SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY January 13th, 2013

Transcription

1 SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY January 13th, 2013 Sts. Raphael, Nicholas and Irene Greek Orthodox Church Rev. Fr. Barnabas Powell, Proistamenos Jimmy Smith, Psaltis 3074 Bethelview Road Cumming GA (770) cell (770) We are an intentional Orthodox Christian Community for North Georgia!

2 WORSHIP 10th Gospel/Tone Grave We are so very glad you have joined us today, and we pray you will be inspired and encouraged by your time with us. The Orthodox worship service is an ancient and timeless expression of how people have loved, served and worshipped God for many centuries, but it may be a bit of a different experience for you. Please feel free to use a service book or not and simply allow the words of the service to wash over you. The central act of our worship culminates in people receiving communion. This is a very special time for us all and we have some specific beliefs about our communion together. This is why we never impose this service on those who are not prepared or are not baptized Orthodox. This service may raise questions in your mind. Please feel free to ask Fr. Barnabas or Fr. Paul anything you wish after the service. At the end of the service EVERYONE is invited to come forward and receive a portion of the blessed bread from Fr. Barnabas. No one should leave church hungry! Know you are welcome and we are glad you are here. May God bless you and your family. Apolytikion in honor of Sts. Raphael, Nicholas & Irene Having contended on Lesvos for the sake of Christ God, you have sanctified the island since the discovery of your sacred relics, O blessed ones; wherefore we honor you, O Godbearing Raphael, together with Nicholas and virgin Irene, as our divine protectors and intercessors with the Lord. 1 Year Memorial - in loving memory of Nicholas J. Blanos is offered today by his sister, Katherine Blanos, and niece & nephew, Evon & John Patrick. May His Memory be Eternal! 2 Year Memorial - in loving memory of Irene Scales is offered today by Harriet Howell. May Her Memory be Eternal! 40-day Blessing - Lilly Jackson is presented today for the 40-day blessing. Lilly is the daughter of Stephanie & Reed Jackson. Schedule for the Week Tuesday, Jan. 15th - 7 p.m. Orthodoxy 101 Wednesday, Jan. 16th - 6:30 p.m. Vespers Saturday, Jan. 19th 5 p.m. Great Vesper Service Parish Council On Duty Today - Quay Farr & Paul Ray Ushering Ministry - GOYA Welcoming Ministry - Gigi Ray ACOLYTES Zachery Bethune, James Blane, Nathan Frazier, Dean Pryles, Nicholas Pryles, Mike Manos, Giovanni Ray, Tommy Roberts, Luke Sulyma, Mike Trainor, Connor Walters, Roney Walters, Thomas Miller and Christos Zourzoukis STS. RNI YOUTH CHOIR Tabitha Bethune, Jessica Catapano, Maria Hagen, Christina Pryles & Laramie Smith

3 TODAY WE REMEMBER Sunday After Epiphany Resurrectional Apolytikion in the Grave Tone: By means of Your Cross, O Lord, You abolished death. * To the robber You opened Paradise. * The lamentation of the myrrhbearing women You transformed, * and You gave Your Apostles the order to proclaim to all * that You had risen, O Christ our God, * and granted the world Your great mercy. Seasonal Kontakion in the Fourth Tone: You appeared to the world today, and Your light, O Lord, has left its mark upon us. With fuller understanding we sing to You: "You came, You were made manifest, the unapproachable light." Resurrectional Kontakion in the Grave Tone: No longer will the dominion of death be able to keep men captive; for Christ hath descended, destroying and dispelling the powers thereof. Hades is bound; the Prophets rejoice with one accord, saying: A Saviour hath come for them that have faith. Come forth, ye faithful, for the Resurrection. We Also Remember The Holy Martyrs Hermylus & Stratonicus Maximos the Righteous of Kapsokalyvia, Mount Athos Afterfeast of the Theophany of Our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ Hilary of Poitiers Holy Martyrs of Sinai & Raithu Nina of Georgia Please pray for those faithful who are currently in need of our most fervent intercessions: Andrew, Bill, Bill, Carrie, Demetra, Dina, Donna, Efthymios, Elaine, Elizabeth, Christina, Gus, Heidi, Igli, James, Jerry, Joe, John, Maria, Michael, Oni, Paul, Sarah, Staikoula, Taki, Tara and Violeta Dina Sarandis resides at The Oaks on Post Road and welcomes visits from fellow parishioners. John & Sheila Consos are now residing in Dunwoody 4355 Georgetown Sq., Unit 442 and would enjoy phone calls (770/ ) &/or visits. If you know of someone who would like a visit, please contact Helen McCart at or the Church Office Parish Council The following will be sworn in today to serve the Parish for 2013: Sophia Bethune, Costa Bozzuto, Quay Farr, Chris Foxhall, Harald Hagen, Harriet Howell, Dennis Kostulakos, John Patrick, Vic Pryles, Paul Ray, Eric Smith & Jennifer Tubbs

