Join us for a special day for children as we commemorate Lazarus Saturday (Vrbica Day) with Divine Liturgy and Holy Communion for children beginning at 10:00 a.m. and Confession beginning as early as 9:00 a.m. Saturday, April 24 at St. Sava Church in Merrillville.

Palm Sunday Services begin Sunday, April 25 at 10:00 a.m. with Confession beginning as early as 9:00 a.m.

This weekend marks the beginning of Holy Week with special services taking place daily. A complete list of services is available in the schedule below.

About Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday

Lazarus Saturday is the first day of the Great and Holy Week. On this day we commemorate Jesus raising his friend, Lazarus, from the dead. Lazarus Saturday is a paschal celebration, and is a preview of the Resurrection that we will celebrate one week later. At the Liturgy for this day, Christ is glorified as the Resurrection and the Life, and the baptismal verse “All you who have been baptized into Christ, have put on Christ” replaces the Thrice Holy Hymn.  By raising Lazarus, Christ has confirmed that we all will one day be resurrected.

To gather pussywillows we walk in a festive procession on Lazarus Saturday. Coming back is particularly solemn. The clergy in their festive Garb are followed by festively dressed school children. They sing while they walk to the accompaniment of church bells. From the voices of innocent children who carry their willow twigs as a symbol of Christ’s victory reverberates, “HOSANNA…!” it is customary that each child is given a small bell which is rung during the procession thus proclaiming the Solemn Entry of our Lord into Jerusalem.

The picture remains indelible in the minds of children and continues into their later years. This is where the beauty of Orthodoxy is presented to them; this is where true dogmatic beliefs penetrate their souls to grasp resurrection from death. The beautiful holiday Troparion convinces them as well as nature which rested all winter and emerges to show itself stronger and more luxuriant.

Palm Sunday is the holiday which commemorates the solemn entry of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ into Jerusalem six days before the Passover (Matt. 12:1-12).

As Jesus neared the Mount of Olives, He sat on an ass and entered into the Holy City. Throngs of inspired people greeted Him as their King, singing and strewing their garments and green branches in His path as He rode. The crowds followed Him, carrying Palms in their hands and crying, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

In remembrance of that event the first Christians established the holiday, Palm Sunday. With the celebration of Palm Sunday the custom to bless palm branches was established to celebrate Christ’s victory.

Even prior to the Christian era Palms were awarded as a sign of victory.  Palms, always green, are said by old beliefs, grown out of their ashes. It signifies the glory of a victor who deserves an immortal name.

Heroes were greeted and decorated with palms. Therefore, the people greeted the Savior with palms because nothing could have dissuaded His voluntary sufferings: no Gethsemane horrors, no injustice of Judean courts, no insidious leaders, not even His mother’s love nor Golgotha’s horrible sufferings.

In pictures, palms in the hands of angels or saints represent their victory over the earth and remind us of a beautiful place in Revelations, “Then I saw many people of all languages, generations and races standing before the throne and lamb, dressed in white garb, and palms in their hands.”

The word “palma” according to the Greek fine interpretation was a phoenix with which Christ was met, or in a wider interpretation may mean a bud or a shoot.

In regions where there are no palms, a willow is blessed because it is the first one to become green after winter. It reminds us of a general resurrection. Our presence at the church service with green willows in our hand witnesses our belief in Christ victory over death.

Holy Week Schedule of Services

LAZARUS SATURDAY – APRIL 24th 2021

• Confession at 9:00; Divine Liturgy at 10:00 – VRBICA
• Holy Communion for children

PALM SUNDAY – APRIL 25th 2021

• Confession at 9:00; Divine Liturgy at 10:00AM

HOLY WEDNESDAY – APRIL 28th 2021

• Presanctified Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM
• Holy Unction Service: St. George Church Schererville – 6:00PM

HOLY THURSDAY – APRIL 29th 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM
• The Great Vigil: Reading of 12 Passion Gospels at 6:00PM

HOLY FRIDAY – APRIL 30th 2021

• Morning Service / Royal Hours at 10:00AM
• Vespers with laying of Holy Shroud and Funeral Service at 6:00PM

HOLY SATURDAY – MAY 1st 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM
• Resurrection Matins at 11:30PM

PASCHA – MAY 2nd 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 10:00AM

EASTER MONDAY – MAY 3rd 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM

EASTER TUESDAY – MAY 4th 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM

SAINT GEORGE – MAY 6th 2021

• Divine Liturgy at 9:00AM
• Followed by cutting of Slava Kolac

His Grace Bishop Longin will be serving at St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church – Merrillville, Indiana for Holy Annunciation beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, April 7, 2021.

