Five More Days of Winter Pascha!

The celebration of Christ's Nativity was amazingly beautiful this year -- everything seemed to come together for us to do the services fully, with extra singers even showing up to fill out the choir -- and the weather cooperated with snow for a white Christmas!  At the end of this blog we post the schedule for the final days of our celebration: New Year's Day and St. Basil's feast on January 1st through January 6th, the Lord's Theophany.  If you are in the area, you are welcome to join us for any of these services!

Some history: The celebration of the Nativity of our Lord was split from Theophany in the early centuries of Christian worship, yet they remain integrally linked.  The famed Twelve Days of Christmas are not the post feast of the Nativity and certainly not twelve shopping days before Christmas, but rather one great explosion of light coming at the darkest time of the year, proclaiming the coming of true Light, Life, Love and Truth into the world, bookended by the Church with these two twenty four hour periods of intense liturgical worship in thanksgiving and praise of God’s great mercy towards us and all creation.  Theophany is the amazing climax of this longest feast  -- a full twelve-days -- of the Church year.  

Christ is Born!  Glorify Him!

Services for the Theophany of Christ 2013

Holy Myrrhbearers Monastery, Otego, New York

                          

Tuesday, January 1

5:00                 Vespers of the Prefeast

7:00                 Compline with Canon of the Prefeast

                   

Wednesday - Thursday, January 2 - 3

6:00 A.M.       Matins of the Prefeast

9:00                 Third Hour

12 NOON   Sixth Hour

3:00 p.m.        Ninth Hour

5:00                 Vespers of the Prefeast

7:00                 Compline with Canon of the Prefeast

Friday, January 4

6:00 A.M.       Matins of the Prefeast

9:00                 First & Third Royal Hours

12 NOON   Sixth & Ninth Royal Hours

5:00                 Vespers of the Prefeast

7:00                 Compline with Canon of the Prefeast

            Saturday, January 5 – Vigil of Theophany

9:00 A.M.       Third Hour

12 NOON      Sixth Hour

5:00                 Supper

          6:00 p.m.          Vigil: Vespers with Old Testament Readings &

Matins

Sunday, January 6 – Theophany

            10:00 A.M.     Divine Liturgy with the Great Blessing of Water

            5:00 p.m.        Vespers of the Feast