St. George. Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church W. 14th Street, Cleveland OH Our Righteous Mother Euphrosyne

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1 St. George Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church 2587 W. 14th Street, Cleveland OH Our Righteous Mother Euphrosyne Serving the Orthodox Christian Community of Greater Cleveland

2 St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church V. Rev Father John Ojaimi, Pastor Office: (216) Fax: (216) Cellular: (440) Archdeacon Yarid Sahley Subdeacon Sam Elias Pastor s frjojaimi@msn.com Parish office@stgeorgecleveland.com Sunday September 25, 2016 Tone 5/ Eothinon 3 Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost & First Sunday of Luke Our Righteous Mother Euphrosyne Venerable Martyr Paphnoutios of Egypt and those slain with him; repose of Venerable Sergios of Radonezh; translation of the relics of Herman, archbishop of Kazan WELCOME TO OUR GUESTS We are glad you are worshiping with us today. There are Service Books in the pews. Orthodox Christians must be prepared for Holy Communion through Confession, Fasting, Prayer and by being at peace with others. Please seek and give forgiveness before receiving Holy Communion. At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, please join us for coffee hour in the Parish Hall. t ½Êà The mission of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church Is to serve God and the community by commitment to the Gospel s command to grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ through faith, hope, and love. It is a parish of the Self Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. The Orthodox Church follows the faith and practice of the apostles and disciples of Christ handed down by the ancient Christian fathers and twenty centuries of Church tradition. Genuine Christian life nurtures and stimulates our spiritual and moral development. The liturgical life of the Orthodox Church has been developing over the last 2000 years. By taking part in the mysteries of Christ s life, death and resurrection at the liturgical services, the community members are drawn to repentance and the gradual change of their inner selves. To join the community of St. George or to find out more information, please fill out the Guest Book in the Narthex. We hope this day will be spiritually rewarding for you. Fr John will be happy to answer any questions. Join us in the hall after Liturgy for our Coffee Hour and Fellowship.

3 Trisagion Prayers, Bread of Oblation, Wheat and Coffee Hour are offered in memory of Karim Danial (40 days) by his daughter Suzi Wahbeh & her husband Shadi & his wife Mini Trisagion Prayers, Bread of Oblation, Wheat and Coffee Hour are offered in memory of Edward Khoury by Edward s children Clifford & Claude, his brother Elie Khoury & sisters Elaine, Nawal & Dunia and the Khoury Family Next Week: Trisagion Prayers, Bread of Oblation and Coffee Hour are offered in memory of Wadia Ameen (10 years) by Mary Ameen & Family Candles are offered for the Health, Safety & Spiritual Welfare of: Hayek Family (Addie) by the Hayek Family Our Children & Grandchildren by Sami & Ragda Harb Children & Grandchildren by Nuha Karsheh Family & Friends by George & Joie Haddad Candles are offered in Beloved Memory of: Michel Hayek by the Hayek Family Marvin Harb by Maurice and Samia Harb My Beloved, Mother Mary, Father Abraham, Brothers Emile and James, Sitteh Zaineh & Uncle Kaiser by Emilie L. Easa Wadia Ameen by his wife Mary & Family Edward Haddad by his wife Edward Fadel by his wife & family Prayers are requested for the sick, sufferings, shut-ins needy, homeless, victims of disasters, war and violence in the whole universe. UPCOMING DIVINE SERVICES Sunday October 2, 2016 Matins 9:30 am, Divine am Confessions will be heard on Sundays Morning before Liturgy starts or by appointment. Sign up and take your turn in offering a Coffee Hour. Pick a birthday, memorial, anniversary etc.. or just a day that no one has sponsored.

4 Divine Liturgy Variables on Sunday, September 25, 2016 Tone 5/ Eothinon 3; Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost & First Sunday of Luke Our Righteous Mother Euphrosyne Venerable Martyr Paphnoutios of Egypt and those slain with him; repose of Venerable Sergios of Radonezh; translation of the relics of Herman, archbishop of Kazan

