PHOTOS BY MELANIE PAPPAS

Transcription

1 January 2018 Monthly / Issue No. 1 TRANSFIGURATION GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH Fr. Tom Chininis, Pastor 2018 Parish Council Receives Oath ELECTIONS RATIFIED AND OFFICERS ELECTED IN THIS ISSUE PASTORAL REFLECTIONS page 2 A thought about the new translation of the Liturgy PARISH COUNCIL NEWS page 3 Parish Council Message, Treasurer s Report; Parish Council Report and Stewardship Information EVENTS & OUTREACH page 5 Photos from December Events and Activities PARISH GROUPS page 7 Philoptochos, Youth Ministry and Sunday School PHOTOS BY MELANIE PAPPAS Ten Members of the 2018 Parish Council received their Affirmation of Office on Sunday, January 7. Absent was Olivia Sintros. At their next regular meeting the Council will fill the one remaining position. CHURCH INFORMATION page 12 How to contact the church and who to contact; Parish Council member names and contact information; and more. CALENDAR pages Regular and special services calendar; Sacraments; Church Calendar of Events; and PAGE 1

2 FROM FATHER TOM Gathering in His Name USING THE NEW TRANSLATION TO BETTER UNDERSTAND By Fr. Thomas Chininis Just under a year ago, the Archdiocese authorized and published an official translation of the Divine Liturgy. There have been other translations that have been recognized by the Archdiocese for years, one of the more common being the translation by the Holy Cross faculty that is used in our parish. These translations have never been given the moniker as the official, uniformly accepted translation of the Archdiocese. Deacon John and I began using the new translation at the beginning of the last year. At first it was somewhat cumbersome to use. Some of the wording and phrasing didn t flow easily off our tongues. We had to constantly check ourselves and pay extra attention to what we were reading and saying. Even today, the two of us default at times to more familiar phrases. These are issues that the clergy face as we integrate the use of the new translation into the life of the parishes. The faithful as they worship will for the most part not experience any real difference. Some may pick up on the use of some words. For example: the use of celestial and terrestrial, instead of, heavenly and earthly. One might hear, Altar of Sacrifice, instead of Altar. In both cases, no significant difference in meaning is indicated. As I was celebrating liturgy a couple of weeks ago, a phrase in the new translation especially caught my attention. In the third antiphonal prayer we pray, two or three agree in Your name. Now I had always seen this phrase translated in scripture and in the services (we must remember that the format, hymns and prayers of the liturgy is scripturally based) as,...two or three gathered in Your name. This is a popular and well know phrase from the gospel of Matthew (18:22) and is often used as an affirmation of community in Christianity. For months now I had been thinking, why did they change translation of the word, symphonousin? Everyone uses the word, gather, why did the translators alter it? The Greek literally means agree. So the translators provided a more literal translation. This now forces us to look at the more common use of the word, gather. Why was it translated in this manner? For the early Christians, only those who believed in Jesus as the Christ would come together. They would go to worship in the Temple or synagogue and then gather together in the upper room for the Agape Meal, the sharing of the Body and Blood of Christ, fulfilling the words of Christ to, do this in remembrance of me. This in fact is the basic structure of the Divine Liturgy. We gather to pray and hear the word of God, then, share in the Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ. Only the believers would gather for the Agape Meal. Only those who agreed that Jesus was the Christ, having offered Himself on the Cross and resurrected from the Tomb for our salvation, would gather. Because they agreed in salvation found through faith in Jesus Christ. There is an additional layer to our understanding. Today, there are many denominations or branches in Christianity. We face these differences daily, among our friends, co-workers, and family members. The Church feels the pain of our separations and differences and, by the grace of God, constantly works toward reconciliation with our fellow Christians. We work toward the unity of the faith in our parish, Metropolis, Archdiocese, and Patriarchate. One marvels and is hopeful in the dialogue and brotherly affection of the Ecumenical Patriarch and the Pope of Rome. One marvels and is hopeful as we embrace families within our parish who have family members who participate in sister denominations that one day we will be united as one. This at times is painful and is the result of our broken humanity today. As Orthodox Christians, we have learned, only those who are baptized or christmated into the Orthodox faith are permitted to approach to receive the Eucharist. Though other denominations may welcome us to receive the PAGE 2

