Transfiguration of Our Lord Ukrainian Catholic Church 240 Center Street Nanticoke, PA 18634 Nanticoke Rectory: (570)735-2262 Fax: (570)735-6020 Church Email: HolyTransfiguration@verizon.net WebSite: www.transfigurationucc.org Father Volodymyr Email: typyk2@yahoo.com Rev. Volodymyr Popyk Cell Phone: (609) 372-7161 Saturday, January 3 6:00PM Divine Liturgy Schedule January 4, 2015 Helen Lee- Irene Hvozda & Mary Ann Jarolen Sunday, January 4 SUNDAY BEFORE THEOPHANY 10:30 AM God s Blessing and Good Health on All Parishioners BLESSING OF WATER Monday, January 5 VIGIL OF THEOPHANY 6:00PM Great Compline with Povecheria Litia Service Tuesday, January 6 THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD 10:00AM-Obligation Divine Liturgy -Myrovania (Anointing of Holy Oil) Wednesday, January 7 5:00PM Anna Berzanski- Donna Henderson Friday, January 9 9:00AM Helen Lee- nephew, James Weron Saturday, January 10 6:00PM Eva Malishchak- Jackie & Monica Malishchak Sunday, January 11 SUNDAY AFTER THEOPHANY 10:30 AM God s Blessing and Good Health on All Parishioners Khystos Razhdayetsia- Christ is Born! Slavyte Yeho- Glorify Him!
SUNDAY BEFORE THEOPHANY January 4, 2015 TROPAR Believers, let us worship and praise in song the Word of God. He is coeternal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Yet he was born of a virgin for our salvation. In the flesh he willingly ascended the cross and suffered death, that he might raise the dead by his glorious resurrection. TROPAR Zebulun, get ready! Naphtali, adorn yourself! River Jordan, halt your flow! Receive the Master with joy as he comes to be baptized. Adam, rejoice with our first mother, and do not hide as you once did in paradise; for having seen your nakedness, Christ has revealed himself so as to restore your pristine robe of righteousness and wishes to renew all creation. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. Now and ever and forever. Amen. KONDAK Standing in the flowing waters of the Jordan, the Lord today tells John: Do not be afraid to baptize me, for I have come to save Adam, the first to be fashioned. PROKIMEN Save your people and bless, O Lord, your inheritance. VERSE: To you I will cry, O Lord my God, lest you turn away from me in silence. Save your people and bless, O Lord, your inheritance. A reading from St. Paul s Epistle to Timothy (4:5-8) Timothy, my son, be watchful in all things, accept every hardship, perform the work of a preacher of the Gospel, and faithfully discharge thy ministry. As for me, my blood already flows in sacrifice, and the time of my departure (from this world) has come. I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. For the rest, there is reserved for me the crown of justice, which the Lord, the just Judge, will bestow upon me on that day; and not only upon me, but also upon all those who love His coming.
ALLELUIA Be gracious to us, O God, and bless us. Alleluia (3). Shine the light of your countenance upon us, and have mercy on us. Alleluia (3). Gospel of Mark 1:1-8 The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way" "a voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.' "And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. And this was his message: "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." COMMUNION VERSE Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the highest. Alleluia. (3). PRAYER FOR THE BLESSING OF HOMES O God, our True Light and Savior, You have deigned to be baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist to renew all men by the cleansing water of regeneration (Tit. 3:5) and to enter under the roof of Zacchaeus, bringing salvation to him and his house (Lk. 19:9), now, You, 0 Lord, protect also all those who dwell in this house from all harm and injury; grant them Jordan's blessing, purification of soul and body, and good health; and hear all their supplications, which are for their salvation and life eternal. For blessed are You, O Lord, together with Your Eternal Father and Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.
