We hope that you will make this your spiritual home. Connect with us on our website, Facebook page, YouTube, or sign-up for our email list at https://tinyurl.com/yc3tp29w.
Worship Sunday Orthros 8:15 am & Divine Liturgy 9:30 am
Confession (by appointment)
Weekday Services (www.stgeorgegoc.org/calendar)
Streaming
Fellowship Hour Sunday following Divine Liturgy
Office Hours Tuesdays & Fridays 8:00 am - 3:00 pm
Phone Answered / Office Closed Thursdays 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
Our Mission St. George Greek Orthodox Church is a Christ-centered community that: inspires faith and worship, cultivates spiritual growth and fellowship, and encourages benevolence and outreach.
Our Vision Ascending together to the fullness of Life.
+NO FASTING+
+CIRCUMCISION OF OUR LORD & ST. BASIL THE GREAT
8:15AM ORTHROS
9:30AM DIVINE LITURGY
+ST. SERAPHIM OF SAROV
+SYNAXIS OF 70 APOSTLES
1:30PM Online Daytime Bible Study (via Zoom only)
+EVE OF THEOPHANY - STRICT FAST DAY
4:15PM ROYAL HOURS
6:00PM VESPERAL LITURGY
7:00PM AGIASMOS - BLESSING OF THE WATERS
+FAST DAY
+THEOPHANY (EPIPHANY): BAPTISM OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
8:00AM ORTHROS
9:00AM DIVINE LITURGY
10:00AM AGIASMOS - BLESSING OF THE WATERS
+SYNAXIS OF THE FORERUNNER JOHN THE BAPTIST
Sunday after Epiphany
8:15AM ORTHROS
9:30AM DIVINE LITURGY
10:30AM Sunday School
11:00AM VASILOPITA CELEBRATION
11:15AM Parish Council Oath of Office & Election of Officers
12:00PM Basketball Practice
12:00PM Basketball Practice
Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia
The Reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Colossians 2:8-12
BRETHREN, see to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ; and you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
Circumcision of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
The Reading is from Luke 2:20-21, 40-52
At that time, the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him. Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom; and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the company they went a day's journey, and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him. After three days, they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously." And he said to them, "How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" And they did not understand the saying which he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man.
Richard Kanavati, Dylan Eisenhuth
Paul Werger
Tuesdays and Fridays: 8:00 am - 3:00 pm
Thursdays: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
Antigoni will be at the office Tuesdays and Fridays 8:00 am - 3:00 pm and available by phone on Thursdays 9:00 am - 1:00 pm (working from home).
Committee work continues for our capital renovation project. All are welcome to join our committee and help with the planning. Future meeting dates and times will be listed at www.stgeorgegoc.org/calendar and in the bulletin. Please email Dan Simon (cobra5_0_99@yahoo.com) with questions.
Thank you to everyone who donated to FocusMN’s Second Helping Food Pantry. As a community, we were able to donate a trunk full of shelf-stable food to be distributed to those in need.
The first Bible Study for the new year will be held Wednesday, January 4, 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm. We will study James 1.1-2.26 for more of the Apostles' teachings. We meet on the first and third Wednesdays of each month on zoom. Please join us to participate in fellowship and learn the Orthodox view of Scripture. Here is the Zoom link: https://goarch.zoom.us/j/88566246381?pwd=TXB5WEJ3NTRNQUZVMEFqcG5sbkg1UT09
Session 1 “The Holy Face” at St. George Greek Orthodox Church on Summit Avenue in St. Paul (including zoom) held on Tuesdays January 10, 17, 24, and 31 from 6:00 - 9:00 pm. The tuition is $265.00 including paints brushes, a gessoed panel, and supplies. The fee for returning students to the first class will be $70.
Session 2 “Protection of the Theotokos” at St. George Greek Orthodox Church on Summit Avenue in St. Paul (including zoom) held on Tuesdays February 7, 21, 28, and March 7 from 6:00 - 9:00 pm. The tuition is $265.00 including paints brushes, a gessoed panel, and supplies. The fee for returning students to the first class will be $70.
Please contact akorluka@aol.com or arsenault@gmail.com for registration. Materials are available at Wet Paint. More information to follow!
"Iconography is the image of the incarnate Christ. No one can create the image of God without the grace of the Holy Spirit."
January 13–16 at Camp St. Croix, youth grades 6-12. A weekend to be spent discussing how we can become better Orthodox Christians through practicing our faith and becoming vessels of the Holy Spirit. To register, visit https://bit.ly/wintercampreg. Cost $200 – To pay, visit: https://bit.ly/paywintercamp. Click here to see the flyer.
