Update for the week Thursday, October 2, through Thursday, October 9, 2014
THIS WEEK
DIOCESAN FALL MEETINGS CHANGE – The Diocese meetings of Teen SOYO, Fellowship of St. John the Divine and Antiochian Women, which were scheduled to take place at Emmanuel Church in Warren, MA this Saturday October 4, 2014, have been postponed due to the passing of Mr. Charles Slemon. Mr. Slemon was very active at St. Mary in Pawtucket and also on the Diocese level. His full obituary may be found here: http://www.oneillfuneralhomes.com/home/index.cfm/obituaries/view/fh_id/14%20760/id/2726108 May his memory be eternal!
More information on the rescheduled meeting date will follow.
NO VESPERS – There will not be a Vespers service at St. Mary this Saturday, October 4.
ENQUIRERS CLASS - The St. Ignatius Catechetical Group (Enquirers’ Class) will begin meeting this Sunday, October 5 at 9:00am in the library (next door to Fr. Antony’s office). The group is for non-Orthodox adults who are interested in exploring the Christian Faith as it has been – and continues to be – understood, preached, and lived by members of the Holy Orthodox Church who descend from the early Christian community of Antioch, where “the disciples were for the first time called Christians” (Acts 11:26). Bob Kowalik will be teaching the group using materials developed and piloted by St. Mary catechist emeritus David Vermette. If you would like to participate, please talk to Bob during coffee hour; or get in touch by phone 617-889-3436 or e-mail r.kowalik@comcast.net. For those seeking to be received into the Orthodox Church, participation in the group and Fr. Antony’s blessing are required.
TEEN SOYO ELECTIONS - Congratulations to newly elected Teen SOYO President Rachel Bargoot and Teen SOYO Vice President James Jabbour. Rachel and James have both been very involved over the past years, and we are excited to have them lead the group this year.
Elections for Secretary and Treasurer will be held this Sunday, October 5 during church school. Teens, please plan to come downstairs to run and vote.
FR. ANTONY AWAY - Fr. Antony will be out of town Monday-Sunday, October 6-12. In case of emergency please call Fr. Timothy Ferguson at 617-323-0323.
BIBLE STUDY - Join us next Thursday, October 9, at 7:00 pm in the church library, as we discuss Leviticus, using the podcasts found at http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/leviticus-part-3-2/ and http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/leviticus-part-4-2/. The Bible Study at St. Mary, sponsored by the Fellowship of St. John the Divine, meets every other Thursday, and is based on a course originally broadcast on Ancient Faith Radio, entitled Search the Scriptures. For more information contact Marianna Sayeg (mailto:mksayeg@gmail.com) or Fr. Antony (mailto:frawhj@gmail.com). New members are always welcome.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
YOUTH MONTH – October is Youth Month throughout the Archdiocese. All teens will sit together during Liturgy throughout the month of October – find us in the center row, towards the back of the church. We also need teens to volunteer throughout the service every Sunday. Please contact Hannah or Greg if you would like to volunteer.
FOOD FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE - Canned Food Drive: October, 2014 – December 31, 2014. Since 1984, we have collected over 3,281,200 pounds of food. Please bring in canned goods ONLY and place them in the plastic bins in the room outside the kitchen. They will be distributed to food pantries in our area.
HELP NEEDED – The furniture for the chapel at the National Convention is ready to be picked up in Newtonville for storage in the church basement. We will need at least four (4) volunteers to do the work. The target date for this is Saturday, October 18. Please let Father Antony know if you would be willing to help. (frawhj@gmail.com)
OPERATION LACE-UP – Focus North America needs your help in sorting and distributing several hundred pairs of brand new athletic shoes to homeless and impoverished children in the Boston area. (For more information about the program see http://focusnorthamerica.org/programs/operation-lace-up/ ) Come Thursday, October 16 at 6:30pm for shoe sorting, and/or Saturday, October 18 at 8:00am for shoe distribution. Please RSVP for location details – contact Nikos Petrogeorge at npetrogeorge@focusna.org
TEEN SOYO MINI-GOLF TRIP – On Saturday, October 25, teens from across the Diocese will enjoy an afternoon of mini-golfing at the McGolf range in Dedham. After we have conquered all 18 holes, we will celebrate Great Vespers for the feast of St. Demetrios the Myrrh-Streaming together at St. George Church in West Roxbury. Times will be announced at a later date.
