Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church October 2015 Bulletin From Father Dean Preach the Gospel and if necessary use words.

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1 Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Metropolis of Atlanta Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church 255 Beauvoir Road Biloxi, Mississippi (228) October 2015 Bulletin From Father Dean This past Sunday, I mentioned that a wise old priest once told me Preach the Gospel and if necessary use words. I recently came across the following sermon. I have no idea who wrote it, but I was deeply moved by it and wanted to share it with you. I believe you will be deeply moved by it too. THE SILENT SERMON A member of a certain church, who previously had been attending services regularly, suddenly stopped coming to church. After a few weeks, the Pastor decided to visit. The Pastor found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for the Pastor s visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited. The Pastor made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the Pastor took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone. The he sat back in his chair, still silent. The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember s flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and lifeless. The Pastor glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow, once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it. As the Pastor reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday. Think about this story carefully. Will you be in church next Sunday? We live in a world today which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken. What silent message would God have you share with someone today? Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 Sometimes the best conversation between two people is when nothing is said at all.

2 Schedule of Services Matins (Orthos) will be at 9:30 except on Oct 4 Sunday Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am on Oct 4 with Fr Paul Sunday Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am on Oct 11 with Fr Ezekiel Sunday Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am on Oct 18 with Fr Ezekiel Sunday Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am on Oct 25 with Fr Ezekiel Visitors A warm welcome to Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church We are glad to have you worship with us today Please join us for Fellowship Hour in our Social Hall after Liturgy Luke the Evangelist, October 18th. This Apostle was an Antiochean, a physician by trade, and a disciple and companion of Paul. He wrote his Gospel in Greek after Matthew and Mark, after which he wrote the Acts of the Apostles, and dedicated both works to Theophilus, who, according to some, was Governor of Achaia. He lived some eighty-six years and died in Achaia, perhaps in Patras, the capital of this district. His emblem is the calf, the third symbolical beast mentioned by Ezekiel (1:10), which is a symbol of Christ's sacrificial and priestly office, as Saint Irenaeus says. James (Iakovos) the Apostle, brother of Our Lord, October 23d. According to some, this Saint was a son of Joseph the Betrothed, born of the wife that the latter had before he was betrothed to the Ever-virgin. Hence he was the brother of the Lord, Who was also thought to be the son of Joseph (Matt. 13: 55). He was still called, according to the idiom of the Scriptures, the Lord's brother because of their kinship. This Iakovos is called the Less (Mark 15:4) by the Evangelists to distinguish him from Iakovos, the son of Zebedee, who was called the Great. Having ascended the crest of the Temple on the day of the Passover at the prompting of all, he bore testimony from there concerning his belief in Jesus, and he proclaimed with a great voice that Jesus sits at the right hand of the great power of God and shall come again upon the clouds of heaven. On hearing this testimony, many of those present cried, "Hosanna to the Son of David." But the Scribes and Pharisees cried, "So, even the just one hath been led astray," and at the command of Ananias the high priest, the Apostle was cast down headlong from thence, then was stoned, and while he prayed for his slayers, his head was crushed by the wooden club wielded by a certain scribe. The Holy Great Martyr Demetrius the Myrrh-streamer, October 26th. Saint Demetrius was a Thessalonian, a most pious son of pious and noble parents, and a teacher of the Faith of Christ. When Maximian first came to Thessalonica in 290, he raised the Saint to the rank of

3 Duke of Thessaly. But when it was discovered that the Saint was a Christian, he was arrested and kept bound in a bath-house. While the games were under way in the city, Maximian was a spectator there. A certain friend of his, a barbarian who was a notable wrestler, Lyaeus by name, waxing haughty because of the height and strength of his body, boasted in the stadium and challenged the citizens to a contest with him. All that fought with him were defeated. Seeing this, a certain youth named Nestor, aquaintance of Demetrius', came to the Saint in the bathhouse and asked his blessing to fight Lyaeus single-handed. Receiving this blessing and sealing himself with the sign of the precious Cross, he presented himself in the stadium, and said, "O God of Demetrius, help me!" and straightway he engaged Lyaeus in combat and smote him with a mortal blow to the heart, leaving the former boaster lifeless upon the earth. Maximian was sorely grieved over this, and when he learned who was the cause of this defeat, he commanded straightway and Demetrius was pierced with lances while he was yet in the bathhouse, As for Nestor, Maximian commanded that he be slain with his own sword. OctoberFest Luncheon, Sunday October 4...The Church will have an October Fest Luncheon for everyone on Sunday Oct. 4 following Divine Liturgy. We will offer bratwurst, saurkraut, red cabbage, German potato salad and spatzle. Donations will be accepted, but not mandatory, towards the luncheon. Prayer Service/Study Group, October 14 & We will be starting up a Prayer Service Wednesday nights led by Eric Voron at 6 6:30 pm, followed by a Study Group led by Nancy Marek at 6:30 7:30 pm. The prayer service materials have been provided to Eric by Fr. Dean. The study group will be reading The Way of the Pilgram which can be purchased from Nancy for $12. All are welcomed and encouraged to attend. Our Company of Friends Date To Be Determined...The date of our October get together is yet to be determined. You can order off the menu and enjoy Greek music, dancing and singing. OPA! Let's have some great Orthodox fellowship. See you there. RSVP your plans to George Yurchak , georgeyurchak@yahoo.com. Annunciation Greek Festival in Mobile Oct. 15, 16 & 17...Come out and support Mobile's Greek Festival. Enjoy delicious Greek food, music/dance, and lots of good fellowship. For information go to Parish General Assembly Meeting, Oct Please put it on your calendar as we have many items to discuss old items, stewardship, financial updates, Parish Council elections, among others. Plan to attend this very important meeting as it is a way we update everyone on what our church is doing, where it is going, and where you can provide feedback. Please insure you are up to date with your stewardship pledge in order to vote. A list of those current with their pledge will be posted on the bulletin board.

