CHRIST IS RISEN!

Today Saint Elizabeth Church celebrates with all of the Orthodox churches on earth the radiant feast of Pascha. According to Ode 8 of the Paschal Canon, sung during the Paschal Vigil, this is the “feast of feasts” and the “holy day of holy days.”

There are many wonderful resources on the internet for watching divine services, reading reflections on the holiday, and listening to the beautiful music it has inspired.

For one, Ancient Faith Radio has a good music streaming service:

https://www.ancientfaith.com/radio

Here on our parish website we have a few recordings that one can listen to.

1) The Paschal Procession with wonderful bell-ringing (listen for the bass bell especially) from Holy Trinity Monastery north of Moscow is first.

2) The opening of Matins, with the troparion and verses (“Let God arise,” etc.) follows immediately on the previous recording.

3) We sing the paschal hymn Having Beheld the Resurrection of Christ at every Saturday evening vigil after hearing the Gospel of the Resurrection (it is also said by the priest at the end of the communion of the faithful at every Divine Liturgy). Its origin is the Paschal Canon, sung just before Ode 7. Here is a recording of it by Saint Vladimir’s Seminary Choir.

4) Finally, the beloved Angel Cried is also from the Paschal Canon, sung during Ode 9, and it is also sung at every Divine Liturgy during the forty-day season of Pascha.

CHRIST IS RISEN!