PASCHA 2009

Alleluia,
He is Risen!

Come share with us
the beauty of the Lord in the New Jerusalem,

Christ the Light of the East –

Alongside the very first disciples,
we witness the ongoing Mystery of the Resurrection
in our own present day with the Eyes of Faith:

In His Light we see the Light~

Just as the Angel told them,
"Go to Galilee where you will see Him as He Promised!"

Icon of the Messenger
written by the hand of Heather Durka

In Holy Qurbana with all the saints of Heaven and earth
we sing together the joyful hymn of hope that always begins
our Divine Liturgy of St. James of Jerusalem:

By Thy Light, we see the Light,
Jesus full of light;
Thou true light dost give the Light to Thy creatures all.
Lighten us with Thy glad Light,
Thou the Father's Light Divine.

Salvation and the Easter Mysteries:

Icon of the Face Not Made by Human Hands,
The Mandylion
written by Heather Durka

Christ the Conqueror of Hell:
Bp H. Alfeyev, excerpt:
Icons of the Resurrection of Christ
never depict the resurrection itself, i.e., Christ coming out of the grave.
They rather depict ... to be more precise, the rising of Christ out of hell ~
one of the most mysterious, enigmatic, and inexplicable events in New Testament history.

In today’s Christian world, this event is understood differently.
How can these … points of view be reconciled?
What was the original faith of the Church?
What do early Christian sources tell us --
and what is its soteriological significance?
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