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Lent

1st Sunday of Lent: Sunday of Orthodoxy

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Glory to Jesus Christ!

This coming Sunday, 09 March 2025, is the 1st Sunday of Great Lent and the Sunday of Orthodoxy. All are invited to bring an icon from home or to use one available in the church for the Rite of Orthodoxy following the Divine Liturgy.

What is the Sunday of Orthodoxy and the Rite of Orthodoxy?

You might have heard this day also referred to as the “Triumph of Orthodoxy”. Any Sunday of… or Triumph of… language should never be understood in a prideful, triumphant manner. The day also does not understand the word Orthodoxy in a modern sense of denomination or jurisdiction or group over and against another group. That would anachronistically limit the term. Orthodoxy here is understood in a much fuller sense, the “faith that has established the universe”.

The day commemorates the restoration of icons in 843 under the Empress Theodora and reflects the great significance which icons possess for the Orthodox Church. They are not optional devotional extras, but an integral part of Orthodox faith and devotion. The “triumph of Orthodoxy” over the iconoclasts involved important issues (and still important issues!) such as the character of Christ’s human nature, the Christian attitude towards matter, and the true meaning of Christian redemption. Icons are a necessary consequence of the Incarnation of the Word (John 1.14), Jesus Christ.1

At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, a brief service is conducted in commemoration of the affirmations of the Seventh Ecumenical Council in 787 and the restoration of the use of icons in 843. Orthodox faithful carry icons in procession, while the clergy offer petitions for the people, civil authorities, and those who have reposed in the faith. Following is a recitation of excerpts from the Affirmation of Faith of the Seventh Ecumenical Council and the singing of the Great Prokeimenon.2

Sunday of Orthodoxy procession with icons — 27 March 2019
Sunday of Orthodoxy procession with icons — 27 March 2019

The readings for this Sunday are:

  • Hebrews 12.1-10 (Epistle – 40 Martyrs of Sebaste)
  • Matthew 20.1-16 (Gospel – 40 Martyrs of Sebaste)
  • Hebrews 11.24-26, 32-12.2 (Epistle)
  • John 1.43-51 (Gospel)

Upcoming services during Great Lent:

  • Vespers for the First Sunday in Lent on Saturday, 08 March, at 6 PM
  • Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great on Sunday, 09 March, at 9 AM 
  • Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts on Wednesday, 12 March, at 6 PM

Access our full Lent, Passion Week, and Pascha calendar here.

Calendar of Services for Lent, Holy Week, and Pascha — 2025

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“Come, O ye people, and today let us accept the grace of the Fast as a gift from God and as a time for repentance, in which we may find mercy with the Savior”
— Matins of Monday in the First Week of Lent

Crucifixion of our Lord — Basilica of St. Mark, Venice, Italy

1st WEEK OF LENT

Monday, 03 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete

Tuesday, 04 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete

Wednesday, 05 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Saturday, 08 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the First Sunday in Lent

Sunday, 09 March, at 9 AM ᛭ Sunday of Orthodoxy ᛭ Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great with procession with icons and the Rite of Orthodoxy

2nd WEEK OF LENT

Wednesday, 12 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Saturday, 15 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the Second Sunday in Lent

Sunday, 16 March, at 9 AM ᛭ Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas ᛭ Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great

3rd WEEK OF LENT

Wednesday, 19 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Saturday, 22 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the Third Sunday in Lent

Sunday, 23 March, at 9 AM ᛭ Sunday of the Holy Cross ᛭ Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great

4th WEEK OF LENT

Monday, 24 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Feast of the Annunciation ᛭ Vespers for the Feast of the Annunciation

The Feast of the Annunciation is Tuesday, 25 March.

Wednesday, 26 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Saturday, 29 March, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the Fourth Sunday in Lent

Sunday, 30 March, at 9 AM ᛭ Sunday of St. John of the Ladder ᛭ Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great

5th WEEK OF LENT

Wednesday, 02 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Thursday, 03 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete

Saturday, 05 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Sunday, 06 April, at 9 AM ᛭ Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt ᛭ Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great

6th WEEK OF LENT

Wednesday, 09 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Lent ends on the evening of Friday of the 6th week. Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday are somewhat days of transition between Lent and Holy Week, Palm Sunday also being one of the Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church. Holy Week begins on the evening of Palm Sunday.

