Sunday Services: Orthros-8:45 a.m. Divine Liturgy-10:00 a.m. Sunday School after Distribution of Holy Communion. Holy Day Services As announced in weekly bulletins.
Sunday December 23rd
40 Day Memorial Service -Nik Nikolis
Ushers: TJ Hare & Stamati Polles
Epistle Reader: Jane Armstrong
Prosphoro - Soula Nikolis
Coffee Hour - Soula Nikolis - serving a luncheon in Memory of Nikolas Nikolis.
Feast of the Nativity - Schedule of Services: Decenber 24th
Orthros at 4:45 pm - Chanted by Nicholas Nelson -Toula Odom
Divine Liturgy 5:30 pm
Ushers - Jack Kaler & Michael Fowler
Epistle Reader -Nicholas Nelson
Epistle - Galatians 4:1-7
Gospel Readind - Matthew 2:1-12
Prosphoron - Toula Odom
Philoptochos News and Events.
Baklava for Sale - 36 piece trays for $30.00 - great for holiday events and gifting.
Parish Council Elections - took place after liturgy on Sunday December 16th. - Michael fowler, Toula Odom, and Stamati Polles were elected to two year terms -2019 & 2020
Our Holy Trinity-St. John the Theologian Prayer List:
"Remember Lord, those whom each of us calls prayerfully to mind" Georgia Dennery, Nancy Panaretos, Chuck Odom, Nicholas & Maria Psaris, William Abihider, Christ Castanis, George V. Pinchuk, Chris Grillis, Lambryne Angelo, Jane Kountouris, and Collie McDole, Malissa and Pat Zouboukos have asked that we pray for their friend Randy Nichols, Paula Fowler, John Timothy Hontzas and his parents.
Our December Birthday List: Chris Grillis-December 1st, Panayiotis (Pat) Zouboukos-December 2nd, Hutson Hontzas-December 3rd, Heather Hontzas-December 5th, Alexis Valsamakis Hood-December 9th, George Pinchuk-December 11th, Nicholas Nelson-December 15th, Sammie Baggett-December 26th, Chris Zeppos-December 30th, Christina Valsamakis Childers-December 30th
PLEASE LET FATHER ANDREW KNOW OF ANY ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS Thank You!..
Without your donations and constributions it becomes difficult to meet our budgeted expenses. Our monthly expenses include salaries, Gas, Electricity, Water, Archdiocese commitments, and from time to time extra expenses to repair items in the church proper. Please remember that your donations help us to meet these monthly expenses of $10k.
These Saints, who were all from Crete, contested for piety's sake during the reign of Decius, in the year 250. Theodulus, Saturninus, Euporus, Gelasius, and Eunician were from Gortynia, the capital; Zoticus was from Knossos; Agathopus, from the port city of Panormus; Basilides, from Cydonia; Evarestus and Pompey, from Heraklion. Haled before the Governor as Christians, they were subjected to torments for thirty days, being scourged, racked, dragged upon the ground through dung heaps, stoned, spit upon. They were questioned again, but their costancy roused the Governor to greater fury. After subjecting them to torments more bitter still, he had them beheaded.
Please Join as we celebrate the Feast of the Nativity
Orthros at 4:45 pm
Liturgy at 5:30 pm
Blessed Christmas Season to All
The incomprehensible and inexplicable Nativity of Christ came to pass when Herod the Great was reigning in Judea; the latter was an Ascalonite on his fathers's side and an Idumean on his mother's. He was in every way foreign to the royal line of David; rather, he had received his authority from the Roman emperors, and had ruled tyrannically over the Jewish people for some thirty-three years. The tribe of Judah, which had reigned of old, was deprived of its rights and stripped of all rule and authority. Such was the condition of the Jews when the awaited Messiah was born, and truly thus was fulfilled the prophecy which the Patriarch Jacob had spoken 1,807 years before: "A ruler shall not fail from Judah, nor a prince from his loins, until there come the things stored up for him; and he is the expectation of the nations" (Gen.49:10).
