| “Making Great Lent Count!”
What is Great Lent? Simply put, it is a SEASON OF SPIRITUAL RENEWAL, of a re-awakening of the life of the soul. It is the time the Holy Fathers call the “Tithe of the Year,” meaning that this 1/10 of our calendar year should be dedicated solely to the rejuvenation of our faith, especially by attending the services of the Church.
- Scheduling. PURPOSEFULLY schedule your calendar so that you can attend ALL the Lenten services. Make changes in your daily schedule so that extracurricular activities do not interfere with the services. Parties, banquets, social visits, family vacations, movies, should be scheduled before or after Great Lent.
- Prayer. BEGIN ONCE AGAIN a daily rule of prayer in the morning and evening. Struggle against inattention and coldness of heart. Remember that prayer includes many dimensions, bodily, mentally, and from the heart. Christ was tempted fiercely in the desert while praying and fasting: the same will happen to you. Remember God in all that you do. Pray the Jesus Prayer.
- Sacramental Life. INTENSIFY your spiritual life by receiving the Sacraments. Prepare and receive Holy Communion not only on Sunday mornings but also at the Presanctified Divine Liturgies during the week. Make at least one Confession during Lent. Be brutally honest with yourself. Reflect on your behaviors, feelings, intentions, thoughts, values, etc. Use as your reference point for self-examination the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7).
- Spiritual Reading. READ THE BIBLE every day. Choose one book from the Old Testament and one book from the New Testament and read them all the way through. Find a book on the life of an Orthodox saint and read it.
- Charitable Gifts and Works. WATCH OUT FOR SELFISH SPIRITUALITY: There is always a danger that our faith can turn into something self-centered. Find someone who is in need and help them the best you can on a regular basis. Little acts of kindness matter. Try your best to give people what they need, not want they want.
- Fasting. DO YOUR BEST TO FOLLOW THE CHURCH’S TEACHING ON FASTING. At first this will be unpleasant. Pray to God for His help to do the best you can (health issues should be considered). Remember that fasting is a means to an end, to elevate and enlighten the soul as our highest of all our human faculties.
Fr. Paul Jannakos |
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| GREAT LENT 2023! Great Lent begins on Monday, Feb. 27th. Sunday after BLINI brunch we will celebrate Forgiveness Vespers. Mark your calendars, too, for the first week of Lent and the celebration of the Canon of St. Andrew of Crete. This coming Friday, March 3rd, we will serve our first PRESANCTIFIED DIVINE LITURGY with a Potluck Lenten dinner following. All services begin at 6pm. “A Helper and a Protector has become my salvation!”
CHEESEFARE SUNDAY BRUNCH: On Sunday, February 26th, we will serve Forgiveness Vespers at 12:30pm with the rite of Holy Forgiveness. There will also be a potluck cheesefare lunch served after the Divine Liturgy: bring your favorite Cheese Dish! |
| IOCC KENTUCKY TRIP: Michaelyn Sloan will be leading a team from St. Luke to participate in the IOCC Kentucky mission trip on the week of March 20-25th. For more information, contact Michaelyn at michaelynsloan@gmail.com. See flier above. |
| SUNDAY MARCH 5TH – SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY On Sunday, March 5th, we are asking the all of our children bring an icon from home (preferably an icon of their patron saint) so that they may be blessed by Fr. Paul. There will be a procession around the Church (weather permitting). Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers will take place at 6:30pm at Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago. Our Archbishop Daniel is preaching! |
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| MARCH MONTHLY CHARITY: Our St. Luke monthly charity for the month of March will be the COPTIC ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN MISSION CENTER. Please be generous. |
| DIOCESAN PARISH ENGAGEMENT SURVEY Our parish has been selected to participate in a Diocesan initiative to gauge the level of Laity Engagement. We are asking everyone to participate in this that is being managed through the Diocese of the Midwest via Survey Monkey. All responses are anonymous. Please be thoughtful, honest, and candid when you complete the survey The survey results will be used to identify ways to strengthen and grow engagement in our parish community. Thank you for devoting your time and providing candid input. Click HERE to take the survey. |
| NATIONAL ORTHODOX BABY SHOWER – March 25th!: This event is a nationally-coordinated diaper drive/baby item drive to support women in our communities and help them choose life by partnering with local pregnancy resource centers. The Baby Shower takes place during the month of March to coincide with the Feast of the Annunciation, with items being collected March 19-26. Pregnancy Resource Centers are nonprofit organizations that exist all over the country to provide medical, educational, material, and support services to countless abortion-vulnerable women and men every year, helping them to choose life. For more information, contact MaryJo Werbianski. |
| LUBA’S KITCHEN ANNOUNCEMENT: This is a reminder of the duties of coffee hour hosting. Below are key bullet points pertaining to this ministry. HERE are the guide lines. Debbie has made a signup sheet. The food costs and time/energy of hosting are greatly decreased. The fellowship team is looking for weekly coverage for prepping coffee hour and cleaning up afterwards.For many, many months the bulk of coffee hour duties has fallen on Crys and Matthew, with some volunteers at times. The current process is efficient and as mentioned, less costly to serve as a host as the church bears the bulk of the food costs. Thank you for your participation in this weekly ministry. Matthew, Crys and Debbie |
| DRIVERS FOR ELIJAH’S CHARIOT: Elijah’s Chariot – if you would like to help us drive our elderly to Church for services please let Tammy Tsiones know. Click here to sign up: DRIVERS FOR ELIJAH’S CHARIOT SIGN UP. |
| BOOKSTORE SALE DOWNSTAIRS: Our bookstore sale will now offer the books downstairs in the parish hall for a free will donation. The proceeds from the free will offering for the rest of the books will go to Holy Resurrection monastery. |
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