Parish Life
Welcome to the Parish Life section of Saint Peter Orthodox Church website. This is where we post news, events, photographs and more.
Welcome to the Parish Life section of Saint Peter Orthodox Church website. This is where we post news, events, photographs and more.
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Saint Peter Antiochian Orthodox Church
Madison, Mississippi
Wednesday, May 01, 2013
5/5 announcements
May 5, 2013
PASCHA
"Unique and holy day, King and lord of days, feast of feasts, solemnity of solemnities. . . " Thus we celebrate the Great Feast because of the resurrection of our Lord and begin the season of celebration which lasts through Pentecost. The paschal solemnities (of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday) are joined to the feast of the resurrection to endow the mystery of Christmas and the Incarnation with the fulness of its meaning and are the prerequisite condition for Pentecost. Easter, therefore, is the center, the heart of the Christian Year.
"Come, take light from the Light that has no evening, and glorify Christ, risen from the dead." The Church again represents the Christian mystery in terms of light; this Light, whose birth was marked by the star of Bethlehem, is shining among us with growing intensity; the darkness of Golgotha could not extinguish it. The physical Resurrection of Jesus would be without value to us if the divine light did not shine at the same time among us, within us. But the good news of the Resurrection is that the light brought by the Saviour now completely overcomes the darkness of our sins!
"Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down Death by death, and to those in the tomb He has given life!"
Acts 1:1-8: From our reading in Acts we are reminded that following the Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord, the Church would receive the Holy Spirit to empower Her in spreading the eternal gospel to all parts of the Earth.
John 1:1-17: Reading in the Gospel of John we see Jesus Christ as the eternally Begotten Son of The Father with Whom He has always existed. We also see John the Baptist coming to prepare the way for our Lord's ministry.
Paschal Troparion: Christ is risen from the dead; by Death has he trodden death, and upon those in the tombs, hath he bestowed life.
Hypakoe of Easter: They who were with Mary came before the dawn, found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre, and heard the angels say unto them, Why seek ye him as man with the dead, who dwelleth in light eternal? Behold the grave wrappings; make haste and declare to the world that the Lord is risen, and hath caused death to die; for he is the Son of God, the Saviour of mankind.
Kontakion of Pascha: When Thou didst descend into the grave, O Immortal, Thou didst destroy the power of Hades. In victory didst Thou arise, O Christ God, proclaiming ARejoice@ to the myrrh-bearing women, granting peace to Thine apostles and bestowing resurrection on the fallen.
CALENDAR
Sunday, May 5 (PASCHA)
4:00 p.m. -- Agape Vespers at Holy Trinity/St. John the Theologian Greek
Orthodox Church
Monday, May 6 [NO FASTING DURING BRIGHT WEEK]
Office Closed -- Father John's Day Off
Tuesday, May 7
6:00 a.m. -- Bright Week Orthros
Wednesday, May 8
6:30 p.m. -- Vespers of Bright Week
Thursday, May 9
NO Daily Orthros
11:30 a.m. -- Men's Lunch
Friday, May 10
NO Daily Orthros
Saturday, May 11
7:30 a.m. -- Bible Study with Breakfast
5:45 p.m. -- Ninth Hour followed by Great Vespers
Sunday, May 12 (Thomas Sunday)
8:50 a.m. -- Orthros
9:00 a.m. -- Christian Education
10:00 a.m. -- Divine Liturgy
5:30 p.m. -- Youth Group
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Eucharist Bread …was offered by the Woods for the Vesperal Liturgy on Thursday morning; by the Dn. Richard Roots for the Vesperal Liturgy of Great and Holy Saturday and by the Hendersons Paschal Liturgy this morning.
Eucharist Bread and Coffee Hour Schedule:
Eucharist Bread Coffee Hour
May 4 (Sat. p.m.) Henderson Kh. Be'Be' Schelver/Cheryl Pigott
May 12 Algood TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED
May 19 Katool DUE TO CONSTRUCTION
May 26 Schelver
Schedule for Epistle Readers – Page numbers refer to the Apostolos (book of the Epistles) located on the front pew. Please be sure to use this book when you read.
Reader Reading Page#
May 4 (Sat. p.m.) Brenda Baker Acts 1:1-8 25
May 12 Kh. Be'Be' Schelver Acts 5:12-20 32
May 19 Tom Willingham Acts 6:1-7 38
May 26 Tom Skirtech Acts 9:32-42 45
Please remember Fr. Joseph and Kh. Joanna Bittle, and their daughter Abigail, in your prayers.
