Blindness and Seeing (Science of Relations: Part 2)

Why should I care about "Science of Relations?"

 

As an Orthodox Mother, one of my life struggles is to rightly see the contours of reality and to help bring my children to be able to see too. I got that idea about needing to develop the “contours of reality” from Bishop Irenei in The Beginnings of a Life of Prayer. 

 

 

It’s one of those books, like The Philokalia, that I can read only a couple of paragraphs at a time. And then I have to read those same paragraphs over and over, over the course of several days. Of course, those are just MY current readings. 

If you are wondering what YOU should read, ask your priest! 😀

But let’s get back to BLINDNESS and SEEING. Think of all the times Jesus encountered blind men in the Gospels. It was not only because those particular men needed physical sight. It is because we are all blind - spiritually blind - and need new sight. 

 

Obviously, the most important way to get this true sight is living the life of the Church: Prayer, Sacraments, Scripture, Lives of the Saints, Alms-giving, Fasting, etc.

 

But in addition to the Life of the Church, it seems that God in his mercy gives us art as a means of seeing reality. In times prior to our Modern Life, this is what art meant to do - portray reality through patterns. 

 

Musical patterns, nature patterns, image patterns, story patterns. 

 

When oral traditions of storytelling - from all over the world - end up repeating the same patterns and images, it is not because people just happen to find comfort somehow in these images. It is because they are glimpses of true TRUTH embedded within the creation, truth that can’t help but come out.

 

In this fallen world, we see only in shadow. In our own society, people no longer look to religion to tell what is true. Mankind can do it! 

I taught public high school for ten years and my students often voiced this desire. I once had a young man, bright of mind, slight of stature, a 9th grader with his dark bangs hanging over his eyes, explain it to me perfectly: “The Scientific Method is my measure of reality. If I can’t see it, taste it, smell it, touch it, or hear it - it doesn’t exist.”

It’s pretty hard to see the unseen if that is one’s idea of reality!

You might be thinking, that’s too bad for that kid, but I’m an Orthodox Christian. I know unseen reality exists.

True, but I think it would be fair to assume that as members of our age, our way of seeing is effected by the ways of thinking around us. We swim in the pool of our times. And there is pee in the pool. It's hard to avoid. 

But we can try to draw our minds back to reality. We can experience the unseen as incarnated patterns in paintings, music, and stories: like in thorns, a touch, lips, and life. Embedded in a fairytale, we find images of sin and death, the Body and Blood of Christ, and Life.

As a human person, much less a particular kind of person called an Orthodox Mother, it’s worth paying attention to life and looking at God’s creation, along with the creations of His creations. 

Our children are going to read something. Listen to something. Look at something.  It’s worth putting true stories and music and art in front of them.

And then paying attention to them.

And being open to what we see. 

And what connections we see between them.

Snow White

Jairus' Daughter

Next time I will share with you a whole basketful of cool resources to learn more about fairytales and the science of relations. For now, I hope you enjoy your own delightful connections that pop up in this whole big world of God’s. Open your eyes to notice them!

 

 

Science of Relations: Delightful Connections

The other day I was reading a paragraph of the Little Russian Philokalia and I gasped! Right there in front of my eyeballs I was seeing the same images I had just seen in the Grimm brothers’ version of Sleeping Beauty (originally called Little Briar Rose). 

I enjoyed a little rush of excitement and shook my head once again at the connection. What did I see?

Both writings share these words: 

 

thorns, touch, lips, life

 

In the original Sleeping Beauty she herself is cursed, but the curse also affects the world around her. The servants fall asleep, the horses fall asleep, and even the land is cursed with thorns surrounding the castle. 

 Only the son of the King can reverse the curse.

When the True Prince traverses the thorns, they transform into flowers. When the prince touches her lips with a kiss, the curse is broken and she awakens to new life. 

 

 

In The Little Russian Philokalia, Volume 2, Elder Nazarius is writing advice to his monks and says that the Body of Christ will “consume all your sinful thorns which grow in you… as soon as you see the priest’s hand stretched out with the Holy Sacrament and touching your lips… picture and believe with your whole soul that you receive it from the hand of Christ Himself, Who stands invisibly and places it within your mouth… (giving you) life” (pg 66).         

 

Image from St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in McKinney, TX

What exactly is the Science of Relations? 

