Update for the week Thursday, September 11, through Thursday, September 18, 2014

THIS WEEK

VESPERS – There will be a Great Vespers service this Saturday, September 13, at 5:00 pm.

CREATIVE ARTS AWARDS - Award ribbons will be given to the children who participated in the Diocese of Worcester and New England Creative Arts Competition, following Liturgy this Sunday, September 14. Please see that your child is present for the award presentation if they were in Grades K/1, 2, 3, 4/5 and 6 last Spring and helped complete the Creative Arts project for their class. The projects will be on display in the Church Hall following the presentation.

CHURCH SCHOOL – Church School Registration for new students age 3 and older will be held this Sunday after Liturgy. Church School classes will start next Sunday, September 21.

TEEN SOYO KAYACKING TRIP – The teens are holding a kickoff event this Sunday, September 14, going kayaking down the Charles. They will depart after church and finish up around 2:30.

WOMENS CLUB – The Women’s Club will meet on Monday September 15, at 7:30 at the church. We welcome all women of the parish to join us in the Women’s Club in September. We do charitable work both locally and internationally and support the Church School, and we would love for you to join us. Call Mary Ellen Mabardy (781-729-6303) or the church office if you have any questions or want to be a part of this wonderful group of women.


NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
MAHRAJAN - St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church, Lowell, MA, invites you to their 1st Annual Mahrajan next Saturday, September 20, from Noon to 11:00pm at Holy Ghost Park, 61 Village St., Lowell. Free admission, live Arabic music, food, kids’ activities and playground.

DIOCESAN DELEGATES MEETING – The Fall Diocesan Delegates Meetings of Teen SOYO, Fellowship of St. John the Divine and Antiochian Women will be held with a General Assembly on Saturday, October 4, at Emmanuel Church, Warren, MA. Divine Liturgy will be at 9:00am, meetings at 10:30am.

2015 CONVENTION COMMITTEE – St. Mary will be hosting the 2015 National Convention of the Antiochian Archdiocese of North America. The next meeting of the Convention Committee will be on Wednesday, October 21, at 7:30pm at the church.

CHURCH SCHOOL TEACHERS – Thanks to all those who are volunteering their time to be Teachers/Assistants and Substitutes for the 2014-2015 school year: Pre-K-Alyssa Shoop/ Laran Matta /Klorela Alcala; Kindergarten/Grade 1- Esther Porr/ Cyatharine Alias; Grade 2/3- Georgia Cambra/Shannon Sakellariou; Grade 4/5- Natasha Smith/Jack Souweha; Grade 6- Marianna Sayeg/Dino Takles; Grade7/8- Peter Nassiff/Tom Perkins; Discussion Group (Gr. 9-12) - Greg Hakim/Hannah Oakley


REMINDERS
WELCOME BACK" BREAKFAST – This year's “Welcome Back” breakfast is being organized by both the FSJD and the Sunday School Administration.
     WHEN: After Liturgy next Sunday, September 21, 2014
     WHERE: Downstairs in the church hall.
     WHY: 1. To join us in welcoming back visiting Orthodox college students and St. Mary's Sunday School students.
               2. To help showcase all of the volunteer organizations. Be involved at St. Mary's!
WHO: Everyone is invited to attend!
Important details: There will be a reserved table for college students, and a reserved table for Sunday School students. Besides those, each table will showcase 1-2 groups - each group is bringing a coffee hour food, so be prepared to mingle and partake of this special, church-wide coffee hour. (If you lead a St. Mary's group and haven't yet received an email from Julie Wasilko on signing up for the breakfast, please email her at julie31415pi@gmail.com.)

MEN'S RETREAT WITH BP. JOHN – There will be a Men’s Retreat with His Grace, Bishop John, at the St. Methodios Center in New Hampshire on September 19-21. The retreat will be a four-part call to action addressing Jesus’ final commandment. Cost: $199, includes meals. Contact Jeff St. Jean at 413-348-2878 or mensgroup@stoc.org for more info.

