Volume 29 December 30, 2018 Number 52. Fr. George L. Livanos, Proistamenos

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1 1. - Voice of the Church All Saints Greek Orthodox Church 601 W. McMurray Road Canonsburg, PA Office: (724) FAX: (724) Hall: (724) Volume 29 December 30, 2018 Number 52 Parish Web Site Fr. George L. Livanos, Proistamenos frgeorge@allsaintscbg.org Office Address office@allsaintscbg.org Dawn Mavrich Office Hours: Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Our Mission Statement: to glorify our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through our words and actions according to the Holy Traditions and sacred teachings of our Orthodox Christian faith. BLESSED NEW YEAR!! SUNDAY AFTER NATIVITY - December 30, 2018 (FAST FREE - No Fasting Restrictions): Today we commemorate the Sunday after Nativity, Anysia the Virgin-Martyr of Thessaloniki, and Gideon the New Martyr of Mount Athos. Plagal of the Second Tone, Ninth Orthros Gospel. PRAYER CORNER: Your prayers are requested for God s protection, and the renewed health and healing of His Eminence Metropolitan Maximos, His Beatitude Met, Theodosius (O.C.A.), Ester Georgopoulos, Tammy Mantalis Achille, Eleanor Elizabeth Gray, Norma Jones, Mary Karras-Gardner, Elizabeth Kouklakis, Lorraine Mahramus, Lucille Mahramus, Mark Mallory, Baby Noah (Josh & Jess Peniazek), Sean Rovers, Buzz Taylor, our Parish Shut-ins, the Armed Forces, those in Prison, who have lost a loved one, who are ill, suffering or in need, the leaders of our Church and country, and for Mission ministries. PARISH COUNCIL: The 2019 Parish Council are as follows (alphabetical order): Craig Blanock, Marcy Cadez, Penny Casella, John Eliopoulos, Becky Loutsion, Harold Migias, Pete Moniodes, Becky Pihiou, Nick Pochiba, Alex Soulakis, Paul Stamatakis, Heidi Surunis, and Christina Toras. They will be taking the Oath of Office today. We wish them much success! ALL SAINTS PHILOPTOCHOS SUNSHINE COMMITTEE: Beloved members of our community, the All Saints Philoptochos Sunshine Committee is dedicated to show compassion by calling, sending well wishes or sympathy cards, and keeping in touch with those who are ill and those who are in need. In order to achieve these, we need to be informed promptly, so no one in our community is Left Behind! Please contact Patricia Soulakis at (724) (alexsoulakis@yahoo.com).

2 WE WELCOME THOSE WHO ARE VISITING TODAY! It is our joy to share today s Worship with you! Holy Communion is a Sacrament of our Faith and thus only Baptized and/or Chrismated Orthodox Christians who are in Good Standing and have spiritually prepared to receive are invited to come forward from the middle aisle of the Nave with reverence and humility, row by row, in a QUIET and ORDERLY fashion, and depart as directed. Please remain seated in your pews until invited forward by a Council Member. If you are standing in the back of the Nave, please wait until all who are seated have gone forward and a Council Member invites you forward. In receiving Holy Communion, you should place the Cloth under your chin, recite your CHRISTIAN NAME, then wipe your mouth after receiving. Women: please remove any lipstick prior to Communing. Non Orthodox Christians are welcome to receive the Blessed Bread offered at the end of the Liturgy. Today s Epistle Reading St. Paul s Letter to the Galatians 1:11-19 God is wonderful among his saints. Verse: Bless God in the congregations. BRETHREN, I would have you know that the gospel which was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it; and I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and had called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia; and again I returned to Damascus. Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas, and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord's brother.

3 Today s Gospel Reading Sunday after Nativity The Gospel According to Matthew 2:13-23 WHEN the wise men departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, "Out of Egypt have I called my son." Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, was in a furious rage, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time which he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: "A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they were no more." But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead." And he rose and took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaos reigned over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee. And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, "He shall be called a Nazarene." WORSHIP& EVENTS TODAY: - No Church School till January 6, Parish Council Oath of Office - after Divine Liturgy MONDAY: - New Year s Eve TUESDAY: - New Year s Day (Office Closed) - Orthros & Liturgy: St. Basil the Great - 9:00 a.m. WEDNESDAY: - Orthros & Liturgy: St. Seraphim of Sarov (Veneration of Relic) - 9:00 a.m.

