Good News! Great Joy!
The Orthodox Way of Keeping Christ in Christmas!
40 Day Nativity Fast: November 15 — December 24
With God’s help, we begin the 40 day Nativity Fast (Nov 15–Dec 24) in preparation for the great feast of the Nativity of Christ on December. 25. Throughout this period, we abstain from meat, poultry, eggs and dairy. We increase our efforts in prayer and worship, fasting, confession, spiritual reading, stillness, and almsgiving. Our services are replete with Scripture lessons, hymns, and prayers that make us ready to receive the Lord in the depth of our souls. We pray for our hearts to be humbled by His Humility and filled with His Presence.
With eagerness we await the Good News of His Coming with Great Joy! The anticipation grows for when we will rejoice with the Angels of Bethlehem:
“Glory to God in the Highest! And on Earth, Peace, & Goodwill toward men!”
This is in stark contrast to our culture which marks the season with parties and activities, cooking and baking, shopping and presents — all saturated with lights, trees, blow-up Santas, elves, & reindeer, and ubiquitous holiday music. The world flings headlong into busyness and revelry until everything stops abruptly at midnight Christmas Day… which is when our celebration begins for the Twelve Days of Chrsitmas culminating in the Theophany of Christ, January 6!
We invite you to Join us EAch week and experience a deeper, meaning-filled Christmas this year!
Come worship the newborn King with us this Christmas!
Services for the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord December 24–25
Royal Hours — 8:15 am Vesperal Divine Liturgy — 9:30 am Christmas Matins & Divine Liturgy — 10:00 & 11:30 pm
“The virgin cometh today to the cave to give birth, ineffably to bring forth the Word Eternal; therefore, rejoice, O Earth, at the message; with the angels and shepherds give glory to Him Who shall appear by His own will, as a young child,
He Who is from eternity, God.”
Services for the Feast of Theophany (Baptism of Christ) January 5–6
Sunday, January 5, 8:15 & 9:30 am Matins & Divine Liturgy for the Paramon (Eve) of Theopany followed by Baptisms & Chrismations
Sunday, 5:00 pm Vespers for Theophany
Monday, January 6, 8:15 & 9:30 am Matins & Divine Liturgy for Theophany followed by Outdoor Blessing of Water (Patapsco River)
“When Thou, O Lord, wast baptized in the Jordan, worship of the Trinity was made manifest; for the voice of the Father bore witness to Thee, calling Thee His beloved Son. And the Spirit in the likeness of a dove confirmed the truth of His word. O Christ our God, Who hast appeared and enlightened the world, glory to Thee.”
The Orthodox Church is the One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We are a Christ-centered church. In fact, we share an unbroken history with the Faith of the first Christians, and we can trace our history back to the Apostles themselves.
This parish is part of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. We are pan-Orthodox. This means our membership includes many who were born into the Faith, as well as many converts. In our parish, all services are fully in English.
Anyone and everyone is more than welcome to join us for services! If you have questions about our church and what we believe, feel free to reach out to Father Joshua, our parish priest!
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Usual Service Times
Matins - Sun 8:15am
Divine Liturgy - Sun 9:30am
Vespers/Akathist - Wed 6:30pm
Great Vespers - Sat 5:00pm
Live Streaming
While there is no substitute for gathering together in the mystery of the Divine Liturgy and partaking in Holy Communion, and participating in the other divine services of the Church, if you are unable to attend in person, you are invited to join us via live stream.
Located in Linthicum, MD, Holy Cross Antiochian Orthodox Church is a parish of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of North America. We began as a mission parish in early 1993 with six families who converted to Holy Orthodoxy. Today, our community numbers over 200 members, about half of whom are converts from several Protestant denominations.