PARISH COUNCIL Frances Johnson Chairman (517) 646-8786 Samir Matta Vice-Chairman (517) 669-6676 Jack Stein Secretary (517) 541-2367 Maria Daly Treasurer (517) 487-9511 William Gross (517) 410-4066 Don Dimitroff (517) 321-1266 This issue of the newsletter is sponsored by Douglas & Catherine Hattrem in celebration of their birthdays. May God continue to bless them with many, many years! Newsletter Staff Father Christopher Matushka Mary Leann Lerie Matta April 2005 Newsletter of St. Andrew Orthodox Catholic Church 1216 Greencrest Ave., East Lansing, Michigan 48823; (517) 351-4627 Visit our website at: StAndrewOrthodoxChurch.US (no. on St). Rev. Fr. CHRISTOPHER ROZDILSKI, Pastor Rectory: (517) 351-4627 Emergencies ONLY: (517) 256-7399 Saturday Vespers 6 pm Confessions (following) Sunday Liturgy 9:30 am Confessions 8:45 am T Schedule of Events T Fri Apr 1 6:30 pm Lenten Spaghetti Dinner Sun Apr 3 Veneration of the Cross DAYLIGHT SAVINGS: turn clocks ahead 4:00 pm Pysanky, Mosaic & Cards 6:00 pm Choir practice Tues Apr 5 6:30 pm Brotherhood Meeting Wed Apr 6 6:30 pm Presanctified Divine Liturgy Sat Apr 9 10:00 am Memorial Divine Liturgy Sun Apr 10 Sunday of the Ladder 4:00 pm Pysanky, Mosaic & Cards 6:00 pm Choir practice Tues Apr 12 6:30 pm Parish Council Meeting Wed Apr 13 6:30 pm Presanctified Divine Liturgy Thrs Apr 14 6:30 pm Canon of St. Andrew of Crete w/ Life of St. Mary of Egypt Sat Apr 16 9:00 am Sisterhood Baking Bee Sun Apr 17 St. Mary of Egypt Sunday NEWSLETTER deadline for May 4:00 pm Pysanky, Mosaic & Cards 6:00 pm Choir practice Wed Apr 20 6:30 pm Presanctified Divine Liturgy Thrs Apr 21 7:00 pm Sisterhood Meeting Sat Apr 23 10:00 am Lazarus Sat. Divine Liturgy Church Cleaning ALL PARISHIONERS Sun Apr 24 Palm Sunday Christ s Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem Sisterhood Pascha Bread Delivery Deliver Pascha Baskets to shut ins HOLY WEEK HOLY WEEK HOLY WEEK Wed Apr 27 6:30 pm Presanctified Divine Liturgy Thrs Apr 28 10:00 am Vesperal Divine Liturgy 6:30 pm Passion Gospels Fri Apr 29 8:00 am Royal Hours 3:00 pm Burial Vespers 6:30 pm Matins w/ Procession Sat Apr 30 10:00 am Vesperal Divine Liturgy 11:30 pm Holy Pascha Midnight Svc. (Nocturns, Procession, Matins, & Paschal Liturgy;) Agape Meal following service Sun May 1 11:00 am Holy Pascha Vespers Looking Ahead May 2 Bright Monday No Services will be held at St. Andrew Church May 8 BOTH St. Thomas Sunday & Mother s Day Prayers for living & deceased mothers Grave Blessings beginning at 1:00 pm Date Upstairs Downstairs 2nd 9th Lou Lambo Maria Daly J. Lopushinsky Andretz/Miller Olga Chulakova Sambaer Petney Michael Daly Bianka Daly 16th Poufcas Family Kobidze Sandy Oade 23rd T Church Calendar T Altar Servers Matthew Hubinger, Will Gross, Joshua Greve, Don Beck, Chris demorrow & James Smalley Carlos Matta, Nicholas Miller & Mitchell Pierpont Ushers for April 3rd Denise & Steve Covell 10th Sandy Oade & Penju Miteff 17th Tsveta Lambo & Samir Matta 24th Doug & Catherine Hattrem If you are unable to keep your assigned time, please find a replacement and notify coordinator, Cathy Estrada. Social Hour Hosts for April 3rd Nick & Beth Crofut 10th Will & Shruti Gross 17th Paripovic family 24th Penju & Eleanor Miteff Coordinator: Matushka Mary Donahue Cleaning Crews for April Thorough Church Cleaning 10am-4pm ALL PARISHIONERS 30th Beck Donahue Covell Coordinator: Leann Lerie Matta Contact a key holder 24 hours in advance: Fr. Christopher, Mat. Mary, Maria Daly, Leann Matta, Parish Council, other. FOCA Pop Can Returns for April Matta Family Returns can be taken as needed, when the container is full. Please submit the money from returns to Laura, ASAP.
