LITURGICAL CALENDAR
Sunday, March 17th
First Sunday of Great Lent
Sunday of Orthodoxy
Epistle Heb. 11:24-26, 32-40
Gospel John 1:43-51
Sunday Divine Services 9:00 a.m.
Lenten Vespers 7:00 p.m.
Monday, March 18th
Great Compline 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, March 20th
9th Hour 6:30 p.m.
Presanctified Liturgy 7:00 p.m.
Friday, March 22nd
2ND Salutation to the Theotokos and
Ever-Virgin Mary 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 23rd
Great Vespers 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 24th
St. Gregory Palamas - Archbishop of Thessalonica
Epistle Heb. 1:10-14, 2:1-3
Gospel Mark 2:1-12
Sunday Divine Services 9:00 a.m.
Eve of the Annunciation
Great Vespers 6:00 p.m.
PARISH NEWS
WELCOME
We are pleased to welcome all visitors to our Parish and we pray that our Lord bless you through the intercessions of the All-Holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary. We invite you to join us for church services regularly and to pray with our Christian family.
Immediately following the Divine Liturgy this Sunday, we would like you to join us in the Very Rev. Emmanuel Papageorge Cultural Center for Christian Fellowship. The young people of our afternoon Greek School invite you for a Lenten Luncheon and program today. Your participation and support would be greatly appreciated!
Good morning and have a blessed week!
PARISH COUNCIL
Sunday, March 17th – Team 4: Stamatis Tsatsaronis,John Mangelos, & Mitcheal Word
Sunday, March 24th – Team 1: Tony Gavrilis, Nick Faklis, & Peter Mamalis
ALTAR BOY
Acolyte Coordinator: Manoli Rodarakis
Senior Altar Boys: Andreas Alexander ~ John Hillas ~ Pantelis Zanotto ~ Frankie Zanotto
Sunday, March 17th – Team B: Captain, Matthew Myrtakis, Demitri Stamos, Walter Lemons, John Capous & Christos Zanotto
Sunday, March 24th – Team A: Captain, Jacob Gavrilis, Nicholas Affholter, Alex Alexander, Ryan Hatton & Carson Maroudas
FLOWER DONATIONS DURING GREAT LENT & PASCHA
We have entered the holy season of Great Lent. The Church is prepared in such a way as to let the faithful know that something special and unique is taking place. One of the most beautiful ways in which our Church announces this sacred time of the year is by the use of flowers. For this reason, the church is once again accepting contributions in order to beautify our church during Great Lent. If you would like to participate by making a contribution, please contact Anna Petrulakis or the Church Office.
STEWARDSHIP 2019
We are into the year of our Lord 2019 and we give thanks to ALL the Stewards of our Parish that are actively participating in our Stewardship Ministry. It is through active Christian Orthodox Stewardship that we live our precious Christian Orthodox Faith.
Our Holy Church is established upon Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. We are taught to give cheerfully and without reluctance to the mission of God’s Holy Church. Your support is necessary to continue the growth and development of our Parish Ministries. We pray that we seriously consider what it means to become a more active participant in our Stewardship Ministry. We ask that you consider:
1.) increasing the Time you spend in Church;
2.) giving of the Talent you offer through various ministries of our Parish and;
3.) considering increasing the financial offering from your Treasure that will enable us to fully fund the operating costs of our Parish through YOUR Stewardship commitment!
Christian Stewardship is the very essence of living our precious Faith that teaches each us to return to the Lord a portion of our earnings so that the Church may continue to grow. Offering one’s support to the Church in weekly, monthly or quarterly contributions is a much easier way to manage the finances of one’s household. Each year we are blessed that a number of our Stewards increase their commitment to the Church. We continue to see many stewards increase their offering above the previous year’s contribution by as much as 25%! We would hope that each Steward would increase their offering by at least 10%. As of January 17th we have 93 Stewardship families/individuals that are supporting our sacred ministry, as compared to 78 in 2018.
Every person baptized and/or chrismated into the Orthodox Christian Faith is a parishioner but a Steward is one who is a baptized and/or chrismated person who understands his responsibility to God and His Church. This understanding directs him to live his life according to the teachings of our Faith and at the same time, offers Time, Talents and Treasure to the sacred work of the Church. It is important to understand that our Stewardship obligations determine a family (husband, wife, & children) or an individual as stewards of our Parish. Young adults (18 years and older) that have completed their schooling and/or find themselves in the workplace are expected to become stewards of the Parish. These individuals are not included in one’s “Family Stewardship” obligation.
