1st Sunday of Luke

Η κλήση του Θεού

Κατά την μελέτη του βίου των Αγίων διαπιστώνουμε ότι δεν ήταν όλοι ηγιασμένοι εκ κοιλίας μητρός όπως ο προφήτης Ιερεμίας και αργότερα ο Άγιος Σάββας. Όλοι όμως αγιάστηκαν μέσα από τον προσωπικό τους  αγώνα ο οποίος αρκετές φορές περιελάμβανε και το μαρτύριο του αίματος. Επί πλέον, σε αρκετούς από αυτούς βλέπουμε ότι τους καλεί ο Θεός με έναν πολύ ιδιαίτερο τρόπο άλλοτε ευχάριστο και άλλοτε οδυνηρό. 

Ο μέγας Απόστολος Παύλος γνώρισε τον Χριστό μέσω του οράματος στο δρόμο προς τη Δαμασκό. Όπως γνωρίζουμε, πρώτα τυφλώθηκε, μετά με θαυματουργικό τρόπο θεραπεύτηκε και, τέλος, αφού για μεγάλο χρονικό διάστημα έμεινε άπραγος, του έγινε αποκάλυψη για την αποστολή που ο Θεός του ανέθεσε. Η Οσία Μαρία η Αιγυπτία πρώτα βίωσε ότι ο Χριστός την απωθούσε την ώρα που πήγαινε να προσκυνήσει τον Τίμιο Σταυρό. Την είχε απορρίψει ο Χριστός; Όχι βέβαια. Αλλά απωθώντας την, ο Χριστός την βοήθησε να μετανοήσει και να έρθει κοντά Του. Ο Μεγαλομάρτυρας Ευστάθιος “συναντήθηκε” με τον Κύριο κατά τη διάρκεια ενός κυνηγιού.

Κάνει λοιπόν ο Χριστός κάποια ιδιαίτερη χάρη σε ορισμένους ανθρώπους και τους επιλέγει, ενώ αφήνει τους υπόλοιπους στο σκοτάδι της αγνωσίας; Όχι. Ο Κύριος, ως παντογνώστης ξέρει αν, και σε ποιο βαθμό ο καθένας μας μπορεί να ανταποκριθεί. Όπως στην Παραβολή των Ταλάντων. Δίνει ανάλογα με τη δεκτικότητα του καθενός και γνωρίζει τις δυνάμεις μας. Στα μάτια μας, κάποια ψυχή ίσως φαίνεται ακατάλληλη για την σωτηρία. Στα μάτια του Θεού τα πράγματα ίσως είναι εντελώς διαφορετικά. Ο Θεός γνωρίζει τι μπορούμε να κάνουμε και πώς μπορούμε να ανταποκριθούμε. Ανάλογα λοιπόν, μας ανοίγει την πόρτα. Θέλουμε να μπούμε; Είναι η είσοδος του σταδίου για τον αγώνα που οδηγεί στην σωτηρία. 

While studying the lives of the Saints it seems that not all were sanctified by their mothers' womb like the prophet Jeremiah and later Saint Savvas. But all were sanctified through the personal struggle which several times included the martyrdom of blood. In addition, to many of them we see that God calls them in a very special way, sometimes pleasant and sometimes painful.

The great Apostle Paul met Christ through the vision on the road to Damascus. As we know, he was first blinded, then miraculously healed, and finally, after being idle for a long time, he was revealed about the mission that God had entrusted to him. Saint Mary of Egypt at first experienced that Christ was repelling her when she went to worship the Holy Cross. Had Christ rejected her? Of course not. But by repelling her, Christ helped her to repent and come closer to Him. The Great Martyr Eustathius "met" with the Lord during a hunt.

So does Christ do some special favor to some people and choose them, while leaving others in the darkness of ignorance? No. The Lord, as omniscient, knows if, and to what extent each of us can respond. As in the Parable of the Talents. He gives according to the receptivity of everyone and knows our strengths. To our eyes, a soul may seem unfit for salvation. In the eyes of God things may be completely different. God knows what we can do and how we can respond. Accordingly, he opens the door for us. Do we want to enter? It is the entrance to the arena for the struggle that leads to salvation.

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  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:

 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 

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. 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

Greek Cooking Schedule Our Greek Festival is just a few weeks away (October 7 - 9) We will be cooking pastitsio this Saturday (9/17) beginning at 9 a.m. in the church kitchen. In addition, we will continue cooking the following two weekends (on Friday & Saturday - 9/23 - 9/24 and 9/30 - 10/1), preparing moussaka and dolmathes. Please come and help as many hands will make this an easy task. No experience necessary - we will show you what to do. The more hands we have, the quicker we can get cleaned up and done. Everyone is welcome! Any questions, please call Carman 904-540-0367. Thank you.

Sunday School:

• 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.

Photo of the Week:   

https://www.facebook.com/HolyTrinityGOC/photos/a.214784738566511/5790785144299748

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