Update for the week Friday, April 8, 2011 through Thursday, April 14, 2011
THIS WEEKEND
LEARNING IN LENT– After the Akathist service this Friday, April 8, (which begins at 7:00 pm), we will have the last in a series of Learning in Lent talks. This week’s speaker will be Antonia Atanssova, who will speak on the topic “The World of Warcraft and Its Happy End: Brutality, Suffering and Grace in the Orthodox Tradition”
CHORAL MUSIC WORKSHOP–The Diocese of Worcester and New England is sponsoring a Choral Music workshop on Saturday, April 9, 2011 at St. John Church, Dedham from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Focus will be on choral and vocal techniques and preparation for the Parish Life Conference. For more information, contact Paul Jabara 514-738-8401 or pauljabara@gmail.com
PASCHA BAKE SALE– The Women’s Club will be holding their annual Pascha bake sale this Sunday, April 10 (the Sunday before Palm Sunday). Please plan on purchasing items for Pascha or to have with your coffee! Proceeds benefit our General Fund, which helps fund our St. Mary Church School and other individual charities, such as the YWCA Family Shelter, Antiochian Women’s local Humanitarian Projects, the Convent of Saidnaya in Syria and our yearly support of a child in Lebanon through the Archdiocese Children’s Relief Fund.
PREPARE EGGS FOR PASCHA - Ten volunteers are needed to each hard boil and dye three dozen brown eggs for Pascha eve. Khourieh Carol will provide the red dye and instructions. Names of volunteers are needed by Sunday, April 10, 2011. See Khourieh Carol or call Fr. Antony at 781-507-5938.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
LAZARUS SATURDAY CHURCH CLEAN-UP – Please come and bring your friends and family to celebrate the Divine Liturgy on Lazarus Saturday,April 16, (Matins 8:00 am, Liturgy 9:00 am) and enjoy a Communion Breakfast at 10:15 am. After the breakfast there will be a Church Clean-Upin preparationfor Pascha, coordinated by the Fellowship of St. John the Divine. Everyone is encouraged to bring some rags, cleaning supplies, small buckets, brown paper bags and irons for wax removal, etc. The will coordinate this activity. Please come and lend a hand in preparing God’s House for the Feast of Feasts. Remember, “Many hands make light work!”
RETURN YOUR "FOOD FOR HUNGRY PEOPLE" BOXES– Please return your filled boxes to the Bengarri on Palm Sunday, April 17. During this season of prayer, self-discipline and fasting, please be very generous in your contribution to the Food for Hungry People program of our Archdiocese – He that feeds the hungry also feeds God.
PALM SUNDAY FISH DINNER– On Sunday, April 17, the Fellowship of St. John the Divine will host its annual Palm Sunday Fish Dinner. Spend Palm Sunday with your family and friends at Church after Liturgy and let us do the cooking!
HOLY FRIDAY RETREAT – Please plan on sending your child to church on Holy Friday morning, April 22, from 9:30-12:30. There will be activities for ages 4 through young adult. Fellowship, age-appropriate crafts; lunch provided. Confessions for children in the morning. We ask that parents of children under age 5 stay with their child(ren). Volunteers are welcome and needed to assist with activities and lunch. A $5 goodwill donation is requested (not required) to defray costs. We ask that you pick up your child by 12:30 if you do not plan on their attending Royal Hours at 1:00. Please contact Trish Orlovsky at 781-641-0182 or t_orlovsky@hotmail.com if you have questions, can help with an activity, or plan to attend. RSVP by Palm Sunday, April 17.
HOLY FRIDAY VIGIL – Following the Lamentations Service on Holy Friday evening, St. Mary's Teen SOYO will hold an All-Night Vigil at the Church. All youth, ages 12-18 (grades 7-12), are encouraged to participate in reading Psalms, keeping watch at the tomb, and joining a discussion led by a special guest. The Vigil culminates Saturday morning with Vesperal Liturgy at 9am. Teens across the Diocese will participate in similar vigils at their respective churches. The Church will be locked and several chaperones will remain with the Teens throughout the night, into the morning.
REMINDERS
PRESANCTIFIED LITURGY and LENTEN POTLUCK – This Wednesday, April 13, there will be Presanctified Liturgy at 6:30 pm, followed by the final Lenten Potluck Supper, sponsored by the FSJD. Do plan to come and bring something to share. But please stay for supper even if you can't bring food--there's room at the table for everyone.
CONFESSIONS - It is preferred that you make your confession before Holy Week. However, if you are unable to do so, Fr. Antony is available for Confession before and after services from Monday to Wednesday evenings only of Holy Week, or by appointment. Please note that no confessions will be heard on Great and Holy Saturday before the Rush procession.
HELP STREAM LENTEN and HOLY WEEK SERVICES OVER THE INTERNET - As we have been doing for the past several years, we are continuing our free live streaming ministry over the web this year for those who cannot join us in person. This ministry has already reached thousands of people across the country and in more than 40 countries around the world, who join us online to celebrate services with us through their computer! Erick Straghalis still needs additional people who plan to attend services regularly or semi-regularly throughout Lent, who can help to set up the video stream before each service. No experience is needed! You can be trained on how to turn on the computer, camera and microphones and start the streaming application in just a few minutes. If you are interested and able, please contact Erick Straghalis at estraghalis@gmail.comfor more information and to set up schedules.
BECOME A GREETER FOR ST MARY’S -The Parish Council has enacted the Greeter Program, similar to other churches, to greet and aid parishioners, guests and visitors 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. If you would like to help and volunteer as a Greeter once every few months, please contact Buddy Mabardy at 781-729-6303 or email at Buddy@cjmabardy.com
ICON SYMPOSIUM – The Museum of Russian Icons in Clinton, MA, is presenting Christ Enthroned as Orthodox Image and Poetic Text: The Revolutionary Iconoclasm of Vladimir Mayakovsky, a symposium with Michael Flier and Sally Pratt, two of the most renowned experts in the field of Russian Iconography and history, on Friday, April 15, from 2:00-4:00 pm. Tickets are $15 for members, $20 for nonmembers; includes reception following the talks. For more information see http://www.museumofrussianicons.org/calendar/2011/april/event3.html Advance reservations are encouraged at (978) 598-5000.
HOLY WEEK PARKING- The Church Parking Lot will be available for parking throughout Holy Week; however it is not available for parishioner parking from 9:00 am. to 5:00 pmMondays - Fridays any other week.
WEEKLY ENVELOPES – If you currently receive weekly envelopes to fulfill your pledge and you either (a) don’t use them, or (b) are planning on not using envelopes next year, please send an e-mail to Charlie Marge (marge@alum.mit.edu). We are currently trying to decide how many boxes of envelopes to order for 2012. Thanks for your help!
BENEFIT FOR THEOPHANY SCHOOL– On Saturday, April 30, starting at 6:30 pm, there will be a Benefit Evening & Auction for Theophany School at Apollo Functions, Norwood, MA For more information you can call the school at 781-444-3058, or see http://theophanyschool.org/assets/files/Annual%20Benefit%20Evening/evite%202011%20auction-1.pdf.
VON HOLZHAUSEN LECTURE & BOOK – The Fellowship of St. John the Divine invites you to the annual vonHolzhausen Lecture following coffee hour on Sunday, May 1, 2011. This year’s speaker will be Fr. Michael Plekon, professor at Baruch College’s Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, Orthodox priest, and author (see http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/wsas/academics/anthropology/mplekon.htm) We have copies of his book, Hidden Holiness, to sell and read before he comes. See Tiffany Conroy to get a copy for $18, a big discount over the retail price of $25! This would be an excellent book to read during Lent, and Fr Plekon is eager to have people prepared for a good discussion! The book is great!!!
SCHOLARSHIPS:
Fellowship of St. John the Divine: Graduating High School
Seniors who are actively involved in the parish and whose parents are
members of the parish are eligible for the FSJD Scholarship. Please
call the Church Office with your name so that an application will be
mailed to you by Mary Winstanley O’Connor, or contact her directly at moconnor@koilaw.comor 617-523-1010. Application deadline is May 1, 2011.
The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North Americaannounces the availability of scholarships for those graduating from high school, as well as those that will be in college during the 2011-2012 academic year. Scholarships are as high as $2,500 each. Deadline is May 15. Applications are now available on the Archdiocese website at www.antiochian.org/Scholarships
Antiochian Women: Scholarships are available to Antiochian Women 25 years of age or older, who choose to continue their education. You must be a member in good standing of the Antiochian Archdiocese, be actively involved in your parish, be applying for an academic or trade study program and demonstrate financial need. Scholarship applications are available in the office. Deadline to apply is May 27, 2011.
“FELLOWSHIP OF NEW SKETE” – New Skete is forming a
"Third Order" group for those wishing to have a closer spiritual
relationship with the monastery and incorporate monastic values in their
own lives (in their own life circumstances). An inaugural retreat will
be held at New Skete May 27–29, 2011.From their
proposal: "At the heart of the vision of New Skete has always been the
desire to live the Christian life as fully as possible by becoming true
disciples of the Gospel. While this expressed itself initially through
the life and witness of the three monastic communities, there have
always been friends who sense a deep connection with the values of New
Skete and who wish to be involved in its ministry from the context of
their own lives. The Fellowship of New Skete supports such individuals
who seek to deepen their spiritual lives through a more formal
connection with the monastic life of New Skete...." A group formed in
Portland a few years ago. How this will look in other contexts is still
to be determined.
This retreat is for those interested in the possibility of such a
connection with the monastery (no commitment necessary at this time). A
few of us for the Boston area will be going out for this. Anyone
interested, please let Teva Regule (teva@mit.edu) know so she can add you to the list and relay any further developments.
PARISH LIFE CONFERENCE – This year’s New England Parish Life Conference will be held Friday, June 17, through Sunday, June 19, at the Resort & Conference Center in Hyannis, hosted by St. John of Damascus Church in Dedham. Register today - discounted hotel rates are only guaranteed through May 1, and early bird discount through May 14. Look for us on Facebook: “2011 Parish Life Conference,” or visit us at www.stjohnd.org/conference2011 . You can email questions to the conference chairpeople at Conference2011@stjohnd.org
CROSSROAD – Attention High School Juniors & Seniors: CrossRoad is an exciting summer vocation exploration program designed to help students discern their life callings and match their God-given gifts with the needs of the world. CrossRoad session dates for summer 2011 are June 18-28 (first session) and July 5-15 (second session). For more information and to download an application: www.crossroad.hchc.edu
HAPPY NEWS- Fr. Peter and Nadia DeFonce would like to send their greetings from Lubbock, TX to all of the St. Mary's parishioners and share with them the wonderful news that they are expecting a baby girl this coming June! If you wish to contact them, Fr. Peter's email address is pdefonce@yahoo.comor you can find either of them on Facebook.
MISSION TEAM OPPORTUNITIES- The Orthodox Christian Mission Center has announced their 2011 Mission Teams. Teams will be heading to 9 locations around the globe to share the teachings of the faith and offer the gift of service through hands-on experience. For more information go to http://teams.ocmc.orgor call the OCMC at 877-463-6784.
BE PART OF A FAMILY MISSION TEAM –This year the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC) is proud to announce a collaboration with the Center for Family Care (of the Greek Archdiocese) by offering a Family Mission Team. For two weeks, July 17-29, 2011, families from North America, along with Albanian families, will participate in this outreach assisted by OCMC missionaries and Albanian church leaders. The primary focus is to offer a “family witness” while sharing the faith and growing as a family in Christ. Consider being part of this first OCMC and Center for Family Care collaboration and family mission witness! Visithttp://teams.ocmc.org, or e-mail teams@ocmc.org, for more information or to apply.
2011 ARCHDIOCESAN CONVENTION– The 50th Antiochian Archdiocese Convention will be held July 24-31 at the Marriott Chicago Downtown, Chicago, Illinois. For more information see www.archdioceseconvention2011.orgor email info@archdioceseconvention2011.org
2015 ARCHDIOCESE CONVENTION- St. Mary has obtained the permission of Metropolitan PHILIP to bid on the 2015 Archdiocese Convention. The Parish Council is preparing a bid to have the convention be held at the Sheraton Boston Hotel in Boston, MA from Sunday, July 19, through Sunday, July 26. The determination as to which church will be chosen will be made at the July 2011 National Convention. The convention co-chairs will be Mary Winstanley O’Connor and Raymond Sayeg. Mary and Ray are looking for volunteers to assist with a number of committees – see the list in Sunday’s bulletin. The Parish Council will need all parishioners to provide their time and talent to make this convention a significant success. Please call Mary at her office at 617-523-1010 or email her at moconnor@koilaw.com with any questions or your willingness to participate. Or contact Ray at his office at 617-742-1184 or email him at rsayeg@dennerpellegrino.com
REGULAR REMINDERS
STREAMING VIDEO- Divine
Liturgy at St. Mary is broadcast live every week! Do come to church…
but if you can’t, then join us on your computer! To see live broadcasts
go to https://www.stmaryorthodoxchurch.org/livestream. Divine Liturgy starts at 10:00 am every Sunday September through June, and at 9:30 am during the summer.
DONATE VIA eGIVE – Recently we have had special
collections for Japan, for Seminarians, and most recently for the
Antiochian Women’s project: the Convent of St. Thekla. If you didn’t
have a chance to contribute to those collections, or would like to give
more, you can do so through eGive at www.egive-usa.com. If you have not yet set up an account, you can do it there, or contact Charlie Marge (marge@alum.mit.edu)
for help. The Recipient Organization is “St. Mary’s Orthodox Church,”
and when you get to Step 4 after selecting that, you have the option of
designating how your gift will be used.
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 notblock the driveway – if the lot is full, you can park on the street or in the lot at the corner of Prospect Street and Bishop Allen Drive.
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:
PARTICIPATION
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 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.orgor 617-547-1234.
VOLUNTEERING
Holy Resurrection Open Doors - The Holy Resurrection
Open Door Meal Ministry in Allston needs volunteers every Monday evening
(there is a special need in the summer). The official hours of the
project are 4:30 pm-7:30 pm, but it is fine to come anytime and leave
any time. Best times would be 5:30-5:45 to 7:15-7:30 pm. You can serve
meals, coffee and tea to the people who arrive for dinner (6-7 pm) or
just stay behind the scenes doing set-up and clean-up. It is a very
rewarding, hands-on, face-to-face way to serve the community with
(mostly) other Orthodox Christians—we even chant the Our Father together
before the meal begins. Church info can be found at http://hrocboston.org. Questions? Please contact Liz Straghalis atliztutella@gmail.com phone 617-974-5005, or Tiffany Conroy at trattus1@gmail.com.
St Paul’s Food Pantry - Volunteers are needed each week in the food pantry at St Paul's Roman Catholic Church in Harvard Square, Saturday mornings from 9:30-11:45.
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
DONATIONS
Food and Clothing – Holy Resurrection in Allston takes donations of non-perishable food items and clothing
to distribute at the Open Door Ministry on Monday evenings. You can
bring your donations by on Monday nights between 4:30 pm and 7:30 pm or
contact Tiffany Conroy, trattus1@gmail.com, for more information.
Canned Goods-The annual Food For Hungry People canned food drive is held October through December each year. 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.
"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
LITURGICAL SERVICE - Epistle: Bob Kowalik; Left Cloth: Gabriel Madigan and Natasha Madigan; Right Cloth: Melissa Nassiff and Greg Hakim; Left Bread: Teva Regule; Right Bread: Linda Arnold
COFFEE HOUR – Women’s Club Pascha Bake Sale
LITURGICAL SCHEDULE FOR THIS WEEK
Friday, April 8: Akathist (Madayeh) Service 7:00 pm, followed by final “Learning in Lent” Lecture
Saturday,April 9: Great Vespers 5:00
Sunday, April 10: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00; Church School lesson 20
SCRIPTURE READINGS for April 10, Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt:
Epistle: St. Paul's Letter to the Hebrews 9:11-14
brethren, when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that
have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with
hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the
Holy Place, taking not the blood of goats and calves but his own blood,
thus securing an eternal redemption.
Gospel: Mark 10:32-45
At that time, Jesus taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what
was to happen to him, saying, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and
the Son of man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes,
and they will condemn him to death, and deliver him to the Gentiles; and
they will mock him, and spit upon him, and scourge him, and kill him;
and after three days he will rise." … And Jesus called them to him and
said to them, "You know that those who are supposed to rule over the
Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over
them. But it shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among
you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be
slave of all. For the Son of man also came not to be served but to
serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Wednesday, April 13: Presanctified Liturgy 6:30 pm, followed by pot luck supper
LOOKING AHEAD
Saturday, April 16, Lazarus Saturday: Matins 8:00 am, Divine Liturgy 9:00 am, Communion Breakfast 10:15 am, followed by church cleanup; Great Vespers 5:00 pm
Sunday, April 17, Palm Sunday: Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am with Procession, followed by FSJD annual Fish Dinner (no Church School); Bridegroom Matins 7:00 pm
Holy Monday, April 18: Presanctified Liturgy 7 :00 am; Bridegroom Matins 7:00 pm
Holy Tuesday, April 19: Presanctified Liturgy 7 :00 am; Bridegroom Matins 7:00 pm
Holy Wednesday, April 20: Presanctified Liturgy 7 :00 am; Holy Unction 7:00 pm
Holy Thursday, April 21: Vesperal Liturgy 7 :00 am; Washing of the Feet 6:45 pm and Twelve Gospels 7:00 pm
Holy Friday, April 22: Children’s Retreat 9:30 am; Royal Hours 1:00 pm; Unnailing Vespers 3:00 pm; Lamentations 7:15 pm with Procession to Central Square; Teen SOYO All-Night Vigil
Holy Saturday, April 23: Vesperal Liturgy 9:00 am
Saturday-Sunday, April 23-24, Great and Holy Pascha: Vigil/Rush Service 10:00 pm; Resurrection Matins 11:00 pm; Great and Holy Pascha Divine Liturgy 12 midnight; Paschal Festivities in the Church Hall following
Sunday, April 24: Joint Agape Vespers (Baouth) 11:00 am here at St. Mary; Reception following
Sunday, May 1: vonHolzhausen Lecture 12:30
Friday-Sunday, June 17-19: Parish Life Conference
INSIGHT
More integrated into Lent are the
commemorations of St. John of the Ladder on the fourth Sunday, and of
St. Mary of Egypt on the fifth Sunday. In both the Church sees the
supreme bearers and proponents of Christian asceticism – St. John having
expressed the precepts of asceticism in his writings and St. Mary in
her life. Their commemoration during the second half of Lent is
obviously meant to encourage and to inspire the faithful struggling
through their Lenten spiritual effort.
- Alexander Schmemann, Great Lent
When humility delivers a man from attachment to his own works and his
own reputation, he discovers that perfect joy is possible only when we
have completely forgotten ourselves. And it is only when we pay no more
attention to our own deeds and our reputation and our own excellence
that we are at last completely free to serve God in perfection for His
sake alone.
- Fr. Thomas Merton,New Seeds of Contemplation
Humility is a nameless grace in the soul, its name known only to those
who have learned it by experience. It is unspeakable wealth, a name and
gift from God, for it is said: “learn not from an angel, nor from man,
nor from a book, but from Me, that is, from My indwelling, from My
illumination and action in you; for I am meek and humble in heart and in
thought and in spirit, and your soul shall find rest from conflicts and
relief from thoughts.” (Matthew 11:29)
- St. John Climacus, The Ladder of Divine Ascent
Someone who has tasted the truth is not contentious for truth. Someone
who is considered among men to be zealous for truth has not yet learned
what truth is really like: once he has learned it he will cease from
zealousness on its behalf. … The gift of God and of knowledge of him is
not a cause for turmoil and clamor; rather this gift is entirely filled
with a peace in which the Spirit, love and humility reside. … The person
whose mind has become aware of God does not even possess a tongue with
which to speak, but God resides in his heart in great serenity. He
experiences no stirring of zeal or argumentativeness, nor is he stirred
by anger. He cannot even be aroused concerning the faith.
- St Isaac of Syria
We have the great hope that God is not just behind us in history but
also ahead of us. He is an object of hope. We believe deeply that the
future belongs to God. For us, witness is carried on in the community
and through the community, by grace, modestly, and in humility. We sow
and then leave to God the time of harvest.
- Patriarch Ignatius IV of Antioch