• Pascha 2020•
Christ is Risen!
Dear Parishioners and Friends of our Parish,
Easter Message from Fr. Bruce. The Byzantine Catholic Church is known for ritual, customs and splendor. At no better time does it come alive than during Holy Week and Easter. This year we will be doing without the celebratory features that make this season so special. Although the celebrations will be greatly diminished (live-streamed or on-line at best) what we are commemorating remains the same. The “extras” have been taken away, leaving only the essentials—the remembrance of what makes this week Holy…the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord.
Last year at this time who would’ve guessed things would be the way they are. It’s not what we’ve come to expect. It’s not what any of us wanted. It’s missing so many of the things--and people that we love. But come Easter morn we still will be exchanging “Christ is Risen, Indeed He is Risen!” because that is for all time. It is the essence and core of our belief. This year, stripped of all the trappings, we can acknowledge the gift of God’s love for us, in the person of Jesus Christ, for what it is.
Writing in the 4th century, St. Athanasius argued that Christians’ hope in the resurrection was so great that it had taken away their fear of death. May it be that way for us some 2000 years later!
In the Glory of the Resurrection,
Fr. Bruce Riebe
Administrator
Pastoral Letter of Bishop Milan. The pastoral letter is available at parma.org. For those who prefer to listen than to read, it is available in this form also here:
Easter Message from Fr. Lukas. Throughout history, there were many attempts to contradict the historicity of Jesus Christ, of his birth, of his resurrection, of the empty tomb. As a matter of fact, there was no one present at his Resurrection. Byzantine Church is portraying this fact in a way of the procession around the empty Church. The actual Resurrection was hidden to the human eyes. And therefore, we may ask ourselves, how can we become the witnesses of this Resurrection? It certainly cannot be through visual experience.
The answer to this question lies in the Acts of Apostles. After Jesus' Ascencion, apostles were still afraid and they were hiding before the public. They have met resurrected Christ several times, but they didn't have the Spirit. They still weren't witnesses of Christ Resurrection. But when Holy Spirit descended upon them, apostles are going out and Peter first time makes this powerful testimony: "You, Israelites, hear these words: Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God with mighty deeds. This man you killed, using lawless men to crucify him... But God raised this Jesus and of this, we are all witnesses." (Acts 2:22-24,32)
We can become the witnesses of Jesus' Resurrection through his Holy Spirit. The Lent is over, the joy of Resurrections sounds today all over the world and we are called to become the witnesses of Christ's Resurrection. If you can witness in your heart that Christ has risen, there is no historian in the world to disprove this fact.
Christ is Risen!
Fr. Lukas Mitro
Parochial Vicar
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GREAT AND HOLY PASCHA
RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD,GOD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST
The Lamb Who Was Slain Has Delivered Us from DeaTh and Given Us Life
 There was much proclaimed by the prophets about the mystery of the Passover: that mystery is Christ, and to Him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
For the sake of suffering humanity He came down from heaven to earth, clothed Himself in that humanity in the Virgin's womb, and was born a man. Having then a body capable of suffering, He took the pain of fallen man upon Himself; He triumphed over the diseases of soul and body that were its cause, and by His Spirit, which was incapable of dying, He dealt man's destroyer, death, a fatal blow.
He was led forth like a lamb; He was slaughtered like a sheep. He ransomed us from our servitude to the world, as He had ransomed Israel from the land of Egypt; He freed us from our slavery to the devil, as He had freed Israel from the hand of Pharaoh. He sealed our souls with His own Spirit, and the members of our body with His own blood.
He is the One who covered death with shame and cast the devil into mourning, as Moses cast Pharaoh into mourning. He is the One who smote sin and robbed iniquity of offspring. He is the One who brought us out of slavery into freedom, out of darkness into light, out of death into life, out of tyranny into an eternal kingdom; who made us a new priesthood, a people chosen to be His own forever. He is the Passover that is our salvation.
It is he who endured every kind of suffering in all those who foreshadowed Him. In Abel He was slain, in Isaac bound, in Jacob exiled, in Joseph sold, in Moses exposed to die. He was sacrificed in the Passover lamb, persecuted in David, dishonored in the prophets.
It is He who was made man of the Virgin, He who was hung on the tree; it is He who was buried in the earth, raised from the dead, and taken up to the heights of heaven. He is the mute lamb, the slain lamb, the lamb born of Mary, the fair ewe. He was seized from the flock, dragged off to be slaughtered, sacrificed in the evening, and buried at night. On the tree no bone of His was broken; in the earth His body knew no decay. He is the One who rose from the dead, and who raised man from the depths of the tomb.
St. Melito of Sardis
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• LITURGICAL SCHEDULE •
Sunday, April 12, 2020
Sunday of
Resurrection
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09:00 AM Resurrection Matins
Divine Liturgy
12:00 PM Blessing of the Baskets (Parking Lot)
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Monday, April 13, 2020
Bright Monday
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09:00 AM Resurrection Matins
Divine Liturgy with Procession
+ Marcie Tyransky, off. by Jim & Mary TREANOR |
Sunday, April 19, 2020
Thomas' Sunday
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09:30 AM Divine Liturgy
* Pro Populo |
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LET US WISH IN 2021
PASCHA AS WE KNOW IT!
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