The special visit by His Grace Bishop Longin is among the many he makes to parishes throughout the Diocese throughout the year.

About The Annunciation of our Most Holy Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary

There are two main components to the Annunciation: the message itself, and the response of the Virgin. The message fulfills God’s promise to send a Redeemer (Genesis 3:15): “I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed; he shall crush your head, and you shall lie in wait for his heel.” The Fathers of the Church understand “her seed” to refer to Christ. The prophets hinted at His coming, which they saw dimly, but the Archangel Gabriel now proclaims that the promise is about to be fulfilled.

We see this echoed in the Liturgy of Saint Basil, as well: “When man disobeyed Thee, the only true God who had created him, and was deceived by the guile of the serpent, becoming subject to death by his own transgressions, Thou, O God, in Thy righteous judgment, didst send him forth from Paradise into this world, returning him to the earth from which he was taken, yet providing for him the salvation of regeneration in Thy Christ Himself.”

The Archangel Gabriel was sent by God to Nazareth in Galilee. There he spoke to the undefiled Virgin who was betrothed to Saint Joseph: “Hail, thou who art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

In contrast to Eve, who was readily deceived by the serpent, the Virgin did not immediately accept the Angel’s message. In her humility, she did not think she was deserving of such words, but was actually troubled by them. The fact that she asked for an explanation reveals her sobriety and prudence. She did not disbelieve the words of the angel, but could not understand how they would be fulfilled, for they spoke of something which was beyond nature.

Then said Mary unto the angel, “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?” “And the angel answered and said unto her, ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee: therefore also that which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.’ And Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.’ And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1: 35-38) The Annunciation falls during Lent, but it is always celebrated with great joy.

The Liturgy of Saint Basil or Saint John Chrysostom is served, even on the weekdays of Lent. It is one of the two days of Great Lent on which the fast is relaxed and fish is permitted (Palm Sunday is the other).

• Sunday night 3/14 – 6:00 p.m. – Sunday of Forgiveness, First Lenten Vesper service
• Monday night 3/15 – 6:00 p.m. – Canon to St.. Andrew
• Tuesday night 3/16 – 6:00 p.m. – Canon to St. Andrew
• Wednesday night 3/17 – 6:00 p.m. – Presanctified Divine Liturgy
• Thursday night 3/18 – 6:00 p.m. – Canon to St. Andrew
• Friday morning 3/19 – 9:00 a.m. – Presanctified Liturgy
• Friday night 3/19 – 6:00 p.m. – Canon to St. Andrew

Join us for the Sunday of Forgiveness, the first service of Great Lent taking place at 6:00 p.m. Sunday, March 14 at St. Sava Church in Merrillville, IN. Divine Liturgy also takes place earlier on Sunday morning at the regular 10:00 a.m. start time.

The Sunday of Forgiveness is the last Sunday prior to the commencement of Great Lent. On the Sunday of Forgiveness focus is placed on the exile of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, an event that shows us how far we have fallen in sin and separated ourselves from God. At the onset of Great Lent and a period of intense fasting, this Sunday reminds us of our need for God’s forgiveness and guides our hearts, minds, and spiritual efforts on returning to Him in repentance.

Biblical Story

The Sunday of Forgiveness, the last of the preparatory Sundays before Great Lent, has two themes: it commemorates Adam’s expulsion from Paradise, and it accentuates our need for forgiveness. There are obvious reasons why these two things should be brought to our attention as we stand on the threshold of Great Lent. One of the primary images in the Triodion is that of the return to Paradise.

Lent is a time when we weep with Adam and Eve before the closed gate of Eden, repenting with them for the sins that have deprived us of our free communion with God. But Lent is also a time when we are preparing to celebrate the saving event of Christ’s death and rising, which has reopened Paradise to us once more (Luke 23:43). So sorrow for our exile in sin is tempered by hope of our re-entry into Paradise.

