Being Open to God s Will ~ A Message from Fr. Robert

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1 November Phillips Road, Tallahassee, Florida (850) Rev. Fr. Robert J. O Loughlin Being Open to God s Will ~ A Message from Fr. Robert On November 21 st we celebrate one of the 12 Great Feast Days of our Church, the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple. According to the writings of the Fathers of the Church, the Virgin Mary was received into the Temple by Zacharias, the High Priest, who later became the father of St. John the Baptist, the Forerunner that prepared the way for Christ. In accordance with the tradition of the times, Mary was presented to the Temple of God as soon as she reached the age of three. Joachim and Anna brought her to the priests of the Temple, where she remained for twelve years. During the final prayer of the the Priest commemorates the parents of the Theotokos, Joachim and Anna. They were devout people who loved God, and were faithful believers. To her sadness, Anna was barren, and prayed often to God for the high honor of becoming a mother. Anna promised God that she would pledge her child to His Holy Temple if He would bless her with a child. Many years passed but Anna never lost her faith and hope that God would answer her prayers. We hear in the Scriptures very often on the feasts of the Theotokos the passage where the Lord says blessed are those that hear the Word of God and keep it" (Luke 11:27, 28). She is the example of how we are supposed to be living. Our hearts are supposed to be open, mindful, conscious, and always ready to do the will of God. What is important for us, is that in moments where our lives may be in conflict or turmoil that we give thanks to God for His love for us, for His patience with us as we journey around in this life. In all of our trials and tribulations, we can still come to the light of Christ and He will guide us with His love. It s important for us to give thanks to Him, and to allow Him to enlighten us more and more in our lives. As we are soon to be celebrating Thanksgiving and reflect upon all for which we have to be grateful, let us go one step further and ask ourselves, what are we doing with all the blessings God has given us and how can we take care to be good stewards, with all that He has given us. Success in the eyes of God does not depend on how comfortable and easy our life is, but on how we strive to sacrifice for others and to bless the lives of others around us. Fr. Robert General Assembly Meeting Sunday, November 2, 2014

2 Page 2 If an emergency or special need should arise, please contact Fr. Rob immediately at Our next ECHO Sundays are November 2nd and December 7th. Please drop off your nonperishable food donations into the bins located in the Hellenic Center and Patmos Hall. Next Spaghetti Dinners: November 7th December 5th Archangel Michael Feast and Honors November 8th, 2014 Congratulations to George Buzyna and Glen Perrigan. They will be receiving the Archangel Michael Award from His Eminence Metropolitan Alexios in Atlanta, Georgia. Dear Parishioners, Congratulations and many thanks for the successful Greek Food Festival we had again this year. It was indeed a God sent reward for the love toward our church together with the dedication and hard work of our wonderful volunteers and organizers. God Bless them all! On November 2, following the, our Parish will hold its 2014 Fall General Assembly. This is a very important meeting for our church. Among other things, we will approve the Budgets for 2015 and make nominations for five positions to the Parish Council that will be vacated at the end of the year. Usually, the meeting takes about forty-five minutes from the start to the end. We hope every member of our parish will be able to attend. Our Spaghetti Luncheons and Dinners will be back again on the first Friday of each month starting with November 7. This is another ministry, which brings together parishioners and friends to enjoy cooking and fellowship while raise funds for the upkeep and operation of our church. We will be looking for daytime and evening volunteers. To sign up, you may call the church office or me at If you cannot help this time, you are always welcomed to join us for lunch or dinner. In either case, we hope to see you there. Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving, Pete Koikos Daylight Saving Time Remember to set your clocks back! Daylight Saving Time ends at 2:00 am on November 2nd

