Christ is Risen! Truly Risen!

Transcription

1 VOLUME 27 NUMBER 4 April 2018 Dearest Spiritual Ohana, Christ is risen! Truly He is risen! Christ is Risen! Truly Risen! The Feasts of all feasts is upon us Holy Pascha, celebrated on April 8th, this year! It is a celebration so central to our faith as Orthodox Christians. It is about our salvation in Christ, the fulfillment of our deepest longings, and our ultimate purpose in life! For our life in Him is our path towards everything we could ever truly long for! He is the Source of our fulfillment and true joy. He offers us something eternal, and not fleeting nor temporal. He offers us true life. In His Resurrection, He defeats humankind s worst enemy, death! The question remains in our daily quests and life-long challenges, do we actually seek Him and allow Him to enter our hearts and be a living Presence in our lives? He offers us His Immeasurable Love and Mercy and Glory, but it is up to each and every one of us to respond to Him, personally! Do we, and how? Great Lent afforded us the opportunity to open up and offer our lives to the Lord through fasting, increased prayer, repentance, etc., with the goal of living a Christ-centered life. If we merely went 1 through the motions of fasting and prayer without embodying what these were meant to bring us, we have totally missed the point of the Great Lenten Season. We were meant to steer our lives in the direction towards an intimate relationship with God. The Holy Fathers offer us the best insights and sign posts to help move us in the right direction in regards to our appropriate responses to what the Lord has given, gives and will give us through His Holy and Glorious Resurrection. St. John Chrysostom, in his homily to us on Pascha, helps us see and experience the Glory of the Resurrection. Here is a portion of his sermon: O death, where is thy sting? O hades, where is thy victory? Christ is risen, and you are overthrown! Christ is risen, and the demons are fallen! Christ is risen, and the angels rejoice! Christ is risen, and life reigns! (Continued on page 2)

2 (Continued from page 1) Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in a tomb! For Christ, being raised from the dead, has become the First-fruits of them that slept. To him be glory and might unto ages of ages. Amen. St. John the Wonderworker of Shanghai and San Francisco, a contemporary Saint of our times who reposed in 1966, beautifully articulates the pathways and dynamics involved in building and strengthening our relationship with God. He says: Now the Church consists of both her earthly and heavenly parts, for the Son of God came to earth and became man that He might lead man into heaven and make him once again a citizen of Paradise, returning to him his original state of sinlessness and wholeness and uniting him unto Himself. grated through the Church, but man s effort is also required. God saves His fallen creature by His own love for him, but man s love for his Creator is also necessary; without it he cannot be saved. Striving towards God and cleaving unto the Lord by its humble love, the human soul obtains power to cleanse itself from sin and to strengthen itself for the struggle to complete victory over sin. I express and share deepest sentiments of utmost joy as we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord. He loves us human beings so much that He would ultimately defeat death by His own Death and His Resurrection! Let us, therefore, give due glory to Him with all our hearts, minds, souls and beings as our continual response for all He has done, does and always will do for us. I wish you all a Most Blessed and Joyous Pascha! With Love in Christ, +Fr. Alexander This is accomplished by the action of Divine grace Shorelines is published Monthly by: Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Pacific 930 Lunalilo Street Honolulu, Hawaii Phone : (808) Fax : (808) office@greekorthodoxhawaii.org Parish Web Site: Regular Office Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday thru Friday Rev. Father Alexander M. Leong fralexanderleong@yahoo.com Church Staff Amanda Jackson - Office Coordinator office@greekorthodoxhawaii.org Erica Jansen - Bookkeeper 2018 Parish Council pc@greekorthodoxhawaii.org Trish Kiladis, President Scott Pasieta, Vice President Roni Katsikas, Treasurer Tyrone-Stavros Emery, Secretary John Kiladis, Cleopatra Kritikos, Susan Shaindlin, Dimitri Nicholas, and Andrew Tujios. Sunday School Director Presbytera Nicole Leong Sunday School Teachers Shawn Chu, Alice Malick, Greg Malick, Maria Naval, Dimitri Nicholas, & Katherine Pasieta Philoptochos Board Anita Akel, President; Anita Higashi, 1st Vice President; Eres Eddy, 2nd Vice President; Ludmyla Solyar,Treasurer; Julie Ličina, Recording Secretary; Valentina Varovaya, Corr. Secretary; Alma Chu, Advisor Choir-Chanters Orest Saikevych, Music Director Gregory Malick, Protopsaltis Parish Ministries Stelio Scordilis, Aloha Youth Choir; T.B.A., Bookstore; Dianna Graves, Greek Dance Groups; Stelio Scordilis, Greek School; Julie Ličina Web Master; Anita Higashi, Facebook 2

