November 15
St. George Greek Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2020-11-15
Bulletin Contents
St. George Greek Orthodox Church
General Information
- Phone:
- (405) 751-1885
- Fax:
- (405) 751-1889
- Email:
- st.george.church@coxinet.net
- Street Address:
- 2101 NW 145th Street
- Oklahoma City, OK 73134
- Mailing Address:
- 2101 NW 145th Street
- Oklahoma City, OK 73134
Contact Information
Services Schedule
Every Saturday we have Great Vespers (unless otherwise noted) at 6:00 p.m. Every Sunday - Orthros at 8:50 a.m., Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m. Weekday Services are as listed on the Calendar and Community News.
Past Bulletins
- Publish Date:
- 2020-11-22
- Publish Date:
- 2020-11-08
- Publish Date:
- 2020-11-01
- Publish Date:
- 2020-10-25
- Publish Date:
- 2020-10-18
- Publish Date:
- 2020-10-11
Community News
Weekday Services...
Every Sunday we have Orthros beginning at 8:50 a.m. and Divine Liturgy beginning at 10:00 a.m. Saturday evenings we have Great Vespers at 6:00 p.m., unless otherwise noted. Weekday services are listed below and begin at 9:00 a.m. with Orthros followed by Divine Liturgy. Unless otherwise stated service will be at St. George.
(Note: All services are at 9:00 a.m. and at St. George unless otherwise noted)
November
9th, Monday - St. Nektarios
13th, Friday - St. John Chrysostom
14th, Saturday - Sts. Philip the Apostle & Gregory Palamas
21st, Saturday - The Entrance of the Theotokos
25th, Wednesday - St. Katherine the Great Martyr
30th, Monday - St. Andrew the First Called & Apostle
The Church is now open to the public. We will continue to stream on YouTube. To view online go to our website www.saintgeorgeokc.org, FaceBook page and click on the link or click on the link below.
YouTube link:
https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCTFEPA3i_WXD6AF9nYDXe5A
The preeminence of love
Obedience is a central theme throughout the history of salvation. Without obedience to God’s commandments, there can be no salvation, for the nous (the eye of the soul) must be healed before we can be made whole. The role of obedience is so central, in fact, that submission to God’s will must take place before the healing process can begin.
Obedience has often been misunderstood, for many associate submission as a sort of enslavement. For many, obedience is a relic of the past, when people had to bow before kings. Some parents even treat their children as though they were simply little friends, for fear obedience might stifle their child’s creativity.
Children raised by permissive parents often feel unloved, for they interpret leniency as a sign their parent doesn’t care. They sense a parent who really loves their child, would be willing to set boundaries as a way of protecting and nurturing the child.
Age and experience gives the parent an advantage, for it equips them with the needed tools to guide and protect their child. Experience is the factor that lets the parent know it is never a good idea to leave church attendance up to the child, for just as one would ever think of asking a child if an education would be something they’d be interesting in pursuing, so the parent is willing to make the decision that church attendance is needed as a way of forming them into an adulthood with a spiritual grounding that will serve them well. Love is the root of a good parent’s expectation of obedience from their child.
Obedience also plays a role in our spiritual development, and our willingness to seek out spiritual guidance, and in turn, try to follow the direction we are given. The husband and wife who are obedient to one another, find true freedom in their mutual submission, for in surrendering their self will, they open themselves to the Grace of God, and healing of the nous can take place.
The obedience of a monk to his abbot, and to the rule of the brotherhood, also leads to a freedom that can not be enjoyed when he wallows in self will. Likewise, the obedience one gives to his bishop, is ultimately liberating, for in surrendering himself in obedience, the priest gives himself over to God’s will. The lives of monastic saints are filled with stories of persecution by bishops, but the monk who humbly embraces this suffering, is made holy, for holiness does not come without suffering, and ascetic struggle.
