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St. John Chrysostom Greek Orthodox Church Of Nashville
Publish Date: 2020-06-07
Bulletin Contents
Pentecost
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St. John Chrysostom Greek Orthodox Church Of Nashville

General Information

  • Phone:
  • (615) 957-2975
  • Street Address:

  • 4602 Indiana Avenue

  • Nashville, TN 37209
  • Mailing Address:

  • P.O. Box 90162

  • Nashville, TN 37209


Contact Information




Services Schedule

Following the Hierarchical and Metropolitan civil guidelines, at the present time the Services of the Church can be viewed and participated in, on-line only.  Services will be live-streamed via our Facebook page: St. John Chrysostom Greek Orthodox Nashville, TN We are working on other means of livestreaming our services. We appreciate your patience.


Past Bulletins


Announcements

FROM OUR BISHOP

COVID-19 PANDEMIC RESPONSE
PHASED REOPENING PLAN AS OUTLINED IN STATE-BY-STATE CLERGY MEETINGS

● Phase 1

  • ○  Churches to open at 50% of allowed capacity.

    • Allowed capacity is either state determined maximum or number of people who can be in the building while maintaining 6 feet distance between individuals/family groups, whichever is less.

    • Each church will have to appoint or otherwise determine the people to come in the church for any scheduled service without exceeding the appointed number.

  • ○  Anyone who is currently experiencing any symptoms of illness must stay at home.

  • ○  All at risk persons are strongly encouraged to stay at home.

■ At risk persons are those with pre-existing health conditions, and those over the age of 65.

  • ○  The churches may have health checks at the entrance to the church. This may consist of a series a questions about general symptoms and/or a temperature check with a touchless thermometer.

  • ○  Everyone required to wear masks. The churches may offer masks at the entrance in the church to everyone who does not have one

  • ○  There will be no bulletins distributed to parishioners. The priest will read the announcements as normal, following the end of the Liturgy.

  • ○  There will be no liturgical books in the pews.

  • ○  Antidoron to be cut and put in plastic bags by one person wearing gloves and mask. Priest wearing mask or face screen will distribute bags with antidoron at the end of service.

  • ○  There will be no choir until further notice. The choral duties will continue to be performed by chanters singing on opposite sides of the Church.

    Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
    Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Detroit


CURRENT SERVICES

This Sunday is the Great Feast of Pentecost.  As we begin Phase 1 to open the Church for services, we will be following the Bishop’s protocols.  Initially we will be limited to 16 people/family groups who will be able to attend.  This is to provide 6' between each other.

We will be having additional Liturgies to allow everyone to have the opportunity to come. If you wish to come to the Liturgy on Sunday, please contact me so that I can confirm that there will be room. 

Services will continue to be Live-streamed via our Facebook page: St. John Chrysostom Greek Orthodox Nashville, TN


STEWARDSHIP AND OUR CHURCH

"Honor the Lord with your substance, and with the firstfruits of your increase..." (Proverbs 3:9-10)

We all know that these are trying times in many ways, financially and otherwise. Yet we also know from the Lord's own words, of the 'Widow's Offering' (Lk. 21:1-4) She was rewarded more than those who had abundance, because having very little, she made an offering to God, small as it was.  In the eyes of the Lord, this was worth more than the offerings of the rich.

From St. John Chrysostom's Paschal Homily... 'let no one be turned away... let no one bewail their poverty, for the Universal Kingdom has been revealed.'

The Services are available to all.  Please offer what you can.


OUR 'LITTLE CHURCH'

Our home is the 'Little Church'.  If you are able to watch the services, light a candle, light some incense, and listen to the Hymns of the day, or the Sermon. If you are not able to watch the whole Service, that is OK.  Watch some of it, and read from your Prayer Book.  The point, is to do something. God honors the intent.


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Weekly Calendar

  • St. John Chrysostom Church Calendar

    June 7 to June 21, 2020

    Sunday, June 7

    8:30AM Matins (Orthros)

    10:00AM Divine Liturgy, Holy Pentecost

    Wednesday, June 10

    5:30PM Paraklesis, Prayers of supplication in times of distress.

    Saturday, June 13

    5:30PM Great Vespers

    Sunday, June 14

    8:30AM Matins (Orthros)

    10:00AM Divine Liturgy

    Wednesday, June 17

    5:30PM Paraklesis, Prayers of supplication in times of distress.

    Saturday, June 20

    5:30PM Great Vespers

    Sunday, June 21

    8:30AM Matins (Orthros)

    10:00AM Divine Liturgy (Currently, Online only)

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Saints and Feasts

Pentecost
June 07

Holy Pentecost

After the Saviour's Ascension into the Heavens, the eleven Apostles and the rest of His disciples, the God-loving women who followed after Him from the beginning, His Mother, the most holy Virgin Mary, and His brethren-all together about 120 souls returned from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem. Entering into the house where they gathered, they went into the upper room, and there they persevered in prayer and supplication, awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit, as their Divine Teacher had promised them. In the meanwhile, they chose Matthias, who was elected to take the place of Judas among the Apostles.

