Armistice Day, November 11, 1918

Many of Globeville’s immigrants came to America during the 1890s to escape the political unrest, constant territorial wars and changing borders in Europe. Young men wished to avoid conscription -  a six-year term in the military of the empire that had absorbed and erased your nation. But war eventually caught up with Globeville, exploding during the summer of 1914 following the assassination of Austria’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand. By August 1914, all Europe had chosen sides and mobilized their forces, hoping to settle old scores and regain territory lost in recent conflicts. The United States wanted to remain neutral and so did Globeville. But by 1917, Germany’s unrestricted submarine warfare had destroyed Allied, neutral and civilian ships, cost innocent lives and changed public opinion. When Congress declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917, the announcement was met with enthusiasm, patriotism and romantic notions. For some Globevillians, the war offered an opportunity to prove that they were loyal citizens. Others sought adventure or wanted to fight for their adopted country. By the time the Armistice was reached, the world and the Globeville neighborhood would be forever changed. 
On November 11,1918, Poles in Globeville felt enormous pride in the restoration of their homeland. Their country had ceased to exist for more than a century after Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia carved it into three sectors in 1792.
Yugoslavia, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, was created in 1918.
The Russian Revolution in March 1917 meant Russia was out of the war and helped the allies. But it meant Holy Transfiguration lost contact with Orthodox Church officials, credentials and records. The church had been funded by Czar Nicholas II and lost its financial backing.
After the Revolution, German Russians were caught in a new conflict - regarded with suspicion by Bolsheviks, by Germans and the Allies. Their lands were seized by the new collectives and many were imprisoned in Siberia.
Although America had been triumphant, attitudes had changed and Americans turned inward. There were severe restrictions on immigration after the war, and citizens of Globeville found it difficult to bring family members to this country. Many lost touch with relatives and friends. The war also fostered suspicion of anyone who might be a Communist, Socialist, or anarchist. A Red Scare in the 1920s questioned the loyalty of Globeville’s people. By the end of the Great War, seeds were already planted for the next war.

Armistice Day Parade, 1918 Denver Public Library

Lent

Today's Christian congregations might be urged to prepare for Easter by simplifying their lives, giving up FaceBook, Starbucks, a favorite food, television program, movies or beer. Early settlers in Globeville didn't have many luxuries to give up but regarded Lent as an opportunity for spiritual growth with greater prayer, repentance and charity. Lent was also a way to express their faith, which had been suppressed in the Old Country, and to preserve the food, traditions and culture they had left behind. 
On the day before Ash Wednesday, or Fastenacht, a German-Russian cook would serve her family schlitzkuchla, a deep-fried pastry. While the German-Russians didn't observe a strict fast, many families served meatless meals, such as Kaseknepfla,(cheese buttons) during the season. Lent was a time of frequent church attendance, with special services every Wednesday evening, and no dancing, card playing, amusements or weddings. 
Lent began for Catholics from St. Joseph's Polish and Holy Rosary Churches on Ash Wednesday with the application of ashes on the forehead, and a reminder that "dust you are and to dust you shall return". Lenten practices included abstaining from meat on Fridays and observing a fast that required the evening meal to be no larger than the combination of breakfast and lunch, and avoiding eating between meals. (It was understood that the faithful would cut back on beer and wine during the solemn season). Fridays were for the devotion known as the Stations of the Cross, Via Crucis, or Via Dolorosa, recalling the route Jesus took on his way to Golgotha, with incense, candles and Latin hymns like Stabat Mater, Mary is Standing.
Because Russian and Serbian Orthodox observed the Julian calendar, "Great Lent" usually began later than that of Roman Catholics with fasting that included not only abstaining from meat, but also certain kinds of fish and dairy. Inside the church, the royal gates to the altar remained closed to signify man's separation from God through sin, and the priest donned vestments in the somber color of purple. The Vesper service which began the lenten season was called Vespers of Forgiveness where the faithful asked forgiveness and forgave each other.
Many of the descendants of Globeville's earlier residents return to the neighborhood parishes to continue the lenten practices they practiced as children, and use the dark, cold days of Lent to prepare for the joyful resurrection of Easter. 

One of the stained-glass windows at Holy Rosary Church

German Russian Lent
St Joseph's Polish Catholic Church 
Holy Rosary Church
Holy Transfiguration of Christ Cathedral