The Altar Candles are burning during the month of February in memory of +Bernadette Roche and +Marianne Radko. May their memory be eternal!
The Candles Before The Iconostasis are burning during the month of February in memory of +Nicholas G. Patchan. May his memory be eternal!
All Souls Saturdays: The first of the 5 Memorial Saturdays dedicated to prayer for the Faithful Departed occurs this year on February 22nd. Please note on the “All Souls” envelopes any additions or corrections to your list of departed family members.
Days Of Abstinence: Most Fridays throughout the year are designated days of penance — which means of abstinence from meat or some equivalent penitential practice.
Giant Gift Cards: Giant gift cards are available for sale following the Divine Liturgy. Our parish receives 5% of the face value of the certificates at no additional cost to the purchaser.
EWTN Broadcast: The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and Episcopal ordination of Bishop Kurt Bumette will air on EWTN this Saturday, February 8th, at 1:00 PM ET.
Tamburitzans: The Duquesne University Tamburitzans is a unique ensemble of talented young folk artists dedicated to the performance and preservation of the music, songs, and dances of Eastern Europe and neighboring cultures. The “Tammies” will perform in this area on Saturday, February 8th, at 7:00 PM at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, Rockville. For more information on the Tammies visit www.duq.edu/life-at-duquesne/tamburitzans.
The Feast Of The Meeting Of Our Lord: The feast of the Meeting of our Lord, with Simeon and Anna commemorates the Presentation of Jesus by his parents in the Temple in Jerusalem on the fortieth day after His birth. This concludes the cycle of winter feasts that are referred to as the “Feasts of Light”. These feasts – the Nativity, Epiphany, and Meeting — have a common focus: the coming of the Messiah into the world, and the beginning of His work of redemption.
The Meeting is celebrated on February 2nd — forty days after the feast of the Nativity — and is counted one of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Church. In the Byzantine Catholic Church, it is a Solemn Holyday. It is known as Hypopante in Greek, and Sritenije in Slavonic; both words mean “meeting”. In the Latin Church it is called the Presentation of the Lord, or the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or Candlemas.
In this feast, Simeon and Anna are representatives of the people of the Old Testament who looked forward eagerly to the coming of the Messiah. Recognizing Him, they praise God. The words of the elder Simeon have become a fixed part of the service of Vespers hailing the coming of the Lord as a light in darkness. This light is the seen as the light of spiritual illumination, and revelation – particularly the revelation of God’s saving plan to both the people of Israel, and the people of “the nations” outside Israel.
Traditionally candles are blessed on this feast as a symbol of Christ, the light of the world, who has brought us light and life in these Feasts of Light.