ST. JAMES ORTHODOX CHURCH

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1 ST. JAMES ORTHODOX CHURCH 195 N. Main Street; Milpitas, CA sjorthodox.org (Office) Very Rev. Fr. Jeries Hanna Fr. Dcn. Joseph Kawar Bulletin for March 18, 2018 (3/5) Issue No. 735 UPCOMING SERVICES Wednesday, March 14 11:00 am Presanctified Liturgy 7:00 pm Great Compline Thursday, March 15 11:00 am Presanctified Liturgy Friday, March 16 11:00 am Presanctified Liturgy 7:00 pm Little Compline Sunday, March 18 Sunday of St. John the Ladder 8:00 am Matins 10:30 am Divine Liturgy LOOKING AHEAD March 17th March 18th March 24th March 25th March 31st April 1st April 6th April 7th April 8th St. John the Ladder COFFEE & LUNCH HOUR Lunch this Sunday will be provided by the Farah & Amal Khoury, God Bless you and your family! Candle Making Bake Sale Form is Due Easter Egg Hunt Pick up Bake Sale Items Church Clean up Day Palm Sunday Holy Friday Annunciation Pascha Confession If you would like to confess with Fr. Jeries, please arrive at church 30 minutes prior to the start of Liturgy. To fear shame during confession is also from pride; they who reproach themselves before God in the presence of a witness receive peace and forgiveness - St. Macarius Bier of Christ We are now accepting donations to purchase flowers for the Bier of Christ. If you would like to donate, please see attached form or visit our donation page at sjorthodox.org/donation Congratulations! Congratulations to Samer & Heba Khoury for presenting their daughter Sophia Grace Khoury to the Church. May God fill her with joy, peace and love. Candle Making On Saturday, March 17th, between 10am and 6pm, a few members will be getting together to make candles for our church. Come lend a hand and share the blessings of Our Lord. No experience necessary. Annual Bake Sale Support your church by purchasing sweets at our annual Palm Sunday Bake sale. Please see attached order form or contact Ghada at or Georgette at to place your order. Easter Egg Hunt Mark your calendars for a day of fun for children of all ages. Our annual Easter Egg Hunt is on March 24th, details coming soon! Daycare Lease The Board of Trustees would like to invite the church members to discuss the proposal by the Daycare to rent our hall during the week. As mentioned by our President Jimmy Swaiss on 3/4/2018, we will be conducting this meeting on March 25th, following the Divine Liturgy. All are welcomed to join, but only current voting members will be allowed to vote on this matter. Thank you and God Bless.

2 St. John the Ladder - 3/18 Saint John of the Ladder is honored by Holy Church as a great ascetic and author of the renowned spiritual book called THE LADDER, from which he is also called of the Ladder (Climacus). There is almost no information about Saint John s origins. One tradition suggests that he was born in Constantinople around the year 570, and was the son of Saints Xenophon and Maria John went to Sinai when he was sixteen, submitting to Abba Martyrius as his instructor and guide. After four years, Saint John was tonsured as a monk. Abba Strategios, who was present at Saint John s tonsure, predicted that he would become a great luminary in the Church of Christ. For nineteen years Saint John progressed in monasticism in obedience to his spiritual Father. After the death of Abba Martyrius, Saint John embarked on a solitary life, settling in a wild place called Thola, where he spent forty years laboring in silence, fasting, prayer, and tears of penitence. It is not by chance that in THE LADDER Saint John speaks about tears of repentance: Just as fire burns and destroys the wood, so pure tears wash away every impurity, both external and internal. His holy prayer was strong and efficacious, as may be seen from an example from the life of the God-pleasing saint. Concealing his ascetic deeds from others, Saint John sometimes withdrew into a cave, but reports of his holiness spread far beyond the vicinity. Visitors from all walks of life came to him, desiring to hear his words of edification and salvation. After forty years of solitary asceticism, he was chosen as igumen of Sinai when he was seventy-five. Saint John governed the holy monastery for four years. Toward the end of his life, the Lord granted him the gifts of clairvoyance and wonderworking. Knowing of the wisdom and spiritual gifts of Saint John of Sinai, the igumen of Raithu requested him to write down whatever was necessary for the salvation of those in the monastic life. Such a book would be a ladder fixed on the earth (Gen. 28:12), leading people to the gates of Heaven. Although the book was written for monks, any Christian living in the world will find it an unerring guide for ascending to God, and a support in the spiritual life that leads to eternal salvation. Saint John felt that such a task was beyond his ability, yet out of obedience he fulfilled the request. The saint called his work THE LADDER, for the book is a fixed ladder leading from earthly things to the Holy of Holies... The thirty steps of spiritual perfection correspond to the thirty years of the Lord s age. When we have completed these thirty steps, we will find ourselves with the righteous and will not stumble. THE LADDER begins with renunciation of the world, and ends with God, Who is love (1 John 4:8). In THE LADDER Saint John describes the ascent toward spiritual perfection, which is essential for anyone who wishes to save his soul. It is a written account of his thoughts, based on the collected wisdom of many wise ascetics, and on his own spiritual experience. The book is a great help on the path to truth and virtue. The steps of THE LADDER proceed gradually from strength to strength on the path of perfection. The summit is not reached suddenly, but gradually, as the Savior says: The Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force (Mt.11:12). Saint John is also commemorated on the fourth Sunday of Great Lent. Source: oca.org/saints/lives/2015/03/30/ venerable-john-climacus-of-sinai-author-of-the-ladder

