Fr. Alex s Message: Recalculating

Transcription

1 Fr. Alex s Message: Recalculating I have a great friend. Her name is Garmin and, yes, she lives in my car. My wife gave her to me several years ago, and we can t imagine our lives without her. She has a nice speaking voice, but I can turn it off when I don t feel like listening anymore. Maybe you don t love your GPS navigation system as much as I love mine. But maybe your sense of direction isn t as bad as mine. My wife often compliments me on my masterful navigational skills. I think she s being ironic. Garmin, however, is never ironic. When I make a wrong turn, her response always makes me smile. Believe it or not, she doesn t get mad. She doesn t yell. She just calmly makes an adjustment and figures out where I need to go next in order to get to my destination. Like the true friend she is, she simply says Recalculating, as the graphics on her screen reassemble and piece our newly formed route together. Whatever mess I ve gotten us into, she s willing to meet me where I am, and she never says I told you so. She s got the perfect U-turn and alternative route for every occasion. Not only is she calm when I m not, but she s also forgiving when I sass her. Sometimes, I can t resist going the wrong way on purpose, and I chuckle as she keeps saying Recalculating recalculating over and over. I ask her if that s tension I hear in her voice, but she ignores the jibe and just gets to the business of our journey. She s really something else. I always feel badly after I mess with her like this. I ask her forgiveness, but she just asks me where I want to go next. I guess words aren t always necessary. I m being silly here, but there is a real point to let you know I ve got an even better friend than Garmin who s been helping me with my journey since the day Cont. on Pg. 2 March 2016 Table of Contents Liturgical Schedule 2 Stewardship 3 Youth 4, 5 Photos 6 Calendar 7 Community/ Outreach 8 Education/ News 9 Sponsors 10, 11 Saint Philip Church 500 West Hollis St. Nashua, NH P: facebook.com/ StPhilipNashua instagram.com/ stphilipnashuanh

2 LITURGICAL SCHEDULE March Schedule Sundays Divine 6: Judgment Sunday 13: Forgiveness Sunday 20: Sunday of Orthodoxy 27: Sunday of Saint Gregory Palamas Weekdays Divine 25: The Annunciation Soul Saturdays Divine Liturgy & Memorial, 10 am 5, 12, & 19 Great Compline, 6 pm 14 (Clean Monday/Lent Begins) Presanctified Liturgy, 6 pm 16, 23, & 30 ( Liturgy of Needs Homily Series & Lenten Dinners to follow) Salutations, 7 pm 18 (not offered on the 25th because of the Feast of the Annunciation) Voices of Faith Our parishioners of all ages are always invited to read the Epistle during Sunday Divine Liturgy. In addition, readers are welcome to help with our evening Lenten services (beginning March 14). Please contact Fr. Alex for details on both of these wonderful opportunities to engage our divine services and grow in the Orthodox Faith: fralex@stphilipnh.org. March Schedule 6: Elena Barker 13: Bette Gioffre 20: Doug Philipon 27: Dorothy Pitarys Recalculating (continued) I was born. He s helpful, always there for me, speaks to me when I m willing to listen and my family can t imagine our lives without Him. He also never yells at me or quits on me, even when I sass Him; instead, He s always ready to help me. When I mess up, He offers forgiveness, too. He also never says I told you so and never stops trying to reach me, even when I turn His volume down on purpose. He doesn t need words to reach me anyway. He s really something else. Lent begins March 14, and this is our time to recalculate. If you re like me, your sense of direction is faltering. If you re like me, you need someone to help you get where you need to go. If you re like me, you need another chance to get out of the mess you re in. Maybe we all need a friend like Him. Fr. Alex Soul Saturdays March 5, 12, & 19 Within Your peace, O Lord, where all Your Saints repose, give rest also to the soul of Your servant, for You alone are Immortal. Memorial Hymn With the approach of Lent on March 14, our hearts turn toward the 3 Soul Saturdays we celebrate, leading up to and within the first week of Lent. On these days, Divine Liturgy and a special memorial are offered; the faithful are invited to be present and submit names of those departed, for remembrance during the service. Names may be submitted to Fr. Alex via the Narthex listing forms or fralex@stphilipnh.org. Names need only be submitted once to be read on each Soul Saturday. Lenten & Kouvouklion Donations The Lenten Donation Form has been mailed home to all our Stewards and is available in the Narthex. Agape Kouvouklion/Epitaphios donation envelopes are enclosed in this Come & See and are also in the Narthex. Thank you for your support and generosity. He also never quits on me. Come and See 2