Hi Twin Cities YAL, mark your calendar for a cocktail party hosted by Twin Cities YAL to celebrate the new year together!
Date: Saturday, 1/14/23
Time: 7pm
Location: St. Mary's Greek Orthodox Church - Terrace Room
3450 Irving Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55408
Dress: Cocktail attire
$10 admission fee required! Please Venmo Sia Tortorelis (@siatortorelis) with the caption "YAL New Years" prior to the event, or pay at the door in cash. See photos in "Bulletin Inserts" section for what's included at the event!
RSVP required!
Please RSVP at this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeqrgqycNzKWTIfZCUld4tC1vGbfp5AgxZE8AKGtIhm1H2_2A/viewform
If you have any questions, comments, or event ideas, please email us at twincitiesyal@gmail.com. Twin Cities Young Adult League is for 18 to 35-year-olds, married or single.
Exciting news! Saint George has a section reserved at next month's Timberwolves game against the Sacramento Kings on Monday, January 30, 2023, at 7:00 pm. We also will have the unique opportunity to high-five the players as they run out of the tunnel! All are invited to join us for the game. Tickets are $25 for youth and family and $35 for anyone else from our parish who would like to join us. If price is a barrier, please reach out as financial aid is available. This is an unchaperoned event, and all children must be accompanied.
Please RSVP by emailing niko@stgeorgegoc.org by January 1st. GET READY TO HOWL!
We are excited to announce the 2023 Pan-Orthodox Dance! This dance is an event for EVERYONE! Bring your whole family! Parents, kids, and grandparents are all welcome to participate in the different cultural dances of the Orthodox faith. The Pan-O dance will be held on February 18th at 6:00 pm in the Great Hall of St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church. For food there will be a potluck, so please bring a dish and/or dessert to share! If you have any questions, please reach out to Francine Perry at fsperry1@comcast.net.
Please consider donating a coffee canister for our Kitchen! Supply is low and we all love a hot cup of coffee! Thank you!
FOCUS is accepting only Men's sizes winter coats and boots. The Clothes Closet at Focus is currently closed for any other donations. Bags can be taken to FOCUS House at 550 Rice Street, St Paul.
Please contact Fr. Perry or our Ladies Philoptochos if you or someone you know is in need (food, clothing, shelter, etc.). Our Ladies Philoptochos, Missions & Benevolence, Discretionary support, FOCUS MN, etc. are here to help.
Since the Mosaic Law commands that if a woman give birth to a male child, he should be circumcised in the foreskin of his flesh on the eighth day (Lev. 12:2-3), on this, the eighth day from His Nativity, our Saviour accepted the circumcision commanded by the Law. According to the command of the Angel, He received the Name which is above every name: JESUS, which means "Saviour" (Matt. 1:21; Luke 1:31 and 2:21).
Saint Basil the Great was born about the end of the year 329 in Caesarea of Cappadocia, to a family renowned for their learning and holiness. His parents' names were Basil and Emily. His mother Emily (commemorated July 19) and his grandmother Macrina (Jan. 14) are Saints of the Church, together with all his brothers and sisters: Macrina, his elder sister (July 19), Gregory of Nyssa (Jan. 10), Peter of Sebastia (Jan. 9), and Naucratius. Basil studied in Constantnople under the sophist Libanius, then in Athens, where also he formed a friendship with the young Gregory, a fellow Cappadocian, later called "the Theologian." Through the good influence of his sister Macrina (see July 19), he chose to embrace the ascetical life, abandoning his worldly career. He visited the monks in Egypt, in Palestine, in Syria, and in Mesopotamia, and upon returning to Caesarea, he departed to a hermitage on the Iris River in Pontus, not far from Annesi, where his mother and his sister Macrina were already treading the path of the ascetical life; here he also wrote his ascetical homilies.
