INSIDE THIS ISSUE Fr. Nick s Net

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1 INSIDE THIS ISSUE Fr. Nick s Net Parish News & Events From the Inter-Net Around the World Pg. 2 Pg. 3 Pg. 5 Pg. 6 HOLY TRINITY GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH STEUBENVILLE, OHIO APRIL 2013 VOLUME V ISSUE 4 ALSO INCLUDED IN THIS ISSUE: April Calendar Easter Flower Flyer Names of the Departed for Great and Holy Friday THE MISSION OF THE HOLY TRINITY PARISH IS TO SEEK AND ACHIEVE ONENESS WITH GOD IN HIS REVEALED SON, JESUS CHRIST THROUGH DAILY SACRAMENTAL AND SACRIFICIAL LIVING. WE WILL STRIVE FOR THE PEACEFUL AND LOVING UNITY WITH OUR NEIGHBORS IN CHRIST WHICH MAKES US HIS DISCIPLES. / 1 The Net October 2011

2 Fr. Nick s Net April 2013 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, The Net is the Monthly Newsletter of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church PARISH INFORMATION PARISH PRIEST: FR. NICHOLAS M. HALKIAS PHONE: (740) HOME: (724) FRNICK@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: MARY ANNE JACOBS OFFICE@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG PARISH ADDRESS: 300 SOUTH 4 TH STREET P.O. BOX 788 STEUBENVILLE, OH PHONE: (740) FAX: (740) OFFICE@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG WEB: Holy Trinity Church is a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh ( and Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America ( under the Spiritual Jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( PARISH MINISTRIES Greg Matzorkis Tony Mougianis Susan Vogagis John Scavdis Tom Kotsanis Nick Riley Spiro Alexander Irene Mitchell John Synodinos PARISH COUNCIL 2 The Net April 2013 President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Asst. Treasurer Asst. Treasurer George Berris Connie Shea Marianne Balakos Philoptochos... Marianne Balakos Religious Education... Greg Matzorkis Stewardship... George Parikakis GOYA... Rikki Kamarados JOY... Angela Mastros / Shanley Demitras HOPE... Connie Shea/Nicole Zorne Choir... Pete Caleodis Library / Bookstore... Mary Romios Senior Citizens... Barbara Lee Maragos Aghia Markella Society... Marie Kamarados Chian Society... John Synodinos Pan-Icarian Brotherhood... Stacey Kotsanis AHEPA... Tommy Kotsanis Maybe we are on Greek time. Maybe we ve forgotten the period of time that we are in. Some of us can list many reasons why we haven t gotten into the Lenten season yet. But it is not too late; the Church is wonderfully awaiting your presence at the next joyful celebration. The best part about Lent is that it is so long. Wait Did I just say that? Yes I did. It is important for us to experience this time not as a grievous tax of our normal lives, but as a glorious gift of our attention that we give to our Lord for a short period of time during our year. Therefore it is with great anticipation that we greet this unique season in the religious cycle of the Church. The Church has offered us Great Lent as an experience that requires our attention. The problem for us is that we tend to experience God at half attention. God gets our time often when we are too exhausted or too distracted to give proper attention to Him. Our commitment to Him sometimes is secondary at best. After a long hard day at work, or while we are thinking about our other commitments, God is the last thing on our minds. Because of our hectic schedules during most of the year, it is difficult to really spend quality time with our Lord. So that is why Great Lent is such an important time. If God is supposed to be our true hope in life, then we need to slow down and give ourselves time where His calming and saving presence is the most precious and most desirable thing in our lives. What better way to begin this process than during a time where there are so many opportunities to come into His house and offer Him the worship that He deserves from us? From Great Compline to Presanctified Liturgy to Akathist or Lenten Vespers, we have a chance to come to at least one of these services (maybe even per week) during the Great fast of our Church. We must also become aware that the joyful remembrance of Jesus destruction of death is one that will be experienced by us to the measure that we make the sacrifice during this time as well. If we want to live with Christ, we make the effort to die to our passions and desires first. And as long we are able to make use of even a part of this time for that sacrifice, the joy of the resurrection is partly yours for the taking. This is why St. John Chrysostom speaks so strongly in his Paschal sermon about the different types of people who find their way to the celebration of the resurrection of Christ: If any have toiled from the first hour, let him receive his due reward. If any have come after the third hour... the sixth hour the ninth hour, let him draw near without hesitation. And he that arrives after the eleventh hour, let him not be afraid by reason of his delay; for the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first. Beloved, then, whether we have delayed or whether we have struggle from the first day of Lent, let us use this time as the stepping stone to a deeper understanding of God s great love for us. Let us not delay and let us bring in the celebration of Pascha with great joy! God Bless You All!!!

3 News & Events WORSHIP SCHEDULE Sunday Worship... April Our winter schedule for Orthros and Liturgy is: Orthros at 9:00 am, Liturgy at 10:00 am with Sunday School after Communion. Wednesday Paraklesis Services... April Paraklesis Services will be offered every Wednesday at 6 pm unless otherwise stated. April These are the services for the month of April. Please check your schedules and plan to attend. Wednesday, April 3 6:00 pm Presanctified Liturgy Friday, April 5 7:00 pm Salutations All Saints, Weirton Tuesday, April 9 4:00 pm Confession Wednesday, April 10 6:00 pm Presanctified Liturgy Friday, April 12 6:00 pm Salutations - Holy Trinity, Steubenville Monday, April 15 6:00 pm Great Compline Wednesday, April 17 6:00 pm Presanctified Liturgy Thursday, April 18 11:00 am Confession Friday, April 19 6:00 pm Akathist Wednesday, April 24 6:00 pm Presanctified Liturgy Saturday, April Saturday of Lazarus 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Liturgy Monday, April Holy Monday 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service Tuesday, April Holy Tuesday 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service Wednesday, May 1... Holy Wednesday 3:00 pm Holy Unction 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service with Unction Thursday, May 2... Holy Thursday 8:00 am Divine Liturgy of St. Basil 10:00 am Confession 7:00 pm Service of the 12 Gospels 11:00 pm All Night Vigil/Royal Hours Friday, May 3... Holy Friday 3:00 pm Service of Taking Down From the Cross) (Apokatheilosis) 6:45 pm Trisagion 7:00 pm Lamentations Saturday, May 4... Holy Saturday 8:00 am Divine Liturgy of St. Basil 11:15 pm Orthros of the Resurrection PAN-ORTHODOX LENTEN VESPERS It is that time of year again! With Lent upon us, the St. Stephen s Pan-Orthodox Clergy Brotherhood is planning our combined Lenten services. Here are the dates of the Sunday Lenten Vespers services: Sunday, April 7 4:00 pm St. Nicholas Barton Sunday, April 14 5:00 pm Holy Resurrection Steubenville Sunday, April 21 4:00 pm St. Nicholas Weirton HOLY WEEK SERVICES SATURDAY OF LAZARUS 8:30 am Orthros April 27, :30 am Liturgy PALM SUNDAY 9:00 am Orthros April 28, :00 am Liturgy 10:00 am Sunday School 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service HOLY MONDAY 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service April 29, 2013 HOLY TUESDAY 7:00 pm Bridegroom Service April 30, 2013 HOLY WEDNESDAY 3:00 pm Holy Unction May 1, :00 pm Bridegroom Service with Unction HOLY THURSDAY 8:00 am Liturgy of St. Basil May 2, pm Confession 7:00 pm Service of 12 Gospels 11:00 pm All night vigil/royal Hours HOLY FRIDAY 3:00 pm Service of Taking May 3, 2013 Down From the Cross (Apokatheilosis) 6:45 pm Trisagion 7:00 pm Lamentations HOLY SATURDAY 8:00 am Liturgy of St. Basil May 4, :15 pm Orthros of the Resurrection PASCHA Midnight Paschal Liturgy 11:00 am Agape Vespers 3 The Net / April 2013

4 News & Events 4 The Net April 2013 COMMUNITY NEWS FELLOWSHIP HOSTS... April April 7... Christ Family April Rangos Family April Philoptochos April Philoptochos TRISAGION April 7 1-YEAR MEMORIAL April 7 40-DAY MEMORIAL April 14 Chris Christ, Tommy Christ and Christy Christ. Ann Christ Antoinette (Nea Rangos) Shutak EASTER FLOWERS In this edition of The Net you will find the order form for the Easter flowers. The deadline for ordering your flowers is April 25 th. Please make sure you have your order form in by then. GOYA SPRING RETREAT The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh will celebrate GOYA SPRING RETREAT from April 5 th through April 7, 2013, at Camp Nazareth, Mercer, PA. The theme is Don t be puzzled Find your fit in Christ. The keynote speaker will be Rev. Fr. Michael Ellis. For online registration for Campers and Staff: Pittsburgh.goarch.org/register. Registration is $ For more information youth@pittsburgh.goarch.org. RELIGIOUS EDUCATION RELIGIOUS EDUCATION... April There is no scheduled meeting at this time. S.C. BREAKFAST BIBLE STUDY... April 8 The Senior Citizen s Breakfast Bible Study meeting is held on the 2 nd Monday of the month at 10:00 am. PARISH GROUPS AHEPA... April The AHEPA Society will now have their meetings schedule through our Notify-Now system. CHOIR... April Rehearsals are held weekly when possible and the times vary. Choir members are notified through our Notify-Now system. Anyone who would be interested in joining the Choir is welcome to do so. Please contact Pete Caleodis if you are interested in joining the Choir. PHILOPTOCHOS... April 4 The Philoptochos will meet on Thursday, April 4 th at 6:00 pm at Lancelot s Restaurant. PARISH COUNCIL... April 