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Sunday, March 29, 2026

Menu Plan: Holy Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

We have made it. This week is the penultimate week of the year. We are walking the Via Dolorosa with Christ. We live each of those days with Him. It is the busiest, hardest, most challenging week of our year. Meals this week are lighter and simpler, and follow the strictest fasting rules. Traditionally, a full, strict, fast begins on the evening of Maundy (Mandatum - from the new mandate/commandment Jesus gives, as He established the priesthood, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession), and goes through the end of the Vigil on Saturday, as we await Jesus by the tomb. The events of this week are what give shape to every other week of our year. We have the priesthood, the Eucharist, confession, because of this week. We fast on Wednesdays and Fridays because of Judas' selling Jesus on Wednesday and Christ's crucifixion on Friday. We celebrate a little Paschal feast every Sunday. This week is the most important week in the year. It is such a significant week that it is eight days long. The Sunday of the Resurrection is the eighth day of creation.

The final three days of Holy Week are counted as a single unit, the Triduum, or three days, which are a continuous liturgy. It begins with the liturgy on Maundy Thursday, then with the Good Friday liturgies, venerating the cross and the mourning at the tomb, finishing with the Vigil on Saturday evening, which flows into the Paschal liturgy at midnight.

This week is our first week of spring break, but it is our work week. I am making ready the sheera and leaving it in the fridge, and assembling the baq'lawa to put it in the freezer to bake on the day of the feast, and making the red dye for the eggs. Bright Week is our actual week of "rest" for spring break, by which I mean, our kids sleep in and rest, and I will be making loads of the foods we could not have during the fast. Unfortunately, our Bright Week will have an early morning set of classes for the girls.

Palm Sunday is a slight feast, so we are enjoying fish today! Since our schedule last week was a bit rough, we have a few repeats this week. As this week progresses, our meals get more and more minimal and simple. Nejat is awfully young to fast the strictest fast over the Triduum, so we are encouraging her to try, but to break the fast if necessary. Mariam already knows that, so will make that choice as she must. I pray for a blessed Holy Week and Triduum for you all!

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 9:32 AM 0 comments

Sunday, April 13, 2025

Menu Plan: Holy Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

We have made it. This week is the penultimate week of the year. We are walking the Via Dolorosa with Christ. We live each of those days with Him. It is the busiest, hardest, most challenging week of our year. Meals this week are lighter and simpler, and follow the strictest fasting rules. Traditionally, a full fast begins on the evening of Maundy (Mandatum - from the new mandate/commandment Jesus gives, as He established the priesthood, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession), and goes through the end of the Vigil on Saturday, as we await Jesus by the tomb. The events of this week are what give shape to every other week of our year. We have the priesthood, the Eucharist, confession, because of this week. We fast on Wednesdays and Fridays because of Judas' selling Jesus on Wednesday and Christ's crucifixion on Friday. We celebrate a little Paschal feast every Sunday. This week is the most important week in the year. It is such a significant week that it is eight days long. The Sunday of the Resurrection is the eighth day of creation.

The final three days of Holy Week are counted as a single unit, the Triduum, or three days, which are a continuous liturgy. It begins with the liturgy on Maundy Thursday, then with the Good Friday liturgies, venerating the cross and the mourning at the tomb, finishing with the Vigil on Saturday evening, which flows into the Paschal liturgy at midnight.

This week is our first week of spring break (though two of the kids are in a biology and geometry class with a hired teacher, and they have class this week), but it is our work week. I have already made the sheera and assembled the baq'lawa and put it in the freezer to bake on the day of the feast, and made the red dye for the eggs, the girls helped me put together the waraq 'ounab, and we have frozen them so we can just cook them on that day, as well. Bright Week is our actual week of "rest" for spring break, by which I mean, our kids sleep in and rest, and I will be making loads of the foods I normally make for the day of the feast.

I pray for a blessed Holy Week and Triduum for you all!

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 12:01 AM 0 comments

Saturday, March 23, 2024

Menu Plan: Holy Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

We have made it. This week is the penultimate week of the year. We are walking the Via Dolorosa with Christ. We live each of those days with Him. It is the busiest, hardest, most challenging week of our year. Meals this week are lighter and simpler, and follow the strictest fasting rules. Traditionally, a full fast begins on the evening of Maundy (Mandatum - from the new mandate/commandment Jesus gives, as He established the priesthood, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession), and goes through the end of the Vigil on Saturday, as we await Jesus by the tomb. The events of this week are what give shape to every other week of our year. We have the priesthood, the Eucharist, confession, because of this week. We fast on Wednesdays and Fridays because of Judas' selling Jesus on Wednesday and Christ's crucifixion on Friday. We celebrate a little Paschal feast every Sunday. This week is the most important week in the year. It is such a significant week that it is eight days long. The Sunday of the Resurrection is the eighth day of creation.