Prayer-filled Intentions Prosphora Donors for April Please contact Jan Sponsky or see the list in the church hall to sign up to sponsor prosphora in honor of your special intentions. 3rd Frances Johnson for the birthdays of husband, John, and brother-in-law, Bill. 10th Luba Evanoff in memory of mother, Slavka Tsintsaroff. 17th Luba Evanoff in memory of husband, Carl on the 12th anniversary of his passing. 24th Steve & Denise Covell & sons, with prayers & many years for Luba Evanoff on her birthday. Candle Intentions for April Please sign up for your loved ones special days or memorials on the Special Candle Offering form in the Narthex. Fran Johnson, Coordinator. Congratulations to Lara Miller, who received a 2nd place ranking and medal in State Championship Competition for her solo saxophone perfomance in March. Church Register First Confession: Jovana Paripovic made her first confession Saturday, March 19, following Vespers. May Jovana continue to grow daily in her faith and find solace from frequent confession. Baptism: Amelia Natalie Vasiliu was received into the Orthodox faith through baptism and chrismation on Saturday, March 19. Amelia is the infant daughter of Daniel & Oana Elena Vasiliu. May God grant them all many years and growth in the True Faith! Living Work & Donations Spring Sprucing! We need your help to spruce up our church hall with a new coat of paint. Contact John Johnson or Joanne Lopushinsky to volunteer some of your time to help paint. Great progress has been made with just a few volunteers dedicating a lot of their time. Most of the prime coat has already been laid and the many minor repairs made. Our goal is to complete the hall painting before Holy Week the last week of April. Volunteer today so they can plan accordingly. Don t forget about God s temple this spring! All parishioners are expected to share in the chores aimed at getting the grit out of our beloved church temple. These extra chores ARE NOT the usual light weekly church cleaning and they ARE for everyone in our parish, not just the regular cleaning crews. Gather a couple of friends, sign up for a chore, and join us Saturday, April 23, to bring a shine back to our church. A sign up sheet is being passed around, or speak to Leann Matta. Forgot to sign up? Come anyway and pitch in! Have you shopped at Meijer lately? Ask Maria Daly how you can help earn money for our church, merely from your shopping trips, through Meijer Community Rewards. Applications are available for you to quickly fill in and start earning our church precious funds. If you have already turned in an application, thank you. Would you like to help improve the learning conditions of our Church School youth? The Church School board is looking into updating the classrooms. Donations are needed to cover the cost of purchasing three new whiteboards. The total cost is approximately $500. Your contribution to this worthy cause would be greatly appreciated for years to come. See the Church School section of this newsletter for further details, or speak with Jennifer Beck. Remember: set your clocks ahead one hour Saturday 4/2 before going to bed. Did You Know? The Presanctified Liturgy is one of the three Divine Liturgies commonly used in the Orthodox Church. This Liturgy, written by St. Gregory Dialoque, Pope and Bishop of Rome, is used only during Great Lent. In this liturgy, Holy Communion is received from Holy Bread which is consecrated on the preceding Sunday. Thus, the Bread is Presanctified, rather than Sanctified at the time of the Liturgy itself. The form of the Liturgy begins with Vespers, and is unique in that there is obviously no Prayer of Consecration. With regard to fasting before the Presanctified Liturgy, it is correct to fast all day long, if you are able. If you cannot go that long without eating, take a light meal at noon, and then have nothing else until