St. Alexis of Wilkes-Barre Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2021-03-21
Bulletin Contents
Welcome
Announcements
Prayers, Intercessions and Commemorations
Parish Calendar
Saints and Feasts
Hymns of the Day
Gospel and Epistle Readings
Wisdom of the Fathers
Beyond the Sermon
Bulletin Inserts
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St. Alexis of Wilkes-Barre Orthodox Church

General Information

  • Phone:
  • 860-664-9434
  • Street Address:

  • PO Box 134, 108 E Main St

  • Clinton, CT 06413-0134

Contact Information

Fr Steven Hosking
Rector

frsteve@stalexischurch.org | 860-866-5802 (Message)
Dn Timothy Skuby
Attached

dntimothy@stalexischurch.org | (808) 341-1813

Services Schedule

Please see our online calendar for dates and times of Feast Day services.

Past Bulletins


Welcome

Gospel1

Jesus Christ taught us to love and serve all people, regardless of their ethnicity or nationality. To understand that, we need to look no further than to the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Every time we celebrate the Divine Liturgy, it is offered "on behalf of all, and for all." As Orthodox Christians we stand against racism and bigotry. All human beings share one common identity as children of God. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatian 3:28)

Members of our Parish Council are:
Joseph Barbera - Council Member at Large
Dori Kuziak - Council Secretary
Carolyn Neiss - Vice President
Marlene Melesko - Council Member at Large
Kyle Hollis - President
Roderick Seurattan - Treasurer

 

 

Pastoral Care - General Information
Emergency Sick Calls can be made at any time. Please call Fr Steven at (860) 866-5802, when a family member is admitted to the hospital.
Anointing in Sickness: The Sacrament of Unction is available in Church, the hospital, or your home, for anyone who is sick and suffering, however severe. 
Marriages and Baptisms require early planning, scheduling and selections of sponsors (crown bearers or godparents). See Father before booking dates and reception halls!
Funerals are celebrated for practicing Orthodox Christians. Please see Father for details. The Church opposes cremation; we cannot celebrate funerals for cremations.

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Announcements

 Confessions

If you have not already, please schedule your confession, even if it is well in advance. As is our practice, I would rather not attend to confessions during Holy Week. It is important that you schedule the time rather than just "drop" in do to current COVID restrictions and demands on my time as well. Your attention to this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

Services this Week

In addition to Litrugy of the Presanctified Gifts this Wednesday evening, we will also have Vesperal Divine Liturgy for the Annunciation on Thursday evening. While we don't usually schedule two such services in a row during this pandemic, we will take the usual precautions and clean after each service. 

 

Sermon on the Annunciation

Please take time to read the following reflection on the Annunciation

https://www.oca.org/fs/sermons/sermon-on-the-annunciation

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Prayers, Intercessions and Commemorations

Christ_forgiveness

Archpriest Dennis, Archpriest Michael, Deacon Timothy, Evelyn, Katheryn, Anne, Aaron, Veronica, Richard, Nancy, Susanne, Carol, Alexander, Gail, Vincent, Nina, Ellen, Maureen, Elizabeth, Christopher, Joshua, Jennifer, Petra, Olivia, Jessica, Sean, Sarah, Justin, Arnold, Carol-Anne, Anthony, Natasha, Gene, John, John, Michael, Kelley, Krisha, Alix, Natalie, Edward, Nathan, Caila, Julianna, Paul, John, Jacob, Lynn, Anna, Richard, Robert, Dorothy, Elaina

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Many Years! to Vinny and Marlene Melesko on the occasion of their anniversary! (My apologies for forgetting you last week).

___

  • Pray for: All those confined to hospitals, nursing homes, and their own homes due to illness; for all those who serve in the armed forces; widows, orphans, prisoners, victims of violence, and refugees;
  • All those suffering chronic illness, financial hardship, loneliness, addictions, abuse, abandonment and despair; those who are homeless, those who are institutionalize, those who have no one to pray for them;
  • All Orthodox seminarians & families; all Orthodox monks and nuns, and all those considering monastic life; all Orthodox missionaries and their families.
  • All those who have perished due to hatred, intolerance and pestilence; all those departed this life in the hope of the Resurrection.

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Sunday of Orthodoxy. St. James (Jacob, Iago) the Confessor, Bishop of Catania (8th-9th c.). St. Cyril, Bishop of Catania (1st-2nd c.). St. Thomas, Patriarch of Constantinople (1610).