4 October Birthdays... Louie Peters and Nikol Michailos-October 4, Nina Gestring- October 6, Elizabeth Vamvakas-October 8, Jessie Mavromihalis-October 9, Cristian Aron-October 10, George Yurchak-October 11, Irene Stevens-October 13, Natalya Gray-October 16, Liliana Aron-October 17, John Pappas-October 19, Pete Psikogios- October 20, Christopher Mavromihalis & Mary Thames-October 22, Evagheni Scurtul- October 26. October Anniversary...Congratulations to Aaron and Christina Mohler on their 4th wedding anniversary (October 15). Congratulations to CoCo and Steve Collins on there 37 th wedding anniversary (October 31). We wish you many, many more years of wedded bliss. Religious Education Fr Dean and Fr Ezekiel will continue the weekly religious education classes after Fellowship Hour. ALL ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND. Religious Needs Clergy are available for talk, confession, pastoral counseling, spiritual care, individual prayer, etc. Tours of our church can be arranged. If you want to set up an appointment, please contact George Yurchak or Many thanks to all who helped and volunteered their time and effort at Holy Trinity. It is hard work but spiritually rewarding. It shows us how we can all come together as an Orthodox Family and grow spiritually by giving of ourselves. Prayer Box... We have a prayer box in the Narthex. If there is anyone you wish a prayer said, place their name in the box, or contact Nancy Malek at Community Christmas Cards... We are taking donations for the Orthodox Community Christmas card. Donations are whatever you feel you can give and it should come from your heart. See Chrysanthi Beach or George Yurchak with your donations and how you want your name/family listed in the card. Donations must be turned in by December 1. Get Well...Prayers and blessings to Fr Jim Karagas, Elizabeth Vamvakas, Photine Hagicostas, Helen Taylor, Irene Stevens, Mary Makris, Alan Koskan, Pete Carter, Thanos Kosmopoulos, Sophia Beddoe, Nancy Malek, Ioan (John) Curticapian, George Vaporis, and Dorothy Porter. Fr Dean or Fr Ezekiel will conduct home visitations and give communion to those parishioners who are ill and can't be with us for Liturgy. Please contact a parish council member or the priest to make arrangements. If we missed someone please contact Nancy Malek at We want to pray as a community for those that may be too ill to be with us during church services.