3 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT 1 Consecration of St. Elizabeth Greek Orthodox Church In Gainesville Page 3 NOVEMBER Orthros 9:30 a.m. & 16 f 17 f 18 f Feast Day of 8 Feast Day of Synaxis of 14 f 15 f 20 f 21 f 22 f f f Church School ECHO Sunday GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETING 9 Feast Day of St. Nektarios Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Church School GOYA Bakesale GOYA Meeting Feast Day of St. Matthew Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Church School Youth Sunday 23 Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Church School 30 Feast Day of St. Andrew Orthros 9:30 a.m. & NO Church School Parish Council Mtg. 5:30 pm OCF Mtg. 11 Choir Practice Choir Practice Choir Practice St. Katherine 9:00 am 5 + Catechetical Class (Newcomers/Inquirers) 12 Second Harvest 10:30 am 12:00 pm Orthodox Life Class 19 + Catechetical Class (Newcomers/Inquirers) s = Fish Allowed Pangari Schedule for November *Denotes a 9:30 start time 11/02 Joanos*/Gorb/Manias (c) 11/09 Perrigan*/Branch/Poulos (c) 11/16 Koikos*/Eudy/Joanos (c) 11/23 Branch*/Mathes/Gorb (c) 11/30 Manias*/Poulos/Eudy (c) 12/07 Gorb*/Perrigan/Mathes (c) Feast Day of St. John Chrysostom 9:00 am Philoptochos Mtg. Spaghetti Dinner 11:00 am 7:00 pm Entrance of the Theotokos 9:00 am Office Closed the Archangels 9:00 am Archangel Michael Feast and Honors in Atlanta, GA Parish Council Candidates Seminar in Jacksonville, FL Great Vespers 5:00 pm Calendar Symbol Key + = Strict Fast = Wine and Oil allowed = Dairy & eggs allowed

4 Page 4 Great job GOYAns at the Ronald McDonald House outreach Thank you to the following for serving at October s Youth Sunday: Greeters Maria Parmer, William Perrigan, and Hunter Frankeberger Epistle Reader Hunter Frankeberger, Passing trays Ethan Eudy and Anne Leftheris Sunday Nov. 9th Bake Sale (all proceeds to go toward purchasing toys for Toys for Tots) -GOYA Meeting Thanks to the OCF college students for the delicious pancakes they provided to our community. Next OCf meeting, Monday November 17th Holy Mother of God Monthly Community Outreach Wednesday, November 12th 10:30 AM 12:00 PM We will assist in various tasks at the food warehouse on Four Points Way. Last month we sorted and categorized donated food items to be distributed. We will meet at Second Harvest at 10:30 am. If you are interested in assisting in this effort or have any question, please contact: Fr. or Presv. Feast Day of St. Nicholas Family Pancake Breakfast Sponsored by GOYA Saturday,Dec. 6th, 2014 Following After breakfast there will be crafts and a surprise visit from St. Nicholas For more information please contact Presvytera Joy at or at flrjjk@yahoo.com

5 Page 5 Orthodox Christian Stewardship is a way of life, which acknowledges accountability, reverence, and responsibility before God. A primary goal of Stewardship is to promote spiritual growth and strengthen faith. Becoming a Steward begins when we believe in God, to whom we give our love, loyalty and trust and act on those beliefs. As Stewards, we affirm that every aspect of our lives comes as a gift from Him. Stewardship calls on the faithful to cheerfully offer back to God a portion of the gifts with which they have been blessed. An Orthodox Christian Steward is an active participant in the life of the Church. The parish encourages all who accept the Orthodox Faith to become practicing Stewards. Each year the Steward is expected to carefully review his or her personal circumstances and make a commitment of time, talent, and treasure to support the Parish and her Ministries, which in turn support the National Ministries of our Archdiocese, Metropolises, and institutions. Effective stewardship ministry is not a single event or project. Rather, it is going out to our people wherever they are in their walk with Christ, listening to their concerns, helping them to realize their importance as branches of the True Vine and encouraging them to offer their gifts in His service. We use various resources to support our efforts, but unless we meet with our people personally, sincerely listen to their ideas and concerns, and share a vision for the future of the parish, our efforts will not each their full potential. In Oriented Leadership their book on Orthodox Christian leadership, Williams and McKibben define stewardship as the call of the faithful to share willingly the gifts that God has bestowed on them, including sharing these gifts for God s work. Stewardship is devotion and service to God and His Church as persons, as families, as a Parish, as a Metropolis, as a National Church, and as the Church Universal. Stewardship is our active commitment to use ALL our time, talent and treasure for the benefit of humankind in grateful acknowledgement of Christ s redeeming love. Stewardship is caring for the needs of others. Stewardship is offering one's self to God as He offered Himself to us. Stewardship is what a person does after saying "I believe..." as proof of that belief. - Williams and McKibben in Oriented Leadership In the words of Fr. William Chiganos of Holy Apostles Church in Westchester, Illinois, people don t give to need; they give to vision. Church people don t stretch their giving because of need to meet the budget; they give more because they are able to see a vision of people being reached and God s purposes being accomplished in the life of the church and its ministry. Parishes with successful Orthodox Christian Stewardship Programs have found that incredible support is unleashed from Stewards who unselfishly and joyfully offer their time, talent and treasures, which in turn enhances the spirituality and ministry of the local parish Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

