SUNDAY BEFORE EPIPHANY
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LITURGY: 9:30 a.m.
PROSFORA: Paula Kappos
PANGARI: Team A: Eftihia Tsengas, Dr. Michael Manos, Tom Parras
EPISTLE READING: II Timothy 4:5-8
GOSPEL: Mark 1:1-8
(GREEK TEXT p. 216, black books)
MEMORIAL: Fr. George T. Pappas (10 years)
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. Plagal 2nd Tone. Psalm 27.9,1.
O Lord, save your people and bless your inheritance.
Verse: To you, O Lord, I have cried, O my God.
The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to Timothy 4:5-8.
TIMOTHY, my son, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry.
For I am already on the point of being sacrificed; the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.
Sunday before Epiphany
The Reading is from Mark 1:1-8
The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophets, 'Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who shall prepare your way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.' John was baptizing in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And there went out to him all the country of Judea, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel's hair, and had a leather girdle around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
Mon, Jan 4th - 7:30 p.m. - Gamblers Anonymous
Tues, Jan 5th - 6:00 p.m. - Vespers & Liturgy
Weds, Jan 6th - 9:30 a.m. - Liturgy (Epiphany)
Thurs, Jan 7th - 9:30 a.m. - Liturgy(St. John)
Fri, Jan 8th - 7:30 p.m. - Gamblers Anonymous
Sat, Jan 9th - 5:00 p.m. - Vespers (& Confessions)
Sun, Jan 10th - 8:15 a.m. - Matins
- 9:30 a.m. - Liturgy
Those wishing to follow the livestreamed services with a written text may do so using the links below.
Electronic Version of Orthros (Matins) on Jan 03:
www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/01/03/ma/gr-en/se.m01.d03.ma.pdf
Electronic Version of Divine Liturgy on Jan 03:
www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/01/03/li/gr-en/se.m01.d03.li.pdf
Our parish strives "To lead people to God through Orthodox Christianity and to provide ways for them live and share God's love." It does so in good days and in bad, such as we now experience. Church attendance may be difficult or impossible for you, but we endeavor to spread the "good news" as best we can. Any financial help that you might offer is deeply appreciated.
Tithe.ly is an online giving tool that makes it simple to safely/securely give to our church anywhere at any time. You can download the Tithe.ly giving app onto your phone, or click the green "Give Now" button on the church website. Your gift goes directly to the church. Plus, you can track all your gifts, setup recurring donations, and more!
Sadly, there will be no in-person house blessings this year, due to consideration of the coronavirus. Everyone is free to take a bottle of Holy Water home and bless themselves, their family members and their home. God-willing, I will be able to personally come to your home in 2022.
Fr. Stephen
THANK YOU!!!
Thanks to your generosity, Philoptochos was able to provide Christmas gifts for over 100 children and their parents, who are currently living at the Zelma George Family Center. This is the largest number of families we have been able to help to date. We couldn't have done it without you!
Many thanks to those of you who have been lifelong members of Philoptochos, and a warm welcome to all the new parishioners who have just joined us! If you have not already done so, please join Philoptochos as we start our 2021 year. Forms are now available in the church office or online at http://stsconstantine.com/outreach/philoptochos/ For more updates on the work of Philoptochos, you can visit the Philoptochos, Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Community, Cleveland Ohio Facebook page.
The Orthodox Christian Women of Akron have scheduled a retreat for January 23, 2021. Once again, because of the COVID virus, it will be held as a free ZOOM event. Speaker Joe May will present "St. Basil & His New City" - an Orthodox Christian response of love to the issue of poverty. Contact Nikki Bober (330 409-3552, or email at nlbober@gmail.com) or Nancy Studebaker (330 655-9638) with any questions or for information regarding the Zoom link.
Bible Study
You can join us for 30 minutes of weekly Bible Study - all are welcome. If you are interested in an invite, or for current dates and topics, please email peter.poulos@case.edu.
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Prayer Team
You can join the prayer team and keep others in your daily prayers. If you are interested, you should either email pmp17@case.edu or text (216) 288-1972 ahead of time to receive the link. You will need to provide your name and email address to receive the Zoom invite. If you have any requests for our prayer team, or if you have questions about other activities, please send them to peter.poulos@case.edu
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Thank you and keep the faith!
“Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (James 2:18)
1) CrossRoad is accepting applications until January 4th, 2021. CrossRoad "prepares high school juniors and seniors to make big life decisions and invites them to connect with the Orthodox Christian theological and spiritual tradition." Our own Angelique Myers will serve on staff as part of this year's program too. To learn more or register, go to https://www.crossroadinstitute.org/
2) Virtual YAL Conference: young adults (ages 21 - 35ish) are invited to participate in an online retreat hosted by the Metropolis of San Francisco. The event will be Saturday, January 9th - Sunday, January 10th. No cost to attend; register at cvent.me/ZQ2bzr.
3) Orthodoxy on Tap will have its next young adult event (ages 21 - 35ish) on Thursday, January 21st @ 7:00 p.m. via Zoom. The guest speaker will be Christian Gonzalez, the young adult coordinator of the entire Archdiocese. RSVP by Wednesday, January 20th to gorealcleveland@gmail.com.
4) Ancient Faith Radio has launched a new podcast especially for youth called "The Fourth Antiphon." Led by Orthodox college student Marcus Lotti, the show offers spiritual reflections "by the youth, for the youth." Tune in and subscribe by searching "Fourth Antiphon" at ancientfaith.com.
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Orthodox Education classes will resume January 10th. Watch this space for more information as it becomes available!
Zoom events:
Jan. 17th -- speaker TBD
Contact Maria at orthodox_education@stsconstantine.com with any questions or comments.
The Orthodox Christian tradition presents many opportunities for worship outside of Sunday morning services, especially Liturgies on the feast days of beloved saints. In light of the current crisis, the number will increase to at least one Liturgy per week in addition to the Sunday service. As the restrictions on Sunday attendance are loosening up, those with special concerns may consider attending a weekday service, where the typical attendance is in the range of 10-20.
We have closed our livestreaming service on Facebook in favor of using YouTube for all future livestreaming of services. To continue participating with our livestream services, please visit, subscribe, & bookmark our channel at YouTube.com/stsconstantine.
In addition to Sunday services, there will be livestreaming for the services of Jan. 5th & 6th.
Reading is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved by: Holy Cross Press
Reading is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved by: Holy Transfiguration Monastery
Your Apostle among the Rulers, St. Constantine, who once beheld in the sky the image of Your Cross, and who like Paul received his calling not from man, once entrusted the Ruling City into Your hand. We entreat You to restore it in peace forever, at the intercession of the Theotokos, O Lord who loves humanity. (Copyright Fr. Seraphim Dedes, used by permission. All rights reserved)
Reading is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved by: Holy Transfiguration Monastery