St. Luke Byzantine Catholic Church
Ruthenian Eparchy of Parma
Liturgy Schedule Website Theme
Liturgies
Sunday Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am
Saturday Vespers at 4:30 pm
Feast Days
Eve of the Feast - Festal Vespers at 7:00 pm
Feast Day - Divine Liturgy at 7:00 pm
Check the Feast Day information on this website to reconfirm the times.
Mystery of Repentence
By appointment
Liturgy for the Deceased:
Contact Fr. Michael to offer a Divine Liturgy or Panachida for a deceased loved one.
Birth of John the Baptist
The Feast of the Birth of John the Baptist is celebrated on June 24.
Liturgy:
Monday, June 23 - Festal Vespers at 7:00 pm
Tuesday, June 24 - Divine Liturgy at 7:00 pm
The Nativity of the Holy Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord, John: The Gospel (Luke1:5) relates that the righteous parents of Saint John the Baptist, the Priest Zachariah and Elizabeth, lived in the ancient city of Hebron. They reached old age without having children, since Elizabeth was barren. Once, Saint Zachariah was serving in the Temple at Jerusalem and saw the Archangel Gabriel. He predicted that Saint Zachariah would father a son, who would announce the Savior, the Messiah, awaited by the Old Testament Church.
Saint Elizabeth came to be with child, and fearing derision at being pregnant so late in life, she kept it secret for five months. Then her relative, the Virgin Mary, came to share with her, her own joy. Elizabeth, “filled with the Holy Spirit,” was the first to greet the Virgin Mary as the Mother of God. Saint John leaped in his mother’s womb at the visit of the Most Holy Virgin Mary and the Son of God incarnate within her.
Soon Saint Elizabeth gave birth to a son. On the eighth day, in accordance with the Law of Moses. He was circumcised and was called John. Everyone was amazed, since no one in the family had his name. When they asked Saint Zachariah about this, he motioned for a tablet and wrote on it: “his name is John.” Immediately his tongue was loosed, and Saint Zachariah glorified God.
Troparion (Tone 4):
Prophet and forerunner of the coming of Christ, although we honor you with love, we cannot give you worthy praise. Through your glorious and holy birth, your mother was freed from barrenness and your father from the loss of speech, and the incarnation of the Son of God is proclaimed to the world.
Kontakion (Tone 3):
Today she who once was barren gives birth to Christ’s forerunner. He himself is the fulfillment of all prophecy; for in the Joran, he imposed his hand upon the Word of God whom the prophets had foretold and was shown to be His prophet, herald, and forerunner.