Update for the week Thursday, January 14 – Thursday, January 21, 2016
THIS WEEK AT ST. MARY'S
SATURDAY, 1/16 - No Vespers at St. Mary.
SUNDAY, 1/17 – Adult catechism 9:00; Orthros 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00; No Church School
THURSDAY, 1/21 - The Bible Study group will meet on Thursday, January 21, at 7:00 pm in the church library. We will continue our discussion of Isaiah, using the podcasts at http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/isaiah-6-part-2/ and http://orthodoxbiblestudy.info/isaiah-6-part-3/
The Bible Study at St. Mary meets every other Thursday, and is based on a very interesting course 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.
NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS
THANK YOU - The Teens thank all those who contributed canned goods to the Food for Hungry Campaign. 273 pounds of food was collected and provided to the Cambridge Economic Opportunity Committee (CEOC) Food Pantry on Inman St.
HELP REFUGEES IN SYRIA - “A Meal for Refugees” will be shared on Monday, January 25 at 7:00 pm at St. George Orthodox Church, West Roxbury to benefit the internally displaced refugees in Syria. His Grace, the Right Reverend Bishop Elia of Arthoussa (in Syria) will present an up-to-date personal perspective on the refugee crisis there. Monetary donations will be accepted that evening to assist Bishop Elia’s ongoing ministry to refugees. Donations are tax deductible and will be acknowledged. Please bring your check made out to “St. George Church” with the memo, “Syrian Refugee Appeal.” Please RSVP so they may prepare properly: 617-323-0323 or stgeorgeofboston@verizon.net
GOLDEN RULES FOR THE GOLDEN YEARS – Tune in on Thursday, January 28th from 1:00-2:00 pm for a webinar discussing Resources to Help Reduce Symptom Burden and Caregiver Burnout in Older Adults, featuring Dr. Evgenia Litrivis, board certified internist, geriatrician and palliative care physician. The goals of this webinar are to provide an understanding of 1) The beneficial role of palliative care as a medical specialty for age related illnesses; 2) The role of the caregiver and strategies to reduce caregiver burnout, and 3) Advance directives. These topics will be discussed within the context of dementia - a leading cause of illness and need for caregiver support among older adults. This webinar is sponsored by the Center for Family Care of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese. Register at https://goarch.zoom.us/webinar/register/c10b3e1029cbe7317510d14dfea9e91
WOMEN’S CLUB – The next meeting of the Women’s Club will be Thursday, February 4, at 7:30.
DIOCESE MEETING - There will be a General Assembly meeting of Diocesan Delegates of Antiochian Women and Teen SOYO on Saturday, February 6, here at St. Mary Church.. Morning Prayers start at 9:30 am, meetings at 10:00 and lunch at noon.
THEOPHANY SCHOOL - Theophany School is now enrolling for fall 2016, and will hold an Open House on Thursday, February 11 from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. They are located at 754 Greendale Ave., Needham, MA. For further information contact 781-444-3058 or theophanyschool@gmail.com.
PARISH COUNCIL - Congratulations to the newly elected officers of the parish council: Mary Winstanley O’Connor, President; Raymond Sayeg, Vice President; Nick Bezreh, Treasurer; and Marc Patacchiola, Secretary
+ The next meeting of the Parish Council will be Wednesday, February 17, at 7:30.
REMINDERS
ANNUAL PARISH MEETING – The Annual Meeting of St. Mary's Parish will be held next Sunday, January 24, 2016 (snow date: January 31.) At this time we will vote on the budget for 2016, among other things. The proposed budget will be available on the previous Sunday, January 17. It is important that all members of St. Mary’s Church attend this meeting.
TEEN SOYO PROJECT: Health and Hygiene Kits for Syrian Refugees - The teens of St. Mary's are looking for your support. Throughout the month of December and into early January, our teens will be collecting items and putting together hygiene and health kits to send to refugees in Syria. We are in need of the following donations:
- Individual hand towels & washcloths
- Combs
- Metal nail files and/or nail clippers
- Bars of soap
- Toothbrushes
- Band-Aids
Basic items like this may seem small, but putting them together can have a major impact to those in need. Please bring and place donations in the marked bins located in the room next to the church kitchen. If you have any questions, please ask a member of Teen SOYO.
PLEASE HELP THE WOMEN’S CLUB - The Women’s Club provides the Cambridge YWCA Family Shelter with baskets filled with household goods, to help residents ready to move to their own apartments. We ask for your help by providing monetary donations to offset the cost of the items. Please give your donation to Marilyn Robbat or Barbara Shoop or mail it to the Church office c/o the Woman’s Club.
PLEDGE - Pledge cards for 2016 have been mailed. Please return Pledge Cards to the church, or ePledge on St. Mary’s website, immediately.
HOUSE BLESSING - Fr. Antony will be blessing homes after Theophany (January 5), and between Pascha and Pentecost. We bless homes to reveal the home as what God created it to be, a way to heaven; to rid the home of every evil; to show that the family is a small church unit in Christ; to consecrate the home and all activity in it to God; and to fill the home and all who live in it with the fullness of God. To schedule the blessing of your home, please use the form in the weekly Bulletin or call the church office at 617-547-1234.
