Update for the week Friday, August 27, through Thursday, September 2, 2010
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
REGULAR HOURS RESUME – Next Sunday, September 5, we will return to our regular hours for Sunday services: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am
SONIA’S RUN – The second annual 5k road race to benefit the Theophany School, in honor of beloved friend Sonia Belcher, will be held on Saturday, September 18 , at St. George Church, West Roxbury. The 5K Run/Walk begins at 9:00 am; Kids Fun Run at 8:30 am. Be a runner….Be a volunteer….Be a sponsor! Call Kim Daly 781-510-1175 or kimdaly4@gmail.com or www.SoniasRun.org
ANTIOCHIAN WOMEN’S EVENT – A celebration honoring the Spiritual Advisor to the Antiochian Women of the Diocese, V. Rev. Fr. Ed Hughes, will be held at St. George, West Roxbury from 4:00 – 7:00 pm on Sunday, September 19. Everyone is welcome!
PARISH ANNIVERSARY– St. Mary, Pawtucket RI, will be celebrating their 100th anniversary the weekend of October 8-10, with Metropolitan PHILIP presiding. Events include a “Walk Down Memory Lane,” a Grand Hafli, Hierarchical Divine Liturgy, and a Grand Banquet. More details to follow.
MEMORY ETERNAL- Mary Ellen Moses, 52, fell asleep in the Lord on Sunday, August 22, 2010. She leaves her husband, Mark Moses, and three daughters, Jessica, Evelyn and Rachel and a sister, Francis McElaney. The wake will be held at Donovan-Aufiero Funeral Home, Cambridge, on Thursday, August 26 from 5:00 – 8:00 pm, with Funeral Services at St. Mary Orthodox Church, Cambridge, on Friday, August 27, at 10:00 a.m. Interment following at Cambridge Cemetery. May her memory be eternal.
REMINDERS
TEEN SOYO OUTING- The teens of St. Mary Pawtucket invite Diocese Teen SOYO members, advisors, clergy and all others who would like to attend, to a Pawtucket Red Sox Game on Monday, August 30. Meet at 6:45 pm for the 7:05 game at McCoy Stadium, 1 Columbus Avenue, Pawtucket, RI 02860. Tickets are $10; please bring cash the day of the game. Notify Liz & Erick byAugust 22nd that you will be attending.
ANTIOCHIAN VILLAGE: ST. THEKLA PILGRIMAGE – Theannual St. Thekla pilgrimage will take place over the weekend of September 24 – 26, 2010 at Antiochian Village. This year’s theme will be Ascending the Mountain: It’s a Family Road Trip. Presiding Hierarch will be Rt. Rev. Bishop THOMAS, with Mother Alexandra, Abbess of the Convent of St. Thekla, as an additional speaker. For more information, visit www.antiochianvillage.orgor contact the office at the Antiochian Village 724-238-3677. See brochure on Church Bulletin Board. Registration and payment deadline: September 1, 2010.
WOMEN’S CLUB SUMMER READING - This summer Women's Club members (and anyone else who'd like to join us) will be reading The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Read the book over the summer, and join us in October, on a date to be announced, for an enjoyable evening of discussion, refreshments and fellowship!
DEFIBRILLATOR TRAINING- Due to a generous donation, the church is about to install a new Automated External Defibrillator (AED) machine downstairs in the church hall, and plans on hosting a professional training session for the AED machine in the fall for our parishioners. This training would be at no cost to parishioners and would last approximately 30-45 minutes.
In the alternative, the Parish council is requesting feedback from parishioners about interest in a combination CPR and AED class wherein attendees could receive their certification in these areas. This class would carry a small cost, would be sanctioned by the Red Cross or other entity, and would last about 4-6 hours. We need to know how many parishioners are interested in order to schedule the training. Please see Raymond Sayeg (rsayeg@dennerpellegrino.com) or Eric Straghalis (estraghalis@gmail.com) if you are interested in these classes.
HELP NEEDED: FOOD PANTRY COORDINATOR– Two to four volunteers from St. Mary are scheduled to 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 volunteer to be the new coordinator - contact outgoing coordinator Christian Alcala at cmalcala1989@yahoo.com, or (617) 876-5684. Our grateful thanks to Christian for serving in this capacity for the past several years.
COFFEE HOUR VOLUNTEERS NEEDED – Please sign up to provide a coffee hour – it can be as simple as coffee, juice, and cookies. Lots of Sundays are available in the Fall, and 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.
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 tohttps://www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/livestream. Divine Liturgy starts at 10:00 am every Sunday September through June, and at 9:30amduring the summer.
This ministry is 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 several 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, and Non perishable food.
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!
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 Communionby 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.orgor 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 atliztutella@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 volunteer to be the new coordinator - contact outgoing coordinator 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.
"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: Brooke Wilcox; Communion Cloth and Bread: Linda Arnold and others.
If you would like to read the Epistle or assist during Communion through the rest of the summer, please contact Jeff Wasilko, jeffw@smoe.org. If you have held the bread or communion cloth before, and see an empty space, feel free to step in and help.
COFFEE HOUR – No volunteers; no coffee hour
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Saturday, August 28: NO Vespers at St. Mary (note change)
Sunday, August 29, Beheading of St. John the Baptist: Orthros 8:15 am, Divine Liturgy 9:30 am (Summer hours)
SCRIPTURE READINGS for August 29:
Epistle: Acts of the Apostles 13:25-33
In those days, as John was finishing his course, he said, "What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie."
Gospel: Mark 6:14-30
At that time, King Herod heard that Jesus' name had become known. Some said, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; that is why these powers are at work in him." But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." But when Herod heard of it he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, September 4: Great Vespers 5:00
Sunday, September 5: Regular hours resume: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am
Tuesday, September 7: Evening Liturgy for the Feast of theNativity of the Theotokos 6:30 pm
Sunday, September 12: Church School registration
Monday, September 13: Evening Liturgy for the Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross 6:30 pm
Sunday, September 19: Church School classes start
INSIGHT
Realize your nothingness and constantly keep in your mind the fact that by yourself you can do nothing good which is worthy of the kingdom of heaven.
- Lorenzo Scupoli, Unseen Warfare
Be a herald of God’s goodness, for God rules over you, unworthy though you are; for although your debt to Him is so great, yet He is not seen exacting payment from you, and from the small works you do, He bestows great rewards upon you.
- St. Isaac the Syrian, Homily 60
The beginning of the fight against hatred, the basic Christian answer to hatred, is not the commandment to love, but what must necessarily come before in order to make the commandment bearable and comprehensible. It is a prior commandment, to believe. The root of Christian love is not the will to love, but the faith that one is loved. The faith that one is loved by God. That faith that one is loved by God although unworthy – or rather, irrespective of one's worth!
- Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation
When you come, O God, to earth with glory, and all creatures tremble before you, and the river of fire flows before the Altar, and the books are opened and sins revealed, deliver me then from that unquenchable fire, and make me worthy to stand at your right hand, O righteous Judge.
- Kontakion for Meat Fare Sunday