Newsletter April 3, 2026

Everyone desiring to have the Sacrament of Repentance (Confession) before Pascha must do so BEFORE Wednesday evening. There will be no more confessions starting Wednesday evening until after Pascha.

The Experience of Orthodox Holy Week

For an Orthodox Christian, before arriving at the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, there is a lot of work to be done — namely, attending rigorous church services throughout the week over about 56 days of some sort of fasting, forty of those days during Great Lent prescribing a strict fast. The final week, Holy Week, is both the most difficult and most beautiful week of the year.

The experience of celebrating these holy days brings much joy to Orthodox Christians. This in no way diminishes the importance of their theology but rather emphasizes liturgical celebration that expresses the fullness of the theology of these events.

Read the entire article: https://www.antiochian.org/regulararticle/2396

As the article above explained, we will be here at Church for services every night starting this Sunday. And then starting Holy Thursday, we will also have services in the mornings. “Come and see!”

See the calendar for all of specifics: Here is a link:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Calendar/calendar.php

Please remember that our full calendar continues to be available at our parish web site. Here is a link:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Calendar/calendar.php

Full schedule:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Ministries/Prosphora/Docs/prosphora sched 2026 web.pdf

Full schedule:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Ministries/Altar/Docs/epistle readers for 2026.pdf

Epistle: ST. PAUL’S LETTER TO THE PHILIPPIANS 4:4-9

BRETHREN, rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you.

Gospel: JOHN 12:1-18

Six days before Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazaros was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. There they made him a supper; Martha served, and Lazaros was one of those at table with him. Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was to betray him), said “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” This he said, not that he cared for the poor but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box he used to take what was put into it. Jesus said, “Let her alone, let her keep it for the day of my burial. The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came, not only on account of Jesus but also to see Lazaros, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests planned to put Lazaros also to death, because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus. The next day a great crowd who had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” And Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it; as it is written, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!” His disciples did not understand this at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that this had been written of him and had been done to him. The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazaros out of the tomb and raised him from the dead bore witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign.

The Daily Choice of the Cross

Met. Luke of Zaporozhye
(with thanks to Fr. Zechariah Lynch)

My dear ones! We are not abandoned orphans. We are the children of the One Who is not ashamed to call us His Own. Let us approach the Cross not with slavish fear, but with boldness. Let’s bring our pain, our doubts, and our tears to Him. May the power of the Life-giving Tree strengthen us. Remember: Golgotha is always followed by Light. By holding onto the Cross, we are already partaking of a Victory that neither death nor hell can take away.

Read the entire article: https://inklesspen.blog/2026/03/15/the-daily-choice-of-the-cross/