WEEKLY BULLETIN
12/30/2018
January 6, 2019 Holy Theophany: The Baptism of Jesus Christ
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Holy Theophany:Today’s great feast commemorates the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan River by his cousin Saint John the Baptist and forerunner. Today God appears as He truly is: 3 persons in one essence– Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Father’s voice was heard during the baptism saying “this is my beloved Son.” Jesus, the Son was being baptized in the Jordan as the Holy Spirit appeared above our Lord in the form of a dove. You will receive Holy water (Agiasmos) today. The Agiasmos should be drunk and any remainder kept by an icon in your home and used during the course of the entire year. You can drink the Agiasmos any time you have a spiritual need. Our entire Church has prayed over the water sanctifying it for you.
Why do we have our Homes/ Businesses Blessed after Theophany?
We celebrate Theophany on January 6th each year. Theophanymeans the appearance or manifestation of God. At Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River, according to the gospels of Mark & John, Jesus was there, the voice of the Father was heard and something in the form of a dove alighted on Jesus’ head. The Holy Trinity- (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) was present. As Orthodox Christians, it is imperative that God is in our homes ALL year round. By inviting our pastor to bless our homes and businesses we are inviting Christ Himself to be in our midst as our pastor prays with us. Saint John Chrysostom asserted that the first church is the home. The active presence of Jesus Christ creates a nurturing, loving home. A church home is the foundation of who we are and in Whom we believe. Thus Holy water blessings (Agiasmos) bring Christ into our homes and businesses.
Wisdom from the Fathers on the significance of the Baptism of Christ:
Why were the heavens opened? “To inform you that at your baptism also this was done, God calling you to your country on high”. - Saint John Chrysostom
“Christ is illumined; let us shine forth with Him. Christ is baptized; let us descend with Him that we may also ascend with Him. Moses baptized but it was in water ... John the Baptist also baptized ... not only in water, but also "unto repentance." Still it was not wholly spiritual, for he does not add "And in the Spirit." Jesus Himself was baptized, but in the Spirit. This is the perfect baptism. - Saint Gregory the Theologian
House/ Business Blessings 2019: to have your home and/or business blessed for 2019 please complete the request form and insert in the drop box in the narthex or mail it to the parish office.
Tommorrow is theFeast Day of John the Baptist: The name John is a very popular name, and there are more than fifty saints in the Orthodox Church who bear his name. The English form of the Greek IOANNES is from the Hebrew JOCHANAN meaning, “God is gracious”. The Feminine form, JOANNA, is nearer to the original Hebrew word. Tomorrow we observe the feast of St. John the Baptist who was sent “to prepare the way of the Lord.” To all who bear his name, may our Lord grant you many years- CHRONIA POLLA!
Monday, January 7th Synaxis of Saint John the Baptist: Orthros 9a.m. Divine Liturgy 10a.m.
Religious Education: Happy New Year! Classes resume today.
Please Save The Date: Sunday, February 10 we will be hosting our annual Godparent Sunday Brunch, immediately following church services. We encourage all godparents to attend this celebration with godchildren by preparing for and receiving Holy Communion together.
Young Emerging Adults Ministry (YEA): Our thriving “Young Emerging Adults Ministry” (ages 18+)
Will meet tomorrow evening, January 7th, 2019 at 7:30PM in the home of Fr. Bill and Presv. Sophia Gikas. It’s a gathering meant for inquiring, sharing, and growing through faith, fellowship and some food (desserts)! At the casual gathering we apply the teachings of our Lord in our daily lives. Most importantly YEA is about relationship. If you have any questions e-mail Fr. Bill at frbill@stnicholasnj.org or call 201 652 4774 ext. 12.
Philoptochos: All Philoptochos members are invited to attend the Philoptochos meeting on January 7th at 7:00pm in the conference room.
Sessions on Scripture (SOS): SOS will resume on Wednesday, January 23rd in the conference room at 2:00pm and at 7:30pm for a discussion of Saint Paul’s Letter to Timothy chapter 1. We use the Orthodox Study Bible (OSB) which is available in our bookstore. For info contact Fr. Bill at frbill@stnicholasnj.org or Caroline Kalliotzis at ckalliotzis@aol.com. SOS is open to all. No prior knowledge of Scripture is required.
Kali Parea: Kali Parea wishes everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year. Our first meeting of the New Year will be on Tuesday, January 8th at 12Noon in the Fellowship Hall. Please bring your lunch and we will share Vasilopita and coffee. We look forward to seeing many of you. In this New Year may you be blessed with Love in your heart and Peace in your soul. If the weather is questionable we will cancel the meeting.
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Orthros: 9:00A.M. Epistle: Titus 2:11-14 ; 3:4-7 (pg. 1357) |
Divine Liturgy: 10:00A.M. Gospel: Matthew 3:13-17 (pg. 1149) |
Acolytes: Paul Dobrow, Nick Seretis, Emmanuel Pittas, Nico Pittas, Alex Peppes, Alexi Argyros, Aidan William Soukas
Ushers: Michael Kalliotzis, Ted Milyadis, John Peters, Christos Agrapidis Narthex: Melissa Gasparis, Jon Zymaris |
Reader & Greeter: GOYA
Fellowship Hour: Daughters of Penelope Prosforon: The Tsiamtsiouris Family
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Vasilopita, Sunday, January 13th, 2019: Please join us for our Vasilopita celebration in the Fellowship Hall after church. May this wonderful tradition of our Faith be a source of goodness and joy for all our Saint Nicholas families.
Parish 50th Anniversary Celebration: November 3, 2019: We are planning the 50th Anniversary Celebration of our parish. To help, please join the event committee. See Fr. Bill, Nick Pirsos or any parish council member to offer your time, talent and treasure.
GIVING TREE/MORTGAGE BURNING CAMPAIGN: saint nicholas CHURCH CAN be mortgage free by 2020- you can make it happen! Various giving levels are available: you can leaf your donation!or show your love - donate a dove! Or be not forlorn, give an acorn! Be the first on your block and donate a rock. Be a hunk and give a tree trunk! and you can memorialize a loved one by donating to the giving tree and including a scriptural message. We are at about 30% of our goal.
STEWARDSHIP BY THE NUMBERS: Stewardship is our personal offering of time, talent and treasure. Stewardship is based on Holy Scripture as God has heavenly expectations for His people. Since time and talent offerings are more difficult to measure, one measurement of our response to God is our average “treasure” pledge per steward household. In 2017, we had 400 steward households that donated a total of $325,429.
To date in 2018, we have 239 households that have pledged $236,227 plus 135 unpledged households that together have donated $328,445 thus far. Please pledge for 2019 by completing a 2019 stewardship card