Philoptochos warmly invites you and your family to… 
Annual Membership Reception ~ Saturday February 9th
Seccombe Hall 2:00 until 4:00
Dr. Nicholas Itsines ~ Speaker
Please join us for warm fellowship, live entertainment, good bites, wine & refreshments
Learn about the amazing year our chapter had in 2018 and what’s ahead for 2019
Suggested Membership Dues $45
Guests $20 ~ or any gift welcome
RSVP alex@alexandramouzas.com or 619-518-2755

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The Sunday School classes will meet this Sunday. After lunch, preschoolers follow Presbytera Ana and Carrie and older kids Jacob and Daniel.

The purpose of the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival is to give children and teenagers an opportunity to learn, write, and speak about their Orthodox faith, church and heritage. This process will enhance their understanding and appreciation of their identity as Orthodox Christians and cultivate spiritual growth and maturity.

Our church will hold its parish Oratorical Festival on Sunday, March 24. There will be 3 age groups: grades 3-6, grades 7-9, and grades 10-12 with different topics and time requirements. Pre-registration is required and help with preparing the speech is available. Please contact Presbytera Ana for more information or to sign up. presbytera.ana@gmail.com. Information on topics can be found at: http://www.stjohn-monterey.org/youth-ministries/oratorical-festival

Orthodoxy 301 class:  calling on all levels, from catechumens to the life-time Orthodox: we are beginning a new cycle in the Sunday Adult Education space inspired by Father Alexander Schmemann's book "Great Lent - Journey to Pascha". This is a most excellent, much needed review and explanation of what is ahead of us. It is offered to allow all to prepare and  to engage stronger than the years before with the most blessed time of the year - the Great and Holy Lent.

The presentations will be by Father Ion. Participants are encouraged to do the readings privately in preparation for the class. They are not very long. A few copies of the book are available at our bookstore. The book is also available online. The readings for this coming Sunday are posted online as pdf files at our website here. This is to allow those interested more time to buy the book.

The class will run for the four Sundays of February as follows:

• February 3: Foreword, Introduction and The Lenten Worship (Chapter 2)
• February 10: The Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (Chapter 3)
• February 17, Triodion begins: The Lenten Journey (Chapter 4)
• February 24: Lent in our Life (Chapter 5)

The Book Forum continues with the reading and discussion of the marvelous book Father Arseny - Priest, Prisoner, Spiritual Father. The book can be found at our bookstore or online here.

Brief commentary: It is one of the great mysteries of life that in atmospheres of the harshest cruelty, a certain few not only survive but emerge as beacons of light and life. Father Arseny, former scholar of church art, became Prisoner No. 18736 in the brutal 'special sector' of the Soviet prison camp system. In the darkness of systematic degradation of body and soul, he shone with the light of Christ's peace and compassion. His sights set on God and his life grounded in the Church, Father Arseny lived by injunction to 'bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ' (Galatians 6:2). This narrative, compiled from accounts of Father Arseny's spiritual children and others whom he brought to God, gives stirring glimpses of his life in prison camp and after his release. It also tells the stories of people whose lives, often during times of almost unimaginable crisis, were touched and transfigured through their connection with Father Arseny. Emerging from the context of the particular tragedies of Soviet Russia, this book carries a universal impact certain to be felt by readers in the West today.

1. February 5: The Camp (Part 2/2) - p. 54-96
2. February 12: The Path - p. 99-172
3. February 19: Spiritual Children - p. 175-277

Here is your chance! Packages of Homemade Valentine cookies will be for sale February 10 following the Liturgy.  ALL proceeds go to the church. So come prepared!
Questions: Call Sandy Sanders at 831-229-1937

The Meatfare Sunday is the last day when meat is allowed before the Great and Holy Lent begins. It is not on a Tuesday and it is not fat either! Just delicious meat - good, healthy stuff...

Our 2019 Meatfare meal (in Greek "Apokreatiko") will take place on Sunday, March 3, after the Divine Liturgy, when we will also be hosting our first OPEN HOUSE organized through the Carmel Chamber of Commerce. Stay tuned for details.

The newly elected Parish Council for 2019 announces the officers for this year. They are: 

President - Euthimios Saites

Vice President - Corkey Balcom

Treasurer - Jacob Voyce

Secretary - Brian Balcom

Board Members - Kevin Wheeler

Appointed by the board: Bookkeeper - Fotis Papoulias

Serving this Sunday in church and at the fellowship hour following Liturgy:

February 3
   Parish Council member: Corkey Balcom
   Greeter: Temia Demakopoulos
   Fellowship: Team Gold – always 1st Sunday of the month.

February 10
   Parish Council member: Euthimios Saites
   Fellowship: Team Pink – always 2nd Sunday of the month.

It is the tradition of the Church that during the days following Theophany we receive the visit of the priest at our homes for the short service of the blessing with Holy Water, to renew the presence of the Holy Spirit in our homes, in our families and to bring the Light in our lives. This is also a great opportunity to spend quality time with our priest, Father Ion.

Please contact Father Ion to set up a time for the blessing of your home and indicate the days and the time that would work for you the best. If you have children, plan to do the home blessing when they are present as well.

Father Ion is available to hear confessions after services and also by appointment at other times. If you need to do confession, please contact Father Ion ahead of time.

This Saturday, February 2, 10:15am-3pm, at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, 999 Brotherhood Way, San Francisco, hosts Matins and Liturgy before the Retreat. Guest speaker Eugenia Karahalias will present - Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled. In her decades of work as a clinician, Orthodox therapist and aid-worker, New York-based Eugienia has identified and taught others concrete methods for dealing with the often debilitating phenomena of acute stress and anxiety. No Fee. Donations welcomed. Online registration at: https://tinyurl.com/yakntaq5

Our sister Church of Prophet Elias in Santa Cruz will host on Friday, March 1 from 6pm the premier West Coast screening of the movie: Love to the End. We will have a panel discussion after the movie with Anberin Pasha, who will be with us from Holy Cross Hellenic College in Boston, and few more people who are very familiar with the topic. Presbytera Josefina will be the moderator. Come and learn about the remarkable life of a modern saint. No admission, only free-will donations. View a preview: https://www.lovetotheend.com/

Our 2019 stewardship budget this year is $135,000. Our current 22 stewards have committed to $54,320 in pledges. Thank you!! But this is a large gap from the 86 Stewards we had last year!

As you know, this commitment helps us to continue on our path to growing in our faith, supporting each other, and reaching out to others. It keeps the lights on and the doors open. Thank you to:

Dr. Michael Bachik - Mr. & Mrs. Brian Balcom - Father Ion & Presbytera Ana, Alexie & Andrei Coman – Temia Demakopoulos - Nick & Mary Alice Fettis - Chrisanthi Georgalos – Georgette Jabbour - Mike & Mary Kanalakis - Mr. Charles & Maria Leontis - Shirley Manis - Stephanie Muntean - Milton & Joanne Pagonis - Fotis Papoulias - Nicholas Parsons - Alison & Steve Parsons - Euthimios Saites - Paraskevi Saites - Sandy Sanders - Athanasios & Greta Vasby - Jacob and Carrie Voyce - Lisa Wespiser - Kevin and Julia Wheeler

Don’t see your name on the list? Oh-oh. That means we don’t have a stewardship card from you for 2019. Not to worry. You can download one here from our web site. Once completed, either mail it in to the church or leave it in the offering tray on Sunday, with our gratitude.