Sunday, January 3, 2021,  Sunday Before Epiphany

HAPPY AND BLESSED NEW YEAR 2021!

Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:30-31: 

Memorials:    

STELLA KAOUNAS – 40 Days

JOHN KOINIS – 1 Year

May their memory be eternal!

SERVICES THIS WEEK:

Saints Constantine and Helen services are open for parishioners and we encourage those who are not in high-risk categories to attend services.  Parish guidelines regarding capacity limits and safety restrictions are posted on the home page of our church website, https://www.stcons.org  The church building is professionally cleaned, disinfected, and sanitized weekly. 

We strongly encourage those who will not be attending church to participate in services through our website, at  https://www.stcons.org/video-streaming  

Sunday, January 3   SUNDAY BEFORE EPIPHANY Orthros 9:00 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am. 

If you wish to follow along with the text, please use the link listed below:https://www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/01/03/li/gr-en/se.m08.d30.li.pdf

Wednesday, January 6  HOLY THEOPHANY, Great Blessing of the Waters, Orthros 9:00 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am.  If you wish to follow along with the text, please use the link listed below:https://www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/01/06/li/gr-en/se.m08.d30.li.pdf

Thursday, January 7  FEAST DAY OF St. JOHN THE BAPTIST. Orthros 9:00 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am.  If you wish to follow along with the text, please use the link listed below:https://www.agesinitiatives.com/dcs/public/dcs/p/s/2021/01/07/li/gr-en/se.m08.d30.li.pdf

LIGHT A CANDLE AND SAY A PRAYER:  When you are not able to attend church, you can purchase a candle from our church website (home page or video-streaming page), which Father Teodor will light before the following service or a service that you specify.  Please give specific names, living or deceased, that you would like Father to remember in prayer.  Father will light candles one hour before each service.  For Sunday services, please place candle orders prior to 8:00 am Sunday morning.

Please Pray For:

Michael, Barbara, Lisa, Pat, Christopher, Jonathan, Alexandra, Tracy, Dianna, Lazarus, Henry, Betty, Catherine, Susan, Evelyn, Gregg, Peter, Stella, Ann Marie, Vasilios, Carol, George, Demetri, Steve, Molly, Maria, Elizabeth, Carol, Evans, Katherine, Mike, Connie, Mary, Margaret, Angela, Connie, Bill, Carrie, Vito, Pete, Amalia, Stephanie, Lisa, Connie, Jacob, Anastasia, Rima, Kylie, Effie, Nicholas, and Maria. (Names may be added by request. Please contact the church office)

UPCOMING EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES:

EPIPHANY/BLESSING OF THE WATERS: Wednesday, January 6^th is Epiphany, with the Blessing of the Waters at the Divine Liturgy service, at 10:00 am.  The Holy Water from the church is given to the faithful to consume and to use in times of illness, or when the priest comes to bless their homes. For those who are unable to attend, on the following Sunday, January 10^th, Father Teodor will sprinkle everyone with Holy Water and bottles of Holy Water will be available for parishioners.

PARISH VASILOPITA/FAMILY SUNDAY: We will cut our parish Vasilopita next week, on Sunday, January 10^th.  Let’s welcome the New Year together and please bring your family to services on this day, as we cut the parish Vasilopita, and distribute Vasilopita to all parishioners and see who receives special blessings for 2021! Father Teodor will also sprinkle everyone with Holy Water and bottles of Holy Water will be available for parishioners who were not able to attend Epiphany service.

ADULT BIBLE STUDY:  Our Bible Study group will resume meeting via the Zoom platform on Tuesday, Tuesday, January 12^th

NEWS AND NOTICES

CHRISTMAS MATCH:  We have reached our $20,000 match goal!  Many thanks to all who made donations to the parish through the special Christmas giving envelopes. Through God’s grace, a group of donors from our parish have matched all your donations, raising more than $40,000 total for our parish ministries.

COMPLETE YOUR STEWARDSHIP PLEDGE ONLINE!  All parishioners must complete a Stewardship Pledge form each year to be considered a “member in good standing” at an Orthodox Church.  This year, in addition to the regular form, you may also complete your 2021 Stewardship Pledge online at our website, athttps://www.stcons.org/stewardship 

This week all parish households should be receiving the 2021 Stewardship Pledge Forms and the 2021 Archdiocese Calendars by mail; forms can also be picked up at the Pangari or Church office. You may return it to the church by mail at Saints Constantine and Helen, 36375 Joy Road, Westland, MI  48185; or bring it with you when you attend church.  A pledge form is your commitment of support for the coming year – you determine the amount. Giving to His Church is a way to thank God for His grace and generosity. The question is not, “What are the dues?” but “How can I thank God for my many blessings?”

THANK YOU!  SHARING OUR WARMTH: Thank you to all who donated during the month of December!  Our parish collected MORE THAN 1,000 PAIRS of warm socks for the Community Housing Network “Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness” (PATH) program!  More than 450 sets of gloves, hats and scarves were also collected to be distributed by the Homeless Action Network of Detroit (HAND) to those in need.

VOLUNTEER NEEDS: As you are completing your 2021 Stewardship Pledge card, please consider ways that you might volunteer your time and talents to our parish.  At this time, we are particularly in need of Adult Greeters, Ushers, and Youth and Young Adult Readers for Sunday services. We are also in need of volunteers to help with office/building clean up and organization tasks.  If you can help, please contact Annette at the church office 734.525.6789 or stcons2@gmail.com

HOME BLESSINGS DELAYED: Due to COVID safety considerations, Father Teodor will not be making general visits to parishioner homes for annual home blessings in the early months of the 2021 as he normally would.  As always, Father will still be available for the blessing of a new home or business, will provide care visits for those who are ill, and blessings in the home or hospital for newborn babies.

