Welcome to the Orthodox Church of St. Stephen the Protomartyr!

St. Thomas Sunday, also called the Antipascha, (that means, instead of Pascha) is the first week after the celebration of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

On this day we eat the Artos, a loaf of sweat wheat bread the symbolizes Christ’s presence with us, there is an Artos in the photo above.
It is also traditional to bless tombs on St. Thomas Sunday we went out to All Saints Cemetery and bless the graves of parishioners who were buried there.

Happy Palm Sunday everyone.
There was a lot of excitement today as Holy Week began and even a Baptism. Welcome and congratulations, Jason.
Palm Sunday is feastday celebrating Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalm when people layed down palm branches before him on the way.
We celebrated by decorating the sactuary and giving out palm branches and pussy willows. Pussy willows are traditional in may places where palm branches don't grow.
Here a happy family smiles as we begin Holy Week.

Tomorrow is Palm Sunday!
Tomorrow is Palm Sunday! Join us for Liturgy at 9:30. After the service, Tara Concelman will give another talk on the power of positive speaking bringing some teachings from the church fathers on this important subject. Jason Streit will be baptized before the Liturgy at 8:30. Here's the schedule for the rest of the week:In the homily last week, Fr. Daniel said the Divine Liturgy is special because it announces the Kingdom of God to us, but what is this Kingdom? St. John Chrysostom asks the question in his homilies on Mathew and he concludes that the Kingdom is the presence of Christ. It is this Divine presence that we celebrate every week in the Liturgy as our gifts of bread and wine are blessed to become the body and blood of Christ. The Kingdom announces God's love for us because it shows that he cares enough to be present and involved in our lives. It also reminds us of our responsibility to show this love to others. If Christ is truly present with us, then His presence changes everything. This message of the Kingdom was a threat to the political and religious authorities of Jesus' day, and it still challenges us today. If God is truly present, if the Kingdom of God is at hand, then we must love, give, and forgive. We must stop taking advantage, marginalizing, and hurting other people. Popular Christianity has tried to avoid the implications of God's presence by relegating it to secondary places in life. For example, we hide God within...
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Upcoming Events
- Theology Group in Oviedo
May 21, 2013 (6:30 am) - Vespers and Class
May 22, 2013 (6:30 pm) - Sort Clothes at First Baptist
May 23, 2013 (12:00 - noon) - Feeding the Homeless at St. George Orthodox Church
May 24, 2013 (5:00 pm) - Vespers
May 25, 2013 (5:00 pm)
Our Parish
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1895 Lake Emma Road |
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