after the Liturgy. (borrowed) Your Brotherhood Needs You! The Brotherhood of St. George is a valuable limb of our parish providing continued upkeep to our church temple and grounds and organizing various fundraising events. But we need all men to be involved. There is much work to be done and more hands are needed. Elections for new officers are upcoming. PLEASE speak to Scott Pierpont and GET INVOLVED TODAY. We need YOUR help. Your Brotherhood Needs You! Moments of Fellowship A Lenten Spaghetti Dinner is planned for the parish on Friday, April 1, at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for children, 12 & under are free. All monies will benefit the parish and the Orthodox fellowship will be a wonderful refresher during our Lenten journey. Contact Matushka Sarah or Barb Pierpont for further details. Pysanky & Mosaic Tile Icon Activities During Lent: Parents and children, alike, will enjoy the fun of designing traditional Pysanky Eggs this Great Lent. This year, we will inclulde work on our Mosaic Icon of Jesus for the older children and adults, assisted by Matushka Sarah. Also, Anna Waters has graciously offered to share her card-making materials with our youth to create Paschal greeting cards, especially for our shut ins. Families, plan to enjoy this great activity during the upcoming Sundays of Great Lent: March 27 and April 3, 10 & 17, from 4:00 6:00 pm. (Remember, no drop-offs, thank you.)parents, bring along a lenten potluck dish to share for supper during this time to assure early bedtimes for school. If you have any other questions, contact Laura Fisher, Matushka Sarah or Leann Matta. What a wonderful Cheesefare Sunday breakfast! Our Church School families outdid themselves, providing a scrumptous breakfast Sunday, March 13. The Church School teachers did a fantastic job serving up this tasty meal family style. Fr. Christopher gushed about the splendid fare the following Sunday and desires to make this another St. Andrew tradition for many years to come! Anyone wishing to announce the graduation of a beloved one from school or college, contact the newsletter staff.
Sales Corner: Religious items & texts to fit your Orthodox life What can you find in the sales shelves in our church hall? a selection of 4 different Pascha cards that sell for $1.00 each. Prayer Ropes made by the Sisters at Dormition Monestary that sell from $10-$15. for children there are two recommended books "Andrew's First Holy Confession" and "Anne Learns about Holy Communion". a large selection of new titles, including Mere Christianity and Screwtape Letters at over 70% off for both in hardcover! Numerous other religious items for your home or for a gift for a loved one. But, mostly, for the increase of your Faith. See current & past book reviews, or speak to Matthew Hubinger for assistance in your reading selections. Inspirational reading abounds! See Matushka Sarah to make a purchase. Mere Christianity & Screwtape Letters By C. S. Lewis Two great books written by one of the 20th century s greatest defenders of the Faith. Mere Christianity addresses the fundamentals of Christianity and is an excellent book to give to seekers or to read just for a fresh perspective of what you already believe. Screwtape Letter is an insightful and fictional account of the letters between two demons who are trying to temp a believer away from his faith. It is witty and full of practical wisdom. Both books are worldwide bestsellers. Fiber to Grow On To keep regular, chew on this Adult Education classes are ongoing during Great Lent. Meetings are held Saturdays at 4:00 pm in the church hall. Participants are lead in discussions concerning the Orthodox faith using the Orthodox Way, by Bishop Kallistos Ware, as the basis for their conversation. Classes are open to anyone curious about the Orthodox Faith, preparing to join the True Faith, OR anyone