3 STEWARDSHIP Online Giving: Faithful Direct Easy, Spontaneous Giving Have you ever missed church and later thought, Boy, it would be nice to make a donation just so I can say I appreciate Saint Philip in my own way and, what if you could do this online with just a couple clicks? Faithful Direct is our program designed to make our gifts easy and more spontaneous. Please take a look at the Giving Page of our website and take our shopping cart for a test drive! Stewardship Every Member Capital Campaign General Donations (Easter, Festival, etc.) St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church 500 West Hollis St. Nashua, NH Phone: P (603) ; ; F Web: (603) stphilipnh.org Rev. Fr. Alex Chetsas: fralex@stphilipnh.org Office Staff: Cheryl Petren Cheryl & Sophie Petren Theoharis: office@stphilipnh.org Office Hours: M - F, 10 am - 3 pm Online Delivery Help Us Reach of Come You & See We Are have you receiving been making weekly an s effort and to other introduce electronic delivery communications of Come from & See St. Philip? for some If not, time. we online Help may us not conserve have an needed updated resources for at you Saint and/or Philip, your and family. contact Please the help office us stay today close to to authorize you by online contacting delivery. the Thank office you with for your your . participation! Thanks! Putting Time & Talent to Work Joe Pappo As you probably know, the 2016 Saint Philip Greek Food Festival is approaching, and our beloved parish needs the time and talent of our parishioners to make this event successful. This is our church s biggest fundraiser and necessary in order for OUR Church to offer the many services to the community that it does. When festival time comes there are plenty of hands to help, but all the planning is done by a handful of people handling several tasks. You can help us change this by getting involved early. If you have the time and one of these committees is in your talent range, we could use your help in several areas: First is General Advertising. This includes ads in newspapers and online, posters, signs, and any new ideas you can come up with. Second is the Festival Ad Book. Even though there is a committee in place, help is needed selling ads to local businesses, such as stores we drive buy on a daily basis or may have a connection to. We look forward to putting your time and talent to work in the coming months. Please contact me to learn more about either of these opportunities: jpappo@nmexpress.net. Every Member Campaign March 20 Fellowship Hour & More We are making progress with our latest Dome Focus efforts and a heartfelt thanks to all that have made a financial contribution to date. Being able to look forward to the restored beauty of our dome and towers should continue to remind our faithful of the importance of us all joining together to accomplish our goal. While we don t know the exact amount needed until our bid quotations are received, we are roughly one third of the way there! Stay tuned for a March 20 Fellowship Hour presentation on our progress details will be in the Weekly Bulletin. Learn more about Every Member, and give online today: every_member.php. Come and See 3