Thus, on this day, the seventh Sunday of Pascha, the tenth day after the Ascension and the fiftieth day after Pascha, at the third hour of the day from the rising of the sun, there suddenly came a sound from Heaven, as when a mighty wind blows, and it filled the whole house where the Apostles and the rest with them were gathered. Immediately after the sound, there appeared tongues of fire that divided and rested upon the head of each one. Filled with the Spirit, all those present began speaking not in their native tongue, but in other tongues and dialects, as the Holy Spirit instructed them.

The multitudes that had come together from various places for the feast, most of whom were Jews by race and religion, were called Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and so forth, according to the places where they dwelt. Though they spoke many different tongues, they were present in Jerusalem by divine dispensation. When they heard that sound that came down from Heaven to the place where the disciples of Christ were gathered, all ran together to learn what had taken place. But they were confounded when they came and heard the Apostles speaking in their own tongues. Marvelling at this, they said one to another, "Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?" But others, because of their foolishness and excess of evil, mocked the wonder and said that the Apostles were drunken.

Then Peter stood up with the eleven, and raising his voice, spoke to all the people, proving that that which had taken place was not drunkenness, but the fulfilment of God's promise that had been spoken by the Prophet Joel: "And it shall come to pass in the last days, that I shall pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy" (Joel 2:28), and he preached Jesus of Nazareth unto them, proving in many ways that He is Christ the Lord, Whom the Jews crucified but God raised from the dead. On hearing Peter's teaching, many were smitten with compunction and received the word. Thus, they were baptized, and on that day about three thousand souls were added to the Faith of Christ.

Such, therefore, are the reasons for today's feast: the coming of the All-holy Spirit into the world, the completion of the Lord Jesus Christ's promise, and the fulfilment of the hope of the sacred disciples, which we celebrate today. This is the final feast of the great mystery and dispensation of God's incarnation. On this last, and great, and saving day of Pentecost, the Apostles of the Saviour, who were unlearned fishermen, made wise now of a sudden by the Holy Spirit, clearly and with divine authority spoke the heavenly doctrines. They became heralds of the truth and teachers of the whole world. On this day they were ordained and began their apostleship, of which the salvation of those three thousand souls in one day was the comely and marvellous first fruit.

Some erroneously hold that Pentecost is the "birthday of the Church." But this is not true, for the teaching of the holy Fathers is that the Church existed before all other things. In the second vision of The Shepherd of Hermas we read: "Now brethren, a revelation was made unto me in my sleep by a youth of exceeding fair form, who said to me, 'Whom thinkest thou the aged woman, from whom thou receivedst the book, to be?' I say, 'The Sibyl.' 'Thou art wrong,' saith he, 'she is not.' 'Who then is she?' I say. 'The Church,' saith he. I said unto him, 'Wherefore then is she aged?' 'Because,' saith he, 'she was created before all things; therefore is she aged, and for her sake the world was framed."' Saint Gregory the Theologian also speaks of "the Church of Christ ... both before Christ and after Christ" (PG 35:1108-9). Saint Epiphanius of Cyprus writes, "The Catholic Church, which exists from the ages, is revealed most clearly in the incarnate advent of Christ" (PG 42:640). Saint John Damascene observes, "The Holy Catholic Church of God, therefore, is the assembly of the holy Fathers, Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Evangelists, and Martyrs who have been from the very beginning, to whom were added all the nations who believed with one accord" (PG 96, 1357c). According to Saint Gregory the Theologian, "The Prophets established the Church, the Apostles conjoined it, and the Evangelists set it in order" (PG 35, 589 A). The Church existed from the creation of the Angels, for the Angels came into existence before the creation of the world, and they have always been members of the Church. Saint Clement, Bishop of Rome, says in his second epistle to the Corinthians, the Church "was created before the sun and moon"; and a little further on, "The Church existeth not now for the first time, but hath been from the beginning" (II Cor. 14).