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8 Our Righteous Mother Euphrosyne (Sept. 25) Euphrosyne was the daughter of Paphnutius, a wealthy and distinguished man of Alexandria. Her childless parents had besought God with prayer for the birth of a child, and they were given her. Her devout parents raised their daughter in the Christian Faith. Not wanting to enter into marriage, the young Euphrosyne hid from her father, changed into men's clothing, and presented herself to the abbot of a monastery as a eunuch of Emperor Theodosius, giving the name Smaragdus. The abbot received her, and turned her over to the spiritual father Agapitus for guidance. By her fasting and prayerful asceticism, Smaragdus quickly surpassed all the monks in that monastery. When she had completed thirty-eight years of strict asceticism, her father Paphnutius visited that monastery, and the abbot directed him to Smaragdus for prayer and counsel. Smaragdus recognized Paphnutius, but Paphnutius did not recognize Smaragdus. When the father confessed his grief for his lost daughter, Smaragdus told him not to lose hope, for he would see his daughter again in this life, and besought him to come again within three days. When Paphnutius came again, Smaragdus was on her deathbed. The dying one said to Paphnutius: ``I am Euphrosyne, your daughter; you are my father!'' For a long time, the father was unable to come to himself due to his severe shock. Then, the Blessed Euphrosyne breathed her last, and her father wept over her. After burying her, Paphnutius himself entered the monastery, and settled in the cell of his holy, reposed daughter. After ten years of asceticism, Paphnutius also entered into rest in the Lord. CO-WORKERS OF GOD AND FISHERS OF MEN Fr. Luke Veronis at Sts Constatine and Helena 2015 Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. The very first promise that Jesus made to his disciples and followers was that IF they would follow Him, He would show these fishermen how to fish for people. His first promise was not one of a special blessing that their life would become easy, rich, or comfortable. No! He promised them something much more important. Follow me and I will use you for the kingdom of God. Follow me and you will become my co-workers, my partners in sharing the Good News and opening up the world to my eternal kingdom! Although you are simple, illiterate fishermen, I believe in you so much, and value you so much, that we will work together in changing the world for good! Come follow me and I ll make you fishers of men. I remember reading a study about workers in the workplace in America which showed that the most content and dedicated workers were those who felt valued by their employer, and who felt that they were doing something important! Even if these workers worked under difficult working conditions and did not receive the best wages, they still gave their all when they felt valued, and when they felt their work was important! Jesus understood this long before any scientific study! Think about what Christ offered his first possible folloers - follow me and you will have to deny yourself and take up your cross; follow me and you will have to leave your family and you will not have a place on earth to call home; follow me and you may be despised by others, persecuted, and ultimately martyred; follow me and life will surely not be easy!!! And yet, follow me and you will take part in God s divine plan for the world; follow me and you will help to usher in the kingdom of heaven; follow me and I will be with you always; follow me and you will take part in the

9 greatest movement in the history of the world! To become partners with Jesus Christ and to be co-workers in His ministry! What an exciting and blessed opportunity. And this call was not simply for the first followers and disciples of Jesus. It is not simply a call and an opportunity, but more so a privilege and a responsibility which each one of us have today. Today in our parish we celebrate Missions Sunday, and thus, this is a Sunday when we remember how each of us is called to imitate the response of the first disciples. We remember the privilege and responsibility we have in participating in our Lord Jesus Christ s command to proclaim the Kingdom of God to all people and to make disciples of all nations. Why should we strive to offer a witness of God s love to our friends, co-workers, and neighbors? Why do some people go to Kenya or Albania or Mexico or to other countries throughout the world? Why? Because we are co-workers with God and we want to share His Good News of hope and new life! Because we want to share the same blessings that we have received through our own faith with others! Because we want all people all around us as well as in every country around the world regardless of who they are and what they presently believe to know that they are each precious children in God s eyes, and have the same opportunity as we have to discover the pearl of great price! Sharing our faith and becoming bold witnesses for Christ is not simply a suggestion for some, but a command to all who truly want to follow Christ. He has honored us with the responsibility of acting as His ambassadors throughout the world to tell his story and to share His love. Imagine, we each play an integral role in His plan of salvation for all people. We are His co-workers! Fr. Thomas Hopko once said, If a parish [or an individual Christian] has no awareness and consciousness of being sent by God to speak His words, to do His work, and to accomplish His will in this world, then that Church is not an Orthodox Christian Parish! We are not living up to our Orthodox Christian identity if we don t fulfill this calling to go forth and become Christ s witnesses in the world around us. When Jesus gave His disciples the new commandment to love one another as I have loved you, His followers never limited this love to a closed circle, to only one s own people. The other is my salvation, saints in future generations would say, and they understood the other as all people everywhere. Unfortunately, too many of us today try to limit this universal love of God to solely a local level. Charity begins at home I hear some say. We have to take care of our own, they say. There are plenty of needs here. We can t solve the problems of the world, so why do we go elsewhere? We should never limit our Christian witness, however, to an either-or decision. When people remain indifferent to the needs of the world, and allow their parochial worldview to question the necessity of supporting the global work and mission of the Church, they reject Christ s universal love and vision. Divine love knows no boundaries and can never set any limits Since the divine love of God knows no boundaries, His people and the Church must make every effort to participate in witnessing God s love at a local, national, and global level, all simultaneously. This universal and holistic vision acts as the antithesis of the egocentric temptation we all face in our lives, as well as the cure to the parochial, often ethnocentric or spiritual ghetto heresy our parishes and too many Christians often live. What happens in Albania, Mexico, Africa, Asia or South America concerns Christ, and thus, should concern us. An authentic and healthy Orthodox ethos, on an individual as well as a parish level, entails living our faith to its fullness, and an essential part of this faith is offering a witness of God s love to the individuals we meet each day, to our local community wherever we live, to our country at large, as well as to the ends of the earth. Remember, each of us have the blessed call to become a co-worker and partners with Jesus Christ. Just as He called his first disciples to follow me, we are also called to follow him. And just as the first disciples would become fishers of men, we also have the sacred task of becoming fishers of all people of working together with Christ in helping more and more people discover the path which leads into the kingdom of heaven!

