Update for the week Thursday, July 2, through Thursday, July 9, 2015

THIS WEEK

SATURDAY, the Fourth of July – No Vespers at St. Mary

SUNDAY, 7/5 - Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am. (St. Mary no longer has different, earlier hours for Sunday services during the summer.)

   + This Sunday at Liturgy we will celebrate the Supplication Service to St. Raphael of Brooklyn and venerate our new Antimens. (For more information about the Antimins see http://orthodoxwiki.org/Antimension )

THURSDAY, 7/9 – There will be a Convention Committee meeting on Thursday, July 9, at 7:00 pm at the church.

NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS

MEMORY ETERNAL – We regret to inform you of the falling asleep in the Lord of Thomas Lanciani of Sterling on June 27, 2015. Thomas was the father of Arlene Marge, father-in-law of Charles Marge and grandfather of Thomas and Anthony Marge. Funeral Services will be held on Friday, July 3, with visitation 9:30-11:00 am and the funeral at 11:00 am, at in the Silas F. Richardson and Son Funeral Home, 106 West Street, Leominster. Burial with military honors will follow in Hillside Cemetery, Clinton Road (Route 62), Sterling. Donations in his memory may be made to the Sterling Council on Aging, One Park St., Sterling, MA 01564. His obituary may be seen at http://www.richardsonfuneralhome.net/obits/obituary.php?id=557642

SERVICES THE WEEKEND BEFORE THE CONVENTION – On Saturday and Sunday, July 18-19, there will be no services at St. Mary's Church. Great Vespers at 5:00 pm on Saturday and Patriarchal Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am on Sunday will be held at St. George Cathedral, Worcester, with His Beatitude Patriarch JOHN X and His Eminence Metropolitan JOSEPH. All our Diocesan churches will be closed so the faithful can be at the Cathedral for this historic and joyous celebration. Our Diocesan Choir will sing during the Divine Liturgy.

   Following the Divine Liturgy, a luncheon will be served in the Cathedral Hall with His Beatitude, our Hierarchs and Clergy. Adults $35; Children ages 4-10 $15; Children 3 and under free. Reservations are required – there will be no tickets available at the door. Contact the Cathedral office at 508-752-9150 for reservations and information.

COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – Volunteering always falls off this time of year, but the need for fellowship and hospitality stays strong. Please sign up to sponsor a coffee hour this summer, individually or with friends. It can be as simple as coffee, juice, and cookies, and plenty of help is available. Signup sheets are on the bulletin board downstairs outside the Hall, or call Barbara in the office at 617-547-1234 or email secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org. No one has volunteered yet for this Sunday! Isn't it your turn by now?

FSJD SCHOLARSHIP WINNER - Congratulations to Gabriel Smith, recipient of the 2015 New England Region FSJD Scholarship, which was presented to him at the Parish Life Conference in Providence. The scholarships are awarded to high school seniors who are faithful and active Orthodox Christians whose high school records indicate a potential for being successful in an accredited college.

FUNDRAISING DINNER - The Balamand Educational Foundation will be hosting a fundraising event with His Beatitude, JOHN X on Saturday, July 18, at the DoubleTree Hotel, 5400 Computer Drive, Westborough, MA, 01581. Cocktails at 6:30 pm, dinner at 7:30. Seating is very limited - first come, first served. Please contact Fawaz El Khoury for more information on purchasing tickets at 508-864-4000.

REMINDERS

HELP AT THE CONVENTION – More volunteers – both women and men – are needed to help set up the chapel on Monday, July 20th and break it down on the next Sunday after liturgy. We also need more ushers for the daily services and liturgies. Please contact Fr. Antony at frawhj@gmail.com to volunteer.

BIBLE BOWL RESULTS – At the Parish Life Conference in June, our Teen Bible Bowl team of Maedot Kassa, Anthony Marge, and Gaby Mazzoni (with Amanuel Kassa as alternate) finished 2nd out of 8 teams, just 4 points behind St. George Lowell.  Many thanks to coach Violet Robbat, who always prepares our team well for the competition.

