THE MESSENGER Newsletter of All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church July 2015 ARCHBISHOP DEMETRIOS ATTENDS FUNERAL OF SOUTH CAROLINA SLAIN PASTOR Rev. CLEMENTA PINCKNEY Jun. 26, 2015- His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, attended the funeral service for South Carolina State Sen. Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was slain last Wednesday with eight others, inside the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. Archbishop Demetrios attended the service from its start, in the filled to capacity TD Arena at the College of Charleston. The service concluded with the moving eulogy of President Barack Obama. Following the conclusion of the service, His Eminence greeted and expressed his condolences to the wife and family members of Rev. Clementa Pinckney. He also greeted President Obama, participating clergy of the Emanuel AME Church, other officials and participants. Archbishop Demetrios represented the Orthodox Church at the funeral of Rev. Clementa Pinckney. We pray for all impacted by this hateful crime and for an end to all discrimination and violence that is present in our world.
PROSPHORA It s a great honor to offer the bread that will become the body and blood of Christ during Divine Liturgy. We still have a few openings. A Prosphora chart is posted in the fellowship hall. If you would like to offer Prosphora please sign on the Sundays you prefer. Thank you to Aphrodite Petrihos, Hellen Elfering, Joanne Sgourakis, Joan Rakes for providing Prosphora in June. ALTAR FLOWERS Would you like to beautify the Altar for a special occasion? We still have openings on the chart. Please sign up in the fellowship hall on the Sunday you would like and contact Nikki Moravec at 402-502- 2384 for more information. Thank you to Mike & Sandi Kriha, Mike & Nikki Moravec, Bill & Joanne Sgourakis, and Gust & Joan Rakes for providing flowers in June. Memorials A 4 year memorial was offered on June 7 for Patercia Poulos, wife of George Poulos and mother of Hellen Elfering. MAY HER MEMORY BE ETERNAL A 5 year memorial was offered on June 14 for Samuel Maragos, husband of Irene Maragos and father of Nikki Moravec. MAY HIS MEMORY BE ETERNAL A 40 year memorial was offered on June 28 for Elizabeth Poleway mother of Kiki Papke. MAY HER MEMORY BE ETERNAL SOCIAL HOUR We still have many openings for social hour. A chart is posted in the fellowship hall if you would like to donate treats for a special Sunday. Let the office know if you are going to bring your own treats. If not, donuts will be picked up and the cost is $30. Please Make checks out to All Holy Spirit. Thank you to Mike & Sandi Kriha, Mike & Nikki Moravec, Helen Petrow, Joe & Kiki Papke for sponsoring coffee hour in June. Thank you to Chris & Nadine Saklar for picking up donuts, making coffee, setting up and cleaning for the Sunday Morning MEMORY ETERNAL Our sympathies to Stella Kaltsounis on the loss of her mother Julie Getsos. Julie passed away on June 21. May her memory be eternal. Office Hours: Monday Friday: 10am 5pm Phone: 402-934-3688 PARISH INFOMATION Address: 9012 Q Street, Omaha, NE 68127 Website: www.allholyspirit.com Email: Church: AHSoffice@allholyspirit.com Fr. Alexander Lukashonok: FrAlexander@allholyspirit.com Services: Each Sunday Morning Prayers 8:30 am Divine Liturgy 9:30 am 2 All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church December 2013 2
VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL Thank you to everyone who helped organize, run, teach, provide food and materials, and brought their children to ASH VBS 2015! The children had a great faith and fun filled week learning about the lives of the Apostles. THANK YOU The Parish Council would like to thank the following people for their help in hosting a successful Name Dinner Celebration: Kathy Treantos, Tammy Gill, Nikki Moravec, and Nadine Saklar for transforming the fellowship hall into a beautiful dinner hall and preparing and serving the beverages. Thank you to Nick Petrow for catering the dinner and Trey Honke for assisting with the preparation of the dinner. Thanks also to all of you that stayed and helped with clean up. Thank you and God Bless You! June 2015 3
BAPTISMS Congratulation to Bill and Maha Peterson on the baptism of their son Zane Sawyer! Zane s baptismal name is John for St. John of San Francisco Godparent: Mayada Sweis. Congratulations to Ashley Olson! She was received into the Orthodox Church through the sacrament of Baptism Sunday, June 28. Her baptismal name is Marie Sponsor: Maria Knowles LUNCH CLUB Our next lunch club will be July 27th feast of St. Panteleimon! It is an Agape Meal based on our faith in Christ and our love for each other. Lunch Club on June 29th ~ Feast of Saints Peter and Paul 4 All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church
