Before the Elevation of the Cross

Από τον Σταυρό στην Ανάσταση

Η εορτή της Υψώσεως του Τιμίου Σταυρού είναι αφορμή να θυμηθούμε την Σταυρική θυσία του Κυρίου. Ο Κύριος, από την πρώτη στιγμή της ενανθρωπήσεώς Του γνωρίζει την πορεία που πρόκειται να ακολουθήσει. Κατά την Υπαπαντή Του, δηλαδή μόλις σαράντα ημέρες μετά τη γέννηση, γίνεται δεκτός από τον Συμεών τον Θεοδόχο. Αυτός προαναγγέλλει στην Παναγία, όσο επρόκειτο να ακολουθήσουν. «Ένα σπαθί θα διαπεράσει και τη δική σου ψυχή, ώστε να αποκαλυφθούν οι σκέψεις πολλών καρδιών.» Αυτή η προφητεία του αγίου Συμεών, πρός την Παναγία,  αναφέρεται στον πόνο και την θλίψη της Θεοτόκου, όταν θα έβλεπε τον Υιό της πάνω στον Σταυρό, που είναι ταυτόχρονα Υιός του Θεού, να υποφέρει και να πεθαίνει.

Ο Κύριος εκούσια προσέρχεται στον Σταυρό για τη σωτηρία του κόσμου. Ακούγονται πολλές φορές, εν τη ρύμη του λόγου ότι “το χρήμα σταύρωσε τον Χριστό, ή ότι οι κακοί άνθρωποι τον σταύρωσαν.” Αυτά όμως δεν είναι σωστά. Ο Κύριος σταυρώνεται για τη σωτηρία του κόσμου. Προσφέρει το αίμα Του ως λυτήριο αμαρτημάτων. Και πού το προσφέρει; Στον Θεό Πατέρα; Σε κάποιον κακό, ας πούμε πειρατή, πιο δυνατό από Εκείνον για να του επιτρέψει να πάρει πίσω τον άνθρωπο; Ασφαλώς και όχι. Ο Κύριος δίνει το σώμα και το αίμα Του στον άνθρωπο. Λάβετε φάγετε, πίετε εξ αυτού πάντες. Ο Κύριος το προσφέρει σε όλο τον κόσμο. Το προσφέρει ως κλειδιά και εργαλεία που θα λύσουν τα δεσμά του Άδου. Η αποδοχή αυτής της προσφοράς δεν γίνεται απλώς με την Θεία Κοινωνία. Γίνεται με την μίμηση του Κυρίου. Γίνεται με την υιοθέτηση του Σταυρικού πνεύματος. Εκείνος δηλαδή που θα δεχθεί ότι όλα όσα αντιλαμβάνεται με τις σωματικές του αισθήσεις, δηλαδή το σώμα του, η κατοικία, τα βουνά, όλη η γη είναι φθαρτά και προσωρινά και ότι τον περιμένουν τα αιώνια θα πιεί όπως ο Κύριος όλο το πικρό ποτήρι των δοκιμασιών. Και θα το πιεί όχι επειδή δεν έχει άλλη επιλογή αλλά επειδή το επιτρέπει ο Κύριος. Με αυτή τη συνείδηση της Σταυρικής πορείας, ο άνθρωπος βαδίζει τον Γολγοθά του βλέποντας με τα μάτια της πίστης ότι τον περιμένει η Ανάσταση.

From the Cross to the Resurrection

The feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is an occasion to remember the Cross sacrifice of the Lord. The Lord, from the first moment of His incarnation, knew the path he was going to follow. During His Presentation at the Temple, that is, just forty days after the birth, He is received by Symeon the Theodoch who announces to the Virgin Mary, all they were to follow. "A sword will pierce your own soul, too, to reveal the thoughts of many hearts." This prophecy of Saint Symeon, to the Virgin Mary, refers to the pain and sorrow of the Virgin Mary, when she would see her Son on the Cross, who is at the same time the Son of God, suffering and dying.

