INSIDE THIS ISSUE Fr. Nick s Net

Transcription

1 News & Events INSIDE THIS ISSUE Fr. Nick s Net Parish News & Events From the Inter-NET Around the World Pg. 2 Pg. 3 Pg. 5 Pg. 6 HOLY TRINITY GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH STEUBENVILLE, OHIO JANUARY 2016 VOLUME VIII ISSUE 1 ALSO INCLUDED IN THIS ISSUE: January Calendar Philoptochos Gyro Sale Chicken Fest Flyer THE MISSION OF THE HOLY TRINITY PARISH IS TO SEEK AND ACHIEVE ONENESS WITH GOD IN HIS REVEALED SON, JESUS CHRIST THROUGH DAILY SACRAMENTAL AND SACRIFICIAL LIVING. WE WILL STRIVE FOR THE PEACEFUL AND LOVING UNITY WITH OUR NEIGHBORS IN CHRIST WHICH MAKES US HIS DISCIPLES. / 1 The Net July /August 2015

2 Fr. Nick s Net The Net is the Monthly Newsletter of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church PARISH INFORMATION PARISH PRIEST: FR. NICHOLAS M. HALKIAS PHONE: (740) HOME: (724) FRNICK@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: AUDREY M. KALLAY OFFICE@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG PARISH ADDRESS: 300 SOUTH FOURTH STREET P.O. BOX 788 STEUBENVILLE, OH PHONE: (740) FAX: (740) OFFICE@HOLYTRINITYSTB.ORG WEB: Holy Trinity Church is a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Pittsburgh (pittsburgh.goarch.org) and Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America ( under the Spiritual Jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( PARISH MINISTRIES John Scavdis Nick Riley Susan Vogagis Rikki Kamarados Don Kronstein Steve Pahides Marianne Balakos George Berris John Josai PARISH COUNCIL President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Asst. Treasurer Asst. Treasurer Connie Shea John Synodinos Tina Van Dijk Philoptochos... Rikki Kamarados Religious Education... Stewardship... GOYA... Rikki Kamarados JOY... Maria Matzorkis HOPE... Maria Matzorkis Choir... Pete Caleodis Library / Bookstore... Mary Romios Senior Citizens... Barbara Lee Maragos Chian Society... John Synodinos Pan-Icarian Brotherhood... Stacey Kotsanis AHEPA... Tommy Kotsanis 2 The Net January 2016 January 2016 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Christ is in our midst! He is and ever shall be! Happy New Year! In the midst of New Year s resolutions, taking down trees, preparing for tax season, and host of other crazy things that happen at this time of year, we can lose our focus on the things that really matter. I m not just talking about family, friends and loved ones. Those are important as far as they go. In fact, a Christ-centered individual can use all of those joys to become closer to Christ. I am talking about girding our souls to reach outside of ourselves and begin practicing what the Orthodox Church preaches. In this Net, there are two articles that speak to the heart of trying to be loving, but trying to be firm at the same time. Both Abortion and Islam are against what the fundamental Christian beliefs are when it comes to how we should value the human person. We cannot take any longer the devalued humanity that these groups are allowing to exist on this earth. The Muslims take women and non-muslims and treat them contrary to the love of the Gospel of Christ. Also, if you are a Muslim convert to Christianity, you are treated to torture and death. All this from a religion who very often quotes this part of the Qur an saying, There shall be no compulsion in religion. (Surah 2:256). Abortion is also a degradation of human life. Only this time it takes the smallest and weakest and the most defenseless humans on this earth. It is harder especially during the Nativity season to comprehend, when the Virgin Mary, at the risk of her own life (she could have been stoned to death), chose to be with child outside of marriage. Also, during this time the church celebrates the first martyrs for Christ, the Holy Innocence - the 14,000 Children that were slain by Herod in his madness to find and kill the baby Jesus. Beloved, we have such a difficult task ahead of us. On the one hand, we must be disgusted by these inhuman ideologies of Islamists and Pro-Abortionists, and denounce all support from those who maintain or defend them. But on the other hand, we must also greet those who sin with love and forgiveness, allowing ourselves to become the guide to Christ for those wishing to find Him. How do we do that? Our country can t figure that out. Our government, court rooms and society make the mistake every day of taking the sinner and saying that their sin is legal. After all, according to them, in a free society how can we make laws on specific religious morality? Whose morality is right? We, as Christians, need to be the standard for religious morality before our government or our society will ever take notice. We must walk the walk, before anyone will believe what we say. But more importantly, we must not be afraid of those who oppose our thinking. If it is based in Christ, it will always prove itself to be the loving and most correct option. It will pronounce sinful what is sinful, and it will invite the sinner to repent. This country and our neighbors in Christ need us! God bless you all!!!

