Beloved brothers and sisters,
I greet you with the message of joy and love in the name of our Risen Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ:
Christ is Risen! Tá Críost éirithe! Χριστὸς ἀνέστη! المسيح قام! Христос Воскресе!
This is a rebranded Weekly Newsletter #36, which from now on will be called the Community Bulletin, as this better reflects its content.
Contents of this Bulletin:
- This Week in the Life of the Church: Chris is Risen!
- A Pastoral Word: Gratitude and Wishes of Blessed Paschal Season
- News and Announcements: Time table of services until August 2026
This Week in the Life of the Church
This week in the life of the Church is very special. It is known as Bright Week (or Renewal Week), and it is a continuous celebration of our Lord’s Resurrection — a continuation of Pascha itself.
This joy is reflected in important changes to the Typikon of the Church during the Bright Week:
- No fasting on Wednesday and Friday during Bright Week.In addition, according to the Typikon of the Antiochian Orthodox Church, as received by the Holy Synod of the Patriarchate of Antioch, fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays is suspended until the Ascension of our Lord (40 days after Pascha — this year, 21st of May). In other jurisdictions, fasting is typically suspended only during Bright Week, but this is the practice of the Antiochian Patriarchate.
- Paschal Office in place of daily prayers. Instead of the usual morning and evening prayers, as well as the prayers before and after Holy Communion, we read the Paschal Office until the evening of Saturday, 18th of April. Paschal Office: https://antiochianprodsa.blob.core.windows.net/liturgicalinstructions/Paschal%20Office%20Bilingual%20FINAL.pdf?fbclid=IwY2xjawJePKdleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHmJYXdRpMnHWj-UJ8jn4fL-He-09k_T58Jn2f1i_tFQ71-KieSOpAkmfQoIy_aem_sjjibRnU8f826lGhG9Anpg
- Paschal order of services. All divine services are celebrated according to the Paschal order. They closely resemble the Paschal Service itself, except for the Giving of the Light and the Rush procession to the church doors before the beginning of the Paschal Orthros.
Saints and Feasts of the Week
*The saints named here accompany the days of the week as living witnesses of Christ. Only the principal saint or feast of each day is listed here, in keeping with the liturgical order of the Church.
- Sunday, 12th of April – Great & Holy Pascha
- Bright Monday, 13th of April – St. Martin the Confessor, pope of Rome
- Bright Tuesday, 14th of April – Holy Apostles of the Seventy: Aristarchus, Pudens and Trophimus
- Bright Wednesday, 15th of April – Holy martyr Crescens of Myra
- Bright Thursday, 16th of April – Virgin-Martyrs Agape, Irene and Chionia, in Illyria
- Bright Friday, 17th of April – Theotokos of the Life-giving Spring
- Bright Saturday, 18th of April – St. John the Righteous, disciple of St. Gregory of Decapolis
- Sunday, 19th of April – Thomas Sunday, also known as New Sunday or Anti-Pascha
Hymns of the Week
*The hymns listed here are those that shape the prayer of the Church for the week, following the liturgical order and hierarchy. They are offered as an aid to prayer and may be used, as each is able, in personal prayer or a simple prayer rule at home.
TROPARION OF PASCHA IN TONE EIGHT
Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death; and upon those in the tombs bestowing life (thrice) https://saintignatiusbelfast.sharepoint.com/:v:/s/SaintIgnatiusChurchDocuments/IQDvdeRjciEXQIcCUpFc4kQyAQY5zSZ4gSRo8z0w2gNK74g?e=slY7CM
*From Pascha Sunday to the Sunday of Pentecost, the troparion “O Heavenly King…” is not sung. And from Pascha Sunday to its leave-taking (Wednesday, 20th of May, 39 days after Paschal Sunday), instead of “Holy God,” “O come, let us worship and fall down…” in Orthros, the Hours, and Vespers; and “We have seen the true light” in the Divine Liturgy, we say “Christ is risen.” This also applies to morning and evening prayers, as well as to prayers before meals
APOLYTIKION TO THEOTOKOS THE LIFE-GIVING SPRING IN TONE THREE
As a life-giving fount, thou didst conceive the Dew * that is transcendent in essence, O Virgin Maid, * and thou hast welled forth for our sakes the nectar of joy eternal, * which doth pour forth from thy fount * with the water that springeth up * unto everlasting life * in unending and mighty streams; * wherein, taking delight, we all cry out: * Rejoice, O thou Spring of life for all men.
KONTAKION OF PASCHA IN TONE EIGHT
Though Thou didst descend into the grave, O Immortal One, yet didst Thou destroy the power of Hades, and didst arise as victor, O Christ God, calling to the myrrh-bearing women, Rejoice, and giving peace unto Thine Apostles, O Thou Who dost grant resurrection to the fallen.
MEGALYNARION OF PASCHA IN TONE ONE
The Angel cried unto her that is full of grace: O pure Virgin, rejoice, and again I say, rejoice; for thy Son hath arisen from the grave on the third day. Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord hath arisen upon thee; dance now and beglad, O Zion, and do thou exult, O pure Theotokos, in the arising of Him Whom thou didst bear.
*We say Paschal Megalynarion in place of “It is Truly meet to bless thee” at the conclusion of morning and evening prayers, as well as after the meals.
