This Sunday January 16 th, 2011

Transcription

1 195 N. Main Street Milpitas, Ca Matins 8:00 a.m. Liturgy 10:30 a.m. The Very Rev. Father Giris Hanna (408) Issue No. 364 Sunday January 16 (1/3), 2011 Sunday before the Theophany Prophet Malachi. Martyr Gordius at Caesarea in Cappadocia األحد الذي قبل الظھور تذكار القديس مالخيا النبي والقديس غرديوس الشھيد Matins (Eothina I): Matthew 28:16-20 Epistle: II Timothy 4:5 8 Gospel: Mark 1:1 8 This Sunday January 16 th, 2011 Representing His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios Of America, His Grace Bishop Savas Of Troas Will Preside Over The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy & Ordination of: Fr. Deacon Spyridon Jajeh of St. George Orthodox Church (San Francisco) to the Holy Priesthood. & Suhail Kawar of St. James Orthodox Church to the Holy At St. James Orthodox Church 195 North Main Street Milpitas, Ca We will have the blessing of many clergy attending from many churches and monasteries including all priests and deacons from our Vicariate sister churches in the Bay Area, Southern California, and The Life-Giving Spring Monastery in Dunlap. Please try to come early to church to get a seat. We expect a full church. Additional parking is available at the Public Library across the street from the church on Main Street on Level 3 & Level 4 only. Due to space limitation inside the church, all baby-strollers will need to be kept outside the church. A banquet lunch will be held at the Crown Plaza Hotel in 777 Bellew Dr., Milpitas, Ca at 2pm to honor His Grace Bishop Savas. No Sunday School this Sunday 1/16.

2 Theophany Prayer Services Monday January 17 th 2011 The Royal Hours for the Theophany (First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Hours) starting at 4:00pm Divine Liturgy of St. Basil at 7:30pm Tuesday January 18, 2011 Theophany Services Matins starting at 4:00pm Theophany Divine Liturgy 7:30pm Followed by the Service of the Sanctification of the Holy Water Tuesday 1/18 (Eve of the Theophany) is a Fasting Day (Wine and Oil Allowed) Wednesday 1/19 is Fast-Free Day Fast Free Period January 7 January 17 The Orthodox church prohibits fasting during this period after the Nativity including Wednesdays and Fridays Wednesdays & Fridays fasting resumes on Friday 1/21 Friday 1/14 (1/1) The Circumcision of Our Lord Jesus Christ St. Basil the Great Saints of This Week Saturday 1/15 (1/2) Repose of St. Seraphim, wonderworker of Sarov When you are deeply troubled I cried out to God with my voice to God with my voice; And He gave ear to me. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord; My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; My soul refused to be comforted. I remembered God, and was troubled; I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. You hold my eyelids open; I am so troubled that I cannot speak. I have considered the days of old, The years of ancient times. I call to remembrance my song in the night; I meditate within my heart, And my spirit makes diligent search. Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? Has His mercy ceased forever? Has His promise failed forevermore? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies? And I said, This is my anguish; But I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High. I will remember the works of the Lord; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old. I will meditate on all Your work, And talk of Your deeds. Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary; Who is so great a God as our God? You are the God who does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples. You have with Your arm redeemed Your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph.. - Psalm 76:1 15