3 News & Events WORSHIP SCHEDULE Sunday Worship... January Our regular schedule for Sunday Worship is that Orthros will begin at 9:00 am and Divine Liturgy will begin at 10:00 am. Wednesday Paraklesis Services... January Paraklesis Services will be offered every Wednesday evening at 6:00 pm unless otherwise stated. For the month of January the services will be held on January 13th, and 27th. There will not be Paraklesis on the 6th and the 20th of January. JANUARY These are the services for the month of January. Please check your schedules and plan to attend. Tuesday, January 5... Eve of Theophany 9:00 am Royal Hours 6:00 pm Liturgy w/blessing of Water Wednesday, January 6... Holy Theophany 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Liturgy w/great Blessing of Water 6:00 pm Great Vespers Wednesday, January 7... St. John the Baptist 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Liturgy Tuesday, January 12 4:00 pm Confession Wednesday, January 13 10:00 am Bible Study 6:00 pm Paraklesis Wednesday, January 20 6:00 pm Great Vespers Thursday, January St. Maximos 11:30 am Confession Monday, January St. Gregory the Theologian 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Liturgy Wednesday, January 27 10:00 am Bible Study 6:00 pm Paraklesis HAPPY BIRTHDAY The following people will be celebrating their birthday in the month of January: Christine Joyce January 07 Carmen Alexander January 10 Stephanie Kamarados January 12 Kay Bellas January 17 Maria Calfa January 20 Nina Xidis January 22 Mary Markis January 25 William Apesos January 25 Angie Mahfood January 28 Hope Halkias January 28 Eurydice Kamarados January 28 Nick Cheruvathoor January 29 If your name was not listed and you had a birthday during this month, please contact the office and we will be happy to place it on our roster for next year. RELIGIOUS EDUCATION GREEK SCHOOL... January 6, 13, 20, & 27 Greek School is scheduled every Wednesday from 4:00 pm until 5:00 pm here at the church unless otherwise stated. Check the Bulletin each week for changes. BIBLE STUDY... January 6 and 20 The Bible Study group normally holds it meetings on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month at 10:00 am. Please check the monthly calendar and weekly bulletins for times and changes. FAMILY FUN NIGHT... TBA Each month Family Fun Night meets at a different location. OPA... TBA OPA is our Women s Study Group. You don t need to be Orthodox to come. So come on in, invite your friends, and enjoy the fun! THEOLOGY ON TAP... TBA Theology on Tap is our Men s Study group. Each month Theology on Tap meets at a different location. For the month of December, Theology on Tap will meet at times and dates yet to be announced. Please wait for the Notify Now system to announce the next meeting. 3 The Net January 2016