The second theme, that of forgiveness, is emphasized in the Gospel reading for this Sunday (Matthew 6:14-21) and in the special ceremony of mutual forgiveness at the end of the Vespers on Sunday evening. Before we enter the Lenten fast, we are reminded that there can be no true fast, no genuine repentance, no reconciliation with God, unless we are at the same time reconciled with one another. A fast without mutual love is the fast of demons. We do not travel the road of Lent as isolated individuals but as members of a family. Our asceticism and fasting should not separate us from others, but should link us to them with ever-stronger bonds.

The Sunday of Forgiveness also directs us to see that Great Lent is a journey of liberation from our enslavement to sin. The Gospel lesson sets the conditions for this liberation. The first one is fasting—the refusal to accept the desires and urges of our fallen nature as normal, the effort to free ourselves from the dictatorship of the flesh and matter over the spirit. To be effective, however, our fast must not be hypocritical, a “showing off.” We must “appear not unto men to fast but to our Father who is in secret” (vv. 16-18).

The second condition is forgiveness—“If you forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you” (vv. 14-15). The triumph of sin, the main sign of its rule over the world, is division, opposition, separation, hatred.

Therefore, the first break through this fortress of sin is forgiveness—the return to unity, solidarity, love. To forgive is to put between me and my “enemy” the radiant forgiveness of God Himself. To forgive is to reject the hopeless “dead-ends” of human relations and to refer them to Christ. Forgiveness is truly a “breakthrough” of the Kingdom into this sinful and fallen world.

Icon of the Feast

The icon of the Sunday of the Last Judgment incorporates all of the elements of the parable from Matthew 25:31-46. Christ sits on the throne and before him the Last Judgment takes place. He is extending his hands in blessing upon the Theotokos on his right, and John the Baptist on his left. Seated on smaller thrones are the Apostles, represented by Peter and Paul, a depiction of the words of Christ in Matthew 19:28. (1.)

Prior to their descent into sin through disobedience, Adam and Eve were blessed with a beautiful relationship of communion and fellowship with God. However, they were tempted by the devil appearing in the form of a serpent to disobey God and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:15-17).

When they took of the fruit and sinned, they realized that they were naked. Further, when “they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden”…they hid themselves “from the presence of the Lord” (3:8). The icon shows Adam and Eve attempting to cover themselves with fig leaves as they try to hide, and yet they stand ashamed before the Lord.

Because of their disobedience the Lord expelled them from the garden. The icon shows the Archangel of the Lord directing them out of Paradise, through the gate of Eden where God placed “the cherubim and a sword flaming and guarding the way to the tree of life” (3:23-24). Adam and Eve are dressed in the garments of skins made for them by God (3:20).

Orthodox Christian Celebration of the Sunday of Forgiveness

The Sunday of Forgiveness is also known as Cheesefare Sunday. This is the last day that dairy products can be eaten before the Lenten fast. The full fast begins the following day on Clean Monday, the first day of Great Lent. On the evening of the Sunday of Forgiveness the Church conducts the first service of Great Lent, the Vespers of Forgiveness, a service that directs us further on the path of repentance and helps us to acknowledge our need for forgiveness from God and to seek forgiveness from our brothers and sisters in Christ. This is the first time that the Lenten prayer of St. Ephraim accompanied by prostrations is read. At the end of the service all the faithful approach the priest and one another asking for mutual forgiveness.

Orthodox Christians are encouraged to enter Great Lent in repentance and confession by attending these services, coming for the Sacrament of Confession, and dedicating themselves to worship, prayer, and fasting throughout the Lenten period. The first day of Lent, Clean Monday, signifies the beginning of a period of cleansing and purification of sins through repentance.

IRINEJ

By God’s grace

Orthodox Archbishop of Pech, Metropolitan of Belgrade-Karlovci and Serbian Patriarch, with all the hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church – to the clergy, monastics and all the sons and daughters of our holy Church: grace, mercy and peace from Got the Father, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, with a joyous Paschal greeting – Christ is risen!

It is the day of Resurrection! Let us be illumined by the feast, let us embrace one another and let us say to all, even to those who hate us! Let us forgive all things with the Resurrection and thus let us cry out: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and upon those in the tombs bestowing life! (from the Paschal matins)

Read the complete Pascha 2020 message by downloading it in English or Serbian at the links below:

• Paschal encyclical 2020
• Васкршња посланица 2020