Update for the week Friday, October 5, through Thursday, October 11, 2012
THIS WEEK AT ST MARY
ENQUIRERS' CLASS – The St. Ignatius Catechetical Group - Enquirers’ Class - meets every Sunday at 9:00 am in the library (next door to Fr. Antony’s office), led by Bob Kowalik. If you would like to participate, please talk to Bob during coffee hour; or get in touch by phone at 617-889-3436 or e-mail r.kowalik@comcast.net. Brochures are available on the Rack behind Bengarri. For those seeking to be received into the Orthodox Church, participation in the group and Fr. Antony’s blessing are required.
NO COFFEE HOUR – Since no one signed up to provide a coffee hour for this Sunday, there will not be one.
Volunteers 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. Most of the Sundays in October,
and other weeks this fall, are still available. If you need any help
with figuring out what to bring or do, check the list below the signup
sheet, or ask Marilyn at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234.
FELLOWSHIP MEETING – The Fellowship of St. John the Divine (FSJD) will hold its first meeting of the year this Sunday, October 7, after Liturgy. We will introduce our new President, Julie Wasilko. review the calendar of events for the year, and discuss what the Fellowship has done in the past and can do perhaps differently in the future. We hope to generate lots of new ideas – please come!
WOMEN’S CLUB – The next meeting of the Women’s Club will be Tuesday, October 9, at 7:30 pm in the kitchen.
PARISH COUNCIL – The next meeting of the Parish Council will be Wednesday, October 10, at 7:30 pm in the kitchen.
ELSEWHERE
MARRIAGE SEMINAR – The Deanery of Worcester & New England will offer a Seminar for Couples this Thursday and Saturday, October 4 & 6, at St. John of Damascus Church, 300 West St., Dedham, MA. The seminar is for those preparing for marriage and all those interested, and guest speaker will be His Grace, Bishop JOHN. Registration forms are available on the St. Mary church bulletin board; cost is $30/couple. Talks and sessions will include A Vision of Marriage (Thursday 7:00-9:00 pm); and Betrothal – Commitment and Grace; Crown Them With Honor; For This Cause Shall a Man Leave Father & Mother – Family Dynamics; and You Just Don’t Understand – Man/Woman Communication and Culture; concluding with Vespers (Saturday 9:00 am - 5:30 pm). There is still room for additional participants.
DANCING WITH THE AABA STARS – The American Arabic Benevolent Association invites you to “Dancing With the AABA Stars” this Friday, October
5 at Moseley’s-on-the-Charles, Dedham, MA at 7:30 pm. Each parish will
have one contestant competing for their respective parish - our parish
will be represented by Erica (Bezreh) Dooley. Individual Ticket: $50
per person includes Appetizer Buffet, Munchies at Tables, Coffee &
Dessert. Reservations ONLY – No tickets sold at door. For tickets,
tables reservations and Sponsor Forms, contact Shirley Bezreh
781-648-0685.
In addition to food vouchers and scholarships, AABA’s major project
is the funding and construction of federally subsidized elderly
housing. AABA has broken ground on another elderly subsidized facility
and is utilizing this fundraising project to assist in building the
building. Please consider sponsoring Erica. Sponsor forms can be found
on the Bengarri and given to Shirley Bezreh.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
SFEEHA AND KIBBEH SALE – The Women’s Club offered for
purchase freshly made Sfeeha and Kibbeh, and the order deadline was
originally this Sunday, October 7. However, due to heavy demand we are forced to wait-list all orders received this week. See only Shirley Bezreh with your requests.
Pick-up dates are Sunday, October 21 for Sfeeha, and Sunday, October 28 for Kibbeh.
YOUTH MONTH – October is Youth Month throughout the Antiochian Archdiocese. In our parish young people will be reading the Epistle, holding the Communion cloth and Holy Bread baskets, and taking the collection.
TEEN SOYO OFFICERS – Newly elected officers of Teen SOYO at St. Mary are Theo Smith, President; Tatiana Dalton, Vice President; Sabrina Nebiye, Secretary; and Julia Shoop, Treasurer. Congratulations to them all!
HELP MAKE SFEEHA AND KIBBEH – Please come to the church on Saturday morning, October 20,
starting at 9:30 am to help make meat pies with the Women's Club.
Lots of help will be needed – young and old, women and men are all
welcome - and it's always lots of fun. Also, if you can, come at 9:00 Friday morning, October 26, to help the Women’s Club cook Kihbbeh.