Sunday Epistle and Gospel
*The Epistle and Gospel of the Sunday that begins the current liturgical week
- Epistle: Acts 1:1-8
- Gospel: John 1:1-17
The Sunday and daily Scripture readings may be read online via the Archdiocesan website: https://www.antiochian-orthodox.com/calendar
A Pastoral Word: Gratitude and Wishes of Blessed Paschal Season
Christ is Risen!
Beloved brothers and sisters,
again and again, I congratulate you on the blessed Feast of Feasts, the Pascha of our Lord.
There are only a few things I wish to say, as no words are sufficient to express the joy of the Resurrection, nor the joy of spending Holy Week and Pascha together with you.
Firstly, you can find the Paschal Letter of our Father and Metropolitan Silouan, addressed to all the faithful of the Archdiocese, which was read in church during the Paschal Service: https://www.antiochian-orthodox.com/post/sayedna-s-paschal-encyclical
Secondly, here you can find the photo album from Holy Week and Pascha, with some moments from our celebrations: https://saintignatiusbelfast.sharepoint.com/:f:/s/SaintIgnatiusChurchDocuments/IgB9DBYmk1qbT4jWY79MyjMwAYxZFI1Tz8DEJ6yfIKgo-Fs?e=Yq01Uh
Thirdly, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to all who came to church during Holy Week and Pascha. Thank you for your presence, your prayers, and your effort. It was a great joy to pray together with you in the church full of the faithful!
My special gratitude, on behalf of the whole parish, goes to all who worked in various capacities to make these celebrations possible: our servers, chanters, and the hospitality team. A special thank you to the wonderful ladies (with some help from the wonderful men) who prepared and decorated the Crown for the Holy Cross on Holy Thursday, the Epitaphion and Bier for Holy Friday, and the Resurrection icon for Pascha.
We also extend our big gratitude to our brothers and sisters from St John of Shanghai Parish (ROCOR) and Entrance of the Theotokos to the Temple Parish (Romanian Orthodox Church), who kindly supported our parish in all these efforts.
Finally, I wish you all a blessed Paschal season, which continues until the Leave-taking of Pascha (39 days after Paschal Sunday), falling this year on Wednesday, 20th May.
Throughout this season, we greet one another with “Christ is Risen!” and respond, “Truly He is Risen!” But let us remember that it is not only about repeating these words. We are called to proclaim this message to the world and to those around us.
Let us take encouragement from the Myrrh-bearing women, who “departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples” (Matthew 28:8).
Above all, this proclamation is fulfilled in the way we live: by being joyful, by being kind, and by being loving. By reflecting the Light of the Risen Lord and bringing this light into the world.
News and Announcements
- Schedule of Services in the Church April to August 2026. Brothers and sisters, please mark the calendars for the Services in Church between April and August 2026
April:
– 26th April, Sunday, 11:00 – Readers Service (without priest) of Hours and Typika
May:
Weekend 9th and 10th of May
– 9th of May, Saturday, 17:00 – Great Vespers
– 10th of May, Sunday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy
Weekend 30th and 31st of May
– 30th of May, Saturday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy for Saturday of Souls, followed by memorial, universal commemoration of the departed Orthodox Christians
– 30th of May, Saturday, 17:00 – Great Vespers
– 31st of May, Sunday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy for the Feast of Pentecost
June
– 14th of June, Sunday, 11:00 – Readers Service (without priest) of Hours and Typika
Weekend 27th and 28th of June
– 27th of June, Saturday, 17:00 – Great Vespers
– 28th of June, Sunday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy
July
– 5th of July, Sunday, 11:00 – Readers Service (without priest) of Hours and Typika
Weekend 25th and 26th of July
– 25th of July, Saturday, 17:00 – Great Vespers
– 26th of July, Sunday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy
August
– 9th of August, Sunday, 11:00 – Readers Service (without priest) of Hours and Typika
Weekend 29th and 30th of August
– 29th of August, Saturday, 17:00 – Great Vespers
– 30th of August, Sunday, 10:00 – Orthros and Divine Liturgy
As usual, up-to-date schedule available in the online calendar at the bottom of this page here: https://saintignatiusbelfast.org/services (poster to be updated soon too) - There will be no Faith & Fellowship meeting during Bright Week. Next week, we will meet one last time on Thursday instead of Wednesday. Hence, our next online meeting will be on: Thursday, 23rd of April, 19:00. Link: https://ucl.zoom.us/j/93643306643. We will pray Little Compline and have a short spiritual talk. Afterwards, we will return to our usual Wednesday schedule.
- Have you visited our Parish Library yet? Our library offers a growing collection of Orthodox books for adults and children: spiritual classics, lives of the saints, theology, Church history, and books for young readers. A good spiritual book can deepen our understanding of the faith and accompany us in our spiritual life.
You can browse the catalogue and request books online through the parish website. All the information about borrowing books, together with the online request form, can be found here: https://saintignatiusbelfast.org/library
Our librarians, Michael and Porphyrios, will be happy to help if you are looking for something to read. You can contact them at: library@saintignatiusbelfast.org
Christ is Risen! Glory to His Holy Third-day Resurrection! We adore His Holy Third-day Resurrection!