4 News & Events PARISH GROUPS AHEPA... TBA The AHEPA Society will now have their meetings scheduled through our Notify-Now system. CHOIR... TBA Rehearsals are held whenever possible and the times vary. Anyone who would be interested in joining the Choir is welcome to do so. Please contact Pete Caleodis if you are interested in joining. Thank You. PARISH COUNCIL... January 12 Parish Council meetings are held the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:00 pm at the church unless otherwise stated. PHILOPTOCHOS... January 7 The Philoptochos Ladies will have their monthly meeting on Thursday, January 7, at 12 Noon at Murray s in Wintersville. GYRO SALE Once again the Ladies Philoptochos Society will be having their famous Gyro sale once a month through February The month of January the sale will be on Tuesday the 12th from 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Please help support these ladies in this endeavor. Also on this day there will be Koulourakia cookies for sale. CHICKEN FEST We will be having their Chicken Fest on Thursday, January 14th from 4 pm until 8 pm. $10 includes festival or lemon chicken, rice pilaf, and green beans. Eat in or Carry out. Drinks & pastries sold separately. HOPE 68 FOOD COLLECTION We will be collecting food for the kids for the Hope 68 Project. There will be three containers in the back of the Church. Items needed are: Pop Tarts, Juice Boxes and Fruit Cups. The collection is until May GOYA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT Our Parish GOYA along with the entire Holy Saints GOYA is once again going to basketball tournaments this year! In January, the weekends are January 15-17, and January Please contact Rikki Kamarados if you are planning on coming to either of these weekend tournaments. ROOF UPDATE Thanks to the many people who have pledged and contributed to the recent roof project, we are almost at our goal of $250,000 in pledges! We still need people to fulfill their pledges to our roof. Please consider your taxdeductible donation to fulfill your pledge to our roof project and pay this off completely. We could not have gotten this far without your dedication, and we will not finish this without your loving contribution. NOVEMBER MONTHLY FINANCIALS November weekly income $4, November weekly expense $5, The Net January

5 From the Inter-NET SENATE INTRODUCES BILL MAKING IT MURDER TO KILL BABY AFTER BOTCHED ABORTION By: Dustin Siggins A bill that would make killing abortion survivors first-degree murder has been introduced in the Senate. The Republican-controlled House passed an identical bill last week , with five Democratic votes. It makes killing abortion survivors first-degree murder, with a maximum of five years in prison, and requires that care be provided to any survivors. It also mandates that any violations of the law be reported to authorities by any employee of an abortion clinic, and in some cases requires newborns to be immediately transported to a hospital. It was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Ben Sasse, R-NE, in light of multiple undercover videos that indicate killing born children for their organs and other body parts are a regular practice of Planned Parenthood -- America's largest abortion company. Abortion supporters say the bill does not distinguish between so-called "viable" babies and those who are expected to die regardless of how much care they receive. However, Americans United for Life attorney Mary Harned wrote in an e- mail that "the bill requires a healthcare provider to provide a child born alive during an attempted abortion with the same care that a child born alive at the same gestation, but in another manner (i.e. through natural labor, induction, or c-section), would receive." "Whether a child born during an attempted abortion lives a minute, an hour, or 99 years after birth, that infant is entitled to the same care that infants receive when born in less traumatic circumstances," Harned told LifeSiteNews. Abortion supporters have launched a concerted attack on the legislation. Last week, Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA, said on the House floor that the House bill was meant "to intimidate" abortionists. "H.R proposes a standard of care for abortion providers that could interfere with the ability of physicians to make medical decisions for their patients," said Chu. "The bill represents an unprecedented level of intrusion by the government into medical decisions," she said, declaring that "the real purpose of the bill is to intimidate abortion providers out of business." However, Harned said that there are definite benefits to the bill. "The Federal Born-Alive Infant Protection Act, enacted in 2002, clarified that infants born alive during attempted abortions have all of the same rights and protections that other Americans enjoy. This legislation further defines what is expected from abortionists when an infant is born alive during an abortion." "As long as they follow the law, this bill creates no difficulties for abortionists," Harned continued. "In fact, an abortionist performing second or third trimester abortions already risks violating federal and/or state law if they do not have the necessary equipment, staffing, and qualifications to care for an infant born alive during an abortion." A staffer in Sasse's office agreed with Harned, telling LifeSiteNews that the bill establishes care for the newly-born child equivalent to that of a child born at the same gestational age -- including hospitalization. Additionally, the staffer clarified that futile measures to save a child are not required; merely the same care as any other born child of the same age. Jacobson said the bill's goal is "something that is basically created as a problem, and is not an issue, and is a way of misinforming the public in order to create a problem that would then create a set of restrictions that are not necessary." However, there are at least two prominent examples of babies being either left to die or purposefully killed. Susan B. Anthony List National Campaign Chair Jill Stanek became a pro-life activist and blogger after holding a child who survived an abortion. Stanek was a nurse in the Labor & Delivery Department at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, Illinois, and went public with how her hospital was allowing babies who survived abortions to die. Convicted murderer Kermit Gosnell is possibly the best-known killer of born babies. Found guilty of his crimes in 2013, he is serving multiple life sentences for killing women as well as children -- the latter by delivering them and cutting their spines. "If we can t come together and agree that newborn babies deserve care, our talk about 'human rights' and 'inherent dignity' is empty," said Sasse. "This is an opportunity for wellmeaning people to set aside our differences and work to protect babies." The bill has 23 GOP cosponsors, including Senator John Cornyn, R-TX. In a statement, Cornyn said that "the necessity to protect the life of a newborn child should be without question or controversy, and I hope my colleagues on both sides of the aisle can unite behind this important legislation." -Taken from The Net January 2016