Our school break begins this week, but this first week is for all the services of the week and a lot of preparations in our home for the feast. There is a lot of cooking and cleaning to do besides the spiritual preparations. Next week will be our rest and rejoicing. Since everyone is old enough to participate at some level in the stricter fasts this week, Good Friday will not have meals planned, though Nejat may eat a light meal after the liturgy that day. On Holy Saturday, the two youngest may break their fast a little earlier than the rest of us. Rich has given me a mandate to break the feast a little earlier, so I can taste food as I prepare it. It always feels a little terrible to do that, because everyone else is fasting while I am not, but I try to be discreet, and it is literally tastes, not a whole meal. It is a small sacrifice I can make to ensure our church and family and friends can enjoy an excellent meal for the Paschal feast. What I'm trying to say is not to feel too badly if you cannot keep up with the strictest rules this week. Struggle within your strength.

May you have a blessed Holy Week! Please pray for our strength and health this week. If you are Orthodox, I pray for a continued Holy Lent.

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 9:52 AM 0 comments

Sunday, April 10, 2022

Menu Plan: Holy Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

We have made it! This is the busiest, hardest, most challenging week of the entire year. We are walking the Via Dolorosa with Christ. We are living each of those days with Him. Meals this week are lighter and simpler, and follow the strictest fasting rules. Traditionally, a full fast begins on the evening of Maundy (Mandatum - from the new mandate/commandment Jesus gives, as He established the priesthood, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession), and goes through the end of the Vigil on Saturday, as we await Jesus by the tomb. The events of this week are what give shape to every other week of our year. We have the priesthood, the Eucharist, confession, because of this week. We fast on Wednesdays and Fridays because of Judas' selling Jesus on Wednesday and Christ's crucifixion on Friday. We celebrate a little Paschal feast every Sunday. This week is the most important week in the year.

This is the second year of our family trying to keep closer to the Church's fast. Even our littlest girls are wanting to participate and share in this life of Christ in the Church. So, this year, I will only be preparing food for one person for one meal on Good Friday, and only for two people on the Vigil Saturday. Jerome will have eggs, chocolate, coriander/cilantro, and all dairy back in time for the feast, which makes life quite a bit simpler for him and us. He will be re-introducing sesame, so we will be able to give him small amounts of the hummus and baba ghanooj for our feast, as long as this week goes well. He has been such a good sport about this, and has borne his own fast quite bravely and willingly. Yasmina and Mariam have been in cooking classes at our homeschool co-op, and making all these foods they cannot eat, bringing them home and dutifully putting them in the freezer to save for when the fast is over. Even though, technically, Mariam could have eaten them. They have both said that they want to bring them to the vigil for our breaking of the fast, to share with everyone. Our children truly show us how eager we should be to live out the piety we are taught in church.

Glory to God, we are able to have a vigil liturgy with our small congregation that Rich serves. A retired priest is coming to serve the liturgy and share in breaking the fast with us. Because it will be earlier in the evening than it has been in past years, this means we will be breaking the fast a little earlier, so we will have our bacon and egg-fest before midnight. It is still a point of sorrow for me that East and West are separated at this highest, holiest feast of the Christian year. We think that since each side calculates the date of the Paschal feast on the fixed date of March 21 (Old Calendar versus New Calendar), instead of using the astronomical date, that we should all shift to that astronomical date (first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring equinox is how the date is determined), and let the secularists keep the western date, and their bunnies and so on, while we take advantage of chocolate sales and celebrate it together. One day. In the interim, we will continue to do our bit for unity.

May you have a blessed Holy Week! If you are Orthodox, Eastern Catholic, or Coptic, we pray for a continued Holy Lent!

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 6:31 AM 0 comments

Sunday, March 28, 2021

Menu Plan: Holy Week

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

We have made it to the hardest, most draining week of the year. It is our walking the Via Dolorosa with Christ. Meals this week are lighter and simpler, and follow the strictest fasting rules. Traditionally, a full fast begins on the evening of Maundy (Mandatum - from the new mandate/commandment Jesus gives, as He established the priesthood, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession), and goes through the end of the Vigil on Saturday, as we await Jesus by the tomb.

