www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Parish Life & Evangelization Recommended DC Byzantine Catholic churches?

Hello, I'm considering the Catholic Church after a decade in another setting and a few years prior on other faiths. However, my most previous Christian exposure was Orthodox (largely Middle Eastern - Arab, Lebanese, Greek and protestant convert mix), and I've always found that mode of spirituality and disposition more accessible than Western tradition - so I find myself facing East, well...Eastwardly. However a recent shot at an area Slavic Byzantine place (to remain nameless), left me pretty cold. I emailed them, no response, a phone call did get me someone to speak to who told me someone would get in contact with me before Sunday - and I still haven't heard back. I decided to just show up and wing it; no greetings, smiles or even nods and most everyone was out the door as soon as it was over. I would like to know of anyone in the area attending DC/Greater DC Byzantine Catholic parishes and what they recommend. I'm open to anything; Melkite, Greek, Ukrainian you name it - who ever has an open hand.
Be well,
AOPC

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Allow me to be the first to invite you to Holy Transfiguration Melkite Greek Catholic Church. We are located at 8501 Lewinsville Rd., McLean, VA 22102. I am still technically Roman Catholic. I first came to this parish for many reasons about two years ago. After my first Divine Liturgy and seeing the large amount of growing families with small children (I have a 5 year old daughter, so she was three back then) I have not stopped coming since. This parish is friendly. After you come for the Liturgy stick around as we typically have a coffee hour afterwards and talk and mingle. My name is Manuel and I will be the tallest guy in the parish with glasses. Just in case you have not noticed, I love inviting people to my parish ;-). See you soon!!!

Kyrie eleison,

Manuel

BTW, here is the link to Holy T: http://www.holytransfiguration.org/

there is a calendar with the times for our services.

Glory to Jesus Christ!
Please consider a Divine Liturgy at Epiphany of Our Lord, 3410 Woodburn Rd., Annandale Va.
It's just off the Virginia Beltway, around the corner from Fairfax Hospital.
Liturgies at at 8:00 and 10:30 and to meet people please come to the coffee time in the Parish Center, just behind the church. It is usually from around 9:15 - 10:15, so you can come to first liturgy and stay, or come early to the second.
We are building a brand new church, so you might have to negotiate some construction situations, but this is just temporary. The new church will be magnificent, done in a style like the wooden churches of Central Europe, and has three domes on top.
Please look me up when you come.
Fr Deacon El

I can just see it now, a friendly invitation war ;-) :-P lol. Although I have not left to visit a different parish, I am curious to see other Eastern and Oriental Catholic Churches to get a better feel for the Eastern and Oriental Churches.

Maybe I'll give it another shot when the building is complete. Thanks!

part of my 'problem' is that my Orthodox exposure was largely 1)"Antiochian", which is a patriachate that in America has been steered largely by former-Evangelicals 2) the parishes were Mediterranean/Middle Eastern, and 3)in Appalachia...So the people - by way of culture as well as geography - are warmer and more welcoming than Greater DC. That's not an indictment of any particular faith communities here, just an experience with people in general. I take the metro so getting anywhere outside DC is a toughy - especially on weekends, when they do all the track work. thanks all, AOPC

Glory to Jesus Christ!
No war- just remember both are better.
Fr Deacon El

I did not mean that we'll be fighting for this guy. Just that he might get a good bit of invites, that's all ;-).

Kyrie eleison,

Manuel

One thing I love about Holy T is that we are pretty well balanced with the Middle Eastern and Caucasian make up of our parish. The Liturgy is almost all in English with a few parts in Arabic and not all the time as well, well except for the Lord have mercy ;-) lol. I hope you do stop by once and remember, look for the tallest guy in the room with glasses, that will be me, Bigfoot :-P lol aka Manuel.

Kyrie eleison,

Manuel

Holy Transformation is a bit of a trip from the nearest metro by bus, may have to arrange something from the metro; perhaps a parishioner commutes to Holy T from the south something could be arranged with? It would not be this week I will be away. there's time, but I can't send personal messages to members or else yours is disabled, but we'll talk. Thanks for your assistance! Now that I think of it, I'm pretty sure my uncle is Melkite.

Don't leave out the Greek stuff.

Sorry?..there are byz greek caths around DC? I thought the majority of the *minority* Greek Catholics were Roman - like Fr. Karras from The Exorcist!

Stuart was speaking of the Greek used in the Divine Liturgy, but ...

"Greek Catholic" = ethnic Greeks of the Latin Church

vs

"Byzantine Greek Catholic" = faithful of the Byzantine Greek Catholic Church sui iuris

vs

"Byzantine Greek-Catholic" = faithful of Churches sui iuris of the Byzantine Rite other than the Byzantine Greek Catholic Church - e.g. the Melkite, Ukrainian, Romanian, Ruthenian, Italo-Greek-Albanian, Albanian, Belarusian, Russian, Hungarian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Macedonian, Georgian, and Slovak Churches

'Byzantine' and 'Greek-Catholic' are essentially synonymous terms applicable to all Eastern Catholics (as opposed to the Oriental Catholics - those of the Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Syriac, Malabarese, and Malankara Churches sui iuris, and the Maronite and Chaldean Churches sui iuris), although the Metropolia of Pittsburgh has, for the past half-century, styled itself as Byzantine, in lieu of Ruthenian Greek-Catholic.

Many years,

Neil