10 10 Ways Orthodox Parents Set Children Up for Moral Failure By Christina Pessemier in The Sounding Aug 31, 2013 Life gets busy and we don t step back enough to see what we might be doing as parents to hurt our children s spiritual growth. Being an intentional Orthodox Christian parent is hard work but it s worth it. We have a legacy of faith, wisdom and experience we can pass on to our kids if we pay attention. But if we don t we could cause more harm than good. 1. Buying them smartphones. People look at us like we re freaks, but my husband and I refuse to buy smartphones for our kids. Not only are they expensive, but they allow unsupervised access to the internet, among many other faults. Some parents trick themselves into believing their kids will use internet on their smartphones for educational purposes. Yeah right. Don t fool yourself. The internet, like the TV, is the devil s playground when it s not properly supervised. Your job as a parent is to protect your child s innocence as long as possible. There s a whole lot of nasty garbage out there that puts thoughts and ideas into their heads that they don t need. Right now, their souls are like flowers just barely beginning to bloom. Don t kill that spiritual growth with the world s evils. And texting? Really, why do kids need texting? Have you looked around lately at all the kids glued to their phones because they re so hooked on them they can t put them down. Geez, don t assist them in losing their childhood. Let kids be kids. Unplug them now because they don t know how and they need your help. 2. Unsupervised computer use without parental controls. As with smartphones, the internet is full of temptations kids don t have the ability to deal with. Statistics show the average nine year old has already been exposed to porn on the net. Do not put a computer in their room. And if there already is one in there, take it out and put it in a prominent area of your home. Seriously, this is their innocence and their soul we re talking about here. Our kids work on the computer in our family room where the screen is in our view. They can t log in without our passwords, and we also have them keep to a two-hour computer time limit (which the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends) with breaks in between. Then, we send them outside to get fresh air and to do what kids are supposed to do play. 3. Encouraging dating in early teen years. We re pushing off dating as long as possible. Why? I don t believe putting kids in tempting situations is good for them. Just because you may have dated at an early age and survived doesn t mean they will. STD s are at an all-time high. Early intimate relationships also increase risk of depression and suicide. They are still growing and learning about life. Doing things adults do in relationships is not only dangerous, but it s a heck of an emotional load to put on a kid. They ve got enough to worry about with homework, sports and college. You might think it s cute, but when your child ends up telling you they re pregnant or they have Herpes it s not so cute. 4. Being lax about prayer and going to church. In a world where the word religion is looked at as a bad word, and kids are being told rules don t matter anymore church is desperately needed. We do not pray enough. Our kids need to see us pray, and they need to see us make church a priority. And what if they tell you they don t want to go? Go anyway. You re the parent. Kids need structure, and they need to see you as an example of someone who strives to put God first, before everything else. 5. Not talking about the issues they face. Just because they act like everything is okay doesn t mean it is. It s crucial to connect with your kids every day. Show you care by asking about their day and actually listening to them. Take them out for dessert or to a coffee shop for one-on-one time. Ask their opinion on things with school, their teachers, friends, church whatever. Help them by offering a

