ST. ELIJAH ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH 15000 N. May, Oklahoma City, OK 73134 Church Office: 755-7804 Church Website: www.stelijahokc.com Church Email: stelijah@stelijahokc.com AUGUST 30, 2015 Issue 27 Number 35 Leave-taking for Commemoration of John the Baptist's Beheading; Saints of the Day: Alexander, Paul the New, and John, Patriarchs of Constantinople; Venerable Phantinos of Calabria; Venerable Alexander of Svir; Alexander Nevsky, prince of Nogvorod; Cyril and Makarios, Patriarchs of Serbia WELCOME DIRECTORY V. Rev. Fr. John Salem Pastor 410-9399 Rev. Fr. Jeremy Davis Associate Pastor 625-0675 V. Rev. Fr. Constantine Nasr Pastor Emeritus V. Rev. Fr. Basil McMurry Attached Rev. Dn. Ezra Ham Administrator 602-9914 Erin Ghata Youth Director 410-9456 Mom s Day Out & Pre-K Roxy Self Director 639-2679 Email: mdo@stelijahokc.com Facebook: St Elijah Mom s Day Out Twitter: StElijahMDO DYNAMIS: Daily Bible Readings www.dynamispublications.org Ancient Faith Radio ancientfaith.com We welcome all our visitors. It is an honor to have you worshipping with us. You may find the worship of the Ancient Church very different. We welcome your questions. Please join us for our Reception held in the Church Hall immediately following the Divine Liturgy. We understand Holy Communion to be an act of our unity in faith. While we work toward the unity of all Christians, it regrettably does not now exist. Therefore, only baptized Orthodox Christians (who have properly prepared) are permitted to participate in Holy Communion. However, everyone is welcome to partake of the blessed bread that is distributed at the end of the service. We look forward to meeting you during the Reception that follows the service. PARTICIPATION IN WORSHIP Orthros: The Divine Liturgy Memorial Service Churching Service Removal of Crowns Red Service Book Red Divine Liturgy Book Red Service Book Red Service Book Red Service Book p. 44 p. 9 p. 183 p. 216 p. 181
VARIATIONS IN TODAY S DIVINE LITURGY A B The 1 st Antiphon: As usual... The 2 nd Antiphon: As usual... Troparion of the Resurrection - Tone 4 D E C The Entrance Hymn: O come let us worship... Troparion of the Resurrection Tone 4 Having learned the joyful message of the Resurrection from the angel, the women disciples of the Lord cast from them their parental condemnation, and proudly broke the news to the Disciples, saying: Death hath been spoiled. Christ God is risen, granting the world the great mercy! Troparion of St. John the Baptist - Tone 2 The memory of the righteous is celebrated with songs of praise, but the Lord's testimony is sufficient for thee, O Forerunner. Thou wast shown indeed to be the most honorable of the prophets, for in the waters thou didst baptize him who had been proclaimed. After suffering with joy in behalf of the truth, thou didst proclaim even to those in Hades the God who appeared in the flesh, who taketh away the sin of the world, and granteth us the great mercy. Troparion of St. Elijah - Tone 4 Angelic Body, Pillar of Prophets and their Corner Stone, Forerunner of the Second-Coming of Christ; thou didst send Grace from on high to Elisha, to dispel sickness and to purify lepers, Glorious Elijah, thou dost overflow with healing to those who honor thee. Kontakion of the Nativity of the Theotokos - Tone 4 By thy holy nativity, O pure one, Joachim and Anna were delivered from the reproach of barrenness, and Adam and Eve from the corruption of death; thy people celebrate it, having been saved from the penalty of their transgressions, crying unto thee: "The barren doth give birth to the Theotokos, the nourisher of our Life." F The Thrice-Holy Hymn G THE READINGS THE EPISTLE How magnified are thy works, O Lord! In Wisdom hast thou made them all. Bless the Lord, O my soul! The reading is from St. Paul's First Epistle to the Corinthians (16:13-24) Brethren, be watchful, be established in the faith, be manly, be strong. Let all your things be done in love. Now I beseech you, brethren (since you know the house of Stephanas, that it is the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have set themselves for the ministry of the saints), that you also be subject to such, and to everyone who is a fellow worker and laborer. I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatos and Achaicos, for that which was lacking on your part they supplied. For they refreshed my spirit as well as yours; therefore acknowledge such men. The churches of Asia salute you. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. All the brethren salute you. Salute one another with a holy kiss. The salutation of me, Paul, is with my own hand. If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be anathema. Maranatha! The grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen. THE GOSPEL From the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew (21:33-42) The Lord spoke this parable: "There was a householder who planted a vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and let it out to tenants, and went into another country. When the season of fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants, to get his fruit, and the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did the same to them. Afterward he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, 'This is the heir; come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.' And they took him and cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?" They said to him, "He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their season." Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures: 'The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?" H I J The Megalynarion It is truly meet... The Communion Hymn Praise the Lord from the heavens... We have seen the true light... OFFERINGS HOLY BREAD is offered by Ned Shadid, Ned Shadid, Jr., and Adele and Mark Crawford for their good health and the good health of the Shadid, Simon, and Crawford families. It is especially offered for Stacy on the occasion of her birthday (8/24). May God grant her many years. HOLY BREAD is offered by Valeriya Cotten for her good health and the good health of her brother Dmitry Smirnov. It is especially offered as a one-year memorial service for their father Alexander Smirnov. May his memory be eternal. HOLY BREAD is offered by Jacque Massad for her good health and the good health of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. It is especially offered in memory of her husband Omar (23 years). May his memory be eternal. HOLY BREAD is offered by Reggie Jaime for his good health and the good health of Janet and her twin sister Judy on the occasion of their birthday today. It is especially offered in memory of their friend George Degn, who reposed on Monday, August 24. May his memory be eternal. ANNOUNCEMENTS WELCOME. We welcome all visitors. We are delighted you are worshipping with us and look forward to meeting you personally. COFFEE HOUR is hosted today by Cultural Ministry. Please join us immediately following Divine Liturgy. Visitors are especially welcome. FR. JEREMY is out of town on vacation today. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Come celebrate the Ecclesiastical New Year with Festal Orthros at 7am this Tuesday, September 1 DIVINE LITURGY for the Nativity (Birthday) of the Theotokos will be celebrated at 9am on Tuesday, September 8. DIVINE LITURGY for the Elevation of the Precious Cross will be celebrated at 9am on Monday, September 14.
A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who helped prepare and deliver the chicken spaghetti casseroles. We had a fabulous turnout. It was truly a team effort and a big success. We made 18 small and 19 large casseroles that we delivered to our community agencies - the YWCA Battered Women's Shelter and the Holy Family Home, as well as our Agape casseroles to our St. Elijah families. On behalf of the Community Connection and myself, thank you. Your Sister in Christ, Tami Simon C O F F E E H O U R Below is the schedule of those who will host Coffee Hour on upcoming Sundays. September 6 - St. Ignatius 13 - Parish Council 20 - Hospitality 27 - Parish Anniversary Lunch October 4-11 - 18-25 - Today we remember those who reposed in the Lord during this week in years past: Woodrow Farris Mulu Esheta Steve C. Vetoyanis Bahia D. Raysee Angelene Mary Hazer Bill G. George Pamela Sue Shadid Fred A. Nayfa Jerry Jabara George A. Shadid Esther Massad Samara HAPPY BIRTHDAY THIS WEEK AUG. 30-SEPT. 5 Nancy Farha Janet Jaime Dr. Timothy Kaiser Trae Rahill Sally Limber Jason Motiei Jude Harroz Jeff Shadid Steven Stealey Nicholas Farha Meagan Homsey Kylan Atkinson Jacob Phelps Michael Haggai Johnny Jones III Robert Miller Emerson Wyrick Robol Younis
Sunday School 2015-2016! Our classes will begin Sunday, September 13th! We will also have our bowling party at Heritage Lanes that afternoon. We are looking forward to another great year of learning and fellowship. This year Sunday School Registration may be submitted online at www.stelijahokc.com! If you prefer, please fill out the form below and return it to Erin or the office. Parent Names: Home Phone: Parent Email: Parent Cell Phone: Student Email: Child s Name Grade Birthday Saint s Name
All Antiochian Women (ages 21 and over) Please join us for an evening of light fare, fellowship, and MANY surprises as we Color Our World with Love! at the annual Antiochian Women s Fall Gathering Thursday, September 17, 2015 6:30 (wine & hors d oeuvres) 7:00-7:45 (dinner) 7:45-8:30 (SURPRISE!!!) 8:30-9:00 (Speaker Deacon Ezra) **GREAT DOOR PRIZES** (Tickets can be purchased prior to the event for $13 by the 13th or $15 at the door) We hope that each and every woman in the church will join us (scholarships available) for this celebratory evening, to visit with those whom we already know and to make new friends! Please RSVP by September 13th: Jennifer Wyrick (jmwyrick@cox.net) or Dr. Gloria Kamas (gbayouth@hotmail.com)
Sunday School is right around the corner! You can register your children today at www.stelijahokc.co m! Classes will begin the Sunday after Labor Day, which is September 13th. (We will also have our kick-off party that day!) Food Needed! During the YES Family Day on September 12th we will be serving a lunch downtown for about 300 people. If you would like to help by donating food or money to help cover the costs of the lunch, please see Erin! Here's the menu we'd like to line up: Hamburger buns Hotdogs and buns Baked beans Individual packages of chips Individual packages of cookies Ketchup Mustard Pickles Mark your calendars for our YES Family Day, September 12th! This day of service will be open to kids and adults (ages 10+). Registration is $10 per person. Plan to come and spend the day seeing our city in a different light and engaging in fellowship with the great people of Oklahoma. We do need a head count for the event, so please contact Erin if you plan to attend. The DOWAMA SOYO Basketball Tournament will take place here at St. Elijah October 2-4th! Registration forms are Teen Chats this Wednesday from 7-9 in the Teen Room!
Worship and Spiritual Life Sunday Matins at 8:50 am Divine Liturgy at 10:00 am Wednesday Vespers at 6:15 pm (except during Lent) Tuesday Matins at 7:00 am Saturday Vespers at 5:00 pm Confessions throughout the week. Call one of the Fathers for an appointment. Study Sunday Sunday School: Children s Classes after Communion Adult Class at 9:00 am. No classes during the summer. Wednesday Family Night 7-9 pm. Runs in 8-week blocks. Look for announcements of upcoming sessions. A full Program of Seminars and Classes for Adults, Children and Youth for both Orthodox and Non-Orthodox. Bible Study Thursdays at 10:30 am; nursery provided Fellowship & Parish Development Coffee Hour Sundays following the Divine Liturgy 20/40 Fellowship monthly as announced Ladies Aid Meetings as announced Teen Chats Wednesday Nights Adult Fellowship Meetings as announced Antiochian Women s Guild as scheduled and announced Parish Council every 3 rd Tuesday at 7 pm Choir see Al Mamary (364-8904) Membership To become a member, you need to pray with us at our worship services, complete the Inquirer s Classes, and talk with our priests about your interest in the Orthodox faith. This process normally takes 12 months. We welcome you on your journey of faith and invite you to learn of the ancient and unchanging Holy Orthodox Church. AUGUST 30, 2015 USHERS: Mike Deeba, Matthew Ghata, Dr. Trey Homsey, Malek Massad, Trae Rahill, Jay Silvernail, Haitham Sweis, John Wilson III ALTAR SERVERS: David Baskerville, Andrew Sweis, Alec Karam, Caleb Swearingen, Michael Salem, Bo Naifeh, Blaise Bittle, Sam McClellan, Anthony Hancock, Justin Samara EPISTLE READER: Nila Watford ELDERS: Dr. Joe Byrnes, Dr. Emile Farha, Bob Floyd, Dr. Joe Harroz, Dr. Timothy Kaiser, Bob Maness BOOKSTORE: Magid Assaleh DEADLINE FOR THE BULLETIN IS 5:00 PM ON TUESDAY CALENDAR Sunday Aug. 30 Monday Aug. 31 Choir Rehearsal 7:00 pm Tuesday Sept. 1 Festal Orthros for the Church 7:00 am New Year Wednesday Sept. 2 Vespers 6:15 pm Teen Chats 7:00 pm Family Night 7:00 pm Thursday Sept. 3 Orthodox Study Fellowship 10:30 am Friday Sept. 4 Saturday Sept. 5 Great Vespers 5:00 pm