For the first time in our family's history, most of the people will be keeping most, or all, of that fast. Usually, we have too many little people, I have been pregnant or nursing, or something else like that. This is going to be odd, because it is really hard for me to cook for only one or two people. For after the Maundy Thursday service, I can have some fruit and cut vegetables out for the littlest ones, though. Even Nejat, our little sweet one, has told us that she is fasting from one meal on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Jerome's diet continues for 13 days after the Paschal feast, but he refuses to break the fast completely and take his diet as his discipline, and had to be talked into eating the dairy and egg. So, it is only Mariam and Nejat who will be eating on Friday or Saturday. Mariam has been abstaining from two meals on strict fast days, and I have encouraged her to have dinner, so she does not go to bed on an empty stomach. These kids continue to amaze me with how they fast within their strength and understand how important it is to the practice and growth of our faith.

Rich has given me a mandate to break the fast earlier than everyone else, so I can taste the food I am preparing. It is a hard thing for me to do this and feel like I am "cheating" and enjoying things my family cannot have, but in submission to my husband, and for the benefit of my family, I do it, and try not to show them my tasting things too obviously. It is a sacrifice for me to break with the fast at this point. In many ways, Jerome's diet was my sacrifice, too, because I had to do so much more planning and checking and cooking. I'm looking forward to that being over, because I will be walking it with him through April 13. We have been looking for ways that Jerome can still enjoy the foods we make for our feast, beacuse so many of them include grains and/or sugar! Even the bacon and eggs we break our fast with after the vigil includes sugar in the cure. So, please pray I can find some good sugar free bacon for not too much so he can share in it. The plan now is to freeze many of the things that he can't eat, either as is, or prior to cooking them, so when he is able to have them, I can thaw or cook them for him to enjoy. He may share in our Paschal lamb, the hummus and baba ghanooj, the hot sauces, the laban bi chiyar, the vegetables, olives and pickles, and if I leave out the rice from the meat mixture in a separate batch, he can have the waraq 'ounab (grape leaves). Our breakfast is mostly things he cannot eat, so I am going to make my own sugar free chorizo to wrap his scotchicanese eggs, and leave off the panko, so he can have that and the fruit in the morning. I also figured out a way to make him hot chocolate with his monkfruit sugar, so he can have that, too. He is being so good about this, and encourages us to eat the things he cannot, even when we all feel a bit awkward having them in front of him. The kids have really made me so pleased and proud this Lent.

May you have a blessed Holy Week! If you are Orthodox, I pray for a continued Holy Lent.

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday. Linking to Menu Plan Monday

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 7:17 AM 0 comments

Friday, April 10, 2020

Good Friday



Today is suspended upon the Tree, He who suspended the land upon waters.
Today is suspended upon the Tree, He who suspended the land upon waters.
Today is suspended upon the Tree, He who suspended the land upon waters.

A crown of thorns crowns Him, who is the King of the angels.
He is wrapped in the purple robe of mockery, who wraps the heavens with clouds.
He receives smitings, who freed Adam in the Jordan.
He is tranfixed with nails, Who is the Son of the Virgin.

We venerate Thy passion, O Christ.
We venerate Thy passion, O Christ.
We venerate Thy passion, O Christ.
Show us also Thy glorious resurrection!

اليوم علق على خشبة الذي علق الأرض على المياه
إكليل من شوك وضع على هامة ملك الملائكة
برفيرا كاذباً تسربل
الذي وشح السماء بالغيوم
قبل لطمة الذي أعتق أدم في الأردن
ختن البيعة سمر بالمسامير
و إبن العذراء طعن بحربة
نسجد لألامك أيها المسيح



Andrea del Castagno. Crucifixion. c. 1450

I am so grateful that our Bishop provided a streaming Stations of the Cross for us this morning, and that we will be able to see the Good Friday service this afternoon. It has been such a hard Holy Week. We have been immersing ourselves in the Via Dolorosa with the Lord this week. Our veneration today is part of the three day service of the Triduum which began last night with the institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood, and the stripping of the altar and will be complete at the vigil for the Paschal feast. We are so glad that we were able to participate, even a little, with technology. It is hard not to do this work in person, but we will wait as the Apostles and disciples did, scattered, to see His resurrection.