3 Eucharist with them, we should not participate. Many of these denominations desire to use the Eucharist to cover up our differences of belief in hope of unity. The Orthodox Church shares the belief that the Eucharist as the ultimate expression of unity. This is a long footnote that leads us back to the new translation. You see, it is not simply that, two or three gather in His name, it is that we agree in faith, are united in faith and beliefs and hold to the fullness of community as, two or three agree in His name. While we welcome non-orthodox to worship with us and embrace them with love, we call the faithful to approach the Chalice, with the fear of God, in faith and in love, thus completing the prayer of the, two or three (who) agree in Your name. PARISH COUNCIL NEWS Parish Council Report On Sunday, December 10th the Transfiguration community held elections for the 2018 Parish Council. We congratulate William Arvanites, Redvers Curry, James Demetri, Corrine Dubay, and Niclis Kouloungis who were nominated and elected for two years term to the Parish Council. They will join the remaining 6 individuals who are entering their final year of their two year term to form the full Council. One vacant seat remains that will be filled by the 2018 Parish Council at their first regular meeting in January. Having received the ratification of the elections from the Metropolis, the 2018 Council received their affirmation of office on Sunday, January 7, administered by Father Tom. Following the oath, they gathered and elected the 2018 officers: President, Olivia Sintros; Vice- President, Costas Tsioulis; Secretary, Amanda Apostolou; Treasurer, Marc Gulezian; and Asst. Treasurer, Niclis Kouloungis. We thank Christian Zouzas and Kon Kalabokis, who chose not to run for re-election, for their tenure on the Parish Council and for their leadership and stewardship for our community. Parish Council Report NOTES FROM THE DECEMBER MEETING by Amanda Apostolou, Parish Council Secretary The Parish Council met on December 5th for its regular monthly meeting. Following are the main topics of discussion and actions taken. In continuation of the discussion pertaining to the financial issues at the Archdiocese, Fr. Tom offered a brief overview of the recent events and how they addressed some of the concerns expressed at the previous meeting. No financial report was offered Fr. Tom reviewed the upcoming services on and around Christmas and the responsibilities of the Parish Council during the services. The Oath of Office will be January 7. There was a general discussion about ongoing projects and their status providing information for the new Council that will take office in January. Minutes of the meeting were taken by Olivia Sintros. PAGE 3

4 Stewardship 2018 Whatever you do, work at it with All Your Heart One day, a person complained to his priest that the Church and Christianity is one continual give, give, give. To which the priest replied, Thank you very much for the finest definition of Christianity I have ever heard. You re right, Christianity is all about a constant, give, give, give. God giving His only Son to the world to show His unconditional love. His Son Jesus giving His life on the cross to forgive our sins and destroy death. Then our Lord s disciples giving all they had to make sure God s Good News of love was preached to all people everywhere. They not only gave away their homes and businesses, but even gave up their lives as martyrs in gratitude to God! These followers of Christ show us true stewardship and how to live by St. Paul s words, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men Stewardship as of 12/31/17 Total pledged $165,130* Budgeted stewardship goal $165,000 * Amount received toward Stewardship 2017 exceeded the budgeted goal. by Kon Kalabokis, Parish Council Treasurer ACCOUNT SUMMARY (AS OF DECEMBER 28, 2017) Altar Fund Balance $1, Special Events Checking General Checking $38, $40, Kitchen & Hall Fund $249, Money Market Savings Building Maintenance $250, $63, Endowment Fund Rental Account (restricted) $8, $13, Youth Ministry $4, GOYA $5, Outreach Center $7, Account Totals: PAGE 4 $685, $174,000 Received to date Treasurer s Report Account 297 Participating stewards If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

5 December Photos December Family Fun Night: Annual Gingerbread House Night Building gingerbread houses and friendships. PHOTOS BY MELANIE PAPPAS PAGE 5

6 On Sunday December 17, the Students of the Sunday School provided the annual Christmas Pageant for the Transfiguration Parish. PHOTOS BY MELANIE PAPPAS AND MARINA APOSTOLOU PAGE 6

