Sunday Orthros 9:00am Divine Liturgy 10:00am Fr. John Hays, Interim Priest
This saint was known for the many miracles he worked and for his apostolic zeal in shepherding the flock of Sinope. He contested for the Faith during the reign of the Emperor Trajan, in the year 102, when he was burned to death in a bath-house. A homily in his honour was composed by Saint John Chrysostom. The translation of his holy relics is celebrated on July 23.
Prokeimenon. Plagal 1st Tone. Psalm 11.7,1.
You, O Lord, shall keep us and preserve us.
Verse: Save me, O Lord, for the godly man has failed.
The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 1:21-24; 2:1-4.
Brethren, it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has commissioned us; he has put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
But I call God to witness against me - it was to spare you that I refrained from coming to Corinth. Not that we lord it over your faith; we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in your faith. For I made up my mind not to make you another painful visit. For if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, for I felt sure of all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all. For I wrote you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.
1st Sunday of Luke
The Reading is from Luke 5:1-11
At that time, as Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, he saw two boats by the lake; but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets." And when they had done this, they enclosed a great shoal of fish; and as their nets were breaking, they beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord." For he was astonished, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men." And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
Special Prayer Requests:
We pray for mercy, life, peace, and healing of all parishioners, and especially His Grace Bishop Dimitrios of Xanthos as he recovers from foot surgery, Augustina, Margaret, James, Kyriake, Ingrid (Evangelia) Fotianos, Irene Hastalis, Jim Manos, Chresanthe Lemieux, Jane Anderson, Betty & Fred Day, Despina Xynidis, and Nicola Lykam’s father-in-law and mother-in-law with health issues. Pray for the start of Sunday School and all efforts of our teachers, students, and families, for the Adult Bible Study, and the continued growth and edification of the parish family ministries, and for the Colburn and Ritsi missionary families.
Iconography installation began on Monday, August 26th:
Services will be held in the Fellowship Hall this Sunday, September 22nd due to iconography installation.
Hostess Schedule:
Carman Gaetanos (904) 540-0367 or carmgaet@gmail.com
Koliva for Memorial Services:
Koliva is prepared by the families or by HTGOC volunteers. Due to the labor involved and cost of materials, there is a charge of $100 for preparing the Koliva. Frequent volunteers include Faye Peterson, pete9839@comcast.net and Angela Lekos, angelmou1@att.net.
Sunday School News:
Over the last century, the Orthodox Christian population around the world has doubled and now is nearly 260 million. In the same time frame, the world population has quadrupled. Why has our Church not kept up with the growth of world? In a recent study by the Pew Research Center, it was found that half of Orthodox Christians in the United States say religion is very important to them, but only 31% attend church weekly. Why is this? Is there a correlation between Church attendance and Church growth? Why isn’t our Church growing at the same rate as the world population?
We need God. We need Him in our lives and for Him to be a rudder as we navigate the challenges of the world. We need to give time out of our busy week to worship Him and develop our relationship with Him. Sunday School is available at our parish so that our youth have an opportunity to learn more about Christ. When we gather as God’s people, let us be united, as the Liturgy says “with one heart and one mind” and let us keep Christ in the center of our lives. Sunday School classes are in full swing. We welcome all children!
Orthodox 2019-2010 Planner Now Available:
The new ecclesiastical planner is available at OrthodoxMarketplace.com in both printed (#CR150-19) and digital versions.
Adult Bible Study:
The adult Bible study on the Gospel of John meets in the classroom opposite the men’s room. The class starts 15 minutes after the start of coffee hour, and is led by Michael Colburn. We are using the epic 2003 movie “The Gospel of John” directed by Philip Seville. This movie uses the text of the Gospel of John from the Good News Bible verbatim—no extra words added and none left out. This Sunday we are studying John 1.10-18. Next week will be John 1.19-28. The syllabus and study questions for each week are available at https://thecolburns.us/classes/john. Also check there for any last minute announcements about the class.
Save the Date!
Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church 22nd Annual Greek Festival -October 11th -13th, 2019.
Festival Cooking Schedule - All hands on deck!
There are opportunities for everyone to help prepare the food that brings in the crowds each year at our festival! Please plan to help even if it's only a couple of hours each weekend. We welcome friends and neighbors to help as well! Please join everyone September 20 & 21, beginning at 2:00 p.m. - as we continue food preparations for our 22nd Annual Greek Festival
Cooking Schedule:
Sept 20-21
Sept 27-28
Oct 4
Youth Safety Compliance:
All parishioners seeking blessing to participate in Sunday School and Youth events throughout this Ecclesiastical Year are required to complete the registration in order to have access to the needed background check which is facilitated through our Metropolis Youth Office. Please see all details of the new compliance www.goarch.org/safety and www.goarch.org/youth-safety-compliance, and contact our Parish Youth Safety Compliance Officer, Margo Kelley (htgocpresident@gmail.com or (602) 617-2467) for further details.
Youth Dance Group:
We have been practicing dancing for the Annual Greek Festival. The purpose of our group is to bring our youth together in a spirit of Christian fellowship and love. We encourage our families to be active participants in our Orthodox Faith and Church and promote our ethnic culture.
We have only three practices left as follows:
• 9/22: 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm (following Catechism school/end of Liturgy)
• 9/29: 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm (following Catechism school/end of Liturgy)
• 10/6: 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Staci and Angela Opa!
A Call for All Greek Dance Costumes:
We request that all who have participated in the High School and Adult Dance Groups throughout the years check their closets, drawers, and storage to see if you have any remaining articles (costumes, accessories, etc.). This will allow Despina to take a complete inventory of items in order to best utilize the recent, generous offering of Joe and Chrysanthe Lemieux to sponsor the needed new costumes. Thank you!
Stewardship – A Pattern of Caring: Giving is a habit that begins with a commitment. Becoming an active steward requires a conscious decision to actively support the needs of the Church. The commitment card we offer to Holy Trinity parish each year encourages us to give regularly. There are extra cards in church, or you can call the church office.
Weekly Offering:
Sacrificial Offerings - Weekly Offering: Sept 15th - Candles $117; Tray $115; Stewardship $2898
Contributions - Tracking Your Giving:
Wednesday Bulletin Submission:
Please submit your articles weekly by Wednesday if possible. Thank you.