CANNED FOOD DRIVE – The annual FOOD FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE Canned Food Drive will be held October through December,
2012. Bring in your canned goods to the Church and place them in the
large, blue plastic containers outside the Church Office – they will be
distributed to local food pantries in our area. 42 pounds of food will
feed a family of four for 3 days - since 1984 we have collected over
3,281,200 pounds of food!
TALK ON ANTIOCH – On Thursday evening, October 25, The Diocesan Chapter of the Fellowship of St. John the Divine will host a lecture entritled Antioch: Yesterday and Today. The speaker is Fr. Elia Khalife, a monk at the Monastery of St. George Dayr al-Harf, Lebanon, and Director of the Center for Antiochian Studies & Research at Oxford University in England. The talk will be held at St. George of Boston at 7:30 pm.
REMINDERS
ESSAY AND RESUME EDITING – All teens applying to college (or jobs) are welcome to bring their application essays and resumes on Sunday, October 14, to be edited and looked at during/after coffee hour by "experts!" We can sit down and brainstorm or work on an existing piece. Please email Nadia if you think you'll be attending: nabuelezam@gmail.com. "Experts" are also available at other times for 1-1 sessions.
COME SEE THE MESSIAH – Join friends from St. Mary’s for the Handel and Haydn Society’s annual performance of Handel’s Messiah, on Sunday afternoon, December 2, at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are just $25 – even less if we have a big enough group. We will carpool to Symphony Hall after Liturgy and have lunch together before the concert. Those who have done this before have thoroughly enjoyed it - not only do we hear a world-class orchestra and chorus with famous soloists singing glorious words (taken directly from the Bible), but we also have an opportunity to spend time getting to know some fellow parishioners we normally may not encounter. Good seats go fast - please contact Melissa Nassiff at mnassiff@gmail.com by Sunday, October 14, or order your own tickets online at http://www.handelandhaydn.org.
MIRACULOUS ICON VISIT - With the blessing of His Grace Bishop +JOHN, on Monday evening October 15 the miraculous Icon of the Mother of God of Hawaii will visit St. George Church in West Roxbury, MA. The Paraklesis service of intercession will be served at 7:00 pm followed by the anointing of the faithful. In June 2008, this icon was officially recognized by bishops of the Orthodox Church as miraculous and genuine. The icon and its bearer have been given the blessing to travel to various churches and monasteries of Orthodox Church. This holy icon of the Mother of God continues to stream its fragrant myrrh to this day. This will be its only visit to Boston. Please plan to be with us for this very special blessing. The sick, elderly and shut-ins are especially encouraged to be with us. Visit the “News and Events” section at http://stgeorgeofboston.org for more information.
PRISON MINISTRY TRAINING – If you are interested joining the Prison Ministry, there will be an upcoming training for volunteers on Friday, October 19 at 4:00 pm at the Rectory of Immaculate Conception Parish , 11 Prospect Street, Marlborough, MA 01752. Dinner will be served by the Knights of Columbus. Training is required if you would like to come into prison to volunteer. Please see Deacon Jeff or Father Anthony if you have questions or would like to join this ministry.
“BREAKFAST SEARCH” – All teens and young adults are encouraged to participate in our first ever St. Mary's breakfast search, on Sunday, October 21. Our very own Theo Smith will lead us in a brief orientation during coffee hour before we head out to feed and talk to people on the streets! Please put this into your calendar! If you have questions, please contact Nadia: nabuelezam@gmail.com.
FALL DELEGATES MEETING – The Fall Diocesan Delegates Meetings of Teen SOYO, Fellowship of St. John the Divine and Antiochian Women will be held on Saturday, October 27, at St. Mary Church, 249 High St., Pawtucket, RI. Watch for more information.
BOOKS FOR SALE – The Fellowship of St. John the Divine has several copies of the book "A Life Together: Wisdom of Community from the Christian East," by last year's von Holzhausen lecturer, Bishop Seraphim Sigrist. List price is $15.99, but you can purchase it for our cost of $9.00 per copy. This is your last chance to buy it at cost before we return our unsold books to the publisher. Please talk to or email Michael Decerbo, Fellowship treasurer at mdecerbo@alum.mit.edu, if you are interested in buying the book. If you are out of town, send your check to the church with an additional $4 for postage -- and please also email Mike so he can expect it and set your copy aside.
ATTENTION COLLEGE STUDENTS – If you are a new or returning college or university student, please fill out a pink College Student Address Form on the Bengarri (desk in the Narthex) so that we have your current address and information and you can receive announcements about activities at St. Mary's and on campus. Please leave the form on the Bengarri. See Charlie Marge if you have questions.