7 PARISH GROUPS Philoptochos Society Report by Ellen Dobi, Philoptochos Society President Happy New Year to all our Transfiguration Church Family! The holidays brought a flurry of activity with programs and events to brighten the season for those in need. With the New Year now upon us, we turn to our Membership Drive. Each parish woman will receive an invitation to join or continue membership in Philoptochos. I am so grateful to our current membership for your support and participation. Each and every contribution is needed and highly appreciated. I welcome and encourage new members to make this the year you join. Together we enjoy friendship and camaraderie and collectively aid those in need to make a difference. Philoptochos is the philanthropic arm of the Greek Orthodox Church and we would love every woman in our parish to be a member of our chapter. Fundraising: Christmas Card: Thank you to Corrine Dubay for coordinating the Transfiguration Family Christmas Card again this year. Many thanks to all parishioners for supporting this Philoptochos endeavor. The proceeds from this project are earmarked for our philanthropic missions. We also thank Arthur and Regina Dabilis and Andrew and Thelma Coravos for their donations received after the card had gone to print. Annual Benefit Tea: The Tea was enjoyed by 125 Philoptochos members from many area churches along with relatives and friends. We were honored to have Elaine Zetes, our new Metropolis President, speak to us. All enjoyed the entertainment of Joey Be Bop and there were many excited winners of the raffle items. Vasilopita and Family Dinner: Our traditional Vasilopita / Gold Coin celebration and Family Dinner will be held on Sunday, January 14th. Father Tom will cut the parish ministries Vasilopita upstairs after Liturgy. Then lunch will be served downstairs and the Vasilopita pieces with the hidden gold coin will be distributed. Outreach: Visiting Angels: Our Visiting Angels are continuing visits to nursing homes and shut-ins. Please contact Christine at (978) or the church office to offer your time to visit. House of Hope: We thank the servers who have stepped in to continue this ministry. We have volunteers through June. If you would like to volunteer for next season starting in September contact Cindy Rios at cerios3@hotmail.com or Family Literacy Program: As we clean out our children s bookshelves after Christmas, please consider placing gently used books in our book collection bins. The goal is to collect as many books as possible for the children at a local Lowell elementary school. Acknowledgements: Christmas Decorations: Many thanks to Marc Gulezian and his team for decorating the church so beautifully for the Christmas season. Through your generous donations received during our flower collection in the spring, we are able to decorate the church all year long. Coming Attractions: Membership: The membership package will be in the mail soon. Every woman over the age of 18 is welcome to become a member. Please consider becoming a member in Frequently asked questions: I don t have much time right now so what can I do as a new member? Step 1 is pay your stewardship and include a donation to assist with our ministries. I could possibly help on an intermittent basis, what would I do? When you sign up, include your . When time or talent is needed (dessert for a meal, sorting books for our Literacy Program, working the Pastry booth at the Festival or helping to make koulourakia or baklava under direction of our master baker) I send out an asking for assistance. You can decide what you are able to do based on your schedule. Continued on next page PAGE 7

8 Continued from previous page Also, read this article in the TransAGram. It provides information on what activities have gone on in the past and what is coming in the future. Contact numbers are usually given if you have questions, ask. If there s no number, reach out to me. If you have any questions regarding membership, please do not hesitate to contact our Membership Chair, Daphne Easton, at daphneeaston1@yahoo.com or Next Meeting: Our next meeting will be held on Saturday, February 3rd, at 9:30 AM. We will enjoy our traditional Heart Healthy Brunch prepared by our hostess Susan Mitchell, followed by our business meeting and speaker. Go Red Sunday, Feb. 4th: In keeping with the National American Heart Association awareness initiative and supported by the National Philoptochos Society, parishioners are encouraged to wear red as a symbol of support towards awareness of heart disease Philoptochos Charity Tea Friends and family sharing a wonderful afternoon at the annual Tea. PHOTOS BY AMANDA APOSTOLOU PAGE 8

9 Sunday School News by Connie Gkolias, Sunday School Director We congratulate all the Sunday School students for their wonderful presentation of our annual Christmas Pageant. The pageant reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of our Lord. We should all be very proud of them. Great job! On behalf of the Sunday School staff we want to wish everyone a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year. This is a wonderful time for all of us to make a very important new years resolution: Let s get our children to church by 9:30am so they can enjoy and learn from the Liturgy and hear Father Tom s children s sermon and then participate in their Sunday school class. We want them to enjoy every minute of their class -me. We look forward to seeing the children on Sundays. Date to remember Sunday February 11: Sunday School Valentines Bake sale Choir News by Marc Gulezian, Organist As we begin a new calendar year we d like to thank the members of the choir for singing so beautifully to the Glory of God throughout the year, and especially during our Christmas season! We are so fortunate to have such dedicated members who come up to the loft and pour their hearts out in song, and we welcome anyone to come join us at any time. If you like to sing and have always wanted to try being a part of the choir then now is the time! Most of the songs have Greek phonetics, so you don t have to be able to read Greek, and we welcome whatever time commitment you can afford to give. For all those young people out there, when you come to church come on up and join us for a little while! We d love to have you sing with us. Happy New Year to everyone and may God grant you good health in 2018! GOYA Lock -In Friday, 1/26 For more information contact Mary Piper at Mary.Dukakis@gmail.com PAGE 9