4 Epistle Reading The Reading is from St. Paul s Letter to the Ephesians 4:7-13 The Reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to Timothy 3:10-15 Prokeimenon. Mode 1. Psalm 32.22,1 Let your mercy, O Lord, be upon us. Verse: Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous. BRETHREN, grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore it is said, "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men." (in saying, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is he who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Α Ω Ἀδελφοί, ἑνὶ ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Διὸ λέγει, Ἀναβὰς εἰς ὕψος ᾐχμαλώτευσεν αἰχμαλωσίαν, καὶ ἔδωκεν δόματα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις. Τὸ δέ, Ἀνέβη, τί ἐστιν εἰ μὴ ὅτι καὶ κατέβη πρῶτον εἰς τὰ κατώτερα μέρη τῆς γῆς; Ὁ καταβάς, αὐτός ἐστιν καὶ ὁ ἀναβὰς ὑπεράνω πάντων τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἵνα πληρώσῃ τὰ πάντα. Καὶ αὐτὸς ἔδωκεν τοὺς μὲν ἀποστόλους, τοὺς δὲ προφήτας, τοὺς δὲ εὐαγγελιστάς, τοὺς δὲ ποιμένας καὶ διδασκάλους, πρὸς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων, εἰς ἔργον διακονίας, εἰς οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ σώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ μέχρι καταντήσωμεν οἱ πάντες εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ, εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ.

5 Gospel Reading The Reading is from Matthew 4:12-17 At that time, Jesus heard that John had been arrested, He withdrew into Galilee; and leaving Nazareth He went and dwelt in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, toward the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned." From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Α Ω Τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ Ιησοῦς ὅτι Ιωάννης παρεδόθη, ἀνεχώρησεν εἰς τὴν Γαλιλαίαν,καὶ καταλιπὼν τὴν Ναζαρὲτ ἐλθὼν κατῴκησεν εἰς Καπερναοὺμ τὴν παραθαλασσίαν ἐν ὁρίοις Ζαβουλὼν καὶ Νεφθαλείμ,ἵνα πληρωθῇ τὸ ῥηθὲν διὰ Ησαΐου τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος γῆ Ζαβουλὼν καὶ γῆ Νεφθαλείμ,ὁδὸν θαλάσσης, πέραν τοῦ Ιορδάνου,Γαλιλαία τῶν ἐθνῶν,ὁ λαὸς ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκότειεἶδε φῶς μέγα,καὶ τοῖς καθημένοις ἐν χώρᾳ καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτουφῶς ἀνέτειλεν αὐτοῖς. Απὸ τότε ἤρξατο ὁ Ιησοῦς κηρύσσειν καὶ λέγειν μετανοεῖτε ἤγγικε γὰρ ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν.

6 ANNOUNCEMENTS Wisdom from the Fathers" If you see a man who has sinned and you do not pity him, the grace of God will leave you. Whoever curses bad people and does not pray for them, will never come to know the grace of God." St. Silouan the Athonite HOUSE BLESSINGS Father Barnabas is eager to come to your home for the annual blessing of homes after Epiphany. Please either fill out the request form in the Narthex & return it to the office or call the church office to schedule your house blessing with Father. House blessings will be conducted until the start of Great Lent on March 18th. THE TRADITION OF HOUSE BLESSINGS Each year in Jan., following the Feast of Theophany, we Orthodox Christians open our homes and businesses to the Church to be blessed. Just as Christ blessed all of creation while being baptized in the Jordan River, He blesses us and our entire existence when the Priest enters our homes and businesses with Holy Water blessed in Church. The Blessing of Homes (and businesses) during the Theophany season is one of the many sacraments of the Orthodox Church where the Holy Trinity is present (in this case through Holy Water) to sanctify our time on the Earth. Ever since God created humanity He has given us His creation to assist in growing closer to Him. Ever since God created the heavens and the Earth He has given us His creation in order for us to experience His love and grace. Ever since God created we have been struggling to understand His love for us and struggling to overcome our self-love by learning to surround our lives with God's presence. By inviting the Church to bless our homes and businesses, we are expanding that "sphere of God's presence" to include our everyday functions of working, eating and even sleeping, with the hope that someday we will overcome our self-love and learn to love the Lord God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. At least we can begin with our homes and businesses. Fr. Athanasios Haros, TRANSFIGURATION, Florence, SC

