SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY
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LITURGY: 9:30 a.m.
PROSFORA: Kim Bambakidis
PANGARI: Team D: George E Loucas, Clay White, Gus Kallergis
EPISTLE READING: Hebrews 11:24-26,32-40
GOSPEL: John 1:43-51 (GREEK TEXT p. 186, black book)
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. 4th 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 11:24-26, 32-40.
Brethren, by faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to share ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
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 enemies 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 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 of Orthodoxy
The Reading is from John 1:43-51
At that time, Jesus decided to go to Galilee. And he found Philip and said to him, "Follow me." Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael, and he said to him, "We have found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip said to him, "Come and see." Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!" Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" Jesus answered him, "Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these." And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man."
Mon, Mar 22nd - 7:00 p.m. - Compline
- 7:30 p.m. - Gamblers Anonymous
Thu, Mar 25 -9:30 a.m. - Liturgy (Annunciation)
Fri, Mar 26th - 7:00 p.m. - Salutations Service
- 7:30 p.m. - Gamblers Anonymous
Sat, Mar 27th - 5:00 p.m. - Vespers (& Confessions)
Sun, Mar 28th - 8:15 a.m. - Matins
- 9:30 a.m. - Liturgy
- 10:45 a.m. - Memorial: Michael Tsironis (1 year)
Everyone is welcome in the Orthodox Church & may receive the blessed bread (antidoron) at the end of the service, but only practicing Orthodox Christians may receive the sacrament of Holy Communion.
Our current attendance rules require that we must maintain social distancing and wear masks while in church. We also ask that those not feeling well should stay home, but there are no limitations based on age. All are welcome, young and old.
The Orthodox Christian tradition presents many opportunities for worship outside of Sunday morning services, especially Liturgies on the feast days of beloved saints. 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.
This week will not have the usual Lenten routine. There is no Presanctified Liturgy, because Wednesday is the Eve of the Annunciation.
On Thursday, the feast of the Annunciation, we will have a Liturgy in our parish at 9:30 AM. Our custom has been to join the Annunciation parish for its celebration, and parishioners are free to go there, but we will have our own service to offer more opportunities to worship while social distancing.
Please join Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 2187 W 14th St in Cleveland, in celebration of the Feast of the Annunciation to the Most-Holy Theotokos. Great Vespers Artoklasia will be held on Wednesday, March 24, 2021 at 7:00 p.m.; followed by Orthros at 8:30 a.m., and Divine Liturgy Artoklasia at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, March 25, 2021.
Their Philoptochos Society is taking orders for Fish Plaki Meal to go. (This fundraiser will benefit our ministries and philanthropic projects). To place your order please call Despina Sarantopoulou 216.269.7272 or the Church office at 216.861.0116
Those wishing to follow the livestreamed services with a written text may do so using the links below.
Electronic Version of Orthros (Matins) on Mar. 21:
www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/03/21/ma/gr-en/se.m03.d21.ma.pdf
Electronic Version of Divine Liturgy on Mar. 21:
www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/03/21/li/gr-en/se.m03.d21.li.pdf
His Eminence Metropolitan Savas and the Metropolis of Pittsburgh Religious Education Commission are excited to share a new lecture series called "Cultivating the Fundamentals of the Christian Life" with you.
We are blessed to kick off our series with Fr. Stephen Freeman - an outstanding Orthodox priest, writer, blogger, speaker, and educator - who will present "The Mystery of the Sabbath - Keeping it Holy" on Tuesday March 23rd from 7-8:30PM, via Zoom. Advanced registration can be found here: tinyurl.com/KeepingItHoly
The Metropolis is offering a "Family Lenten Retreat" via Zoom on Saturday, April 17th from 10:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon. The keynote address will be offered by Fr. Alex Goussetis of the Archdiocese Center for Family Care. Registration is at: tinyurl.com/GOMoP-FamilyRetreat. Questions may be directed to Ted or to Fr. Joe DiStefano at: frjdistefano@yahoo.com.
We are in the process of updating our church directory for 2021 that will be sent to all parishioners in the Spring.
If you have any contact information (addresses, telephone numbers, emails etc.) that you would like to update or reconfirm, please send an email to office@stsconstantine.com or call Sade, the office manager, at (216) 932-3300.
All submissions are to be received no later than March 31, 2021.