It is imperative that we make our Stewardship offering in support of the sacred mission of our Church in Modesto… In 2019, our Parish will require an average Stewardship Offering of $1600.00 per family to fund the ministries of our Church. Do you realize that the first $225.00 from your Stewardship offering in 2019 is contributed to the Archdiocese of America for National Ministries? Your Stewardship offering supports the mission of our Church in Modesto and beyond! Please remember that our website enables you to securely make Stewardship contributions (and other donations) online.
We have a goal of 325 Stewardship families/individuals for our Parish this year. It IS an attainable goal…Please support our efforts! In supporting these efforts we ask that you reach out to family and fellow parishioners to become more active in the ministries of our Parish. This year's Stewardship Theme has been: "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men" (Col. 3:23). The call to give all our "heart" to the Lord is definitely the meaning of how we live our precious Christian Orthodox Faith. If you have any questions regarding your offering please contact Fr. Jon.
Growing In Christ
Join our Pastoral Assistant, Michael Sergakis, on every other Thursday evening continuing into Great Lent. The final class is this Thursday, March 21st. Growing in Christ: Shaped in His Image is a class to enhance our spiritual lives and to better prepare for the Journey of Great Lent. Join us as we go through the teachings of Mother Raphaela in the book,
Growing in Christ: Shaped in His Image.
PARISH RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
The regular session of our Sunday Church School is held every Sunday! We would like to express our appreciation to the Sunday Church School staff for their dedicated service to our Lord and His Church. We also thank the parents that support our efforts by bringing their children and recognizing the importance of religious education.
Families are to be present in the Divine Liturgy by 9:45 a.m. The young people are to sit in the front pews so that they may be able to receive the Holy Eucharist first; following the Holy Eucharist, the young people go into the Classroom Building for their lesson. Parents are encouraged to bring their children to church on time EVERY SUNDAY MORNING so that our young people may “Grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
PARISH YOUTH MINISTRY
Our Parish Youth Ministry is designed to teach our Faith through fellowship and service. The success of this ministry rests with the parents and we urge them to support this ministry with enthusiasm and love. Our Youth Ministry is comprised of young people in:
H.O.P.E. – Grade 3-5; J.O.Y. – Grades 6-8; G.O.Y.A. - High School; Y.A.L. – College - 35.
It is important for our young people to participate in this ministry so that they may develop the skills necessary to live our Christian Orthodox teachings in today’s world.
GREEK FOLK DANCE NEWS
Our Annunciation Dancers did a fantastic job at FDF this year and we would like to congratulate them all for their strong efforts.
We are also grateful to the Dance Parents Support Group and ALL the directors that worked so diligently this past year. We will take a break from Greek Folk Dance practices as Great Lent approaches but look forward to a new year following Pascha!
There will be no Dance Group Meeting in March or April.
PARISH BOOKSTORE
It has been said: “The more you read…the more you know!” During the season of Great Lent, we have a great selection of books, icons, music and other items for every Orthodox Christian. Included in our selection are Children’s Orthodox books and games. New titles in our bookstore include: Parent Points, Illness and the Believer, Do not Judge, Love your Enemies, Be Ready, and Repentance and Confession. In addition, our bookstore has many excellent gifts for every occasion. Please visit our Bookstore during Fellowship Hour!
PLEASE TAKE NOTE
It is the practice of our Faith that upon entering the House of God, an offering and prayer is made as we light candles to symbolize that Christ is the Light of the world. Please remember that if a check is being written for this purpose or for a donation, in accordance with the non-profit status of our Parish, any check made out to the Annunciation Church must be for the exact amount. Thank you!
OBLATION OFFERING
The Divine Liturgy begins with the offering of the faithful people of God. The gifts we bring forth are an expression of our faith in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Holy Communion makes us one with the Holy Trinity and is given for "remission of sins and life everlasting". The people are invited to bring forth their offering, i.e. "Prosforon", for the Divine Liturgy to be celebrated. We use 4 prosfora on a regular Sunday and they may be given through our Philoptochos for a donation. The Eucharist Bread may be offered in memory of a loved one or for someone's health and well-being. Anyone wishing to donate the Eucharist Bread ("Prosphoron") on a particular Sunday may contact Anna Petrulakis, 522-0298. In addition to contributing the Eucharist Bread it is customary to bring a bottle of olive oil for the vigil lights and a bottle of wine for Holy Communion. The ONLY wine being used for Holy Communion is Coumantaria and will now be available for purchase from the Church Office.