From our Old Testament reading this morning, there is a prophecy about Jesus:

For they reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves, "Short and sorrowful is our life, and there is no remedy when a man comes to his end, and no one has been known to return from Hades.

"Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law, and accuses us of sins against our training. He professes to have knowledge of God, and calls himself a child of the Lord. He became to us a reproof of our thoughts; the very sight of him is a burden to us, because his manner of life is unlike that of others, and his ways are strange. We are considered by him as something base, and he avoids our ways as unclean; he calls the last end of the righteous happy, and boasts that God is his father. Let us see if his words are true, and let us test what will happen at the end of his life; for if the righteous man is God's son, he will help him, and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries. Let us test him with insult and torture, that we may find out how gentle he is, and make trial of his forbearance. Let us condemn him to a shameful death, for, according to what he says, he will be protected."

Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray, for their wickedness blinded them, and they did not know the secret purposes of God, nor hope for the wages of holiness, nor discern the prize for blameless souls; for God created man for incorruption, and made him in the image of his own eternity, but through the devil's envy death entered the world, and those who belong to his party experience it.

~ Wisdom 2:1, 12-24

Our morning gospel reading was from Saint John, with Jesus before Pilate. He tells Pilate:

For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.

The entire purpose of the Incarnation is the crucifixion and resurrection. That day, that moment, was the reason Jesus was born. The person of the Son was directed toward this end from before the foundations of the world.

From our prayers this morning:

Almighty God, we beseech thee graciously to behold this thy family, for which our Lord Jesus Christ was contented to be betrayed, and given up into the hands of wicked men, and to suffer death upon the cross;

He was content to be betrayed, to be given to wicked men, and to suffer for us. That is how great the love of God is for His creation; He came to die as one of us, to rescue us.

I wish to leave you with another prayer from this morning, and I bid you all a blessed Triduum.

O Merciful God, who hast made all men, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, nor desirest the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and live; Have mercy upon all who know thee not as thou art revealed in the Gospel of thy Son. Take from them all ignorance, hardness of heart and contempt of thy Word; and so fetch them home, blessed Lord, to thy fold, that they may be made one flock under one shepherd, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.



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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 9:41 AM 0 comments

Sunday, April 05, 2020

Menu Plan: April 5 - 11 (Holy Week)


I wish you a blessed Holy Week! We couldn't go to church, of course, and had read a suggestion to put up branches and flowers in the window. Our windows can't be seen from the street, so we decided to decorate our gate. We hadn't taken these palm branches and crosses back to the church to be burned, so we used them today. This is going to be a strange Holy Week. We are so grateful for all the streamed church services, but it is hard to be missing them.

Our littles won't be attempting the full fast for the Triduum, of course, so there are some light meal options for them. Soon, they will all be old enough to fast completely!


What is on your menu this week? I hope these breakfast and dinner ideas help you make plans, too. If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.



Linking to Menu Plan Monday

Here are some resources for good, orthodox, liturgical worship services to participate in from home Saint Michael's, Our Lady Star of the Sea, Diocese of Cascadia Anglican Church, Orthodox Church of the Redeemer. If you don't have a church broadcast, perhaps this will help you worship and focus on the Lord and how you can serve His people during this time.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 4:27 PM 0 comments

Monday, April 10, 2017

Menu Plan: Palm Sunday and Holy Week


I was down for the count with strep a couple weeks ago, so my normal grocery shopping, cooking, and planning was not done at all. Meals last week were interesting.

Fortunately, there was a teen skating night scheduled for Elijah's birthday, which meant that he could have a good time, even though I was not up to cooking and baking up a storm. Also, a sweet lady from church made five different types of cake for the coffee hour, partly because of his birthday, and since we weren't there, even delivered them to our house after liturgy.

This week, we walk the Via Dolorosa with the Lord. It is such a tough week for us, spiritually and emotionally, but one of growth. It is a week of preparation, both spiritually and physically, which is fitting, given our created nature.

I did the huge Paschal shopping trip on Friday, to try to avoid doing most of it this week. 10 hours, four counties, eight stops, and most of it is finished. That's the down side of living in a small, rural area in the middle of the state. However, I was able to find a localish chocolatier who had lambs, since the convent where we normally get ours didn't have them available this year. There is still one shopping trip necessary, but it's for a few things that would go bad if bought too early. We have our yellow onion skins to dye our blood red eggs. The eggs from the Passover meal, covered in the blood of Christ who is our true Passover. Some of the food preparation will begin on Wednesday, and we'll fit it all in between the church services this week.

