Preparing Ourselves in 2014 ~ A Message from Fr. Robert

Transcription

1 January Phillips Road, Tallahassee, Florida (850) Rev. Fr. Robert J. O Loughlin Preparing Ourselves in 2014 ~ A Message from Fr. Robert We can begin the New Year by taking a step back and thanking God for all the ways He has blessed us. This includes our family and loved ones, our faith and Church, our health and wellbeing, our work and opportunities of life, and even for our challenges and struggles. It is through difficult times that we can learn to rely on God and see how He walks with us and helps us become stronger people. We can look at how we can become a better Christian in the New Year. For many of us the way of preparation is through making resolutions which can be of assistance in not only our physical wellbeing, but more importantly goals related to our spiritual lives and our relationships with others. Goals can be helpful in that the choices that we make can include an attitude in which we bring forth is being joyful and positive. We can face every unexpected event in the New Year choosing to believe that God is with us, watching over us, and seeing us through, no matter what. As Christians, we know that God is ready to forgive us for our past, and He tells us not to worry about the future. The time we should focus is on the present. If we live each moment in the presence of God, we can enjoy and discover His peace and joy through the people we meet and the events we experience. We are to try to prepare ourselves for the unexpected as each day can bring something new for us. We never know what God will do for us or who He will bring into our lives. God has given each one of us unique blessings, if we have allow ourselves to see them. There is a beautiful prayer from an Orthodox prayer book compiled by Fr. Anthony Conairis that can help and prepare us to become a better Christian in 2014: O Lord help me In Silence to find peace not just emptiness In suffering to find meaning not just agony In knowledge to find wisdom not just information In routine to find order not just boredom In order to find purpose not just the expected In daily life to find surprises not just conformity In prayer to find You not just my own desires In change to find promises not just threats In opportunities to find possibilities not just problems In sin to find forgiveness not just guilt In problems to find hope not just despair In leadership to find direction not just power In challenges to find trust in You not just personal insecurity. Amen. Wishing you a blessed, joyful and healthy New Year, Fr. Robert

2 Page 2 If an emergency or special need should arise, please contact Fr. Rob immediately at Our next ECHO Sundays are January 5th and February 2nd. Please drop off your nonperishable food donations into the bins located in the Hellenic Center and Patmos Hall. Next Spaghetti Dinners: January 10th February 7th Home Blessings Please call the to schedule a home blessing which will begin after the Feast of the Epiphany on January 6. Holy Mother of God Monthly Community Outreach Wednesday, Jan. 8th from 11:00 a.m.1:00 p.m 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 11:00 am. If you are interested in assisting in this effort for one or two hours or have any question, please contact: Fr. or Presv. Introduced in 1983, the St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival provides Greek Orthodox teenagers the opportunity to learn, write and speak about their Orthodox faith, Church and heritage. The Oratorical Festival Program begins at the parish level and is divided into three divisions: Elementary Division (local festival only) for students in grades 4 6 Junior Division for students in grades 7 9 Senior Division for student in grades Our local Festival will be March 12 and the North Florida district is April 5. Students have received topics in their church school class. Additional copies are available in Church Office or from teachers. Participation is encouraged as this a wonderful opportunity to discover the fullness of our Orthodox Faith. Dear Parishioners, Happy New Year! Congratulations to the newly elected Parish Council members. Michael Eudy and Connie Mathes are the new members. Stelios Manias and I were re-elected to serve our second two-year term. Our special thanks to outgoing members, Stamie Joanos and Mike Papageorge for their years of dedicated service. In addition, I would like to thank the remaining five members: Catherine Branch, Jorge Gorb, Manny Joanos, Glen Perrigan and Andrew Poulos. Last year, the Parish Council accomplished many good things for our church. It was a real pleasure for me to be part of such a group. I hope the new Board be blessed with as many successes and accomplishments for our community in Please mark your calendar for this month's major events. Spaghetti Dinner on January 10, Vasilopita Sunday on January 12 and the Philoptochos' Annual Dinner on January 31. Wishing for everyone a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year, Yours in Christ, Pete Koikos The 2014 Ecclesiastical Calendars are here and available at the Pangari.

