Consecration Service Reservations and Banquet Tickets
You will not want to miss this historic event! Reservations are requested for the service to help us plan appropriately, and tickets are required for the Consecration Banquet on Sunday, May 5, 2019. An event flyer can be found here: pdf Saint George Chapel Consecration Flyer (424 KB)
Both are available at HolyTrinityPgh.org/events.
Schedule of Events
Friday, May 4: At the Chapel
- 7:00pm - Vespers Service
Saturday, May 5: At the Chapel
- 7:30am - Parking at Holy Trinity Church with shuttle buses to Chapel (continuous)
- 8:00am - Orthros
- 9:00am - Service of Consecration and Divine Liturgy
- Light reception to follow at Chapel
- Shuttle buses back to Holy Trinity Church (continuous)
Sunday, May 6: At Holy Trinity Church
- 8:15am - Orthros
- 9:30am - Divine Liturgy
- 11:00am - Consecration Banquet
Consecration Questions and Answers
What is the Consecration of a Church?
The Consecration of a church is the service of sanctification and solemn dedication of a building for use as a church. It is a special service which "changes" an ordinary building into the House of God. Like the Baptism of a child or the ordination of a priest, this change takes place through the Grace of God and the work of the Holy Spirit. The consecration of a church is a complex service that is filled with profound symbolism and many biblical elements and references. The Consecration is different from and usually takes place a while (sometimes years) after the blessing of the ground and the church's formal opening for worship (Thryanoixia).
What happens at a Consecration?
Many symbolic actions take place during the Consecration Service, such as:
1. The Three Processions around the Church Building.
2. The Placing of, and Sealing of, the Holy Relics in the Altar Table.
3. The Washing and Anointing of the Altar Table.
4. The Placing of the new Altar Coverings and other Holy Articles on the Holy Table.
5. The Lighting of the Vigil Light.
6. The first Divine Liturgy in the newly consecrated Church.
Donations Needed
A variety of ecclesiastical and practical items are needed for this rather complex event, many of which have been ordered from Greece because they come from specialty suppliers. Other locally available items must be prepared specially for the service here in our local area. A complete list of available and needed items can be found on the back of this form: pdf Saint George Chapel Consecration Items Donations Form (235 KB) . Please consider helping this jewel of the Holy Trinity community fulfill its long journey to completion by offering a gift of love to cover one or more of these items. These donations–along with all the previous donations of icons, furnishings and other Chapel items–will be acknowledged at the Chapel Consecration Banquet on May 5, 2019, and in the Chapel Consecration Album, to be ready in Fall 2019. Many thanks, good stewards, for your love for our Chapel and Cemetery!
Watch for more information
More information about this historic event will be posted and announced. In the mean time, please put it on your calendar, make your reservations and buy your Consecration Banquet tickets so you can join in service and the celebration!
