On Sunday, April 28th, our parish celebrated the Bright Feast of the Resurrection of our Lord.  Following the Lenten Fast and the solemn services of Holy Week, the Paschal services were a source of great joy to everyone.  At the conclusion of Paschal Matins Fr. Bohdan distributed a red egg, symbolic of Christ's resurrection, to everyone.  Many of the faithful approached for Holy Communion at the Divine Liturgy, and the Church was full to overflowing.  Before the blessing of Paschal Foods our council president, Dr. Paul Slavchenko, greeted everyone with the joyous news that the much-awaited groundbreaking for our new parish hall would be held the following day, and invited everyone present to attend.  In addition, he thanked everyone for their generous financial support of this necessary project.  Our parish was blessed again this year with the presence of His Grace, Bishop Andriy, who presided at Paschal Vespers.  Christ is Risen!

Our parish again celebrated the Passion of our Lord beginning with the Palm Sunday services.  As always, the choir sang the services beautifully, and the atmosphere in the Church during holy week was very pious and edifying.  

On Bright Monday, April 29th 2019, St. John's celebrated the blessing for beginning of construction and then the groundbreaking for our new parish hall.

Since the Odessa Hall was closed in September, 2011, the parishioners, led by the parish council and building committee, have worked diligently to plan and fund-raise for the building of a new parish community and cultural centre.  Following the Divine Liturgy, everyone present processed outside to the festive singing of the Paschal Troparion, and Fr. Bohdan, accompanied by the parish choir, conducted the service of blessing.  Following this parish council Vice-president Natalie Prychitko welcomed all present, and invited the dignitaries present to say a few words.  Regional Chair  John Henry congratulated the parish on this great accomplishment, Councillor Bob Chapman offered greetings on behalf of the city of Oshawa, and former Councillor Nester Pidwerbecki, a great friend of our parish for many decades and a devoted supporter of this project, also expressed his delight that the hall is finally being built.  Taras Pidzamecky, CEO of the Ukrainian Credit Union, expressed his joy and the support of the Credit Union, and we were also honoured with the presence of both the contractor, John Fayer (also a great friend of the parish) as well as Debbie Armstrong and Steve Cattell, owners of  the Armstrong Funeral Home in Oshawa, our largest business sponsor and great benefactors to both our parish and the entire Ukrainian Community in the Oshawa area.

Following the groundbreaking ceremony everyone proceeded to the Fellowship Room under the Church for an informal reception and snacks, sponsored by one of our original parishioners from the founding of the parish in 1935, Julie Dobroshinsky.

With the help of God, the cooperation of the municipal and provincial authorities, and the hard work of Fayer Construction we expect the hall to be finished and ready for use by the end of this year.

Due to the great generosity of our parishioners, we have been able to raise enough money to build the hall.  But we will stil need extra funds to complete the paving and landscaping.  If you would like to help us please feel free to send your donation marked "Building Fund" to St. John the Baptist UOC, 35 Bloor St. East, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 3L9.  Better yet, visit us for a service and offer your donation in person.  First and foremost, we ask your heartfelt prayers for the safe and successful completion of this project!

On Saturday, April 13th, St. John's Parish held its annual Lenten Spiritual Retreat.  Presentations and activities were offered for all ages, from toddlers to senions.  The adults were very edified and uplifted by the presetation “How shall we live? Living as Orthodox Christians in the world today,” led by Fr. Geoffrey Ready, who is the co-director of the Orthodox School of Theology at Trinity College, University of Toronto. 

The presentation by Fr. Deacon Yuri Hladio, entitled “Romance & Dating in the Bible: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,”  which explored the scandalous (and often hilarious) stories of romance and dating in the Bible, incorporating Bible stories, pop songs, and movie clips. 

Children in Primary School thoroughly enjoyed the presentation by Jane Pfeil entitled “Christ: The True Vine,” reflecting on the parable of the True Vine through discussion, journalling, and artwork.  

Anna Kobilaski did her usual wonderful job organizing and leading a program for the toddlers, which enabled parents to benefit from the adult session.

The program concluded with Vespers at 5 PM, followed by a fellowship meal in the dining hall.

The Retreat was held at Evangelismos Greek Orthodox Church in Oshawa, whose facilities are excellent.  The large athletic fields were used by the primary school students for activites; the classroom facilities, including the kindergarten area, are first-rate, and the women's Philoptochos prepared delicious lenten snacks, as well as the fellowship meal for all participants.  The hospitality of our Greek Orthodox brothers and sisters is truly exemplary, and we extend our most heartfelt thanks!

St. John's wishes to acknowledge all those who contributed to the success of this retreat, our parishioners who helped organize it, and especially to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada Foundation, who offered generous financial support.

We look forward to welcoming you for our Autumn Spiritual Retreat, scheduled for Saturday, November 9th.

From December 27th through January 4th Fr. Bohdan and Marta Strelchuk of St. John's Parish took part in a mission trip to visit and bring aid to several orphanages and rehabilitation centres in Ukraine.  While there they visited the "Dzherelo" rehabilitation centre in L'viv, the Internat in Bukovo (Staryj Sambir Region) which houses almost a hundred girls and young women with various levels of physical and mental disabilities, the "Maple Leaf House" in Stoyaniv which is sponsored and supported by the "Nashi" group from Saskatoon, and the children's orphanage "Sonechko" in Kivertsi (Lutsk Region).  The visits to the orphanages and rehabilitation centre were very joyful for all concerned, and the manifestation of Christian love and care shown by our small group (which also included His Grace, Bishop Andriy, Fr. Lubomyr Hluchaniuk of Hamilton, Tanya Buciora of St. Demetrius Sobor in Toronto, and our driver, Mykola Derevynsky of London, England) was greatly appreciated by all the children and staff members of the various institutions.

While in Ukraine the group also had the opportunity to worship in historical churches such as the Dormition Cathedral in L'viv, where the priests were honoured to concelebrate the Liturgy with His Beatitude, Metropolitan Makarij, as well as at St. Michael's "Golden-Domed" Cathedral in Kyiv.  While in L'viv the group was received by Metropolitan Makarij, and while in Kyiv were accorded the great honour of an audience with the newly-chosen Metropolitan of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, Metropolitan Epiphanij.  Both of these meetings were very pleasant and deeply meaningful to all the members of our group.

We returned to Canada with a better understanding of the social and religious situation in Ukraine, and with gratitude that we were able, with the support of our parishes and of all the parishes of our Eastern Eparchy, to make the lives of all the youth and adults in the various institutions we visited a bit easier.

On November 10th and 11th St. John's hosted a parish spiritual retreat.  Fr. Dr. Timothy Chrapko from Calgary offereda  presentation on "The Liturgy after the Liturgy;" Yuri Hladio of Hamilton spoke about narrative in the Church and popular culture; and Dr. Peter Kondra offered thoughts on how to maintain a healthy Orthodox faith in our family lives.  Over 85 participants from St. John's and Evangelismos Greek Orthodox Church in Oshawa, as well as participants from other parishes in the GTA, enjoyed the fellowship as well as the spiritual lessons offered.  The retreat concluded with Vespers.

On Sunday morning Fr. Timothy concelebrated the Liturgy with Fr. Bohdan at St. John's and offered the homily.  The weekend was spiritually uplifting and beneficial for all.  

St. John's wishes to thank the St. Volodymyr Cathedral Foundation, as well as the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada foundation for their generous financial support in making this retreat possible.