Update for the week Thursday, October 31- Wednesday, November 6, 2019
THIS WEEK AT ST. MARY’S
SATURDAY 11/2 there will be a Chant Class at 4:00pm and Great Vespers at 5:00pm, followed by a Young Adult Fellowship potluck and salsa lesson
+ Daylight Savings Time ends. Don’t forget to set your clocks back one hour this Saturday night (or Sunday morning)!
SUNDAY 11/3 – This Sunday, 11/3, the 3rd Annual Cambridge Half Marathon will be held from 7:00am-10:00am beginning and ending at Cambridgeside by Lechmere. This event will involve street closures: Mass Ave., Memorial Drive, Mt. Auburn St. and Putnam Ave. are a few of the roads involved. To view the course go to https://runsignup.com/Race/CambridgeHalfMarathon/Page-1 (note corrected web address!)
+ Orthros 8:45am; St. Ignatius Catechetical Group and Orthodoxy 102 9:00am; Divine Liturgy 10:00am, followed by Children's Sermon - Children remain upstairs after Communion
+ The Women's Club will meet this Sunday after Liturgy, during Coffee Hour. We'll be discussing the upcoming Thanksgiving bake sale (November 24), the Christmas Card project, and our annual Christmas Get-Together. All women of the parish are invited to join us for this meeting. E-mail Melissa Nassiff (mnassiff@gmail.com) if you have any questions or would like to join us.
+ St. Mary's will once again be participating in the Angel Tree Prison Ministry, which provides Christmas gifts to children in our local community on behalf of their parent serving time in prison. Please see Gregg Flessas in the church hall this Sunday or e-mail him (flessas99@gmail.com) if you can help or have questions.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
CAMP AT HOME – St. George Cathedral in Worcester will be holding “Camp at Home” Friday and Saturday, November 15-16. This is a program meant to introduce young people to camp and Antiochian Village. AV staff Alumni help run the program. Teen SOYO members (7th-12th Grade) are welcome to arrive Friday November 15 at 7:00pm for an overnight camp experience. Campers age 8 years old or older will begin at 9:00am on Saturday November 16.
WITNESS PROGRAM RETREAT – Witness Program Retreat 3: “Mentorship Skills: Opening to the Other — Kenosis and Listening Skills” will be held at St. Mary’s on Saturday, November 23.
BAKE SALE – The Women’s Club will be holding its Thanksgiving Bake Sale on Sunday, November 24 after Liturgy.
PARISH CHRISTMAS CARD – Let the Women’s Club send a lovely Christmas card on your behalf to our parishioners. Save yourself time, let us do the work, and have all proceeds benefit the Antiochian Women’s Project 2019-2020: Building a New Cathedral at Antiochian Village You will receive this card with the names of parishioners, like yourself, who are wishing a Blessed Nativity and a Merry Christmas to all. Please use the order form in the Sunday bulletin, and donate whatever amount you choose. Deadline: Sunday, December 1.
PLC meeting – The next meeting of the Parish Life Conference Committee will be on Wednesday, December 4 at 7:00pm.
REMINDERS
FOOD FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE – Help support our Canned Food Drive! From October through December 31, bring in canned goods and place them in the plastic bins in the room outside the kitchen. (Canned goods only, please.) They will be distributed to food pantries in our area.
PARISH COUNCIL - The next Parish Council meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, November 6 at 7:30pm in the Hall.