requiring a refresher on their Faith. Matthew Hubinger is the discussion leader. Pick up a good read today from our sales shelves. Each month Matthew Hubinger reviews a book with an Orthodox perspective. See the Sales Corner section of this newsletter for more information. Want to know more about the Orthodox Faith? Just read the short sermonettes printed on your weekly offering envelopes. Please remember to use your offering envelopes religiously towards the continued growth and strengthening of our beloved St. Andrew Church. If you were wondering During the 40 days of Great Lent the celebration of the Divine Liturgy is not permitted on Monday through Friday, except for the Feast of the Annunciation. Instead, on Wednesdays and Fridays, and on certain other special days, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is served. A Feast in the midst of a Fast! The Feast of the Annunciation falls during Great Lent on March 25 and is one of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Church year. Because of the importance of this feast, the lenten fast is relaxed to allow fish, wine and oil on this day. Church Departments Parish Council Fran Johnson, Chairman Church School Jennifer Beck, Coordinator Renovations are currently in the planning stage for the church school classrooms this summer. We are trying to purchase white boards, if anyone is interested in donating toward the purchase of the boards. We are currently studying how to pray properly and a variety of topics regarding the Lenten season including Lenten dates, Passover, traditions and requirements. Grounds & Maintenance...Scott Pierpont, Facilities Manager Choir Leann Lerie Matta, Director Choir members, please mark your calendars now for practices on Sunday evenings during Great Lent. Please plan now to participate in preparing for the Holy Week and Holy Pascha services. Practices will take place starting at 6:00pm on March 27 and April 3, 10 & 17. Җ Organizations of Fellowship Җ Jr. FOCA Youth Group Laura Fisher, Leader Brotherhood of St. George Scott Pierpont, President Sisterhood of St. Helen Barbara Pierpont, President April Meeting set for Thursday Please post on your calendars that our April meeting will be on THURSDAY, April 21, at 7:00 pm. The meeting is moved to Thursday to accommodate the Wednesday Presanctified Divine Liturgies during Lent. Orthodox christian Fellowship Laura Fisher, MSU Group Coordinator (for meetings & group info: www.msu.edu/~ocf ) Words of Wisdom Following are anecdotes provided by our church school children, sharing their learned wisdom- Their recent topics of discussion concerned: 1. Who came up with the Bible? 2. Why can t girls be altar servers? 3. Why can t you walk in front of the altar? I learned that girls can t be altor servers because Jesus was a boy and the aposils. I learned that we can t walk in front of the altor because it needs to be a holy perpose. I learnd that the Apostels had wrote down events that they had with jesus. The apostles wrot down events that happend with Jesus. Its trudishon (tradition) (...that girls aren t altar servers). It has to be a holy perpus. I learned that the apolstles wrote down events they had with jesus. Girl(s) cant be alter servers because Jesus and the Apostles were boys. I learned that we can t walk in front of the alter unless it assosiated with holyness. I learned that the Apostles wrote down events that they had with Jesus. Then they took the events and made a book. Girls can t be altar servires because Jesus and the Apostles were men. I learned we can t walk in front of the altar for no good reason. It has to be a holy reason to walk in front of the altar. The apolstles wrote down events they had with jesus and soon it was made into a book. Girls can t be alter servers because Jesus and the apostles were men. You can only go in front of the alter for a holy purpose.
