“ “Prepare, O Bethlehem, for Eden has been opened for all. Ephratha show thy beauty, because the Tree of Life is coming—is coming to give us Life.””
Nativity Fast
The 15th of November is the beginning of the 40 day fast leading up to Feast of the Nativity of Christ, December 25. The Nativity Fast is a period of preparation for the great feast. Truly counter-cultural, this is a time to prepare our hearts to receive the newborn Christ. It is directly at odds with the way the lead up to Christmas is treated in the secular world where everyone is tired of celebrating with Christmas trees and decorations, shopping, music and parties well before Christmas is actually here! Instead the Church calls us to abstain from meat, dairy, wine & oil. In addition we increase our own daily prayer rule along with attending Paraklesis Services (Supplication to the Theotokos), Wednesday, December 3, 10 & 17. We are also called to remember the poor thought increased almsgiving preparing for the coming of our Lord by taking the focus off our own desires and helping those in need and dedicating ourselves anew to God.
May you have a fruitful and blessed fast!
Entrance of the Theotokos to the Temple
The second great feast of the Theotokos is the celebration of her entrance as a child into the Jerusalem Temple which is commemorated on the twenty-first of November. Like the feast of her nativity, this feast of Mary is without direct biblical and historical reference. But like the nativity, it is a feast filled with important spiritual significance for the Christian believer.
Join us Thursday, November 20, 6:30pm — Vigil (Vespers & Orthros) with Artoklasia (Blessing of Five Loaves) & Friday, November 21, 9:30am — Divine Liturgy followed by potluck
Come join us for our special service of Thanksgiving Wednesday, Nov. 26, 6:30pm
Akathist of Thanksgiving
We will be serving the very beautiful and moving Akathist of Thanksgiving. The Akathist “Glory to God for All Things” or “Akathist of Thanksgiving,” is attributed to Metropolitan Tryphon (Prince Boris Petrovich Turkestanov, +1934), and was found among the effects of Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov, upon his death in a prison camp in 1940. The most commonly used title for the hymn was taken from the words of St. John Chrysostom, as he lay dying in exile—words of praise arising from amidst terrible sufferings and is an opportunity for us to share together as a community in the Thanksgiving holiday.
The Orthodox Church is the One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We are a Christ-centered church. In fact, we share an unbroken history with the Faith of the first Christians, and we can trace our history back to the Apostles themselves.
This parish is part of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. We are pan-Orthodox. This means our membership includes many who were born into the Faith, as well as many converts. In our parish, all services are fully in English.
Anyone and everyone is more than welcome to join us for services! If you have questions about our church and what we believe, feel free to reach out to Father Joshua, our parish priest!
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Usual Service Times
Matins - Sun 8:15am
Divine Liturgy - Sun 9:30am
Vespers/Akathist - Wed 6:30pm
Great Vespers - Sat 5:00pm
Live Streaming
While there is no substitute for gathering together in the mystery of the Divine Liturgy and partaking in Holy Communion, and participating in the other divine services of the Church, if you are unable to attend in person, you are invited to join us via live stream.
Located in Linthicum, MD, Holy Cross Antiochian Orthodox Church is a parish of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America. We began as a mission parish in early 1993 with six families who converted to Holy Orthodoxy. Today, our community numbers over 200 members, about half of whom are converts from several Protestant denominations.