St. Anna's Orthodox Church in Roslindale MA

Monthly Talks

In the photograph above, on the right, you see Bishop Demetrius, Bishop of Carlisle, PA, standing in front of the open Royal Doors of the Dormition of the Theotokos Church in Concord, MA. He has just finished the Divine Liturgy and is removing his vestments. You see he is placing his vestments over the parishioners who are bowing in front of him. The garment he is spreading over them is his omophorion. It is a tradition in many Orthodox churches that at the end of the Liturgy individuals will come in front of the iconostasis and the bishop or priest will unvest over them so they may receive a blessing.

At St. Anna's we attempt to keep those traditions and order in the Church which have been handed down through the centuries. The Church's calendar is the Julian calendar: there are 13 days difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendar which means, for example, that the Feast of the Nativity of Christ, celebrated on December 25 on the Church calendar, falls on January 7 on the civil calendar.

You will find the church has a beautifully open feeling -- we stand during most parts of our services so there are no pews. We stand thus in the presence of our Lord and God, just as we would stand in the presence of an earthly king (there is limited seating around the edges so that those needing a break can sit temporarily). You will also see that we stand with women on the left and men on the right side of the church.

-Fr. John Fleser

To contact our parish priest you can e-mail Father John Fleser.