It’s just a name for something we all do anyway, if we have eyes to see and ears to hear. We notice connections between things. And this is normal! We should notice the connections because everything is connected! All of creation is organized by God as one big WHOLE and all the sub-creators within it are a part of that creation. 

The term “Science of Relations” is the name British educator Charlotte Mason gave to this connection-making.

Ambleside Online explains: “Charlotte Mason defined education as a series of relationships formed by the learner as he developed intimacy with a wide range of subjects - something she called "The Science of Relations." 

A series of relationships formed by the learner. That’s me - I’m the learner. 

 

I read a fairy tale one day.

I listen to a podcast or take an online class to dig deeper and take special notice of some images. 

The next day I read from the Philokalia and see the same images. 

I relate the fairytale to the Eucharist.

I write a blog post and in writing remember Jane Meyer’s book The Man and the Vine and how when the little girl took communion, the “love filled her mouth”

 

All these connections add meaning to what I read and think and my understanding of the world and reality grows.

 

The love of the Son of the King touches my lips and I am saved from the sinful thorns of death and given life!

 

Of course, I’ve been talking about me, not just my children. As I heard at the end of The New Mason Jar podcast, “children are born persons, and so are their moms."

We all get a lifetime of education!

What about you? What delightful connections have you made recently? I would love to hear them!

Beautiful Free App from Eikona

One day after co-op, I stopped my children's Greek teacher in the parking lot as she was driving away.

She rolled her window down and smiled as I asked, "do you have sheet music for that song they are learning? I wanna practice it at home with them."

"Do you have the Eikona app? It's on there."

She drove away and I marveled. Stacy knows everything.

I found it on the apple App Store and it's also on Google Play.

Now I have the Eikona app!

The screen shot above explains that it provides Orthodox Daily Hymns, both audio and sheet music. And the voices of these sisters are so prayerful and beautiful.

I already knew about Eikona because I had purchased their Great Parakelsis to the Mother of God and listened to it many, many times. If you are going through a difficult struggle, you might find consolation in this Prayer Service. Eikona sings the words so they are easy to understand - not always true in Byzantine chant. And the words are balm, taking our human experiences, putting words to them, and offering the pain up to God.

But this post is about the app! I downloaded it and quickly swiped back to the appropriate day and found the hymn I was looking for. I printed the sheet music - which is in English - and added in the Greek words we were learning in co-op. 

I am super thankful to see the music in English! I'm often searching for a piece of church music and can only find it in Greek or Slavonic, so this is a blessing.

How might you use this app?

DAILY MORNING PRAYERS - before the song for each day, you can choose to listen to the Morning Prayers. 

I know, I know. I have an ideal in my head of me and all my little flock standing together at the family icon corner with the candle lit, saying morning prayers together. And we did that for years. 

We also spent a year doing morning prayers in the car on the way to school and work. We had one car and my husband dropped me off, then each kid at their school. We just couldn't get up any earlier to do them at home, so we did them in the car. This app could be helpful for someone who missed their prayers and home and still wants a sacred 10 minutes in the car on the way to work.

Or if I were a nursing mom, and could hardly make it out of bed to the icon corner? I might use this app.

Let me tell you, this past week when I had Covid and could barely speak in the mornings, this app came to my rescue. I stood before the icon corner, pressed play, and prayed along silently (as much as I could) while Eikona led me in Morning Prayers. 

LEARNING HYMNS

We often read the Prologue as part of our school. It would be nice to hear the troparion for one of the saints each day. 

Also, if you are trying to learn your own saint's troparion - St. Monica for example - you could find help. Even if Eikona hasn't recorded St. Monica, they probably have sung a troparion to another saint in Tone 4 (Mode 4). At that point, I can just listen to the Tone 4 troparion over and over until it feels familiar, and then insert the words for the other saint. 

We attend a Russian parish, and if you are looking for Russian melodies, this will not be a helpful resource for you. But don't worry - you can find these elsewhere. 

Of course, the hymns for the main Feasts are included!

SUNDAY SCHOOL or VBS/VCS

If you would like to teach your students a hymn, it would be very easy to let Eikona lead it for you instead of having to sing it yourself. Sure, many of us are in the choir and could lead the hymn for the little ones, but not everybody can pull that out of their back pocket. If your phone is hooked to a speaker, you could teacher quite a large group a hymn this way.

A little Sunday School class could begin every class with the same hymn for a semester or even a year. If the main teacher had to be away, a substitute could still lead the song using the app. Also, parents could use the app to reinforce the hymn at home.

