Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit Orthodox Church
Archpriest Steven C. Kostoff
4285 Ashland Ave, Cincinnati OH 45212 - (513) 351-0907
Fr Steven Celebrates 25 Years at Christ the Savior!

Special Event Marks 25th Anniversary of our beloved priest and Father-Confessor - 07/06/14

On July 6, 2014,  the parish sponsored a wonderful meal in the church hall to celebrate the 25 years that Father Steven and Presvytera Deborah have served at Christ the Savior - Holy Spirit Orthodox Church.  The exact dates are July 1, 1989- July 1, 2014.......a quarter of a century!

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Summer Activities Workshops

SRO Crowd!

Summer Activities Workshops, June 2014 - 06/25/14

This two week extravaganza of crafts and games culminated in a parish-wide celebration on July 25. Fr Steven wrote to the parish:

"We enjoyed a wonderful evening on Wednesday as we brought our Summer Activities Workshop to a close. From the oldest adult to the youngest child, we had just about 50 participants for our finale. We were treated to chess and table tennis tournaments; a display of newly-painted pysanki eggs, together with new crocheted items; and an exhibition of some excellent folk dances from the Russian, Greek and Macedonian traditions together with some refreshments. We would like to thank our activity leaders and the high quality of teaching and guidance that they brought to their respective activity. Certainly something that we will consider planning for in the future."

More photos added July 19, 2014!

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SRO Crowd!
Your move!
No kibbitzing, please!
Crochet classes...
The Chess Tourney!
Pysanky Eggs!
Fr Steven inspects the Artisans
Crochet Masterworks!
Church School IOCC Service Project

Church School IOCC Service Project - 05/18/14

This was the final church school service project for the 2013-2014 year.  The students assembled 144 Health Kits for the IOCC Humanitarian Relief project.  This was also our last day for church school. See you in the Fall!

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2014 Bright Friday Outing

Annual Bright Friday Party - 04/25/14

Christ is Risen!

Almost four dozen youth and twenty or so parents and adults enjoyed a wholesome time of swimming, rock-wall climbing and games to mark the end of Bright Week.

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2014 Church School Lenten Service Project

Church Schoolers make Sack Lunches for Norwood needy - 03/08/14

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St Basil, Vasilopita Party 2014

Church School Vasilopita Event - 01/05/14

Commemorating St Basil the Great...

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Altar Servers & Church School, 2013

Altar Servers & Church School Classes, 2013 - 12/15/13

Group photos of our Altar Servers, and of our Church School classes and our wonderful Teachers. 'Many Years' Everyone!

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St Nicholas Day Celebration, 2013

St Nicholas Day Celebration - 12/15/13

From Fr Steven:

Our St. Nicholas Day Program and Charity Dinner went very well yesterday.  I thought that we celebrated a wonderful and "lively" Liturgy which was very well-attended.  Although not everyone stayed for the program and meal, the church hall was still quite filled and we enjoyed a good dinner served "family style" by our high school students.  The procession into the hall by our Church School students led them to the stage where they all offered their gifts that will be distributed to the poor and needy before Nativity.  There were dozens and dozens of gifts, so it was an excellent effort all-around.   "St. Nicholas" greeted everyone and passed out a gift in return to our students.  An initial rough estimate says that we raised about $650.00 at the dinner through everyone's donation. We would like thank our Church School director, Terrie Sauer, for again organizing this year's program.  It was a good day for our parish family and community and we thank God - and the prayers of St. Nicholas - for the worship and fellowship that enlivened and deepened the day.
 
We would also like to thank our chefs, servers, clean-up crew, etc.  for their time, energy and efforts.

 

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2013 Parish Group Photo

September 15, 2013

 

On the same Sunday as our Annual Parish Picnic we had a photograph done of our entire parish (minus a few folks who weren't able to be present). This colorful, joyous image is a treasured keepsake for the church, and provides a snapshot of our growing parish family.

 

Paschal Matins Video

May 29, 2013

 

CHRIST IS RISEN!

This two-minute video from Pascha 2012 captures the joy and beauty of Pascha at Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit, including excellent audio of our choir singing the Paschal Canon. (Apologies for the slight tilt to the angle!)






Church School Bright Week Party!

Church School celebrates Pascha with Bright Friday gathering - 05/10/13

Games, crafts, food and fun highlighted our Church School's Bright Week celebration. Fr. Steven was quite involved with the festivities too, showing his skills at table-top ping pong, and even taking a swipe at the pinata! Following the party, the parish celebrated Paschal Vespers for Bright Saturday, our last service for Bright Week, and turning us towards Thomas Sunday...