5 Greek & Russian Specialties Store...The Greek Specialties Store has several items for sale which include extra virgin olive oil, kalamata olives, orzo, feta cheese, other Greek cheeses, canned okra, dolmades, eggplant, and giant beans, chocolate and vanilla halva, sour cherry or fig preserves, and Turkish delight candy. We have pasty sale items for sale including spanikopita, tyropita, and tsoureki. We will start selling Greek pastries (6 dozen kourabiedes). The Russian/Ukrainian Specialties Store has salad lecho, eggplant paste, eggplants, halva, rye bread, cherry and raspberry preserves. Under One Sky Ethnic Christmas Festival, December Holy Trinity will hold an Ethnic Christmas Festival on Saturday, December 12, 2015, from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. Food items will include Greek, Russian, Romanian, Georgian, Ukrainian, and Moldovan. There will be an exhibition of Greek and Russian dancing. There will also be Greek and Russian items for sale, as well as activities for children. This Festival will be held in conjunction with the annual Pastry Sale. Please reserve this date to volunteer your time. The Church needs everyone to help in order to make it a success. More information will be provided to everyone at a later date. See flyer. Christmas Pastry Sale, December Holy Trinity's Annual Christmas Pastry Sale will be held on Saturday, December 12 from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. Pastries will include delicacies from the ethnic countries listed above. The Church needs everyone to help on this date to make it a success. More information will be provided at a later date. See flier. An Evening of Christmas Songs, December 19, from 5:00-6:00 pm... Join us for an evening of Christmas songs performed by Nataliya Petrovska-Molsbee, J.T. Anglin, and Karen Henderson. After the performance enjoy an International Dinner Georgian, Greek Moldovan, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian, & Southern, from 6:00-7:00 pm. Donation is $15 for adults, $5 for children 12 and under. Contact Craig Henderson at or craig13014@gmail.com, or George Yurchak at or georgeyurchak@yahoo.com, for tickets. Seating is limited to the first 82 persons who make their reservations in advance. Our last concert was a sellout, so get your tickets early. See flier. PLEASE REMEMBER TO SUBMIT YOUR PLEDGE FOR 2015 Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church is grateful for every donation received throughout the year. Your generous support enables Holy Trinity to spread the teaching of Our Lord Jesus Christ, serve regular Divine Liturgies and Sacraments and provide spiritual nourishment to our faithful, their families and those in need. Your pledge of support is a sign of your heartfelt participation in the life of our parish family and it plays a vital role enabling us to meet our financial responsibilities. We pray that everybody who attends Holy Trinity and cares for its financial security will make a pledge for If you have not pledged, please take the time to fill out a

6 stewardship form. You may pick up a hard copy either at the candle counter in the narthex, or from any Parish Council member. Please submit it to either Craig Henderson (Vice-President, Parish Council), George Yurchak (President, Parish Council) or Rodney Bridges (Treasurer, Parish Council). HOLY TRINITY GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH STEWARDS FOR 2015 Thank you to everyone who has filled out and returned his/her 2015 Stewardship Commitment Pledge Form. As of July 31, Holy Trinity has received stewardship commitments from the forty-nine parishioners listed below. If you have not yet done so, please consider your 2015 financial stewardship commitment. Stewardship forms are available. Please let George Yurchak or Craig Henderson know if we have missed someone. Stewardship pledges total approximately $28, for the year. Chrisanthi Beach Michael Bodisch Rodney & Karen Bridges Alexander Bujan Pete & Margaret Carter Elena Cheptene Galina Chetverikova CoCo & Steve Collins John Collins George Contas John Demetrakopoulos Bernie & Callie DeSantis Angelo & Photine Hagicostas Craig & Karen Henderson Elen Ifantis Meri & Cristian Ionesco Serghei Karaivanski John & Cornelia Koniditsiotis Volodymya Kunat Chrisie Soula Kiessling Karen Kohl Al & Cathy Lawson Alexandra Macheeva Eva Magiros Mary Makris Nancy & Karl Malek Stratus Mandos George Mavromihalis John & Nikol Michailos Andrei Nichitenco Louis & Linda Peters Nataliya Petrovska Tom & Pat Portaritis Mitch & Lela Roberts Jerry Strickland Helen Taylor Lisa Taylor Angelos & Elizabeth Vamvakas Akaterina Vamvakas George Vaporis Eleni Vganges Spiro Vganges Demetri Vlahos Karen Weinberg George & Sheila Yurchak Liturgical Services Sundays Divine Liturgy 10:00 am Church Clergy Rev. Fr. Dean Gigicos Rev. Fr. Ezekiel Vieages Choir Chair Photine Vlahos Chanter Angelos Vamvakas 2015 Parish Council President George Yurchak Vice President Craig Henderson Treasurer Rodney Bridges Secretary CoCo Collins Member Nancy Malek Church Directory Librarian Hugh Donohoe, Brandy Turner Maintenance and Repair Chair Craig Henderson Youth Education & Culture Committee Chair George Yurchak Greek Culture Chair George Yurchak Ukrainian Culture Chair Nataliya Petrovska Romanian Culture Chair Meri Ionescu Georgian Culture Chair Medea Ghurtskaia

7 Moldavian Culture Chair Alexandra Macheeva Russian Culture Chair Anna Slepova Parish Ministries Youth Ministries George Yurchak Young Adult Ministries Eric Voron Sunday School Akaterina Vamvakas Ladies Group Chair Eleni Vganges Stewardship Chair Craig Henderson Reader Helen Taylor Adult Education George Yurchak Prayer/Study Group Nancy Malek/Eric Voron Staff Outreach Karen Komenko Weinberg, Akaterina Vamvakas Technology Karen Kohl, Spiro Vganges Web Master Steve Collins, Spiro Vganges Pastoral Assistant Craig Henderson, Spiro Vganges Sunshiners Chairman TBD Strategic Planning Chair, CoCo Collins Kiosk George Yurchak Office Administrator Sheila Yurchak Cleaning Chrisanthi Beach, Akaterina Vamvakas