The Lord voluntarily comes to the Cross for the salvation of the world.  Ιn the flow of speech sometimes it is said that "money crucified Christ, or that evil people crucified him." But these are not right. The Lord is crucified for the salvation of the world. He offers His blood as a ransom for sins. And where does He offer it? To God the Father? To someone evil, say a pirate, stronger than Him to allow Him to take the man back? Certainly not. The Lord gives His body and blood to man. Take, eat, drink from it all of you. The Lord offers it to the whole world. It offers it as keys and tools that will loosen the shackles of Hell. The acceptance of this offer is not done simply through Holy Communion. It is done by imitating the Lord. It is done by adopting the spirit of the Cross. That is, he who accepts that everything he perceives with his bodily senses, that is, his body, his dwelling, the mountains, the whole earth, is perishable and temporary, and that the eternals await him, will drink like the Lord all the bitter glass of the tribulations. And he will drink it not because he has no other choice but because the Lord allows it. With this consciousness of the Crucifixion, man walks on his Golgotha, seeing with the eyes of faith that the Resurrection awaits him.

To all of our Visitors: 

“Welcome one another just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” Romans 15:7   We pray that your worship experience with us today will be inspirational and uplifting. Please introduce yourself to a parish ambassador.  We are happy that you are with us today!

“I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people….  This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:1-4)

We pray for mercy, life, peace, and healing of all parishioners -prayers for the family and friends of Mikae Gaetanos.  Prayers for Gary Peterson who is recovering from surgery; Michael Colburn; Chris Bersu; Michael and Ingrid Fotianos; Ruza Basimamovic; Chresanthe Lemieux; Zoe Kauttu; Maryann Bolt; James Day; Margaret, James, Kyriake; Joseph, Alex Aclim; Jane Anderson; Gwen H.; and Thanos Nikolopoulos.  Remember also our missionary families: Fr. Stephanos, Pr. Alexandria, Moses & Athan Ritsi serving in Albania. 

"Our Church, Our Spiritual Home" – September:

Orthodox Christian Stewardship is a way of life, which acknowledges accountability, reverence, and responsibility before God.  Stewardship promotes spiritual growth and strengthens faith.

Stewards believe in God by showing their love to Him; offering their loyalty to Him; trust in Him and affirm that every aspect of their lives comes as a gift from Him.  Stewards cheerfully give back that portion according to the Blessings He has bestowed on them. 

We have four months to reach our 2022 budget goals!  We all know our needs, however, in the words of Fr. William Chiganos of Holy Apostles Church in Westchester, Illinois, “…people don’t give to need; they give to vision….” Our collective vision is to engage with one another spiritually, and now, at the beginning of the Ecclesiastical New Year, to unleash our time, talent and treasures, which in turn enhances the spirituality and ministry of our home, Holy Trinity.

The Stewardship Update offers a comparison for us from the previous month’s end to today:

• Number of Steward Families August 31:   91                          To Date: 92
  
• Total Pledged to Date August 31:              $108,882.00        To Date: $109,282.00
• Total Contributed to Date August 31:       $  84,663.00        To Date: $  86,023.00
  

  Update St. Francis House:
 If are not able to help right now? Please look to help us another day -- we help deliver dinners the 2nd Monday of every month.
Online:  Please visit us online at http://www.facebook.com/holytrinityoutreach   Blessings in Christ, Richard

   Re-Opening Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church Bookstore: 

We are blessed to announce the reopening of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church bookstore and gift shop on September 11, 2022. As we pray for those who have fallen asleep in the Lord during the tragedy of 9/11, we are reminded of the love of God for us through His Body, the Church.  Subdeacon Michael Fotianos and his lovely wife Ingrid, who are leaving our Parish after many years, have given their lives to the Church. We have all been deeply enriched as a result.  In their honor, the bookstore/gift shop will be aptly called the “Michael and Ingrid Fotianos Bookstore.” Axios! (See flyer in SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT section). In Christ! Paula Marchman Lekas and Melissa Kauttu Strange

Parish Council 9/11 Memorial Luncheon Ministries Fundraiser September 11, 2022: 

Celebrating - The Dedication and Naming of the Parish Bookstore Gift Shop Ministry!  Menu: Nick Kelley’s Famous Pasta & Meat Sauce, Bill Lulias’ Famous Spinach and Kale Salad;Phenomenal Baklava by Stella Bigelow (Suggested donation $10.00)

AGORA at Holy Trinity: 

We are pleased to announce the opening of our very own Agora, featuring delicious imported Greek food items like cheeses, olives, olive oil, oregano, frozen tiropites and spanakopites, phyllo, chocolates, lentils, orzo and pastichio noodles, halvah, spoon sweet preserves, and household items like Greek coffee and soap. Gift baskets will soon be available.