ATTENTION PARENTS OF ST. MARY PARISH COLLEGE STUDENTS – If you would like your sons or daughters to receive a copy of the CORNERSTONE each month while they are away at school to keep them in touch with what’s going on at St. Mary’s, please fill out one of the pink College Student Address Forms and return it to Marilyn Robbat.
REGULAR REMINDERS
DONATE VIA eGIVE– Did you know that you can make your donations to St. Mary through eGive, and have no more envelopes or checks to worry about? If you have not yet set up an account, you can do it at www.egive-usa.com, or contact Charlie Marge (marge@alum.mit.edu) for help. The Recipient Organization is “St. Mary’s Orthodox Church.”
STREAMING VIDEO – 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 below or online). If you have questions or comments about this ministry please contact us at live@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
VIDEO STREAMING FOR EVENTS – Now you can video stream your wedding or baptism live from St. Mary’s to friends and family who can't attend your event in person. The cost for Event Video Streaming is $150 for members, $300 for non-members, and includes a password- protected viewing page and setup and breakdown of the streaming service for your event by a trained staff member. You can also get a copy of your streamed event on CD: $50 for members, $100 for non-members. Fees are payable to the church. Streaming is subject to staff availability. For general questions on the video streaming ministry or event streaming, please contact live@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org. To schedule your event and/or request Event Video Streaming, please contact the Church Office.
PROTECT YOUR VALUABLES – Please do not leave valuables unattended in the Church Hall or Coat Room.
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.
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:
BE A GREETER – The Parish Council is continuing the Greeter Program, similar to other churches, to greet and aid parishioners, guests and visitors into the Church each Sunday. 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, arriving at Church at 9:45 am. Greeting time ends when Communion starts. We need volunteers. If you would like to be a Greeter, a Sign-Up Sheet is posted on the Church Bulletin Board. If you have any questions, please contact Buddy by e-mail buddy@cjmabardy.comor call him at 781-729-6303. “I was a stranger, and you invited me in………” (Matthew 25:35)
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 and six 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 new 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.
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
"As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me," says our Lord.
THIS SUNDAY'S VOLUNTEERS
GREETER: Amanda Noonan
LITURGICAL SERVICE: To volunteer, please contact Jeff Wasilko, 781-820-0882, jeffw@smoe.org.
COFFEE HOUR: No volunteer, no coffee hour
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Saturday, October 6: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, October 7: Orthros 8:45 am; Enquirers’ Class 9:00 am; Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; No Church School
SCRIPTURE READINGS for Sunday, October 7:
Epistle: St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 9:6-11
Brethren, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who
sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do as he has
made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a
cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in
abundance, so that you may always have enough of everything and may
provide in abundance for every good work.
Gospel: Luke 7:11-16
… As he drew near to the gate of [Nain], behold, a man who had died was
being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a
large crowd from the city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he
had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." … And he said,
"Young man, I say to you, arise." And the dead man sat up, and began to
speak. And he gave him to his mother.
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, October 13: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, October 14: Orthros 8:45 am; Enquirers’ Class 9:00 am; Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; Church School lesson 3
Saturday, October 20: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, October 21: Orthros 8:45 am; Enquirers’ Class 9:00 am; Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; Church School lesson 4
REFLECTION
When you sit down to eat, pray. When you eat bread, do so thanking Him
for being so generous to you. If you drink wine, be mindful of Him who
has given it to you for your pleasure and as a relief in sickness. When
you dress, thank Him for His kindness in providing you with clothes.
When you look at the sky and the beauty of the stars, throw yourself at
God's feet and adore Him who in His wisdom has arranged things in this
way. Similarly, when the sun goes down and when it rises, when you are
asleep or awake, give thanks to God, who created and arranged all things
for your benefit, to have you know, love and praise their Creator.
- St. Basil the Great
Find out how much God has given you and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others.
- St Augustine
Grace has been given mystically to those who have been baptized into
Christ; and it becomes active within them to the extent that they
actively observe the commandments. Grace never ceases to help us
secretly; but to do good - as far as lies in our power - depends on us.
- St. Mark the Ascetic
Today the Bountiful impoverished Himself for our sake; so, rich one,
invite the poor to your table. Today we receive a Gift for which we did
not ask; so let us give alms to those who implore and beg us.
- St. Isaac the Syrian, The Nativity Homily
Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into
enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order,
confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a
home, a stranger into a friend.
- Melody Beattie