Thus, our Saviour was born in Bethlehem, a city of Judea, whither Joseph had come from Nazareth of Galilee, taking Mary his betrothed, who was great with child, that, according to the decree issued in those days by the Emperor Augustus, they might be registered in the census of those subject to Rome. Therefore, when the time came for the Virgin to give birth, and since because of the great multitude there was no place in the inn, the Virgin's circumstance constrained them to enter a cave which was near Bethlehem. Having as shelter a stable of irrational beasts, she gave birth there, and swaddled the Infant and laid Him in the manger (Luke 2:1-7). From this, the tradition has come down to us that when Christ was born He lay between two animals, an ox and an ass, that the words of the Prophets might be fulfilled: "Between two living creatures shalt Thou be known" (Abbacum 3:2), and "The ox knoweth his owner and the ass his master's crib" (Esaias 1: 3).
But while the earth gave the new-born Saviour such a humble reception, Heaven on high celebrated majestically His world-saving coming. A wondrous star, shining with uncommon brightness and following a strange course, led Magi from the East to Bethlehem to worship the new-born King. Certain shepherds who were in the area of Bethlehem, who kept watch while tending their sheep, were suddenly surrounded by an extraordinary light, and they saw before them an Angel who proclaimed to them the good tidings of the Lord's joyous Nativity. And straightway, together with this Angel, they beheld and heard a whole host of the Heavenly Powers praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men" (Luke 2:8-14).
Saint Stephen was a Jew, by race, and, as some say, a disciple of Gamaliel, the teacher of the Law mentioned in Acts 5:34 and 22:3. He was the first of the seven deacons whom the Apostles established in Jerusalem to care for the poor, and to distribute alms to them. Being a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, he performed great signs and wonders among the people. While disputing with the Jews concerning Jesus, and wisely refuting their every contradiction, so that no one was able to withstand the wisdom and the spirit whereby he spake, he was slandered as a blasphemer and was dragged off to the Sanhedrin of the elders. There with boldness he proved from the divine Scriptures the coming of the Just One (Jesus), of Whom they had become the betrayers and murderers, and he reproved their faithless and hardheartedness. And finally, gazing into Heaven and beholding the divine glory, he said: "Lo, I see the Heavens opened and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God." But when they heard this, they stopped up their ears, and with anger cast him out of the city and stoned him, while he was calling out and saying, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then, imitating the long-suffering of the Master, he bent his knees and prayed in a loud voice for them that were stoning him, and he said, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge," And saying this, he fell asleep (Acts 6, 7), thus becoming the first among the Martyrs of the Church of Christ.
The infant-slaying Herod mentioned here is the same one that ruled at the time of Christ's Nativity. In those days, certain Magi, who were wise and noble men, perhaps even kings, set forth from the East, and came to Jerusalem, seeking the King of the Jews, Who had been born; and they said that in the East, where their homeland was, an unusual and strange star had appeared two years before, which, according to an ancient oracle (Num 24:17), was to signify the birth of some great king of the Jews. "For we have seen His star in the east," they said, "and have come to worship Him" (Matt. 2:2). Hearing these things, Herod was troubled, and the whole city together with him. Then, having inquired and been informed by the high priests and scribes of the people that, according to the prophecies, Christ was to be born in Bethlehem, he sent the Magi thither and ordered them that, when they would find the Child, to inform him, so that he also - as he affirmed - might go and worship Him. But the Magi, after they had worshipped, departed by another way to their own country by a divine command. Then Herod was wroth and sent men to slay all the infants of Bethlehem and the parts round about, from two years old and under, thinking that with them he would also certainly slay the King Who had been born. But this vain man who fought against God was mocked, since Jesus the Child, with Mary His Mother, under the protection of Joseph the Betrothed, fled into Egypt at the command of an Angel. As for those innocent infants, they became the first Martyrs slain in behalf of Christ. But their blood-thirsty executioner, the persecutor of Christ, came down with dropsy after a short time, with his members rotting and being eaten by worms, and he ended his life in a most wretched manner.
Hymn of Pentecost:
O blessed are You, O Christ our God. Who by sending down the Holy Spirit upon them, made the fishermen wise, and through them illumined the world. And unto You the universe was ever drawn. All glory to You O Lord.
Hymn of St. John the Theologian
O Apostle, beloved of Christ our God, hasten to deliver a defenseless people. He that allowed thee to recline in His breast, receiveth thee bowing in intersession. Implore Him, O Theologian, do dispel the persistent cloud of the heathen, and ask for us His peace and great mercy.
Eighth Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from John 20:11-18
At that time, Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?" Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." Mary Magdalene went and said to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that He had said these things to her.