 

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Parish Calendar

  • Parish Calendar

    March 21 to March 29, 2021

    Sunday, March 21

    Sunday of Orthodoxy

    9:30AM Divine Liturgy

    Monday, March 22

    Basil the Holy Martyr of Ancyra

    Tuesday, March 23

    The Holy Righteous Martyr Nicon and His 199 Disciples

    8:30AM Daily Matins followed by Lenten Reflection

    6:30PM Parish Council Meeting

    Wednesday, March 24

    Forefeast of the Annunciation of the Theotokos

    6:30PM Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts

    Thursday, March 25

    Annunciation of the Theotokos

    6:00PM Vesperal Divine Liturgy

    Friday, March 26

    Synaxis in honor of the Archangel Gabriel

    6:30PM Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos

    Saturday, March 27

    Second Saturday of Lent

    5:30PM Great Vespers

    Sunday, March 28

    Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas

    9:15AM Divine Liturgy

    Monday, March 29

    Mark, Bishop of Arethusa

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Saints and Feasts

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March 21

Sunday of Orthodoxy

For more than one hundred years the Church of Christ was troubled by the persecution of the Iconoclasts of evil belief, beginning in the reign of Leo the Isaurian (717-741) and ending in the reign of Theophilus (829-842). After Theophilus's death, his widow the Empress Theodora (celebrated Feb. 11), together with the Patriarch Methodius (June 14), established Orthodoxy anew. This ever-memorable Queen venerated the icon of the Mother of God in the presence of the Patriarch Methodius and the other confessors and righteous men, and openly cried out these holy words: "If anyone does not offer relative worship to the holy icons, not adoring them as though they were gods, but venerating them out of love as images of the archetype, let him be anathema." Then with common prayer and fasting during the whole first week of the Forty-day Fast, she asked God's forgiveness for her husband. After this, on the first Sunday of the Fast, she and her son, Michael the Emperor, made a procession with all the clergy and people and restored the holy icons, and again adorned the Church of Christ with them. This is the holy deed that all we the Orthodox commemorate today, and we call this radiant and venerable day the Sunday of Orthodoxy, that is, the triumph of true doctrine over heresy.

Allsaint
March 21

James the Confessor

This Saint took up the monastic life from his youth in the Monastery of Studium, where he became a disciple of Saint Theodore the Studite. Later he became bishop and suffered many afflictions and torments at the hands of the Iconoclasts. Saint Theodore composed a homily in honour of this Saint James (PG 99, 1353-1356).

Allsaint
March 23

The Holy Righteous Martyr Nicon and His 199 Disciples

Saint Nicon was from Neapolis (Naples) in Italy. His father was an idolater and his mother a Christian. At first he was a soldier, but later he went to the East, where he was baptized and in time became a bishop. After some years, he returned to the West and came to Sicily, where he and many of his disciples were put to death by beheading because they would not worship the idols.

Annuncia
March 25

Annunciation of the Theotokos

Six months after John the Forerunner's conception, the Archangel Gabriel was sent by God to Nazareth, a town of Galilee, unto Mary the Virgin, who had come forth from the Temple a mature maiden (see Nov. 21). According to the tradition handed down by the Fathers, she had been betrothed to Joseph four months. On coming to Joseph's house, the Archangel declared: "Rejoice, thou Full of Grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women." After some consideration, and turmoil of soul, and fear because of this greeting, the Virgin, when she had finally obtained full assurance concerning God's unsearchable condescension and the ineffable dispensation that was to take place through her, and believing that all things are possible to the Most High, answered in humility: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word." And at this, the Holy Spirit came upon her, and the power of the Most High overshadowed her all-blameless womb, and the Son and Word of God, Who existed before the ages, was conceived past speech and understanding, and became flesh in her immaculate body (Luke 1:26-38).

Bearing in her womb the Uncontainable One, the blessed Virgin went with haste from Nazareth to the hill country of Judea, where Zacharias had his dwelling; for she desired to find Elizabeth her kinswoman and rejoice together with her, because, as she had learned from the Archangel, Elizabeth had conceived in her old age. Furthermore, she wished to tell her of the great things that the Mighty One had been well-pleased to bring to pass in her, and she greeted Elizabeth and drew nigh to her. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, she felt her six-month-old babe, Saint John the Baptist, prophesied of the dawning of the spiritual Sun. Immediately, the aged Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and recognized her as the Mother of her Lord, and with a great voice blessed her and the Fruit that she held within herself. The Virgin also, moved by a supernatural rejoicing in the spirit, glorified her God and Savior, saying: "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour," and the rest, as the divine Luke hath recorded (1:39-55)

Gabriel1
March 26

Synaxis in honor of the Archangel Gabriel

This festive Synaxis is celebrated to the glory of the Archangel Gabriel, since he ministered to the marvelous mystery of God's incarnate dispensation.