PARISH COUNCIL – The next Parish Council meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, October 29 at 7:45 pm at the church.
MEDICINE, PSYCHOLOGY, AND RELIGION CONFERENCE - The Orthodox Christian Association of Medicine, Psychology, and Religion presents "Exploring the Mind-Body-Soul Connection: Spirituality in Illness and Healing" at Hellenic College Holy Cross, Thursday-Saturday, November 6–8, 2014. For more information see https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B464h2ZqeC_oeTl0NEdoSHIzRzg/edit
FALL LITURGY RETREAT FOR CHURCH SCHOOL STUDENTS & FAMILIES – Save the date: On Tuesday, November 11 (Veterans Day), from 9:30 - 3:00 pm there will be a retreat at St. Mary entitled The Liturgy of the Body. The retreat will explore the theme of the "Body" from different perspectives—physical, ecclesial, social, etc. In particular, we will look at the body in Worship, the body at Work (e.g. making Prosphora for the church), the body in the Body of Christ (with a particular focus on understanding baptism), and the body of the Community in Motion (e.g. learning dances from the various ethnic traditions here at St. Mary). Open to all children, teachers, parents and friends. Donation: $5/Child; $10/Family, helps to cover the expense of lunch, snacks and materials.
REMINDERS
PATRISTICS CONFERENCE – The Stephen and Catherine Pappas Patristic Institute of Holy Cross will hold its upcoming conference on “Patristic Homilies and their Reception History,” on the campus of Hellenic College/Holy Cross Thursday-Saturday, October 9-11, 2014. Download more info at http://goo.gl/9FuBOU
ATTENTION COLLEGE STUDENTS – If you are a new or returning college or university student, please fill out a yellow “College Student Address Form” on the Bengarri (desk in Narthex) so that we can send you St. Mary’s church announcements and information about college activities. Please leave the form on the Bengarii or give directly to Greg or Hannah Hakim (greghakim@gmail.com ).
WOMEN'S CLUB SFEEHA SALE – The Women's Club is offering for purchase freshly made Sfeeha (ground lamb-meat pizza pies with onion, pine nuts & seasonings). Order deadline is Sunday, October 19. Please use the order form in your Sunday bulletin. Pickup date is Sunday, October 26.
HELP MAKE SFEEHA – Please come to the church on Saturday morning, October 25, 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. Lunch will be provided.
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, November 30, 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 19.
CHARITY BAKE SALE – The Women’s Club will hold a Charity Bake Sale Sunday, October 19, immediately following Liturgy, in the church hall. All proceeds will benefit the charitable projects we sponsor, from the YWCA Family Shelter in Cambridge to the Antiochian Women’s project “Operation Lace Up” providing children with shoes nationwide.
2015 CONVENTION COMMITTEE – St. Mary will be hosting the 2015 National Convention of the Antiochian Archdiocese of North America. The next meeting of the Convention Committee will be on Tuesday (note correction), October 21, at 7:30pm at the church.
WOMEN'S CLUB – The Women’s Club will be going out to the Cheesecake Factory in Chestnut Hill for an October dinner meeting on Monday, October 27, at 7:00. We welcome all women of the parish to join us! Any woman interested in going out, please call Mary Ellen Mabardy (781-729-6303) or the church office (617-547-1234) for more information. The Women’s Club does charitable work both locally and internationally and supports the Church School. We would love for you to join us. Call Mary Ellen or the church office if you have any questions or want to be a part of this wonderful group of Women.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR SERVICE
There are a number of ways you can help the Church, your fellow worshipers, and those in need. Consider serving in one of these ways:
BE A GREETER – If you do not sing in the choir, or chant, serve in the Altar or at the Bengarri, and are not a Church School teacher, please consider serving the Church as a Greeter! Greeters arrive 15 minutes before Liturgy, get a Greeter Name Tag from the Bengarri, pin it on and greet visitors/parishioners at the Church Entrance and direct them upstairs to the Church, or to the cloakroom or restrooms. Greeting time ends when Communion starts. Send your name and e-mail address to Buddy Mabardy: buddymabardy@cjmabardy.com or phone him 781-729-6303. Or call the Church office 617-547-1234.
