Update for the week Friday, November 29 - Wednesday, December 5, 2018
THIS WEEK AT ST. MARY’S
SATURDAY, 12/1 - Chant Rehearsal at 4:00pm
+ Great Vespers 5:00
+ Young Adult Fellowship Night 6:00pm - potluck dinner and Christmas crafts and games. They'll be singing Christmas carols and decorating the church and Iconostasis for the Nativity season! Bring a friend and a delicious Lenten dish or drink to share.
SUNDAY 12/2 – Orthros 8:45am, St. Ignatius Catechetical Group (Enquirers’ Class) 9:00am, Divine Liturgy 10:00am, followed by St. Nicholas sermon - Children remain upstairs after communion
+ Parish Christmas Card orders due. Let the Women’s Club send a lovely Christmas card on your behalf to our parishioners. Save yourself time; let us do the work, and have all proceeds benefit the Antiochian Women’s Project. You will receive this card with the names of parishioners, like yourself, who are wishing a Blessed Nativity and a Merry Christmas to all. Please use the order form in the Sunday bulletin and turn it in at the Bengarri, or mail to: St. Mary Church, 8 Inman St., Cambridge, MA 02139-2407, and donate whatever amount you choose.
+ Church School Christmas Pageant rehearsal will not be held this week. See New Announcements below
+ Messiah concert 3:00pm
MONDAY 12/3 - The Women’s Club will be going out to dinner for our Christmas gathering. We will meet at the Cheesecake Factory at the Mall at Chestnut Hill at 7:00pm. All women of the parish are welcome to join us. If you are interested contact Barbara (barbara@dsaarchitects.com) or the church office (617-547-1234 or secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org ). We hope you will come!
WEDNESDAY 12/5 – The next meeting of the Parish Council is scheduled for Wednesday, December 5 at 7:30pm.
THIS WEEK ELSEWHERE
SATURDAY 12/1 – The Diocese of Worcester and New England will offer a Marriage Preparation and Enrichment Workshop with Bishop JOHN. Time: 10:00am-3:00pm. Place: Chancery - 2 Lydias Path, Westborough, MA. Cost, $30 per couple, includes lunch and workshop materials. RSVP to Bp. JOHN at frjpa@aol.com
+ St. John’s Dedham invites you to a Holiday Pops Concert presented by the Metropolitan Wind Symphony, from 6:00 to 9:00pm. Cocktail hour and Mazza 6pm; Concert 7pm, Coffee and pastry 8pm. $15 for adults; $5 for children. To reserve tickets call 781-326-3046, or go to www.stjohnd.org/pops
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
CHRISTMAS PAGEANT - If your child is interested in participating in the Church School Christmas Pageant, please see Sarah Byrne-Martelli or Chris Addis. We also need parents to assist at rehearsal, which will be Sunday, December 9 during coffee hour. The Pageant will be Sunday, December 16 after liturgy.
ROAD RACE - On Sunday, December 9 the “Yulefest Road Race” will begin at 9:30am in Harvard Square and affect traffic on Kirkland St., Cambridge St., Inman St. and Harvard St. If you come to church via Inman you may encounter delays between Cambridge St. and Harvard St. For map of the race see https://www.cambridge5k.com/yulefest/
CLOTHING DRIVE - The Young Adults will be collecting new and slightly used clothing, new toiletries, and new socks on December 9 and 16 during coffee hour. Clothing will go to the Emmanuel Gospel Center's Starlight Ministries. All are invited to donate! If you would like to help on either of those Sundays, please email us at youngadults@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
ANGEL TREE - Every year, our community participates in the Angel Tree Prison Ministry, which provides Christmas gifts to children in our local community on behalf of their parent serving time in prison. On Sunday, December 16, the Young Adults will be delivering these gifts to those families. Please contact Gregg Flessas (flessas99@gmail.com) if you'd like to purchase a gift.
NYE 2019 CELEBRATION – St. John of Damascus invites everyone to a New Years Eve
Celebration on Monday, December 31, starting at 8:00pm. Cost is $35 per person, $30 under 18, or $100 per family. DJ Bob Moses & Arabic dancing, Appetizers 8:00pm, Delicatessen buffet 10:00pm, and Champaign toast at Midnight. Reservation required by December 24 – send payment to St. John of Damascus Church, 300 West St., Dedham MA 02026.
WINTER FAMILY CAMP – Register now for Winter Family Camp at Antiochian Village to be held on Martin Luther King Jr. Weekend, January 18 – 21, 2019. Family Camp is an opportunity for your family to get away from everyday life and take a weekend as a family to grow closer to Christ.. Registration is now open at https://avcamp.org/other-programs/winter-family-camp/ Cost: $150/parent, $50/child, includes meals and lodging.
IOCC HOME BUILD VOLUNTEERS NEEDED - IOCC is calling all young adults for home-builds this winter and spring in Texas (Dec 17-22 and Jan 1-5) and Florida (Feb 11-16)! Sign-up deadlines are quickly approaching! You will be able to help those affected by recent natural disasters and get to spend a week with other amazing Orthodox people from around the country! Cost is $100 which includes lodging, food and transportation on location. Flight not included in the cost. Sign up today and/or e-mail Liza Kotar at volunteercoordinator@iocc.org with questions or call 425-891-4614. To learn more, go to https://www.iocc.org/take-action/join-action-team/home-build-volunteers
2019 COFFEE HOURS - The 2019 Sign-Up Sheet for has been posted! Please sign up to provide a coffee hour – it can be as simple as coffee, juice, and cookies. Plenty of help is available! Signup sheets are on the bulletin board outside the Hall, or contact Linda Arnold (mmarmee52@aol.com) or the Church Office (617-547-1234 or Secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org ). Remember, no volunteer = no coffee hour!
REMINDERS
OFFERING ENVELOPES – If you use offering envelopes, the 2019 envelopes are now available for pick-up in the Hall. If you would like to learn about fulfilling your pledge through eGive, please e-mail stewardship@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org
OPEN HOUSE - On Thursday, December 6, Theophany School will have an Open House, 3:30-6:30pm, 754 Greendale Ave., Needham, MA. A St. Nicholas craft for children and refreshments will be provided. The school serves children ages 18 months - 6 years of age.
LESSONS AND CAROLS – Join us for a Western Rite Service of prayers, scripture readings, and Christmas Carols on Sunday, December 9 at 5:30pm, featuring the Boston Civic Symphony Brass Quintet and St. Mary's Choir. Please bring a canned food item for our food drive.
FOOD FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE – Help support our Canned Food Drive! From now through December 31, bring in canned goods and place them in the plastic bins in the room outside the kitchen. (Canned goods only, please.) They will be distributed to food pantries in our area. Since 1984, churches throughout the Archdiocese have collected and distributed over 5,000,000 pounds of food!
BIBLE STUDY – St. Mary’s Bible Study/Adult Education Program will not meet again until early January. Each bi-weekly session will be an in-depth look at the lectionary reading for the next Sunday. Come join us - everyone is welcome to attend! For questions or directions please contact the co-leaders: Steve Walker at smwalk@gmail.com or Christina Palis at christina_palis@mail.harvard.edu.
ST. MARY’S ANNIVERSARY – Save the date: On May 18, 2019 we will celebrate our 90thAnniversary at the Crown Plaza in Woburn. Plan to join us for dinner, dancing and other festivities. More details to follow.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR TECHNOLOGY MINISTRY - For many years, St. Mary's Technology Ministry has had a tremendous reach and impact through the Internet for parishioners and friends of St. Mary's and seekers of the faith near and far. We are looking for new volunteers to assist in the following areas: the parish website, social media channels, photography, videos of sermons and life of the parish, live streaming, and more! If you are interested to learn more, contact Jamil at webmaster@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
BE A GREETER - We could use your help in being a Greeter. This is a great opportunity to meet all the parishioners of St. Mary’s. As a Greeter, you will welcome people into the church and help to direct visitors upstairs to the Liturgy, as well as keeping an eye on the Vestibule, Hallways and Entrance ways during Church. Arrive at church 15 minutes before Liturgy (9:45am). Greeting time ends when Communion starts. Sign up for one Sunday or several Sundays. If you are interested, contact Buddy Mabardy at buddy@cjmabardy.com or 781-729-6303, or the church office at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234.
JOIN US ONLINE - St. Mary’s Church services are broadcast live each week through an internet video stream. If you can't attend a service in person, or want to share this ministry with a friend or loved one, the live stream can be viewed at www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/live during regularly scheduled service times (see the schedule of services or online). If you have questions or comments about this ministry please contact us at live@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org