Our meals are light and simple this week. We also don't restrict the youngest on dairy, though during Holy Week we try to follow the stricter Lenten guidelines more closely. Since our small ones don't do the full fast between the Maundy Thursday service and the Paschal Vigil, I do have meals planned those days for them. I'm sure our oldest kids will be participating, though, so I'm going to have to figure out how to make small enough quantities to feed them, but not fill our fridge when we need the real estate for the Paschal feast. Even though our spring break is this week and next, the schools, and therefore the kids' activities and my choir practice, are in session, so we have to work around them this week, too. We're trying to only skip what we have to, but it's a little frustrating that in an area where probably 90% of the people or more celebrate the Paschal feast (or at least dye eggs and have a big dinner with their families), that they never have spring break on either Holy Week or Bright Week. In fact, they don't even align the government schools with the local college's break. Alexander was on break two weeks ago, and the local schools were on break last week. I grew up in a college town and the schools all have spring break at the same time. We will walk with Christ just the same. We will meet Him anew and come to know and love Him deeper. Then, the joy and miracle of His resurrection, which gives us the hope of overcoming death will rise again in our hearts and lives.

May God grant you all a blessed and holy journey to the Paschal celebration.
What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up.



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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 9:30 AM 2 comments

Friday, March 25, 2016

Good Friday Meditations from the Beginning of Lent

In some ways this is a travel diary told in pictures. However, we saw and heard things that very much were lessons found in Good Friday.

As I mentioned before, in January, we were invited to a friend's surprise 40th birthday party. Though we were flattered to be invited, it was in the Bay Area, which is a good 15 hour drive from here and airfare for 10 is not really feasible. So, I told Rich how nice it was that we were included, but that, of course, we wouldn't be able to go. He asked me why not, and suggested that just the two of us go. Then, immediately started looking up airfare. He found a decent ticket price, but I didn't know where we would stay, so asked another friend in the area if she could let us crash for a night, and said to hold off on pulling the trigger on the ticket until I heard back. By the time she got back to me with her yes, the fares had gone up significantly, so I was back to thinking this just wouldn't happen. Rich said that the price of airfare for us would cover driving down with the kids and getting hotels. So, we did it. In four days, there and back.

It was worth it just to see the look on our friend's face, because his wife (who is also our friend) had been planning for a month and didn't breathe a word to him. Also, as you will find out in a minute, we were a little late to the party, so we came in after he'd already been surprised and thought that part of the evening was over.

We had reservations at a little motor inn near Crater Lake for Friday evening, and after driving through Central Washington, stopping at the Monastery of Saint John the Forerunner in Goldendale for linner, we worked our way south through Central Oregon. By this time it was around 7:30 p.m. And raining. And dark. And our van stopped working about 20 miles north of Madras. Which is two hours north of where our motel was. Rich got the van over to the side and tried to call our insurance for roadside assistance. But, even though he had service and battery charged, his phone was not dialing out for some reason. So, we used my phone. Oh, and did I mention that the battery was almost dead and I hadn't charged it because we were so close to our destination that I didn't think it would matter? Now I plug the charger in as soon as I get in the car, no matter what. Anyway, he could still receive calls so we gave them his number if they needed to call back. I told them about where we were and that we thought our alternator had quit (so, I couldn't even charge the phone with the engine off) and she said she could send a tow truck. We said that we'd need transportation, because we had eight children with us. She said they couldn't cover that, but that the tow company might be able to do so. We knew we couldn't get towed without having a way to get the kids somewhere safe, because it was a busy, dark, highway with loads of trucks going by, and we weren't going to have them on the side of the road without some protection.

image_zps406b9tzw
This is the spot where we were stuck, to the left of the photo around where the mound of dirt and truck are)

Rich was getting perturbed, but God provided for us that night. Rich has a business friend who lives somewhat in the area, and he called him to ask where to get our van towed. It turned out that the man who lived next door to him owned a mechanic shop and was honest and reliable. While we were waiting for the tow truck, Rich grabbed his phone (it could still receive calls and could text), a jacket, one of the kids' flashlights and another's headlamp (they use them for reading in the car) and walked about a quarter mile down the highway, because he was sure that he'd seen what looked like a tow truck just around the bend. Glory to Christ that he has such good eyesight! It was the truckers on the road who alerted the tow truck that he was coming; they didn't see him, but the truckers did and flashed their lights, stopped so Rich could cross and get to them.


