Update for the week of August 10-17, 2017
Update for the week of August 10-17, 2017
THIS WEEK AT ST. MARY
SUNDAY 8/13 – Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am.
MONDAY 8/14, the Vigil for the Dormition of the Theotokos - our Patronal Feast Day. Vespers at 4:15 pm, Orthros with Lamentations at 5:30 pm, and Festal Divine Liturgy at 7:00 pm.
+ Immediately after the Liturgy please join us in the church hall for a Dormition Feast, sponsored by the Hospitality Group. Cost: $8 person/$16 family. Make checks payable to St. Mary's with "Hospitality Group" on the memo line.
+ The Hospitality Group needs 5 volunteers for the Dormition feast on Monday, August 14 - if you can help, please contact Diana Yousef at dymartinek@gmail.com . We look forward to seeing you there!
WEDNESDAY 8/16 - The next meeting of the Parish Council is scheduled for Wednesday, August 16, at 7:30.
THIS WEEK ELSEWHERE
SATURDAY, 8/12 – You are invited to join the annual New Skete Pilgrimage. The theme this year is “We shall all be changed” (1 Cor. 15:51). Guest speaker Dr. Roberta Ervine will give a talk entitled, “We Shall All Be Changed: Armenian Artist-Theologians Ponder the Transfiguration." If you have never been to the monastery, this may be a good way to be introduced to their life and work. In addition to the services, there are tours of the church and talks by various members of the communities about their lives. There are also the dogs, great hiking trails, nearby tubing, etc. More information about the day can be found here: http://www.newskete.org/pilgrimage.html
SUNDAY 8/13 – You are invited to an exhibit at the Museum of Russian Icons entitled From the Vault: Icons of Ethiopia, which features a mix of Ethiopian icons, silver hand crosses, and artifacts from the Museum’s collection dating from the 19th and 20th century. This exhibit ends on Sunday, August 13. More details of the exhibit are available on their website www.museumofrussianicons.org.
TUESDAY 8/15 - Our Lady of the Annunciation Melkite Catholic Church, West Roxbury, invities you to their Annual Dormition dinner and Hafli featuring George Maalouf on Tuesday, August 15 at 8:00pm. Tickets are $25/person. To reserve your tickets call Gracia Skaf at 617-470-8050.
WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, 8/16-19 – The Orthodox Christian Fellowship is sponsoring a Summer Leadership Program designed for Orthodox college students, at St. Iakovos Retreat Center, Kansasville, WI. Cost: $300. To register go to www.ocf.net
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
NATIVITY OF THE THEOTOKOS –Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos will be celebrated on Thursday, September 7, at 6:30pm
CHURCH SCHOOL REGISTRATION - Registration for new students, and for children who have reached the age of 3, will be held on Sunday, September 10.
ELEVATION OF THE CROSS – Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross will be celebrated on Wednesday, September 13, at 6:00pm (note early start time).
REMINDERS
SOCIAL JUSTICE MINISTRY – Save the date for a training session on building social justice ministry teams in the church on September 16, 2017 here at St. Mary Orthodox Church. More information will be forthcoming at https://www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/news/events/2017/social-justice-ministry-teams
WOMEN’S CLUB – The first Women’s Club meeting of the church year will be Monday, September 18 at 7:30. At this meeting we will formulate our yearly calendar, so come with any ideas you may have. We meet only once a month, and welcome all women of the parish to join us. The Women’s Club does charitable work both locally, nationally and internationally, and supports the Church School. Call Priscilla (781-762-1527) or the church office (617-547-1234) if you have any questions or are interested in joining us.
SONIA’S RUN - Sonia’s Run and Fall Fair in memory of Sonia Daly Belcher, St. George’s, West Roxbury will be held on Saturday, September 23. Registration begins at 8:30am, race starts at 9:30am. St. Mary’s will run as a team again this year (last year we came in 2nd place). Please e-mail Charlie Marge, charlie.marge@verizon.net if you are planning on running so that you can be included in our team. All proceeds from the run will benefit Theophany School. Vendor tables are available. For more information go to www.soniasrun.org .
