Christ is Risen! Христос Воскресе! Χριστός Ανέστη! 

Late Saturday evening (April 11th) and into Sunday morning (April 12th), the faithful of Christ the Saviour gathered together to celebrate the “Feast of Feasts and Holy Day of Holy Days” - Great and Holy Pascha! 

(Troparion) Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tomb bestowing life!

On Great and Holy Saturday, April 11th, the faithful of Christ the Saviour gathered together to celebrate the Vesperal Divine Liturgy, with the 15 Old Testament Readings. 

"Arise O God and judge the earth, for to Thee belong all the nations!"

On Great and Holy Friday, April 10th, the faithful of Christ the Saviour celebrated the Royal Hours, led by His Eminence Archbishop Mark. 

Later that evening, the faithful gathered together for Burial Vespers and Lamentations. 

"Joseph, together with Nicodemus, took Thee down from the Tree, Who clothe Thyself with light as with a garment. He gazed on Thy body – dead, naked, and unburied, and, in grief and tender compassion, he lamented: “Woe is me, my sweetest Jesus! A short while ago, the sun beheld Thee hanging on the Cross, and it hid itself in darkness. The earth quaked in fear at the sight. The veil of the Temple was torn in two. Lo, now I see Thee willingly submit to death for our sake. How shall I bury Thee, O my God? How can I wrap Thee in a shroud? How can I touch Thy most pure body with my hands? What songs can I sing for Thy Exodus, O compassionate One? I magnify Thy Passion. I glorify Thy burial, and Thy holy Resurrection, crying, ‘O Lord, glory to Thee!’”

On Great and Holy Thursday, April 9th, the faithful of Christ the Saviour celebrated a Vesperal Divine Liturgy in commemoration of the institution of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper. 

Later that evening, we welcomed His Eminence Archbishop Mark, who led us in the reading of the 12 Passion Gospels. 

(Troparion) When the glorious disciples were enlightened at the washing of their feet before supper, then the impious Judas was darkened ailing with avarice, and to the lawless judges he betrayed Thee, the Righteous Judge. Behold, O lover of money, this man because of avarice hanged himself. Flee from the greedy soul which dared such things against the Master! O Lord who art good towards all men, glory to Thee!

On Great and Holy Wednesday, April 8th, the faithful of Christ the Saviour celebrated the sacrament of Holy Unction - interceding the Lord’s mercy, and the healing of soul and body.

(Excerpt from the Third Prayer of Holy Unction) Yes, Lord, send forth from heaven your healing power; touch the body, quench the fever, calm the suffering and chase away every lurking infirmity. Be the physician of your servants; raise them up from their bed of pain and their couch of distress; give them to your Church safe and sound, well-pleasing to you and doing your will.

On Wednesday morning, April 8th, the faithful of Christ the Saviour welcomed clergy and faithful from our local Orthodox parishes to celebrate Presanctified Liturgy for Holy Wednesday. Glory to God for all things! 

Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! God is the Lord and has revealed Himself to us!

On Saturday, April 4th and Sunday, April 5th the faithful of Christ the Saviour celebrated the Great Feast of the Entrance of the Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday). At Liturgy we were blessed to welcome Paisios (Timothy), Galina (Tatum), and Brigit (Colleen) Kenny, Katherine (Heidi) Schoenhals, and Matthew Solovey  into the Orthodox Church through the Sacrament of Chrismation. At the conclusion of the service we recognized several of our youth who participated in their first confession. A special thanks to Nichole and Andrea Zart for teaching the class. May God grant them all many years!

On March 15th, the Sunday of the Cross, we were blessed to welcome four new catechumens (Josiah Shelly, Callum Shelly, Magnus Plante, and Ryan Michener) into our community. That evening, it was our parish's turn to host a Pan-Orthodox Lenten Vespers. Faithful from the surrounding churches gathered at Christ the Saviour, where guest-speaker Fr. Andrew Damick delivered a beautiful homily. Following Vespers, we gathered together in the fellowship hall for a meal hosted by the parish Altar Guild. Glory to God for all things!

On March 8, the Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas, the St. Tikhon Seminary Mission Choir visited Christ the Saviour and sang the responses at the Divine Liturgy. Fr. Caleb Lewis offered the homily, after which we were blessed to receive two new catechumens (Jordan and Sarah Roesch). At the fellowship hour, our faithful had the opportunity to learn more about the visiting seminarians. Glory to God for all things!

On Sunday, March 1st the community of Christ the Saviour celebrated the first Sunday of Great Lent (the Triumph of Orthodoxy) in thanksgiving to God for His many blessings. At the Liturgy, the faithful participated in a procession commemorating the restoration of the holy icons. We were also blessed to welcome two new catechumens (Benjamin Taylor and Matthew Romain), celebrate the churching of Callum Metcalf, and perform a marriage blessing for Jerry and Mary White on the occasion of their 50th anniversary. Lastly, we administered the oath of office to our newly elected parish council. Glory to God for all things! 

On Sunday, January 18th the Orthodox parishes of Greater Harrisburg gathered at City Island Park for the 17th Annual Pan-Orthodox Great Blessing of the Susquehanna. After missing last year due to inclement weather, it was especially nice to renew this annual tradition, in which we ask the Lord to bless the waters, and to heal us and our community!