SONIA'S RUN/WALK – The 6th annual Sonia’s 5K Run/Walk., at St. George Orthodox Church, West Roxbury, MA, will be held on Saturday, September 20. The 5k road race is held annually to benefit the Theophany School in honor of beloved friend Sonia Belcher. The proceeds from Sonia's Run go towards Theophany School's "Building on a Dream" campaign, to fulfill Sonia's dream of a permanent home for Theophany School. For details, registration, etc see http://www.soniasrun.org/ or contact Theophany School at 781-444-3058.

PARISH COUNCIL – The next meeting of the Parish Council will be Wednesday, September 24, at 7:45 pm.

ST. THEKLA AND ST. RAPHAEL PILGRIMAGE - Registration is open for the annual St. Thekla & St. Raphael Pilgrimage, held at the Antiochian Village on Friday-Sunday, September 26-28, with His Grace Bishop Thomas of the Diocese of Charleston, Oakland, and the Mid-Atlantic presiding. Lodging for both adults and children is available for the weekend. Registration form and additional information is available at http://www.antiochian.org/sites/default/files/2014_brochure.pdf

ATTENTION COLLEGE STUDENTS – If you are a new or returning college or university student, please fill out a yellow “College Student Address Form” on the Bengarri (desk in Narthex) so that we can send you St. Mary’s church announcements and information about college activities.  Please leave the form on the Bengarii or give directly to Greg or Hannah Hakim (greghakim@gmail.com ).

TEEN SOYO ELECTIONS – Elections for Teen SOYO officers will take place in late September. See Hannah or Greg if you're interested in running for office.

ENQUIRERS CLASS - The St. Ignatius Catechetical Group (Enquirers’ Class) will begin meeting on Sunday, October 5 at 9:00am in the library (next door to Fr. Antony’s office). The group is for non-Orthodox adults who are interested in exploring the Christian Faith as it has been – and continues to be – understood, preached, and lived by members of the Holy Orthodox Church who descend from the early Christian community of Antioch, where “the disciples were for the first time called Christians” (Acts 11:26). Bob Kowalik will be teaching the group using materials developed and piloted by St. Mary catechist emeritus David Vermette. If you would like to participate, please talk to Bob during coffee hour; or get in touch by phone 617-889-3436 or e mail r.kowalik@comcast.net. For those seeking to be received into the Orthodox Church, participation in the group and Fr. Antony’s blessing are required.


OPPORTUNITIES FOR SERVICE
There are a number of ways you can help the Church, your fellow worshipers, and those in need.  Consider serving in one of these ways:

BE A GREETER – If you do not sing in the choir, or chant, serve in the Altar or at the Bengarri, and  are not a Church School teacher,  please consider serving the Church as a Greeter!  Greeters arrive 15 minutes before Liturgy, get a Greeter Name Tag from the Bengarri, pin it on and greet visitors/parishioners at the Church Entrance and direct them upstairs to the Church, or to the cloakroom or restrooms.  Greeting time ends when Communion starts.  Send your name and e-mail address to Buddy Mabardy: buddymabardy@cjmabardy.com or phone him 781-729-6303. Or call the Church office 617-547-1234.

LITURGICAL SERVICE – Each Sunday, members of the congregation are needed to read the Epistle and assist during Communion by holding the Communion Cloths and Blessed Bread.  All Orthodox Christians in the Parish are welcome and encouraged to participate. We usually need one Epistle reader and four people to hold the cloths.  If you would like to read the Epistle or assist during Communion, please contact Jeff Wasilko, 781-820-0882, jeffw@smoe.org
Also, members of the Church School and others help by carrying the Icon, Candlesticks, and Bread Baskets in procession during the Great Entrance, and presenting the Bread to be blessed during the Liturgy. To volunteer for this service please contact Teva Regule at teva@mit.edu.