4 YOUTH Don t let anyone look down on you because you are young Sunday School Heather Cloutier Greetings Saint Philip Sunday School Families! Lent begins this month and we have a special outreach lesson planned on Sunday, March 13. Classes will be together, and all our students will receive a Lenten Passport and a page of stickers to help them on their own personal journey through Lent. There will be a place to put stickers for the different Lenten services to attend, as well as places for praying, fasting and almsgiving. I hope you will encourage your children to use them and participate as a family. We will also be watching an OCMC video and handing out coin boxes to all the children. March 20 is the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Children are welcome to bring an icon from home for the icon procession at the end of Divine Liturgy. Throughout March, the 4th and 5th Graders will be working on their Saints Projects. The students will present their projects to the parishioners during Fellowship Hour on April 3. April 23 is the Lazarus Saturday Event. All students are encouraged to join us for Divine Liturgy, breakfast, palm cross-making, church cleaning, and a Q & A session with Fr. Alex. On April 29, we will hold our Holy Friday Youth Retreat: The Power of Sacrifice." We hope all our students will join us for a day of reflection, learning, meaningful activities, and worship. Our Sunday School leaders wish all our students and families a blessed Lent! Lazarus Saturday Event, April 23 Join us 10 am - 1:30 pm for Divine Liturgy, Communion breakfast, palm cross-making, church cleaning, and a Q & A session with Fr. Alex. All children, families, and parishioners are invited. Sponsored by our Sunday School. Contact Heather Cloutier with questions or to help out on the 23rd: hacloutier@comcast.net. GOYA Advisor Marisa Donati Hello everyone! While we had aspirations for a fun sledding event, it seems there s not quite enough snow around to make this happen. So we are turning toward other events, outlined below. Please join us for as much as you can over the coming months! Winter/Spring GOYA events: March 6: Family Night. Our theme will be Discovering the Theotokos. We are all invited and encouraged to come for dinner, learning and the Salutations Service. 6-8 pm. March 20: Meeting after Sunday School April 8: Manchester Monarchs game outing. Tickets are free to GOYAns. Contact me to confirm by March 28. Game time is 7 pm; parent chaperones needed. April 23: Saturday of Lazarus Event. We ll enjoy Liturgy, palm cross-making, church cleaning, and Q & A time with Fr. Alex. April 29: Holy Friday Youth Retreat. There will be special sessions and projects for us all, and then we ll participate in the Descent from the Cross Service. April 11: Holy Saturday. As always, we ll be wrapping Pascha/Easter Eggs. Start time is 11 am. May 20 & 21: Greek Food Festival. We look forward to helping out once again. June 5: Car Wash. This was a big success last year. I wish all of our GOYAns a beautiful Lent. Please contact me for further details and with questions anytime: marisapdonati@gmail.com. Hellenic Dance Troupe Hellenic Dance Troupe is available to girls and boys 10 years old to 18 years old. Our next sessions will be March 13 (Practice) & 27 (Annunciation/ Greek Independence Day Program). We hope all of our dancers will join us for both sessions this month, especially the 27th! After this event, we ll look forward to preparing for the Greek Food Festival in May. For further details about this ministry, contact Maria Donati: Come and See 4