11 non-judgmental, loving example of the Church s viewpoint on current issues. Kids are confused today because the world is telling them so many things are okay that the church is saying are not. You can be the voice of reason and sanity for them, and by showing them respect and listening they re more likely to hear you. 6. Paganizing Christianity. Some things just aren t Christian, no matter how you try to make them that way. While it s great to have healthier alternatives, we can t Christianize everything. Sadly, public school dances in many schools have now become a showcase of blatant immorality. My jaw almost dropped to the floor when my teenage daughter told me her junior high school s dance last year included lap dancing and pole dancing. Then she mentioned later that grinding was rampant, and the punch got spiked. Huh? Yes, that s right. Because the parent chaperones were afraid to say something, the kids got away with it. Throw in oversexualized lyrics, peer pressure, hormones and brains that haven t grown completely and you get a recipe for disaster. Come up with your own ways to celebrate that don t include being immoral. This year, to substitute for a school dance, we re looking at renting a boat and having our kids invite a friend to come along. We don t mind spending a little money to give our kids a fun time with friends. Why waste a miserable night chaperoning a dance when our kids could have a better, cleaner time doing something fun with friends? 7. Too much freedom. It blows me away how many parents don t know where their kids are these days. First of all, friends are important, but it s the family that sticks around for the long haul. Parents should not feel embarrassed to require their kids to be home for dinner and to know their whereabouts. And no, I don t drop my kids off at the mall. What good things happen at the mall anyway? Involve them in church youth groups and volunteer organizations and sports, but be careful how much time they spend wandering aimlessly with friends who might not always be the best influence. Don t let them back you in a corner. It s okay to put your foot down and say no on some of their activities. As long as they know you love and respect them, they will eventually understand ( it might be when they re 30, but they will thank you later). 8. Ignoring the value of hard work. Do your kids do regular chores? If not, why not? You are robbing them of valuable opportunities that will raise their self-esteem and help them learn skills they will use all their life. Aside from that, they live in your house, and you are not a maid. Enough said. 9. Not teaching them manners. The other day, two teenage boys walked into a door in front of me and let the door swing back in my face. They just kept talking and didn t even look back. I can hold a door open myself just fine, but I think it s a good thing to teach teen boys and girls to look out for the person behind them. Teach them to say excuse me when they bump into someone or walk in front of them. Kids today could really use a lesson in manners. You will do the world a lot of good to teach them to respect and honor others like our faith teaches. 10. Money doesn t grow on trees. One day, they will be on their own and will need to know how to pay bills. Teach them at an early age that doing work is how they get money. Have them do jobs to earn their spending money. Teach them to tithe 10% to charity, like the Bible teaches, and show them how to invest. Proverbs has a lot of great verses to show kids the importance of being wise with finances and planning ahead. There is a time to give money to kids, but be careful. Many kids are getting money way too easily, without understanding its value. There isn t a blueprint out there for how to raise morally aware kids, in an increasingly immoral world. But there is hope. We have more power than we realize. Remembering that we have the church to guide us, and Orthodox Christian friends and family who are going through the same thing, helps. It s so important that we do the hard things sometimes, and step up to the plate. Our kids need us to be strong and guide them to the right thing.

12 The Teens Group Meets every Sunday after Church In The Teens Room If you re a Teen Join us For fun and Education The choir will have its rehearsal this 6:30 pm Come be a part of this ministry and make a joyful noise unto the Lord. St. George Orthodox Young Professionals Fellowship Next Meeting Thursday October 13, :30 pm St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church 2587 W.14th St. Cleveland. ANTIOCHIAN WOMEN OF ST. GEORGE will be having our monthly meeting on Monday, October 10, 2016 at 12:00 p.m. in Yarid Hall at the Church. We will be organizing the Church kitchen and pantry. God willing, see you there!

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15 Friday Nov. 18 Sunday Nov. St. George Cleveland

16 What is Orthodoxy? First of all, Orthodoxy is right faith in God; it is that mighty power which makes each truly believing Orthodox Christian unwavering on the righteous and pious path of his life. To be Orthodox means to know correctly with the mind, to believe correctly with the heart, and to confess correctly with the lips all that God Himself has revealed to us about Himself, about the world and man, and about the tasks and aims of our life in the teaching on the attaining of our spiritual union with Him and our eternal salvation. Without such right faith, according to the word of the Apostle Paul, it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6). Orthodoxy is not only right faith and a right confession of the fundamental truths and dogmas of the Church of Christ, but also a right and virtuous life, founded on an unshakable law: the fulfilling of God s commandments, the permeating of the heart with humility, meekness and love for one s neighbor, the rendering of help to the needy and unfortunate, and the serving of one s church. The Apostle James teaches: Faith without works is dead (James 2:26). The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the future Judge of the whole world, promises to reward every man according to his works (Matt. 16:27). The Apostle Paul testifies that every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor (1Cor. 3:8). Here is the Orthodox point of view. Right faith must be expressed in deeds, and deeds must serve as a manifestation of faith. One must be closely united with the other indissolubly, like soul and body. This only, then, is the Orthodox, the correct way leading us to God. Orthodoxy is not only right faith and a life according to faith, but also correct service to God. Our Lord Jesus Christ expressed the essence of the right worship of God in these brief but profound words: God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth (John 4:24). Only the inspired divine service of the Holy Orthodox Church, which is permeated by prayer, has realized this sacred worship of God in truth. Moreover, Orthodoxy is strict proportionality and correctness in the manifestations of all the powers of soul and body. In Orthodoxy, a proper place is allotted to everything: to the intellect, to the wants and needs of the heart, to the manifestations of man s free will, to labor and prayer, to abstinence and watchfulness, in a word, to everything of which man s life consists.