Holy Apostles Orthodox Church is a parish of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR), Eastern American Diocese, founded with the purpose of bringing the Gospel and Divine Services of the Russian Orthodox Church to the people of America in the English language. We invite you to come to any of the Divine Services or events at our mission church. In 2009 we were gifted a beautiful, historic chapel and two-acre campus by the Christian Brothers. Our vision is to establish the parish in its new home, from where the parish can continue to thrive and grow as a living icon of Orthodox missions in America.
Dear parishioners and friends of Holy Apostles,
In lieu of this year's Giving Tuesday, our parish is participating in the grant competition by The Giving Circle organization.
In the current grant cycle (ends December 30), this organization is distributing $30,250 to the top 10 charities in the US and Canada. The top charities are determined by the number of votes.
Please participate yourself and get your people to vote to increase our chances of getting to the top 10 and receiving the grant.
Here's how we get the votes:
- Voting - People vote for "Holy Apostles Orthodox Church in Beltsville". You can vote once every 7 days, so come back every week.
- Donations - Every $1 gets 1 vote. If you set up a regular donation, your every $1 will get 5 votes. Also, sometimes GivingCircle promotes a "double weekend", when all donations and votes are doubled, so watch out for those.
https://mygivingcircle.org/holy-apostles-orthodox-church-in-beltsville
We have until December 30 to maximize our votes.
If you were thinking of donating something to our building fund, this is good time and a good way to make your year-end donation and add votes with your dollars. Thank you!
UPDATED FOR 2024! In 2009 our parish was gifted an historic chapel surrounded by two acres of beautiful land. Since then we have been restoring the chapel, and planning the construction of the new parish hall, which will enable us to move from our current location at Twin Chimneys Office Park.
We are approaching the groundbreaking for construction of the new Parish Hall. The visual history below tells our story.
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Dear Family of Holy Apostles Orthodox Church and Friends,
Our encounter with the Hawaiian Iveron Icon of the Mother of God this past Monday the 9th almost literally shone out so that the experience was said to be a "radiant night." Since Father Nectarios was coming from a long distance, our scheduled prayers and akathist were complete before his arrival. All who came remained and grouped together in front of the church awaiting her. Her overwhelming grace dispelled all possible anxiety resulting from such a delay. Through all the time of prayer and waiting, a sense of elevation of spirit persisted putting us all above time.
For all of the sense of spiritual elevation, her icon's arrival in the arms of Father Nectarios and conveyed to the arms of Father Christopher, was equal to the warmest possible family embrace. We held her in a way that she held us. We live with the knowledge of being God's family through our membership in Christ's Body, the Church. We know too that, therefore, the Theotokos mothers the Church. We were in her arms. This overall sense that pervaded the evening was further marked by a number of miraculous events, one of which we mention here.
Dear brothers and sisters, we must hold this overwhelming blessing we have received ever in our very sense of being, together with all the other blessed happenings rising out of this "radiant night."
With love in our Lord and His most pure Mother, I remain your servant,
Fr. George
Now and Upcoming Shortly:
12/03 – Tuesday 6:30 PM Evening Vigil12/04 – Wednesday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy – the Entry of the Mother of God into the Temple - 1 of the 12 Great Feasts of the Church
12/05 - Thursday 7-9 PM Choir Rehearsal
12/07 – Saturday 5:00 PM Evening Vigil
12/08 – Sunday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy – the 24th Sunday after Pentecost - Apodosis of the Entry
12/09 - Monday 7:00 PM Parish Council via Zoom
12/11 - Thursday 7-9 PM Choir Rehearsal
12/14 – Saturday 5:00 PM Evening Vigil
12/15 – Sunday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy - the 25th Sunday after Pentecost - Prophet Habakkuk
12/18 – Wednesday 6:30 PM Evening Vigil
12/19 – Thursday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy - St. Nicholas, Wonderworker of Myra in Lycia - No choir rehearsal this evening
12/21 – Saturday 5:00 PM Evening Vigil
12/22 – Sunday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy - the 26th Sunday after Pentecost - the Conception of the Holy Theotokos by St. Anna
12/24 – Thursday 6:30 PM Evening Vigil
12/25 – Friday 9:40 AM Hours & Divine Liturgy – Venerable Herman, Wonderworker of Alaska - No choir rehearsal this evening
NEW! Added September 6, 2024 — This booklet is a record of the experience of a priest’s wife during the Pentecost Kneeling Vespers served in Holy Apostles Orthodox Church in Beltsville, Maryland, on June 23, 2024. ($5 in our Lulu Store)
“Through the eyes of my heart, I saw a stream of the departed, people whom I knew throughout my life. I saw so many, many people. The Lord brought them close to my heart, as close as He is. The stream became a river. From my lost babies, to my grandfather who committed suicide, to an untold number of departed relatives, brothers and sisters in Christ, I saw a great crowd. The border between Heaven and earth dissolved as the Lord brought me to this place.”
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From 'St John of Shanghai and San Francisco, Zealous Builder of Churches'
Everywhere he went he either oversaw the building of churches or supported the same with his attention and prayers... He wrote about the godly work of building churches:
"In building churches here on earth, we create for ourselves eternal habitations in heaven."