If you want to hear more from Eikona, the Akathist Hymn is available here. You can purchase their many cds at the Ancient Faith Store or from Amazon or Apple Music.

I'm very thankful Stacey stopped her car in the parking lot that day and pointed me to this app!

Beautiful Prosphora

I still vividly remember the first time I attempted to make little Russian Prosphora loaves. When I handed the bag of finished bread to Fr. George, I said, "I was a little stressed out this past week."

He responded with a smile. "Well, that's obvious."

Truly, our inner state can show in our outer creations. Lord have mercy!

This past year, I visited a fellow Matushka to learn the mysteries of the little loaves. She surprised me when she pulled out some special stamps. How beautiful!

The priest uses five loaves for each Divine Liturgy, and one of them is for the Theotokos. So on special feasts, she takes the time to make separate loaves with the image of the Theotokos.

You see the three little deformed loaves below? That's what was leftover after rolling and cutting out the Holy Bread. She makes one wee loaf for each of her children. My children call these "testers" - to tell me if it turned out ok or not. "Mama, did you make a tester this time?"

The tops rise separately from the bottoms. It's not pictured, but they rise under a very wet dish towel. I was shocked at how wet!

Before placing the tops on, the bottoms get quite a water brushing. And then they really do have to sit for at least 10 minutes to glue together before baking. 

Ask me how I know... hahaha!

I am beginning to learn that I better not try to make prosphora if I'm stressed out. And more importantly, that I need to ask for God's help as I'm going. And really mean it!

Nativity Fast Season Traditions

St. Nicholas Parish

When my husband was growing up in Michigan, they had pizza and a movie every Friday night. We've shifted it to Sunday night for our family and I get cries of "heresy!" if I ever suggest that we finish up the leftovers in the fridge instead of make pizza.

I usually use Auntie Leila's pizza dough (part 1 tutorial) and (part 2 tutorial) because the concept of using a foundation of a recipe and not measuring suits my personality. 

We change up the toppings every week. The kids are just as pleased if I buy frozen pizzas on sale at the grocery store, which is good for busy Sundays! 

But during the fasts?

During the fasts, we keep up our Pizza and Movie tradition. We use Daiya Shreds and add extra olive oil to the crust and shrug our shoulders and say, good enough.

During the fasts, we also try to shift our movie choices to something more spiritually minded - though we don't always succeed! 

Here are a few we've enjoyed:

Ostrov (The Island)

The Brethren: The Documentary About the World's Northernmost Monastery

I realize I definitely have older kids now, because both of those films are in Russian with English subtitles. In fact, this year the 14 yo said, "Now I finally get it. I was always too young to keep up with the subtitles when we watched it when I was little." 

Rise of the Guardians

The Nutcracker Ballet

Mikhail Baryshnikov flies!


White Christmas

It Happened on 5th Avenue

Of course, there are also stories to read and poems to write and crafts to create for St. Nicholas - our parish often has a Creative Arts Festival for St. Nicholas Day.

And cookies to bake for St. Herman's Day and buns for St. Lucia.

And liturgies and Nativity Paraklesis (really quite a beautiful service!) to attend.

And great books to savor.

We also learned "O Pure Virgin" by St. Nektarios this year for the Entrance of the Theotokos in the Temple and the Conception of the Theotokos.

And the music! We often have Handel's Messiah or Nativity music or even Medieval Advent music (curated by Richard Rohlin from Amon Sul) playing in the background. 

After the Feast, we try to enjoy Twelve Days of Christmas with lots of Hot Chocolate, a little Ice Skating, and few campfires in the backyard. And don't forget New Year's Eve at Church for St. Basil and the Circumcision of the Lord. 

Green Tomato Chutney

Outside, the tomato plants are suffering in the Louisiana summer. Leaves hang droopy and the flowers have quit turning into fruit at a time when other parts of the country are probably pulling in quite a harvest. I look at them with a little dismay, but not much. Actually, I smile, knowing from experience that they often come back once the heat dies down.

Last fall, my three cherry tomato plants woke up in October and started producing again, masses and masses of tiny yellow flowers everywhere. They had been so prolific that I had started making ripe tomato salads again in November!

The first week of December, we had our first warning of frost, with temperatures expected to dip down to 27 degrees. Usually, this merely means carrying in the begonias and basil for an overnight stay, but this year was not usual. With the frost approaching I counted hundreds of green tomatoes and wondered if I could save them somehow.

