Church Interior
Entering Saint Raphael Church, the faithful encounter the presence of holiness, that "breath" of the Holy Spirit, Who is everywhere present,filling all things, yet abides with us in a blessed union as we come together for prayer and worship.
Our Nave is uniquely crafted from a period in the 20th Century when there were many "Old World" artisans and craftsmen building sacred spaces in America.
The faithful make use of a unique Chapel space within the Church which is dedicated to the American Orthodox Saints. Within the American Saints Chapel is an Icon of our Patron, St. Raphael of Brooklyn. This Icon contains a relic of the Saint, and was blessed on the day of St. Raphael's glorification (canonization) at St. Tikhon Monastery in Pennsylvania.
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Holy Week 2012
This year on Holy Saturday we were blessed to receive the newly Chrismated servant of God, Jeff Abraham McKinney into the Holy Orthodox Church.(8 images)
We reverence the Icon of our Patron Saint, Raphael of Brooklyn, which resides in our American Saints Chapel. This Icon contains a relic of the Saint, and was blessed on the Holy Altar at St. Tikhon Monastery at the Liturgy for the Canonization of St. Raphael in 2001. Our former pastor, Fr. Paul Albert, wrote this Icon in honor of the "Apostle to the scattered sheep in America". We pray that through the intercessions of St. Raphael, our parish will continue to be a spiritual beacon to those seeking the Light of Christ and His Life in the Holy Church.
Saint Nicholas visits our parish family
Around the feast day of our beloved Saint Nicholas, during the Nativity Fast 2011, we were blessed to spend some time with Saint Nicholas, who helped us prepare our hearts to receive Christ anew at Christmas.
The children sang a traditional carol as they welcomed the saint:
"O who loves Nicholas the saintly, O who serves Nicholas the saintly? Him will Nicholas receive, and give help in time of need; Holy Father Nicholas!"
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Preparing for our Lord's Nativity 2011
During the blessed time of prayer, fasting, and charitable works during the Nativity Season, we found time to give thanks to God through lifting up our voices with the angels. Young and not-so-young alike shared in offering to God hymns and traditional carols.(9 images)
Theophany blessing 2012
This year we processed from the church to the nearby River Rouge, sanctifying the running waters which find their way to Lake Erie and beyond! Three of our young members received a special blessing as the assisted in retrieving the Cross from the water.(8 images)