On Sunday April 6th at 6:00 p.m., the *Great Compline service will be held at St. Demetrius Ukrainian Orthodox Church. This service will also be the annual Lenten mission service of the Toronto Deanery which will, of course, include the presence of His Grace, Bishop Andriy and all of the Deanery clergy. The St. Demetrius Church Choir will be singing during the service which will include prayers for the feast-day Благовіщення Пресвятої Богородиці or the Annunciation of the Holy Theotokos. The feast day of the Annunciation of the Holy Theotokos (which follows on Monday morning) comes nine months before Christmas. It is the celebration of the announcing of the birth of Christ to the Virgin Mary as recorded in the Gospel of Saint Luke.
Following the service, a meal will be served in the church hall, along with a talk on a Lenten topic (the meal is free) Everyone is invited to attend!
*The Great Compline is the final church service (or office) of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. The English word Compline is derived from the Latin completorium, as Compline is the completion of the working day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century. Compline tends to be a contemplative Office that emphasizes spiritual peace. In many monasteries it is the custom to begin the "Great Silence" after Compline, during which the whole community, including guests, observes silence throughout the night until the morning service the next day. The Office always ends with a mutual asking of forgiveness. It is an ancient custom, practiced on the Holy Mountain and in other monasteries, for everyone present at the end of Compline to venerate the Relics and Icons in the church, and receive the priest's blessing.