CHURCH NEWS PLEASE REMEMBER TO PRAY THE ROSARY. BLESSING OF WATER: There will be Blessing of Water next Sunday immediately following Divine Liturgy. Many people can pray on this day at church and bring Holy Water with them home. Please remember to bring a container. PARISH COUNCIL: The next meeting of the Parish Council will be on Wednesday, January 14 th at 6:00PM. BLESSING OF HOMES: According to Ukrainian tradition, all homes of the faithful have to be blessed by the Holy Water of the Jordan. Please drop a note in the collection basket or place your name on the sign up sheet at the back of the church, if you would like Father Volodymyr to come and bless your home for the New Year. Please include a range of time when it would be best to come. This will help Father in making up a schedule when all the requests have been received. SAVE THE DATE MYASOPUSNA: The next big fund-raising event for our Parish will be Myasopusna Dinner Celebration. Our Myasopusna Celebration is scheduled for February 8, 2015, the date of our Meat-fare Sunday. We are looking for help with our celebration. Can you help? We will have a short meeting after Divine Liturgy this Sunday, January 4, looking for volunteers. We need the support of many people to hold this celebration, it is never the work of one or two people. Without help, we will have to cancel Myasopusna, please stop by the church basement after services on Sunday or contact Lisa at 570-574-1016. ST. JOSAPHAT SEMINARY DONATION: A donation was made to St. Josaphat Seminary in loving memory of John, Russ, Steve and Harry Yanoshak. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleans us from all sin. - 1 John 1:7
Petitions & Prayers for Our Parishioners Please pray for our Parishioners in the Nursing Homes: Catherine Lachowecz, Mary Kozmoski, Mike Yurkowski Assisted Living: Mary Manson, Dorothy Kobela At Home: John & Mary Hoolick, Lois Antal, John Petrochko, Irene Diakiw, Joseph & Dorothy Kopiak, Dolores Grozio, Helen Hook, Martha Platko, Helen Bogdan, Nick Pucino, Theodore Kulmatiski, Dolores Miller, Arlene Czarnecki. Away: Leona Kobela; Andrew Sloto. COLLECTION: Week of Dec 28: Total$2779; Collection:$637; Candles:$66; Christmas:$1584; HolyDays:$106; Dio.:$22; Flowers:$50; Bldng/Imp.:$13; Maint.:$46; ChildrenRefund:$30; Tksgiving:$1; Dues:$160; AltarCandles:$40. SNCemetery:$30; TCemetery:$25. MALANKA: Northeastern Pennsylvania s 11 th Annual Ukrainian New Year Dinner Dance - MALANKA - will take place on Saturday evening, January 17, 2015 at the Parish Center of St. Vladimir Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, 428 North Seventh Avenue, Scranton. The menu will feature both Ukrainian and American fare catered by Paul Wanas of Accentuate Caterers of Distinctive Events. Cash bar will be available. Door prizes will be awarded. Music for dancing will be provided by the internationally known Ukrainian band Fata Morgana. Wearing Ukrainian apparel is encouraged. Tickets $40.00. Reservations are required and can be made by contacting Andy Jamula at 570 822-5354. Please note that the Divine Liturgy is celebrated at 4:00pm immediately preceding the Malanka. This year the pastor and faithful of St. Vladimir parish are honored to welcome the choir of SS. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church of Olyphant which will sing the liturgical responses. Everyone is welcome. CHURCH ENVELOPES & CALENDARS: Please remember to pick up your church envelopes and calendars in the basement of the church. If for some reason you do not have envelopes, please contact the rectory at 570-735-2262. NEW CANDLE SHEETS FOR 2015: There are new candle sheets for 2015 in the back of the Church. Eternal Light Candles $25; Altar Candles$40; Proscomedia Table$20; Saint Nicholas Candle$10. RELIGIOUS CLASSES: There will be no religious classes on January 4.
HOW TO PREPARE FOR A HOUSE BLESSING The place where we live is very important and special to us. During the feast of Theophany we observe the custom of having our homes blessed to ask God for His protection and blessing upon all who live there or visit there. To prepare for a house blessing, please observe the following: A) Have a candle, icon or cross on a clean linen in a main room. B) Have some holy water in a small container from the feast C) Have all radios, stereos, and televisions turned off for the blessing, D) Please have pets confined. E) If you have any religious articles you wished to be blessed, please place them by the cross and candle in the main room. January 6 - By St. Cyril of Jerusalem - Catecheses 3, 4 (PG33, 429) For You Too Everything Begins with this Water Water makes the body clean, the Spirit makes the soul holy. It is in this way that we are able to draw near to God, since, while our body is being washed in the clean water, our heart is being purified by means of the Spirit. You who are about to go down into the baptismal water must not stop to consider the weakness of this visible element, since you will receive the strength of the Holy Spirit to enter into a new life. Without the two, the water and the Spirit, you would not be able to reach perfection. It is not I who am telling you this, but the Lord Jesus Christ who has power over these things. He says, in fact: 'No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.' [John 3:51 Look closely: 'Of water and the Spirit.' Those who wash in the water but do not receive the Spirit do not have the grace that can make them holy. On the other hand they cannot enter the kingdom unless they receive the water, the visible sign, made rich also in good works. This assurance will appear daring, however it is not mine: it was Jesus who spoke in that way. Let me give you an illustration from Holy Scripture. Cornelius was a just man, proved so by his vision of angels, and he had won favour with God through his prayers and his alms. Peter came to him, and the Holy Spirit was poured out on the believers and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. After the gift of the Holy Spirit, according to the Scripture, Peter commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ so that while the soul was being born again through faith, the body might have its share of the gift through water, [cf. Acts 10] If you want to know why it is by water and not by any other element that grace is given, consult the Scripture. Before the creation of the world 'the Spirit of God moved upon the water'. [Gen. 1:2] Thus at the beginning of the world we have water: at the beginning of the gospels, the river Jordan.
JANUARY CANDLES The Eternal Light is donated by the Donna Henderson in loving memory of her mother, Anna Berzanski. The Altar Candles are donated by the Slota Family in loving memory of Pauline Slota. The Proscomedia Table is donated by Anna Kutsup in loving memory of Anna Kucab. The Saint Nicholas Candle is in donated by the Miles Family in loving memory of John Yanoshak. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. - Isaiah 9:6