2016 CHURCH CALENDARS & OFFERING ENVELOPES - New church calendars and 2016 offering envelopes are available for pick-up. Please only one calendar per family. We wish to thank Lou Kfoury of Kfoury Keefe Funeral Home for once again sponsoring the calendar. The calendar’s iconography is by our own Kh. Erin Kimmett of St. George Norwood.
FEAST OF THE PRESENTATION – We will have Evening Liturgy on Monday, February 1, at 6:30 pm, for the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord
CROSS+ROAD - CrossRoad is a ten-day academic summer institute that prepares high school juniors and seniors to make big life decisions and connect with the Orthodox Christian theological and spiritual tradition. Hosted on the Hellenic College Holy Cross campus, participants experience daily worship, visit local parishes, tour Boston, and spend a day at the beach. CrossRoad is now accepting applications for their summer 2016 sessions. Session one: June 18-28. Session 2: July 5-July 15 Complete your application by February 1, 2016. Applications received after that date will be reviewed on a rolling basis depending on availability. For more information or to apply online go to www.crossroadinstitute.org.
ST. IGNATIUS GET-TOGETHER - The Order of St. Ignatius Winter Get Together will be February 14 at Kens Steak House in Framingham. Cocktails at 4:00 pm and dinner at 5:00 pm. Any questions contact Debbie Laham at debbielaham@aol.com.
CHINESE NEW YEAR – Plan to join the Hospitality Group on Sunday, February 21 after Liturgy, for the annual Chinese New Year Missions Breakfast, to benefit the Chinese Translation Project via the Orthodox Fellowship of All Saints of China (OFASC). RSVP to Mitrophan Chin at mitrophan@orthodox.cn by Wednesday, February 17. We look forward to your support of this worthwhile project and to seeing you at this event!.
PRE-LENTEN RETREAT - The Antiochian Women of the Diocese of Worcester & New England invite you to a Pre-Lenten Retreat on Saturday, February 27. The Retreat, entitled “The Light at the End of the Tunnel,” will be from 9:00 - 2:30 at St. John of Damascus Church, Dedham. See the flyer insert in the Sunday Bulletin for reservation and payment form.
ANTIOCHIAN VILLAGE SUMMER CAMP - Registration for Summer Camp at Antiochian Village has begun. St. Mary’s Children attend 3rd session. The camper fee is $750 for the two-week camp session. Camper fees paid in full by March 1 receive a $50 discount. Register on line at https://avcamp.org/summer-camp.
COFFEE HOUR MADE EASY! - To make sponsoring a Coffee Hour a little bit easier, St. Mary’s will be offering 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.
THIS SUNDAY'S VOLUNTEERS
Greeter: Madeline Homsy
Liturgical Service:
Epistle: Charlie Marge
Procession: Tirhas Gebru, Nico Moldovean, Joseph Keamy, Ava Keamy, Matthew Keamy, Danait Teclezghi
Communion: Linda Arnold, Michelle Chin, and others TBD
Coffee Hour: No coffee hour this week.
SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR THIS SUNDAY
Epistle:
Brethren, obey your leaders and submit to them; for they are keeping watch over your souls, as men who will have to give account. Let them do this joyfully, and not sadly, for that would be of no advantage to you. …
- Hebrews 13:17-21
Gospel:
At that time, as Jesus entered a village, He was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices and said: "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." When He saw them He said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus's feet, giving Him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then said Jesus: "Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" And He said to him: "Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well."
- Luke 17:12-19
REFLECTION
When we are at rest in God and see others in relation to God, we feel drawn closer to them. This is because we are seeing them, a little, with God’s eyes. And as we see the world in this way, God’s love and acceptance of the other enters us, and makes the other not a stranger but, at a deep level, a friend, or a friend-to-be.
- Bp. Seraphim Sigrist, A Life Together
If we detect any trace of hatred in our hearts against any man whatsoever for committing any fault, we are utterly estranged from love for God, since love for God absolutely precludes us from hating any man.
- St. Maximus the Confessor
A zealous man never achieves peace of mind. But he who is a stranger to peace is a stranger to joy. If, as it is said, peace of mind is perfect health, and zeal is opposed to peace, then the man who has a wrong zeal is ill with a grievous disease. Though you presume, a man, to send forth your zeal against the infirmities of other men, you have expelled the health of your own soul; be assiduous, rather, in laboring for your own soul's health.
- St Isaac the Syrian
While they were yet idolaters, the Greeks and Barbarians were always at war with each other, and were even cruel to their own kith and kin. … All this time, as I said before, they were serving idols and offering sacrifices to demons, and for all the superstitious awe that accompanied this idol worship, nothing could wean them from that warlike spirit. But, strange to relate, since they came over to the school of Christ, as men moved with real compunction they have laid aside their murderous cruelty and are war-minded no more. On the contrary, all is peace among them and nothing remains save desire for friendship.
- St. Athanasius, On the Incarnation