3 St. Gerasimos of the Jordan - 3/17 Gerasimos lived in the fifth century and was the abbot of a community of 70 monks who all lived in the desert east of Jericho, near the Jordan River. Their life was strict, they slept on reed mats, had cells without doors and observed silence. Their diet consisted mainly of water, dates and bread. It is said, that Gerasimos in ongoing repentance for having been influenced by the teachings of a heretic in his youth, lived on even less than the norm. One day while he was walking along the Jordan, Gerasimos came upon a lion roaring in agony because of a large splinter embedded in one paw. Overcome by compassion for the beast, Gerasimos removed the splinter and cleaned the wound, bounding it up, expecting the lion to return to its cave. Instead the creature meekly followed him back to his monastery and became his devoted pet. The whole community was amazed at the animal's conversion to a peaceful nature, life and devotion to the abbot; living on bread and vegetables. For a further five years, the lion "Jordanes" was part of the monastic community. When the elder fell asleep in the Lord and was buried, Jordanes lay down on the grave, roaring in his grief and beating its head against the ground. Finally Jordanes rolled over and died on the last resting place of Gerasimos. The icon of St. Gerasimos focuses on an event of physical contact between the monk and the lion. The abbot Gerasimos and this story are real as many texts refer to him and soon after his death he was recognised as a saint. The monastery he founded lasted for centuries and is today a place of spiritual pilgrimage in the desert. We are now accepting donations for the flowers for the نعش المسیح - Christ Bier of Your Name: For the Good Health of: In Blessed Memory of: All names of the living and the departed will be commemorated during Holy Week Please give this form back to Treasurer Samer Aboujudom

4 We are now accepting orders for شعنینة - Sunday Palms for Palm If you would like to order palms for Palm Sunday, please call Amal Khoury by March 27th at (408)

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6 ST. JAMES ORTHODOX CHURCH Ladies Auxiliary Annual Easter Bake Sale Order Form Circle Your Choice Qty. Price Subtotal Amount Kaak w/ Dates Fasting or Nonfasting Ghraibeh (Sugar Cookies) Fasting or Nonfasting Maamoul w/ Walnuts Fasting or Nonfasting $20.00 / Box $ $20.00 / Box $ $20.00 / Box $ Baklava (Fasting) $20.00 / Box $ Semsimeh (Sesame Bar) $20.00 / Box $ Fatayer (Spinach Pies) $20.00 / Box $ Mana eesh (Zaatar Pies) $20.00 / Box $ Your subtotal $ Additional Donation $ Mana eesh Total $ Semsimeh Ghraibeh Please include a check payable to St. James Ladies Auxiliary Please return this form by person or by mail to: 195 North Main Street, Milpitas, CA Please return form no later than March 18, 2018 Pick up your orders on Sunday, March 25, 2018 Name: Baklava Maamoul Fatayer Phone: Questions? Please call Or Georgette Kaak

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