Auntie Leila’s Green Tomato Chutney recipe from her blog “Like Mother, Like Daughter” popped into my mind. Without delay I printed the recipe, noted which ingredients I had and which I needed, ran to Wal-mart for some more canning jars and vinegar, and enlisted my 8 year old to help me pick all those little tomatoes. For wages, I allowed him to pitch fast balls from the split or rotten tomatoes. Perhaps there was more baseball than harvesting going on, but I would have struggled to finish without him, squatting up and down, up and down in the sun.

The harvest yielded about 18 cups of fruit, sitting happily on the kitchen counter and looking more like a crop of green grapes. The slightest smile smirked my lips as I washed my hands. My eyebrows lifted in satisfaction as I scanned over the recipe one last time. Turning off the kitchen light, I glanced once more at my beautiful harvest, left them on the counter next to the recipe, and went to sleep assuming that I could knock out the chutney in the morning. Naïve optimism: that’s my personality. 

I didn’t consider the reality of washing all those cute little ovals. Cute, yes. Efficient to maneuver, no. All those slippery little green tomatoes had to be held in place on the cutting board by someone’s hands. All that fruit had to be quartered by a knife sticky with juice in someone’s sticky hands. Stretching my fingers, I looked at the oven clock and frowned. It was the time I thought I’d be finished, but instead I was just getting the ingredients into the pot.

The pot proved to be a perfect incarnation of my stubbornness. I was about half way down the list of ingredients… honey, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, apples… when I realized that the ingredients were taking up more than half of my yellow enamel dutch oven. The only bigger pot that I own - my big stock pot - was already simmering a bath of glass canning jars. The jars needed to be recently sanitized to prevent spoiling and also needed to be hot coming out of the water in order to receive the hot chutney, less the shocking change in temperature cause any cracking. So I couldn’t use the stock pot to also cook the chutney. With a sigh and a glance at the clock, I determined not to split the recipe in half and cook two batches, doubling the remaining time. 

Part of my personality is that I don’t require 98% certainty that something will work before I try it. I don’t even require 75% certainty. I may look like an average homeschooling teacher on the outside, but on the inside I’m hanging loose with the most chilled out Hawaiians. If there’s a 25% chance it might work, I say, let’s go for it! 

So, I kept piling the ingredients into the yellow dutch oven, repeating in my head, they will cook down… they will cook down. Finally, with a slightly mounded hill of ingredients that only barely rose above the top of the pot, I added the spices and turned on the burner. Reaching back to the counter I grabbed the recipe to see how hot and how long, considering that other people, less adventurous people, might have looked at this information before turning on the flame. The recipe said to get it up to a boil and then turn it down to simmer. I sighed, staring at the bulging mound of raw ingredients. No way could I bring that up to boil until after it had cooked down a little. I turned the flame down to low, and exhaled a deep huff as I noted the digital numbers on the oven clock and set the timer for thirty minutes. 

Two hours later the mixture, never having actually boiled or simmered, had settled below the yellow rim of my dutch oven, at least a good ¼ inch from the top. I nodded my head in victory, for this was progress, but since I had to leave for work, I turned it down even lower and asked my daughter to keep an eye on it. When I came home three hours later, the chutney mixture was closer to ½ an inch below the top. Now, this type of situation is where my bravery thrives. I would not walk into a haunted house, nor would I ride a roller coaster, but with the steely determination of Beowulf, I approached the stove.

“My heart is firm,

My hands calm: I need no hot

Words. Wait for me close by, my friends.”

Then Beowulf rose, still brave, still strong,

And with his shield at his side, and a mail shirt on his breast, 

Strode calmly, confidently, toward the tower, under

The rocky cliffs: no coward could have walked there!

Despite the narrow margin of success in not bubbling my mixture up over the pot, I turned up the flame to high. If I didn’t get this chutney boiling and reduced quickly, I would be up until midnight. I don’t know about Beowulf, but I am worthless the next day if I stay up until midnight in the middle of the week.

Finally, after being washed, chopped up, soaked in a hot tub, and then boiled down in spices, those cheerful little green ovals turned into a dark rich orange relish. The satisfaction of pouring the thick fragrant mixture into the cans was only topped by the satisfaction of hearing the metal tops pop when I removed the cans from the water bath. The pop means the seal worked and the chutney would stay preserved until opened. The recipe says that this chutney adds zing if you have found that you made a bland meal. Auntie Leila’s family passed it around with a ham dinner, which brought just the right little touch of spirit to the meal.