10 Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church Outreach Ministry Hosts A COMMUNITY KITCHEN At the OUTREACH CENTRE Located at 465 Fletcher Street Tuesday, January 23, 2018 & February 27 at 11:30am For additional information: Contact the Church at PAGE 10

11 Transfiguration Ladies Philoptochos Society Chair Fundraiser Donation: $50 per chair All proceeds used to purchase new chairs for our church hall. Please complete and return bottom portion to: Angela Hastings Nancy Lane Jeanne Brady in Church Office Chair Donation Form Date: Name: Address: Phone Number: Number of chairs: Other Amount Gratefully Appreciated: I would like my donation recorded and acknowledged as: General Chair Fund In memory of In honor of (person/occasion) Please make checks payable to Transfiguration Ladies Philoptochos Society PAGE 11

12 CHURCH INFORMATION Contact Information CHURCH Secretary: Jeanne Brady Address: 25 Father John Sarantos Way, Lowell, MA Telephone: Fax: Office Hours: Secretary: Mon. Fri., 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Priest: Tuesday Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., or by appointment WEBSITE FACEBOOK CLERGY Rev. Father Thomas Chininis Telephone: FrTom@transchurch.org Rev. Deacon John Vaporis Telephone: DeaconJohn@transchurch.org PHILOPTOCHOS Ellen Dobi Telephone: ekdobi@verizon.net CHOIR Toula Sparages Telephone: toulaarthur@gmail.com SUNDAY SCHOOL Connie Gkolias connie@garston.com Corrine Dubay corrinedubay@gmail.com BOOKSTORE Joan Tsoukalas joantsoukalas@gmail.com Virginia Kimball virginiakimball@comcast.net WEBSITE Melanie Pappas Telephone: melanie.pappas@gmail.com TRANS A GRAM Rev. Thomas Chininis Telephone: frtom@transchurch.org 2018 Parish Council Members PRESIDENT Olivia Sintros Home: Cell: osintros@comcast.net VICE PRESIDENT Costa Tsioulis Cell: costasusa@hotmail.com TREASURER Marc Gulezian Cell: msgulezian@comcast.net ASSISTANT TREASURER Nick Kouloungis Home: koulclan@comcast.net SECRETARY Amanda Apostolou Cell: su_lou22@me.com William (Bill) Arvanites Home: Cell: arvanites.willy@gmail.com Redvers Curry redvers.curry@gmail.com James Demetri Home: Cell: jdemetri56@hotmail.com Corrine Dubay corrinedubay@gmail.com Patricia Mahoney Cell: pmahoney7@comcast.net Stephen Nicholaides Cell: corfu@comcast.net PARISHPAY BECOMES WESHARE Recently ParishPay, the company that handles our online giving, became WeShare. The migration of data has taken place and ready to go. If you were already using ParishPay, your giving will continue as scheduled, but you need to log on to verify your information. Interested in online giving go to: transchurch.churchgiving.org PAGE 12

13 Dracut Funeral Home Proudly serving the Greek Community in Dracut and Greater Lowell for 25 years 2159 Lakeview Avenue Dracut, MA Mark P. Gacek (978) Owner/Director Robin Ley TOP DONUT 700 Aiken St. Lowell, MA Tel. (978) Store Hours Open 7 days a week 5 a.m. 9 p.m. Realtor James F. O Donnell & Sons FUNERAL DIRECTORS since 1884 Serving members of the Lowell and Greek community for over 120 years Soula.Spaziani@NEmoves.com John W. Crane 276 Pawtucket Street Lowell, Massachusetts (978) James F. O Donnell, Jr.! Established in 1930 M. R. Laurin & Son Funeral Home Funeral Directors Louis M. Fazio, III M. Richard Laurin Scott Laurin Pre Need Counseling Handicap Accessible Ample Parking 295 Pawtucket Street, Lowell, Massachusetts Mama s Italian Restaurant 1140 Lakeview Avenue Tel: (978) Dracut, MA Fax: (978) When you re hungry, come to Mama s! JAMES MONOXELOS NORTHEAST VISIT OUR E MAIL: jmonoxelos@neref.com PHONE: x15 FAX: SHAWSHEEN ST., TEWKSBURY, MA PAGE 13