   For the adults, our team of Charlie Marge and Theo Smith pulled out a last minute come-from-behind victory, tying the score with one question left and edging out St. George Boston on a tie-break! Congratulations to all our competitors!

SACRED MUSIC INSTITUTE - The 30th Anniversary SMI will be held Wednesday-Sunday, July 8-12 at the Antiochian Village, with Metropolitan JOSEPH as the Keynote Speaker. To register, go to http://registration.antiochianvillage.org/Registration/Welcome.aspx?e=7413B331578E5950B91A801CA88B0AFF

DUCK BOAT TOUR - Join us on Monday Night of the Convention, July 20, for a Boston Duck Boat Tour – kick off the Archdiocese Convention with a duck boat of fellow Orthodox Christians! Unlike other convention events, this one must be booked well in advance to guarantee a spot, as tickets cannot be sold at the convention. Register TODAY for the convention (www.acboston2015.com) and sign up for the Duck Tour. Adults & Teens $35, 12 and under $30. Questions? Contact Charlie Marge (marge@alum.mit.edu).

ARCHDIOCESE CONVENTION - As you know, our parish will be hosting the 2015 Archdiocesan Convention at the Sheraton-Boston Hotel and Hynes Auditorium in Copley Square Tuesday through Sunday, July 21-26, 2015. There are numerous and various committees on which you may volunteer. We will require everyone’s involvement at St. Mary’s to make this convention truly a success spiritually, socially and financially. If you are interested in participating, please see either Father Antony or the co-chairs, Raymond Sayeg and Mary Winstanley O’Connor.

   To register for the convention and purchase convention event tickets and tickets for Boston excursions, go to www.acboston2015.com. The Sheraton Boston is completely sold out at this time, even though the convention committee had reserved a block of 3,000 room nights, substantially more than is typical for a convention. Other hotels in the vicinity, near the Hynes Convention Center, may still have vacancies.

CHURCH OFFICE CLOSED – St. Mary Church and the church office will be closed during the Convention, Tuesday - Sunday, July 21-26.

PATRISTICS INSTITUTE – You are invited to take part in the ninth annual Summer Program in Patristic Studies sponsored by the Pappas Patristic Institute of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. This five-day program is for theology and religious studies students, including masters-level students and undergraduates, and others, including clergy and lay people, with a background in religious studies, who would like to pursue their interests in the early Church. This year’s program will be held from July 19 – 24, 2015 on the campus of Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts. See http://www.hchc.edu/assets/files/patristics/2015%20AnnouncmentProgram_150502.pdf for more information.

BIBLE STUDY – St. Mary Bible Study group is based on a very interesting course originally broadcast on Ancient Faith Radio, entitled Search the Scriptures – see http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info. The next discussion will cover David and Bathsheba, lessons 93 and 94. For more information contact Marianna Sayeg (mksayeg@gmail.com) or Fr. Antony (frawhj@gmail.com) New members are always welcome. Note: during the summer this year the Bible Study will meet just once each month. The next meeting will be Thursday, July 30 at 7:00 pm in the Church library.

TANGLEWOOD OUTING – Join your music-loving friends from St. Mary’s as we carpool out to Tanglewood after Liturgy on Sunday, August 2 (the weekend after the Convention). We’ll picnic on the lawn and listen to music by Haydn, Dean and Strauss featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma, with violinist Joshua Bell and new BSO conductor Andris Nelsons. For more information see http://www.bso.org/Performance/Detail/69833 . The concert starts at 2:30; lawn tickets are $21.00 (pay at the door). Bring lawn chairs if you want them, and picnic food for yourself and to share. For more information and to let us know you're coming, especially if you'll need a ride, contact Melissa Nassiff by email (mnassiff@gmail.com) or phone (508 877-7483).

NEW SKETE PILGRIMAGE - The Monastic Communities of New Skete Monastery in Cambridge, New York (www.newskete.org), invite you to their Annual Pilgrimage on Saturday, August 8, 2014, between 8:30am - 6:00pm.  The day will include Church Services, Church Tours, a Photo Exhibit, and a Healing Service with Anointing as well as talks by the monastics on Monastic Life and Iconography and by Chapel Community members on their relationship with the monastery.  In addition, pilgrims will have the opportunity to visit with the New Skete German Shepherds and take a hike on the monks' mountain. Activities for kids are also planned. This year's guest speaker is Dr. Anton Vrame. Dr. Vrame is the Director of the Department of Religious Education for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. He will be exploring the trends in society and their effects of Christianity in the US today and into the future. His talk is entitled, "Does the Future Have a Church?"