The bishop, abbot, husband, or parent, whose position is God ordained, must rule with love. Intimidation or coercion has no place in the life of any Christian, and the husband, priest, abbot, or bishop, who rules without paternal love, betrays the love of Christ, Whose example we are called to emulate. The preeminence of love is the core of our Christian faith, and the foundation stone of our relationship with Christ. Without love, Christianity is simply philosophy.
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Our Faith without good works is dead
The very moment faith enters the soul is that moment when we turn toward God in repentance and recognize we can not live without Him. As we grow in our faith we come to realize we must remain in a continual state of repentance, for grace abounds in the heart of the man who is repenting. We come to see the truth that the saints were those who never ceased to call upon the Lord in repentance. Never did they think themselves worthy of anything but God’s wrath, and their continued plea was for mercy.
This humility spawned God’s love in the hearts of these saints, and works of love and mercy grew out of God’s indwelling love within their hearts. Their works showed forth that their love and good works came out of that deep state of repentance, and their love was the proof of God’s indwelling Spirit in their hearts. Saint Gregory the Great said, “The proof of love is in the works. Where love exists, it works great things. But when it ceases to act, it ceases to exist.”
If we do not do good works, love does not dwell in our heart, and we have no faith. “Yea, a man may say, You have faith, and I have works: show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works (James 2:18).” The Liturgy reminds us, only those with faith and love may draw near to receive the Holy Mysteries. Our participation in the Body and Blood of the Lord provides each of us with the opportunity to be Christ-bearers in the world in which we live, and others will know we belong to Christ, “by our love” (John 13:35).
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Community Connections
In Our Prayers
On November 6th, a longtime member of our community, Pete Marianos passed away in Houston, Texas. His funeral was on Thursday, November 12th at St. Basil the Great Greek Orthodox Church, in Houston. He will be laid to rest here at Rose Hill, on Monday, November 16th at 1:00 p.m. May his memory be eternal.
Informational General Assembly
We will be having an Informational General Assembly after Church on Sunday, November 22nd. We will be practicing social distancing in the hall and streaming it online.
Sunday School - Make the Connection
Sunday School this fall, and possibly Spring, is being held via Zoom. Each teacher is setting their own time for their class. If you have not heard from your teacher, please call the Church office.
Philoptochos Corner
Our BUZZED with BLESSINGS fundraiser continues in a time of social distancing. The Bees might be a nice alternative! $50, includes 30 Bees, occasion card & honey. Thank you! Take care & prayers for our community. Contact the Church office or a Philoptochos member to schedule any upcomming BUZZED with BLESSINGS date.
Fellowship Hour...
Until further notice, we will not be having Fellowship Hour.
Prosfora Schedule
November
1st - Margo Gianos (Sunday& Sts. Cosmos & Damianos)
8th - Fofo Bargeliotis (Sunday & Holy Archangles)
9th - Fofo Bargeliotis (St. Nektarios)
13th - Tasia Vrentas (St. John Chrysostom)
14th - Tasia Vrentas (Sts. Philip the Apostle & Gregory Palamas)
15th - Katerina Stavrakis
21st - Margo Gianos (Enterance of the Theotokos)
22nd - Margo Gianos
25th - Catherine Chrysant (St. Katherine the Great Martyr)
29th - Vana Economopoulos
30th - Vana Economopoulos (St. Andrew the Apostle & First Called)
December
4th - Catherine Chrysant (Sts. Barbara & John of Damascus)
6th - Litsa Angelidis
9th - Catherine Chrysant (Conception of the Theotokos)
12th - Patrick Ingle (St. Spyridon)
13th - Anna Gianos
15th - Patrick Ingle (St. Eleutherios)
20th - Elaine Bappert
24th - Margo Gianos (Paramony of the Nativity)
25th - Margo Gianos (The Nativity)
26th - Margo Gianos (Synaxis of the Theotokos)
27th - Jennifer Economopoulos
St. Paul writes, "The Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, 'This is my body which is for you. Do this in rememberance of me.'" (1 Cor. 11:24).