Parish Details Help beautify your church for our Holy Week services. Please use the two enclosed envelopes to make your donations for Holy Week. One envelope is for Paschal Flowers to decorate the Tomb of Christ and the other, My Easter Gift, is for your Holy Pascha offering. Please give generously for this Greatest Feast Day. Memorial Divine Liturgy: A Memorial Divine Liturgy is planned this Lent for Saturday, April 9. To have the names of your departed loved ones remembered during this service, please fill out a green envelope located in the Church Vestibule and turn it in to Father Christopher or Matushka Sarah by Sunday, April 3. Pascha Bread Sales: The Sisterhood of St. Helen will have the Pascha Breads that were ordered available for pick up during social hour on Palm Sunday, April 24. Agape Meal following Holy Pascha Service: The sign up sheet to reserve your spaces at the table during the Agape Meal is posted in the church hall. This is a special & traditional way to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ sharing in a meal with your fellow Orthodox family. Reserved spaces will be set up in the church hall during Holy Week; please sign up by Palm Sunday, April 24. Remember to have your Pascha Baskets open and ready for blessing by Father immediately following the Holy Pascha service. Early Deadline: PLEASE, all church organizations, mark your calendars to have your May news in by Sunday, April 17. Everyone will be busy come the last week of April, Holy Week, therefore we need your news EARLY so that the newsletter can be prepared in a timely fashion. For the sake of YOUR newsletter staff, please don t wait for the last minute. Parish Details Thinking Ahead, Planning Today! Your church needs you to offer your time to the services of Holy Week. We need several volunteers to help with both the Holy Thursday evening 12 Passion Gospels and the two processions, one on Holy Friday and one during the Holy Pascha midnight service. Please speak with Samir Matta today to volunteer to hold a candle during the Passion Gospels (male, only, please) or carry an item during either of the processions. This is a wonderful way to serve our Saviour and praise your God. Remember your mother on Mother s Day the Orthodox way! Envelopes have been placed on the Narthex table for you to write the names of beloved living and deceased mothers that you desire to have remembered. On Mother s Day, Sunday, May 8, the living will be prayed for during Liturgy and those deceased will be remembered in a Panikhida, following. The dealdline to turn in your envelopes is Palm Sunday, April 24 so don t delay. Grave Blessings on St. Thomas Sunday: As Holy Pascha fast approaches, so does the first Sunday after Pascha St. Thomas Sunday, May 8. If you desire to have the graves of your loved ones blessed on this day, please sign up on the Grave Blessings form or speak to Fr. Christopher. The schedule of cemetaries to be visited is 1:00 pm East Lawn, Okemos; 2:00 pm Evergreen, Lansing; and 3:00 pm Deepdale, Lansing. If you would like Father to visit another cemetary, please speak with him to make additional arrangments. Administrative Reminder: Help us to keep our parish records current by notifying the office of any errors or changes in names, addresses, and phone numbers. Your cooperation in this matter is appreciated. calendar
Book reviews by Matthew hubinger Mere Christianity & Screwtape Letters By C. S. Lewis Two great books written by one of the 20th century s greatest defenders of the Faith. Mere Christianity addresses the fundamentals of Christianity and is an excellent book to give to seekers or to read just for a fresh perspective of what you already believe. Screwtape Letter is an insightful and fictional account of the letters between two demons who are trying to temp a believer away from his faith. It is witty and full of practical wisdom. Both books are worldwide bestsellers. Book Review The Orthodox Church, by Timothy Ware (Bishop Kallistos Ware) If you want a handy reference for the basic beliefs and practices of the Orthodox Church, along with a concise yet thorough history of our Tradition in its various regional settings, then Ware s Orthodox Church is just for you! Ever wonder about what makes someone a Father of the Church or a canonized saint, why we worship as we do, or the meaning of icons? These and many other topics are addressed in detail in a readable manner that is designed for the novice and scholar alike. Having been long established as the standard introduction to Orthodoxy, Ware s book is an excellent gift to friends who are interested in the Faith of the Church. And of course, as with all of the books for sale at St Andrew's, you will not only support your parish, but also receive up to a 30% discount from the cover price. Enjoy! There are 4 copies of The Orthodox Church available in our sales cabinet in the church hall plus numerous other Orthodox books, note card sets, and religious items. Contact Matushka Sarah to purchase your items. The Mountain of Silence What would it be like to travel to Greece to live and travel with a prominent bishop of the Orthodox Church, asking any questions you like? That is the premise of The Mountain of Silence. The author gives a vivid account of the months he spent living with Bishop Maximos, one of the most popular figures in the Greek Orthodox Church today. Topics such as prayer, healing, forgiveness, wisdom, possession, monasticism, marriage, and worship are explored in detail, woven together in an account that is easily readable and edifying. This book comes highly recommended by many, including Bishop Kallistos. It is one of my personal favorites, too! And of course you receive a big discount by purchasing it at St Andrew s. Enjoy!