NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The National Council of Churches annual Christian Unity Gathering (CUG) and fall governing board meeting met in Newport News, Virginia from October 13-16, 2019. This year’s CUG remembered and lamented the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first people from Africa, who were immediately enslaved, with a ceremony at Point Comfort, the place of arrival. The Very Reverend Constantine Morales attended the ceremony as the representative of Archbishop Elpidophoros.

NEW YORK – The faithful of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America glorify God as they receive with great joy the news from Mount Athos and our spiritual father, His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who announced the forthcoming canonization of four Athonite fathers: Elders Ieronymos of Simonopetra, Daniel Katounakiotis, Joseph the Hesychast and Ephraim Katounakiotis.

The music you hear the Choir singing today is the same music that you will find in our new Pew Hymnals. Take a look, follow along, and even sing along with us!

Thinking of Stewardship: won’t you consider becoming a part of this ministry of our parish? Giving of your time and talents brings you many benefits, but it also allows you to give back to God in thanksgiving for the blessings He has bestowed on you!  Talk to any choir member about our church music ministry!

Grades 1-12 are encourgaed to participate on Youth Sunday's. Grades 1-6 practice the hymns during their Church School lessons. You can sing, you can greet, you can read.

 

Youth Sundays 2019-2020

11/10/19

12/8/19

01/12/20

02/9/20

03/8/20

04/12/20

05/10/20

Service Project (12-1pm): Immediately after Sunday School the youth will decorate  placemats for the Orthodox Action Thanksgiving Dinner. The lower grades will work together in the Demakos Center, while the upper grades will decorate mats in the Board Room. Snacks will be provided for both groups during the service project.

We are excited to announce that there is an effort to re-activate the historic AHEPA Chapter #91 of Buffalo, founded in 1926. All those interested in joining this AHEPA Chapter and becoming a memeber of the oldest and largest international Hellenic-American organization please contact Steve Eoannou at (716) 432-3071 or seoannou@hotmail.com

Fr. Christos will lead a Bible study on Thursday evenings at 7pm at the Family Life Center.
We will study the Gospel of Mark, one of the earliest and more vivid eyewitness accounts of the words and deeds of Christ.Throughout the Bible study, we will also talk about the faith and practice of the Orthodox Church. The first study will be on September 19. The following dates will be: October 24; November 7, 14 and 21; December 5 and 12. Please join us. 

The Struggle for Virtue: Ascetism in a Modern Secular Society.  The Book Discussion will be held Thursday, October 24, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. in the Family Life Center. Copies of The Struggle for Virtue are available in the the church bookstore and library.  For more  information, visit: www.hocalibrary.blogspot.com. 

Greek School is held every Saturday at the 10:30AM at the FLC

5992 Genesee Street 

Lancaster , NY 14086

 

• 13^th ANNUAL THANKSGIVING DAY DINNER Donations will be collected in the Community Center. Help us feed our neighbors! A complete dinner costs only $5.00! Volunteers needed for Mon, Nov 25^th from 12 AM-4 PM, Tues, Nov 26^th, & Wed, Nov 27^th from 10 AM-3 PM for food prep, turkey carving and set-up. Also: Thurs, Nov 28^th (Thanksgiving Day!) 8:30 AM-1:30 PM and Sat, Nov 30^th from 10 AM-1 PM to help serve. Call/text Maria Kosmas-Papafagos 583-3929
• 12th ANNUAL CHRISTMAS WITH THE VETS Orthodox Action is collecting items for the homeless and disabled Veterans of the WNY Veterans Housing Coalition on Main & W. Utica. The goal is to collect 115 of each scheduled item each Sunday until Nov. 24^th. See/call/text Carolyn Skaros 228-0001 or Alexandra Mastoras 907-1674.
• Please Note: For your convenience, a donation of $10 will cover the cost of a gift bag of all items for our Veterans.
• COMMUNITY SERVICE REQUIREMENTS: Orthodox Action’s Soup Kitchens, Thanksgiving and Christmas events are a great way for your children and grandchildren to fulfill community service requirements!

Tuesday, October 29 11:30-1:30 in the church Demakos Center featuring Rite-Aid Flu Clinic, Independent Health, Fitness  display, Buffalo State Nutrition Club, Roswell Colon Cancer Screening, Erie County Opiate Task Force, Smoking Cessation, Build without Guilt Meal Prep Service, holistic health and wellness coach, Hospice Grief and Palliative Care, YourCare Health Plan, WNY Dental, Western Division Credit Union, gift baskets. Sponsored by Buffalo State Dietitian Education Program.