3 Prosforo Schedule 01/12 Kathy Mathes 01/26 Angie Poulos Calendar Symbol Key + = Strict Fast = Wine and Oil allowed Page 3 6 No Fast 1 No Fast 2 No Fast 3 No Fast 4 No Fast Annual Philoptochos Greek Dinner 4:00 8:30 pm s = Fish Allowed Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Pangari Schedule for January 01/05 Poulos*/Gorb/Manias 01/12 Manias*/Eduy/Perrigan 01/19 Koikos*/Mathes/Gorb 01/26 Joanos*/Branch/Poulos 02/02 Perrigan*/Eudy/Koikos 02/09 Gorb*/Mathes/Joanos (c) *Denotes a 9:30 start time Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Divine Liturgy 10:30 a.m. ECHO Sunday No Church School Orthros 9:30a.m & Divine Liturgy 10:30 a.m Church School Vasilopita Sunday GOYA Bowling Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Divine Liturgy 10:30 a.m. Church School Orthros 9:30 a.m. & Divine Liturgy 10:30 a.m. Church School Epiphany/ Theophany Divine Liturgy 9:00 am Blessing of the Waters Parish Council Meeting 5:30 p.m. Office Closed in observance of Martin Luther King 7 St. John the Baptist Divine Liturgy, 9 a.m 14,, Choir Practice Choir Practice Choir Practice Choir Practice 8 Office Closed HAPPY NEW YEAR! Second Harvest 11:00 am 1:00 pm Catechetical Class (Newcomers/Inquirers) Orthodox Life Class 6:00 pm Catechetical Class (Newcomers/Inquirers) :00 pm Orthodox Life Class 9 + Philoptochos Mtg. 6:00 pm Spaghetti Dinner 11:00 am 7:00 pm St. Anthony Divine Liturgy, 9 a.m Synaxis of The Three Hierarchs: Sts. Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, & John Chrysostom Divine Liturgy 9 a.m Great Vespers 5:00 pm Sts. Athanasios & Cyril of Alexandria Divine Liturgy, 9 a.m Great Vespers 5:00 pm OCF Retreat At FSU = Dairy & eggs allowed = Father Away

4 Page 4 Great job GOYAns on the St. Nicholas Pancake Breakfast. Also, much Christmas spirit was given as well as received on our annual GOYA/OCF Christmas Caroling Outreach. Upcoming Events: Bowling, Outreach at the Ronald McDonald House and Youth Sunday. GOYA/OCF Annual Christmas Caroling Feast of St Nicholas Family Pancake Breakfast

5 Page 5 The poinsettias that adorned our solea during the Christmas 2013 season were Donated by: Fr. Rob, Presv Joy, Jaclyn & Krista O'Loughlin Michael & Rodamanti Burmester Nadiya & Alex Caspary Barbara Costa Dorothy Downing Gary and Olibia Drzewiecki Ronnie Fetzko Michael, Vicky, Janet, Nicholas & Elleni Gavalas Michael Gonatos Boyan Hristov Yuri and Lara Ilin Stamie Joanos & Will Scott Harriet Kanelidis Jimmy and Anastasia Koikos Pete & Zographia Koikos Corinne & Leonard Lapointe Yvonne Lockwood Alexandra Mamangakis JoAnn Myers Keith, Nia, Maria & Magnolia Parmer John and Destin Stewart-Richardson Mike Papageorge Glen and Diane Perrigan Burt & Roie Price Corinna Reeves Kathleen Talantis John & Helen Tsiklistas Donated by: Michael, Vicky, Janet, Nicholas & Elleni Gavalas Harriet Kanelidis Claude Rabbeth In Memory of Grandparents & Mary O'Loughlin Loved ones George Caspary & Vasiliy & Alexandra Isar Alex Costa Ron Downing and our parents Our parents and other loved ones Cindy Armel (Aunt) Dionisios & Elleni Dimopoulos Adelaide Ann Gonatos Alexander, Nadezhda, Jordanka, Georgi, Nona, & Sava Our parents Mike & Kalliopi Joanos, Stavros Joanos, & Eva Kypreos Angelo & Theodora Kanelidis Sara, Nick, Mike, & Eugene Patronis Nick, Catherine, Demetra & Caterina Koikos Our parents Abraham & LaPointe families Harilaos, Elleni, Hrisoula, Chuck & Dick Very Rev. Fr. George Mamangakis Kyria Koula Petrandis, Irene & Nick Michell Katherine Vrachnos Charlotte Ludeke My mother, Maria Catherine Makon Our parents My Grandparents Lilo & Helmut & Anna & Max James Nicholas Talantis Our parents Tony & Eleni In Honor of: Nic & Janet Gavalas Mary Kanelidis The Rabbath Family Ed Wynot and Colleen Smith The Klonis Family Operation Stocking Stuffers for the Troops Once again, our community collected stocking stuffers for the armed forces who are serving overseas. What a blessing this will be to our troops who fight so selflessly for the freedoms we have. For what thanks can we render to God for you, for all the joy with we rejoice for your sake before our God (1 Thessalonians 3:9)