SAINT PAISIOS The latest saint in the Orthodox Church Thousands of believers made pilgrimage to the monastery of St John the Evangelist in a small town in northern Greece to visit the grave of the Orthodox Church s latest saint, St Paisios. Elder Paisios, a monk who spent most of his life in the nearby Mount Athos monastic community, essentially became a saint by popular acclamation. Revered among the faithful as a wise man and a prophet, the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate bishops in Istanbul canonised him January 13, 2015, just over 40 years after his death on 12 July 1974, at the age of 70. St. Paisios is commemorated on July 12 Believers from all over the Balkans flocked to the monastery in Souroti, about 30 kilometres (19 miles) east of Thessaloniki. Baptism Question My wife and I recently made inquiry concerning having our new born son baptized. When we enquired as to whether my wife s cousin, who believes in Jesus Christ but is not a member of the Orthodox or any Church, could serve as a baptismal sponsor, we were informed that this would not be possible. This may cause problems within our family as we had hoped to honor her cousin in this capacity. Why must a baptismal sponsor be of the Orthodox Christian faith? Answer As clearly implied by the term itself, a baptismal sponsor is a pious, practicing Orthodox Christian who would be sponsoring, in this case, your infant son as he is initiated into the life of the Church through the sacraments of Baptism, Chrismation and the Eucharist. As such, the sponsor sponsors the child into a reality the worshipping faith community, the very Body of Christ that the sponsor himself or herself already embraces in its fullness. Hence, the sponsor, at the outset of the Rite of Baptism, speaks on behalf of the child in denouncing Satan, professing the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, and acknowledging belief in and acceptance of Jesus Christ as King and God. Properly speaking, then, one cannot sponsor someone into something that one does not fully acknowledge and embrace himself or herself. The focus in selecting a baptismal sponsor must always be on ensuring the spiritual growth and formation of the child, who surely will benefit from the example of a pious sponsor as he or she grows in life, faith and spiritual understanding. When choosing a baptismal sponsor, honoring a family member or close friend should never be a determining factor. What is crucial is selecting a sponsor who can stand as a model with regard to living a faithful Orthodox Christian life, not only in word, but also by example. July 2015 5
I am Orthodox I proclaim. By Nicholas Hogan A stranger says to me, You no look Greek. It s a sentiment I ve heard often. It s always seemed to me that Orthodoxy and Greece go together like lamb and red wine, but I just didn t know why. As a white, pasty, Irishman whose only cultural connection to my heritage was a love for whisky and a fear of sunny days, becoming Greek Orthodox was somewhat of a fish out of water experience for me. I didn t quite understand what the Greek cultural identity had to do with the true faith? But I was about to find out. 6 All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church The Food! Having just returned from my first trip to Greece, I can honestly say I have never eaten as well in all my life as I did in Greece. Have a Greek meal, and you shall understand why the early Christians thought of heaven as a communal banquet. I never in all my life thought sitting in a sidewalk café, eating, could be a spiritual experience. But with the food and wine, church domes painting the beautiful blue sky, icon stores adorning the street corners and priests by the dozens strolling up and down the sidewalks, it was quite the spiritual experience. And I felt at home, in communion, with the Orthodox world. Communion is the very center of the Orthodox life. I have heard many sermons address that communion does not merely mean to eat and drink the body and blood of Christ, but to be in communion with His Church and those in it. We do not have coffee hour after liturgy to shake off the morning cobwebs, but to be in communion, to have fellowship, with one another. Communion needs to go beyond the walls of the church, and into our everyday lives. I was waiting in line outside a restaurant bathroom in Thessaloniki, when a monk came up behind me in line. As my Greek vocabulary is rather elementary (I m working on it), and still being the Paschal season, I greeted the monk by saying Christos Anesti! He responded back, in perfect American English, Truly He is risen! Turns out, he was an American monk at Mount Athos. We both grew up in the