Update for the week Thursday, June 19, through Thursday, June 26, 2014
THIS WEEK
BIBLE STUDY – Come join us tonight (Thursday, June 19), at 7:00 pm in the church library as we continue our study of Exodus. Listen to the podcasts at http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/exodus-part-3/ and http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/exodus-part-4/ . The Bible Study at St. Mary, sponsored by the Fellowship of St. John the Divine, meets every other Thursday, and is based on a series of talks originally broadcast on Ancient Faith Radio, entitled Search the Scriptures. For more information contact Marianna Sayeg (mksayeg@gmail.com) or Fr. Antony (frawhj@gmail.com ). New members are always welcome.
PARISH LIFE CONFERENCE – This year's Parish Life Conference (PLC) will be held at the Radisson Hotel Plymouth Harbor, 180 Water St., Plymouth, MA 02360, this Thursday through Sunday, June 19-22, hosted by St. George Church of Boston. See www.stgeorgeofboston.org/plc2014 for the schedule and more information.
ST. MARY CHURCH AND CHURCH OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED this weekend, Thursday through Sunday. Join us at the PLC for Vespers at 5:00 pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday; Matins at 9:00 am Friday and Saturday; and Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am Sunday.
CHOIR MEMBERS - Please sing with our Diocese of New England Choir at the PLC. The final rehearsal will be at PLC Saturday, June 21, 4-5 pm in the Chapel. Questions? See or contact Charlie Marge: marge@alum.mit.edu.
HIS EMINENCE METROPOLITAN KALLISTOS WARE TO SPEAK – Metropolitan Kallistos will be the keynote speaker at the Divine Compassion Conference to be held at Holy Cross Hellenic College on Friday, June 20, 2014 at 7:00 pm. This conference seeks to cultivate a deeper theological appreciation regarding ways Divine Compassion, the eleos of God, affects the participation of women and men in the life of the Church today. The title of His Eminence's address will be "Divine Compassion and the Ministry of Women." For tickets and event details see https://divinecompassionwomenofthechurch.eventbrite.com
MEMORIAL FOR MARY SIORAS - A 40-day memorial will be offered for Mary Sioras at Holy Cross Chapel this Sunday, June 22. Liturgy begins at 9:30 a.m. The address is 50 Goddard Ave, Brookline, MA.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
APOSTLES FAST - From the second Monday after Pentecost until the feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul on Sunday, June 29th, 2014, Orthodox Christians observe the Apostles Fast. This year the fast began on Monday, June 16, 2014.
TEMPORARY STORAGE SPACE NEEDED - Subdeacon Steve Walker is currently in transition, and needs a place (your garage, perhaps?) to store some boxes and furniture for a few weeks: about thirty small boxes, a mattress and box springs, an armchair, chest of drawers, end table and three small bookcases. Please contact him at 857-366-2948 or smwalk@gmail.com if you can help him out. Thanks!
OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED - The St. Mary Church Secretary will be out of the office from Friday, July 4th through Friday, July 11th. Therefore the deadline for both the July 6th and July 13th Bulletins will be Tuesday July 1st by noon. Any information and/or donations made to the church after the July 1st deadline will appear in the July 20th Bulletin.
SUMMER HOURS – On Sunday, July 6 we will change to Summer Hours – Orthros: 8:15 am, and Liturgy: 9:30 am.
PAPPAS PATRISTICS INSTITUTE SUMMER PROGRAM - The Pappas Patristics Institute is pleased to announce its eighth annual week-long Summer Patristic Studies Program at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, MA, Sunday through Friday, July 20-25, 2014. This week-long program is a unique opportunity to study and discuss classic texts of the early Church through small group-study and brief lectures. The intended audience for the program includes theology and religious studies students at the masters and undergraduate levels, along with clergy, lay people, and undergraduates with an interest in learning more about the Church Fathers. Course offerings include "Exploring the Ancient Baptismal Liturgies" taught by our own Teva Regule, Doctoral Candidate at Boston College. For more information, or to register, please send an email to the Pappas Patristic Institute at pappaspatristic@comcast.net at your earliest convenience. You will then be sent a registration form. Complete information found here: http://www.hchc.edu/assets/files/patristics/2014_SumInst_AnnouncmentProgram_140503.pdf
CAMP COUNSELORS NEEDED - The Greek Metropolis of Boston Camp in Contoocook, NH is looking for male staff who have completed at least one year of college and have prior camp experience for the following weeks: Week 4 (July 21-27), Week 5 (July 28-August 3), Week 6 (August 4-11). To learn more, visit http://boston.goarch.org/ministries/mbc/ . If you are interested, please email mbcamp@boston.goarch.org
REMINDERS
PARISH COUNCIL – The next meeting of the Parish Council is scheduled for Wednesday, June 25.