3 The Circumcision of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Friday 1/14 (1/1) On the eighth day after His Nativity, our Lord Jesus Christ was circumcised in accordance with the Old Testament Law. All male infants underwent circumcision as a sign of God's Covenant with the holy Forefather Abraham and his descendants. After this ritual the Divine Infant was given the name Jesus, as the Archangel Gabriel declared on the day of the Annunciation to the Most Holy Theotokos. The Fathers of the Church explain that the Lord, the Creator of the Law, underwent circumcision in order to give people an example of how faithfully the divine ordinances ought to be fulfilled. The Lord was circumcised so that later no one would doubt that He had truly assumed human flesh, and that His Incarnation was not merely an illusion, as certain heretics taught. In the New Testament, the ritual of circumcision gave way to the Mystery of Baptism, which it prefigured. Accounts of the Feast of the Circumcision of the Lord continue in the Eastern Church right up through the fourth century. In addition to circumcision, which the Lord accepted as a sign of God's Covenant with mankind, He also received the Name Jesus (Savior) on the eighth day after His Nativity as an indication of His service, the work of the salvation of the world. These two events, the Lord's Circumcision and Naming, remind Christians that they have entered into a New Covenant with God and "are circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ". The very name "Christian" is a sign of mankind's entrance into a New Covenant with God. Taking the Bishop s Blessing An Orthodox bishop is the living icon of Christ, the fullest celebrant of the Holy Mysteries, and is empowered with the authority and historical legacy of Apostolic Succession. Through the bishops alone is the ecclesiastical nature and mystical oneness of the Church continued. Lesser clergy, lay or monastic, cannot impart the office of apostle or continuity with the Apostolic Church. The proper title of a bishop may be Holiness, Beatitude, Eminence, or Grace depending on rank. When we approach an Orthodox bishop, we seek his blessing by bowing from the waist so that our right hand touches the floor; then we place our right hand over the left hand with palms upward, saying, Master, bless. The bishop blesses us with the sign of the cross and places his hand in our hands, which we kiss. Unlike a priest, the bishop may bless with both the right and left hand. We kiss the hand of a bishop, and priest, to show respect to the High Priesthood of Christ, which the person is honored to bear. When we are blessed, it is not the person who imparts grace to us but Christ. This is why the bishop and priest say, The blessing of the Lord. We also kiss the hand of the bishop and priest because it is their physical hands by which the Mystery of Holy Communion is transubstantiated from bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ our Lord. When we kiss his hand, we demonstrate our reverence, love, and gratitude for the Holy Eucharist. A brother asked Abba Joseph, saying, "What should I do, for I do not have the strength to bear evil, nor to work for charity's sake?" The old man said to him, "If you cannot do any of these things, at least guard your conscience from all evil with regard to your neighbor and you will be saved."

4 St. Basil Relics Service Postponed Due to preparations of the church for the ordination service this Sunday, and due to Fr. Giris being out of town on Friday, the service to venerate the relics of St. Basil will be postponed to a later date. New date will be announced once confirmed. Oasis In The Desert Fr. Giris gave the blessings to make a church group trip to St. Anthony s Greek Orthodox Monastery in Florence, Arizona during the Bright Week (the week after Easter), April 25 April 28 of 2011, God willing. Book you own flights. The sooner you book you flight, the less expensive it is: Southwest Airlines Departure Monday April 25, 2011 Return: Thursday April 28, 2011 San Jose Airport 4/25: San Jose Phoenix, Flight # 1046, 9:55am 4/28: Phoenix San Jose, Flight # 2708, 4:55pm Oakland Airport 4/25: Oakland Phoenix, Flight # 1366, 10:00am 4/28: Phoenix Oakland, Flight # 664, 5:30pm Book your own flight but please let us know if you are going. We need to give accurate group headcount to the monastery around beginning of April. Please contact Suhail Kawar (408) for information or reservation. The Youth Corner 1 st Youth Group Meeting for 2011 Sunday January 23 rd Please check your s for updates. Uxáà j á{xá To Hanneh Swaiss (Um Montassir) for a full and speedy recovery after a surgery last week. May our Lord bless Um Montassir and grant her good health for many years. الحمد على السالمة Ladies Auxiliary Meeting Sunday January 30 Ladies, please plan to attend this meeting. Thank you and God bless you. General Parish Meeting Sunday January 23, 2010 Immediately after liturgy in the church to present the Budget Forecast for 2011, and to present the 2011 Board of Trustees. Please do your very best to stay in the church and listen to the latest updates about the church and meet the new Board Members. Happy Birthdays Rana Nijmeh 1/10 Vivian Khoury 1/11 Salimeh Asfour 1/14 عقبال المئة سنة!!! sjoc@earthlink.net or call (408) for your bulletin personal announcements, comments, feedback, or business advertising.