Saturday, 12 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Vespers for the Feast of the Entry of Our Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday)

Sunday, 13 April, at 9 AM ᛭ Feast of the Entry of Our Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday) ᛭ Festal Divine Liturgy with the Blessing of Palms

HOLY WEEK

Wednesday, 16 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Great and Holy Wednesday ᛭ Office of Holy Unction

Thursday, 17 April, at 6 PM ᛭ Great and Holy Thursday ᛭ Matins of Great and Holy Friday (Twelve Passion Gospels)

Friday, 18 April, at 2 PM ᛭ Great and Holy Friday ᛭ Vespers of the Cross

Friday, 18 April, at 7 PM ᛭ Great and Holy Friday ᛭ Matins of Great and Holy Saturday (Jerusalem Matins) with Procession

Saturday, 19 April, at 10 AM ᛭ Great and Holy Saturday ᛭ Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil the Great

Saturday, 19 April, at 11:30 PM ᛭ Great and Holy Saturday ᛭ Midnight Office

The Midnight Office is the last service in the Lenten Triodion. While the Midnight Office is part of the Paschal vigil, at its conclusion we fully enter in the joy of Pascha.

GREAT AND HOLY PASCHA (EASTER)

Sunday, 20 April, at 12 AM ᛭ Great and Holy Pascha ᛭ Paschal Matins, Paschal Hours, Paschal Divine Liturgy, Blessing of Baskets, and Agape Feast*

*All are invited to bring a basket to be blessed at the conclusion of the Paschal liturgy before we break the Great Fast together. Traditional basket examples can be found here and here, but are by no means necessary. More importantly, come!

Harrowing of Hades - Chora
The Harrowing of Hades — Chora Church, Istanbul (Constantinople), Turkey

Sunday of Forgiveness

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Glory to Jesus Christ!

Please join us on Sunday, 17 March 2024, for the Divine Liturgy followed by the Rite of Forgiveness, after which we will enter into the Great Fast (Great Lent).

All are welcome!

About the Rite of Forgiveness:

“… on the very threshold of the Great Fast, at Vespers on the Sunday of Forgiveness, there is a special ceremony of mutual reconciliation: for without love towards others there can be no genuine fast. And this love for others should not be limited to formal gestures or to sentimental feelings, but should issue in specific acts of almsgiving. … It is to give not only our money but our time, not only what we have but what we are; it is to give a part of ourselves”. — from The Meaning of the Great Fast, The Lenten Triodion. Mother Mary and Archimandrite Kallistos Timothy Ware (St. Tikhon’s Seminary Press, 2002).

1st Sunday of Lent: The Triumph of Orthodoxy

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Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!

Sunday, 05 March 2023, is the first Sunday of Lent and the Triumph of Orthodoxy, so-called as it commemorates the 9th century restoration of icons and their veneration (i.e., Orthodoxy) against the iconoclasts. The “triumph of Orthodoxy” does not -and should never- imply a modern arrogance or spirit of triumphalism.

Following the Divine Liturgy we will conclude our worship with a procession with icons and the Rite of Orthodoxy. Everyone is encouraged to bring their favorite icon for the procession.

The Epistle and Gospel readings for Sunday are:

⁜ Hebrews 11:24-26, 32-12:2 (Epistle)
⁜ John 1:43-51 (Gospel)

About this Sunday we read from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website: “The theme of the victory of the icons, by its emphasis on the incarnation, points us to the basic Christian truth that the one whose death and resurrection we celebrate at Easter was none other than the Word of God who became human in Jesus Christ…. | continue reading at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website.

Triumph of Orthodoxy

Forgiveness Sunday: The Expulsion of Adam from Paradise

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Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!

This coming Sunday, 26 February 2023, is Forgiveness Sunday. Following the Divine Liturgy we will serve the Rite of Forgiveness, the communal act of mutual forgiveness before entering into the Great Fast.

This Sunday is also Cheesefare, the last day for those fasting to consume dairy products before Lent. (But yet again, to loosely paraphrase St. Basil the Great: don’t forsake your cheese and milk only to consume your brother with anger!)

The Epistle and Gospel readings for Sunday are:

⁜ Romans 13:11-14:4 (Epistle)
⁜ Matthew 6:14-21 (Gospel)

About this Sunday we read from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website: “… The Sunday of Forgiveness, the last of the preparatory Sundays before Great Lent, has two themes: it commemorates Adam’s expulsion from Paradise, and it accentuates our need for forgiveness. There are obvious reasons why these two things should be brought to our attention as we stand on the threshold of Great Lent. One of the primary images in the Triodion is that of the return to Paradise. Lent is a time when we weep with Adam and Eve before the closed gate of Eden, repenting with them for the sins that have deprived us of our free communion with God. But Lent is also a time when we are preparing to celebrate the saving event of Christ’s death and rising, which has reopened Paradise to us once more (Luke 23:43). So sorrow for our exile in sin is tempered by hope of our re-entry into Paradise… | continue reading at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website.

Expulsion of Adam from Paradise
The Expulsion of Adam from Paradise