St. John the Baptist baptized our Lord Jesus Christ in the Jordan River (Matthew 3:1–17).
Through His baptism, Jesus accomplished three important things:
In the season of this joyous feast, it is the practice of Orthodox Christians to invite their parish priest into their homes, and have him bless their habitation with holy water that had been sanctified during the church services on the feast day. In this way, members of the church participate in the renewal of creation effected by our Lord.
So, during January I’ll be making my “house calls” to parishioners and bringing you all the blessing of the Holy Trinity, demonstrating that you too are part of a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17).
I look forward to seeing you! To help you prepare your household for my visit, I’ve jotted down a few notes, below, and I’ve included a tentative schedule as well.
In our Lord, your pastor, Father Steven
PREPARATIONS FOR THE EPIPHANY VISITS
1. Prepare a table with a clean tablecloth, a candle, and an icon.
2. Provide a bowl with Holy Water that you brought home from church.
3. Provide a list of the LIVING — names of members of your household, along with others you wish remembered during the short service.
4. Please provide a list of the DEPARTED — names of your departed loved ones you wish remembered during the short service.
5. When the priest arrives, please gather your family in front of the table with the icon.
6. Please turn off all radios, TVs, stereos, cell phones, etc.
7. Please close off any rooms you do NOT wish Fr Steven to bless.
8. You may use the Epiphany Hymn offered below to join in with the singing.
TROPARION OF EPIPHANY:
When Thou, O Lord wast baptized in the Jordan,
The worship of the Trinity was made manifest!
For the voice of the Father bore witness to Thee,
And called Thee His Beloved Son!
And the Spirit in the form of a dove,
Confirmed the truthfulness of His word.
O Christ our God, who hast revealed Thyself,
And hast enlightened the world, glory to Thee!
NOTE: I will provide an icon and/or Holy Water if you cannot provide them.
TENTATIVE BLESSING ROUTE
JANUARY 7, 9 Bridgeport
JANUARY 10, 11, 12, 13 Stratford
JANUARY 14 and 16 Trumbull
JANUARY 17 and 18 Milford , Orange
JANUARY 17 and 18 Fairfield, New Canaan, Southbury
JANUARY 19, 20, and 21 Shelton, Derby, and Monroe
JANUARY 23 and 24 Seymour, Beacon Falls, and Sandy Hook
JANUARY 25 and 26 West Haven, Woodbridge, Naugatuck
JANUARY 27 and 28 Miscellaneous
With the help of two anonymous benefactors, our parish brought joy to our neighborhood by hosting a free Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 13, 2015. “The American Modernist Singers,” led by conductor Kevin Sherwin, sang a program of classic Christmas carols and gospel spirituals, in English and Spanish.
Additionally, the choral group included the Orthodox Christian liturgical hymn of the feast—”Thy Nativity, O Christ, Our God”—in their repertoire. One of our own parishioners, Marcia Maslo, sang in the ensemble, as did Anne Wilkinson, parishioner at Christ the Savior Church in Southbury, and Father Walter Smith, acting rector of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin Orthodox Church in Waterbury.
Enjoy the full concert by clicking this link!
Christ is born! Glorify Him!
Your Pastor, Father Steven
Bring some joy to our parishioners who are homebound or in healthcare facilities Sunday, December 20, 2015 by joining us for Christmas caroling.
Here’s the schedule:
12:45 pm Leave Holy Ghost Church
1:00 pm Arrive Hewitt Convalescent Home: Sing for Sophie P. (1st floor)
1:45 pm Arrive Lord Chamberlain: Sing for Lydia G. (2nd floor)
2:25pm Arrive Atria: Sing for Ann S. (1st floor)
3:00pm Arrive at home of Helen K. in Stratford: Sing for her
4:00pm Arrive at home of Irene C. in Trumbull: Sing for her
Directions
Hewitt Convalescent Home, 45 Maltby Street, Shelton, CT: Take Route 8 to Exit 14 (Howe); at end of the Exit take a right, and then another immediate right; cross over bridge, and then take an immediate left into parking lot.