14 Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church Lowell, MA January 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday New Year s Day St. Basil Liturgy 10am Bible Study Vesperal Epiphany 10am Liturgy & Liturgy & Agiasmos Agiasmos 6:30 pm 9:30a Orthros 8:30am Monthly Trisagion Parish Council Oath of Office Bible Study 10am LTLC dinner Orthros 8:30am Vasilopita Cutting and Luncheon Bible Study St. Athanasios Parish Council 10am Meeting 6:30pm Orthros 8:30am Community Bible Study House of Hope GOYA Lock-in Kitchen 10am Dinner 11:30am Orthros 8:30am February 1 February 2 February 3 Three Hierarchs Bible Study Presentation Metropolis 10am of Christ into Pre-Marriage the Temple Seminar 9 am Liturgy 9:30a Philoptochos Breakfast Meeting 9:30am Choose Community Choose Enterprise Bank The Enterprise Bank team helps create successful businesses, jobs, opportunities, wealth, and vibrant prosperous communities. Choose-Community.com Member FDIC Acton Andover Billerica Chelmsford Derry, NH Dracut Fitchburg Hudson, NH (Coming Soon) Leominster Lowell Methuen Tewksbury Salem, NH Westford PAGE 14

15 Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church Lowell, MA February 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Orthros 8:30am Monthly Trisagion Presentation of Christ - Liturgy 9:30 am Pre-Marriage Workshop 9am Philoptochos Mtg. 9:30 am Parish Council Mtg 6:30pm Bible Study 10am Family Fun Night 6:30pm Saturday of Souls (1) Liturgy 9:30pm LTLC dinner Meatfare Sunday Orthros 8:30am Valentine Day Bake Sale Bible Study 10am Winter Camp 2/16-2/19 at MBC Saturday of Souls (2) Liturgy 9:30pm Cheesefare Sunday Orthros 8:30am Orthros 8:30am Lenten Vespers 6 pm Great Lent House of Hope Salutations Begins Dinner 6:30pm Bible Study 10am Compline 6:30pm Pre-Sanctified Liturgy & Dinner 6 pm Compline 6:30pm Community Kitchen 11:30am Bible Study 10am Pre-Sanctified Liturgy & Dinner 6 pm Saturday of Souls (3) Liturgy 9:30pm PAGE 15

16 SERVICES, SACRAMENTS, AND CALENDAR OF EVENTS Services SUNDAY SERVICES Orthros: 8:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy: 9:30 a.m. Monthly Trisagion January 7 following Liturgy Sacraments BAPTISMS & CHRISMATIONS NONE FUNERALS: December 4: Agnes Yankopoulos December 6: Mary Alexakos May their memory be eternal WEDDING & MARRIAGE BLESSINGS NONE SPECIAL SERVICES (JANUARY/FEBRUARY) January 1... Liturgy 10:00 am (Feast or St. Basil) January 5... Vesperal Liturgy 6:30 pm (Eve of Epiphany and Agiasmos) January 6... Liturgy 9:30 am (Feast of Epiphany and Agiasmos) January Liturgy 9:30 am (St. Athanasios) January Liturgy 9:30 am (Feast of the 3 Hierarchs) February 2... Liturgy 9:30 am (Presentation of the Lord) Do you have a Change of Name, Phone Number, Address, or ? Please contact the parish office to update your information. Calendar of Events VACATION CHURCH CAMP (VCC) March 3 Lenten Camp CHOIR Rehearsals as announced BIBLE STUDY AND RELIGIOUS EDUCATION January 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31: Bible Study 10 am SUNDAY SCHOOL January 7, 14, 21 & 28 (Sunday): Classes PHILOPTOCHOS January 14: Vasilopita & Community Luncheon February 3: Breakfast and Meeting FAMILY AND YOUTH ACTIVITIES January 7: GOYA Gathering following Liturgy January 26-27: GOYA Lock-in February 9: Family Fun Night - Valentines for Vets OTHER CHURCH ACTIVITIES January 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31: Transfiguration Outreach Center 10 am to 2 pm OUTREACH AND SPECIAL EVENTS January 13 (Saturday): LTLC (Shelter) Meal January 23: Community Kitchen 11:30 am Outreach Center January 25: House of Hope Meal WeShare Stewardship Giving Online Weekly, Monthly, or One-Time Go to transchurch.churchgiving.com to enroll or call the Parish Office (Formerly ParishPay) PAGE 16