COFFEE HOUR – People are needed every week to provide coffee, juice and cookies, or more if desired, and set it up Sunday morning. To sign up for an available Sunday, please put your name on the new signup sheet on the bulletin board outside the Hall or call Barbara Shoop in the Parish Office and she will write your name in. If you need any help with figuring out what to bring or do, check the list below the signup sheet (also printed in the monthly Cornerstone), or ask Barbara at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234.

PRISON MINISTRY – If you would like to find out more about Prison Ministry at St. Mary’s Church, please subscribe to our mailing list at http://groups.google.com/group/ocpm-concord.
Also - please donate unwanted past issues of Orthodox magazines such as The Word, OCMC or other periodicals to our prison ministry to hand out to inmates.  Please remove any personal mailing address for security purposes and give them to Mitrophan Chin.

VIDEO EDITING – Volunteers are wanted to assist with video editing of sermons and lectures. We are looking for volunteers to assist with some basic video editing to post the sermons and lectures from St. Mary's online. If you have experience with digital video editing, please let Jamil Samara or Erick Straghalis know you are interested - email live@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.

PHOTOGRAPHERS AND GRAPHIC DESIGNERS – Are you a photographer or a graphic designer? Would you be willing to share your talents with St. Mary Church and her ministries? We are looking for you to help photograph the divine services and events and to design promotional material for events and programs at our parish. Please contact Jamil Samara at webmaster@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org with any questions, and to let him know that you are interested in getting more involved.

"As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me," says our Lord.

LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Thursday, September 11: Bible Study

Saturday, September 13: Great Vespers 5:00

Sunday, September 14: Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; Creative Arts awards presentation; Church School registration (for new students and children age 3 and older)

Scripture Readings for Sunday, September 14:
   Epistle: 1 Corinthians 1:18-24
Brethren, the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. … For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

   Gospel: John 19:6-11, 13-20, 25-28, 30-35
At that time, when the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, "Crucify him, crucify him!" Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no crime in him." The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and by that law he ought to die, because he has made himself the Son of God." … Then he handed him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called the place of a skull, which is called in Hebrew Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote a title and put it on the cross; it read, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." ...


LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, September 13: Great Vespers 5:00

Sunday, September 14: Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; Creative Arts awards presentation; Church School registration (for new students and children age 3 and older)

Saturday, September 20: Great Vespers 5:00

Sunday, September 21: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; Church School classes start; Welcome Back Breakfast (new format)

Thursday, September 25: Bible study 7:00 pm

Saturday, September 27: Great Vespers 5:00

Sunday, September 28: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; followed by Church School


REFLECTION
It is impossible to represent and to think of the cross without love. Where the cross is, there is love. In church you see crosses everywhere and on everything, in order that everything should remind you that you are in the temple of the God of love, the temple of love crucified for us.
   - St. John of Kronstadt

To be crucified in Christ is to die to one's own death in order to enter into the sacrifice that restores wholeness, and to understand, as St. Paul says, "the breadth and length and height and depth" of love (Ephesians 3:18-19).
   - Olivier Clement, The Roots of Christian Mysticism

What was Christ’s love like? Did it withhold anything? Did it take note of or measure its spiritual gifts? What did it regret, where was it ever stingy? Christ’s humanity was spit upon, struck, crucified. Christ’s Divinity was fully incarnate to the end in his spit-upon, battered, degraded and crucified Humanity. The Cross — an instrument of shameful death — became a symbol of self-denying love for the world.
   - Mother Maria Skobtsova

If the death of our Lord is a ransom for all and by his death “the wall of partition” (Eph. 2:14) is broken down, and the call of the Gentiles effected, how would he have called us if he had not been crucified? For only upon the cross does one die with hands stretched out. Therefore it was fitting for the Lord to endure this, and to stretch out his hands, that with the one he might draw the ancient people and with the other those from the Gentiles, and join both together in himself.
   - St. Athanasius the Great

The kingdom of heaven or, rather, the King of heaven - ineffable in His generosity - is within us (cf. Luke 17:21); and to Him we should cleave through acts of repentance and patient endurance, loving as much as we can Him Who so dearly has loved us.
   - St. Gregory Palamas, Philokalia