Sunday Orthros: 9 AM
Sunday Liturgy: 10 AM
Welcome to St. John Chrysostome Greek Orthodox Church
We are a thriving community of 65 families, working to share the Orthodox Faith with the South Florida area. We try to balance our lives with both corporate and personal prayer, philanthropic works to our greater community and common meals together. Our goal is the progression towards the kingdom of God in this life, in loving our fellow man and seeing Christ in the person sitting next to us.
We are pleased that you have joined us today for worship. To receive Communion in the Orthodox Church, one must be Baptized and/or Chrismated in the Orthodox Faith. The Orthodox Church understands Holy Communion as the sign of unity. If you are interested in learning more about the Orthodox Faith, please contact Father Andrew. Whether you are an Orthodox Christian or not, please come forward at the dismissal to receive the blessed bread which is offered to everyone as you leave. May Christ's blessings be with all of you.
SUMMERTIME ANGELS (Concept borrow from St. Demetrios in Ft. Lauderdale)
THANK YOU TO DESPINA ZAFIROPOULOS, OUR SUMMERTIME ANGEL WHO DONATED $5000 TOWARD SOME OF OUR SUMMERTIME EXPENSES AS OUTLINED BELOW.
Many of the Florida parishes have numerous parishioners who summer away from our Florida churches, "snowbirds", which adversely affects our revenue during the summer. Therefore, we have adapted another parish's system of paying for some our our regular monthly expenses.
It's called Summertime Angels, people who are willing to donate towards the cost of the Water ($225), Elecetric ($450), Waste Management ($225) (trash) and Internet/phone ($250).
The amounts in parenthesis are the average monthly cost of these services. If some or any of you are able, in addition to your Stewardship Pledge, were able to subsidize one of these items for a month or two, throught September, we would be able to maintain our current services and actually survive thru the end of the year. I am sure you realize that the current pandemic has created a reduction in our income. We require $10.5-12,000 to meet our monthly expenses, including the mortgage and priest. Any extra help you can provide at this time will be greatly appreciated.
It is important, if your decided to help, to mark the item you are subsidizing int he left bottom of your check in the MEMO line.
I thank you in advance for your thoughtfulness and continued generosity.
A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO THE SUMMERTIME ANGELS WHO HAVE ALREADY STEPPED FORWARD TO HELP WITH OUR REGULAR EXPENSES FOR THE SUMMER. THEY WILL BE LISTED IN THE 1ST SUNDAY BULLETIN OF JULY.
***IF YOU HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO DO THAT YET, PLEASE TAKE A FEW MINUTES TO COMPLETE YOU STWARDSHIP PLEDGE, THE SUNDAY TRAY OFFEREINGS AND CANDLE MONEY AND SEND THEM TO THE CHURCH.
By their life and teachings, our righteous Fathers Sergius and Herman did much to spread and confirm Orthodoxy among the Karelian Finns, who had suffered much oppression at the hands of Swedes of the Latin creed. They founded on Lake Ladoga the renowned Monastery of Valaam, which later became one of the chief centers of the monastic life. Both Saints reposed about 1353.
These Saints lived during the years of Diocletian. Saint Cyrus was from Alexandria, and Saint John was from Edessa of Mesopotamia. Because of the persecution of that time, Cyrus fled to the Gulf of Arabia, where there was a small community of monks. John, who was a soldier, heard of Cyrus' fame and came to join him. Henceforth, they passed their life working every virtue, and healing every illness and disease freely by the grace of Christ; hence their title of "Unmercenaries." They heard that a certain woman, named Athanasia, had been apprehended together with her three daughters, Theodora, Theoctiste, and Eudoxia, and taken to the tribunal for their confession of the Faith. Fearing lest the tender young maidens be terrified by the torments and renounce Christ, they went to strengthen them in their contest in martyrdom; therefore they too were seized. After Cyrus and John and those sacred women had been greatly tormented, all were beheaded in the year 292. Their tomb became a renowned shrine in Egypt, and a place of universal pilgrimage. It was found in the area of the modern day resort near Alexandria named Abu Kyr.
Third Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from Mark 16:9-20
When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.
After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.
Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they sat at table; and he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover."
So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that attended it. Amen.
Prokeimenon. Second Mode. Psalm 117.14,18.
The Lord is my strength and my song.
Verse: The Lord has chastened me sorely.
The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Romans 5:1-10.
Brethren, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have obtained access by faith to this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in our hope of sharing the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us. While we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Why, one will hardly die for a righteous man -- though perhaps for a good man one will dare even to die. But God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we are now justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
3rd Sunday of Matthew
The Reading is from Matthew 6:22-33
The Lord said, "The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light; but if your eye is not sound, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well."
Please pray for our brothers and sisters in our Community and their families, and all those who are in need of our prayers.
Joel, William (Bill), Evangelos, Katherine (Dr. Mary's mother) Harry, Mirsini, Peter, Helen, Eleni, Becky, Mary D’Jay, Presbytera Helen, Fr. Constantine, Fr. Demetri Tsigas (Melbourne Priest), SAVAS, Kosta, Demetrios, Mary, Evangelia, Kyriakos (Charley), Danny, Peter, Kay, Linda, Chris, Diana, Tom and Family, Nick K, Maggie, Helen, Gena Mildner, Joanna, Constantina, Mimi, Virginia, Apostolos, Sophie, Joshua, Despina, Thomas, Jan, Aristides, Lucas, Baby Paul, Leona, Mary, Toula, Eleni, Phylitsa, George Edward, Efrosini, George, Stella, Phyllis, Irene, Georgia, Marcia, Sheila and Maureen, Laura, Sophia.
ALL SUNDAY SERVICES 9– 11:15 AM
JUNE & JULY SERVICES AND ACTIVITIE
Sun. June 28th, Sunday, Orthros & Divine LIturgy, 9-11:30AM
Mon. June 29th, Monday, Saints Peter & Paul, Orthros & Divine Liturgy, 9-11:30am
Sun. July 5th, Sunday, Orthros & Divine Liturgy, 9-11:30AM with a special rememberance for the
4th of July at the conclusion of the Liturgy.
HOLY COMMUNION
We have been given some pastoral discretion from the Ecumenical Patriarchate regarding how we may administer Holy Communion.
As a result, I have decided to used separate metal spoons for each person wishing to receive Holy Communion.
I have already ordered them and they will be here tomorrow, Sunday June 28th, but not in time for the service. So, we will begin using a separate spoon for each person to receive Holy Communion. We will then sanitize each of the spoons and use them again for the next liturgy.
So, except for those who have normally stayed in place and waited for me to come down to commune you, beginning next Sunday, July 5th, everyone will come up to the chalice. I will still go down to those who find it difficult and awkward to leave their seats.
Any questions? Contact Father Andrew at 561-818-6215 or frdrew1947@gmail.com