Our Journey to Pascha 2019
We are now deep into Great Lent, the ancient 40-day season specially appointed for renewed spiritual focus in anticipation of Holy Week and Pascha (Easter.) During the Lenten season (known as also as The Great Fast or The 40-Days,) Orthodox Christians give great care not only to abstinence from various foods, but also to special focus on prayer and the doing of other works of mercy. (For a series of articles on the meaning of Lent–in all its aspects–visit this site.)
One of the highlights to our Lenten journey this year was the visit of Fr. John Erickson. On Friday, March 15, Fr. John visited with our young adults and college students, reflecting on contemporary questions that we, as Christians, face today. On Saturday, March 16, Fr. John led a day retreat entitled Our Lenten Journey. On Sunday, March 17, Fr. John preached at both St. Athanasius’ main Divine Liturgy and at the Pan-Orthodox Vespers held at St. Andrew Orthodox Church on Sunday evening. If you missed the retreat, we invite you to listen to audio from all three sessions and to check out our photo report of the weekend here.
We invite you to pray with us during Lent and in Holy Week. Our basic lenten calendar in pdf form is here and you can always access our regularly-updated google calendar here. Of special note, among our many upcoming events is the upcoming archpastoral visit of His Eminence, Archbishop Alexander, who will be with us on the weekend of Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday (April 20-21.)
To give you a sense of parish life in this blessed season, here are some photos of our Lenten journey as of late March:
Retreat 2019: Fr. John Erickson