3 WEEKDAY SERVICES IN APRIL BRIDEGROOM SERVICES 4/1, 2 & 3 6:30 pm HOLY UNCTION Wed. 4/4 6 pm HOLY THURSDAY Thu. 4/5 Vesper-Liturgy 9 am 12 Passion Gospels 6:30 pm ***For the rest of the Holy Week Schedule, please see the April 2018 Calendar!*** LIFEGIVING FOUNTAIN Fri. 4/20 Orthros/Liturgy 8:30/9:30 am ST. GEORGE Mon. 4/23 Orthros/Liturgy 8:30/9:30 am MAUI SERVICES Sat. 4/28 Orthros/Liturgy 9:30/10:30 am 4/8 Andy 4/15 Dimi 4/22 John 4/29 Roni LITURGICAL LIFE OF OUR PARISH March Parish Council Teams Announcements Please remember in your prayers Dina Giannakopoulos Paul Kelley Suzanne Keyser Julie Licina Alice Marie Malick The Melzak Family George Missias John Mitsis and all those needing our prayers. Adult Religious Education Understanding the Divine Liturgy Sunday, April 15th Great Litany Continued 12 to 12:45 p.m. Sunday, April 22nd Great Litany Continued 12 to 12:45 p.m. Did you know that when you shop at AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate 0.5% of eligible smile.amazon.com purchases to our church?! It s so easy! All you have to do is shop via Happy shopping! Learn Greek! Beginners Sunday 1:00 2:00 PM Thursday 5:30 6:30 PM Intermediate Sunday 12:00 1:00 PM Advanced Tuesday 6:00 8:00 PM 3

4 Holy Week Needs Donations are needed for numerous items used throughout Holy Week, the Pascha Season and the entire year. If you or your family wishes to make donation toward any of the items below, please contact the Church Office directly. Questions about any of the items? See Fr. Alexander. Incense Palm Branches Flowers for Epitaphios Flowers for Nymphios Icon (Palm Sunday evening) Olive Oil Rose Water Wreath for the Cross of Christ Flowering Plants (for Pascha) Agape Vespers Readers At the Agape Vespers (Pascha Day), volunteers are needed to read the Gospel passage in languages other than English. If you wish to participate, please contact Fr. Alexander with your intention, particularly if you do not have access to the text in your language. Myrrh-bearers Young ladies wishing to be Myrrh-bearers at Friday and Saturday evening services during Holy Week, please call our office. Share your news! Announcements that you would like to see in the May issue of Shorelines should be submitted to the church office by April 15th. Weekly Bulletin announcements should be submitted by noon on Thursday for the upcoming Sunday. Call: Our Vision To be a beacon of Orthodoxy in the Pacific and proclaim the Gospel of Christ to all people in accordance with the Orthodox Faith Our Mission To proclaim the Gospel of Christ to all people in accordance with the Orthodox Faith. To sanctify and minister to the spiritual growth and needs of the faithful through liturgical worship and spiritual programs. To safeguard and keep the traditions, values, and faith of the Orthodox Church pure and undefiled. Or drop by with a copy of your announcement. Maui Orthodox Christian Mission reminds those who attend services on Maui to visit or call to verify services. or look for other activities that may be posted. 4