 

 

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A Ping-Pong champion in Seminary, Fr Steven helps the younglings learn the game!
The 'Angry Birds' Pinata Challenge made for happy times!
Fr Steven takes a swing!
Christ is Risen!
Truly He is Risen!
Holy Week ~ Pascha, 2013

Holy Week ~ Pascha 2013 - 05/05/13

Special photos of Vespers and Matins on Holy Friday, Pascha and the Agape Meal following, and Agape Vespers Sunday afternoon.

CHRIST is RISEN!

Indeed He is RISEN!

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Fr John Behr ~ April 21, 2013

Fr John Behr of SVS, April 21, 2013 - 04/21/13

Fr. John Behr, internationally renowned patristic scholar and dean of St Vladimir's Seminary, joined us the weekend of April 20-21, concelebrating Saturday Vespers, the Divine Liturgy, and Lenten Vespers, delivering a special talk Sunday evening: "Becoming Human According to the Early Church Fathers." Our thanks and appreciation to our esteemed guests, and to everyone who helped make this such a special weekend in the life of the parish!

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Sunday of Orthodoxy 2013

Youth Procession with Icons - 03/24/13

Christ the Savior children and youth process with icons for the celebration of Sunday of Orthodoxy...

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2013 Pan-Orthodox Youth Retreat

First Pan-Orthodox Youth Retreat an Enriching Event - 03/02/13

With 30 registered participants, including a fair share of visitors from other local Orthodox parishes, we feel our children and young adults have enjoyed a wonderful learning and social experience within the context of their life in the Church. Our thanks and appreciation to the team from Antiochian Village!
 

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Let\\\'s Get Acquainted - New Members Photos

March 10, 2013

 

Newly posted is Anne Kormos' official Church Photo! Be sure to say "Hi" and introduce yourself this Sunday!


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More New Photos!

Jacob & Adalia Boehne and their son Elijah are soon-to-be official catechumens.
 
Greg & Becky Coons and their children Seth and Natalie are new from Middletown.  Greg and the children have already been received into the Orthodox Church and Becky is in the process.
 
McKensie Kilbane has moved into the Cincinnati area from northern Ohio.
 
Chris Ramey is an inquirer who has been with us for some time now.

Click on the photo for full size version, and be sure to introduce yourself and say "Hi" at Coffee Hour! Scroll down for more new member photos, plus many more photos of life at Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit.

 

Holy Week~Pascha 2012, Part 1

Holy Week~Pascha, Part 1 - 04/15/12

First group of photos from Passion Week and Pascha, with more to come soon...

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Holy Week~Pascha 2012, Part 2

More Photos from Holy Week and Pascha - 04/15/12

More photos of the CTS Family (some photos are out of sequence -- we're working on that!)...

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Holy Week~Pascha 2012, Part 3

More Photos from Pascha - 04/15/12

Featuring delightful closeups of many families during the Pascha Feast after Liturgy...

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Let's Get Acquainted!

New Members & Updated Photos - 12/13/11

Think of this as both a 'Welcome!' to New Members, as well as an update to our 2009 Photo Directory. Put names with faces and introduce yourself at coffee hour — We'll see you there!

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The Ordination of Thaddeus Franta to the Holy Priesthood

AXIOS! to Fr. Thaddeus Franta! - 09/17/11

Our dear friend and former parishioner, Todd Franta, successfully completed his studies at St Tikhon Seminary, graduating this past Spring, and was ordained to the Holy Priesthood on Saturday, September 24, by Bishop Michael at Sts Peter and Paul Church in Endicott NY.  We wish Fr Thaddeus and Velislava Franta MANY YEARS!, and offer our prayers for them in the next phase of their ministry in the Lord's Church!
Full Story on St Tikhon Seminary website, with extensive Photo Gallery.

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Nika Frimenko's Wedding

Wedding of Nika Frimenko and John Boyd - 07/09/11

Many Years!  ...to our fellow parishioner Nika Frimenko and her husband John Boyd, who were married July 9 at Holy Transfiguration Church (OCA) in Detroit. Here are a few of the wonderful photos from their wedding day...

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Antiochian Village 2011

July 28, 2011
Another wonderful Village experience
for our many campers, which included meeting up with dear Christ the Savior friends and former parishioners: Lee, Emili and Ravyn Malatesta, and Mary, Hannah, Lydia and Nick Charles. These photos by Mickey Callender give a great feel for the Village adventure...


Antiochian Village 2011 - 07/09/11

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Parish Slide Shows for Holy Week and Pascha

Vigil at the Tomb of Christ

Pascha Night - 04/24/11

The Nocturns, Procession, Paschal Matins, Divine Liturgy, and the Agape Feast — it's all here.
Photos by Ralph Sidway and Mickey Callender.

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Palm Sunday Liturgy

Palm Sunday and Holy Week - 04/17/11

From the Lord's Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem through the Vesperal Liturgy of Great and Holy Saturday.
Photos by Ralph Sidway and Mickey Callender.