About the year 370, when the bishop of his country reposed, he was elected to succeed to his throne and was entrusted with the Church of Christ, which he tended for eight years, living in voluntary poverty and strict asceticism, having no other care than to defend holy Orthodoxy as a worthy successor of the Apostles. The Emperor Valens, and Modestus, the Eparch of the East, who were of one mind with the Arians, tried with threats of exile and of torments to bend the Saint to their own confession, because he was the bastion of Orthodoxy in all Cappadocia, and preserved it from heresy when Arianism was at its strongest. But he set all their malice at nought, and in his willingness to give himself up to every suffering for the sake of the Faith, showed himself to be a martyr by volition. Modestus, amazed at Basil's fearlessness in his presence, said that no one had ever so spoken to him. "Perhaps," answered the Saint, "you have never met a bishop before." The Emperor Valens himself was almost won over by Basil's dignity and wisdom. When Valens' son fell gravely sick, he asked Saint Basil to pray for him. The Saint promised that his son would be restated if Valens agreed to have him baptized by the Orthodox; Valens agreed, Basil prayed, and the son was restored. But afterwards the Emperor had him baptized by Arians, and the child died soon after. Later, Valens, persuaded by his counsellors, decided to send the Saint into exile because he would not accept the Arians into communion; but his pen broke when he was signing the edict of banishment. He tried a second time and a third, but the same thing happened, so that the Emperor was filled with dread, and tore up the document, and Basil was not banished. The truly great Basil, spent with extreme ascetical practices and continual labours, at the helm of the church, departed to the Lord on the 1st of January, in 379. at the age of forty-nine.
His writings are replete with wisdom and erudition, and rich are these gifts he set forth the doctrines concerning the mysteries both of the creation (see his Hexaemeron) and of the Holy Trinity (see On the Holy Spirit). Because of the majesty and keenness of his eloquence, he is honoured as "the revealer of heavenly things" and "the Great."
Saint Basil is also celebrated on January 30th with Saint Gregory the Theologian and Saint John Chrysostom.
Rest from labour.
His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America is pleased to announce the 2023 Archdiocesan Pilgrimage to the Ancient Patriarchate of Alexandria and Mount Sinai.
PLWopa4I5g3xCevnEmg9cAl8-6EBX6DO85
St. Mary's GOC will be hosting the 2023 Western Region Family Basketball Tournament on February 3-5, 2023. Registration is now OPEN. Deadline is January 4, 2023 before late fees are assessed. January 15, 2023 is the last day to register. Come Cheer on our St. George Teams!
Players (Two items needed): 1. The Weekend Meal Package is required to play! Here is the link to register https://chicago.goarch.org/wrfbt23-meal/. The Weekend Meal Package consists of the Friday Night Buffet, Saturday Night Banquet, and Sunday Boxed Lunch. 2. The Waiver Form to be filled online here, https://chicago.goarch.org/wrfbt23-waiver/. If you need assistance filling out the form, please contact your coach.
Basketball Practices : First practice is on January 1, 2023. Practices will continue every Sunday, Jan, 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29th, 12:00 pm - 2:30 pm at Hidden River Middle School, 1700 Summit Ave.
St. George Subsidies: Thanks to the generous donation from the Kontenakos family basketball fund, we are able to help subsidize basketball registration. Please email frperry@stgeorgegoc.org or call Fr. Perry at (651) 706-9672 for a confidential financial aid scholarship.
St. Mary's Ad Book Submissions: If you would like to submit an Ad for the St. Mary’s Ad book, here is a link to submit your ad by January 15, 2023 at https://www.greekbball.com/ad
Hotel Information can be found at https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/group-booking/MSPRB/G-WMBB. The block goes down on January 6. The room rate is $99/night +taxes/fees.
For additional information on the Tournament please visit https://www.greekbball.com
Final numbers will be available soon, but it looks like we made our 2022 Stewardship Goal! Thank you all for your support of the work of the Church!
Welcome Visitors!
Thank you for joining us in worship. Whether you are an Orthodox Christian or this is your first visit to an Orthodox Church, we are pleased to have you with us! Although Holy Communion is offered only to baptized and chrismated Orthodox Christians, all are invited to receive the Antidoron (blessed bread) at the end of the service. The Antidoron and fellowship hour are reminiscent of the Agape Feast that followed worship in the early Church. One does not have to be of Greek descent nor speak Greek to be an Orthodox Christian and member of our parish. All people of any background are welcome to join the Orthodox Church. For those interested in learning more about the Christian Faith or becoming a member of our church, please contact Fr. Perry after services or at frperry@stgeorgegoc.org or (651) 222-6220.
We hope you will join us in our hall upstairs after service this morning for fellowship and refreshments.
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St. George GOC broadcasts its worship services live on the internet. Your presence in the church is subject to audio and video recording.
Schedule of Services
Christmas Flower Memorials 2022, May Their Memory be Eternal!
01/01/2023, page 1
01/01/2023, page 2
01/01/2023, page 3
01/01/2023, page 4
January 13-16
Saint George has a section reserved at next month's Timberwolves game against the Sacramento Kings
The event is Saturday, January 14th at 7pm in the St. Mary's GOC Terrace Room