Midwest, and we found ourselves in the Orthodox Church, having a conversation while waiting for the bathroom stall to open up at a random restaurant in a country on another continent. For two complete strangers, Americans nonetheless, to have such a warm conversation, is unheard of today. Imagine being in line for the bathroom stall with those outside the body of Christ and striking up a conversation with the stranger waiting behind you? Do you think that it would be warmly welcomed? In Thessaloniki, my wife and I visited the Church of Saint Demetrios. It was a hotspot for tourists, and many of the devout making supplications to the Lord seemed rather irritated by the loud voices of the tour groups. Being a tall red head with a wild beard, I tend to stand out, especially in Greece. We were standing behind a woman praying, waiting so that we too might light a candle before the icon of Christ. Turning around, she locked eyes with me and I could see a great, more tourists look on her face. After all, I was a tourist. I lit a candle and said a prayer. Walking away, I passed the same woman, who had now seen that I was Orthodox. This time, her eyes looked at me as though I were not a tourist, but a long distant relative. She smiled at me and gave me a nod as if to say, Welcome to Greece. Hospitality in Greece is like nowhere I ve seen in the world. Running around icon shops like a kid in a candy store, we entered this particular one where my wife and I were immediately pulled off to the side by the store owner to partake of complementary tsipouro and chewy candies. He merely wanted to extend his gratitude to two Orthodox customers for entering his store. Never in all my life, in all my travels, have I ever been so warmly received as a customer.
It took me a few years in the Church, my wonderful Greek wife, a big fat Greek wedding, and a trip to Greece, but I now understand why we are Greek Orthodox, and not just Orthodox communion. Sitting around a table in Greece, eating of course, partaking of fellowship with friends and family, reminded me so dearly of the very fellowship I enjoy so much at All Holy Spirit. We may be a mix of ethnicities, but we have hospitality like the Greeks. After all, I am often reminded the Greeks invented hospitality. I m not sure which came first, Greek hospitality or the Orthodox Faith, but I know they are forever intertwined. If the Body of Christ does not stay in communion with one another outside the walls of the church, then we are merely acquaintances bumping into one another on Sundays. Greek heritage is important to the Orthodox faith. You ever try telling a Greek you re not hungry and don t want to eat? That s ok, they will make you lamb. And you shall sit with them around the table in fellowship, eating, communing with love, basking in the awesomeness of our Faith. It was the early Christians who viewed a communal meal with their brothers and sisters as a glimpse of heaven, and nowhere have I met someone who could put together a communal meal like a Greek. To me, you can t get much closer to heaven on earth, than celebrating a liturgy, followed by delicious food and perhaps some 99-cent margaritas. I recall walking into the Greek Church as an outsider. It was fellowship with the Greek Orthodox that turned All Holy Spirit from a church congregation into a family. It is communion with the Body and Blood of Christ that we partake of during liturgy, and it is that communion that we must continue after the liturgy as well. ALL HOLY SPIRIT REFUGEE FAMILY SPONSORSHIP The Family in Need Ministry is very excited, in partnering with Lutheran Family Services we have been assigned a family. Our family is from Burma and of the Karen ethnicity, they are a family of six, dad, mom, two boys ages 7 and 4 and two girls ages 6 and 2. We will receive keys to set up their apartment on Friday July 17, and they will arrive in the USA on Thursday July 23rd. We will be getting into high gear as we prepare for their arrival. Check the giving tree for additional items needed and speak with Brenda or Debbie if you have items that may be useful. If you have used bikes in good working condition please let us know. We have been given a wonderful opportunity to help this family in need. As we embrace this family and help them transition into their new life we too will experience joy in doing meaningful work. All for His Glory, Brenda Denich and Debbie Birge AHS Outreach Ministry Program July 2015 7