The whole process, from vines to canning jars, brought just a little touch of Spirit to my thoughts. 

As I picked the tomatoes, saving them from frozen death, I wondered how God plucks me from similar situations. I’m sure I often resent such a harvest, having no clue why God, in his infinite knowledge, is saving me from my comfortable situation. 

As I swished the little green tomatoes around in the sink, the words of Psalm 50 reminded me, “wash me, O Lord, and I will be clean.” 

As I sliced through the tiny tomatoes with my serrated knife, I considered how we little humans often need a painful surgery, cut open for the enlargement of our hearts. One of the prayers in the Canon of St. Paraskevi reads, “wound my soul with a longing for God.” 

It’s all well and fine for me to know, standing in my kitchen, that the cutting and boiling down will eventually transform those tomatoes from something sour into a special delight. However, it is much harder to submit when God works the process of transformation in my life. This prayer from the same canon reminds me that I am not alone in the boiling sea of life.

The transformation of the afflicted and the relief of those in sickness art thou in truth, O Virgin Theotokos; save thy people and thy flock, thou who art the peace of the embattled and who art the calm of the storm-driven, then only protectress of those who believe. 

After the storm of kitchen activity was over around 10:30 that night, I examined the finished jars of dark, jewel-colored chutney, ready to bring zing and spirit to future meals. Now, as I think back on that massive but successful undertaking, I pray that when I am in danger of dying, and God plucks me from my seemingly comfortable surroundings to save me and transform me, I would not fight against Him. I pray I can walk bravely like Beowulf into the unknown future. I hope I can remember that my own efforts don’t have even a 25% chance of success. However, God can make me into something filled with the Spirit. Something even with a little zing!  

St. Monica

Ever wondered about the life of St. Monica? Fr. John Whiteford not only does a nice job sharing her life but also encourages us how to model our lives after hers.

Happy listening here. (it's about 20 minutes)

https://www.easterngiftshop.com/Item/IcSMonica

Calling All Makers: A Garden of Beautiful Free Resources

I live on a street with a fair number of retired couples who like to garden. These faithful tenders have spent time planting, weeding, pruning, and watering; consequently, purple petunias, yellow pansies, and pink roses greet me when I walk around my neighborhood.

Unexpectedly, I'm also encountering a springtime of arts on my computer screen, with beautiful and free material blossoming from well-nurtured places!

With my home full of makers (artists, poets, sword-fighters, and writers) I have particularly appreciated these talks about our role as creators.  Perhaps you will find one to nourish your soul or inspire your own art!

Heidi White gives a humble and inspiring talk: "Finding our Place in the Larger Story" from the Redeeming our Imagination conference for artists. After I watched it, I decided to share it with my children, and my teens appreciated it too. Afterwards one said, "I just got inspired on how to start my next science fiction!" and the other admitted, "I feel like I need to put more effort into my drawings." My littlest guy (8 yo) spent most of the talk wiggling around on the floor, so maybe he is a little young to appreciate it, but he did note the references to patterns that repeat across stories, and shared a connection between Zaine in his Lego Ninjago book and Martin the warrior mouse from the Redwall book Legends of Luke. 

S.D. Smith, author of our beloved Green Ember series, shares this talk: "Tolkien Can't Write Like Me" from the same conference. I haven't listened yet, but the title reminds me of his Q&A from the Hope*Writers workshop that I listened to a few weeks ago. Like Heidi, he emphasizes the need for humility and writing as a servant, out of love for the readers, as opposed to writing to be awesome. I look forward to watching this later.

The next two talks are from Dn. Nicholas Kotar, author of the epic fantasy Raven Son series. My older teen and I really liked this series that has been described as "Lord of the Rings meets 1984." Ha! The first talk is a zoom meeting sponsored by St. Raphael School and Ancient Faith Ministries. You can register join this meeting on May 4: "Don't Just Look for Good Culture: Go Make It!" His talk at the Doxamoot last year (which I heard on Amon Sul) motivated me to write a short story, and I am curious to see what he will share about Russian writer and philosopher Ivan Ilyin in this talk. The other interview with Dn. Nicholas Kotar looks like it will share many of the same ideas: "The Vocation of the Sub-creator" from the podcast Good Guys Wear Black.

These are the opportunities that have just sprung up this past week, but beautiful art is everywhere.

