The parish Website of Holy Cross Orthodox Church in Omaha, Nebraska has just been updated, and it is packed with important information. I hope that you will visit our updated Website and check back often. Here is the link:
On the Home page you will find a new cover letter, and on the Sidebar you will find a lot of important information. At the top of the Sidebar there is a link that will take you directly to our parish Facebook page. Our Facebook page is regularly updated, so you will want to visit it often.
Second on the Sidebar is a link to the outstanding new Website of the Western Rite Communities of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR).
Next is a link to an Orthodox Catechism. This Catechism is "The Longer Catechism of the Orthodox, Catholic, Eastern Church, also known as the Catechism of St. Philaret (Drozdov) of Moscow," and was first translated into English in 1845. This Catechism is in question and answer format and is an excellent learning and teaching tool. I hope that you will make good use of it.
Fourth on the Sidebar is a link to Ancient Faith Radio. Ancient Faith Radio is an online Orthodox Christian radio station. I hope that you make a habit of listening to Ancient Faith Radio. It will bless you and help you grow as a disciple of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Fifth on the Sidebar is a link to the Orthodox Western Rite Ordo Kalendar for 2016. The Kalendar will allow you to effortlessly follow the Church's liturgical year, days of Fast and Abstinence, and the liturgical colours.
Next you will find a link to a very important article titled, “We Are Living in Historic Times!” This article chronicles the tremendous move of the Holy Spirit that is taking place today and the New Springtime that has begun for the Orthodox Catholic Church.
Then, following in order on the Sidebar are links to some more very important articles: “The Good News of Jesus Christ;” “Do You Have a Personal Relationship With Jesus Christ?;” “Introducing the New Testament Church;” and a “Letter to An Inquirer.”
Next is an important article for traditional Anglicans called, “Orthodox Anglicanism and Christian Reunion - The Time Is Now.” This article was written by me some years ago while I was still serving as an Anglican priest and was published on Pravoslavie (now OrthoChristian.Com) and elsewhere. It chronicles the growth of Anglican/Orthodox relations and calls for the remnant of traditional Anglicans to reunite with the Orthodox Church from which their forbearers in the Faith were torn away by force of arms in 1066, by the Norman Conquest. Anglicans already make up the largest group of converts to the Orthodox Church, and there are hundreds of former Anglican priests who are now serving as Orthodox priests in the United States of America alone.
Twelfth on the Sidebar is “A Guide to Western Rite Orthodox Church Planting.” This Guide is part of a presentation on Church Planting that I made at the 2015 ROCOR Western Rite Clergy Conference in New York. It will be a helpful tool for anyone, clerical or lay, who has an interest in starting a Western Rite mission-congregation in their area.
Finally, there is a link to a Recommended Reading List. This reading list will help anyone who is interested in the Orthodox Christian Faith and Church in general, or the Western Rite in particular.
The updated Website also includes News, a March parish Calendar, an expanded Links page, and much more. A link on the top Linkbar titled, “Father's Blog,” will take you to my Blog, “Fr. Novak's Blog.” I hope that you will read my blog and check back often.
Holy Cross Orthodox Church is a local parish with a national and global outreach. We have a parish website packed with information, a well-read blog - Fr. Novak’s Blog, a Media site, and a popular parish Facebook page. I hope that you will make good use of these resources for education, edification and outreach.
St. Tikhon (1865-1925), Archbishop of North America and later Patriarch of Moscow, said in his farewell address as he was leaving the United Staes, "The light of Orthodoxy is not lit for a small circle of people. No, the Orthodox Faith is Catholic; it is a commandment of its founder, 'Go into all the world...' (Mark 16:15). It is our obligation, therefore, to share our spiritual treasure, our truth, our light, and our joy with those who do not have these gifts."
The Website of Holy Cross parish with its many links is a tool that we all can use to "Go into all the world... to share our spiritual treasure, our truth, our light and our joy with those who do not have these gifts." You can begin right now by forwarding this email or the link to our parish Website to everyone you know, and then by going to the top link on our Sidebar that will take you to our Holy Cross Facebook page. By "Liking" our parish Facebook page you will help to spread our message far and wide. Our Facebook page is updated often, and I hope that you will become a follower of it. By taking a few minutes to do these two things you can be doing the work of an evangelist. Who knows what fruit a few minutes of seed sowing will bear?
A big Thank You to our Web Mistress Hannah F. for updating our parish Website. Managing our Website is no easy task, and Hannah does a great job for us!
If you are in the Omaha area please accept my personal invitation to worship with us this Sunday. Christian Education is at 8:45 AM, followed by Matins (Morning Prayer) at 9:15 AM, with the Liturgy of the Holy Eucharist at 10:00 AM. Refreshments and fellowship follow the Liturgy in our parish hall. If you do not live in the Omaha area, I hope that you will visit an Orthodox parish this Sunday. You will be warmly welcomed. If I can answer any questions or be of any service to you, please feel free to contact me any time. My email address is: venovak@hughes.net and the phone number for the parish office is (402) 573-6558. Here again is the link to our newly updated parish Website:
We are a faithful and friendly congregation, and we have a place for you. Visitors are always welcome. I hope to see you on Sunday!