Here is where the tow truck was

They were already there, finishing up changing a tire for someone else. After Rich explained our predicament, they had him get in their truck, and just as he did, the call for the tow came from our roadside assistance people. Instead of trying to figure out where we were, they could just go where Rich told them. They called another fellow with a truck, from the company, so we could transport everyone. While this was all going on, we were also trying to find a place to stay that night. Blessedly, there was a place we had stayed during a trip to a funeral last year, and they had the same two rooms open for us, remembered us, and were pleased to give us a place (and a breakfast the following morning). Also, the lady at the place near Crater Lake didn't charge us for our missed reservation, even though we gave her only a couple hours' notice, because it wasn't our fault. So, they towed us to the hotel, we grabbed the suitcases we'd need for that night (we packed a suitcase for each night for all of us, instead of separate suitcases for us, the boys, and the girls, which worked pretty well) and our toiletries and diaper bag, and they took our van to the mechanic's.

The mechanic wasn't even open on Saturdays, but Rich's friend called him, as well as his having the call from the towing company, and he already had a special job to do that day, but because he knew we were stuck and running late, he did our van at 7:00 that morning, and made sure to get it done right away. So, we left only an hour later than we had planned. Though we were still an hour and a half or two north of where we wanted to start.


We crossed into California and meandered around Mount Shasta, all of us dressed for the party that evening, because our plan to stop at our hotel first, unpack, change and then head over was gone now, with our delay. I painted my nails, base coat, two coats of polish and top coat, while we drove down the windy freeway between trucks and other mountain traffic.

Guests were supposed to arrive at the party about 45 minutes before the birthday boy was to be there, but we ended up coming about an hour after he'd already been surprised. At that point, we just wanted to wait long enough not to ruin the surprise.


I found it funny that we ended up arranging the couples Arab, Arab, German, German. That was not deliberate.

We were able to attend liturgy with them the following morning. They attend a beautiful Antiochian Orthodox church, with the service half in Arabic and half in English. It was a moving service and Rich and I so enjoyed worshiping with them, and being able to share in the beauty of the church, of the liturgy and music, and feast our eyes on the icons and iconostasis there. It was wonderful that Arabic was assumed when we came in, people spoke to us in Arabic and people thought I was Iraqi. Our children had a great time with a church full of kids that looked like them (and Nejat taught the boy behind us to bump fists), there was a beautiful community of Ethiopians there as well. You could pick out the different countries of origin and dialects, too. I wish I had gotten photos of the exterior of the church, but we forgot to have family pictures taken of us with our friends. But that was not the church that had been built there originally.

In the time immediately following the 9-11 attacks, some miscreant or miscreants had decided that since all these people spoke Arabic and there was Arabic on their sign, and the building had a dome on it, they must be Islamic terrorists, too. That the sign said that it was the Church of the Holy Apostles in English might have been a clue that they were Christians, at least, but I doubt there was much reading going on. Our friends said that there had been all sorts of fires and vandalism that night, and by the time the fire fighters had come, the building was completely destroyed. Only the things in these two cases displayed in the narthex of the church were left.




This case has a place of prominence. It was what was left on the altar after the fire: The crucifix, and the Gospel book, with the pages burned except for the text from Saint Matthew's Gospel,

"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.

The people responsible for arson were never found. This church community, though, has taken that burned Gospel book as a sign and a lesson that they taught themselves, their children and all the people who came to their church. This is what Christ did when He was falsely arrested, falsely accused, falsely punished and crucified. This is what He did when He forgave those who killed Him. How can we do less?

So, like Christ, this church was resurrected. It is beautiful, it is welcoming, it is a place of forgiveness and mercy. And Christ is there. We were blessed to be there for just one day. Rich said that he wished we had a church like that here, both for the spiritual experience, and for the cultural experience for our family.

Here are some interior pictures of the sanctuary.


The iconostasis up front has Christ's life depicted, from the Annunciation to Pentecost.


At the base of the dome are icons of many Old Testament prophets holding scrolls of prophesy referring to Christ.


And at the top of the dome, like in all Orthodox churches, there was an icon of Christ, with angels around Him, looking down and guarding and guiding His people.

Have a blessed Good Friday, a holy Triduum, and a joyous Paschal feast!

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 12:54 PM 2 comments

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Menu Plan: Partial Week


Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!