ICONOGRAPHY: On Christmas Eve, the church received delivery on the 4 large icons of the Iconostasis:  Saints Constantine and Helen, Panagia, Jesus, and St. John the Baptist.  On Sunday, December 20^th, Father Teodor surprised our congregation by unveiling the first 4 icons for our Iconostasis, and this Sunday Father will display the 4 primary large icons after the Divine Liturgy service.  We expect delivery of additional icons for the Iconostasis in the coming months. The Iconography committee is currently talking with contractors and seeking estimates for installation.

There are still icons available for sponsorship, and we are still in need of general donations of any amount to complete our fundraising on Phase One: East and Dome. We are about 90% to completion of our fundraising goal! For those who are interested in sponsoring an icon, please talk to Father Teodor or contact the church office for more information

QUESTIONS FOR FATHER TEODOR: In this unusual year with no regular Sunday School classes, Father Teodor will take a few minutes on Sunday mornings to answer questions from our young people (or adults!) about our faith. Questions  can be submitted online using this link:  https://forms.gle/7ae8mqd6DNSghbQs6

INCLEMENT WEATHER: During inclement weather when there is nobody in the church office, phone messages and emails to the church are checked periodically during the day and responded to as soon as possible.  We will always try to notify people whenever possible of a cancelled event or activity, but when in doubt, please call the church office before you come in. In an emergency, please contact Fr. Teodor directly on his cell at 248.330.3177.

PARKING COURTESY: During these months of cold, snow and ice it can be tempting to park close to the church entrance. Please do not park along the curb or in any fire lanes. Only use handicapped parking spaces if you have a need.  We suggest you drop people off at the church entrance, and then go and park your car. If you cannot do that, or if you come to church alone and need help with parking, ask an usher to assist you.

HELLENIC CULTURAL CENTER REOPENING:  At the current time, the HCC is booking events beginning March of 2021. The State of Michigan is allowing banquet facilities to open for events with reduced capacity. Masks and social distance restrictions are still in place, along with increased precautions in the preparation and serving of food and drink. Although they are not yet keeping regular office hours, if would like to discuss future bookings or other issues with the HCC staff, please contact Victoria at 734.525.3550 or Kathy at 313.303.6350 or helleniccc@gmail.com

SERVICES AND SACRAMENTS:

Funeral: 12/29/20 – DAISPENA RAPTIS

May her memory be eternal!

Memorial Service Information

Please call the church office to schedule memorials in a timely manner so we can include the information in the bulletin.  On the day of the service, please bring a list of family names you would like Father to remember in prayer. At this time, due to COVID restrictions, koliva that has been prepared for the memorial service cannot be distributed to parishioners, but will be returned to the family to take home.  We are not currently allowed to have coffee hour, or distribute any cookies, paximadia or koulourakia.

ARCHIEPISCOPAL ENCYCLICAL:  NEW YEARS 2021

January 1, 2021

To the Most Reverend Hierarchs, the Reverend Priests and Deacons, the Monks and Nuns, the Presidents and Members of the Parish Councils of the Greek Orthodox Communities, the Distinguished Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Day, Afternoon, and Church Schools, the Philoptochos Sisterhoods, the Youth, the Hellenic Organizations, and the entire Greek Orthodox Family in America,

Beloved Brethren in the Lord,

We are greeting the New Year of the Grace of our Lord, even as we share the longsuffering of our Lord that has strained our hearts and souls in the year that is behind us. We salute the New Year with faith, with hope for a brighter tomorrow. We welcome the New Year with the same confidence which knows that each passing day now possesses just a shard, just a hint of more light, even though the days of January seem darker than ever.

Likewise, we know that the pandemic will come to an end, and that we shall return to our lives, but perhaps not as exactly as they once were. May this re-entry into our lives be blessed!

My dear Christians, the past year has prepared us for this New Year of 2021; that we might never again take our families and friends for granted, that we might think of the suffering of others above our own, that we might see in the midst of the obstacles to our way of worship, the light of Christ that lights our hearts, if we would but turn our attention there.

On this First Day of the New Year, eight days after the Nativity, we commemorate the Naming of the Lord, and Saint Basil the Great. The Lord was given the Name that is above every other name, Jesus, as was revealed by the Angel. This is the Name by which we have been appointed to be saved from sin, fear, and death. Saint Basil the Great reminds us that it is through manifest love for our fellow human beings and compassion for the suffering of others that our faith works unto this salvation in our hearts, and awareness in our minds. Thus, the Holy Archdiocese continues this saving work institutionally at the Saint Basil Academy, where love and compassion are extended to those in need.

As we enter this New Year of the Grace of our Lord, may we truly be blessed by His love that we may be a blessing to others, and thus may we all be granted a healthy, safe and fulfilling New Year of 2021.

With paternal love in Christ Jesus,

† ELPIDOPHOROS,  Archbishop of America

Non-Orthodox Visitors Please Note:  Holy Communion is offered to Orthodox Christians who have properly prepared themselves.  Visitors are welcome to receive the Antidoron (Blessed Bread), which is distributed at the end of the Divine Liturgy.