Please remember the following in your prayers: Steve, Sheryl and Stephen Chamblee; Amy and Brantley Oliver; Aidan Milnor, the Milnor family; Sam and Lamia Dabit and Sammie; Georgia Buchanan, George Johns (Georgia's grandson) and his family; Mary Greene (Lee and Kh. Sharon's sister); Fr. Stephen Tewfik; Sh. Gail Shannon; Dn. Sidney and Sh. Mary Elliot;
Fr. Alexander Atty, the Dean of St. Thikon's who is battling cancer.
Please continue to pray for the health of His Grace, Bishop ANTOUN.
Please be reminded of the following:
Be very careful with the Blessed Bread when you take it after communion. Because this bread has been blessed, we should take care not to let crumbs fall on the floor. Parents, especially, please help your children to choose a small piece and treat it carefully.
Also, at the end of the liturgy, maintain a prayerful disposition during the veneration of the cross as the prayers of thanksgiving after communion are still underway. Please exchange your greetings with each other in the Fellowship Hall during Coffee Hour.
Please be reminded that the Sacristy/Vestry which is adjacent to and behind the altar in our church is considered by the Orthodox Church to be part of the Sanctuary (Altar area) and should not be entered without the blessing of the priest for a specific purpose. If you need to speak with a member of the clergy while they are in the Sanctuary, please ask them to come to you in the nave.
Calendar Items:
* The Men of the parish meet for lunch and fellowship on the first Thursday of the month. However, due to the first Thursday in May falling in Holy Week, the monthly luncheon will be held on the second Thursday of May.
* Agape Vespers will be held at Holy Trinity/St. John the Theologian Greek Orthodox Church this afternoon, beginning at 4:00 p.m. We are asked to bring desserts. Please see the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board.
* Parish Life Conference in New Orleans – June 12-16th.
* Vacation Church School will be held June 27-29, 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Bible Study with Breakfast: We will resume the biweekly Bible Study with Breakfast next Saturday morning, May 11th, beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Fasting Discipline for May
There is no fasting of any kind during the week following Pascha (Bright Week). After the 12th the traditional fasting (no meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy, wine or oil) will be observed on the remaining Wednesdays and Fridays of the month.
Major Commemorations for May
May 5 PASCHA
May 6-11 Bright Week
May 8 Apostle John the Theologian
May 10 Apostle Simon the Zealot
May 12 Thomas Sunday
May 19 Sunday of the Myrrh-bearers
May 21 Sts. Constantine and Helen
May 25 The Forerunner (3rd Discovery)
May 26 Sunday of the Paralytic
Vacation Church School …The Christian Education department will hold a Vacation Church School June 27-29 from 8:30-12:30 each day. The curriculum will be "Ark of our Salvation – Feast Days of the Theotokos." Parents, please be sure to mark your calendars now.
Happy Anniversaries in May:
May 12 -- Cliff and Anna Kathryn Stewart (#6!)
May 14 -- Lorencz and Geraldine Quirk (#53!)
May 19 -- Jay and Joanna Davis (#1!)
May 30 -- Tom and Jennifer Skirtech (#36!)
Happy Birthdays in May:
May 5 -- Dale Cooper
-- Joanna Davis
May 7 -- Tiffany Strain (#16!)
May 8 -- Kh. Janet Henderson
May 10 -- Fr. Leo Schelver
May 11 -- Meghan Brock
May 15 -- Tom Skirtech
May 21 -- Jacob Skirtech (#6!)
May 24 -- Paul Katool
-- Daniel Root
May 26 -- David Turner
May 27 -- Luke Habeeb (#8!)
May 30 -- Dn. Terry Algood
May 31 -- Stephen Chamblee
Parish Life Conference 2013: This year St. Basil Orthodox Church in Metairie, LA will be hosting the Parish Life Conference for our Diocese on June 12-16. His Grace, Bishop JOHN Abdallah will be the speaker. There will also be a special presentation by Fr. Philip Rogers on keeping our children in the Orthodox Christian Church. Parents are especially encouraged to hear his presentation. Please mark your calendars now and make plans to attend.
Quotable: "According to St. Gregory Palamas, the soul is called the nous as well. Yet, both the essence of the soul—the heart—and its energy—consisting of the thoughts—are called nous."
"However, although in the Biblical—Patristic tradition the terms are inter-changeable, to avoid any confusion the soul is referred to as the spiritual element of man's existence; the heart, as the essence of the soul, and the nous , as the energy of the soul. Thus, when the nous enters the heart and acts therein, there exists a unity between the nous (energy), the heart (essence) and the soul."
Metropolitan HIEROTHEOS, Orthodox Spirituality
Worship: Sunday, May 12, 2013 (Thomas Sunday)
Scripture: Acts 5:12-20; John 20:19-31
Celebrant: Father John
Epistle Reader: Kh. Be'Be' Schelver
Prosphora: Algood
Coffee Hour: Temporarily Suspended due to Construction
