Hello children of Holy Trinity Cathedral! 

This is Saint Nicholas, emailing to let you know that I haven’t forgotten about you all this year, I am coming to visit! Though I won’t get to hear and see you all perform your poems and songs this year, I know you would have done a fantastic job! For all your hard work and kindness this year, I am bringing each one of you a special present for Saint Nicholas Day, full of treats to enjoy! Please have your parents arrange to pick up your presents from the church office after Saturday, December 19th, by calling in advance: 604-876-4747.

 HO HO HO and Happy Holidays! 

   IN TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY FIND PEACE AND HOPE 

“Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.” (Holy Bible. Matthew 11:28)

There is a popular commercial for an antacid that asks the question: “How do you spell relief?” It continues on, and gives the name of a particular product which, in reality, is probably no better, or no worse, than any other on the market!

If that same question were posed to us in a much broader sense: “How do you spell relief? Relief from coronavirus, worry and anxiety…. relief from the problems and difficulties of daily life…. relief from temptation and sin… there is only one answer that any Orthodox Christian could give. For us, relief is spelled C-H-R-I-S-T.

Life is often a tremendous struggle. Who would have thought that the year 2020 will be such a challenging one? We are all tired from COVID-19. Even the strongest of individuals needs assistance in dealing with the pressures of living in what is often called the “New Normal.”

How comforting it is to know that Christ is always there for us. He will never abandon those who faithfully follow him. As the Psalmist tells us: “The Lord is our strength and our song, and has become our salvation.” We can always rely on His grace and His love, which will see us through the darkest of the pandemic.

“Come to me!” Christ never forces Himself upon us, but He invites all of us to take up His “easy calling.” Relief will truly be ours if we accept this blessed invitation.

It is two thousand years since Christ walked over this earth. He remains to this day a profound Figure, about whom people must make a decision. Who is Christ? As we go through life, we are forced to come up with an answer to that question.
At the time Jesus lived, there were two verdicts about Him. The first is that Christ is God. He was worshiped. The Wise Men worshiped Him. After He stilled the storm at sea, the Apostles worshiper Him, saying “Of a truth You are the Son of God…”
The second verdict is that Christ was a mere man, indeed, a deceiver. After the death of the Lord, when Pharisees went to Pilate to ask for a guard over the tomb, they said: “Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.” 
Our answer is the answer of the ancient Creed: Jesus Christ is “Very God of Very God, begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father…Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man…”
Christ accepted designation as God. Peter once told Him: “You are the Christ the Son of the Living God.”He claimed Godhead – when Philip asked Him to “show us the Father,” Jesus replied, “…he that has seen Me has seen the Father…”
Finally, our Lord’s life testifies to His divinity. His teachings, His miracles, His character, His dealings with people, all reflect the grandeur of Godhead. Yes, Jesus was God and Man. 

“Нехай воскресне Бог, – і розсипляться вороги Його! Пасха священна сьогодні нам з’явилася! Пасха дивна, свята! Пасха таємна! Пасха найславніша! Пасха – Христос – Визволитель! Пасха найчесніша! Пасха Велика! Пасха для вірних! Пасха, що двері райські нам відкриває! Пасха, що освячує всіх вірних!” (Стихира Великодьої Утрені.)

З цим ВЕЛИКИМ ДНЕМ ХРИСТОВОГО ВОСКРЕСІННЯ – вітаємо Святішого Вселенського Патріарха Варфоломея І, Архиєпископа Царгородського, Нового Риму, Високопреосвященнішого Митрополита Юрія, Архиєпископа Вінніпегу і Середньої Єпархії Митрополита всієї Канади, Преосвященнішого Єпископа Іларіона, Єпископа Едмонтону і Західної Єпархії, чесне Священство та всіх наших вірних, щоб Воскреслий Господь Бог оживив наші почуття до любові свого рідного та всіх людей доброї волі.

ХРИСТОС ВОСКРЕС! ВОІСТИНУ ВОСКРЕС!

EASTER GREETING

CHRIST IS RISEN!

” Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered.

The Holy Pascha is revealed unto us today, the Pascha new and Holy, the Pascha mystical, the Pascha All-honourable, the Pascha – Christ the Deliverer, the Pascha-Spotless, the Great Pascha, the Pascha of the faithful, the Pascha which opened unto us the gates of Paradise, the Pascha which sanctified all the faithful.” (Stichera from Easter Matins.)

With this Great Day of Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ – we greet His All-Holiness Bartholomew I, Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch. His Eminence Yurij, Archbishop of Winnipeg and the Central Eparchy, Metropolitan of Canada. His Grace Bishop Ilarion, Bishop of Edmonton and the Western Eparchy, the Priesthood, our faithful and all the people of good will. May the Resurrected Lord Jesus Christ resurrect our feelings towards our ancestry on this Great Day and towards all people of good will.

CHRIST IS RISEN!  INDEED, HE IS RISEN!

Rev. Fr. Roman Tsaplan, Parish Priest

Gerry Parfeniuk, President

and Members of the Board