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The Slideshow Controller
The Slideshow Controller
The Slideshow Controller
How to save photos from the slideshows:

1. Click on the slideshow to launch it.  Notice the controller for the slide show at the top right of the window. If you hover your cursor over the controls, popup text will tell you what they do.

2. Pause the slideshow (Click on the Pause Button) so you can manually navigate through the images.

3. Click on the image you want to download/save.

4. In the Slideshow Controller, click on the "Open Image in New Window" button (Looks like a box with a curved arrow). This opens up a new window with only the selected image.

5. As you hover your cursor over the Image, the cursor will look like a magnifying glass with a "+" sign in the middle. Click the image, which will show the full-size image file.  Now you're finally ready to download!

6-a.  Windows Users: Right-click the image and select Download or Save from the pop-up menu.

6-b. Mac Users: Control-click the image and select "Save Image As" from the pop-up menu.


Order Pascha & Holy Week Photos Online!

CHRIST is RISEN!
CHRIST is RISEN!
May 3, 2011
Pascha & Holy Week Photos Available for Online Ordering!
Now you can order prints from 4x6 inches up to 8x10 from our Pascha and Holy Week photos!  There are a great number of quite charming photos of individuals and small groups, and of many of our children. Special thanks to Mickey Callender for capturing many of these personal moments.


After investigating a number of online services,
I settled on the service provided by the company  with which I have been associated since 1984. Murphy's Camera is a family-owned photo retail specialty chain based in Louisville, which has been in business since 1957. Our state-of-the-art lab quality is outstanding, offering 100-year archival prints, and our prices are very competitive ($.19 for 4x6, $1.49 for 5x7, $2.49 for 8x10, plus shipping).

PROCEED TO ONLINE PHOTO ORDERING
Note:
You may be prompted to install Microsoft Silverlight before you can use the order site.
Due to server size limitations, not all photos in the slide shows are available for online ordering.


Sophia Myers Dances the Nutcracker ~ Video

Posted January 17, 2011
For our first video posting on our new Gallery, we are honored to present two clips of Sophia Myers' ballet performances:

1. SCPA Nutcracker, Saturday Night, December 4, 2010, Sophia Myers and Garrett Steagull performing Sugar Plum and Cavalier, Variations. Choreography by Daryl Bjoza.

2. SCPA Nutcracker; the Pas de Deux from the same performance.

Enjoy!


The Tonsure of Mother Paula

A glimpse into the mystery of the monastic calling... - 12/13/10

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Reception of Philip Enzweiler through Chrismation

Welcome Home Philip! God Grant You Many Years! - 11/21/10

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Nicholas and Elizabeth Georgescu's Wedding

Two Summer Slide Shows!

Annual Parish Picnic, 2010 - 09/19/10

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Looking Back... Looking Ahead!

Archbishop Job's visits were always a blessing...

A Slide-Show about Christ the Savior Parish from 2001-2007 - 06/01/07

The past several years have seen our parish grow and stretch in ways we never before dreamed. An ever expanding church school (almost eighty students now and growing!), a vibrant commitment to missions and outreach, strong attendance for our retreats, educational series and special events, anchored by a warm and supportive parish family striving to grow as one in Christ Jesus our Lord. This is Christ the Savior~Holy Spirit Orthodox Church...

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Archbishop Job's visits were always a blessing...
and we remember him with joy and thanksgiving.
Classes and retreats...
Excellent Stewardship...
to strengthen the faithful...
Wisdom! Let us be attentive!
Our church building: a historic Episcopal chapel built in 1913.
Blessing aMission Team.
Only 70 lbs per Mission suitcase please!
View from the back of the nave.
Christ is Risen!
Pascha Vespers in many languages!
The Annual Parish Picnic: music,
warmth,
and family fun!
And did we mention music?
Altar servers process with Archbishop Job
Father bless!
Many Years, Fr. Steven!
Another full stage for the St Nicholas Day event!
Axios! Fr. Steven and Presvytera Deborah.
Padre Estoban at the Hogar
Close ties with the Hogar Orphanage...
over several years and mission trips,
this is a ministry we embrace as a parish,
and share with other mission teams across the USA.
Vladyka Job with young adults...
and even younger parishioners!
Mother Gabriela of Holy Dormition Monastery...
leading our 2006 Lenten Retreat.
our full and bustling church hall!
Antiochian Village Experience 2011

CTS Campers at the Village

Join us for a recap of great Village memories with dear friends from across the country!

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Plenty of games and activities...
The Liturgy and the Eucharist is at the Center of the Camp experience...
Mary Charles and crew came from out West...
Emili and Ravyn Malatesta...
... and their dad, Lee, former parishioners and dear friends!
No danger of 'cabin fever' here!
Alexis makes sure the cabins pass the "white glove test!"
Making new friends at the Village...
Music and fellowship...
Marek Simon, Village ref and so much more!