5 YOUTH...but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in faith and in purity. Timothy 4:12 Family Night, March 18 Discovering the Theotokos Join us for food, fellowship, and a brief discussion about the icon of Christ and the Theotokos. What does this icon say about the relationship between the two, and what can we learn from the symbolism found within the icon? Following this discussion, we will attend the Salutations Service at 7 pm. Let us come and see and worship together as a church family on this very special night at the start of a very special season. 6 pm: Arrival, Welcome & Dinner 6: 30 pm: Reflection Activity 7-8 pm: Salutations Service/Dismissal JOY, GOYA, Sunday Schoolers, parents, all parishioners join us! Dinner will be offered. Please contact Brandy Chetsas with your side, dessert or drink offering by March 15: abchetsas@hotmail.com. Holy Greek Friday School Myrrhbearers Update Girls grades 2-5 are invited to participate in the Lamentations on April 29. Contact Fr. Alex for details (Irene Alton, Chair). Greek School Update Our classes meet each Wednesday: Youth Beginners, 4 pm; Youth Advanced, 5 pm; Adults, 6 pm. We are looking forward to Sunday, March 27, for this year s Annunciation/Greek Independence Day Program. We hope all our parishioners can make it, supporting our children and helping us celebrate! To learn more about Greek School, contact George Kitsis: bettyb214@aol.com Holy Friday Youth Retreat 2016 April 29, 11:30 am - 3 pm Holy Friday is one of the most profound days of our Church year, and on the 29th, our Sunday School will once again offer a retreat to mark the day. Our theme will be The Power of Sacrifice, focusing on the power of Christ s momentous, sacrificial love for us all. ***All Sunday School students and parent volunteers are encouraged to join us ***Lunch (including nut-free options) will be served ***Grade appropriate, engaging sessions for grades K - 12 Register your child/help lead: hacloutier@comcast.net. Saintly Lives: Saint Alexios, Man of God (March 17) Saint Alexios was born in 380 AD in Rome. He was raised in a royal household by his parents who, even when he was very young, realized that he felt drawn toward Christ and a life in service of His Church. His parents were not Christian, and feared that they would lose him if he were allowed to pursue the things closest to his heart. As he grew to manhood, they constantly attempted to make him feel guilty and in debt to them; they even arranged a marriage for him, trying to distract him from the growing call to monastic life he felt. On the day of the marriage, at the Altar with his intended bride, Saint Alexios looked at the Cross of our Lord, and knew what he had to do. Without a word, he walked away out of the church and to a Syrian monastery, where he spent 18 years praying, striving, and developing into an amazing spiritual leader. Later in life, he made his way back to Rome and lived and served in anonymity not far from his parents home. Not long before he died, he wrote a letter to them, expressing his love and appreciation for all they had done for him. It was read to them just after his death, which came on March 17, 440. Because of his life of sacrificial service and ministry, the Church has given him a rare title, Man of God. Getting Practical: Especially early in his life Saint Alexios was under pressure. He used his faith to help him make the right decisions. We also can feel pressure at school and with friends and we also can use our faith to help us make the right decisions that keep us close to God. Come and See 5

6 Godparents Sunday & Souper Bowl Women's Prayer Group Fellowship Hour Come and See 6

7 1 March Calendar Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednes- Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sponsoring Fellowship Hour Contact Nick Kallan to sponsor on a coming Sunday: loonboy@comcast.net; Thanks to our recent sponsors: Feb. 7 : Sunday School Ministry Feb. 14: Women s Prayer Group & Bible Study Ministry Feb. 28: AHEPA (Pre-Lenten Breakfast) Remember, Great Lent begins March 14! "The springtime of the Fast has dawned, the flower of repentance has begun to open..." Clean Monday Hymn Parish Council, 6:30 pm 1 Health/Wellness Ministry, 9:30 am 2 Greek School: 4, 5 & 6 pm Festival Cooking/ Baking, 6 pm 3 Festival Cooking/ Baking, 6 pm 4 5 1st Soul Saturday Festival Cooking/ Baking, 11:30 am Judgment Sunday - Sunday School - Parish General Assembly 6 Agape General Mtg., 6:30 pm 7 Stewardship, 6:30 pm 8 Health/Wellness Ministry, 10 am Greek School: 4, 5 & 6 pm 9 10 AHEPA Flag Project Confirmations Due Women s Prayer Group & Bible Study, 6:30 pm nd Soul Saturday Festival Cooking/ Baking, 11:30 am Forgiveness 13 Sunday - S. School Lenten Outreach Lesson - Dance Troupe - Oratorical Festival 14 Clean Monday/ Great Lent Begins Great Compline, 6 pm 15 Compassionate Friends Grief Support Group, 6:30 Health/Wellness Ministry, 10 am Greek School: 4, 5 & 6 pm Presanctified Liturgy, 6 pm (Lenten Dinner to Follow) Soup Kitchen, 4 pm Family Night: Discovering the Theotokos, 6 pm 1st Salutations, 7 pm rd Soul Saturday Festival Cooking/ Baking, 11:30 am AHEPA Trisagion/ C. Hall Event, 12 pm Sunday of Orthodoxy - Sunday School - Every Member Presentation - GOYA Mtg April/May Come & See Submissions Due 22 Health/Wellness Ministry CPR Training Session, 6:30 pm Health/Wellness Ministry, 10 am Greek School: 4, 5 & 6 pm 23 Presanctified Liturgy, 6 pm (Lenten Dinner to Follow) Festival Cooking/ Baking, 9 am The Annunciation Women s Prayer Group & Bible Study Breakfast, 9 am (@Squeglia Home) Sunday of St. 27 Gregory Palamas - Sunday School - Annunciation/GID Program - Health/Wellness Ministry 28 Parish Retreat Registrations Due Health/Wellness Ministry, 10 am Greek School: 4, 5 & 6 pm Presanctified Liturgy, 6 pm (Lenten Dinner to Follow) Remember to spring forward before going to bed on Sat., March 13! Come and See 7

