Overview of Services

Matins

     Matins is a morning service. It is held at least weekly directly precceeding he divine Liturgy. In this service you will find a wealth of hymns often directed at the saints commemorated, feasts being celebrated, and prescribed scriptural readings. You will notice the lights turned down and a quieter mood before we move into the celebration that is The Divine Liturgy.

Divine Liturgy

     The Divine Liturgy is the service held on Sunday. In the orthodox church there are a few different Liturgies you may encounter but the one you will find here, and likely in any Orthodox Church you step into, is the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. This Liturgy has been served for thousands of years dating back to the 3rd Century A.D. Learn more here.

     In our parish you will find a book with the Liturgy near your seat. Take note that there are segments of the book where you will see something like "(See Liturgy Variables.)" and the chanters will sing hymns not found in the book. These hymns vary. We provide additional handouts with these hymns. If you are so inclined please join us in chanting. We ask you do so quietly at first so you can pick up the different tones. 

Paraklesis

Meaning  "An Urgent Request" You will find this service held nearly every Wednesday at St. John's. As we go through the week, this service stands as a short respite and highlights The Most Holy Theotokos, pleading with her to pray for us and help us as a mother looks after her children. There are two versions of this service (great and small)  chanted at different times. For an explorer, this is a wonderful service showing how The Church views The Mother of God and the saints as helpers deserving of honor and veneration but never worship. A wonderful question for after service might be "what do we mean when we say 'Most Holy Theotokos save us'" and how is it different (it is) from the unique salvation God provides?

Vespers

The evening service which you might encounter any day but most typically each Saturday as we prepare for The Divine Liturgy on Sunday. In it you will hear the psalms and likely a commemoration of a saint(s).  There is no better way to end your Saturday than with a bit of prayer to re-orient ourselves and step into church Sunday morning focused on God.

Holy Unction

A healing service done as often as needed, often  once a month at St. John's and at a minimum on Great and Holy Wednesday. You need not be orthodox to come and receive prayer and be anointed with oil.  Read More

Feast Days

If you have done even a little bit of research on The Orthodox Church you will see that fasting and prayer play a big role. That said, we these fasts all end with feasts! These celebrations take place throughout the year with the two big ones being the dormition fast and Great Lent 

Blessing of the Five Loaves

A very short service often done at the end of another service like vespers, Liturgy, or Paraklesis. The service as you might imagine is a blessing of five loaves of bread mirroring the five loaves which Jesus multiplied and fed five thousand. At the same time it is not just a simple food blessing. It is a reminder that God will provide all that his servants need. Text of service

Memorial Services

In the orthodox church we do not believe the dead are really dead. While we do not know the mystery of what exactly happens the moment we "fall asleep in the Lord" we do know that we should pray for each other. The memorial service traditionally involves preparing  "Koliva" (boiled wheat mixed with sugar, mixed nuts, etc) and a short prayer service found here. Prayers for the dead  may be scandalous to some but are scriptural. Reach out to Father Ion with your questions after service.  If you are curious about the istory of making Koliva read up on the life of Saint Theodore who thwarted an attempt to secretly feed the faithful food tainted with the blood of animals offered in pagan sacrifices. 

Lenten Services

Great Lent begins just before Spring and builds up to Holy Pascha (Holy Week/Easter/Resurrection Sunday). It  is full of many spiritual fulfilling services and as such has its own dedicated page. it is a transformative time in the church for all members/explorers not just those well established. See The Great Lent Resource Center

The Hours

If you are joining at a time when Theophany (Jesus Baptism), Pashca (Crucifixion/Resurection), or Nativity (Christmas) ask when this service is being held and DO NOT MISS IT. Every service in the church is wonderful but this service is pure gold and only held three times a year. A wonderful pairing of psalms and readings that will take you through a deep and fulfilling spiritual journey.