We are in need of Prosfora bakers. Our ladies and gentlemen have diminished over the years. The greatest part of this is everyone qualifies! Anyone young and old can make Prosfora. We would only ask a few times per year to prepare bread for a Divine Liturgy. What better way for a family to give of themselves and their love for the Church.
Prosfora can be kneaded in a bread machine, with a mixer that has dough hooks, or by hand. It can easily bge an individual's or an offering made by the whole family. Children love to knead bread or be able to put the seal on and for the children it is a learning experience. It is a great offering of life and love to God.
Please call the Church office if you would like to offer this gift.
Gospel and Epistle Readings
Matins Gospel Reading
First Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from Matthew 28:16-20
At that time, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. Amen."
Epistle Reading
Prokeimenon. Plagal Second Mode. Psalm 27.9,1.
O Lord, save your people and bless your inheritance.
Verse: To you, O Lord, I have cried, O my God.
The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Ephesians 2:4-10.
Brethren, God who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God: not because of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Gospel Reading
8th Sunday of Luke
The Reading is from Luke 10:25-37
At that time, a lawyer stood up to put Jesus to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read?" And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have answered right; do this, and you will live."
But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and when he saw him, he had compassion, and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed mercy on him." And Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
Wisdom of the Fathers
The example of the good Samaritan shows that we must not abandon those in whom even the faintest amount of faith is still alive.
Two Books of St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, Concerning Repentance, Chapter 11
But you cannot be a neighbour unless you have compassion on him; for no one can be called a neighbour unless he have healed, not killed, another. But if you wish to be called a neighbour, Christ says to you: "Go and do likewise."
Two Books of St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, Concerning Repentance, Chapter 11
'The Lord your God is one Lord' (cf. Deut. 6:4), revealed in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit: in the unbegotten Father; in the Son, who is begotten eternally, timelessly and impassibly as the Logos, and who through Himself anointed that which He assumed from us and so is called Christ; and in the Holy Spirit, who also comes forth from the Father, not begotten, but proceeding. This alone is God and alone is true God, the one Lord in a Trinity of Hypostases, undivided in nature, will, glory, power, energy, and all the characteristics of divinity. Him alone shall you love and Him alone shall you worship with all your mind and with all your heart and with all your strength.
A New Testament Decalogue no. 1, Philokalia Vol. 4 edited by Palmer, Sherrard and Ware; Faber and Faber pg. 323, 14th century
Godly love cannot be perfect unless a man love his neighbor also. Under which name must be included not only those who are connected with us by friendship or neighborhood, but absolutely all men, with whom we have a common nature, whether they be foes or allies, slaves or free.
Sermon 12, On the Fast, 6th century
When a man reveres God with all his heart and with faith, he receives through God's providence the power to control anger and desire; for it is desire and anger which are the cause of all evils.
On the Character of Men no. 12, Philokalia Vol. 1 edited by Palmer, Sherrard and Ware; Faber and Faber pg. 331, 4th century
For the One Maker fashioned us, the One Creator breathed life into us; we all enjoy the same sky and air, the same days and nights, and, though some be good, others bad, some righteous, others unrighteous, yet GOD is bountiful to all, kind to all.
Sermon 12, On the Fast, 6th century
The sign that thou lovest God, is this, that thou lovest thy fellow; and if thou hatest thy fellow, thy hatred is towards God. For it is blasphemy if thou prayest before God while thou art wroth. For thy heart also convicts thee, that in vain thou multipliest words: thy conscience rightly judges that in thy prayers thou profitest nought.
ON ADMONITION AND REPENTANCE.
For whosoever superintends the healing of wounds must needs administer in wine the smart of pan, and in oil the softness of loving-kindness, to the end that through wine what is festering may be purged, and through oil what is curable may be soothed.
On the Life of the Pastor. Chapter 6, 6th century
Gentleness, then, is to be mingled with severity; a sort of compound is to be made of both; so that subjects be neither exulcerated by too much asperity, nor relaxed by too greatkindness.