7 ANNOUNCEMENTS Orthodoxy 101 Class will be every Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. BIBLE STUDY CLASSES Wednesday, January 16th - 10 a.m. Winter Lent Bible Study Wednesday, January 16th - following 6:30 p.m. Vespers A Step-by-Step Look at the Divine Liturgy Thursday, January 17th - 7 p.m. Winter Lent Bible Study Father Barnabas will be available to hear confession every Wednesday either before or after Vespers and by appointment. Please call or the church office to request a time to meet with Father and avail yourself to this healing divine mystery of the Church. Please call the Church office for more information (770) Sts. RNI Choir Practice NEW DAY/NEW TIME Today - SUNDAY - Immediately following Divine Liturgy in the Chapel Contact Marie Chapman for more information or mommystargater@comcast.net IMPORTANT UPCOMING DATES MARK YOUR CALENDARS TO SAVE THE DATES! Saturday, January 19th, 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. - Sts. RNI Parish Leadership Workshop Sunday, March 10th - Sts. RNI Parish Oratorical Festival Friday & Saturday, April 12th & 13th - Sts. RNI Parish Lenten Retreat with Fr. Steven Dalber, priest at St. Nektarios parish, Charlotte, NC, as guest speaker Saturday, April 20th - Sts. RNI Parish hosting the Metropolis District Level Oratorial Festival

8 ANNOUNCEMENTS BOOK CLUB Please join us after Saturday Vespers for Food, Fellowship, and Good Conversation! Are you an Orthodox Christian who wonders how to explain to your Baptist grandmother, your Buddhist neighbor, or the Jehovah s Witness at your door how your faith differs from theirs? Or are you a member of another faith who is curious what Orthodoxy is all about? Look no further. In Orthodoxy & Heterodoxy, Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick covers the gamut of ancient heresies, modern Christian denominations, fringe groups, and major world religions, highlighting the main points of each faith. This book is an invaluable reference for anyone who wants to understand the faiths of those they come in contact with as well as their own. Schedule Book club will next meet on Saturday, January 26th, 2013 Buy the book or EBook at or at the Sts. RNI Bookstore. For more information, contact Lisa myakunda@yahoo.com or Donna missmagnolismoxie@gmail.com PHILOPTOCHOS Thank you for all who baked Vasilopita for today s auction. The breads/cakes will be available to bid & purchase at the Blue House after today s services. All proceeds go to St. Basil s Academy in Garrison, NY as part of our National Philoptochos commitments. Your generosity is appreciated. Prosforo Baking Tuesday, January 15th, 2013 Contact Stamatia Hagen for more information at mamma2maria@aol.com or All hands are welcome!

9 ANNOUNCEMENTS Sunday School Sunday School students will be dismissed after receiving the Eucharist. This year the Sunday School raised $405 for our seminarian family. Thank you for your donations and prayers. Upcoming! Mark your calendars! In preparation for Great Lent, our Sunday School will have an opportunity to go to confession with Father Barnabas after Liturgy on February 24th (the beginning of the Lenten Triodion)! Children in 2nd grade and up are encouraged to receive this forgotten medicine of our Church. We will be talking about confession and a sign-up sheet will be circulating in Sunday School classes. Any questions or concerns, or for more information, contact Lisa Boston at or myakunda@yahoo.com GREEK LANGUAGE Sts. RNI Hellenic Studies Ministry will be offereing Greek Language. If you are interested in signing up for Greek Language contact Smara Wolff at or smara.wolff@gmail.com nd Semester classes will begin January 11th, 2013 REGISTRATION FOR 2nd SEMESTER NOW TAKING PLACE Thursday, 6:45 p.m. - First Grade Saturday, 4:30 p.m. - Second Grade (adding mythology) 5:15 p.m. - First Grade Sunday, 12:30 p.m. - High School &/or Adults Advanced Level (adding history) *First Grade students who missed their Thursday class may attend the Saturday class as a make-up day. A new Adult Beginner Class will be held on 10 a.m. and a Beginner 1st Grade for children 6 or older on Friday at 6:30 p.m. Tuition is $80/semester for first child; $120/semester for two children; and $140/semester for 3 children. Tuition must be paid in full by the first class. 2nd Semester begins Thursday, January 10th, Checks made payable to Sts. RNI G.O. Church, memo Greek School

