News – Page 9 – Saint Andrew's Orthodox Church

First Visit of His Grace, Bishop Michael

On Wednesday, April 6, 2011, our parish was blessed to celebrate the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts with our diocesan hierarch, His Grace Bishop Michael, on the occasion of his first visit to our parish. The liturgical celebration was solemn and beautiful, and the warmth and love exchanged between His Grace and the parishioners was uplifting. The temple was full, and many stayed late into the evening to share a meal and meet with His Grace. The community at St. Andrew’s is so glad to have had this chance to meet our archpastor, and we eagerly await the chance to be with him again, when he will celebrate with our parish in July. Photos of the visit may be viewed here.

Fr. John shared the following correspondence with His Grace, expressing his gratefulness and joy:

Great Lent Has Begun

This Sunday, our parish community celebrated the first Sunday of Great Lent – the Sunday of Orthodoxy – with a procession with icons, recalling the triumph of holy images over the iconoclasts in the Early Church. (Photos from our procession may be seen here.)

During the entirety of Great Lent, the Presanctified Liturgy will be celebrated every Wednesday night at 7pm. Confessions may be heard before this service, and may also be heard following Vespers on Saturday evenings. Please speak with Fr. John if you would like to arrange a confession at an alternate time.

To assist in our Lenten effort, the Sisterhood of our daughter parish, St. John the Theologian (Shirley, NY) has organized a Lenten Retreat at the Orthodox Monastery of All Saints (Calverton, NY). It will be held Saturday, March 26, 2011, from 9:00am to 3:30pm. Reservations are requested; you may contact Elaine DelGigante at 631-846-4739 for more information.

Finally, it is with great sadness that we learned that Mark Guyer’s mother, Mary, reposed in the Lord on Sunday, March 6, 2011. Please remember her, Mark, and the Guyer family in your prayers. Grant rest eternal in blessed repose, O Lord, to the soul of the newly-departed handmaiden of God, Mary, and make her memory to be eternal!

Mother Raphaela Leads Retreat

As pilgrims on life’s journey, we are occasionally aware – sometimes by surprise – of Christ’s presence in our midst. Other times, we become aware only when reflecting back to an extraordinary experience. So it was with our retreat, “Living and Growing in Christ,” lead by the Abbess of Holy Myrrhbearers Monastery, Mother Raphaela.

Continue reading Mother Raphaela Leads Retreat

Prayers requested for Fr. Michael

Please remember the Archpriest Michael Mihalick, our former pastor, in your prayers as he recovers from a series of serious health issues.
Continue reading Prayers requested for Fr. Michael

Concert of Georgian Music by St. Nino’s Choir

An unforgettable, unrepeatable and unbelievable moment. The sense that you had seen, or heard, or touched something ineffable, unknowable, something transcendent. It was truly a moment in which, with a heartbreaking honesty, you felt that you had directly experienced the mercy of God. It was sacramental in every sense of the word. It reminded us of what music, liturgy, art, life, culture and history are all about: the overwhelming sense of thanksgiving to God for all that we have received and for all that we have not received. A completely uncompromised and unqualified thank you to life, life as an expression of an intimate and immediate communion with God Almighty. Amen.