Have you tried the first opera in Wagner's Ring Series that inspired the "one ring to rule them all?" The Met Opera has a free one week trial. Das Reingold is mostly family-friendly and offers amazing set design and beautiful music. The children immediately picked up on the Lord of the Rings connections. I had never seen an opera before - what a great introduction for a Tolkien fan! I do recommend reading a summary of the scenes before watching. Operas are long! Depending on the ages of your audience, it might take you several days to watch one.

The entertaining and enlightening The Literary Life Podcast recently discussed Reading in a Time of Crisis and offers a free Handbook for Morning Time as well as an intriguing upcoming line-up of plays, novels, essays, etc.

On May 1, you can watch a ballet of Shakespeare's The Tempest on the Royal Opera House facebook page. You'll need to check to see what time 7:00 pm BST is for you! I highly recommend the free Shakespeare online course from Hillsdale College, with one of my favorite instructors, Stephen Smith, discussing Hamlet and The Tempest.

For older viewers, The Royal National Theatre is making both version of Frankenstein available for one week on youtube, April 30- May 6. Having the two actors playing Frankenstein and the monster switching roles on different nights really highlights the question: who is the real monster? Radio Read Along offers a well-done a free audio read-aloud.

Finally, I'll end with a tie-in back to Heidi White's talk. She mentions the role Anne of Green Gables played in her formation as a child. Hosts Heidi, David, and Tim discuss this novel on the Close Reads Podcast.

I know that I haven't even touched the surface of what is available. Perhaps our little tour of this spring's online art garden will inspire you to find and share other opportunities!

Holy Week 2020 Quarantine Activities

In addition to praying and streaming church services, you might like to consider some of these options:

 scripture readings
 crafts/coloring pages for the young or young at heart
 memory verses
 links to listen to hymns

Although I got the idea from here, I arranged it for Orthodox Christian homes using our Church’s Scripture readings and hymns, with the help of the following sources: http://lent.goarch.org/# ; http://illumination-learning.com/main/project/holy-week/   ~Shamassy Monica Olsen


PALM SUNDAY
TOPIC: The Entrance of the Lord into Jerusalem
READING: Mark 11:1-11 (Entrance w/ palms) and in the evening at Bridegroom Matins Matthew 21:18-22
(cursing of the fig tree – good explanation of this here)
CRAFT: construction paper palm leaves

MEMORY VERSE: "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" Mark 11:9
HYMN: Troparion of Saturday of St. Lazarus, Orthros. Tone 1
O Christ God, when Thou didst raise Lazarus from the dead, before Thy Passion, thou didst confirm the universal resurrection. Wherefore, we, like babes, carry the insignia of triumph and victory, and cry to Thee, O vanquisher of death, Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he that cometh in the Name of the Lord (You should hear this one Sunday morning and can listen here)

HOLY MONDAY
TOPIC: Bridegroom Matins – Parable of the Ten Virgins
READING: Matthew 25:1-13 (Parable of the Ten Virgins) and Matthew 25:14-30 (Parable of the Talents)
CRAFT: Coloring page of Christ the Bridegroom; Glue 5 yellow birthday candles onto oil vessels in the Coloring Page of Parable of the Ten Virgins
MEMORY VERSE: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”
HYMNS: Troparion “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh in the middle of the night, and blessed is that servant whom He shall find watching; and again unworthy is he whom He shall find heedless. Beware, therefore, O my soul, lest thou be overcome with sleep, lest thou be given up to death, and be shut out from the Kingdom. But rouse thyself and cry: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God, through the Mother of God, have mercy on us.”
Listen to Father Apostolos Hill

HOLY TUESDAY
TOPIC: Forgiveness of the Sinful Woman Anoints Jesus’ Feet
READING: Luke 7:36-49
CRAFT: Printed coloring page of Woman Anointing Jesus
Printed “Perfume for Jesus” jar - Either color it or glue colored paper to the jar
MEMORY VERSE: "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.”
HYMN: Hymn of Kassiani

O Lord God, the woman who had fallen into many sins, having perceived Thy divinity received the rank of ointment- bearer, offering Thee spices before Thy burial wailing and crying: "Woe is me, for the love of adultery and sin hath given me a dark and lightless night; accept the fountains of my tears O Thou Who drawest the waters of the sea by the clouds incline Thou to the sigh of my heart O Thou Who didst bend the heavens by Thine inapprehensible condescension; I will kiss Thy pure feet and I will wipe them with my tresses. I will kiss Thy feet Whose tread when it fell on the ears of Eve in Paradise dismayed her so that she did hide herself because of fear. Who then shall examine the multitude of my sin and the depth of Thy judgment? Wherefore, O my Saviour and the Deliverer of my soul turn not away from Thy handmaiden O Thou of boundless mercy."