Prokeimenon. Fourth Tone. Daniel 3.26,27.
Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers.
Verse: For you are just in all you have done.
The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Hebrews 11:9-10; 32-40.
BRETHREN, by faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to the city which has foundation, whose builder and maker is God.
And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets - who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and scourging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were killed with the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, ill-treated - of whom the world was not worthy - wandering over deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
Sunday before Nativity
The Reading is from Matthew 1:1-25
The book of the Genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Aram, and Aram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa, and Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amon, and Amon the father of Josiah, and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Salathiel, and Salathiel the father of Zerubbabel, and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus.
Todays Epistle reading for the Sunday before Christmas (Hebrews 11:9-10,32-40) does not say anything explicit about the coming Feast of the Nativity of our Lord on December 25th. In fact, it talks a lot about things we don’t like to think about, especially during the holiday season. In referring to the prophets and certain people of Israel, it recounts from the Old Testament scriptures their sufferings including: murder, torture, trials, mockings, scourgings, imprisonment, stoning, destitute, afflicted and tormented just to name a few.
Why would anyone endure such degradation? It’s difficult for us to understand because for most of us we live a very comfortable life. In fact, a lot of our energy is directed towards acquiring and holding on to material possessions that make us feel safe, protecting us from anything that remotely comes close to the sufferings of the Israelites. So, why would they suffer so? It’s because of their faith in God, mentioned in verses 9 and 39, that they were able to endure. And their belief and trust in God was based on a consciousness of God’s presence.
In the second half of today’s Gospel reading, Matthew 1:1-25, we hear of one of the events leading up to the Birth of Christ. After Joseph became engaged to the Virgin Mary, he discovered that she was pregnant, but not by him (v.18). Joseph was considering divorcing Mary when an angel appeared to him a dream and explained what was going on. The child was conceived of the Holy Spirit of God and that when He is born, Joseph was to name Him ‘Jesus’ because He will save His people from their sins (v.20-21). The evangelist sees that all this was a fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah (7:14) which states that a virgin will conceive and bear a son and they shall call him ‘Emmanuel’ which means ‘God is with us’ (v.22-23).
God is with us! He was with the ancient Israelites through the Law written on tablets of stone, God was with them, speaking through the prophets throughout the centuries. The presence of God culminated with the birth of Jesus and His subsequent life on earth. He preached the Good News of God’s Kingdom, He taught the life-giving commandments, He performed great miracles of healing, even raising three people from the dead. Finally, Jesus Himself, rose from the dead after His crucifixion and death. After Jesus ascended into heaven, some act as if God is no longer with us.
We know that our Orthodox Christian temples of worship are designed and decorated in a manner to let us know that God became incarnate in Christ and lived and walked among us. Christ is depicted numerous times in various icons. In addition, the icons of the all the different saints, tell us that God, through His Holy Spirit, lived within these special persons, making them holy to become examples to us. So, the question is, as we approach the Nativity of our Lord, the celebration of His incarnation in the flesh, what are we thinking, speaking and doing to show that we believe God is with us? Does our attendance and participation at Church reflect that belief? Will we be here on Christmas Eve to show to God and our children that we believe that He is with us?
We can only receive God’s Word and Flesh here at His Church. Most other places offer only cheap imitations. Yet, even if we attend and receive the Eucharist, we ourselves often only offer a cheap imitation of God’s presence in our life. Just like the prophets of old, just like the Saints, we must actively put our lives and our possessions on the line trusting that God will take care of us no matter what happens. When visitors walk into this church at 10:00 am on any given Sunday will they think these people really believe that God is with us? When people see us at school or our jobs and speak with us, will they think, will they sense that God is with us?
God has already come to us in the incarnation. He has become a human being to show us how to be like Him. However, He cannot force us to become God-like. It requires a response on our part. We must turn and run to Him, receive Him. Only then can we offer Him to others. That’s the best gift we can give at Christmas time—to be Christ for others. We as the Church are called to be the Body of Christ—to preach the Good News, to teach the commandments of God, to heal people of their spiritual and physical infirmities. God is with us! Amen!
This page is generated by BULLETIN BUILDER
©
2018
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
Bulletin Builder
is made possible by the generous support of
Leadership 100
and the
Virginia H. Farah Foundation.