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Hymns of the Day

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Tone 8 Troparion (Resurrection)

You descended from on high, O Merciful One!
You accepted the three day burial to free us from our sufferings!//
O Lord, our Life and Resurrection, glory to You!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,

Tone 2 Troparion (Sunday of Orthodoxy)

We venerate Your most pure image, O Good One;
and ask forgiveness of our transgressions, O Christ our God.
Of Your own will You were pleased to ascend the Cross in the flesh
and deliver Your creatures from bondage to the Enemy.
Therefore with thankfulness we cry aloud to You:
“You have filled all with joy, O our Savior,//
by coming to save the world.”

now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Tone 8 Kontakion (Sunday of Orthodoxy)

No one could describe the Word of the Father;
but when He took flesh from you, O Theotokos, He accepted to be described,
and restored the fallen image to its former state by uniting it to divine beauty.//
We confess and proclaim our salvation in words and images.

 

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Gospel and Epistle Readings

Epistle Reading

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.

Gospel Reading

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."

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Wisdom of the Fathers

Moses... was himself saved by means of wood and water before the Law was given, when he was exposed to the Nile's currents, hidden away in an Ark (Exod. 2:3-10). And by means of wood and water he saved the people of Israel, revealing the Cross by the wood, Holy Baptism by water (Exod. 14:15-31). Paul, who had looked upon the mysteries, says openly, 'They were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud' (I Cor. 10:2). He also bears witness that, even before the events concerning the sea and his staff, Moses willingly endured Christ's Cross, 'Esteeming', he says, 'the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt' (Heb. 11:26). For the Cross is the reproach of Christ from the standpoint of foolish men. As Paul himself says of Christ, 'He endured the cross, despising the shame' (Heb. 12:2).
St. Gregory Palamas
Homilies Vol. 1, Homily Eleven para. 14; Saint Tikhon's Seminary Press pg. 123, 14th century

Peter, when after so many miracles and such high doctrine he confessed that, "Thou art the Son of God" (Matt. xvi. 16), is called "blessed," as having received the revelation from the Father;
St. John Chrysostom
Homily 21 on John 1, 1. B#58, pp. 72, 73, 4th Century

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Beyond the Sermon

Burnbush

On the Gospel of St. John (1:35-52) - We Have Found the Messiah

What do you seek?

The entire Christian faith is all about helping people reconnect with God and restoring the relationship lost by our first parents, Adam and Eve. When we draw close to God, we won't be able to cover any imperfections, either. Perhaps this is why we are afraid to be near Him: we fear He will let us down, or maybe we had rather not expose our imperfections. The truth is He already knows everything about us and loves us still.


In our Gospel reading today, Jesus asks a probing question to test the motives of those around Him. And this is the question the Lord asks us today: “What do you seek?" (John 1:38). To develop a healthy spiritual life, we will always need to answer the question truly. What do we really desire?


The disciples’ reply is interesting: "Where are you staying?" Notice, our desire to be where Jesus is indicates what it is we truly seek. "Come and see," the Lord responds (v. 39). We must trust that when we follow Christ, He will lead us to His home. In time, as we dwell with Him, we will be able to become like Him. Occasional visits will never have the same effect.


Ultimately, what does abiding with Christ produce? It engenders faith. "We have found the Messiah," declared the disciples (v. 41). When we spend time with our Lord, we begin to recognize Him as the Savior, the Promised One, and we begin to change. In the presence of our Lord, it is impossible to remain the same.

Do you desire to know where the Lord lives? If you do, be assured that if you come and see, your life will be changed as you follow Him. In this change will transform not only your own life but those around you as well. It may even ignite a flame of spiritual desire in the hearts of others who previously didn't even realize they needed to know God.

 

Fr Barnabas Powel

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Bulletin Inserts

    Parish Links

    Parish Links

    This file includes the links to the shared folder, the COVID questionnaire and the Zoom invitation.

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