8 COMMUNITY/Outreach A Helpful Tool in Approaching the Lenten Season Lent is a time of year that moves us, stirs us, and reminds us of precious time with family and friends we think back to cleaning our church with Altar or Sunday School friends, cooking alongside dear fellow parishioners for parish events, experiencing profound spiritual moments during Lenten and Holy Week services and that feeling of awe and joy when the darkened church of Holy Saturday Night gives way to the overpowering radiance of our Paschal candles. Why not grow this already amazing aspect of our lives by learning more? Our Archdiocese now offers an excellent online teaching tool to help us do just this. It is filled with articles, interactive programs, and guides to the themes and services of Lent, Holy Week, and Pascha/Easter. It s easy to navigate, and the content is very much worthwhile: lent.goarch.org/. Outreach Snapshot Presanctified Liturgies Fr. Alex will offer an engaging homily series each Wednesday night after these services, Liturgy of Needs. Bring interested friends and introduce them to our Faith! New Ministry Appointment Maryanne Squeglia, OCMC Ambassador As we are often reminded by our Saint Philip Stewardship Committee, full involvement in the life of the Church is about offering our time, talent and treasure to the Lord, in response to His great love and myriad gifts. Maryanne Squeglia, a beloved parishioner and friend to us all, has recently put further time and talent to work at Saint Philip by accepting a role offered by the Archdiocese as an Ambassador for OCMC (Orthodox Christian Missions Center). As such, Maryanne will be a point person for OCMC at Saint Philip, responsible for keeping us informed of current missionary needs nationally and internationally, highlighting the prayerful work of OCMC to the parish, and helping to illustrate a clear path for those parishioners who may feel called to missionary work now or in the future. We know OCMC has chosen the perfect person. Congratulations Maryanne, and many thanks! Souper Bowl Sunday Reflections Thanks to all those who supported our Souper Bowl Sunday of Caring effort on Feb. 7. Nearly $270 was donated by our faithful. All proceeds have been offered to the Altar Fund, in support of the Saint Philip Outreach Ministry. Please note that general canned/nonperishable goods can now be brought to the Giving Box in the hall for the Nashua Soup Kitchen. Please make this effort a part of your Lenten preparation! Stay Connected MINISTRIES/PROGRAMS ADULT/GENERAL Chanting Theodore Persakis Choir George Karakantas Every Member Doug Philipon Food Festival Jamie Pappas Health/Wellness Katherine Richo Orthodox Life Frank Edelblut Parish Council Malcolm Paradise Outreach Committee Stephanie Norris Stewardship Ministry Joe Pappo Welcome Committee Greg Danas Women s Prayer/Bible Maryanne Squeglia YOUTH Altar Service Daniel Gioffre Family Night Brandy Chetsas GOYA Marisa Donati Greek School George Kitsis Hellenic Dance Troupe Maria Donati JOY Brandy Chetsas Sunday School Heather Cloutier Youth Director Elena Barker RELATED ORGANIZATIONS Agape Ladies Society Panayiota Mikedis AHEPA Nick Kallan Elpis Ladies Society Maria Donati Pan-Macedonians Charles Paskaley Come and See 8