6 Page 6 Coming Soon... Next Meeting: January 9 th 6:00 am in the Patmos Hall Vasilipota Sunday: January 12 th following Divine Liturgy Philoptochos Annual Greek Dinner: January 31 st (Friday) Vasilopita Sunday January 12th To benefit Saint Basil Academy Here it is another New Year and time for all of those wonderful breads we make to celebrate! We hope that many of you will be celebrating this beautiful occasion with us as we look forward to tasting the different vasilopitas from all the many ethnic cultures that make up our parish. It s always a wonderful experience. We would like to encourage anyone who would like to participate to do so. Please notify Vicky Gavalas hmog@comcast.net or Thank you to everyone who purchased Poinsettias in memory of to beautify our church for the Christmas Season. Once again our annual Christmas Brunch at Liam s in Thomasville, GA, was outstanding. We had a really great group this year and missed those of you who couldn t make it. However, there s always next year!!!!

7 Page 7 THE GREAT BLESSING OF WATER: MEGAS AGIASMOS By Rev. Thomas Fitzgerald Epiphany, one of the oldest and most important Feast days of the Orthodox Church, commemorates the manifestation of the Holy Trinity which took place at the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan River. Recognizing rich meaning in this event, Orthodoxy believes that when Christ was baptized, it not only marked the beginning of its public ministry and revealed the Trinity, but also signified that the entire creation is destined to share in the glory of redemption in Christ. While Christ entered into the Jordan to be baptized, two things were happening: He was identifying Himself with the people He had come to save; and, He was identifying Himself with the whole of Creation which was represented by water. Through His baptism, the Lord revealed the value of the created world and He redirected it toward its Creator. Creation is good and it belongs to God. The Great Blessing of Water is held on the eve of the Feast of the Epiphany and on the day itself, following the Divine Liturgy. The Blessing not only remembers the event of Our Lord's baptism and the revelation of the Holy Trinity but also expresses Orthodoxy's belief that creation is sanctified through Christ. The Blessing affirms that humanity and the created world, of which we are a part, were created to be filled with the sanctifying presence of God. After the solemn blessing, the Holy Water is distributed to the faithful and is used to bless homes during the Epiphany season. When the faithful drink the "Epiphany Water," we are reminded of our own baptism. When the Church blesses an individual, or object, or event with the water, we are affirming that those baptized, their surroundings, and their responsibilities are sanctified through Christ and brought into the Kingdom of the Father through the Spirit Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. AHEPA News We all enjoyed the pre-christmas gathering of our members at the Papageorge home, on December 11. Many thanks to Mike and Sally for their hospitality. The AHEPA annual Valentine's Dance will be on Saturday, February 15 with music by B.C., our great D-J. The menu will include Roast Lamb with vegetables, Greek salad and Dessert. Ticket prices will be $20 for adults, $10 for students and Free for children under 12 years old. The Chapter's next meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 19, Wishing everybody a Happy New Year! Mike Burmester, President Thanks to our Holy Mother of God community, fifty toys were purchased for the Toys for Tots program for children in the Tallahassee area with the proceeds from the GOYA bake sale.

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: Anthony the Great Celebrated January 17th Website: Addresses: Father Rob: fr.robert@comcast.net Church Secretary: hmog@comcast.net Secretary Hours: Mon./Wed./Fri. 9am-2pm