6 Page 6 For November hmogphil@comcast.net Visit us also On Holy Mother of God Philoptochos Society of Tallahassee, Florida Next Meeting: November 13th at in the Patmos Hall Our Chapter will once again be donating Thanksgiving Baskets to families through the Children s Home Society & to others in need in our community. We wish everyone in our parish a very Happy Thanksgiving Just Over the Horizon: December 1st ~ Decorating Hellenic Center for Christmas December 13th ~ Christmas Get Together (TBA) Lives of the Saints Feast Day of St. Nektarios -November 9 Saint Nektarios was born in Selyvria of Thrace on October 1, After putting himself through school in Constantinople with much hard labour, he became a monk on Chios in 1876, receiving the monastic name of Lazarus; because of his virtue, a year later he was ordained deacon, receiving the new name of Nektarios. Under the patronage of Patriarch Sophronius of Alexandria, Nektarios went to Athens to study in 1882; completing his theological studies in 1885, he went to Alexandria, where Patriarch Sophronius ordained him of the same year, in the Church of Saint Nicholas in Cairo, made him Archimandrite. Archimandrite Nektarios showed much zeal both for preaching the word of God, and for the beauty of God's house. He greatly beautified the Church of Saint Nicholas in Cairo, and years later, when Nektarios was in Athens, Saint Nicholas appeared to him in a dream, embracing him and telling him he was going to exalt him very high. On January 15, 1889, in the same Church of Saint Nicholas, Nektarios was consecrated Metropolitan of the Pentapolis in eastern Libya, which was under the jurisdiction of Alexandria. Although Nektarios' swift ascent through the degrees of ecclesiastical office did not affect his modesty and childlike innocence, it aroused the envy of lesser men, who convinced the elderly priest on March 23, 1886 in the Cathedral of Saint Sabbas, and in August Sophronius that Nektarios had it in his heart to become Patriarch. Since the people loved Nektarios, the Patriarch was troubled by the slanders. On May 3, 1890, Sophronius relieved Metropolitan Nektarios of his duties; in July of the same year, he commanded Nektarios to leave Egypt. Without seeking to avenge or even to defend himself, the innocent Metropolitan left for Athens, where he found that accusations of immorality had arrived before him. Because his good name had been soiled, he was unable to find a position worthy of a bishop, and in February of 1891 accepted the position of provincial preacher in Euboia; then, in 1894, he was appointed dean of the Rizarios Ecclesiastical School in Athens. Through his eloquent sermons his unwearying labours to educate fitting men for the priesthood, his generous alms deeds despite his own poverty, and the holiness, meekness, and fatherly love that were manifest in him, he became a shining light and a spiritual guide to many. At the request of certain pious women, in 1904 he began the building of his convent of the Holy Trinity on the island of Aegina while yet dean of the Rizarios School; finding later that his presence there was needed, he took up his residence on Aegina in 1908, where he spent the last years of his life, devoting himself to the direction of his convent and to very intense prayer; he was sometimes seen lifted above the ground while rapt in prayer. He became the protector of all Aegina, through his prayers delivering the island from drought, healing the sick, and casting out demons. Here also he endured wicked slanders with singular patience, forgiving his false accusers and not seeking to avenge himself. Although he had already worked wonders in life, an innumerable multitude of miracles have been wrought after his repose in 1920 through his holy relics, which for many years remained incorrupt. There is hardly a malady that has not been cured through his prayers; but Saint Nektarios is especially renowned for his healings of cancer for sufferers in all parts of the world.

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8 Holy Mother of God Greek Orthodox Church 1645 Phillips Road Tallahassee, Florida Return Service Requested Holy Mother of God Greek Orthodox Church 1645 Phillips Road Tallahassee, FL Office: Hall: Fr. Rob s Cell: St. Nektarios the Wonderworker Celebrated November 9 Website: Addresses: Father Rob: fr.robert@comcast.net Church Secretary: hmog@comcast.net Secretary Hours: