Saint Xenia the Blessed Russian Orthodox Chapel
Orthodox Church
Saint Xenia the Blessed Orthodox Chapel is a mission church of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR). Our services are mostly in English with some parts in Church Slavonic. We are committed to have frequent worship services as we continue to grow toward becoming a parish church with a resident priest.
We have two visiting priests who celebrate for us the Divine Liturgy, one on the first Sunday of the month (Fr. Michael) and the other on the third Sunday of the month (Fr. Joseph). We have a tonsured reader (Michael) and two readers in training (both named Nicholas).
We have vespers every Saturday at 5:00 p.m. The vespers on the eve of the first Sunday is usually Great Vespers and the others are reader vespers. On second, fourth and fifth Sundays of the month we have a reader service at 12:00 noon (Typika or Akathist).
Our bishop is Metropolitan Hilarion, the Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York, and First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR). Our Dean is Father John Townsend of the Saint Mary of Egypt Church in Roswell, Georgia.
Service Times
Saturday vespers at 5:00 p.m.
Third Hour Prayers 9:30 a.m. and Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m., first and third Sundays of the month.
Reader service at 12:00 noon, second, fourth and fifth Sundays of the month.
Third Hour Prayers
The Third Hour Prayer is a fairly short prayer service. It is done at our mission to help people get into a more worshipful frame of mind for the upcoming Divine Liturgy. The term third here refers to being about three hours from the beginning of the day, which is assumed to be around six in the morning.
For people who want to go to confession, the priest usually hears confessions during the Third Hour Prayers.
Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy is the primary worship service in the Orthodox Church. It is during the Divine Liturgy that the central act of Orthodox worship happens: Holy Communion.
In an Orthodox parish with a priest, or more than one priest in residence, the service of Divine Liturgy would happen every Sunday and also on some major non-Sunday feast days, such as Ascension.
Vespers
Vespers is a prayer service that happens in the early evening. Vespers is considered to be the first service of the day because the liturgical (worship) day is assumed to begin at sundown.
In Orthodox Churches that have a Saturday Vespers service, it is considered to be an important service to help people better prepare spiritually for the Divine Liturgy service the next morning.
Traditionally, people go to confession after the Saturday vespers service. In our mission we usually only have a priest on the Saturday vespers before the first Sunday of the month. Confession can be heard after this first vespers because a priest in present, but not at the other vespers during the month.
Location
3000 Governors Dr SW
Huntsville
Alabama
United States
35805
Staff
Father Michael Dunstan
Priest
Michael (Bill) McKenney
Reader
Contacts
Tel: 6627691153
Web: http://saint-xenia-church.org/
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