Lord Chamberlain, 7003 Main Street, Stratford, CT: From Hewitt parking lot, take a right; at the stop sign, take another right; at the end of the street, take a left to the dead-end; then take a right toward Stratford; Lord Chamberlain is across from Sikorsky Company.
Atria Stratford, 6911 Main Street, Stratford, CT: Simply exit Lord Chamberlain parking lot and enter Atria parking lot, which is directly next door.
Questions: Call Fr .Steven’s cell phone: 914.274.1151
On Sunday, December 13, 2015, at 2 p.m., Holy Ghost Russian Orthodox Church, 1510 East Main St., Bridgeport, 
CT, will bring holiday joy to its neighborhood by hosting a free and public concert, featuring classic Christmas Carols in English and Spanish, and seasonal Gospel music.
The American Modernist Singers (AMS), an ensemble currently based at Yale University, will present the festive concert, titled, “Christmas,” with Kevin Sherwin, founder of the ensemble, conducting.
“AMS strives to make new connections for audiences and performers alike,” said Mr. Sherwin. “The ensemble explores a wide range of musical traditions and performance practices, with a particular emphasis on the late 19th and early 20th century.
“AMS shares its work through performance, education, and outreach,” he continued, “in a way reaches into the composer’s mind and touches the audience’s heart.”
Mr. Sherwin, who is also Assistant Conductor of the renowned Yale Russian Chorus, has conducted throughout the United States, including Boston, New York, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and New Haven, to name a few. In addition, he has guest conducted The American Baroque Orchestra, The Nashua Chamber Orchestra, The Roslyn Chamber Orchestra, The Jonathan Edwards Chamber Players, and the new music ensemble, Black is the Color.
Holy Ghost Church is pleased to sponsor AMS at Holy Ghost Church. And, we are especially looking forward to sharing the joy of the Birth of Christ with all of our neighbors and friends.
Doors open for the concert at 1:00 p.m., with non-ticketed seating. Light refreshments, also free-of-charge, will be offered in the church hall after the concert. Free parking in the church’s two lots, located on Spring and Brooks Streets, is available. Find our Church on Google Maps.
The snow date for the concert is December 20, also at 2 p.m.
Our parish just finished a first-hand experiment using Jesus’ “Parable of the Talents,” found in Matthew 25:14–30.
You’re probably familiar with the story: The lord of a great estate goes away on a far journey, but before he leaves, he entrusts his servants with ‘talents’ (bags of gold) to invest. When the lord returns, he calls his servants to himself, to assess how they invested his money. The majority of servants increased the talents given to them; only one fearful and lazy servant did not. The lord of the estate richly rewarded his ‘worthy’ servants, but cast out the ‘unworthy’ servant from his estate.
In June 2015, using this parable as our guide, we launched our parish “Talent Project.” Fifty-four parishioners accepted the challenge to take a $10 loan from the Parish treasurer and to think of ways to bring forth interest over the summer months. (Lottery tickets were excluded!)
Dot’s dish towels
And, lo, just like the talents of the servants in the biblical parable, our parishioners’ ‘bags of gold’ multiplied. At the beginning of summer we had distributed $540, and (at last count), that sum had multiplied to $3,800.
Besides the financial boon to the parish, the project gave us the chance to witness each other’s ingenuity and abilities, like…
Rich’s memorial card holder
Dot’s amazing output of dozens of crocheted-topped dish towels.
Rich’s ingenious design of wooden holders for those memorial cards we all collect from the funerals of family and friends.
Jerry’s construction of birdhouses, made even more cheery by his wife’s winsome hand-painted motifs.
Jerry’s birdhouses
And, Myra’s knack for pulling together—with the help of her daughter and friends—the huge and famous rare and vintage book sale, which was broadcast in a multitude of media outlets and which drew collectors and book-lovers countywide.
And, there were so many others!
This experiment helped us all to wrap our minds around Jesus’ Parable, as we experienced being co-workers with God in multiplying the talents He has given to us, by using our skills: teaching, organizing, building, cooking, performing public relations, understanding finances, and so forth. Clearly, when we applied these gifts to glorify God, He made them effective and brought about a blessed result.
Myra’s amazing book sale!When we apply these gifts to glorify God, He makes them effective and brings about a blessed result.