Bible Study
Zoom Evening Prayers: Zoom in and participate in Evening Prayers with other parishioners held from 8:30 to 8:50 p.m. every Tuesday, Thursday, & Sunday. It is a great way to have fellowship during these challenging times. For a zoom invite, please email peter.poulos@case.edu.
Zoom Bible Study: Zoom in and participate in Bible Study with other parishioners held from 8:30 to 9 p.m. once every few weeks (usually on Thursdays). It is a great way to have fellowship during these challenging times. For a zoom invite, please email peter.poulos@case.edu.
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Prayer Team
If you are interested in joining the prayer team to keep others in your daily prayers, 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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St. Herman's
We will be assembling 90 dinner bags for St. Herman's at the Church on Sunday April 18 from 11 a.m. to noon. We follow strict masking and social distancing and will limit the group to a total of 8 to 10 volunteers. We need volunteers to help assemble the bags, and we need donations of the following:
- 90 sandwich rolls;
- roast beef slices for 90 sandwich rolls;
- sliced cheese for 90 sandwich rolls;
- potato salad and small side containers for 90 meals;
- 90 fruit cups;
- 90 sandwich plastic zip lock bags;
- 90 candy bars;
- 90 water bottles;
- 90 brown bags for the meals; and
- 90 napkins and plastic utensils.
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)
Enjoy delicious homemade Greek pastries without all the work! Place your orders by Apr 15th by visiting https://form.jotform.com/210638762795164 or by picking up a form in the church lobby. Orders can be picked up Apr 24th OR Apr 25th from 11am - 12pm either day. If you cannot pick up your order, volunteers can deliver ($50 minimum order for delivery).
As all baking will be done to order, ONLY PREPAID ORDERS WILL BE FILLED. Payments can be made out to Philoptochos Bake Sale and mailed to the Church office:
3352 Mayfield Rd., Cleveland Hts. OH 44118
IF YOU CAN VOLUNTEER TO DELIVER ORDERS, or have any questions, please contact:
Christina at (216) 346-1317 or by email to ctcallos@gmail.com
OR
Barb at (440) 227-2338 or by email to bsapharas@aol.com
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.
1) Camp Nazareth will host its next young adult retreat the weekend of March 26th - 28th via Zoom. Guest speakers will be Fr. John Touloumes & Fr. John Cox, and the theme will be: "Adam, where are you?" Questions may be directed either to Ted or to youngadultretreats@gmail.com.
2) GOYA will have its next in-person meeting on Wednesday, April 7th at 7:15 p.m. in the gym following the Presanctified Liturgy. Food and drinks will be provided with special care in accordance with COVID protocols. Parents & siblings are welcome to attend. We will discuss plans for in-person ministry the next few months. RSVP to Ted by Monday, April 5th.
3) Orthodoxy on Tap will have its next young adult event (ages 21 - 35ish) on Thursday, April 8th @ 7:00 p.m. via Zoom. The guest speaker will be Christian Gonzalez, the young adult ministry coordinator of the Archdiocese. RSVP by Wednesday, April 7th to gorealcleveland@gmail.com.
4) A virtual teen retreat will take place the afternoon of Saturday, April 17th from 12:00 noon - 3:00 p.m., and then from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. There is no fee to participate. The times of this event do not overlap with the Metropolis family retreat on the same day. Registration is available online, and must be done prior to April 16th. Fr. Joshua Makoul will speak on "Finding Balance through Self-Care & the Church." Contact Ted for the link to sign up and with any questions.
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Orthodox Education is resuming in-person classes. The same safety protocols that have been in place this school year, will be in effect now.
Upcoming Class Events:
Sun, Mar 21st - Speaker Anthony Ruggerio, Youth Director in Oklahoma City - 8:00 p.m.
Sun, Mar 28th - Orthodox Education in-person classes
- Greek Independence Day Program: 12:30 pm via Zoom
Sun, Apr 4th – Speaker Fr. Michael Varvarelis from Holy Trinity in Harrisburg at 8:00 pm
Parents are encouraged to check their email for up to the minute announcements of classes. Contact Maria at orthodox_education@stsconstantine.com with any questions or comments.
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.
With recent increases in attendance at the church, we have once again begun collecting forgotten possessions. Hats, umbrellas, masks, toys, and more are filling our unclaimed basket. Please, contact the office if you think we might have something of yours!
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: Narthex Press