5 Friday, January 07, 2011 By Ann Rodgers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Troy Polamalu says 'Kala Christougena!' Christmas arrives today for many Orthodox Christians around the world The most famous Orthodox Christian in Pittsburgh, if not the nation, has a greeting for his fellow believers today: "Kala Christougena!" said Steelers safety Troy Polamalu. That's Greek for "Merry Christmas!" Mr. Polamalu and his wife, Theodora, actually celebrated Christmas 13 days ago, but they keep the same Orthodox traditions as those who observe today. Most Orthodox celebrate on Dec. 25, but many Slavic churches tie liturgy to the old Julian calendar, which is 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar. The Greek Orthodox Church and some others have adopted the Gregorian calendar -- except at Easter. "We all celebrate Easter on the same day," said Mr. Polamalu, 29. Orthodoxy is the Eastern wing of the earliest Christian church, which split into the Orthodox and Catholic churches in Theodora Polamalu, Paisios Polamalu and Troy Polamalu. He and Theodora converted to Orthodoxy about five years ago. His background was Catholic and Protestant, hers Muslim and Protestant. They were Christians in search of a deeper, more consistent experience of God. "Orthodoxy is like an abyss of beauty that's just endless," he said. "I have read the Bible many times. But after fasting, and being baptized Orthodox, it's like reading a whole new Bible. You see the depth behind the words so much more clearly." That fasting is a Christmas time difference between Eastern and Western Christians. While many Americans pile on the food from Thanksgiving to Christmas, Orthodox Christians start fasting Nov. 15 or 28. "Christmas Lent" or "Winter Lent" lasts 40 days, broken by a feast on Christmas, said the Rev. Stelyios Muksuris, administrative assistant to Metropolitan Maximos of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Pittsburgh and professor of liturgy and theology at Ss. Cyril & Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary. Slavic Orthodox keep a strict fast, abstaining from meat, dairy products, oil and fish for 40 days. Greeks usually permit fish, cheese and oil for the first few weeks, then fast strictly for the last two, he said. Mr. Polamalu is of Samoan heritage, and belongs to the Greek church, but fasts like a Russian. His consists of a "fast from dairy, from meat and from oil for 40 days -- as well as from sex," he said. "It's to prepare you for the birth of Christ, of God incarnate." Fasting doesn't affect his football fitness, he said. "When you fast, you can eat extremely healthy by eating a lot of light food, like fruits and vegetables." There are other aspects to fasting. "Maybe not watching as much TV, or not getting caught up in idle talk or different things, in order to keep you spiritually healthy," he said.

6 The most important Orthodox fast is Great Lent, for 50 days before Easter. When he has kept longer fasts "I have never felt more spiritually strong," he said. Referring to great theologians of the early church, he said, "The church fathers have said that when you eat gluttonously or you eat a lot of meat, your passions get stronger, so your inclination toward sinning becomes stronger.... [Fasting] really does soften your passions. It gives you spiritual insight." In Orthodox theology "passions" are negative impulses -- such as sadness or greed -- that can harm the soul. He doesn't claim that practicing the faith improves athletics. The player known for crossing himself on the field has seen his faith grow more from his injuries than his interceptions. "When I got injured, I learned so much from it spiritually, just thanking God for the health that I had when I was healthy," he said. "People have this idea that the more pious and devout I am, the more successful I am. Which is very dangerous. If you look at faith in that way, you're bound to fail at both -- spiritually and in your career." As the Polamalus build Christmas traditions for their children, Paisios, 2, and Ephraim, 3 months, "It's become less about Santa Claus and more about the birth of Christ and the celebration of the Virgin birth," he said. They spent Christmas Eve at an Orthodox monastery. The service lasted several hours, ending at 1 a.m. It was entirely chanted. "Orthodox chanting is non-emotional, it's very monotone," said Mr. Polamalu, who also calls it "the most beautiful thing." "It's the perfect environment for prayer," he said. "Chanting in Greek... is like a beautiful opera, but way better. You have candles, not [electric] lights. It's dark. You have the women sitting on the left and the men sitting on the right. Everything is to keep your mind focused on God.... To me the most beautiful thing anyone on earth can experience, other than maybe marriage and child-bearing, would be the Orthodox Liturgy." Before he became Orthodox, he said, songs in church sometimes moved him to tears. He now distrusts those passing feelings. "I'd start crying and feel 'This is awesome.' If I'd had a Red Bull, I'd feel it even more. If I'd had breakfast, I'd feel good. If I didn't have breakfast, I didn't feel anything, I was grumpy," he said. "It was a very superficial experience. I was thinking, 'God, why did I not feel you today?' because I wasn't feeling the music today. Orthodoxy is very sensitive to that, to take the emotion out of it, to really go after the heart." The difference between the heart and emotion, he said, is like the difference between the deep love he has for his wife and their daily ups and downs. "I could say, emotionally, I'm mad and sad with my wife. But that has nothing to do with how much I love my wife within my heart," he said. "Before we were Orthodox we were able to separate our spiritual lives and our daily lives. Now that we're Orthodox, because of the prayer life that is required... and the fasting, it consumes your life. It's the number one thing in your life."

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