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 Barbara Shoop 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 monthly Cornerstone), or ask Barbara at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234.
"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
Greeter: George Mayah
Liturgical Service: Young people of St. Mary
Coffee Hour: The Mabbett family, in memory of Mother/Grandmother Victoria Yerrid
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Saturday, October 4: No Vespers
Sunday, October 5: Enquirers Class (St. Ignatius Catechetical Group) 9:00 am; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; followed by Church School lesson 3
Scripture Readings for Sunday, October 5:
Epistle: Second Corinthians 6:16-7:1
Brethren, you are the temple of the living God; … Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, and make holiness perfect in the fear of God.
Gospel: Luke 6:31-36
The Lord said, "And as you wish that men would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ... But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful."
Thursday, October 9: Bible study 7:00 pm
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, October 11: No Vespers
Sunday, October 12: Enquirers Class (St. Ignatius Catechetical Group) 9:00 am; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; No Church School
Saturday, October 18: Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, October 19: Enquirers Class (St. Ignatius Catechetical Group) 9:00 am; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am; followed by Church School lesson 4; Women's Club Charity Bake Sale
Thursday, October 23: Bible study 7:00 pm
REFLECTION
Help one another with the generosity of the Lord, and despise no one. When you have the opportunity to do good, do not let it go by.
- St. Polycarp of Smyrna
Even if you are an honest, just, good, and merciful man, in a word, even though you may have achieved much goodness, keep considering yourself as an unworthy servant of God. Indeed, if we examine our good works more closely, we will see that none of them are completely beyond reproach. For example, if we give alms or help someone, how often do we add conceited, regretful, self-interested, judgmental, or other such unkind thoughts to our alms or help. Of course, every good deed always remains good, even when it is imperfect. It can be likened to gold which has value even before it is purified. But as gold becomes more precious when an experienced craftsman purifies and works it, so let us entrust our good deeds to the Heavenly Master that He will make them even more valuable.
- St. Innocent of Irkutsk, Indication of the Way Into the Kingdom of Heaven
Each day examine yourself: What have you sown for the age to come: wheat or weeds? Having tested yourself, arrange to become better the next day, and spend the rest of your life in that manner. In the event that you spent today badly, did not honestly pray to God, did not feel even once contrition in your heart, did not become humble in thought, gave no alms and did no act of charity, but instead did not refrain from anger, from words, from food and drink, or if you sank your mind in unclean thoughts, honestly examine all of this, condemn yourself for it, and firmly resolve that tomorrow you will be more careful to do good and to avoid evil.
- St. Moses of Optina
The perfect person does not only try to avoid evil. Nor does he do good for fear of punishment, still less in order to qualify for the hope of a promised reward. The perfect person does good through love. His actions are not motivated by desire for personal benefit, so he does not have personal advantage as his aim. But as soon as he has realized the beauty of doing good, he does it with all his energies and in all that he does. He is not interested in fame, or a good reputation, or a human or divine reward. The rule of life for a perfect person is to be in the image and likeness of God.
- Clement of Alexandria
I beseech you, put this to the test. When a man affronts you or brings dishonor on your head, or takes what is yours, or persecutes the Church, pray to the Lord, saying: “O Lord, we are all Thy creatures. Have pity on Thy servants and turn their hearts to repentance,” and you will be aware of grace in your soul. To begin with, constrain your heart to love enemies, and the Lord, seeing your good will, will help you in all things, and experience itself will show you the way. But the man who thinks with malice of his enemies has not God’s love within him, and does not know God.
- St Silouan on Love