Palm Sunday and Lazarus Saturday Parish Clean-Up

On Lazarus Saturday, the clergy and faithful of St. John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Church gathered to celebrate the feast and took part in a parish clean-up day in preparation for the upcoming feasts and Holy Pascha. Palm and willow branches were also readied in anticipation of Palm Sunday.
That evening, the parish marked the beginning of the Palm Sunday celebration with Great Vespers and Litiya, during which the palms and willows were blessed.
The following morning, as the church bells rang, Sunday School children, along with their teachers, volunteers, parents, clergy, and altar servers, participated in a festal procession from the parish education building to the church, accompanied by the choir’s festal hymns. Upon entering the church, the Divine Liturgy for Palm Sunday commenced.
After the Communion of the faithful, the prayer for the blessing of palms and willows was read again for those who had not received the blessing the previous evening. The day concluded with fellowship in the parish hall, followed by Sunday School craft activities for the children.