Gabriel : an atheist Philosophy Student at Mount Athos By Metropolitan of Mesogeas Nicholas Some years back, a young student approached me. He told me he was an Atheist, although being very reluctant but also having the intensity of a serious seeker, but that he would be content to believe and yet he could not. He tried for years [to believe] without any effect. [He told me that] he spoke with educated and professors, without having satisfied his thirst for something important. When he heard about me He spoke with professors and the educated, but his thirst for something serious was not satisfied. He heard of me and decided to share with me his existential need. He asked me for scientific proof for the existence of God. I asked him Do you know integrals or differential equations? He said Unfortunately no, I am a Philosopher I told him, jokingly That's a shame! Because I know how to prove it like that He felt uneasy and became quiet for a while. I said: Look, I'm sorry I joked with you, God isn't a mathematical proof or an equation. If He was anything like that then all the learned people would believe in Him. There are other ways to get close to God, you know. Have you been to Holy Mountain Athos? Ever met an Ascetic monk? Father, no, but because I've heard so much, I'm thinking about going there. I could even go tomorrow if you told me to do so. Do you happen to know anyone well educated to meet? What would you choose? Someone who is educated but can make your mind dizzy or someone that can wake you and who is a saint? I'd like someone educated because I fear Saints I asked: "Faith has to do with the heart, why not try a saint? What's your name? He said Gabriel To told him how to go to an Ascetic Monk. I gave him the way to find him and all necessary directions, even draw him a map. You should go and tell him the same thing you told me. Tell him 'I am an Atheist, but I want to believe in God, I want proof of his existence He replied I am frighten and ashamed I asked Why are you frighten and ashamed of the Saintly man and not of me? After a few days he went and found the ascetic conversing with a young man in his yard. On the opposite side four others were sitting on some logs waiting. Among them Gabriel found a tentative seat. No more than ten minutes later the Elder finished his conversation with the young man. He asked : "How's are you, Lads?" "Have you taken a Turkish Delight? Did you drink water?" They said " thank you, Elder", with secular gentleness. He said to Gabriel, "Come here," picking him out from the others. "I'll take the water, and you take the box with Turkish Delights, and you come closer so I can whisper a secret: It is Okay for someone to be an atheist, but having the name of an angel and be an atheist? That's the first time I 've seen a thing like that." He almost had a heart attack after this surprise. How could he know his name? Who informed him of his problem? Finally what, was that the Elder wanted to tell him? He asked: "Father, could I speak with you for a while?" barely been able to whisper. "Look here now, It's getting late. Take the Turkish Delight, drink some water, and go to the most nearby monastery to spend the night." Father, I wish to speak with you, is it not possible?" "What shall we say, my boy? What was the reason you came?" He said to me that to this question I felt my breath quickening immediately. Faith flooded through my heart. My internal world became heated. Without any logical arguments doubts were solved, without any talk, without the presence of a clear-cut answer. The 'if's, why's and but's' were all automatically annihilated, and all that remained was the 'how' and 'from now on, what?" The subtle nudge of a saint gave his thoughts what a learned man could not. A saint who was a a graduate of only the fourth grade of elementary school. Saints have much enlightenment. They operate on you, but you feel no pain during this operation. Without opening your stomach, they make a transplant. Without the use of a ladder or secular logic they lift you to never again walked peaks. Without making your mind tired they plant the seed of faith in your heart. 8 All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church
In the Loop Group On Saturday June 13th, members of our community visited the Archangel Michael Skete Monastery in Northwestern Missouri. This was a wonderful opportunity to visit a local monastery that is new and growing. We are planning to visit the monastery again in August! Look for more details in your email and weekly bulletins. Check out the Archangel Michael Skete Monastery at http:// www.archangelmichaelskete.org/ GOYA SUMMER BOOK CLUB This summer GOYA is reading Following Egeria by Lawrence R. Farley. This book discuses a modern pilgrimage to the Holy Land. In the fourth century, a nun named Egeria traveled through the Holy Land and kept a diary of her experiences. In the twenty-first century, Fr. Lawrence Farley followed partially in her footsteps and wrote his own account of how he experienced the holy sites as they are today. This book is informative and inspiring. Read along with the AHS youth! Following Egeria is available on Ancient Faith Publishing and Amazon. Watch in the newsletter and weekly bulletins for a new read in the Fall. July 2015 9
