St. Athanasius Orthodox Church • Nicholasville/Lexington Kentucky

October in the Parish

Abp. Alexander to visit Oct. 25-27

October is a liturgically calm season in the Orthodox Church. For newcomers, this month is a great time to plug into church life:

Our Fall Catechesis (Christian Teaching 101) is in full swing each Wednesday at 720pm (immediately following our regular Wednesday Vespers at 630pm.) Newcomers and inquirers are welcome at these classes — alongside our official catechumens. The weekly series will conclude in mid-December.

Sunday School has resumed!  Children’s Sunday School (ages Pre-K through High School) takes place after the Liturgy (20-30 minutes) and our virtual Adult Sunday School is live each Thursday. You can join the online conversation each Thursday here.

Our Archbishop Alexander is planning his final visit to St. Athanasius before his retirement this October 25-27. Please mark your calendars for this festive weekend (when we also celebrate the newly-canonized St. Olga of Alaska!) You can see the full schedule on the calendar below and at the main schedule page here. Learn more about Archbishop Alexander here.

We welcome those who are in (or close to) Madison County to consider a visit our daughter community, St. Nina Mission (213 Pauline Drive #5, Berea, KY,) which helps extend the reach of the Orthodox Faith along the I-75 corridor & Wilderness Trail. St. Nina Chapel is drawing people from Somerset, London, Corbin, and beyond. We are now serving services twice a week on Tuesdays (630pm) and Saturdays (6pm.) We also are trying to serve two Sunday Liturgies per month in Berea. Our lead priest at St. Nina this year will be Fr. David Thatcher, who can be reached at fr.david@bluegrassorthodox.org.

Below is a collection of photos from October 2025, showing the full range of our parish life including both physical improvements at our church and a big annual multi-parish Fall St. Herman Campout (Sept. 26-28) that was held in Corbin, KY. We hope these photos inspire you to visit our church or mission (or one of the local Orthodox parishes.) If you have questions about our calendar or any aspect of our Faith or parish life, please reach out to our associate pastor Fr. Giorgi Lomsadze at fr.giorgi@bluegrassorthodox.org.

Christ is Risen! Pascha 2012

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We are now in the joyous Paschal season, which extends from Orthodox Easter Sunday, April 15, until the eve of Ascension, which falls on May 24 this year.  We invite you to visit us especially during this time as we continue to celebrate the Lord’s triumph over death. Stay tuned for a full …

Behold the Bridegroom Comes

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Great Lent is a season that fixes all our thoughts and deeds on the Feast of Feasts, the Pascha of our Lord!  The journey that is Great Lent comes to an end on the eve of Lazarus Saturday (this year April 7).  With Lazarus Saturday, we take a pause in the strictness of our fasting …

Open to Me the Gates of Repentance

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Orthodox Christians pray, as Great Lent dawns, that God would open to us the “gates of repentance.” Great Lent, which literally means the “Great Fast,” refers to a glorious season of “bright sadness” when we turn to the Lord with renewed prayer, fasting, …

Service Schedule

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Wednesday February 15 7:20 Special Video Presentation “Return of the Icon” presented after Vespers at 6:30pm Soul Saturday Prayers for the Departed Begins Sat. Feb. 18 at 6:15 with Litya for the Departed prior to Vigil and continues throughout the Saturdays of Lent Sunday Feb.19 Meatfare …

Upcoming Parish Services

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Wednesday Feb. 15 6:30pm  Vespers followed by a special video presentation                                                “The Return of the Icon” Saturday Feb. 18 6:15pm Litya for the Departed This special commemoration, Soul Saturday Prayers for the Departed, will be observed each …

Updates in Parish Life

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Parish Continues to Celebrate Theophany If you would like Father Justin to serve a houseblessing during the month of January, please email him or call the office at 859-881-8144 (Tues.-Thurs., 10am-2pm). “Death and Dying as Orthodox” Special Two-part Wednesday Evening Series taught by …

Season of Theophany

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“When thou, O Lord, wast baptized in the Jordan, the worship of the Trinity was made manifest. For the voice of the Father bore witness to thee, calling thee his Beloved Son; and the Spirit in the form of a dove confirmed the truthfulness of his word. O Christ our God, who hast revealed …

Service Schedule for the Nativity of Our Lord

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“Today the Virgin comes to the cave to give birth to the Eternal Word. Hear the glad tidings and rejoice, O universe! Glorify with the angels and the shepherds the Eternal God, Who is willing to appear as a little child!” -Kontakion, Forefeast of the Nativity Soon, our Church will …

Hierarch to Visit St. Athanasius

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His Grace Mark, Bishop of Baltimore, is scheduled to make a hierarchical visit to St. Athanasius Orthodox Church in Nicholasville, KY on the weekend of the twenty-seventh of November (Thanksgiving weekend) after having received the blessing of Bishop Nikon of Boston, Locum Tenens of the Diocese of …

Orthodoxy 101 Fall Semester Begins

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Orthodoxy 101 has resumed at St. Athanasius! This fall, our parish will be going through basic catechism material on the beliefs and practices of the Orthodox Church. The new semester began in late September, and will be running through December. Main topics include Worldview, Sin, Asceticism, …