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 January 20th
Ushers: Domina Kaler & Malissa Zouboukos
Epistle Reader: Jane Armstrong
Prosphoro - Sharon Mavridoglou
Coffee Hour - in memory of all the loved ones for whom memorial prayers were offered.
Philoptochos News and Events.
Baklava for Sale - 36 piece trays for $30.00 - great for holiday events and gifting.
Memorials on Sunday January 20th
40 Days Virginia Cora
40 Days Mary Kookoutsedes & 6 Months Gust Koukoutsedes (Jean Hare's Parents)
40 Days for Maria Vallas Mitchum (Sophia Cox's sister)
9 years for Elizabeth Moxey (Monique Polles's Mother)
35 years Charles Billy (Presv Bonnie's father)
Annual "Vasilopita Auction & Luncheon Sunday January 27th
(Proceeds from luncheon & auction go to Saint Basil's Academy).
Bible Study/Pot Luck Supper will meet on January 23rd at 5:30 pm we will continue our study of the Gospel of Saint Luke - Chapter 1 vs 26 to end of Chapter One.
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 Callie McDole, Malissa and Pat Zouboukos have asked that we pray for their friend Randy Nichols, Paula Fowler, ,
Our January Birthday List: Elaina Valsamakis Baggett-January 1st, Bennet Hutson-Janaury 3rd, Michael Kountouris-January 4th, Halie Nicholette Cora-January 4th, John Botes-January 10th, Thomas Sturgon-January 13th, Brayden Alexander Quinn-January 13th, Christopher Broome-January 17th, Steve Efstratiou-January 26th, Victoria Pavlou Laird-January 30th.
Our February Birthday List: Chuck Odom-February 2nd, Noah Wood-February 6th, Jean Hare-February 9th, Cari Fowler-February 17th, Monique Polles-February 20th, Theo Mavridoglou-February 21st, Bill Nikolis-February 25th.
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This Saint, who was from Melitene in Armenia, was the son of pious parents named Paul and Dionysia. He was born about 377. Since his mother had been barren, he was named Euthymius-which means "good cheer" or "joy"-for this is what his parents experienced at his birth. He studied under Eutroius, the Bishop of Melitene, by whom he was ordained and entrusted with the care of the monasteries of Melitene. Then, after he had come to Palestine about the year 406, he became the leader of a multitude of monks. Through him, a great tribe of Arabs was turned to piety, when he healed the ailing son of their leader Aspebetos. Aspebetos was baptized with all his people; he took the Christian name of Peter, and was later consecrated Bishop for his tribe, being called "Bishop of the Tents." Saint Euthymius also fought against the Nestorians, Eutychians, and Manichaeans. When Eudocia, the widow of Saint Theodosius the Younger, had made her dwelling in Palestine, and had fallen into the heresy of the Monophysites which was championed in Palestine by a certain Theodosius, she sent envoys to Saint Symeon the Stylite in Syria (see Sept. 1), asking him his opinion of Eutyches and the Council of Chalcedon which had condemned him; Saint Symeon, praising the holiness and Orthodoxy of Saint Euthymius near whom she dwelt, sent her to him to be delivered from her error (the holy Empress Eudocia is commemorated Aug. 13). He became the divine oracle of the Church, or rather, "the vessel of divine utterance," as a certain historian writes. He was the instructor and elder of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified. Having lived for ninety-six years, he reposed in 473, on January 20.
The divine Maximus, who was from Constantinople, sprang from an illustrious family. He was a lover of wisdom and an eminent theologian. At first, he was the chief private secretary of the Emperor Heraclius and his grandson Constans. When the Monothelite heresy became predominant in the royal court, out of hatred for this error the Saint departed for the Monastery at Chrysopolis (Scutari), of which he later became the abbot. When Constans tried to constrain him either to accept the Monothelite teaching, or to stop speaking and writing against it - neither of which the Saint accepted to do - his tongue was uprooted and his right hand was cut off, and he was sent into exile where he reposed in 662. At the time only he and his few disciples were Orthodox in the East (See also August 13).
The Apostle Timothy, who was from Lystra of Lycaonia, was born of a Greek (that is, pagan) father and a Jewish mother. His mother's name was Eunice, and his grandmother's name was Lois (II Tim. 1:5). He became the disciple of the Apostle Paul when the latter first preached there, and he followed St. Paul during the whole period of the Apostle's preaching. Afterwards, Timothy was consecrated by him as first Bishop of the church in Ephesus. Under the supervision of John the Evangelist, who governed all the churches in Asia, he completed his life as a martyr in the year 97. He was stoned to death by the heathens, because, as some surmise, he opposed the festival held in honor of Artemis (Diana). The Apostle Paul's First and Second Epistles to Timothy were written to him.