   + In years past, a number of us have gone out for the weekend to help the Communities with this event—to be extra sets of "helping hands" for the day.  They are hoping a number of us will do so again this year. Would you like to help? In the past, this has been a wonderful community building activity for all of us. Moreover, if you have never been to the monastery, this may be a good way to be introduced to their life and work. Contact Reva Regule (teva@mit.edu ) for more information, especially about housing. Note that the Emmaus house is now a guest house. Anyone wishing to stay there should contact Br. Gregory directly (brgregory@newskete.org) by Monday, July 6. They will hold the rooms for us until that date.

PARISH COUNCIL - The next Parish Council meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, August 26 at 7:30 pm at the church.

CHURCH SCHOOL TEACHERS NEEDED - We are in need of teachers for the fall, in particular Pre-School and Kindergarten/1st grade. Anyone interested in teaching, or being an assistant or substitute, please contact Barbara@dsaarchitects.com.

BOURELL FAMILY UPDATE – After being burned out of their home, Amanda and their kids have found temporary lodging with family in Michigan and Texas, while Peter will stay here with a colleague near the hospital where he's working. They greatly appreciate everyone's prayers, support and suggestions for local housing during this difficult time. Some of their close friends and colleagues have begun a fundraising site that Larisa Patacchiola (larisademshuk@yahoo.com ) will be happy to share details about if anyone would like.

THEOPHANY SCHOOL REGISTRATION - Theophany School is now enrolling for Fall 2015. They are excited to announce Theophany School's expansion into Elementary School and offering Preschool, Pre-K, Kindergarten, and First Grade Enrollment for this Fall. For more information visit their website at http://www.theophanyschool.org or contact them at 781-444-3058 or theophanyschool@gmail.com

SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR THIS SUNDAY

   Epistle:

Brethren, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. ... If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us have no self-conceit, no provocation of one another, no envy of one another. ... Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

   - Galatians 5:22-6:2 

   Gospel:

When Jesus came to the country of the Gergesenes, two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God?  Have you come here to torment us before the time?” ...And the demons begged Him, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of swine.” And He said to them, “Go.” ...

   - Matthew 8:28-9:1 

REFLECTION 

Virtues are formed by prayer. Prayer preserves temperance. Prayer suppresses anger. Prayer prevents emotions of pride and envy. Prayer draws into the soul the Holy Spirit, and raises man to Heaven.'

   - St. Ephrem of Syria

The demons that wage war on us through our shortcomings in virtue are those that teach unchastity, drunkenness, avarice and envy. Those that wage war on us through our excessive zeal for virtue teach conceit, self-esteem and pride; they secretly pervert what is commendable into what is reprehensible.

   - St. Maximos the Confessor

All condemnation is from the devil. Never condemn each other. We condemn others only because we shun knowing ourselves. When we gaze at our own failings, we see such a swamp that nothing in another can equal it. That is why we turn away, and make much of the faults of others. Instead of condemning others, strive to reach inner peace. Keep silent, refrain from judgment. This will raise you above the deadly arrows of slander, insult and outrage and will shield your glowing hearts against all evil.

   - St Seraphim of Sarov

Moralism is a kind of religiosity which seeks to label and condemn external behavior. ... It often hides real wickedness under a cloak of religiosity and consistently confirms our dictum that moral outrage is a form of involuntary confession.

   - Archbishop Lazar Puhalo

Know that the Angels induce us toward prayers, stand with us during them, rejoicing and praying for us. But if we are careless and accept sinful thoughts, we distress our Angels. Because, while they have committed themselves for us, we are too lazy to ask God for ourselves. Worse yet, in neglecting to serve God and seemingly turning our backs on their Master, we conduct a mental conversation with unchaste demons.

   - St Nilus of Sinai