After first gathering five years ago in a chapel at Trinity Catholic
High School, the Greek Orthodox Mission of Greater Ocala is moving
beyond its infancy.
On Feb. 21, members broke ground for their first building on 9.6
acres in Belleview. Though the structure will be new and the
excitement is fresh, the bonds of tradition continue to prevail as
seen in the church's celebrations surrounding
Easter.
Today, the local mission will join other
Orthodox Christian churches throughout the world to celebrate
Palm Sunday with the distribution of palm leaves formed into
crosses. This is done in remembrance of Christ's approach to the
city of
Jerusalem where he was greeted by worshippers waving
palm branches,
shortly before his crucifixion.
Next week, known as
Holy Week, will include a number of rituals related to the
crucifixion of Christ,
such as a procession bearing a flower-strewn bier on Friday evening.
The week will culminate with
Easter Sunday, April 19, one week after the Easter Sunday
celebrated by Roman
Catholic and Protestant churches.
For those of Eastern Orthodox faiths, Easter Sunday falls after
the first full moon
following the vernal
equinox, as originally set by the
First Ecumenical Council in 325 B.C. It always comes after
the Jewish Passover, said Ellen Pantazis, the mission's
ways-and-means director and co-chair of fundraisers that include the
annual Greek Festival
held in the fall.
Members of the
Greek Orthodox faith are approaching the most significant
observance of the year, Pantazis said.
"Easter is the most important holiday - the resurrection, the
rebirth, the hope of the world. It's the highlight of our religion,"
Pantazis said. "Many of us fast for 40 days in preparation for the
service of the resurrection."
Midway during the customary 40-day fast, members gathered for the
"adoration of the cross," a processional that puts the focus on the
sacrifice and death
of Jesus Christ, while also encouraging a
personal commitment
to a life of faith.
From the early days when about a dozen people first organized the
mission, members exuded that type of commitment, Pantazis said.
Though they had very few start-up funds, the congregants themselves
donated what was needed.
Helen Paches, now 96, sewed an
altar cloth.
Others created a candle holder from a large baking pan, built a
funeral bier out of PVC pipe and made icons by enlarging images
found on the Internet.
These days, the plastic funeral bier has been replaced, Pantazis
said.
"We have a beautiful wooden one now," she said. "We decorate
Friday morning and use it Friday night."
Others continue to donate as the church begins construction.
Steve Bowling, a retired tree farm owner, donated 130 trees, with an
irrigation system, to be placed around the perimeter of the land.
Other professionals have pledged to donate their time and talents to
the building project, Pantazis said.
"Our congregation is very much like a family," she said. "A
family helps each other. Everybody steps up and helps out. It's a
wonderful congregation. When we go on Sunday, if somebody's not
there, everybody calls to see if they're OK. It's definitely a
family atmosphere."
The plan calls for a 14,000-square-foot fellowship hall.
Construction of the first phase includes a chapel and restrooms and
is expected to be completed by the beginning of next year, Pantazis
said.
Dr. Cary Pantazis, Ellen's husband, is president of the council.
He estimated that 50 families now attend. With
St. Basil's Antiochian Eastern Orthodox Church on the
northwest side of town, the hope is that the mission will serve
people from the southeast side, including those living in The
Villages.
Without a priest to conduct services, Cary contacted the Rev.
George Papadeas, a retired priest who lives in Daytona. At 90 years
of age, Papadeas makes the 80-mile drive to Ocala every weekend.
"People retire and sit in a rocking chair," he said. "I'm an
active person and I'm doing something I really enjoy, being with
people, especially out there where they have such a blessed
congregation. I'm refreshed when I go there.
"When I get in my car to drive to Ocala for my mission, I feel
like I'm driving to heaven. I get more out of it than my
parishioners do."