But, there is a deeper meanings to Jesus’ story, on which we also can reflect. I just spoke about this in today’s sermon: how increasing our talents for the Glory of God entails using our God-given virtues. (Read or listen to the sermon.)
Our virtue might be hospitality, being able to draw people to us with a warm and a generous spirit. Or our talent might be patience, with the ability to truly listen to others and to empathize.
Or it might be having a soft heart and helping those who are troubled, conflicted, or addicted, without being judgmental or treating them with contempt.
Or we might have the gift of being a peacemaker, with the ability to bring resolution to problems among people. Or we might have the talent to share God’s Word with others, so that they may receive counsel, direction, and solace. Or we may have the gift of being joyful in the midst of tribulations or being faithful in the middle of the worldly temptations, so that others might witness the virtues of fortitude and integrity.
For sure, our ‘Talent Project’ provided us with fun and healthy competition. But more importantly, it helped us dig deeper into God’s Word.
May He multiply every effort we make for His glory.
Your pastor, Father Steven
During our August Vacation Church School, we learned about 4 really important women:
St. Olympias the Deaconess of Constantinople
St. Olympias of Constantinople (4th century), was a deaconess who carried Holy Communion to sick women when they could not come to church services. She was a good friend of the holy bishop, St. John Chrysostom.
St. Juliana of Lazarevo, Russia
St. Juliana of Lazarevo, Russia (17th century), fed poor and starving people during a severe famine, by baking bread made from pig-weed and elm bark!
St. Maria Skobtsova of Paris (20th century), lived in France during World War II, and rescued Jewish children by hiding them in trash cans and having the garbage collectors carry them to safety.
Mother Maria Skobtsova of Paris
St. Elizabeth, Grand Duchess of Russia (20th Century),
St. Elizabeth, New Martyr of Moscow
was a member of the royal family, but she gave away her jewelry and money, and became a nun and helped all the poor people of Moscow, Russia.
Besides learning about the extraordinary lives of these 4 brave, strong, and faithful women, we also had fun!
Making crafts, playing outdoor games, and visiting a dairy farm (with ice cream!) and a miniature golf course made the week extra special. Here are some photos of us, up at Holy Ghost Park, where Vacation Church School was held.
We want to thank Fr. Steven, Miss Carol, Miss Vera, Miss Audrey, and our moms for helping put the program together. Sincerely, The Kids from Holy Ghost Church
Icon of the Dormition Feast
Today, August 15th, is the Feast of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, our Mother.
Every time we celebrate this feast day, I’m reminded of the little nursery rhyme, Frère Jacques, which many of us sang as children.
In French, we sang:
Frère Jacques, frère Jacques, Dormez-vous ? Dormez-vous ?
And, in English, we sang:
Are you sleeping, are you sleeping, BrotherJohn, Brother John?
Just as “dormez-vous?” means “are you sleeping?” the word “Dormition” has the word “sleep” in its root.
Blessing of Flowers for the Dormition Feast
On this day, we remember the “falling asleep” of the Virgin Mary, that is, her death. We also rejoice in her resurrection, body and soul.
Today, as I preached during the Divine Liturgy about the Virgin Mary’s dormition, I reminded worshippers of her purity not only in body but also in soul. You can listen here.
I also recommend the wonderful sermon by St. John of Kronstadt (below) which describes the circumstances of her death and burial, and the meaning of her life and resurrection from the dead for us.
Joyous Feast! Your Pastor, Father Steven
St. John of Kronstadt, Sermon on the Falling Asleep (Dormition) of the Mother of God
Today the Holy Church solemnly glorifies the honorable Dormition or translation of the Mother of God from earth to heaven. A wonderful translation – she died without serious illness, peacefully. Her soul is taken up in the divine hands of Her Son and carried up into the heavenly abode, accompanied by the sweet singing of angels. And then, her most pure body is transferred by the apostles to Gethsemane where it is honorably buried, and on the third day it is resurrected and taken up to heaven. You see this on the icon of the Dormition of the Theotokos. On it is represented the life-bearing body of the Theotokos laying on a bier, surrounded by the apostles and hierarchs, and in the center of the icon the Lord holding in His hands the most pure soul of the Theotokos. The translation of the Mother of God is a paradigm of the translation in general of the souls of Christians to the other world.
