FIRST DAY BLESSING : On the day of the birth of a child

The prayer on the day of the birth of a child is read at the hospital or at the home. This blessing consists of prayers for the recovery, protection and well-being of the mother and the new-born baby.

If you would like to make arrangements for this Blessing Service, please contact us.

EIGHT DAY BLESSING : The giving a name to the child

The prayer on the eighth day is when the baby receives his/her name just as our Lord received His name Jesus on the eighth day (Luke 2:21). This prayer is read in the narthex (entrance) of the Church, where the baby is brought by either the father or the grandmother, since the mother may not enter the Church for forty days.

Contact us as soon as possible after the birth of your child to make arrangements for the Eighth Day Blessing Service. 

FORTY DAY BLESSING : Prayers for mother and child

In accordance with Old Testament tradition, which was observed by the Virgin Mary (Luke 2:22-24), forty days after birth, the mother comes together with her child to the Church for the very first time.

In the past it was believed that the mother and baby were prohibited to leave the house within the first forty days because it would bring bad luck. This is purely a superstition. This period should be used as physical rest, recuperation and bonding with your child.

The Forty Day Blessing, also known as the Churching of Mother and Child, consists of prayers for the physical and spiritual strengthening of both the mother and the child.

Both mother and child present themselves to the priest in the narthex of the Church (entrance) where these prayers are offered. The child is then carried by the priest into the nave and up to the altar. The mother proceeds to the Iconostasis to venerate the Icon of the Virgin Mary, where she will be presented with her child. At that church, the child becomes a member of the church.

Contact us to make arrangements for the Forty Day Blessing at least 3 days beforehand.

BLESSING AFTER MISCARRIAGE

In the event of this happening, the mother should come to the Church forty days after the miscarriage has taken place so that the priest may read a prayer for her recovery, protection and well-being along with the prescribed Forty Day Blessing.

If you would like to make arrangements for this prayer and Blessing Service, please contact us.