ICON EXHIBIT – You are invited to an exhibit at the Museum of Russian Icons entitled Fantastic Beasts in Iconography. This Exhibit spotlights the many types of natural and unnatural creatures in iconography, exploring their origins, symbolism, stories, and myriad representations. This exhibit is family friendly, with images and activities that are appealing, accessible, and educational for both adults and children. This exhibit runs until Sunday, September 24. Special rates are available for group tours. Just call their Group Tour Manager, Amy Consalvi for information: 978.598.5000 x125. And more details of the exhibits are available on their website www.museumofrussianicons.org.
DIOCESE FAMILY CAMP – Our first Diocese Family Camp will be held the weekend of Friday-Sunday, October 13-15, 2017 at the St. Methodios Faith & Heritage Center in Contoocook, NH. Our Family Camp is modeled after the program at Antiochian Village. We will have daily services, Christian Education for children, a Keynote Speaker (TBD) for the parents, and sports and games for the whole family to participate. Experienced AV Staff Members are being recruited to serve as counselors for the weekend. More registration details, promotional flyer, bulletin insert, and tentative schedule are online at http://antiochian.org/FamilyCampNE . There is also a facebook event under the Diocese Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/1425084937546643
CHURCH SCHOOL TEACHERS - We now have a teacher and assistant for 4th/5th grade, thanks to Theo Smith and Fortuna Risom. We are always in need of substitute teachers. Please consider being a substitute and helping with this very important ministry. Contact Barbara Shoop @ Barbara@dsaarchitects.com or secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547-1234 if you are interested.
YOUNG ADULT MINISTRY - The Young Adult Ministry is an active, dynamic group that hosts monthly social, spiritual, and outreach events and programs. We have lots of great plans for 2017, and we hope you'll join us! If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Jamil at 617-501-4427 or youngadults@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
GREETER MINISTRY- The Greeter Ministry is always looking for new people to greet on Sunday Mornings. 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. Arrive at Church 15 minutes before Liturgy (9:45am). Greeting time ends when Communion starts. As a greeter you get to meet all the parishioners of St. Mary’s, whether old or new to the church. We hope you will consider joining this ministry! If you are interested, contact Buddy Mabardy at buddy@cjmabardy.com or 781-729-6303, or contact the church office at secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org or 617-547- 1234.
COFFEE HOUR MADE EASY! - To make sponsoring a Coffee Hour a little bit easier, St. Mary’s offers a delivery service through “Instacart”, for the basic foods necessary to host a Coffee hour. Simply select a date, mail a check to the office and we will order the food and have it delivered to the church on that Sunday between 9:00 and 10:00 am. You will need to be at the church to accept the order and you will be required to set up for the coffee hour and clean up both the kitchen and hall at the end of the coffee hour. Two menus will be offered. Menu one will include: bagels, mini muffins, fruit, hummus/Syrian bread, juice and coffee for $160. Menu two will include: bagels, juice and coffee for $70. Prices DO NOT include a 20% tip for delivery and are subject to change based on current market pricing of items. Cream cheese, peanut butter, jam and coffee creamer are included with each menu. As usual, St. Mary’s will provide the plates, cups, napkins, utensils, serving platters, and sweetener for coffee. If you are interested in taking advantage of this service and signing up for a coffee hour please contact the office at 617-547-1234 or e-mail secretary@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org.
REFLECTION
The central idea of the Eastern Fathers was that of theosis, the divinization of all creatures, the transfiguration of the world, the idea of the cosmos and not the idea of personal salvation... Only later Christian consciousness began to value the idea of hell more than the idea of the transfiguration and divinization of the world... The Kingdom of God is the transfiguration of the world, the universal resurrection, a new heaven and a new earth.
- Nicholas Berdyaev, Salvation and Creativity: Two Understandings of Christianity
[Jesus prayed] "that they may be one, as we are one." In this perfect unity, not only the all-conquering power of the faithful but also the glory of God will be seen; yes, and God's very being. As the Father and the Son are one in essence, differing only in Person, so let it be among the faithful, many and varied in person, but essentially one in love, will and mind.
- St. (Bp.) Nikolai Velimirovic, Homilies