9 EDUCATION/NEWS Agape News Our first General Membership meeting will be Monday, March 7, at 6:30 pm. We will meet here at the church in the AHEPA Family Room. All ladies of the congregation are welcome! We hope to see some new faces. On March 16, we will be hosting the Presanctified Liturgy dinner. All willing to cook and help prepare are asked to support this beautiful Lenten event. This month's Nashua Soup Kitchen volunteering date is March 17. The effort begins at 4 pm. If you'd like to volunteer, please reach out to Sia Juris: Finally, please consider baking a Prosforo (offering bread) for the Holy Eucharist. They can be dropped off at church, along with your list of names to be commemorated during our weekday and Sunday Liturgies. AHEPA Flag Project Remembering Those Who Have Passed During the week of March 25, AHEPA Chapter #35 wishes to honor those who have passed before us by placing a Greek flag on their graves (of those you wish to honor). Each flag is $20; the program is limited to the Nashua area. Proceeds will benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. The order deadline is March 10. Please see the flyer in the Narthex, or visit the Events page of the Saint Philip website today for further program details: Lenten Retreat: Sat., April 9 Join us for a special all-parish retreat on the 9th A Life of Sacrifice: Becoming the Good Samaritan. We will gather at the St. Methodios Faith & Heritage Center, 9 am - 3 pm. Guest Presenter: Fr. Christ Foustoukos, St. Vasilios Church, Peabody. $35 donation covers breakfast, lunch, facility use and materials. Carpool transportation available. Register by March 28 with Maryanne Squeglia: mvsquel@verizon.net; View and share our flyer: Women s Prayer Group & Bible Study Join us for our coming gatherings: Thur., March 10, 6:30 pm at Saint Philip Sat., March 26, 9 am at Squeglia Home (Prayer Breakfast. 41 Groton St., Dunstable, MA. RSVP to Maryanne: ) Health & Wellness Ministry Special CPR Training on March 22 On Tuesday, March 22, from 6:30-8:30 pm, Scott Milligan, an EMT with American Medical Response (AMR) Ambulance Service in Nashua, will present "CPR for Family & Friends" at Saint Philip Church as a free community service to our parishioners. This is an orientation/refresher course on CPR, not for certification. It acknowledges your learning as a layperson about CPR and the use of our Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Register by March 15 with Kathey Richo: katinaricho@yahoo.com; NOTE: The class is limited to 9 attendees per instructor, so early registration is encouraged, so that we may plan and accommodate all those who wish to attend. Refreshments will be served. Look for flyers in the narthex. This is an opportunity that can save a life. Festival Prep Call to Action! As you may have heard, we are in full swing every week with cooking and baking events (see Pg. 7). Your assistance is very much needed; we hope you will challenge yourself to do a little more this year. Our younger members have been noticeably absent, but the good news is that it is never too late. And, what better way to get to know your fellow parishioners not to mention pick up a few cooking tips from the best of the best? Please don t let this call go unanswered. Your assistance for a couple of hours is invaluable. This resource offers inspirational Orthodox Christian programming, and it s absolutely free! Enjoy it today: Come and See 9

10 We thank our sponsors for their support! Stellos Family Investment Properties of Nashua, New Hampshire Proud Stewards of St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church Come and See 10

11 Come and See 11

12 Save the Date April 9: Parish Retreat at Saint Methodios Faith & Heritage Center April 16: The Akathist Hymn April 23: Lazarus Saturday Event April 29: Holy Friday Youth Retreat: The Power of Sacrifice May 1: Great & Holy Pascha/Easter Scholarships While news on most of our parishrelated scholarships is forthcoming, we do know AHEPA will offer local and regional scholarships in Applications are in the Narthex, and contact Nick Kallan with questions: Saint Patrick, March 17 Baptisms Luc Michael Pappo Feb. 27 Wedding Phillip Nicholson & Maria Mikedis Feb. 20 Sunday Altar Flowers Priscilla Betses (in loving memory of George Betses), Feb. 7 Marian Pleakas, Feb. 14 Jeffrey, Thomas, & Stephen Johnston, Feb. 21 Kathey Richo (in loving memory of George & Zaharo Marag), Feb. 28