Fifth Sunday (St Mary of Egypt)

4 April: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.

5 April: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by a Bring-and-Share fasting lunch.

Palm Sunday services

11 April: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.

12 April: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by a Bring-and-Share fasting lunch.  Please note that, as today is Palm Sunday, fish is allowed on this day.

Holy Week Services, from the evening of 12 April until the morning of 18 April, are being held at St Paul’s Antiochian Orthodox Church, 66 Junction St, Woolloongabba, Brisbane.  Fr James will be assisting in services at St Paul’s, and parishioners of St Mary Magdalene Orthodox Christian Mission are invited to these services.

The Life-Bearing Resurrection of our Lord and God and Saviour Jesus Christ

18-19 April: The Resurrection of Our Lord is, for Orthodox Christians, traditionally celebrated in one service over Saturday night and Sunday morning.  For this week, the normal cycle of vespers and Divine Liturgy are cancelled. Instead:

Midnight Office, Procession, Proclamation of the Resurrection, Matins and Divine Liturgy will be celebrated from 11:30pm on Saturday night, with liturgical celebrations continuing until approximately 2am on Sunday morning.  This will be followed by a Bring-and-Share meal – no doubt specialising in those non-Lenten foods…

25 April: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.

26 April: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by a Bring-and-Share lunch.

All services are followed by a Bring-and-Share meal; the faithful are reminded that, as this is Great Lent, the Orthodox Church observes a form of fasting that precludes meat, fish, poultry (e.g. eggs) and dairy products.

We’ve received some very good news this month: as a result of our unexpected growth, we are now offering services every week, starting with the Sunday of Orthodoxy.

7 March: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.
8 March: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by a procession of icons and a Bring-and-Share fasting lunch.

These services are for the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Each of the faithful (including children) are encouraged to bring to the Divine Liturgy icons for the procession.

Vespers and Divine Liturgy have been cancelled at Elimbah for 14-15/March. Services will be held in Pomona for this weekend only – please contact Fr James for more details.

21 March: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.
22 March: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, including the Procession of the Holy Cross, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting lunch.

28 March: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting dinner and ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’ session.
29 March: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by Bring-and-Share fasting lunch.

All services are followed by a Bring-and-Share meal; the faithful are reminded that, as this is Great Lent, the Orthodox Church observes a form of fasting that precludes meat, fish, poultry (e.g. eggs) and dairy products.

7 February: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm
8 February: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am

21 February: Vespers, 5:30-6:30pm
22 February: Divine Liturgy, 10:30-11:50am, followed by BBQ

This weekend, 7-8 February 2009, we celebrated Vespers and the Divine Liturgy, commemorating the Publican and the Pharisee and the Afterfeast of the Presentation of Our Lord, at our usual worship location at the Elimbah Uniting Church, Coronation Drive, Elimbah.

Fr James celebrated the Vespers service at 5:30-6:30pm, when the chanters sang of the Resurrection (in anticipation of Sunday morning), of the Publican and the Pharisee (the feast in the Lenten Triodion) and of the Afterfeast of the Presentation of Our Lord.  Fr James gave a sermon on how, traditionally, Orthodox were taught theology, not through studying books (as we often do today), but through song (much like the Wesley’s did), and gave numerous examples from the hymns of the service.  After the service, we had a bring-and-share dinner, followed by an Introduction to Orthodoxy, which focused on what one did within a church (such as venerating icons), and the experience of God that fulfills the knowledge that we read from theological study.

The next day, Fr James celebrated the Divine Liturgy from 10:30-11:50am.  The Scripture readings were of the Publican and the Pharisee, and Fr James delivered a sermon on how this reading could equally be told today, and how the Pharisee’s prayer – ‘Lord, be merciful to me a sinner’ – was brought into the Liturgics of the Church as the proper way to be before God.  Prior to the Divine Liturgy, an infant and mother were brought into the church; and after the Divine Liturgy was a Bring-and-Share lunch.

The next services will be in a fortnight’s time on Meatfare Sunday, 21-22 February 2009.  On the Saturday night (21/Feb), there will be a Vespers service at 5:30-6:30pm, followed by a Bring-and-Share dinner and a session of ‘Introduction to Orthodoxy’; and on the Sunday morning (22/Feb), there will be a Divine Liturgy at 10:30-11:50am, followed by a Barbeque to celebrate the final day of eating meat before the beginning of Great Lent and the Resurrection of Christ (celebrated this year, in the Orthodox Church, on 19/April).  The faithful are reminded that Anesti will be giving a short presentation on this day, after which will be sold prayer ropes and other devotional products as a fundraiser for their group.