9 Parish Council meetings are held the 2 nd Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm at the church. Senior Citizens... April The Senior Citizens group meetings are held on the last Thursday of the month at 6:00 pm at various locations. Please check the weekly bulletin for the location. OPA... April 2 The women s study group OPA will hold its next meeting on Tuesday, April 2 nd at 6:30 pm at Lancelot s Restaurant. Theology on Tap... TBA The men s study group Theology on Tap will be announced at a later date. FEBRUARY MONTHLY FINANCIALS February weekly income $ 4, February weekly expenses $ 2, FESTIVAL PREPARATION BEGINS Get Aboard the Festival Express! All Aboard! The festival express has started to move! The baking schedule is progressing nicely. On several occasions the sessions finished early because of the number of volunteers who came to help. Please continue to be alert for the notify Now phone calls that will keep you abreast of all kitchen activities. All help is greatly appreciated. The festival committee held its second meeting on March 7. At that time, the committee decided to purchase a convection oven at a cost of $6500. Donations to offset the cost of this purchase are welcomed. With your help, we can pay for this purchase as we did the loukoumathes machine last year. Some discussion followed at that meeting regarding having enough help at the various stations during the actual festival. With the festival lasting five days this year, all workers are encouraged to see if other areas need help after their regular shifts are over. The bakery and the taverna are two areas that are desperate for your help. If you can, please check to see where else you can help during the course of these long days. We have also started work on this year s festival souvenir album. We held a mailing workshop on March 5 and sent the material for this year s ads as well as for the placemat ads. These have already started to be returned. Please take care of your ad early. No ads will be accepted after May 5. Well, as you can see, our festival express is picking up speed. Are you aboard? If not, see what you can do to help. Check with our chairman, John Scavdis for information on the baking schedules and upcoming meetings. Don t be left at the station. Jump on board today and ride the festival express to the end in June. Remember those dates: June from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm daily. Your church need your support. Let s all join together to make our 27 th journey one of the best festivals ever! Opa! Pete Thomas Caleodis Festival treasurer

5 JOURNEY INTO ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LENT by: Frederica Mathewes-Green For Orthodox Christians, Lent begins differently than it does for Protestants and Catholics. The observance of Ash Wednesday is dramatic and beautiful but is not in the Eastern tradition. For us, Lent comes in gradually over a period of weeks, like a cello line subtly weaving itself into our lives. During all of Lent, Orthodox strive to abstain from eating certain foods. Our refraining from these foods does not somehow benefit God or make him like us more. Fasting is a form of self-discipline, like lifting weights or jogging. It builds the muscle of self-control. If we can master the temptation to reach for a cheeseburger, we can resist other daily temptations as they come along. Some people find this fast so taxing it would sour them spiritually, and they must do less. Others find it not stringent enough. No one is to judge anyone else's fast, or even notice it. But it helps that we all look to a common standard. Since we all fast from the same things at the same time, we can trade recipes and commiserate. Seven weeks before Pascha, Lent begins in earnest. This is called "Cheesefare Sunday," and from now until Pascha we will abstain from meat, fish, dairy products, wine and olive oil. At the evening Vespers service we trade the bright chant melodies for more sober ones, and say the prayer of Ephrem the Syrian, a fourth century hermit: "O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, faint-heartedness, lust of power, and idle talk." If you were in our church on this Sunday evening you would see us fall to our knees and then place the palms of our hands on the floor, and touch our foreheads down between them. This is called "making a prostration." You may have seen Muslims praying this way toward Mecca. This traditional Middle Eastern worship expression was used by Christians for centuries before the founding of Islam. At last we reach the Rite of Forgiveness. As vespers come to a