Holy Thursday Liturgical Services at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH!
Holy Thursday Liturgical Services in Parma, OH

UKRAINIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH OF THE USA

CONSISTORY OFFICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

PRESS RELEASE

 

Holy Thursday Liturgical Services at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH!

 

There are four events commemorated on Thursday of Holy Week: the washing of the disciples' feet, the institution of the Holy Mystery of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper, the agony in the garden of Gethsemane, and the betrayal of Christ by Judas.

The faithful of Penn-Ohio Deanery of the Western Eparchy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA were blessed to experience all four of these sacred commemorations, while attending the liturgical services of the day at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH.

Holy Thursday morning started at the cathedral with the Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, which was concelebrated by the clergy of the Penn-Ohio Deanery with His Grace Bishop Daniel. This Liturgy commemorates the institution of the Holy Eucharist, and it was spiritually uplifting to see the clergy of the Deanery (Very Rev. John Harvey – Dean and pastor of Sts Peter and Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Youngstown, OH; Very Rev. John Nakonachny – pastor of St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH; Very Rev. Dennis Kristof – pastor of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Orthodox pro-Cathedral in Lakewood, OH;  Very Rev. Andrew Gall – pastor of St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Sharon, PA; Very Rev. Michael Hontaruk of St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH; Rev. Paisius McGrath– pastor of Sts Peter and Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Lyndora, PA; Ihumen John Henry, Very Rev. Dmitri Belenki and Protodeacon Ihor Mahlay of St. Volodymyr Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH) pray together at the Altar of St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral. The bishop in his remarks reminded the faithful in attendance that “The Eucharist is at the center of the Church's life. It is her most profound prayer and principal activity. It is at one and the same time both the source and the summit of her life. In the Eucharist the Church manifests her true nature and is continuously changed from a human community into the Body of Christ, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, and the People of God… Our new life in Christ is constantly renewed and increased by the Eucharist. The Eucharist imparts life and the life it gives is the life of God.”

Drawing near the conclusion of the Vesperal Liturgy, an ancient and sacred Rite of Washing of Feet took place in the nave of the cathedral. It appears that the Early Church had a ceremony of the Washing of the Feet annually on Great Thursday in imitation of the event at the Last Supper. For the most part, it was limited to Cathedral Churches and certain monasteries. In time, the service fell into disuse except in certain areas. It is now being recovered by many dioceses throughout the Orthodox world. The service is elaborate, dramatic and moving.

The bishop with the clergy processed from the sanctuary to the nave of the church in order to spiritually put into action the very example of humility and service to others that was preached by our Savior. By washing the feet of His disciples, the Lord summarized the meaning of His ministry, manifested His perfect love and revealed His profound humility. The act of the washing of the feet (John 13:2-17) is closely related to the sacrifice of the Cross. While the Cross constitutes the ultimate manifestation of Christ's perfect obedience to His Father (Philippians 2:5-8), the washing of the feet signifies His intense love and the giving of Himself to each person according to that person's ability to receive Him (John 13:6-9).

The eparchial bishop, having taken off his outer vestments approached each priest and in Christ like manner washed the feet of his clergy, dried them up with a towel and prayerfully kissed them, thus as a spiritual father of the Eparchy and a successor to the Apostles he instructed the clergy and the faithful in attendance the importance of humility, love and sacrifice in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Great and Holy Thursday - 12 Gospels Readings

On Thursday evening, His Grace Bishop Daniel led the service of the Passions of our Lord - the Reading of the 12 Gospels at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH. Serving with the bishop were the pastor of the cathedral parish family – Very Rev. John Nakonachny and Very Rev. Michael Hontaruk, assisted by the seminarian of the Church subdeacon Adrian Mazur and the altar servers of the cathedral. The evening entered those in attendance into the celebration of the holy, saving and awesome Passion of Christ. To take away our sins, Christ willingly endured the spitting, scourging, buffetings, scorn, mocking and the purple robe; the reed, sponge, vinegar, nails, spear and, above all, the Cross and Death. The confession from the cross of the penitent thief, crucified with Christ, is celebrated. This service is usually long, but its content is dramatic and deeply moving for the devout Christian. 

Following the conclusion of the service, Vladyka Daniel stated that “…The narrative of our Lord's Passion — His suffering, death and resurrection — begins in earnest on Holy Thursday after supper. And we therefore began to read and meditate on it today. We read together the words of all four evangelists, woven into 12 composite texts that tell nearly the entire account of the Passion from Christ's last words to His disciples at the supper table to his burial by Joseph and Nicodemus. After each reading, we sing hymns meditating on what we have just read, so that the significance of these events might pass into our hearts and we might give glory to our Lord and Savior. This service, which lasts about 3 hours, is a wonderful opportunity to learn who our Lord is, to learn something about His love and humility which truly surpass our understanding…

…I am constantly reminding myself: I am ONLY able to love because He (Christ) loved me FIRST! Our Lord tells us, "there is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friend" (John 15:13). We remember our Lord's suffering and submission to death in order to save us. It is truly a somber reminder, when we listen to the gospels and hymnology during the services of Holy Week.

May our Lord grant that, through prayerful attention during these services, we may each come to love Him more."

Those, in attendance at St. Vladimir Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma, OH, had an opportunity to once again participate in the prayers and the historical sequence of the events, as related in the Gospels and hymns, providing a vivid foundation for the great events yet to come.

Photos by Subdeacon Adrian Mazur

Great and Holy Thursday!

Great and Holy Thursday! - 04/17/2014

(54 images)


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