We say that our dead have “fallen asleep” or “passed away.” What does this mean? This means that for the true Christian there is no death. Death was conquered by Christ on the cross. But there is a translation, i.e, a rearrangement of his condition, i.e. his soul is in another place, in another age, in another world beyond the grave, eternal, without end, that is what is meant by “falling asleep”. It is as if it were a temporary dream after which, by the voice of the Lord and the fearful yet wonderful trumpet of the Archangel, all the dead shall live and come forth each to his place: either to the resurrection of life or to the resurrection of condemnation (John 5:29). This is what the Christian means by translation. We should be ready for this translation, for the day of the general resurrection and judgment, for this indescribable world event, recorded in the Holy Scriptures.
This preparation for the meeting of the heavenly King before the dread judgment seat, after death, is essentially the person’s preparation throughout the whole of his life. This preparation means a change in all his thoughts, and the moral change of all his being, so that the whole man would be pure and white as snow, washing clean everything that defiles the body and spirit, so that he is adorned with every virtue: repentance, meekness, humility, gentleness, simplicity, chastity, mercifulness, abstention, spiritual contemplation, and burning love for God and neighbor.
Our preparation for meeting the heavenly King, and for the inheritance of eternal life in heaven, should consist of these things. The heavenly King desires souls adorned with immutable virtue, souls prepared so that the Very Lord Himself could abide in them. Do not marvel that the Very Lord wants to live in us. In fact the human soul is more spacious than the heavens and the earth, for it exists in the image of God. And if one removes sins from the soul, the Lord of all will settle in it and will fill it with Himself. “We will come to him and make our dwelling with him” (John 14:23), says the Lord about the souls who love Him.
And so, ye participants in the Christian feasts, and especially the present feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God, ye who are brightly adorned with every virtue and translated to the heavenly kingdom, to Her Son and God, proclaim to each and every one about preparing their souls to be the dwelling place of the Lord, about continual repentance, and about the incorruptible adornment of Christian virtue. Let your death also be unashamed and peaceful, serving as the pledge of a good answer at the dread judgment seat of Christ. Amen.
On Saturday, August 1, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Holy Ghost Park, 70 Nells Rock Road, Shelton, a group from our parish will host a “Vintage Book & Tag Sale.”
If you’re a book lover, you’ll find an excellent and HUGE selection of vintage books—from gardening to WWII heroes. If you’re a Tag Sale aficionado, make this sale your one-stop shop on Saturday. And, enjoy a sweet from our bake goods table while you bargain hunt or browse.
Are you a Book Dealer, or do you have any questions? Send a query through the “Ask Father” section of our website, and he’ll contact event coordinators Audrey, Myra, or Kathy for you.
This sale is only one of the many projects going on at Holy Ghost Church related to our “Ten Talents Challenge.” Here’s the deal: in June our parish gave out $10 to any willing church member who thought he or she could use their God-given talent to increase that sum of money, and to donate the profit to the church.
The challenge was based on the on Gospel story of the “Ten Talents” (Matt 25:14–30), in which good stewards, by using their strength and ingenuity, increased the golden talent (coin) that their Master had given to them.
What a time our parishioners have had since then, using their creative minds and busy hands to put their $10 to work! Using her crocheting ability, Dorothy’s already sold $90 worth of handmade kitchen hand towels and still is taking orders. Rich is making wood-carved receptacles for funeral memorial cards. Yours truly (Fr. Steven, with wife Deb) sold his secret chili hot dog sauce at the church picnic in July and gleaned $50 profit. Mark and Love Ann are counting the profits from their brick oven pizzas, and Vera was the first to turn in a 1,000% profit from her baked goods!
We’ll be posting all the results of all projects after the deadline for the challenge, August 22nd. Meanwhile, you can help make Audrey, Myra, and Kathy (and all their bakers and helpers) increase their talents by supporting them for the Vintage Sale this Saturday.
Your Pastor, Fr. Steven
P.S. My favorite category of books is military history, and I’d love to chat about yours at the sale! See you there.
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