Our righteous Mother Xenia of Petersburg was born about the year 1730. She was married to a Colonel named Andrew; when she was twenty-six years old, her husband died suddenly, having been drinking with his friends. Left a childless widow, Xenia gave away all that she had, and vanished from Saint Petersburg for eight years; it is believed that she spent this time in a hermitage, learning the spiritual life. When she returned to Saint Petersburg, she wore her husband's military clothing, and would answer only to the name Andrew, that is, the name of her late husband. She took up the life of a homeless wanderer, and was abused by many as insane; she bore this with great patience, crucifying the carnal mind through the mockery she endured, and praying for her husband's soul. She was given great gifts of prayer and prophecy, and often foretold things to come; in 1796 she foretold the death of Empress Catherine II. Having lived forty-five years after her husband's death, she reposed in peace at the age of seventy-one, about the year 1800. Her grave became such a source of miracles, and so many came to take soil from it as a blessing, that it was often necessary to replace the soil; when a stone slab was placed over her grave, this too disappeared over time, piece by piece. Saint Xenia is especially invoked for help in finding employment, lodging, or a spouse.
This great Father and Teacher of the Church was born in 329 in Arianzus, a village of the second district of Cappadocia, not far from Nazianzus. His father, who later became Bishop of Nazianzus, was named Gregory (commemorated Jan. 1), and his mother was named Nonna (Aug. 5); both are among the Saints, and so are his brother Caesarius (Mar. 9) and his sister Gorgona (Feb. 23). At first he studied in Caesarea of Palestine, then in Alexandria, and finally in Athens. As he was sailing from Alexandria to Athens, a violent sea storm put in peril not only his life but also his salvation, since he had not yet been baptized. With tears and fervour he besought God to spare him, vowing to dedicate his whole self to Him, and the tempest gave way to calm. At Athens Saint Gregory was later joined by Saint Basil the Great, whom he already knew; but now their acquaintanceship grew into a lifelong brotherly love. Another fellow student of theirs in Athens was the young Prince Julian, who later as Emperor was called the Apostate because he denied Christ and did all in his power to restore paganism. Even in Athens, before Julian had thrown off the mask of piety; Saint Gregory saw what an unsettled mind he had, and said, "What an evil the Roman State is nourishing" (Orat. V, 24, PG 35:693).
After their studies at Athens, Gregory became Basil's fellow ascetic, living the monastic life together with him for a time in the hermitages of Pontus. His father ordained him presbyter of the Church of Nazianzus, and Saint Basil consecrated him Bishop of Sasima (or Zansima), which was in the archdiocese of Caesarea. This consecration was a source of great sorrow to Gregory, and a cause of misunderstanding between him and Basil; but his love for Basil remained unchanged, as can be plainly seen from his Funeral Oration on Saint Basil (Orat. XLIII).
About the Year 379, Saint Gregory came to the assistance of the Church of Constantinople, which had already been troubled for forty years by the Arians; by his supremely wise words and many labours he freed it from the corruption of heresy, and was elected Archbishop of that city by the Second Ecumenical Council, which assembled there in 381, and condemned Macedonius, Archbishop of Constantinople, the enemy of the Holy Spirit. When Saint Gregory came to Constantinople, the Arians had taken all the churches and he was forced to serve in a house chapel dedicated to Saint Anastasia the Martyr. From there he began to preach his famous five sermons on the Trinity, called the Triadica. When he left Constantinople two years later, the Arians did not have one church left to them in the city. Saint Meletius of Antioch (see Feb. 12), who was presiding over the Second Ecumenical Council, died in the course of it, and Saint Gregory was chosen in his stead; there he distinguished himself in his expositions of dogmatic theology.
Having governed the Church until 382, he delivered his farewell speech - the Syntacterion, in which he demonstrated the Divinity of the Son - before 150 bishops and the Emperor Theodosius the Great; in this speech he requested, and received from all, permission to retire from the see of Constantinople. He returned to Nazianzus, where he lived to the end of his life, and reposed in the Lord in 391, having lived some sixty-two years.
His extant writings, both prose and poems in every type of metre, demonstrate his lofty eloquence and his wondrous breadth of learning. In the beauty of his writings, he is considered to have surpassed the Greek writers of antiquity, and because of his God-inspired theological thought, he received the surname "Theologian." Although he is sometimes called Gregory of Nazianzus, this title belongs properly to his father; he himself is known by the Church only as Gregory the Theologian. He is especially called "Trinitarian Theologian," since in virtually every homily he refers to the Trinity and the one essence and nature of the Godhead. Hence, Alexius Anthorus dedicated the following verses to him:
Like an unwandering star beaming with splendour,
Thou bringest us by mystic teachings, O Father,
To the Trinity's sunlike illumination,
O mouth breathing with fire, Gregory most mighty.