4 THURSDAY: - Philoptochos Meeting /Zorba - 6:30 p.m. FRIDAY: - Orthros & Liturgy: St. Nikiphoros of Chios - 9:00 a.m. SATURDAY: - Orthros & Liturgy of St. Basil & Great Blessing of the Waters - 9:00 a.m. SUNDAY: - Vasilopita Sunday - Orthros & Great Blessing of Waters Service following Divine Liturgy & Parish Vasilopita - 9:00 a.m. - Church School Restarts VASILOPITA SUNDAY - JANUARY 6, 2019: In March of 1944, St. Basil s Academy was established as a haven for Greek Orthodox children. The Philoptochos Society had purchased an estate in Garrison, NY thus allowing then Archbishop Athenagoras dream to be realized, the establishment of a children s home and orphanage. St. Basil s Academy is under the direct supervision of the central council of Philoptochos. National Philoptochos supports the Academy with a donation of $25,000 a month, funds mainly generated through the proceeds of the Vasilopita held in each chapter. Please reserve Sunday, January 6, 2019, and support St. Basil s Academy, one of the Church s most important institutions and a Philoptochos major commitment. Harriet Matthews is the chairperson for the Vasilopita Sunday. If you wish to purchase a Vasilopita from Harriet, you may do so for a donation of $5. For those of you who wish to bake and donate your own Vasilopita, please call Harriet at to inform her of your donation. This will allow Harriet to be certain adequate Vasilopita are available for our special celebration. Thank you for your cooperation. Sunday, December 23, 2018 Donations Building Fund: $5.00 Second Tray: $ Stewardship: $1, Candle Tray: $ Cash in Tray: $ St. Phanourious: $ STEWARDSHIP ENVELOPES: If you have ordered Stewardship envelopes for 2019, you may pick them up on the welcoming table in the Narthex. Thank you! SCHEDULING COFFEE HOUR & USE OF KITCHEN: If you wish to host a Coffee Hour and/or use the Hall Kitchen YOU MUST EXCLUSIVELY CONTACT THE CHURCH OFFICE/DAWN and make those arrangements. This will prevent us from having misunderstandings and conflicts in the future. ICONOGRAPHY: We would like to thank all of you who generously donated to the All Saints Iconography Project and to remind you that the third year of the three-year payment period is due at this time. Please make checks payable to the All Saints Iconography Fund.

5 IUP OCF STARTING UP AGAIN: A new OCF will be starting at IUP (Indiana, PA) tentatively with a "Meet and Greet" somewhere on campus on January 30th, Please share this news with any Orthodox Christian Student. Contact Fr. Mark R. Meholick for more info. HISTORY EXHIBIT: The University of Pittsburgh Greek Room Committee will be holding a History Exhibit of the First Greek Immigrants to the City of Pittsburgh on December 31, 2018 through January 5, For more details, please see the flyer posted on the bulletin board in the Church Hall. BOOKSTORE: Please come and see our wonderful new items in our Bookstore. TODAY ONLY, all items are being sold on a free-will offering basis. These items are the perfect gift for graduations, weddings, anniversaries, or any special occasion! Also, please see our free items table in the Parish Hall. There are many great items on this table and they are all free! ÔÏ ÁÃÃÅËÌÁ ÔÇÓ ÇÌÅÑÁÓ ~ MESSAGE OF THE DAY