That which came to pass at Pentecost, then, was the ordination of the Apostles, the commencement of the apostolic preaching to the nations, and the inauguration of the priesthood of the new Israel. Saint Cyril of Alexandria says that "Our Lord Jesus Christ herein ordained the instructors and teachers of the world and the stewards of His divine Mysteries ... showing together with the dignity of Apostleship, the incomparable glory of the authority given them ... Revealing them to be splendid with the great dignity of the Apostleship and showing them forth as both stewards and priests of the divine altars . . . they became fit to initiate others through the enlightening guidance of the Holy Spirit" (PG 74, 708-712). Saint Gregory Palamas says, "Now, therefore ... the Holy Spirit descended ... showing the Disciples to be supernal luminaries ... and the distributed grace of the Divine Spirit came through the ordination of the Apostles upon their successors" (Homily 24, 10). And Saint Sophronius, Bishop of Jerusalem, writes, "After the visitation of the Comforter, the Apostles became high priests" (PG 87, 3981B). Therefore, together with the baptism of the Holy Spirit which came upon them who were present in the upper chamber, which the Lord had foretold as recorded in the Acts, "ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence" (Acts 1:5), the Apostles were also appointed and raised to the high priestly rank, according to Saint John Chrysostom (PG 60, 21). On this day commenced the celebration of the Holy Eucharist by which we become "partakers of the Divine Nature" (II Peter 1:4). For before Pentecost, it is said of the Apostles and disciples only that they abode in "prayer and supplication" (Acts 1:14); it is only after the coming of the Holy Spirit that they persevered in the "breaking of bread,"that is, the communion of the Holy Mysteries-"and in prayer" (Acts 2:42).

The feast of holy Pentecost, therefore, determined the beginning of the priesthood of grace, not the beginning of the Church. Henceforth, the Apostles proclaimed the good tidings "in country and town," preaching and baptizing and appointing shepherds, imparting the priesthood to them whom they judged were worthy to minister, as Saint Clement writes in his first Epistle to the Corinthians (I Cor. 42).

All foods allowed during the week following Pentecost.


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Archepiscopal Message

Archbishop Elpidophoros Marches in Brooklyn

06/04/2020

New York, NY – At the invitation of the Borough President of Brooklyn, Eric Leroy Adams, and State Senator Andrew Gounardes (New York’s 22nd State Senate District), His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros attended a peaceful protest and march today in Crown Heights, Brooklyn over the killing of Louisville EMT Breonna Taylor. (Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician, was killed when the police raided her apartment in Louisville, KY in March.)

His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros Direct Archdiocese Clergy Syndesmos Address

06/02/2020

What is crooked that needs to be straightened? The misunderstandings around what is needful in these times of so many restrictions. What is rough that needs to be smoothed? The minds and emotions of our Faithful, because they have been spiritually roughed up by the loss of loved ones and friends, and by the loss of their way of life and livelihood. Moreover, their faith in the institution of the Church, in the efficacy of the Sacraments, has been shaken. And for some of them, to the very core of their being.

Holy Communion in an Extraordinary Time of Pandemic

06/01/2020

What is more important for all of us? The Communion, the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, or the way we receive the Body and Blood? The answer is easy. It’s not the way. It’s the Communion itself that saves us and gives us Eternal Life.
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Greek Orthodox Archdiocese News

Racism and Orthodox Christianity in America: A Modern Commentary

06/05/2020

In light of recent tragic acts of racism and brutality — including the heinous murder of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, the murder of a black man simply for jogging in Georgia, and the weaponing of the police against a black man in New York City, Nicholas Anton offers this blog entry, taken from a speech he presented in October 2019, which highlights racism and the Orthodox Christian Church in the USA today.

Explaining Racism to Our Children Webinar

06/05/2020

In the aftermath of George Floyd’s horrific death at the hands of police officers, protests have erupted across the nation. With everyone at home due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, parents now have an opportune moment to talk about racism with their children. But how do parents begin that tough conversation?

Love Thy Neighbor Webinar

06/03/2020

Join the @GOA.Ecumenical for the final Love Thy Neighbor webinar on Thursday, June 4 at 6:00 PM ET, featuring International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) @IOCCRelief, the Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society @philoptochos and the Giolas Foundation @Giolas Foundation.

Comfort Food for Families: Trusting in God

06/02/2020

As the country begins to open up, should we be living in fear and anxiety or should we continue to trust that God is in control? Tune in to the last Comfort Food for Families video from the GOA Center for Family Care to hear more.

Social Ethos of the Orthodox Church: Article by Rev. Dr. John Chryssavgis

06/01/2020

The Department of Inter-Orthodox, Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations continues to promote social engagement in the Orthodox Church and its relevance in today’s world. The Department’s blog “Faith Matters” recently published an article prepared by Rev. Dr. John Chryssavgis describing the key issues that Orthodox Christians face in our society today, based on the recent release of For the Life of World: Toward a Social Ethos of the Orthodox Church.

Four Free Resources to Help Young People Stay Healthy and Connected

06/01/2020

The coronavirus pandemic has been a difficult time for people of all ages. Social distancing has led to feelings of loneliness. The virus itself has led to feelings of anxiety and fear. And these negative emotions will only be compounded in the weeks ahead as more cities and states reopen. Parents and ministry workers need support to keep the young people in their care healthy and connected.
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Ecumenical Patriarchate News

Petition and Prayer from the Network of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for Pastoral Health Care

06/01/2020

“Again we pray for all those that have fallen sick and are in extremity, and for the doctors and nurses and all those in the areas of health, who serve and minister to the sick, offering care and comfort; that the Lord our God will furthermore strengthen them, work through them and guide them in all things.”
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