I've been MIA for a while, as we had the opportunity to celebrate most of the Triduum and the Paschal feast with our church family "back home" as well as getting a chance to rent a house on the beach near our old house while Rich went to a conference for work. After that, we traveled to spend some time with one of Rich's cousins and his family. It was a beautiful and holy time for us.

Sadly, the "vacation" part for me wasn't much of a vacation as I had to drive Rich to the ferry at 5:30 for the first three mornings so he'd be at his conference on time, and the final night we were at the beach house I was so sick I didn't get to sleep most of the night, even though we could sleep in the next morning. I spent all the time at his cousin's sick, too. Though functional. Just not sleeping or eating well or feeling well. On the positive side, I think I've lost 15 pounds. Sunday night, we were able to return to our church and Fr. David prayed for me after I received the Eucharist and, for the first night in five, I was able to sleep all night without pain or feeling sick. That following day I was completely well. I am so grateful to God for His sacraments and priesthood!

We returned late Sunday night, or rather, early Monday morning, and were blessed that Rich had been able to take that day off, too, so we had a day to rest and recuperate. Tuesday night, Rich and I took a trip back to the west side, for him to take an all day class with his boss and another co-worker the following day, and I did some yarn shopping, walking around town, and resting while they did that. That was really my vacation. The hotel had a pool and hot tub, so I availed myself of the hot tub with its jets on my shoulder and back (oh! that morning, I went into the utility room to check the laundry and either the way I opened the door or the cold of that room tweaked my shoulder injury from way back in 2011 when we camped at Yellowstone, so my shoulder hurt and I couldn't turn my head all the way that day - it got better the following morning, but I'm still hurting a little). I finally found the exact shade of yarn I've been looking for to match a ribbon I have, that I'd like to use in a short jacket to wear over a dress. There was only one skein left and it appears to be discontinued. I bought it anyway.

In any case, here is our menu, such as it is, and the Bible readings. Here are last week's:

April 5 Deuteronomy 11-13, Psalms 56, Proverbs 11:26–30, Mark 9:2–29

April 6 Deuteronomy 14-16, Psalms 57, Proverbs 12:1–5, Mark 9:30–50

April 7 Deuteronomy 17-19, Psalms 58, Proverbs 12:6–10, Mark 10:1–31

April 8 Deuteronomy 20-22, Psalms 59, Proverbs 12:11–15, Mark 10:32–52

April 9 Deuteronomy 23-25, Psalms 60, Proverbs 12:16–20, Mark 11:1–19

April 10 Deuteronomy 26:1-28:14, Psalms 61, Proverbs 12:21–25, Mark 11:20–33

April 11 Deuteronomy 28:15-29:28, Psalms 62, Proverbs 12:26–31, Mark 12:1–27

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 9:16 AM 0 comments

Tuesday, April 03, 2012

Menu Plan: Holy Week

I have no idea what happened to my Holy Week Post, but it has disappeared. So, here is my menu again. If my first post shows up again, I'll delete this one.

This is a big week for us. The most holy and solemn week of the year. It is the time set aside to walk the Via Dolorosa with our Lord. We suffer with Him. We will be in church from Thursday night through (very) early Sunday morning. My only "break" from the solemnity will be something that I try to avoid each year, but has become tradition, my big shopping trip on Good Friday. It looks like this will be happening this year as well.What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 2:23 PM 0 comments

Friday, April 02, 2010

Good Friday


Andrea del Castagno. Crucifixion. c. 1450

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 8:34 AM 0 comments

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Menu Plan: March 28 - April 3

This morning was the Palm Sunday service at church. We got to remember how to fold the palm fronds into crosses again. This is what we love about the liturgical year: There is something for each of the senses as well as the intellect and soul. We processed into the sanctuary singing and waving our palms, we see the different sights, such as the palm fronds, hear the sounds of the music, the words of the Scriptures and the Mass, we smell the incense, we touch the palms in our own hands, we taste the Eucharist. Palm Sunday is a hard day. We start with the celebration of the welcome Christ received entering Jerusalem and we end by remembering that it was for our sins that He sweat His blood in the garden of Gethsemane, was beaten and scourged and was nailed to the cross. It is our voices that cry out for Barabbas, it is our cry to crucify Him. Each sin we commit echos that cry. One of the things we love about the Church year is how each of these senses help us remember and help us teach our children about God, the Church and our own nature.