10 ANNOUNCEMENTS SAMARIA CHAPTER OF ATLANTA PANCRETAN ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA Presents its Tenth Annual KRHTIKO GLENTI CRETAN GLENDI Saturday, January 26, :00 pm Cocktails 7:30 pm Dinner 9:00 pm Dance Hellenic Center Kartos Ballroom 2500 Clairmont Road Atlanta, Georgia Dinner Dance Featuring Traditional Cretan Cuisine Live Cretan Music Cretan Dancing Direct from Crete... Georgios Vogiatzis, Lyra Lukas Mandakakis, Laouto Advanced lndividual tickets: $55.00 Adults; $20.00 Children (ages 6-14) At door: $60.00 Adults; $25.00 Children (ages 6-14) Children 5 and under: Free Dance Only: $ % Discount on Advanced Tickets for full table of ten paid for by January 20, 2013 ($50.00 Adults; $18.00 Children) Contact: Demetri Mazacoufa or dm@mazacoufa.com If you are interested in attending, please see Beth Doulgerakis for tickets.

11 ANNOUNCEMENTS FELLOWSHIP HOUR Our Fellowship Hour Donation Campaign has begun. A suggested donation of $25/family helps cover the cost of the weekly Fellowship Hour. Checks should be made payable to Sts. RNI G.O. Church with Fellowship on the memo line. We hope you have enjoyed the refreshments provided over the past year and will continue to support the Fellowship Committee s efforts to serve you each Sunday Donors Jim & Angie Andropoulos Kosta & Carolyn Bozzuto Grace Chihlas Mariya & Gregory Dunkel Jean Gwaltney, Harriet Howell Eleni Jordan Vasilios Kaloudis Jim Kanellos Dennis & Ginny Kostulakos, Florence & Archie Lytle Riley & Elizabeth Marvos Mary & Bill Milam Athena & Matt Miller Nik Moissiades, Patricia Morris Nick & Teddie Panos Gus Pappas Gigi & Paul Ray Kathy & Taka Shoji Nikolaos & Eva Thrasivoulou Ed & Anne Trainor Arthur Tsiropoulos Thank you all for your support of this Ministry. Youth Room Eric Smith and Harald Hagan and several others have undertaken to transform our storage area in the back of the Chapel into a Youth Room for our teen Sunday School class. They are asking for volunteers to help with this transformation. Please consider donating some of your time and abilities to this worthy project. Contact Eric Smith at ironspirits@me.com. Our teens deserve our best! VESTRY ROOM REHAB We have received $1,250 in donations and are just $300 shy of getting this project underway. Thank you for your generous gifts.

12 To date the 50 families below have returned Stewardship Commitment Cards for Jim & Angie Andropoulos Sarante & Julie Athenson Richard & Sophia Bethune Anthony & Mary Birozes Renee Birozes Katherine Blanos Joseph & Barbara Bonelli-Selwa Jordan & Lisa Boston Kosta & Carolyn Bozzuto David & Marie Chapman Grace Chihlas Dan & Alyssa Douglas Quay & Trissie Farr Chris & Liz Foxhall Robert & Jennifer Guano Harald & Stamatia Hagen Christine Hatcher Harriet Howell Eleni Jordan Theodoros & Aphrodite Kazazakis-Levendakis Dennis & Ginny Kostulakos Archie & Florence Lytle Bill & Audrey Marianes Al & Helen McCart John & Becky Melts Bill & Mary Milam Matt & Athena Miller Nikolaos Moissiadis Patricia Morris Nicolas & Teddie Panos Constantinos & Evelyn Pantazopoulos Gus Pappas John & Evon Patrick Sts. RNI Philoptochos Gus Plakiotis Ioanna Plakiotis Father & Presvytera Powell Pam Powers Athan & Cheri Romanczak Andrew & Lorez Roussey Eugenia Smith Estelle Sofikitis George & Anna Sofikitis Dennis & Laura Sparks Koko & Carol Tadros Brian & Jennifer Tubbs Sharon Tyre Plutarch & Tina Vamvakias Tim & Diane Walters Steve & Smara Wolff