We invite YOU to join us for the most sacred and beloved days of the Orthodox Christian calendar — the days of Holy Week & Pascha (Easter)! This year, these days fall “one week behind” our Western Christian friends. Orthodox Palm Sunday falls on April 5, while Pascha itself follows on April 12. These days — and the Holy Week between them — have multiple unique services that usher us through the drama of the Passion and Resurrection of the Savior. You can learn more about making an actual visit to St. Athanasius here. You can also take a peek inside our church by checking our parish YouTube channel. Watching a service is no substitute for actually being present, but we invite you into our “virtual space” if that helps you get a sense of what we do in our services. (Note: we have additional services at our St. Nina Chapel in Berea AND at our Mercer Chapel in Harrodsburg.)
The best thing to do is to plunge right into Holy Week services with us at St. Athanasius. Our most up-to-date and complete calendar is our parish google calendar here. We also have a very simple but detailed “Holy Week & Pascha Guide” here. Information on the Weekend of the Palms (April 4-5) is below, as is a graphic for Holy Week and additional details about Paschal celebrations:
- April 4: Lazarus Saturday
- 8am Baptisms & 9am Festal Liturgy
- 1030am Pancake Breakfast, Decorating, Children’s Confessions, & more…
- 630-815pm Vigil anticipating Palm Sunday
- April 5: Palm Sunday
- 930-1130am Festal Liturgy & 1130am Fellowship Lunch (Team B)
April 12: PASCHA OF THE LORD
- 12am Midnight PASCHAL Procession & Matins
- 115am PASCHAL LITURGY
- 240am Blessing of PASCHAL MEAL in hall & outside
- 130pm Paschal Parade forms in Wilmore [see here for more info]
- 2pm Paschal Parade Arrives, Paschal Bells, & Paschal Vespers
- 230pm Paschal Picnic begins (conclude by sundown ~8pm)
- April 13: Bright Monday (Day 2 of Pascha)
- 9am Paschal Liturgy for Bright Monday
We also welcome those who are in (or close to) Madison County to consider a visit our St. Nina Mission in Berea, which helps extend the reach of the Orthodox Faith along the I-75 corridor and Wilderness Trail. We are drawing people from Somerset, London, Corbin, and beyond!
Below is a collection of photos from March 2026 showing the full range of liturgical, educational, missional, and social life in our parish. We hope these photos and the depth of our Faith inspire you to visit St. Athanasius Orthodox Church or our St. Nina Mission during this upcoming, glorious season of church life! If you have questions about our calendar or any aspect of our Faith or parish life, please reach out to our rector and senior pastor Fr. Justin at fr.justin@bluegrassorthodox.org or our associate priest Fr. Giorgi at fr.giorgi@bluegrassorthodox.org
