THE LETTER ACCORDING TO ST. LUKE

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1 S T. L U K E G R E E K O R T H O D O X C H U R C H Volume X Issue 2 June 2015 May 12, 2015 by Frederick Schmidt ( whatgodwantsforyourlife/2015/05/12-things-that-yourpastor-priest-or-minister-wishes-you-knew/) THE LETTER ACCORDING TO ST. LUKE 1. YOU are a source of encouragement to us. All too often the people in our pews imagine that clergy are islands of devotion except, of course, when we fail spectacularly and publicly. We aren t. Like everyone else we draw encouragement from others who are faithful and courageous. You shouldn t be that way for our sake, of course, but don t forget, there are days when we draw renewed strength from your example. 2. Don t forget to show up. A bishop or a search committee may have been instrumental in our coming to your parish, but we count on your presence. In one ancient Rabbinic story God tells the children of Israel, If you obey the Law, I am God. If you don t, I am not. The story didn t mean that literally, but it makes an important point. God works through people and through God s church. That work requires your presence. 3. Don t compliment my sermons. React to them. I would rather hear you struggle with what I ve said from the pulpit or tell me that you disagree and why, rather than say, That was nice. 4. Remember, I m not here to be the religious or spiritual performer. Clergy take responsibility for fostering and nurturing the spiritual life of a congregation, but we are not there to believe, sing, pray, or profess the faith for all of you. When we do it brings out the worst in us and in you. 5. Remember that I can t fix you. Like every caregiver, I wish that I could fix things for you. I can t. Only God can heal you and even God cannot nurture healing when we resist God s help. I will walk with you, listen to God alongside of you, and offer advice when and where it seems appropriate and welcome. But there are spiritual decisions that are all your own. 6. Please don t pick on my family. They are in this because they are devoted to God and to me, but like all of us they are human. They make mistakes. They have their own growing pains and they can be defensive on my behalf. Clergy often describe the lives of their children as life in a goldfish bowl. Remember, the memories they have of the church are shaped in dramatic ways Inside this issue 12 Things that your Pastor, Priest, or Minister Wishes You Knew Page 1 Holy Week Pictures Page 2 Philoptochos News Page 3 Jon McGinnis Chrismation Page 4 Graduate Recognition Sunday Page 5 by your love for them. Just as surely, abusive behavior can alienate them. 7. No one is perfect. When you are unrealistic about me, it can make it difficult to relate to you in an honest, transparent fashion. Don t make us little g gods or paragons of virtue. We can t possibly fulfill those expectations. 8. Even clergy need grace. We all have bad days and we all live in a world marked by sharp differences of opinion, unmanageable stress, and the pressure to be everything to everyone. Like you, we will have moments when we are impatient, when we lose our temper, or when we react out of fear or a sense of betrayal. We try to remember to say we are sorry, but we will still need grace, forgiveness, and understanding. 9. We can t hold together a church that you are determined to re-make to suit yourself. We work hard to discern the will of God, but no one knows the will of God in the absolute sense of the word. Along the way, we will feel honor bound to make a decision you don t approve. Wait long enough and we will make one that others don t like. If we offer transparent, sound reasons for making a choice, we hope you will remember that we are doing the best we can to hear God and to hear you. If you think that can be done without disagreement, you must be living alone. 10. We don t like talking about money anymore than you do. We might even like it less. But we live in a world in which many good things can only be accomplished by raising money and spending it. We will try to avoid asking for the wrong thing. We will focus on vision, not vanity. We hope that you will remember that the money you give is for something far larger than any of us. 11. Bring your gifts to the table. Jesus didn t call the Lone Ranger. He called twelve people who were asked to find twelve more, who over the centuries have called billions of others. You are God s gift to the world in the making and there are contributions that only you can make. Nudge us and offer those gifts. Our lives will be enriched and yours will become more of what God created you to be. 12. Pray for us. These are challenging days for the church. They are also days filled with potential. You nurtured us in this vocation. Please pray for us. We will pray for you. All Children Are Not Created Equal Page 6 June, July & August Calendars Pages 6 & 7 Prayer List, Parish Council Members & Church Info Last page

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3 Yiayia s Blankets is a ministry within the church that supplies handmade fleece blankets, sewn quilts, tied quilts, crocheted or knitted afghans and crib blankets to local charities in need of blankets. The blankets St. Luke blanketeers provide are made mostly from donated cotton fabrics, thread and yarns from parishioners, the community, and St. Luke Philoptochos. The blanketeers meet quarterly at the church, but much of the work is flexible homework that can be done at home. If you don t sew, knit or crochet, you can still help cutting, tying and preparing the materials. The finished blankets are brought back to the church to be taken to the local charities. The blankets St. Luke provides are very colorful and pleasing to children. St. Luke has been contributing to the needs of Barium Springs Home for Children for many years and has also provided blankets to local charities in our community, such as the pregnancy center and Hospice. I would like to thank St. Luke Philoptochos for their continued support to this ministry. A special thanks to the blanketeers and to the contributors who help make a difference in the lives of the blanket recipients! Barbara Bundy THE LETTER Summer 2015 Page 3