This upcoming week is a hard one spiritually. Holy Week is a journey into Christ's suffering, knowing that it was done for us, because we were helpless to save ourselves. We see Him serve His disciples as a slave. We see Him betrayed. We see Him tried unjustly, but go willingly, trusting. We see Him give Himself up so He can conquer death, crush the head of the serpent with the cross driven into the top of the Place of the Skull. We see Him die an undeserved death, so He can enter Hell and rise with those souls He came to save, to give us the hope of eternal life and salvation in the resurrection.

It is a hard week emotionally as well, for all of those reasons, but also because it is almost impossible to pray with the Church during these services, to do the daily readings and not see our sin and weakness. It is a week of conflicts for us at home, because we are walking the Via Dolorosa with Him, and preparing for the joy of the empty tomb as well.

It is a week of greater sacrifice. For our family, that means going meatless the entire week, since we have not abstained from meat the entirety of Lent. Maundy Thursday is a vigil of prayer with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, when we inevitably find how hard it is to watch just one hour with Him. Good Friday is a day of penitence and mourning. Holy Saturday starts with a hopeful expectation and ends with a vigil to the empty tomb.

Meanwhile, during the fast and vigil and mourning, I will be planning a feast and a celebration. During some of the more emotionally draining days, I will be cooking and cleaning and preparing for Pascha and the joyous resurrection. It is a week of contrasts.

For the first time in a long time, we won't be hosting a huge party. We don't even know if our Paschal feast will include more than our family. We are determined to continue in the liturgical pattern, showing our children how the Church the world over celebrates this highest holy day of the Christian year. However, because of our smaller group, I am having to cut down on the number of dishes and quantity I make, and I am finding that difficult. I'm not used to cooking for fewer than 40 on this feast. Preparing for eight to 14 seems so small in comparison.

So, this is our menu for the week. There are six days of meatless meals, one of them being shellfish, so not vegetarian. I will try to get our Pascha and Bright Week menu up Saturday, because I know I won't get a chance on Sunday. May you have a blessed Holy Week and experience the joy of the resurrection.What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

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// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 8:00 PM 1 comments

Friday, April 10, 2009

Good Friday

I won't be posting a finished object Friday today. The only thing finished that I wish to highlight this week is the work of Christ who uttered, "It is finished!" and gave up His body and spirit for all mankind.

Our old testament reading today was from Genesis, Abraham taking Isaac to sacrifice him. Much like Jesus, Isaac carries the wood for the sacrifice up to the altar, much like Jesus, he is a willing victim. Isaac could have easily stopped his elderly father from strapping him to the altar, but he was obedient, even unto death. Abraham's declaration that God would provide himself the ram is a reminder that only God took on the responsibility for the old covenant (only God walked the bloody path of the covenant cutting, Abraham did not) and a foreshadowing of what was to come much, much later in history.

Our morning gospel reading was from John, with Jesus before Pilate. He tells Pilate:

For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.

The entire purpose of the Incarnation is the crucifixion and resurrection. That day, that moment was the reason Jesus was born. It is humbling. It makes me want to serve Him better. The person of the Son was directed toward this end from before the foundations of the world.

One of our prayers said this morning:

Almighty God, we beseech thee graciously to behold this thy family, for which our Lord Jesus Christ was contented to be betrayed, and given up into the hands of wicked men, and to suffer death upon the cross;

He was content to be betrayed, given to wicked men and suffer for us. That is how great the love of God is for His creation; He was willing to make His Son into the once for all sacrifice for sin.

Tonight, our church family will be walking the Via Dolorosa with Jesus in the Stations of the Cross. The weather is drab and grey, after a sunny day yesterday, which is appropriate. I bid you all a blessed Triduum.

I wish to leave you with another prayer and one of my favorite hymns for Holy Week.

O Merciful God, who hast made all men, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, nor desirest the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and live; Have mercy upon all who know thee not as thou art revealed in the Gospel of thy Son. Take from them all ignorance, hardness of heart and contempt of thy Word; and so fetch them home, blessed Lord, to thy fold, that they may be made one flock under one shepherd, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.

O Sacred Head, Now Wounded

O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown.
O sacred Head, what glory, what bliss till now was Thine!
Yet, though despised and gory, I joy to call Thee mine.


What thou, my Lord, hast suffered was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ‘Tis I deserve thy place:
Look on me with thy favor, and grant to me thy grace.

What language shall I borrow to thank thee, dearest friend,
For this thy dying sorrow, thy pity without end?
O make me thine forever; and should I fainting be,
Lord let me never, never outlive my love to thee.

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