6 Óõíôçñïýìáóôå ìå áõôü Ãéá ìáò ôïõò ñéóôéáíïýò, ôïõò öùôéóìýíïõò êáé äéáöùôéóìýíïõò åí ñéóôþ, ôá ðüíôá óå áõôü ôïí êüóìï Ý ïõí íüçìá êáé áîßá åöüóïí áðïôåëïýí ìýóïí êáé ïäü ðñïò ôçí áéùíéüôçôá. ÅðåéäÞ åìåßò âëýðïõìå åêåßíï ðïõ äåí öáßíåôáé êáé áôåíßæïõìå ôï áüñáôï, ñõèìßæïõìå üëç ìáò ôç æùþ ìýóá óôïí ñüíï ìå âüóç åêåßíï ðïõ åßíáé áéþíéï, ôï áíèñþðéíï ìå âüóç ôï Èåáíèñþðéíï. ¼óï õðüñ åé êüôé ôï áéþíéï ìýóá óôá üñéá ôïõ ñïíéêïý, óõíôçñïýìáóôå ìå áõôü. ¼ôáí üìùò áõôü åêëåßðåé, ôï áíáæçôïýìå ðýñá áðü ôïí ñüíï, óôï âáóßëåéï ôïõ áôåëåýôçôïõ êáé áüñáôïõ. Áôåíßæïõìå ôá ðüíôá õðü ôï ðñßóìá ôçò áéùíéüôçôáò, äçë. õðü ôï ðñßóìá ôïõ ñéóôïý, áöïý Åêåßíïò åßíáé ï áéþíéïò Èåüò êáé Êýñéïò. ( ãéïò Éïõóôßíïò Ðüðïâéôò. pemptousia gr) «õðü ôï ðñßóìá ôïõ ñéóôïý». Äåí õðüñ åé ðéï ðáñþãïñïò êáé ðéï åëðéäïöüñïò ëïãéóìüò. Êáèåôß ôï ïðïßï Ý åé ãíþìïíá ôïí ñéóôü ìáò, Ý åé ðñïïðôéêþ áñüò, ãýííçóçò êáé áíáãýííçóçò. ************************************************** Do not do anything without signing yourself with the sign of the Cross! When you depart on a journey, when you begin your work, when you go to study, when you are alone, and when you are with other people, seal yourself with the Holy Cross on your forehead, your body, your chest, your heart, your lips, your eyes, your ears. All of you should be sealed with the sign of Christ s victory over hell. Then you will no longer be afraid of charms, evil spirits, or sorcery, because these are dissolved by the power of the Cross like wax before fire and like dust before the wind. Elder Cleopa ************************************************** The authentic Gifts of the Magi, Holy Monastery of St. Paul - Mount Athos

7 St. Joseph Orthodox Saint History and Name Day Written by GreekBoston.com in Ancient Greek History, Religion There s no doubt that the saints are an important part of the lives of Orthodox Christians today. We honor these saints throughout the year, and many are even named after them. Those who are named after a saint celebrate their name day on the saint s feast day. Saint Joseph is one of those saints. As the husband of Mary, Jesus s mother, he also plays a role in Jesus s life and is mentioned in the Bible itself. His feast day is on the first Sunday after the nativity. If there isn t a Sunday that falls after the nativity, his feast day is celebrated on December 26th. Here s more information about Saint Joseph: About Saint Joseph Saint Joseph, also referred to as Joseph the Betrothed, was betrothed to Mary when she found out that she was to be the mother of Jesus Christ. Not much is actually known about his early life, however, except that it is established that he is a member of King David s line. Because of this, Jesus could trace his lineage through to King David, which fulfilled a prophecy that was outlined in the Old Testament by the Prophet Isiah. Essentially, the fact that Jesus could trace his lineage to King David was one of the reasons that we could establish that he is the Messiah. Saint Joseph in the Bible From the Book of Luke, however, we do know that Joseph came from Galilee. In the Book of Mark, we learn that Joseph eventually settled in Nazareth after the family moved there from Egypt. The Bible we do know that his character was described as just and that he was a carpenter. He fathered a four children with Mary. They were Joseph, James, Jude, and Simon and were Jesus s half brothers. It is also though that the pair had a few daughters.

8 Hymns of Saint Joseph There are some hymns that can be found in the Orthodox Christian church service that celebrate Saint Joseph. Here are the details: Troparion (Tone 2) Proclaim the wonder, O Joseph, to David, the ancestor of God: you saw a Virgin great with Child, you gave glory with the shepherds, you worshipped with the Magi, you received the news from the angel. Pray to Christ God to save our souls! Kontakion (Tone 3) Today godly David is filled with joy; Joseph and James offer praise. The glorious crown of their kinship with Christ fills them with great joy. They sing praises to the One ineffably born on earth, and they cry out: O Compassionate One, save those who honor You! Saint Joseph s name day is typically celebrated on the Sunday after Nativity, unless there isn t a Sunday after it. In that case, his feast day is celebrated on December 26th.