On the Life of the Pastor. Chapter 6, 6th century
Let us make our mercifulness abundant, let us give proof of much love to man, both by the use of our money, and by our actions. ... Go then, and put a stop to the evil; pull out them that are drowning, though you descend into the very depth of the surge.
Homily 15 on Matthew 5, 4th Century
Saints and Feasts
November 15
Nativity Fast Begins
The Nativity Fast is one of four main fast periods throughout the ecclesiastical year. Beginning on November 15 and concluding on December 24, the Nativity Fast gives individuals the opportunity to prepare for the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord and Savior in the Flesh on December 25. By abstaining from certain food and drink, particularly from meat, fish, dairy products, olive oil, and wine, as well as focusing more deeply on prayer and almsgiving, we can find that the primary aim of fasting is to make us conscious of our dependence upon God.
November 15
Guria, Shamuna, and Habib, Martyrs and Confessors of Edessa
Of these most illustrious Martyrs of the city of Edessa in Syria, Guria and Shamuna contested during the reign of Diocletian, in 288; after many tortures, they were cast into prison, then beheaded. Saint Habib, a deacon, contested in the days of Licinius, in the year 316, and was burned alive; he was buried with Saints Guria and Shamuna. The three have one common feast, and it is always together that they are portrayed in icons and invoked by the faithful. On account of a renowned miracle they worked, they are invoked for help in marital difficulties. A certain Goth had come with the Roman army to Edessa and was quartered in the house of a pious widow named Sophia. The Goth asked Sophia for the hand of her daughter, Euphemia; after resisting for a long time, Sophia at last agreed. When it was time for the army to return home, Sophia made the Goth vow by the power in the holy Martyrs Shamuna, Guria, and Habib, to keep Euphemia as the apple of his eye. As he was nearing his home, however, the treacherous man revealed to Euphemia that he already had a wife. Euphemia was compelled to serve the Goths wife, who dealt with her mercilessly. After extreme sufferings, which included being sealed alive in a tomb and left there to die, Euphemia was miraculously conveyed to Edessa, to the very shrine of the holy Martyrs whose surety they had taken, and was reunited with her mother through their holy prayers.
November 16
Matthew the Apostle & Evangelist
This Apostle, who was also called Levi, was the son of Alphaeus and had Galilee as his homeland. A publican before being called by Christ, he became one of the Twelve Apostles, and an Evangelist. While still in Palestine, he wrote his Gospel first in Hebrew, being also the first of all to write the Gospel. When he is depicted in icons, there is portrayed next to him the likeness of a man, one of the symbolic living creatures mentioned by Ezekiel (1.10), which, as Saint Irenaeus writes, is a symbol of our Saviour's Incarnation.
November 17
Gregory the Wonderworker & Bishop of Neo-Caesarea
Saint Gregory was born in Neocaesarea of Pontus to parents who were not Christians. He studied in Athens, in Alexandria, in Beirut, and finally for five years in Caesarea of Palestine under Origen, by whom he was also instructed in the Faith of Christ. Then, in the year 240, he became bishop of his own city, wherein he found only seventeen Christians. By the time the Saint reposed about the year 265, there were only seventeen unbelievers left there. Virtually the whole duration of his episcopacy was a time of continual, marvellous wonders worked by him. Because of this, he received the surname "Wonderworker"; even the enemies of the truth called him a second Moses (see Saint Basil the Great's On the Holy Spirit, ch. 29).
November 17
Righteous Mother Hilda of Whitby
Our righteous Mother Hilda was of noble birth, being a kinswoman of Saint Edwin, King of Northumbria (celebrated Oct. 12). At the age of thirty-three she renounced the world, and lived another thirty-three years as a nun and abbess. The last six years of her life she suffered a burning fever with patience and nobility, and reposed in peace in the year 680.
November 18
Plato the Great Martyr of Ancyra
Saint Plato contested in martyrdom in 266, when Agrippinus was proconsul. He was from the city of Ancyra in the province of Galatia.