close, parishioners form a large circle. Nearest From the Inter-NET the altar the two ends overlap, as a deacon turns to face the priest. The priest bows to the ground, then stands to say, "Forgive me, my brother, for any way I have offended you." After the deacon says "I forgive you," he bows to the ground, and asks for and receives the same forgiveness. Then the two embrace. Each of them moves to the next person in line. Over the course of an hour or so, every single person will stand face-to-face with every other person. Each will bow to the ground and ask for forgiveness; each will bestow forgiveness on the other. As my husband says, "When we do this, we do something the devil hates." Teenage brothers and sisters forgive each other. Small children solemnly tell their mothers, "I forgive you." Folks who have been arguing about the church budget for months embrace with tears. In fact, tears are the common coin of the evening. Some weep hard as they look in each face and think how they have slighted, ignored, or resented this person during the year--a person now revealed as bearing the face of Christ. Some weep as they are forgiven, over and over, in an overwhelming rush of love and acceptance. Some weep and hug so much they hold up the line. A toddler ignores the line and goes from person to person, tugging on a skirt hem or trouser leg and looking up to ask, "Forgive?" This is how Lent begins for us. It's an exhilarating kickstart for a time that will get much harder. The number of required services during Lent increase dramatically--during Holy Week there are 11--and they get longer as well. Food simultaneously gets shorter. Old knees don't like prostrations. In all this, though, we rejoice; in the company of our friends we can run this race. It is good that it begins with forgiveness. Exerpted from: beliefnet.com/faiths/christianity/orthodox/2000/03/journey- Into-Orthodox-Christian-Lent.aspx?p=2 5 The Net / April 2013

6 Around the World Once-in-a-millennium move: Orthodox patriarch to attend pope's installation By Suzan Fraser, The Associated Press ANKARA, Turkey Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, left Monday for the Vatican to attend Pope Francis' installation Mass the first time a patriarch from the Istanbul-based church is attending a papal investiture since the two branches of Christianity split nearly 1,000 years ago. Bartholomew said he was attending the installation Mass to underscore the importance he attaches to "friendly ties" between the churches and reflects expectations that the new pontiff will advance rapprochement efforts that began decades ago. "It is a gesture to underline relations which have been developing over the recent years and to express my wish that our friendly ties flourish even more during this new era," Bartholomew told private NTV television in an interview in Istanbul before his departure. "I am very hopeful in this matter." Several Orthodox leaders will be there, although the Russian Orthodox Church's Patriarch Kirill is staying home in Moscow and sending his envoy instead. In a sign of common bonds between East and West, the Vatican said the Gospel during the installation Mass would be chanted in Greek instead of Latin, the language that will be used for many of the other elements of the ceremony. The Eastern and Western churches were united until the Great Schism of 1054, a divide precipitated largely by disagreements over the primacy of the pope. Francis' predecessor, the now-retired Pope Benedict XVI, had made uniting all Christians and healing the split a priority of his pontificate. A joint committee has been working to mend the rift between the two churches. Bartholomew: He has won over hearts. Bartholomew went further to say he would be the first Orthodox spiritual leader to attend an investiture since "at least" before the Schism. "Even before the churches were divided in 1054, a patriarch from Istanbul did not attend the inauguration," he explained. The Patriarch said: "From the first day, (Pope Francis) has won over hearts with his modest demeanor... I felt the wish to go and I am going willingly." Francis is familiar with Orthodox traditions from 14 years of heading the Argentine church's commission on Eastern Rite Christians, who are within the Catholic fold but follow Orthodox religious customs, including some married clergy in lower ranks. 