Letting Go of Keeping Score The Gospel reading for July 29 is Matthew 20: 1-16, the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard. This parable can have several layers of meaning. It has been seen, for example, as a description of the various times in life, represented by the hours of the day it mentions, at which people might come to know God. Some have faith from their early youth, some find it in adulthood, and some discover it when they reach old age. We can also look at the parable as Christ's direct challenge to us and to our attitude toward other people. In verses preceding the parable (19: 27), Peter has asked the Lord: "Lo, we have left everything and followed You. What then shall we have?" Jesus answers that everyone who has left anything for His sake will have it restored a hundredfold. He adds, "But many that are first will be last, and the last first." The parable follows. Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a householder who hires laborers to work in his vineyard early in the day, offering to pay one denarius to each. A few hours later, he hires more workers and tells them they will receive "whatever is right." He does the same with other groups of workers as the day goes on. When the day ends, the householder's steward pays the laborers, beginning with those who started at the latest hour. They each receive a denarius. Seeing this, those who started at the earliest hour protest: "These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us..." The householder reminds them they have received the agreed-upon wage. He adds, "Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?" (This last sentence is also translated, "Or is your eye evil because I am good?") Then again comes the statement, "So the last will be first, and the first last." The question is there to consider: "Do you begrudge My generosity?" To begrudge is to keep score, to resent the fact that someone we consider less deserving gets as much as we do. The parable calls us to give up keeping score. On this day we remember a saint who didn't keep score. The martyr Callinicus was a Christian native of Cilicia, in Asia Minor, who was arrested for refusing to worship idols. The pagan governor saw that people admired Callinicus' courage, so he exiled him, not wishing to risk the crowd's anger by executing him. The soldiers guarding Callinicus on the arduous journey into exile became overwhelmed with thirst. He might have let these pagan servants of a pagan governor suffer, considering them unworthy of the mercy of his God. Instead he prayed, and God sent water trickling from a rock to refresh them. Callinicus didn't begrudge God's kindness, and perhaps that day some pagan soldiers saw for the first time what the true God is like. Perhaps they also saw that a Christian, even when life seems unfair, doesn't keep score. (http://dce.oca.org) 10 All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church
July 2015 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 6:00 Vesperal Divine Liturgy St. John of San Francisco 2 3 4 Independence Day 5 9:00 Matins 6 7 8 6:30 GOYA Book Club 9 10 11 St. Euphemia and St. Olga 12 9:00 Matins 13 6:30 Parish Council Meeting 14 6:00 Vesperal Divine Liturgy St. Vladimir 15 16 17 Refugee LFS Apartment Setup 18 19 9:00 Matins 20 Elias the Prophet Name day of Fr. Elias 21 22 23 24 25 26 9:00 Matins St. Pantelemon 4:00pm Akathist & Healing Service 27 St. Panteleimon & Lunch Club 28 29 30 31 1 DORMITION FAST BEGINS 5:00 Vespers USHER SCHEDULE If you are unable to usher on your assigned Sunday please find a replacement within your group. July 7/5 Mike & Sandi Kriha, John Sgourakis, Bill & Eva Petirdes August 8/2 Josh Busch, Jim McDonnell, Chris Hoegemeyer, & Shelly Reiling 7/12 George Poullos & Paul Bitsos, John & Kathy Treantos 7/19 John & Elaine Berger, John Birge, George Pserros 7/26 Brian & Sheila Zachariae, Dora Bitsos, George & Angie Rakes 8/9 Bill & Cindy Lambert, Andy Karavas, & Steve Thomson 8/16 Mike & Nikki Moravec, Nick Petrow, & Chris Bakke 8/23 Mike & Sandi Kriha, John Sgourakis, & Phil Bitzes 8/30 George Poullos, Paul Bitsos, John & Kathy Treantos July 2015 11
All Holy Spirit Greek Orthodox Church 9012 Q Street Omaha, NE 68127-3549 (402) 934-3688 office www.allholyspirit.com PRESORT STANDARD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 1830 Omaha, NE Elias the Prophet Community Activity... 2,3,& 4 What s the Scoop?..5 My Life In Christ... 6 Outreach... 7 Article... 8 Youth Activity....9 Meet the Church Fathers..10 July Calendar...11 Celebrated on July 20