HOLY WEDNESDAY
TOPIC: Holy Unction
READING: James 5:14-16
CRAFT: Trace child’s hand (optional also cut out face shape); use paint brush dipped in oil, paint, or water to paint crosses on the hands where we would be anointed for Holy Unction.
MEMORY VERSE: Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.
HYMN: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for each other.”

HOLY THURSDAY
TOPIC: Mystical Supper
READING: Matthew 26:26-28 (Mystical Supper) and John 13:2-13 (Washing of Feet) and Matthew 26:36-46 (Garden of Gethsemane) and Matthew 26:47-56 (Judas’ Betrayal)
CRAFT: Print and cut out a chalice. Little ones might like to break saltine crackers into pieces and glue in chalice. You could also glue coins onto brown construction paper bag.
MEMORY VERSE: "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done." Luke 22:42
HYMN: Troparion of the Mystical Supper
Receive me today, O Son of God,
as a partaker of Your Mystical Supper:
for I will not betray Your Mysteries to Your enemies
or give You a kiss as did Judas,
but as the thief I confess You:
Remember me, O Lord, in Your Kingdom

HOLY FRIDAY
TOPIC: The Cross, Christ’s Death and Burial
READING: Matthew 27:32-44 (Crucifixion) and Matthew 27:45-56 (His Death) and Matthew 27:57-61 (His Burial)
CRAFT: print a color a cross; vinegar on a cotton swab (smell/taste it); flowers for the tomb
MEMORY VERSE: "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34
HYMN: 15th Antiphon, Plagal of the Second Tone “Today is suspended on a tree He who suspended the land upon the water.” Listen

HOLY SATURDAY
TOPIC: Victory over Hades
READING: Mark 15:42-47 and Luke 23:50-56
CRAFT: Arrange & glue bay leaves and rose petals on a page. (like what the priest throws in the air during the Liturgy Saturday morning). See ideas below if you want to assemble your Pascha Basket today.
MEMORY VERSE: "(Christ) gave Himself as a ransom to death in which we were held captive, sold under sin. Descending into Hades through the Cross ... He loosed the bonds of death" (Liturgy of St. Basil).
HYMN: "Arise, O God, and judge Thou the earth: for Thou shall take all heathen to Thine inheritance". Listen

Other optional hymn for older children, 9th Ode from Canon (a conversation between our Lord Jesus and His Holy Mother, getting close to Pascha with all that talk of rising!):

"Weep not for me, O Mother, beholding in the sepulcher the Son whom thou hast conceived without seed in thy womb. For I shall rise and shall be glorified, and as God I shall exalt in everlasting glory those who magnify thee with faith and love."

"O Son without beginning, in ways surpassing nature was I blessed at Thy strange birth, for I was spared all travail. But now beholding Thee, my God, a lifeless corpse, I am pierced by the sword of bitter sorrow. But arise, that I may be magnified."

"By mine own will the earth covers me, O Mother, but the gatekeepers of hell tremble as they see me, clothed in the bloodstained garment of vengeance: for on the Cross as God have I struck down mine enemies, and I shall rise again and magnify thee."

"Let the creation rejoice exceedingly, let all those born on earth be glad: for hell, the enemy, has been despoiled. Ye women, come to meet me with sweet spices: for I am delivering Adam and Eve with all their offspring, and on the third day I shall rise again."

PASCHA
TOPIC: Resurrection of Christ!
READING: Luke 24:1-12
CRAFT: Dye red eggs; make Resurrection Cookies; assemble your Family Pascha Basket:

What goes into a Pascha basket? Nichola T. Kraus has written an informative article about what goes in their baskets, and what each thing symbolizes. This explanation from "Children of the Church" posted by St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Texas reminds us that, "...each of the foods in the Pascha basket have rich meaning, as does everything in Orthodoxy. Glory to God!" If you would like to print something with pictures to use in teaching your children, you might like this one that the kids might color.

Pysanki eggs  & also Ukrainian coloring possibilities

MEMORY VERSE: "He is not here; he has risen!" Luke 24:6
HYMN: Pascha Troparion - Listen to many different languages