Byzantine Catholic Mission
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Holy Resurrection Byzantine Catholic Mission |
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O ye incorporeal angels who stand before the throne of God, luminous with the brilliance thereof and everlastingly shining with radiance. As secondary luminaries, entreat Christ, that He grant unto our souls peace and great mercy. O immortal messengers of the truly incorruptible Life, ye most blessed ones who received life from the first Life, ye have become holy beholders of the eternal Wisdom, full of light, and reflecting lamps shown forth as is meet. O ye archangels and angels, principalities, thrones, dominions, six-winged seraphim, and divine, many-eyed cherubim, instruments of wisdom, virtues and powers most divine. Pray ye to Christ, that He grant our souls peace and great mercy. Archives:
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HOLY RESURRECTION BYZANTINE CATHOLIC MISSION
Slava Isusu Chrisu! Slava Na Viky!
Divine Liturgy begins at 4 p.m. every Sunday
Every Third Sunday of the Month is Food Sunday
Sunday of All Saints
Divine Liturgy Intention:
Our Offerings
The Apostles Fast
Through prayer and fasting, the Apostles prepared themselves for the coming of the Holy Spirit. They prayed and fasted much
before they went out to preach the Gospel. After praying and fasting, they ordained new presbyters for apostolic work, as we
read in the Acts of the Apostles: “And when they had ordained to them priests in every church, and had prayed with
fasting, they commended them to the Lord, in whom they believed” (14:22).
Thus, from the earliest times, the Church has prepared her faithful with prayer and fasting for the feast of the major
Apostles, Sts. Peter and Paul, whose memory we celebrate on June 29. The fast begins tomorrow and ends on
June 28. Wednesdays and Fridays are to be kept as days of abstinence: no meat or meat products.
Sunday After Pentecost — Sunday of All Saints
Our Church calendar dedicates each day in the year to one or more saints or classes of saints. There are multitudes of saints
in heaven whose names are not recorded in the Church calendar and whose names are unknown to the world even though they are
forever inscribed in the Book of Life. Therefore, it is wish of holy Church that fitting honor be paid to all the saints in
heaven — known and unknown.
Many motives prompt us to venerate the saints and implore their intercession. Here we mention only a few:
By honoring the saints we honor God, for respect shown to them is respect shown to God. The saints did not become saints
through their own power; their holiness is the result of God’s grace. All they are they owe to God. The Servant of God
Metropolitan Andrew Sheptytsky said, “The veneration of saints not only does not oppose in any way the worship that is
due to God but eminently contributes to it. We honor the saints as servants of God, as our heavenly protectors who intercede
for us before God and obtain from Him, for us, the forgiveness of our sins and heavenly grace.”
The saints are the closest friends of God, hence, the honor we pay to them is pleasing to God, for they loved God above all
things.
All the saints are very close to us, for they, like us, were once citizens of our earth and are of our own flesh and bone.
They are members of the same Church we are, although they belong to the Church Triumphant while we still struggle as members
of the Church on earth, the Church Militant. They are not indifferent to our welfare and salvation. Hence, there exists no
doubt that they readily listen to all our petitions and prayers and gladly present them before the throne of God.
Our Duty to Strive for Holiness
We are obliged, not only to venerate the saints and to seek the assistance of the saints but also to imitate their life and
holiness. All Christians are called to holiness by virtue of the sacrament of Baptism. Every person, regardless of status and
condition of life, can become a saint and is duty-bound to strive after holiness in life. Our Lord Jesus Christ addressed all
people without exception when He said, “Therefore, be perfect as your heavenly Father is
perfect” (Matthew 5:48). St. Paul also reminds us of our duty to pursue holiness: “This is the will
of God — your sanctification” (1 Corinthians 4:3).
What is holiness? Holiness is living according to the commandments of God and the Church; it is the daily fulfillment of
God’s will, constant fidelity to the duties of one's state, or more briefly — holiness is the Gospel translated
into action.
Pastoral Ponderings: Graduations and a Vote of Thanks
As the summer vacation season really begins to take hold, there is one final event in the lives of several of our parishioners
that I would like to acknowledge — graduations from local high schools. The following “former high school
students” are now officially alumni/alumnae of a variety of local schools, and in the name of the parish I congratulate
them. Jeremy Bentley, Conrad Burry, John Mayor, Josh Mayor, Daniel Zagaya, Jennifer Rowland, Emily Mollish and Elizabeth
Middlebrook are the students in question. If anyone has been omitted from the list, my apologies — and please let me
know of the error.
A little observed annual event took place at Holy Family last week — the removal of heavy brush at the tip of the
property. A vote of thanks to the Baldwin brothers for taking care of this once again.
— Father O’Connell
Have you invited your friends, family, and coworkers to worship with us?
Last updated: 10-Jun-2004 |