5 During Bright Week, there is no fasting as we are at feast with the Bridegroom who processes forth from the tomb: Christ is risen! Aloha SS Constantine & Helen Ohana, Thank you to all who donated the following: ingredients for soup, labor towards cooking and cleaning, and monies for the OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center) Fundraiser. We collected $300 which will support a missionary in Kenya under the umbrella of OCMC! Also, thank you to all who plan to join in the Saturday of Lazarus Retreat on March 31st. I hope the attendees will enjoy and benefit from the retreat. Today, I would like to share Notes for Bright Week and the Paschal Season in the link below: ( notes-for-pascha-bright-week.html). We greet one another during the entire Paschal season (which lasts 40 days) with the words: Christ is risen! and the response to the greeting is: Truly He is risen! During Bright Week, the Holy Doors and the Deacons doors of the iconostasis remain open symbolizing the empty tomb of our Master and Savior: Christ is risen! During Bright Week, our prayers in church and at home are sung and not read as we sing all week the feast of the risen Christ: Christ is risen! During the entire Paschal season there is no prostrating or kneeling permitted in church or at home for we stand with the resurrected Christ: Christ is risen! During the Paschal season we begin all of our prayers at home and in church by singing the troparion of Pascha: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life! During the Paschal season and extending to Pentecost, we do not pray O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth for the Comforter comes on Pentecost. Christ is risen! And most important of all: A Pascha worthy of all honor has dawned for us. Pascha! Let us embrace each other joyously! This is the day of resurrection. Let us be illumined by the feast. Let us embrace each other. Let us call Brother even those who hate us, and forgive all by the resurrection, and so let us cry: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life! And unto us He has given eternal life. Let us worship His resurrection on the third day! Have a Joyful, Blessed Paschal Season! Pres. Nicole, Sunday School Director During Bright Week, our morning and evening prayers are replaced by the singing of the short service of the Hours of Pascha (see your prayer books or see below): Christ is risen! During Bright Week, we do not read from the psalter at home or in church for the prophecies have been fulfilled: Christ is risen! 5

6 In times of trouble or worry, especially over our career, we call upon God to strengthen us, to provide opportunity and to bring us success. When we achieve some measure of worldly success, it is easy to say to ourselves as we read in the Old Testament Book of Deuteronomy (8:17), My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me. But the next verse quickly reminds us, Remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth. As Christian Stewards we are called to give back to God from the first fruits of our labor. We support our parish and her ministries in an intentional way and not with only what it left after everything else has been taken care of. In whatever work we do, we are called to give glory to God for the abilities and opportunities he provides. We do this by caring for the work we do, applying our God-given abilities to our work, and by respecting the responsibilities with which we have been entrusted. We do our best and give the glory to God. Please don t forget to submit your 2018 Stewardship Pledge. Stewardship Forms are available in the Narthex, upstairs in the Social Hall, and via . Mahalo! 6

7 Dance Group News Check our our FDF 2018 San Francisco (Folk Dance & Choral Festival) picture album on the Dance Shelf. It is called UPLIFT S.F. We have NEW dancers joining us from the Russian Orthodox Church and also from our own church church. Let us welcome them. All FDF Dancers I need you back to Dance Practice after Pascha on Sunday April :00 noon - 1 PM and 1 PM- 2 PM. Reminder: No Dance Practice on Mothers Day May 13. RECYCLE: PLEASE, OUR CONTINUAL FUND- RAISER, ANY AMOUNT SMALL OR LARGE IS WELCOME BY THE DANCE GROUP (Give to Dianna or Barry to transfer from your trunk to our trunk or put in the recycle bin at church.) Mahalo, Dianna Dance Group Director C O F F E E H O U R Each individual/family is requested to sponsor a coffee hour one Sunday per year. Sign up on the calendar posted outside the Social Hall or contact Suzanne A. or Frances R. Instructions/tips for sponsoring a coffee hour are available in a 3-ring binder in a cupboard in the hall. The Ladies of Philoptochos appreciate any donations of coffee supplies, including paper supplies to help defray some of the coffee hour expenses. If you are hesitant to prepare and serve a coffee hour yourself, consider making a monetary donation. Please do not bring non-lenten food including cake & ice cream during fasting periods. Thank you to our February Sponsors! Sunday Coffee Hour sponsors! 3/4 Alma Chu 3/11 Suzanne Akiona 3/18 Our Sunday School Department 3/25 Harriet Medes 7

8 Icon of the Commemoration of Great and Holy Pascha Borrowed from goarch.org One of the most symbolic of the Festal Icons of the Orthodox Church is that of the Holy Resurrection. In the center of this radiant event is Christ pulling Adam and Eve up from their tombs. The gates of the Realm of Death are broken and thrown down. Death, personified in human form is defeated, and bound hand and foot at the bottom of the scene. We recall the joyous words of St. Paul: "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" (1 Corinthians 15:55) In the background stands the host of the departed, so numerous they can not be depicted. Among them in the front of the multitude are some of the righteous dead, though now invigorated by the Resurrection. King David and his son Solomon are seen on the left wearing crowns. Near the center is Saint John the Baptist. On the other side is Abel, the son of Adam and the first man to ever die. He wears a shepherds robe and has a cane. Many Icons of this subject depict large crowds with a few other recognizable prophets. Troparion of Pascha Christ is risen from the dead, by death trampling down upon death. and to those in the tombs He has granted life. 8