ROOM NEEDED – A young woman from Romania is looking for a room to live in during the month of June while she tries to find a job in the area. If you have a room she could use, or know of one, please contact Ana at mynedelcu@yahoo.com, or call 617-806-6008.
SPEAKER SERIES – You are invited to the St. Nicholas Orthodox Church Speaker Series in Salem, MA, on Tuesday, July 8, and Thursday, July 10. Very Reverend Dr. Paul Tarazi, Professor of Old Testament at St. Vladimir’s, will lead you through 1 Corinthians. For more information see http://orthodoxsalem.com/ There is no charge, but seating is limited. Time: 6:30-9:00 pm. Contact: Fr. Theophan at 978-744-5869 or fr.theophan.whitfield@gmail.com.
MEMORIALS – Trisagion Prayers for Donald DiFiore (40 days) and for Fr. Gregory Phelan (25 years) will be prayed Sunday, July 13, 2014.
TANGLEWOOD OUTING – Join your music-loving friends from St. Mary’s as we carpool out to Tanglewood after Liturgy on Sunday, July 20. We’ll picnic on the lawn and listen to music by Beethoven and others, with violinist Joshua Bell and new BSO conductor Andris Nelsons. For more information see http://www.bso.org/Performance/Detail/60929. (Rain date August 10: http://www.bso.org/Performance/Detail/60938.) 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).
HELP PROVIDE A WARM WELCOME – Two things we do every week - all through the summer too! - to welcome visitors and newcomers, and to strengthen the bonds of fellowship with all who worship at St. Mary, are: 1.) Greet everyone who enters the church, and 2.) Provide coffee hour after Liturgy. We need more help with both of these ministries. To become a greeter please contact Buddy Mabardy at 781-729-6303 or email at Buddy@cjmabardy.com ; to provide a coffee hour please sign up on the sheet downstairs on the bulletin board or contact Barbara in the office at 617-547-1234 or secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org .
CHURCH SCHOOL TEACHERS NEEDED – If you are interested in teaching Church School next year, or being an assistant or substitute teacher, please contact Barbara Shoop at Barbara@dsaarchitects.com.
“RAISING SONS” WEBINAR – The Greek Archdiocese Center for Family Care is pleased to announce that their "Raising Sons: Understanding the Inner Life of Boys" webinar featuring George Papageorge, M.A., MFT is now archived on their website! Click below to watch this great presentation: http://www.goarch.org/archdiocese/departments/family/files/webinars/raisingsonsfolder/understandingboys
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Thursday, Friday and Saturday, June 19-21: Great Vespers 5:00 pm at Radisson Hotel, Plymouth
Friday and Saturday, June 20-21: Matins 9:00 am at Radisson Hotel, Plymouth
Sunday, June 22: Matins and Confession 9:00 am; Hierarchical Divine Liturgy 10:00 am at Radisson Hotel, Plymouth
Scripture Readings for Sunday, June 22:
Epistle: Romans 2:10-16
All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. … God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
Gospel: Matthew 4:18-23
As Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." … And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, June 28: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, June 29: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am
Sunday, July 6: Summer hours begin - Orthros: 8:15 am, and Liturgy: 9:30 am.
Saturday, July 19: No Vespers at St. Mary
REFLECTION
The law was not only for the Jews, nor on their account only were the prophets sent: they were sent to the Jews, and persecuted by the Jews, but they were for the whole inhabited world a sacred school of the knowledge of God and the conduct of the soul.
- St. Athanasius the Great
We became the inheritors of the curse in Adam. We were not punished as if we had disobeyed that divine commandment along with Adam; but because Adam became mortal, he transmitted sin to his posterity. We became mortal since we were born from a mortal.
- Saint Anastasius the Sinaite
We became sinners through the disobedience of Adam in this way: For Adam was created for incorruption and life, and his life in the Paradise of delight was holy, his whole mind was continually caught up in divine visions, and his body was tranquil and serene, since every shameful pleasure was calmed, for there was no disturbance of intemperate emotions in him. However, since he fell under sin and sank into corruption, thence pleasures and pollutions penetrated into the nature of the flesh, and so there was planted in our members a savage law. Nature became diseased with sin through the disobedience of the one, i.e, Adam; thus the many also became sinners, not as transgressing together with Adam - for they did not exist at all - but as being from his nature which had fallen under the law of sin… because of disobedience, human nature in Adam became infirm with corruption, and so the passions were introduced into it....
- St. Cyril of Alexandria, Interpretation of the Epistle to the Romans
The tree did not engender death, for God did not create death; but death was the consequence of disobedience.
St. John Damascene, Homily on Holy Saturday
God judges our intention, but in that which is within our power He, in man-befriending wise, also requires us to act. Great is he who leaves undone nothing that is within his power; but greater is he who humbly attempts what is beyond his power.
- St. John Climacus