Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Orthodox Christians in Detroit prepare for Christmas services

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Orthodox Christians in Detroit prepare for Christmas services

    Detroit Free Press, MI
    Dec 5 2007


    Orthodox Christians in Detroit prepare for Christmas services
    January 5, 2008

    By NIRAJ WARIKOO

    FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

    Most of Marty Shoushanian's neighbors in Farmington Hills have
    already taken down their Christmas decorations and trees.

    But the holiday ornaments are still up at Shoushanian's house because
    he - like thousands of other Orthodox Christians in metro Detroit --
    celebrates Christmas next week. Shoushanian and other Armenians will
    be in church Sunday for special services that mark both the birth and
    baptism of Jesus Christ.

    On Monday, other Orthodox churches plan to mark the Nativity with
    special services that have roots in Russia, Eastern Europe, Egypt and
    Ethiopia.

    `We're lucky, we get two Christmases,' Shoushanian joked.

    At St. John Armenian Church in Southfield, hundreds are expected to
    gather Sunday for Christmas services that include the blessing of
    water. That will be followed by a feast of lamb and a special pudding
    called Anoushabour, made of heavy cream, wheat and dried fruits, said
    the Rev. Fr. Garabed Kochakian, head of the Southfield church. The
    night before, Christmas Eve, many Armenians eat a meal of spinach,
    fish and eggs, the foods they believe Mary ate the night of Christ's
    birth.

    Orthodox Christians and Roman Catholics mark Christmas on different
    dates because of differences in calendars and the development of
    Christianity in the East and West, say local Orthodox leaders.

    Other Orthodox churches that follow the older Julian calendar mark
    Christmas a day later than Armenians. On Sunday evening, St. Sabbas
    the Sanctified Orthodox Monastery in Harper Woods will hold Nativity
    Eve services, followed by a liturgy on Monday morning. The services
    attract worshippers from a wide range of backgrounds, including
    Serbians, Macedonians and Romanians, said Archimandrite Pachomy,
    abbot of the monastery.

    `It's packed to capacity,' he said.

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Working...
X