6 Around the World DO CHRISTIANS AND MUSLIMS WORSHIP THE SAME GOD? by: Roger E. Olson Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God? It s not as simple a question as it appears and therefore no simple, straightforward answer should be given. The question itself begs analysis before any answer can be given. I worry that people who jump to answer yes may be motivated more by political correctness and/or fear of persecution (of Muslims) than by clear thinking about the theological differences between Islam and Christianity. I also worry that people who jump to answer no may be motivated more by Christian fundamentalism and/or fear of terrorists than by clear thinking about the historical-theological roots of Islam in Jewish and Christian monotheism. So, let s analyze the question Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God? First, both Christianity and Islam are diverse religions. Do all Christians worship the same God? What all is being included in Christians in the question? What all is being included in Muslims in the question? Which Muslims? Which Christians? I know enough about the diversity of Islam to wonder if they all worship the same God. And I seriously doubt that all who claim to be Christians worship the same God. Does a liberal Christian who denies the deity of Jesus Christ and the Trinity worship the same God as an orthodox Christian who affirms them? Second, the question could be interpreted as asking whether Muslims and Christians are thinking of God sufficiently alike to be worshiping the same God. Then my answer would tend to be no they are not worshiping the same God. For orthodox Christianity God includes Jesus which is heresy if not blasphemy to most orthodox Muslims. Third, the question could be interpreted as asking whether God accepts sincere Muslim worship of Allah as worship of himself. That is a very different question from whether Muslims and Christians are thinking sufficiently alike about God to be worshiping the same God. That latter question (discussed in the paragraph above) is an epistemological question with a more or less empirically (or at least sociologically and philosophically) determined answer. That is not to say equally astute scholars won t disagree; it is only to say it can be researched. The question whether God accepts Muslim worship of Allah as worship of himself is very different and much more difficult to answer because answering it presumes knowing the mind of God. Of course, some Christians will answer no God does not accept worship of Allah as worship of himself based on Jesus s saying in John 14:6 that no one comes to the Father except through him. But, a problem with that, as I have pointed out before here, is that most of the same people who quote that verse to claim that God never accepts non- Christian worship as worship of himself admit that even when Jesus said it (sometime around 33 AD) there were Jews whose worship of God without Jesus was accepted by God as true worship of him. The question then becomes when God cut off all worship not centered around Jesus? When Jesus died on the cross? Then did the cross unsave thousands, if not millions, of Jews and God-fearing gentiles? Did God suddenly turn a deaf ear to them just because they did not know of Jesus? (Most Jews and gentile God-fearers lived outside of Palestine during Jesus s earthly life, death and resurrection.) To say that God grandfathered them in, as one fundamentalist pastor said, is absurd. What about their sons and daughters who also never heard of Jesus before dying? When did God stop accepting worship by people with Abrahamic faith in God s promises? So simply quoting John 14:6 does not settle the question whether God has ever accepted worship that does not include faith in Jesus Christ as worship of himself. I do not think we can answer the question of what worship God accepts as worship of himself with any degree of certainty. To be sure, there are some worships that we can say with certainty God does not accept as worship of himself (such as worship of Satan). I admit that I am uncomfortable even with C. S. Lewis s scenario of God accepting Emeth s worship of Tash as worship of himself in The Chronicles of Narnia. That s partly, however, because of the way Tash is described in the stories. Still, and nevertheless, I do not think we can say with assurance that God does not accept any Muslim s worship of Allah as worship of himself. On the other hand, I tend to think the theological differences between Allah in orthodox Islam (both Shia and Sunni versions to say nothing of Amadiyyah) and orthodox Christianity (Eastern Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant) are strong enough to doubt that, in most cases, Muslims and Christians are thinking of the same God when they worship Yahweh and Allah. Having said that, however, let me also say that, as a Christian theologian, my main concern is whether all Christians are thinking of the same God when they worship. -Excerpted from do-muslims-and-christians-worship-the-same-god/ 6 The Net January