November 18
Holy Martyr Romanus
Saint Romanus, who was from Antioch, lived during the reign of Maximian. He presented himself before Asclepiades the Eparch, and rebuked him, saying, "The idols are not gods; even a little child could tell you that." Then the Saint asked that a child be brought in from the market, that he might be the judge of the matter at hand. Therefore, when the child was asked, "Which God must we worship?" he replied, "Christ." The child was beaten mercilessly and beheaded at the command of the tyrant. As for Saint Romanus, his tongue was cut out, and then he was cast into prison, where he was strangled in the year 305.
November 19
Obadiah the Prophet
The Divine Scriptures do not tell us with any certainty when the Prophet Obadiah lived nor what was his homeland. Thus, some say that he is that Obadiah who was Ahab's steward, who, because of Jezebel's wrath, hid one hundred prophets in a cave and fed them with bread and water (III Kings 18:4), and that he later became a disciple of Elias the Prophet about 903 B.C. But others surmise from the words of the same prophetical book that he is somewhat later than Joel (celebrated on Oct. 19). He is also called Obdiu, or Abdiu, or Obadiah; his name means "servant of God." His book of prophecy, which consists of only one chapter, is ranked fourth among the minor Prophets.
November 19
Martyrs Barlaam of Caesarea and Heliodorus
Saint Barlaam, who was from a certain village near Antioch in Syria, was advanced in years and a husbandman by occupation. Because of his confession of Christ, he was brought before the judge, who had him scourged with whips and then scraped with iron claws. Since this could not break his constancy, he was forcibly haled to the idols' temple, and live coals with incense were placed in his right hand. The judge thought that he would cast them down because of the pain, thus seeming to have offered a sacrifice of incense to the idols. But Saint Barlaam stood unmoving until his hand was thoroughly burned by the coals; he fell to the ground, and so gave up his soul into the hands of the Lord. He contested in martyrdom during the reign of Diocletian (284-305). Saint Basil the Great and Saint John Chrysostom both gave homilies in his honour.
November 20
Gregory the Righteous of Decapolis
Saint Gregory who was from Irenopolis of the Decapolis of Asia Minor, was the son of Sergius and Mary. He became a monk as a young man, and after struggling for many years in virtue and prayer under obedience to a wise spiritual father, he was informed by revelation that it was the will of God for him to live, like the Patriarch Abraham, with no certain dwelling, moving from place to place. His journeyings took him to Ephesus, Constantinople, Corinth, Rome, Sicily, Thessalonica, and again to Constantinople, where, after many labours in defence of Orthodoxy against Iconoclasm, he reposed in peace in the first half of the ninth century. He had two disciples, one of whom was Saint Joseph the Hymnographer (see Apr. 3), who wrote the Menaion service for Saint Gregory, his father in Christ.
November 20
Proclus, Archbishop of Constantinople
Saint Proclus lived during the reign of Saint Theodosius the Younger. A disciple and scribe of Saint John Chrysostom, he was ordained Bishop of Cyzicus about the year 426, but because the people there unlawfully elected another bishop before his arrival, he remained in Constantinople. In 429, Nestorius, who had been Archbishop of Constantinople for about a year, and had already begun his blasphemous teaching that it is wrong to call the holy Virgin "Theotokos," invited Bishop Proclus to give a sermon on one of the feasts of our Lady, which he did, openly defending in Nestorius' presence the name "Theotokos," that is, "Mother of God." Saint Proclus was elevated to the throne of Archbishop of Constantinople in 434. It was he who persuaded Emperor Theodosius the Younger and his holy sister Pulcheria to have the most sacred relics of his godly teacher Saint John Chrysostom brought back from Comana, and triumphantly received them upon their return to the imperial city (see Jan. 27 and Nov. 13). He reposed in peace in 447.
November 21
The Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple
According to the tradition of the Church, the Theotokos was brought to the Temple at three years of age, where she was consecrated to God and spent her days until she was fourteen or fifteen years old; and then, as a mature maiden, by the common counsel of the priests (since her parents had reposed some three years before), she was betrothed to Joseph.