6 The Net / April 2013 The powerful Russian Orthodox Church, the largest of the more than dozen Orthodox churches, welcomed the election of Francis. "The new pope is known for his conservative views, and his papacy will evidently be marked by the strengthening of faith. The fact that he has taken the name of Francis reminiscent of St. Francis of Assisi confirms his understanding of evangelization primarily as assistance for the poor and the deprived, as protection of their dignity For Orthodox, the new pope's choice of Francis is also important for its reference to the Italian town of Assisi, where Pope John Paul II began conferences encouraging interfaith dialogue and closer bonds among Christians. Although Catholics and Orthodox remain estranged on key issues including married clergy and the centralized power of the Vatican there have been significant moves toward closer interactions and understanding. The first major breakthrough came in 1964 when Pope Paul VI met in Jerusalem with Patriarch Athenagoras in the first encounter between a pope and Orthodox patriarch in more than 500 years. The meeting led to the lifting of mutual excommunication edicts and the Catholic-Orthodox Joint Declaration of 1965 that called for greater harmony among the churches. An apostolic letter by John Paul II in 1995 encouraged unity between the two branches of Christianity and opened the way for a historic visit to Rome by Bartholomew I, who is considered the "first among equals" of the Orthodox patriarchs, as well as Catholic-Orthodox conferences. During the first papal trip to Greece in 2001, John Paul II issued an apology for the ravages of the Fourth Crusade, which in the early 13th century sacked Constantinople, now Istanbul, the seat of the Eastern church. In 2006, Benedict XVI was hosted by the ecumenical patriarchate in Istanbul in a visit that brought protests from some archconservative Orthodox but generally opened room for dialogue on even closer contacts. Among the delegation with Bartholomew will be Ioannis Zizioulas, co-president of the joint commission for Catholic- Orthodox dialogue, and a senior envoy from the powerful Russian Orthodox Church. Excerpted from: once-in-a-millennium-move-orthodox-patriarch-to-attend-popes-installation?lite

7 The Net-Minders The Parish of Holy Trinity would like to thank the following benefactors for making this Monthly Newsletter possible: Place your Ad Here Contact the office at Place your Ad Here Contact the office at In Loving Memory Of Nicholas Mougianis 7 The Net / April 2013

8 Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church P.O. Box South Fourth Street Steubenville, OH NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE P A I D STEUBENVILLE, OH PERMIT NO. 83 Submissions for THE NET are to be submitted by the 20 th of each month About the Icon on the Cover ST. MARY OF EGYPT When Mary was only twelve years old, she left her parents and departed to Alexandria, where she lived a depraved life for seventeen years. Then, moved by curiosity, she went with many pilgrims to Jerusalem, that she might see the Exaltation of the venerable Cross. Even in the Holy City she gave herself over to every kind of licentiousness and drew many into the depth of perdition. Desiring to go into the church on the day of the Exaltation of the Cross, time and again she perceived a certain invisible power preventing her entrance, whereas the multitude of people about her entered unhindered. Therefore, wounded in heart by this, she decided to change her way of life and reconcile herself to God by means of repentance. Invoking our Lady the Theotokos as her protectress, she asked her to open the way for her to worship the Cross, and vowed that she would renounce the world. And thus, returning once again to the church, she entered easily. When she had worshipped the precious Wood, she departed that same day from Jerusalem and passed over the Jordan. She went into the inner wilderness and for forty-seven years lived a most harsh manner of life, surpassing human strength; alone, she prayed to God alone. Toward the end of her life, she met a certain hermit named Zosimas, and she related to him her life from the beginning. She requested of him to bring her the immaculate Mysteries that she might partake of them. According to her request, he did this the following year on Holy and Great Thursday. One year after this, Zosimas again went thither and found her dead, laid upon the ground, and letters written in the sand near her which said: "Abba Zosimas, bury here the body of wretched Mary. I died on the very day I partook of the immaculate Mysteries. Pray for me." Her death is reckoned by some to have taken place in 378, by some, in 437, and by others, in 522. She is commemorated also on the Fifth Sunday of Great Lent. Her life was recorded by Saint Sophronius of Jerusalem. Taken from