ST. JAMES ORTHODOX CHURCH

Transcription

1 ECUMENICAL PATRIARCHATE Vicariate of the Palestinian & Jordanian Orthodox Communities in the U.S. ST. JAMES ORTHODOX CHURCH 195 N. Main Street; Milpitas, CA sjorthodox.org (Office) Very Rev. Fr. Jeries Hanna Fr. Dcn. Joseph Kawar UPCOMING SERVICES Monday, December 17 10:00 am Divine Liturgy Friday, December 21 Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called 10:00 am Divine Liturgy Sunday, December 23 30th Sunday after Pentecost 8:00 am Matins 10:30 am Divine Liturgy Bulletin for December 17 - December 23 Issue No. 773 Bay Area s own AL-SALAM CHOIR Christmas Performance The Vicariate presents its very own AL-SALAM Choir this Saturday, December 22 at 7:00pm at St. James Orthodox Church. Dinner will be served following the concert. Please bring your family and friends and enjoy the beautiful voices. Free admission! FASTING SCHEDULE 12/17/18 Fish allowed 12/18/18 Fish allowed 12/19/18 Oil allowed 12/20/18 Fish allowed 12/21/18 Strict fasting 12/22/18 Fish allowed 12/23/18 Fish allowed COFFEE & LUNCH HOUR Lunch this Sunday will provided by the Ladies Auxiliary. May God bless them and their families. LOOKING AHEAD Dec. 22 Jan. 6 Jan. 27 Feb. 23 Christmas Concert By AL-SALAM Christmas Service General Parish Meeting Annual Crab Feed Thank you for the Great Performance! Thank you to the Sunday School children, young adults and all of the instructors who worked hard and spent countless hours preparing for the Christmas play and carol. It was truly a beautiful event. May God bless the children, the volunteers and their families! 2019 Board of Trustees If you are interested in becoming a board of trustee member for the year 2019, please see any board or clergy member. Remember there are a few prerequisites in order to become a board member, but feel free to reach out. Matching Donation Many companies offer matching gift programs to encourage employees to contribute to charitable organizations. Some provide matching funds to support employee volunteer hours. Please find out if your company will match your donations to St. James Church. Christmas Gift Idea!! A large variety of scrip (gift) cards are available for purchase. We have Amazon, Gas, Visa cards, your favorite restaurants and much more! By purchasing scrip cards, our church will receive a percentage or kick-back from the company. Please help your church by supporting the scrip program. Please see Lilian Kawar for more information!

2 Saint of the Week THE HOLY GREAT MARTYR BARBARA AND OUR RIGHTEOUS FATHER JOHN OF DAMASCUS Saint Barbara was from Heliopolis of Phoenicia and lived during the reign of Maximian. Saint Barbara was the daughter of a certain idolater named Dioscoros. When Barbara came of age, she was enlightened in her pure heart and secretly believed in the Holy Trinity. About this time Dioscoros began building a bath-house; before it was finished he was required to go away to attend to certain matters, and in his absence Barbara directed the workmen to build a third window in addition to the two her father had commanded. She also inscribed the sign of the Cross with her finger upon the marble of the bath-house, leaving the saving sign cut as deeply into the marble as if it had been done with an iron tool. When the Synaxarion of Saint Barbara was written, the marble of the bath-house and the cross inscribed by Saint Barbara were still preserved and many healings were worked there. When Dioscoros returned, he asked why the third window had been added; Saint Barbara began to declare to him the mystery of the Holy Trinity. Because she refused to renounce her faith, Dioscoros, her father, tortured St. Barbara, his daughter, inhumanly, and after subjecting her to many sufferings he beheaded her with his own hands, in the year of our Lord 290. OUR FATHER AMONG THE SAINTS NICHOLAS THE WONDERWORKER By tradition, Nicholas born in the province of Lycia in the southern part of Asia Minor in the city of Patara to well-to-do parents. The date of his birth is not known. Having inherited his parents' estate, he became known for his generous gifts to those in need. As a youth, he made pilgrimages to Palestine and Egypt. He was subsequently consecrated Archbishop of Myra as the fourth century began. He was truly a man of great humility. The Troparion says of him: "By your lowliness you didst attain to the heights... by poverty unto riches...." It is said that he refused at first the office of the episcopacy, deeming himself unworthy of such a dignity. Many are the stories and legends of his life that depict the simple honesty, love, humility, and devotion of this shepherd. He saved sailors on the sea, and children in death. All know how he saved three young woman from a life of sin by throwing three bags of gold into the homes at night, hoping that none would see him perform this act of charity. OUR VENERABLE, GODBEARING FATHER SABBAS THE SANCTIFIED The Venerable Sabbas the Sanctified was a Palestinian monastic who is credited with composing the first monastic rule of church services, the so-called "Jerusalem Typikon". He was a staunch opponent of the heretical Monophysites and Origenist movements. This Saint was born in 439 in Moutalaska, a small village of Cappadocia. He entered the arena of the monastic life from childhood and was under that master trainer of monastics, Euthymius, the Great, the teacher of the desert. He became the spiritual Father of many monks and an instructor for the monasteries in Palestine, and was appointed leader (archimandrite) of the desert-dwellers of Palestine by the Patriarch of Jerusalem. In his old age he went to Constantinople, to the Emperors Anastasius and Saint Justinian the Great, in behalf of the Orthodox Faith and the dogmas of the Council of Chalcedon. Having lived ninety-four years, he reposed in 533. The Typicon for the ecclesiastical services had its beginning in the monastery established by this righteous one.

3 About Icons in the Orthodox Church Icons An icon is a holy image which is the distinctive art form of the Orthodox Church. An icon may be a painting of wood, on canvas, a mosaic or a fresco. Occupying a very prominent place in Orthodox worship and theology, icons depict Christ Our Lord, Mary the Theotokos, the saints and angels. They may also portray events from the Scriptures or the history of the Church, such as the Birth of Christ, the Resurrection, or Pentecost. The icon is not simply decorative, inspirational, or educational. Most importantly, it signifies the presence of the person depicted. The icon is like a window linking heaven and earth. When we worship we do so as part of the Church which includes the living and the departed. We never lose contact with those who are with the Lord in glory. This belief is expressed every time one venerates an icon or places a candle before it. Orthodox churches have icons not only on the iconostasis but also on the walls, ceilings, and in arches. Above the sanctuary in the apse, there is very frequently a large icon of Mary, the Theotokos and the Christ Child. The Orthodox Church believes that Mary is the human person closest to God. This very prominent icon recalls her important role in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. The icon is also an image of the Church. It reminds us of our responsibility to give birth to Christ's presence in our lives. The icon of Christ the Almighty, the Pantocrator, is on the ceiling or in the dome. This icon portrays the Triumphant Christ who reigns as Lord of heaven and earth. Looking downward, it appears as though the whole church and all of creation comes from Him. Looking upward, there is the sense that all things direct us to Christ the Lord. He is the "Alpha and the Omega" (Rev. 22:13), the beginning and the end of all. This is the message of Orthodoxy. Iconostasis The iconostasis is the panel of icons which separates the sanctuary from the nave. Its origin is in the ancient custom of placing icons on a low wall before the sanctuary. In the course of time, the icons became fixed on a standing wall. In contemporary practice, the iconostasis may be very elaborate and conceal most of the sanctuary. Or, it may be very simple and open in accordance with more ancient custom.

4

5

6