On the Sunday that falls nearest to January 25, we commemorate all the faithful throughout the former Russian Empire who died at the hands of the atheists, beginning in the year 1917. Among them are the Royal Family (see July 4), followed by Patriarch Tikhon the Confessor (see Mar. 24), and an innumerable multitude of clergy, monastics, and layfolk who confessed the Name of Christ in the face of every conceivable mockery, torment, and bitter death.
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.
First Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from Matthew 28:16-20
At that time, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. Amen."
Prokeimenon. Grave Tone. Psalm 149.5,1.
The saints shall rejoice in glory.
Verse: Sing to the Lord a new song.
The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 4:6-15.
Brethren, it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For while we live we are always being given up to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. So death is at work in us, but life in you.
Since we have the same spirit of faith as he had who wrote, "I believed, and so I spoke," we too believe, and so we speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
12th Sunday of Luke
The Reading is from Luke 17:12-19
At that time, as Jesus entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices and said: "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." When he saw them he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus's feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then said Jesus: "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" And he said to him: "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well."
In today’s gospel we have the cleansing of the 10 lepers. We are told that Jesus entered a village and was met by 10 lepers standing at a distance who cried to him “Jesus, master, have mercy on us.” Moved by kindness and compassion Jesus heals them with his word and as they went to show themselves to the priests they were cleansed of their accursed disease.
Mercy is Grace freely given by the Lord. Grace constantly pours forth into creation. We are reminded in the gospel of Matthew that God “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust”. In other words, God so loves the world that he continues to sustain it constantly. There is a great lesson in this: in our sinful state, where we put ourselves first, we think that we somehow merit God’s grace in our lives as we want it, or think we want it. We have the temerity to demand of God what we think we need. The problem of course is that we have finite knowledge of this world only. We think ourselves clever in discovering the things in this world and we apply our knowledge and experience from this world to ask from God for things which may not belong to this world. This makes it impossible to know whether or not that what we are asking for may ultimately be to our spiritual detriment for the next world. For after all, this world that we live in should not be considered as our permanent home but as a life to be passed through to the next, of which we are given partial glimpses of in the Gospels.
Every time we celebrate the liturgy we make a most profound petition to our Lord God. At the most sacred part of the liturgy we say “your own from your own we offer you, in every way and for everything”. In other words we acknowledge nothing belongs to us and everything is given by God through Grace.
For the 10 lepers of course, they ask for healing and Christ freely gave it to them. As far as they were concerned they asked and they received. We are not told whether they were evil or good or just or unjust. God’s mercy was freely given to them and they went on their way – or at least 9 did. Only one returned to give thanks and he was a Samaritan and thus a foreigner. His belief earned great praise from the Lord: “rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”
What of the other nine lepers? Did they stop to give thanks? Did they say to themselves something miraculous happened and we should return giving thanks and glory to God for the greatness of his works? Clearly, they got what they most wanted and as soon as they received it they immediately forgot to give thanks. How many of us ask in our prayer for God’s mercy and when we receive it we immediately forget to give thanks. In times of tribulation we run to God – we ask for divine assistance. We ask for the panagia to intercede on our behalf and petition her son to assist in our time of tribulation. We make promises and negotiate with God. If God does this then I will do that. Brothers and sisters, God has no need for negotiation. There is nothing that you can give God because everything belongs to God. Even so, God freely gives to all what is needed for our spiritual life in the world to come.
This is something that we forget. Every day we live in this world is a gift from God. Everything is a gift. Today we are and tomorrow we cease to be. As St Ignatius put it, “Therefore, let us not be ungrateful for his kindness. For if he were to reward us according to our works and we would cease to be”. Let us not forget that what we think we own in this lifetime will pass to someone else once we die. At best we are only stewards of the material things in our possession. We should understand that we will be brought to render account as to our stewardship of the material things in this world in the world to come.
So, what can we learn from this gospel lesson? It occurs to me that the most that we can offer God is ourselves. We can offer ourselves by glorifying and praising his name. Psalm 150 proclaims “praise the Lord!… Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his exceeding greatness?… Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord”. By being grateful to God for his kindness we are acknowledging that there is a greater power at work in our lives then ourselves. This is the start of spiritual growth. Happiness, peace and calmness of the spirit will flow. By putting God first in our lives we begin to put things in perspective – as to what is important and as to what is not. Let us all strive to leave everything in his hands and not our own. Let us all be found worthy for Christ to say to each one of us “rise and go your own way; your faith has made you well”.
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