7 The NET-Minders The Parish of Holy Trinity would like to thank the following benefactors for making this Monthly Newsletter possible: In Loving Memory Of Nicholas Mougianis 7 The Net January 2016

8 Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church P.O. Box South Fourth Street Steubenville, OH NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE P A I D STEUBENVILLE, OH PERMIT NO. 83 Submissions for THE NET are to be submitted by the 20 th of each month About the Icon on the Cover ST. ANTHONY THE GREAT Saint Anthony, the Father of monks, was born in Egypt in 251 of pious parents who departed this life while he was yet young. On hearing the words of the Gospel: "If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell what thou hast, and give to the poor" (Matt. 19:21), he immediately put it into action. Distributing to the poor all he had, and fleeing from all the turmoil of the world, he departed to the desert. The manifold temptations he endured continually for the span of twenty years are incredible. His ascetic struggles by day and by night, whereby he mortified the uprisings of the passions and attained to the height of dispassion, surpass the bounds of nature; and the report of his deeds of virtue drew such a multitude to follow him that the desert was transformed into a city, while he became, so to speak, the governor, lawgiver, and master-trainer of all the citizens of this newly-formed city. Saint Anthony began his ascetic life outside his village of Coma in Upper Egypt, studying the ways of the ascetics and holy men there, and perfecting himself in the virtues of each until he surpassed them all. Desiring to increase his labors, he departed into the desert, and finding an abandoned fortress in the mountain, he made his dwelling in it, training himself in extreme fasting, unceasing prayer, and fierce conflicts with the demons. Here he remained, as mentioned above, about twenty years. Saint Athanasius the Great, who knew him personally and wrote his life, says that he came forth from that fortress "initiated in the mysteries and filled with the Spirit of God." Afterwards, because of the press of the faithful, who deprived him of his solitude, he was enlightened by God to journey with certain Bedouins, until he came to a mountain in the desert near the Red Sea, where he passed the remaining part of his life. Saint Athanasius says of him that "his countenance had a great and wonderful grace. This gift also he had from the Saviour. For if he were present in a great company of monks, and any one who did not know him previously wished to see him, immediately coming forward he passed by the rest, and hurried to Anthony, as though attracted by his appearance. Yet neither in height nor breadth was he conspicuous above others, but in the serenity of his manner and the purity of his soul." So Passing his life, and becoming an example of virtue and a rule for monastics, he reposed on January 17 in the year 356, having lived altogether some 105 years. -Taken from: