10.14 St. V O L U M E 2 0, I S S U E 9 O C T O B E R 2 0 1 4 George Greek Orthodox Church St. Paul, Minnesota To our beloved Orthodox Christian faithful throughout the United States of America: [Let us] maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph. 4.3) in this issue Regis tr y P.3 Paris h News P.4-5 Yout h News P.6 Septe mb er Ph ot o s P.7 Beloved brothers and sisters in the Lord, We, the members of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, gathered in Dallas, Texas, for our fifth annual meeting on September 16, 2014, greet you with paternal love, as we offer glory and thanks to our Triune God. Thirty-eight bishops convened in the unity of our holy Orthodox faith, mindful of our responsibility to each other and to the whole Church as the Body of Christ. We opened our Assembly with the celebration of the Divine Liturgy and the sharing of the Holy Eucharist at the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Dallas Texas as guests of our host, Metropolitan Isaiah of Denver. Even as our Church honors the holy and precious Cross, we celebrate the universal and definitive victory of God over evil, sin and death. We express our deep gratitude to all those who labored for this fifth annual Assembly Meeting. We recognize the new First Vice-Chairman of the Assembly, Metropolitan Joseph, Primate of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, recently elected to succeed Metropolitan Philip of blessed memory. May our Lord Jesus Christ grant eternal repose to our brother and concelebrant Metropolitan Philip. The Assembly also welcomes its Second Vice-Chairman, newly consecrated Bishop John of Naro-Fominsk, Administrator of the Patriarchate of Moscow s parishes in America, and expresses its thanks to Archbishop Justinian, who has returned to Russia. Finally, we greet the latest member of our Assembly, Bishop Saba, representing the parishes of the Patriarchate of Georgia in the USA. In the opening session, our chairman Archbishop Demetrios underlined our responsibility as bishops in witnessing to the Gospel and manifesting God s love in our world. Therefore, in our conversations carried out in a spirit of mutual trust and fraternity, we focused on issues related to the role of our Church in society, such as the advancement of religious education and relations with other churches and religions. We heard reports from the directors of the Assembly s seven agencies, with an overview of their history and current activities. The agencies include the International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC), Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC), Orthodox Christian Network (OCN), Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF), Orthodox Christian Education Commission (OCEC), Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM), and Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting (EOCS). In particular, we recognized our responsibility to address primarily domestic but also, by extension, global issues as the Orthodox Christian community of a nation that plays a decisive role in our world. We are cognizant of the vocation and obligation, especially as we await the Holy and Great Synod of the Orthodox Autocephalous Churches scheduled for the Spring of 2016 in Istanbul. Over the next months, we shall have the opportunity to submit specific recommendations and proposals for consideration by the Synod, through its special Pan-Orthodox Preparatory Committee, with a view to overcoming existing canonical anomalies in the United States. We reaffirm our commitment to the decisions of the Primates of the Orthodox Autocephalous Churches and the Pan-Orthodox Preconciliar Conferences. In this regard, we engaged in constructive deliberation on the vision of our Church in the United States in light of Orthodox ecclesiology and canon law, but also in view of recent immigration developments and trends. In declaring our common faith and professing our pastoral witness, we pray for the families of our faithful, who face unprecedented and unfathomable challenges from diverse contemporary societal trends, especially as a result of the increasing eclipse of the Christian family and its traditional values. Therefore, we emphasize the primacy and priority of the family Christian life, remembering that the first man and (Continued on page 2)
(Continued from page 1) woman created in the image and likeness of God constituted a family, that the incarnate Word was born into a family, and that the crucified Lord was concerned about His family on the precious and life-giving Cross. Finally, we agreed on the following resolutions: 1) We unanimously agreed on our fervent support for the convocation of the Holy and Great Council in 2016 and entreat all those responsible for its realization to work in a spirit of unity and harmony in order to bring the blessed occasion to fruition without any delay or hindrance. 2) We deplore the ongoing violence and extreme bloodshed throughout the world. In the Middle East, hostility and brutality are occurring among members of different religions, sometimes supposedly in the name of religion. We pray for peace and justice in this region, for protection of Christian and other minorities in the ancient lands of Syria, Iraq and Palestine, as well as for the cessation of racial discrimination, partisan extremism, and religious fanaticism. We especially decry the violence of the so-called Islamic State, commending our brothers and sisters in the region to work as apostles of peace. 3) In Ukraine, we have watched for months with mounting dismay and grief the armed conflict and unjustifiable bloodshed among our own brothers and sisters. We appeal to a humanitarian response to the innocent victims of this conflict. We call upon all parties to deepen the present truce; may church and government leaders in the region be a force of restraint and reconciliation. We pray for dialogue and understanding in this land, whose Christian roots date to over one thousand years ago. May God bring unity and peace to the church and people in Ukraine. 4) We fervently appeal once again for the release of our brother bishops in Syria, the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Paul Yazigi (brother of the His Beatitude Patriarch John X of Antioch) and the Syrian Orthodox Archbishop John Ibrahim, as well as of all kidnapped persons. 5) Moreover, we regret that our brother Archbishop Jova of Ohrid remains imprisoned in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and we implore the authorities in FYROM for a prompt and fair resolution to this issue. 6) We are deeply concerned about the reported dramatic rise of those who label themselves as religiously indifferent, agnostic or atheist. We commit ourselves to raising greater awareness and striving to more ardent preaching of the Christian gospel, while calling upon our faithful to increase their vigilance and continue growing in their understanding of our Church s teaching and tradition. In conclusion, we ask for the prayers of our precious and beloved Orthodox faithful, as we continue the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, who went about all Galilee, teaching in the synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people (Mat. 4.23). May the abundant blessings of our merciful God be with you all. Archbishop Demetrios, Chairman Metropolitan Joseph, 1st Vice Chairman Bishop John, 2nd Vice Chairman Bishop Basil, Secretary Metropolitan Antony, Treasurer Metropolitan Iakovos Metropolitan Isaiah Metropolitan Alexios Metropolitan Nikitas Metropolitan Nicholas Metropolitan Savas Bishop Daniel Bishop Sevastianos Bishop Gregory Bishop Thomas Bishop John Bishop Anthony Bishop Nicholas Metropolitan Hilarion Archbishop Kyrill Bishop Peter Bishop Theodosy Bishop Nicholas Bishop Longin Bishop Mitrophan Bishop Maxim Archbishop Nicolae Bishop Saba Bishop Daniil Metropolitan Tikhon Archbishop Nathaniel Archbishop Nikon Archbishop Benjamin Archbishop Melchisedek Bishop Mark Bishop Michael Bishop Alexander Bishop David page 2
St. Paul. MN Registry Births Memorials August 15 August 31 August 17 Mariano: Parents Dina & Eric Negron Lucille Marinos (1 year) Anna Theodorou (1 year) Church Staff and Office Hours Church Office Hours M,W,Th, F 9:00 AM 2:00 PM Tues. 12:00 5:00 PM Rev. Fr. Richard Demetrius Andrews, Presbyter (651) 222-6220 Email: fatherick@stgeorgegoc.org Administrative Assistant (651) 222-6220 Email: office@stgeorgegoc.org A Beautiful Milestone Fr. Daniel & Presbytera Eileen Simon celebrated their 50 th Wedding Anniversary and Fr. Daniel's 48th year of ordination to the Holy Priesthood on August 24th. We pray many of God s rich blessings upon them and wish many more years to them. Xronia Polla and Axios! Jon Kennedy, Parish Council President (651) 653-9756 Email: jdkennedy@comcast.net Lani Hattling, Sunday School Director (763) 551-4876 Email: lanihattling@gmail.com Stella Hofrenning, Greek School Director (651) 917-2668 Email: hofrenni@augsburg.edu Festal Icons Needed Please donate a Festal Icon (11" x 14") in memory of a loved one. The cost is $75.00 per icon. The icons are displayed in the church nave and are put out for veneration on the Feast Day of the Saint or event they represent. To donate an icon, fill out a form (found on the bulletin board by the kitchen) and return it to the office. Reva Adkins, Philoptochos President (651) 337-1118 Email: rradkins@comcast.net Glad Tidings Editor Email: GladTidings @stgeorgegoc.org Andrea Faches & Eric Chadwick, Loaves and Fishes Coordinators Email: afaches@msn.com Submissions for upcoming issues are due by the 11th of the preceding month. Parable of Rich Man & Lazaros Jesus Heals Ten Lepers page 3
Parish News Oct. 10 Happy 50th birthday, Father Rick! Xronia Polla! Family Camp October 10-12, 2014 Join us this fall in a new camping site Camp Courage near Annandale, Minnesota. We are thrilled to announce that our guest speaker is Mother Macrina from the Dormition of the Mother of God Monastery. She will talk to us about what it means as an Orthodox Christian to live the cycles of the church. Beside the time with Mother Macrina, family camp provides a chance to step away from the busy world in which we live to relax, experience God s beautiful nature, visit with other Orthodox families, and get closer to HIM! Registration is available at www.stmaryscamp.com. There you will find more information about the weekend. It is a first come, first served registration process. Don t delay! This is a weekend you will not want to miss. Remember, couples without children, singles, empty nesters, grandparents are all a part of our church family! If you have any questions, feel free to contact Cindy Karos (ckaros@visi.com) or Doria Saros (dsaros@stmarysgoc.org). PHILOPTOCHOS: FRESH Phyllo Holiday Orders are this month! Philoptochos ladies will be taking orders in October for FRESH phyllo. Get your orders in for the holiday baking season. Orders taken Oct. 5, 12 and 19 or by emailing janedono1@gmail.com. Phyllo Pick-Up Days are Nov. 2 and 9 following liturgy. Not only do your pastries turn out pretty, but working with FRESH phyllo is SO MUCH EASIER! Each pound is $4 for advance orders. Please see order form in Gladtidings or at church to place your order. Sunday Social Hour Volunteers needed for October 12 and all of December. Please contact Naomi Tsantir at 612-781- 6485. Intro to Orthodoxy If you're planning to convert to Orthodox Christianity or you would just like to brush up on your knowledge, enroll in the Cooperative Catechism program this Fall. Classes will meet at St. George Church on Tuesday evenings 7-9pm starting September 9th through December 2nd. Bring a friend or family member. Also, it is helpful for parents and godparents to prepare for upcoming baptisms. For more info, go to www.meocca.org. Want to Greek Dance? The Greek Dancers of Minnesota are currently recruiting new dancers for the upcoming year. If you can sing or play a Greek instrument (clarinet, santouri, lyra, daouli-drum), you can participate that way as well. We aim to represent the whole village, so all ages are invited, children through adults (ages 7 to 77, some exceptions made for younger children, so please ask). You do not have to be Greek. There is no fee. Practices are on Sunday evenings in the St. George social hall. Contact Angela or Marisa Mortari at 651-730-1652 or e-mail us through our website www.greekdancersmn.com. Sympathies & Condolence to Michael Mihalides, whose twin brother, George, fell asleep in the Lord. Funeral service was September 5 th at St. George GOC in Sherville, Indiana. May his memory be eternal! Ecclesiastical Divorce A spiritual court hearing will be scheduled soon this Fall to review petitions for ecclesiastical divorce. If you have a civil divorce, you need a divorce through/from the Church in order to return to sacramental good standing. You also need this to be married in the Church after a divorce. Please keep in mind: those who cohabitate, and those who have a civil marriage without a Church marriage are also not in sacramental good standing. This is also known as excommunicated. To begin the process of reconciliation to the Church, contact Fr. Rick. Find Us on Facebook for up to date news and information, please visit our parish Facebook page. Just type in the parish name and you ll notice a photo of the front of the church. Facebook is a powerful communication tool. FOCUS MN Weekly Schedule: If you would like to help there are plenty of opportunities each week- Wednesdays Food Shelf 11:30am - 4:30pm; Thursdays Workday 10:00am - 2:30pm (sorting, organizing, odd jobs etc.); Friday Clothes Closet 10:30am - 2:30pm; Sunday serve meals from 4:00-7:30pm. Contact director Mat. Vera Proctor vsproctor@gmail.com for more info. Women Pan-Orthodox Tea- St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church cordially invites all Orthodox women to our Women Pan-Orthodox Tea on Saturday, October 4, 2014 at 3:00pm. page 4
St. Paul. MN Vespers to follow at 5:00pm, at 1250 Oakdale Avenue, West St. Paul, MN. Featured speaker is Matushka Vera Proctor, director of FOCUS MN, will discuss the Myrrhbearing women and how we, as Orthodox Women, can emulate their example within our church, homes, work and daily lives. The event is free but please bring a dessert to share. RSVP to Sue Perry, 651-895- 6291, suefperry@comcast.net or Christine Quam, 651-270-3829 or christinecquam@yahoo.com. AHEPA District 14 Fall Conference in Minneapolis at St. Mary's Greek Orthodox Church on Saturday October 4 th with meetings 1-5 PM. Dinner/dance social event Saturday evening. Golf event (The Tiger Open) Sunday afternoon. RSVP by September 27 th. Both the Supreme and the DOP Grand president will be in attendance. For more info contact Don Vanover District Governor. Opportunities at St. George Administrative Assistant This position is 30 hours per week with same schedule M-F. Main responsibilities include answering phone and emails, data entry, printing, copying, mailings, filing, inventory control, interaction with parishioners and vendors, light support for volunteer groups. We need a highly self-responsible person who can multitask with good interpersonal and organizational skills. Send resume and cover letter toinfo@stgeorgegoc.org. Youth Minister The position is once again open for any applicants. Please contact Fr. Rick if interested. Gladtidings Editor Must be able to work in Microsoft Publisher. OCF is starting up at the University of St. Thomas New cross installed on top of Holy Gate St. George s 75th Anniversary St. George Diamond Jubilee Kick-Off Reception Saturday, October 25, 6:30 pm St. George Social Hall The entire parish is invited for wine, appetizers & fellowship! Come & see what we have been planning for this special milestone of our church. We want you there for this fun evening! page 5
St. George Youth Cinema Night Youth/Family Activity Saturday, October 4 @ 6:00PM Join your Church family and friends in the Social Hall Saturday October 4th for Youth Cinema Night. We will be screening some Pixar shorts followed by our feature film, Disney's Oz: The Great and Powerful starring James Franco, Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz. A concession stand style dinner will be served during the shorts with snacks for the feature film and dessert during intermission. Yes, intermission! We will also have a photo booth and video booth set up to complement this red carpet event. Dinner and shorts will start at 6 and the feature film will start at 6:30. Oz: The Great and Powerful is a prequel to L. Frank Baums books about the land of Oz. The movie is 'live action' (not animated) and rated PG. There are strong themes of responsibility and making good decisions throughout the movie. If time permits, we will have a discussion with the older children after the screening to set these themes in a Christian perspective. Family Camp October 10-13 Space is filling up! Join us this fall in a new camping site Camp Courage near Annandale, Minnesota. We are thrilled to announce that our guest speaker is Mother Macrina from the Dormition of the Mother of God Monastery. She will talk to us about what it means as an Orthodox Christian to live the cycles of the church. Beside the time with Mother Macrina, family camp provides a chance to step away from the busy world in which we live to relax, experience God s beautiful nature, visit with other Orthodox families, and get closer to HIM! Registration is available at www.stmaryscamp.com. There you will find more information about the weekend. It is a first come, first served registration process. Don t delay! This is a weekend you will not want to miss. Remember, couples without children, singles, empty nesters, grandparents are all a part of our church family! If you have any questions, feel free to contact Cindy Karos (ckaros@visi.com) or Doria Saros (dsaros@stmarysgoc.org). Sunday School Notes Sunday School Service Sunday is coming up on Sunday, October 5th. A few students will be participating in a new Junior Ushering program. Sunday School families will also be hosting the Social Hour on October 5th. Please show them our support. Sunday School Registration is online, please register your students if you have not already done so. Registration forms can be found on the St. George website:http://www.stgeorgegoc.org/ Christmas Program Volunteers are needed to help with Christmas Program this year. Please let Lani Hattling know if you can help with costumes, rehearsal chaperones, potluck for rehearsal Sundays, etc. Oratorical Festival is going to be March 1, 2015. It sounds far away, but the Archdiocese has already posted suggested topics on their website. http://www.goarch.org/ archdiocese/departments/religioused/sjcof Youth Minister Position Open: This part-time position is 10-15 hours per week and the primary responsibilities are developing working relationships with parent volunteers to organize and plan activities for our high school, middle school and elementary age kids. Current salary is $1000 per month. If interested, please contact Fr. Rick. page 6
St. Paul. MN September in photos Family Pine Tree Apple Orchard Visit on Sept. Sept 14 Elevation of the Cross Brick work on the north exterior wall by the parking lot. Church Picnic in Highland Park on Sept. 21st Parishioner Address Changes Vassilios Morellas & Venitia Laganis 5435 Archer, N Minneapolis, MN 55446-2708 Melina Anderson 4345 220th St W Apt 104, Farmington, MN 55024-1279 Michael and Connie Tzenis 11285 172nd St W, Lakeville, MN 55044-7850 Steve Hatzis 781 Pedersen St, St Paul MN, 55119-3539 page 7
Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Twin Cities, MN Permit No. 177 ST. GEORGE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED 1111 Summit Avenue St. Paul, Minnesota 55105 Phone 651.222.6220 Fax 651.225.9276 www.stgeorgegoc.org Glad Tidings October 2014 WEEKDAY WORSHIP SCHEDULE REGULAR WEEKLY SERVICES Tuesday, Oct. 14 St. Paraskeve Petka of Romania Liturgy 9:00 a.m. Holy Confession: By Appointment Vespers: (Sept. - May) Saturday 5:00 pm Orthros: Sunday 8:15 am Sunday School: (Sept. - May) following Communion Divine Liturgy: Sunday 9:30 am
OCTOBER 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat COMING IN NOVEMBER 1 Youth & Family Night 1 2 10am-2:30pm 3 4 3pm-5pm Orthodox 2 Patriarchate Sunday / Daylight Savings +HOLY FOCUS MN - Work 10:30am-2:30pm Women's Tea at St. 9 ST. NEKTARIOS OF AEGINA PROTECTION OF Day (odd jobs) FOCUS MN - Clothes George Antiochian 15 ADVENT FAST BEGINS THEOTOKOS Closet 5pm VESPERS 16 ST. MATTHEW THE EVANGELIST 11:30am-4:30pm 6pm Family Night FOCUS MN - Food 21 ENTRANCE OF THEOTOKOS Shelf 26 Pan-Orthodox Liturgy 6:30pm Website 27 Thanksgiving Holiday Cmte Mtg 30 ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE 5 +2ND SUN. LUKE 8:15am ORTHROS 9:30am LITURGY 11am Church Music Sunday 12pm Youth Ministry Mtg. 4pm-7:30pm FOCUS MN - Serve a Meal 12 +4TH SUN. LUKE - HOLY FATHERS FAMILY CAMP (Camp Courage) 8:15am ORTHROS 9:30am LITURGY 12pm Acolyte Training 4pm-7:30pm FOCUS MN - Serve a Meal 19 +3RD SUN. LUKE 8:15am ORTHROS 9:30am LITURGY 4pm-7:30pm FOCUS MN - Serve a Meal (1600 E Lake St\, Minneapolis\, MN\, United States) 26 +6TH SUN. LUKE +ST. DEMETRIOS 8:15am ORTHROS 9:30am LITURGY 4pm-7:30pm FOCUS MN - Serve a Meal 6 +ST. THOMAS APOSTLE 6:30pm Parish Council Mtg. 13 5pm-7pm Loaves & Fishes (Faith Lutheran Church) 20 +ST. GERASIMOS 27 4:30pm-8:30pm Lex- Ham Community Council Mtg. 7 8 10:00am Philoptochos Meeting 11:30am-4:30pm 7pm Catechism Class FOCUS MN - Food at St George Greek Shelf 14 15 +ST. PARASKEVE PETKA OF 11:30am-4:30pm ROMANIA FOCUS MN - Food 9am LITURGY Shelf 12pm OCF at UST 7pm Catechism Class (St George Greek) 21 22 7pm Catechism Class (St George Greek) 11:30am-4:30pm FOCUS MN - Food Shelf 28 29 +HOLY PROTECTION - OXI 11:30am-4:30pm DAY FOCUS MN - Food 12pm OCF at UST Shelf 7pm Catechism Class (St George Greek) 9 +APOSTLE IAKOVOS/JAMES THE LESS/JUST 10am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Work Day (odd jobs) 12pm MEOCCA Meeting at Holy Trinity OCA 16 10am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Work Day (odd jobs) 7pm Ahepa Mtg 23 +ST. IAKOVOS 10am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Work Day (odd jobs) Metropolitan Iakovos Nameday Dinner (Chicago, IL) 30 10am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Work Day (odd jobs) 10 11 FAMILY CAMP (Camp FAMILY CAMP Courage) (Camp Courage) 5pm VESPERS 10:30am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Clothes Closet 17 18 +ST. LUKE 10:30am-2:30pm EVANGELIST FOCUS MN - Clothes 5pm VESPERS Closet 24 25 10:30am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Clothes Closet 31 10:30am-2:30pm FOCUS MN - Clothes Closet 9:30am Divine Liturgy (Eau Claire\, WI) 5pm VESPERS 6:30pm 75th Anniversary Kick-off ST. GEORGE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH, 1111 SUMMIT AVENUE, SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA 55105 651-222-6220 www.stgeorgegoc.org
The Chicago Clergy Syndesmos Invites You to the Annual Celebrating His Eminence s Vision for the Saint Iakovos Retreat Center The Metropolis of Chicago Clergy Syndesmos is hosting the annual Saint Iakovos Feast Day Dinner to honor our Spiritual Father, Metropolitan Iakovos of Chicago, on the occasion of his Name Day. This dinner will benefit the Saint Iakovos Retreat Center & the Ministries of the Clergy Syndesmos.