SPAGHETTI DINNER – On Sunday, November 10 following Liturgy, St. Mary’s teens invite you to a Teen SOYO Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner featuring Spaghetti, Meatballs (just before the Fast!), Salad, Bread, Dessert and Coffee/Beverage. A suggested minimum donation of $5.00/person will be greatly appreciated. (No charge for Teen SOYO members)
FALL LITURGY RETREAT – The annual St. Mary Fall Liturgy Retreat (for Church School Children/Teens and Families) is Monday, November 11. (This is Veterans’ Day, usually a day off from school for many and work for some.) This year’s theme will be “The Liturgy of the Word;” we plan to explore the multi-dimensionality of "the words/Word. " As in past years, this year's retreat offers something for EVERYONE. You can register by sending an email to Teva Regule at tregule@gmail.com . $5/child, $10/family
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 1, at 3:00 pm. Tickets are just $29 ($36 without our group discount!). We will carpool to (or meet at) Symphony Hall after Liturgy and have lunch together at a nearby restaurant 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, November 17 (note deadline extended) if you would like a ticket.
PLEDGE CARDS - Pledge cards have been mailed to the homes of St. Mary’s parishioners and friends. Please return your pledge card to the church office or fill out the ePledge form on our website (https://www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/ministries/stewardship/) by Friday, November 15. A new pledge card is requested each year, even if your financial and volunteer contributions aren’t changing. If you did not receive a pledge card and would like to become of member of St. Mary’s, please see Fr. Antony or the church secretary for a new member packet.
NATIVITY FAST - The Nativity Fast, also known as the season of Advent, begins on Friday, November 15. This is the forty days of fasting and prayer in preparation for the Great Feast of the Nativity of Christ.
ENTRANCE OF THE THEOTOKOS - Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple will be celebrated on Wednesday, November 20, at 6:30pm
N.G. BERAM AWARDS BANQUET – The Nicholas G. Beram Veterans Association will hold its 73rd anniversary celebration and 53rd Scholastic Achievement awards banquet on Saturday, November 30, from 12:00 noon to 4:00pm at the Holiday Inn, Dedham. Andrew Bargoot II, one of our teens, will be receiving a Scholastic Achievement award. Tickets for the luncheon are $35.00 and tables of eight may be reserved. Luncheon reservation and ad book forms are available in the church office.
CHRISTMAS CONCERT – St. Mary’s will be hosting a concert of Christmas music from the Eastern and Western Christian traditions featuring local Orthodox Choirs on Sunday, December 8 at 4:00pm, followed by a reception to be sponsored by the Young Adult Ministry.
CHOIR MEMBERS NEEDED - The Choir is looking for new members, especially Alto (woman) and Bass/Baritone (men), but of course we welcome all parts. Please e-mail Michelle Mabardy at mmmabardy@gmail.com if you are interested.
JOIN US ONLINE - 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 or online). If you have questions or comments about this ministry please contact us at live@stmaryorthodoxchurch.org
BAZAARS, FOOD AND YARD SALES
St. John of Damascus – Annual Bazaar of St. John of Damascus will be held Friday-Sunday, November 1-3: Friday 12pm-9pm, Saturday 10am-9pm, and Sunday 12pm- 2pm. 300 West St., Dedham. Featured will be Middle Eastern Cuisine, Country Store, Christmas Corner and more. For more information visit www.stjohnd.org/bazaar.
REFLECTION
Those who are suffering in hell are suffering in being scourged by love. ... It is totally false to think that the sinners in hell are deprived of God’s love. Love is a child of the knowledge of truth, and is unquestionably given commonly to all. But love’s power acts in two ways: it torments sinners, while at the same time it delights those who have lived in accord with it.
- Saint Isaac the Syrian
May you love one another and not be embittered by reason of egotism. Humility is a sure guide; it does not allow the one who has it to strike against the reefs of carelessness and be crushed, but as a luminous guide it leads faultlessly to safety.
- Elder Ephraim of Philotheou Mount Athos, "Counsels from the Holy Mountain"
In the desert [Christ] rejected the temptation of riches, magic, and power that would have drawn people after him like tamed animals. He did not come down from the cross. He rose from the dead in secret, and is recognized only by those who love him. In the Holy Spirit, he walks at everyone's side, but he waits for the response of loving faith, that Yes like Mary's, by which our freedom is set free.
- Olivier Clément