Small & Great Agiasmos - Blessings of the Waters

Each January, the priests visit homes of parishioners to offer prayers for the family and to bless their home with the Holy Water of Epiphany.  This is a very personal way for people to invite God into their lives and homes.  A priest can also be invited any time during the year to bless a new home business.  

Please call the Church Office at (847) 827-5510 to schedule a time.

Blessings on the Birth of a Child

The birth of a child is more than a joyful occasion or the fruit of conjugal love.  It is an expression of God’s love for mankind.  Without God there can be no life.  The Church, established by Jesus Christ to continue His redemptory work on earth is, therefore, concerned about life from the moment of conception and birth.

Blessing of the First Day
This beautiful service is traditionally performed by the priest either in the hospital or the home on the day in which a child is born.  It includes prayers for the recovery of the mother and the protection of the child.  

If you would like a priest to pray these prayers of blessing, please call the Church Office at (847) 827-5510 during office hours on the day of the birth or else contact the priest.  

Blessing on the Eighth Day
Although we often think of the service of baptism as the occasion of the solemn naming of a child, this is more properly done on the eighth day, just as our Lord received his name, “Jesus,” on the eighth day.  The “prayers of the eighth day” are traditionally performed by the priest in the home.  On this day, special prayers are offered for the naming of the child. 

If you would like a priest to pray these prayers of blessing for your child, please make arrangements through the Church Office at (847) 827-5510, before or as soon as possible after the birth.

Forty Day Blessing
Forty days after birth and in accordance with the Old Testament tradition observed by the Virgin Mary, the mother brings her child for its first visit to the Church.  The mother and child will be met by the priest in the narthex of the Church where the appropriate prayers are offered.  The child is then carried by the priest into the nave and to the Royal Gates followed by the mother.  The mother proceeds to the iconostasis to venerate the Icon of the Virgin Mary.  Since the prayers allude to the reception of Holy Communion by the mother, it is recommended that she prepare to receive Holy Communion shortly after the forty day blessing. 

If you would like a priest to pray these prayers on a day when there is a service, please come to church and let the usher at the pangari (candle stand) know that you are there for a 40-day blessing and wait with your child in the cry room until the service is over.  The priest will pray the prayers at the conclusion of the service.  To schedule a time for a 40-day blessing when there isn’t already a service taking place that day, please contact the Church Office at (847) 827-5510 to schedule a time.