SHOEBOX PROJECT  Philoptochos will once again be doing a "Shoebox Project" for our Christmas gifts. This year's recipient is the Seneca Babcock C.D.C. in Buffalo, and there are 60 boys and girls who will be receiving gifts. Shoeboxes and a list of children are available today in the Demakos Center after Liturgy, as well as a list of what kind of items you can fill the shoebox with. These need to be returned no later than Sunday, December 1st, as their Holiday Party takes place early in the month. Last year, the kids who received these boxes were SO very grateful, so please take a box, and help us make their Christmas special again this year.

CHRISTMAS BAKING  Philoptochos will begin its annual Christmas Baking on Monday, November 18th. Order forms will be available next week during coffee hour, and there is also one published in the November issue of Glad Tidings. PLEASE PLACE YOUR ORDERS EARLY! The combination platters make excellent gifts for business associates, so keep that in mind when placing your order! A full schedule of baking dates will be in next week's bulletin.

 

 

For today’s Liturgy has been offered by Maria Gogos and Angela Klentos.

Do you have questions about our church you want to ask? About our faith, about how our church is administered, about stewardship, about social issues, about our traditions, about our future? If you do, then please join the Stewardship Committee for one of our upcoming informal conversations -- Annunciation Church “Meetups”. Father Christos, Committee members, and Parish Council members will be present to discuss any topic related to our church. We particularly want to emphasize how to help the church increase participation in our services and activities. Anyone who is part of our community is welcome. Non-Orthodox friends who are interested in our church are also welcome. The first meetup will be Monday, September 16, 7:00 - 9:00 PM, at the home of Vicki Pappas, 8457 Chadway Court, Williamsville. You are welcome to stay for as little or as long as you'd like. Directions to Vicki's house: Vicki lives in a development called “The Hollows,” on Chadway Court, which is off of Roll Road. Roll Road runs between Transit Road and Harris Hill Road. From Roll Road, turn south onto Avon Lea, and you’ll see Vicki’s house on the corner of Avon Lea and Chadway Court (number 8457 Chadway Court). If you plan to attend the September 16 th Meetup at Vicki's house, you can RSVP and leave a message for her at 812-361-9500 or email her at pappas@indiana.edu. An RSVP is welcome, but you can also come at the last minute. The second meetup will be Monday, September 30, 6:30 - 8:00 PM, at The Spot Coffee, in the West Seneca Main Public Library, at 1300 Union Road. The library is on Union Road about a mile and a half south of where Clinton Street crosses Union. There is ample public parking in the lots behind the Library. If you plan to attend the second meetup in West Seneca, please RSVP by calling Angeline Pappas at 716-674-1750 or emailing her at angeline1angel@gmail.com. You can also indicate your interest by clicking the Meetup event posted in Facebook. We look forward to seeing you and talking with you about our beautiful church and its activities. John Melithoniotes Stewardship Committee

We thank the 46 parishioners who have donated $5000 and become the founders of the Family Life Center. The Capital Campaign Committee would like to conclude this opportunity as soon as possible. There are 4 spots left!!

Stop in the library to peruse our table of books for Lent: cookbooks, devotionals, commentaries, and St. John the Ladders adaptation by Father John Mack, Ascending the Heights (we have many copies). Reading is a great way to prepare and observe Great Lent.

 

Of the many ways of supporting our Church, there are few which stand out as uniquely personal offerings of faith. The offering of Prosforo bread for the Divine Liturgy is one of them. Please contact Fr. Christos if you would like to donate Prosforo for a Divine Liturgy. 

We are pleased to announce the introduction of an electronic option for making regular offerings. Contributions can now be debited automatically from your checking or savings account or processed using your credit or debit card. Our new electronic giving program offers convenience for you and provides much-needed donation consistency for our parish.

Your online gift is completely secure through the external monitoring and protection of Vanco Payment Solutions. Also, as with all offerings given through traditional means, your online gift is kept completely confidential.

Giving online is easy and allows you to set up automatic recurring contributions and view your complete online giving history from anywhere you have access to the Internet. Simply follow these easy steps:

1) Visit the church website at www.greekorthodoxchurchbuffalo.org
2) Click on the “Support our Ministries” button which is located on the right side of the homepage
3) Click on the Create Profile button, then
4) Follow the onscreen instructions to create an online profile and to schedule your recurring contributions for items such as stewardship and the Capital Campaign.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate in contacting the Church Office.