resources for observing Lent during the Covid-19 pandemic

While it’s true that worshiping from home could never be the full experience of gathering together in the communion of each other’s presence, it’s also true that, during this time of global crisis, worshiping in our homes is a way of faithfully making the best of a challenging situation. In His great love for us, God has blessed us with many tools to make that experience a more edifying one. Below you’ll find suggestions of how to make this home-worship experience authentic, connecting us who worship “in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23).

Let’s pray that our Lord will guide and preserve our Saint Basil parish family in the challenges ahead. And yet, let’s embrace our compelled seclusion, in the spirit of Orthodox thanksgiving (eucharist εὐχαριστία) as a gift from God. I pray that this affords us a valuable opportunity to cast off the total immersion in our jobs and other frivolous activities, to reflect and by God’s grace, to re-discover and grow closer to Him who is our Source of true life.

Another type of private prayer is to pray the 4 short Hours of Prayer, found here: shorturl.at/hzFP2. The First Hour corresponds to daybreak (6am) or upon rising from sleep, where we ask God to guide us with His light. The Third Hour corresponds to mid-morning (9am), the hour the disciples received the Holy Spirit. The Sixth Hour corresponds to mid-day (12 noon), the hour when Christ was crucified. Finally, the Ninth Hour corresponds to mid-afternoon (3pm), the hour Jesus died on the cross.

Here are some great online resources to help you make the most of your time in this season:

· Be the Bee (for everyone): shorturl.at/lpuK7
· Raising Saints (for parents raising children): shorturl.at/agmS2
· Tending the Garden of Our Hearts (meditations for Orthodox families): shorturl.at/jkKSV
· Y2AM: shorturl.at/iqA37
· St. Paul’s Greek Orthodox Church in Irvine has a host of podcasts and videos to listen to. You can start at this link and then scroll down: shorturl.at/mMQ25


For more brief videos, here are some links:


INTRODUCTIONS TO ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY

  •       What is the Orthodox Church? (with Father Andrew Damick): shorturl.at/kBEX5

  •       5 Misconceptions about the Orthodox Church (with Father Andrew Damick): shorturl.at/fwzHM

  •       5 Differences between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches (with Father Andrew Damick): shorturl.at/lmtA7

  •       5 Differences between Orthodoxy and Evangelicalism (with Father Andrew Damick): shorturl.at/etCU4

  •       What is Orthodox Christianity? (with Steve Christoforou): shorturl.at/fjpqC

  •       10 Fun Facts about the Orthodox Church (with Steve Christoforou): shorturl.at/gjPR2

THE DIVINE LITURGY
Four short videos on the Divine Liturgy by Frederica Matthews-Green

READING THE BIBLE

  •       Three things you need to know about the Bible (with Steve Christoforou): http://shorturl.at/cjzI2

  •       How to read the Bible (with Steve Christoforou): shorturl.at/cgmR5

  •       The Bible explored: Can we trust the Bible? (by the Canadian Bible Society) shorturl.at/agovO

  •       The Old Testament: Discovering Orthodox Christianity: An interview with Father Harry Pappas: shorturl.at/glqtR

ICONS

  •       Venerating Icons (with Steve Christoforou): shorturl.at/aloIP

  •       The ancient icons of St. Catherine’s Monastery at the foot of Mt. Sinai: shorturl.at/ehwW2

  •       A video from Russia: How to paint an icon of St. Nicholas: shorturl.at/anuN7

ORTHODOXY AROUND THE WORLD

  •       The Orthodox Christian Church’s Patriarch Bartholomew (by 60 Minutes): shorturl.at/bstNZ

  •       Mount Athos, the Holy Mountain (by 60 Minutes): shorturl.at/oFV48

  •       Mount Athos: this mountain has been home to monks for 12 centuries (by Great Big Story): shorturl.at/OUX37

  •       Mother Nektaria: the only Greek in Kolkata, India is a mother to thousands (by Greek Reporter): shorturl.at/vIOY6

      Orthodoxy in Africa: A journey of faith (with Father Martin Ritsi): shorturl.at/emTV7

Stay connected outside of worship:
Despite being temporarily unable to gather for worship services, parish gatherings, ministry gatherings, and so forth, we are still a St Basil family. Text your friends. Call them. Video chat via FaceTime with them. Make the best of an unusual situation by using the technological tools available to us. Check in on those in our parish who are in the “at risk” categories. Reach out to those whom you know might be particularly isolated at this time, such as the elderly or those who are sick. Ask if they need anything that you can bring to them. And, most importantly, pray for each other. 


At this halfway point through Lent, spend your days wisely. “Redeem the time,” as St. Paul writes (Ephesians 5:16).