Sunday, January 17, 2021,  12^th Sunday of Luke

Memorials:     DIONYSIA BOUKAS – 40 Days

May her 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 17      12th SUNDAY OF LUKE - 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/2021/01/17/li/gr-en/se.m08.d30.li.pdf

Friday, January 22      PARAKLESIS SERVICE, 6:30 PM

Saints Constantine and Helen, Westland

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:

ZOE FOR LIFE:   There will be a virtual prayer service for the unborn on Sunday, January 17^th at 6:00 pm.  ZOE for Life! for a Virtual Service as we pray for the unborn next Sunday, January 17, 2021, at 6:00 pm.  Following the service, guest speaker, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon, Primate Orthodox Church in America, will begin his Zoom presentation at 6:45pm.  Registration deadline has been extended through January 16^th Registration is free using this link:    https://forms.gle/iECpLgkuGpy1qDvx9    

NAMES FOR PARAKLESIS SERVICE: There will be a Paraklesis service held Friday, January 22 at 6:30 pm. Please submit the names of the living that you would like remembered in prayer for health, forgiveness, and salvation to the church office at stcons2@gmail.com  Please include the word “Names” in the subject line.  There are also prayer sheets available at the Pangari.

ADULT BIBLE STUDY:  Our Bible Study group will meet on the Zoom platform on Tuesday, Tuesday, January 19^th at 7:00 pm.  All adults are welcome to join the conversation, as we return to the study of the Book of Job.  Zoom link is: https://zoom.us/j/7345256789, Meeting ID: 734 525 6789  If you have trouble connecting, or more information, contact: stcons2@gmail.com

GODPARENTS’ SUNDAY: Our next “Family Sunday” will be Valentine’s Day, February 14^th. On that day, our parish will celebrate Godparents’ Sunday.  Please plan to attend church and take communion with your Godchildren/Godparents on that day.

AMERICAN RED CROSS BLOOD DRIVE: As our country continues to deal with the COVID pandemic, the need for blood is greater than ever. On Thursday February 25^th, from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm, we will be hosting another American Red Cross blood drive in the Hellenic Cultural Center. To schedule an appointment, please log onto RedCrossBlood.org (our sponsor code: stcons) or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) today.

NEWS AND NOTICES:

CONGRATULATIONS!  Last Sunday, Fr. Teodor cut our parish Vasilopita. Congratulations to our Greek School, a joint ministry with Nativity of the Virgin Mary Church; and to parishioner Eleni Bisbikis for receiving the coins and special blessings for the year 2021!

HELP YOURSELF TO A TREAT! As you enter church on Sunday, you will see a big basket of delicious, out-of-season (but not out of date) candy.  Please help yourself to whatever you would like to take home and enjoy.  Sorry – no eating allowed in church!  😊

MEDICAL EQUIPMENT: A parishioner has donated a wheelchair and walkers (two regular, one with seat) in excellent condition to the church to be a blessing to another family.  Please contact Annette at the church office if you could use those items.

STEWARDSHIP PLEDGES:  All parishioners must complete a Stewardship Pledge form each year to be considered a “member in good standing” at an Orthodox Church.  All parish households were mailed 2021 Stewardship Pledge Forms and the 2021 Archdiocese Calendars by mail; forms can also be picked up at the Pangari or Church office.  Please bring your completed pledge form with you when you attend church.  This year, if it is more convenient, you may also complete your 2021 Stewardship Pledge online at our website, at https://www.stcons.org/stewardship 

ICONOGRAPHY:

Our parish has received delivery of 4 small and 4 large icons for the Iconostasis.  We expect delivery on additional icons for the Iconostasis in the coming months. 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

A NOTE OF THANKS:

We received this email in the church office and wanted to share Alex’s enthusiasm with you.  Give yourselves a pat on the back, St. Cons parishioners - your generosity makes a difference!

Hi Annette, Thank you so much for your generous donation of 1,000+ pairs of socks to Community Housing Network! The donation was SO generous, we are overwhelmed with gratitude!

I'm sure you may know, but socks are the single most-needed article of clothing in homeless shelters - and they are the least donated items. 

I will be sending an official thank you letter via the mail to the church's address. But I wanted to send this short note via email to just say THANK YOU! Thank you to you, thank you to the parishioners who responded, just thank you so much for your support! It truly means so much, especially in unprecedented times like these. 

Please share our sincere gratitude with your parishioners. We truly cannot thank you all enough. Your donation will impact people directly in need and make a real change in their daily lives. 

Best,

Alexandria Urbanczyk

Donor Relations Coordinator

Community Housing Network, Inc.

VOLUNTEER NEEDS: 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

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.  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.

PANHELLENIC SCHOLARSHIPS:  January 31^st is the deadline to apply for to the Panhellenic Scholarship fund for 2021/2022 undergraduate college scholarships.  $250,000 in awards based on merit and financial need will be given to students of Hellenic descent. For any questions or inquiries please email info@panhellenicsf.org  or call (312) 357-6432.

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 BOOKINGS:  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:           1/15/21 – PETER PAPPAS

May his 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.

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.