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6 All Children Are Not Created Equal by Chris Pakuris As parents, we want the best for our children. From infants through their development stages, we do our utmost to develop in them a strong faith and how to differentiate from right and wrong. With good intentions, some parents make a crucial mistake in assuming each child should be treated the same; i.e. same rules, same expectations of excellence in school, etc. In our case, we realized that each of our daughters were different with unique personalities so we adjusted our rules and disciplinary actions accordingly. Growing up, my mother and father had different parenting styles. Mom was firm but bent the rules when appropriate while my father believed in strict discipline as the only way to raise my brother, sister and me. So, when I became a parent, I was aware that one of my children required less rules and the other needed a more structured upbringing. My daughters are now parents themselves and have children with distinctly different personalities. We are not perfect parents, no one is. We recognized our mistakes and hopefully corrected them in time. Proudly, our daughters have become adults blessed with great character and are raising their children to contribute to society and pay forward their own respective blessings. June 2015 St. Luke Greek Orthodox Church Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 Events and Times are subject to change, please refer to the Church s website for possible changes. 10:30am Morning 3 7:00pm Evening 4 5 6:00pm GOYA Lock-in 6 7 Special Parish Assembly Meeting, following Liturgy Graduation Sunday, following Liturgy Philoptochos General Meeting, following Liturgy Father s Day :30am Morning 15 7:00pm Parish Council Meeting 16 10:30am Morning 10 7:00pm Evening 17 7:00pm Evening Apostles Fast Apostles Fast Apostles Fast Metropolis Clergy-Laity Assembly & Philoptochos Conference Page 6 Summer 2015 THE LETTER

7 July 2015 St. Luke Greek Orthodox Church Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Independence Day St. Luke s week at St. Stephen s Camp Baptism Nikolai Loiko :00pm Parish Council Meeting August 2015 Church St. Luke Greek Orthodox 2 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Events and Times are subject to change, please refer to the Church s website for possible changes. 3 6:30pm Paraklesis 4 5 6:00pm Transfiguration Liturgy Dormition Fast 6 Transfiguration 7 6:30pm Paraklesis 1 8 Dormition Fast :30pm Paraklesis :15am Divine Liturgy (St. Alexander the Coalburner) 6:30pm Paraklesis Dormition Fast :30pm Paraklesis 15 Dormition of the Theotokos 9:15am Divine Liturgy 11:00am Parish Philoptochos Retreat :00pm Parish Council Meeting Beheading of John the Baptist 31 THE LETTER Summer 2015 Page 7

8 ST. LUKE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH P.O. BOX 1513 MOORESVILLE, NC St. Luke Greek Orthodox Church wishes to thank, Diane and everyone at Copy Cat Printing Charlotte, NC for donating the cost of printing & shipping the newsletter!!! St. Luke Greek Orthodox Church is dedicated to continuing the ministry of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through the proclamation and teaching of the Gospel; and Baptism in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We seek to live as a community of worship, shared faith and service, accepting of all, in loving service to God and mankind, where each member shares freely the gifts and talents received from God. Our Brothers & Sisters in Christ... Prayer List (Contact the church office to add names to our prayer list.) Debra Carpenter Steve Cass Panagioti Danas Pamela Dizes Elaine Emanuel Warren Farha Gina Gioulis Chris Grekusis Hunley Family Gigi Huskey Gus James Andrew Karres Gus Kerhoulas Charlotte Lechlak Koula Litchos Grant McRorie Jerry Moser George Moshopoulos Stephanie Moshopoulos Niki Nikolopoulos Darlene Rominger Elton Rominger Matthew Sokos Jackie Stamos James Stamos Pete Sugleris Deana Tzimopoulos Gail Viau Dierdra Zogzas Do you receive our weekly E-bulletin? Call or your address to the Church office: office@stluke-nc.org or St. Luke Troparian! Oh Holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke. Make intercessions to our merciful God that He grant our souls remission of offenses. Parish Council for 2015: President-Tony Gioulis; Vice President-Brad Cohlmia ; Secretary-Bill Leonidas ; Treasurer-Carol Kostaras; Assistant Treasurer-George Manos; Council Members-Greg Arnold, Paul Guillotte, Paula Panchisin, Dan Papadopoulos, Tammy Pollard & Billy Stamos. REACHING YOUR CHURCH OFFICE & PRIEST Our church office phone is ; Patricia Pat Butler is our Administrative Assistant. Please feel free to leave a message; but if you need to reach Fr. Robert immediately, please call him at (active 24/7) or at father@stluke-nc.org. You can also the church office at office@stluke-nc.org. Hospital or Home Visits Please contact Father if you or a loved one is ill or in the hospital. He would be glad to visit and pray for recovery and health. Or, if a visit is not best, St. Luke Church would like to remember you in prayer and send get-well wishes.