Update for the week Friday, June 25, through Thursday, July 1, 2010
THIS WEEKEND
FEAST OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL – The Apostles’ Fast ends with Evening Liturgy for Ss. Peter & Paul on Monday, June 28, at 6:30 pm
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
LOST BABY DOLL - Iliana misses Genevieve!! Our 4-yr old daughter Iliana lost her American Girl baby doll during coffee hour on Sunday, June 13th. It is blond and blue-eyed, just like her. If anyone can help reunite them, we'd really appreciate it. Thanks! Panayiotis and Shannon Sakellariou, psakellariou@yahoo.com, (617) 327-2705.
BIBLE BOWL CHAMPS - Congratulations to our own Thomas Marge, Theo Smith, Gabriel Smith, and their coach Violet Robbat, winners of the 2010 Bible Bowl for the Diocese of Worcester & New England! Our Bible Bowl team will compete as the New England representatives at the North American Council - Fellowship of St. John the Divine Bible Bowl at Antiochian Village at the Summer Meetings on Saturday, July 24, 2010!
REMINDERS
VACATION CHURCH SCHOOL - St. George Church, West Roxbury announces Vacation Church School - 2010, Monday, June 29 through Thursday, July 2, 8:45 am-1 pm. Theme: "Growing up with the Saints". Registration is open to preschoolers (at least 3 yrs old and potty trained) through 4th grade. Contact St. Mary Church Office for registration form; Please submit ASAP. Contact Elisabeth Lourie (elisabeth@stgeorgeofboston.org) if you have any questions or would like to help.
PARISH COUNCIL – The next regular meeting of the Parish Council will be Wednesday, June 30, at 8:30 pm.
SUMMER HOURS – Starting next Sunday, July 4, St. Mary will change to summer hours – Orthros 8:15 am, Divine Liturgy 9:30 am.
COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – Please sign up to provide a coffee hour – it can be as simple as coffee, juice, and cookies, and it’s easier now when summer attendance is lighter. Plenty of help is available! Signup sheets are on the bulletin board downstairs outside the Hall, or call Marilyn in the office at 617-547-1234 or secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
VACATION CHURCH SCHOOL - St. Xenia Orthodox Church, 107 N. Lowell St., Methuen, MA, will be having Vacation Church School the week of July 12 – 16, 2010 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Cost: $20/child or $40/family
Children ages 5 – 12: The Twelve Great
Feasts: Vol. I: Feasts of
the Theotokos
Teens ages 13 – 18: The Teenage 10 Commandments
For more information, call Laryssa Doohovskoy 978-841-5960. Please register by June 25, 2010.
TANGLEWOOD OUTING – Join your music-loving friends from St. Mary’s as we carpool out to Tanglewood after Liturgy on Sunday, August 1. We’ll picnic on the lawn and listen to music by Sibelius, Elgar, and Mussorgsky, with cellist Yo-Yo Ma. (For more information see http://www.bso.org/bso/mods/perf_detail.jsp?pid=prod3580013) The concert starts at 2:30; lawn tickets are $24.50 (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 (or can provide one), contact Melissa Nassiff by email (mnassiff@gmail.com) or phone (508-877-7483).
SEEKING VIDEO STREAMING VOLUNTEERS – The video streaming ministry has been a great success! A special thank you to Erick Straghalis, Marc Patacchiola, and Nadia Abuelezam who have been instrumental in making this possible.
Marc and Erick are looking for more volunteers who can help set up the streaming service prior to Liturgy on Sunday mornings and potentially during other events (speakers, vespers, etc.). Volunteers would rotate weekly, taking turns setting up the camera, computer and microphones each week. Some technical expertise may be required, but training will be provided. If you are interested, please contact Erick Straghalis (estraghalis@gmail.com). Thank you!
CARE PACKAGES FOR “OUR” MARINE – Fr. Antony's "spiritual son" Scott is still in the Marines, and has been deployed to Afghanistan. The Fellowship of St. John the Divine is once more helping collect items for care packages for him and his fellow Marines. Thanks to the generosity of St. Mary parishioners, the Fellowship has been able to send three care packages already. We hope to send a box every month or so, so please continue to donate the items he needs. He has especially asked for Gatorade powder (dark blue kind if possible), Tuna, Beef jerky, Sunflower seeds, Sour skittles, Protein bars, Non perishable food, and Long white socks.
A box has been set up outside the church offices for your donations, and we would also welcome monetary contributions to help with postage, shopping, etc. - make checks payable to Fellowship of St. John the Divine or to St. Mary Church (earmarked FSJD), and give them to any member of the FSJD Steering Committee (Tiffany Conroy, Mike Decerbo, Melissa or Peter Nassiff, Socrates Deligeorges or Steve Walker), or mail them to the Church. Thank you for your caring concern and prayers for Scott and his fellow Marines!
STREAMING VIDEO - Divine Liturgy at St. Mary is broadcast live every week! Do come to church… but if you can’t, then join us on your computer. To see live broadcasts go to https://www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/livestream. Divine Liturgy starts at 10:00 am every Sunday through the end of June (except for June 20), and at 9:30 during the summer.
FIRST IN, LAST OUT – Please do not park in the small lot behind the church unless you intend to stay through the end of coffee hour. The only way out is the single lane driveway. Please pull all the way in to the parking space, and please do not block the driveway – if the lot is full, you can park on the street or in the lot at the corner of Prospect Street and Bishop Allen Drive.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR SERVICE
There are a number of ways you can help the Church, your fellow worshippers and those in need. Consider serving in one of these ways:
PARTICIPATION
Liturgical Service - Each Sunday, members of the congregation are needed to read the Epistle and assist during Communion by holding the Communion Cloths and Holy Bread Baskets. All Orthodox Christians in the Parish are welcome and encouraged to participate. We usually need one Epistle reader and eight people to hold cloths and baskets. If you would like to read the Epistle or assist during Communion, please contact Jeff Wasilko, 781-820-0882, jeffw@smoe.org.
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 signup sheet on the bulletin board outside the Hall or call Marilyn Robbat 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 Bulletin), or ask Marilyn at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234.
VOLUNTEERING
Holy Resurrection Open Doors - The Holy Resurrection Open Door Meal Ministry in Allston needs volunteers every Monday evening (there is a special need in the summer). The official hours of the project are 4:30 pm-7:30 pm, but it is fine to come anytime and leave any time. Best times would be 5:30-5:45 to 7:15-7:30 pm. You can serve meals, coffee and tea to the people who arrive for dinner (6-7 pm) or just stay behind the scenes doing set-up and clean-up. It is a very rewarding, hands-on, face-to-face way to serve the community with (mostly) other Orthodox Christians—we even chant the Our Father together before the meal begins. Church info can be found at http://hrocboston.org. Questions? Please contact Liz Straghalis at liztutella@gmail.com phone 617-974-5005, or Tiffany Conroy at trattus1@gmail.com.
St Paul’s Food Pantry - Two to four volunteers help each week in the food pantry at St Paul 's Roman Catholic Church in Harvard Square , Saturday mornings from 9:30-11:45. If you are interested in helping, please contact Christian Alcala at cmalcala1989@yahoo.com, or (617) 876-5684.
DONATIONS
Food and Clothing – Holy Resurrection in Allston takes donations of non-perishable food items and clothing to distribute at the Open Door Ministry on Monday evenings. You can bring your donations by on Monday nights between 4:30 pm and 7:30 pm or contact Tiffany Conroy, trattus1@gmail.com, for more information.
- St. Paul ’s Food Pantry in Harvard Square , where volunteers from St. Mary help every Saturday, depends upon regular donations of canned and packaged foods. To help, contact Christian Alcala at cmalcala1989@yahoo.com, or (617) 876-5684.
"As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me," says our Lord.
THIS WEEK'S VOLUNTEERS
LITURGICAL SERVICE – Epistle: TBD; Communion Cloth: Rose Njuguna and Melissa Nassiff; Left Bread: Brett Grainger; Right Bread: Linda Arnold
COFFEE HOUR – FSJD
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Saturday, June 26: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, June 27: Orthros 8:45 am; Divine Liturgy 10:00 am
SCRIPTURE READINGS for June 27:
Epistle: St. Paul's Letter to the Romans 10:1-10
But the righteousness based on faith says, Do not say in your heart, "Who will ascend into heaven?" (that is, to bring Christ down) or "Who will descend into the abyss?" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? The word is near you, on your lips and in your heart …
Gospel: Matthew 8:28-34; 9:1
At that time, when Jesus came to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes, two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one would 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?"
Monday, June 28: Evening Liturgy for Ss. Peter & Paul 6:30 pm; Apostles’ Fast ends
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, July 3: No Vespers at St. Mary
Sunday, July 4: Summer Hours Begin – Orthros 8:15 am, Divine Liturgy 9:30 am
Saturday, July 24: No Vespers at St. Mary
INSIGHT
He that possesses the word of Jesus is truly able to bear his very silence. That he may be perfect, he will do according to what he speaks, and be known by those things of which he is silent. There is nothing hid from God, but even our secrets are nigh unto him. Let us therefore do all things as becomes those who have God dwelling in them, that we maybe his temples, and he may be our God, as also he is, and will manifest himself before our faces by those things for which we justly love him.
- St. Ignatius of Antioch
As the physical eye looks at written letters and receives knowledge from them through the senses; so the mind, when it becomes purified and returns to its original state, looks up to God and receives Divine knowledge from Him. Instead of a book it has the Spirit, instead of a pen, thought and tongue ('my tongue is the pen' says the Psalm [45:1]); instead of ink - light. Plunging thought into light, so that thought itself becomes light, the mind, guided by the Spirit, traces words in the pure hearts of those who listen. Then it understands the words: 'And they shall be all taught of God' (John 6:45)
- St. Gregory of Sinai, Texts on Commandments and Dogmas no. 23
The Holy Spirit can also be received by listening attentively to the voice of God. God speaks to us by means of the internal voice of our conscience and through external circumstances. It is very important to develop sensitivity in order to hear more clearly what God suggests to us. He, as a most loving Father, cares for you. Daily He calls you to Himself, warns you and enlightens you.
- St. Innocent o f Irkutsk, The Way Into the Kingdom of Heaven
Faith is not a supposition that something might be true, but the assurance that someone is there.
- Bishop Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way