All proceeds benefit Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church of St Augustine. Please contact holytrinityagora@gmail.com to place an order or see us after church at the Agora in the church hall. Online pre-ordering for pickup on Sundays at church will be available soon.   Stacy Symeonides & Stephanie Danikas & The Agora Team

Calling All Men and Boys (6 years and Older): 

Have you noticed your head chanter, Nick Lekas, hustling between the chanters stand and the altar to help Father Maximos during a service? On occasion, it has been others in the congregation who saw the need and were moved to help. This happens because we lack altar help on a consistent basis.

• I’m calling for volunteers to commit to being at church in time for Orthros on a set schedule. With enough volunteers, we can create a schedule that will not be a burden to anyone and will instead be a blessing to all of us. Once we have a list of volunteers (hopefully 8-10 at least), we will work with Father Maximos to schedule training day(s) as needed for the group, so that we can all learn how to do these tasks comfortably, consistently, and enthusiastically. To put this in perspective, with 10 volunteers, each volunteer will be committed to being trained and then “on-duty” about eight times during a normal year. Please email me if you or your children would like to help with this need at lekasthomas@gmail.com.

Greek Festival:

The annual Holy Trinity Greek Festival is October 7-9, 2022.  Our popular festival will begin with "Friday to go" with pre-orders only.  Saturday and Sunday will include music, dance and on-site dining.  https://www.staugustinegreekfestival.com/

• Our “Light a Candle & Say a Prayer” ministry lets you to light a candle during divine services.  Your request will be forwarded to a Council member in the Narthex to light your candle.  If  you wish to provide names of loved ones to be prayed for, those will be provided to Fr. Maximos.

• Celebrations:  Are you celebrating a special day? Birthday, Anniversary, Seasonal House Cleaning? Whatever the event, please consider celebrating it with others and making it a fundraiser for our church. People have raised $6 billion USD on Facebook and Instagram for causes they care about. Create a fundraiser and Facebook will take care of the donation processing with no fees.  You can also place the PayPal giving link for the church in your on-line message for donations to be made directly to our account. This can be a fun way to share your happy day with your friends and community and an effective fundraiser for our church. Please reach out to Fr. Maximos or Nick Lekas for details.

Giving by Check:  Please be sure to include a notation on the memo line to allows us to identify your intentions (i.e. stewardship, candles, trays, memorials, etc.).

Weekly Offering:  The Lord's day is to be the time for a weekly offering for the support of His cause.  Make your offering today and enable our Church to continue to enhance the spiritual growth of the Orthodox Christians entrusted to our care.  Your offering can be made at the collection basket as you exit the service.

• NOTE:  If you would like Faye Peterson or Angela Lekos to prepare the Koliva for a memorial, remember there is a fee, usually $100 for time, supplies, etc. for the preparation.

• If you have a request for a special service such as a memorial, please email the church office at holy3goc@gmail.com or call 904 829-0504 (if you do not have access to email) in advance of requested date with details.

• If you would like any of the following, please contact Fr. Maximos  via email at fathermaximusa7@gmail.com or text him at 347 500-8176: 
• To receive a phone message from Father Maximos about services, special events or other subjects.
• To arrange an appointment for a House Blessing.
• To offer Holy Communion to someone in need at a hospital, nursing home, in hospice care, or at home.       

•  The normal deadline for the Church bulletin e-mail articles is before 12pm on Wednesday weekly.

• If you want your announcements on the master calendar, please remember to e-mail them to the office at holy3goc@gmail.com.

• Note:  Fr. Maximos is in Greece August 17 to September 13.  Fr. Martin Ritz will officiate on September 11.

Photo of the Week:  

https://www.facebook.com/HolyTrinityGOC/photos/a.214784738566511/5731948056850124

Πάντα εν σοφία εποίησας. In  wisdom you have made them all. Pictures from St. Augustine.