Services at St Mary’s Church
Monday:
Mass 9 - 11 am
Tuesday
Liturgy 5:30 - 7am
7:30pm The Way Orthodox Fellowship in Englisg for adults - All ages
Wednesday: Mass 9 – 11 am
6:30-8pm School of Deacons Adults Thursday
Mass 9 - 11 am - English
English Midnight Praises 7:30pm
English Bible Study 7:30pm
Friday: Mass Mass 9 – 11 am
Youth 25 and above 7-9pm
Discipleship Clas Class 7-8:30pm
Saturday: Mass: 8:30 – 11am
Sunday School 4 – 5.30pm
Vespers & youth meeting 7-8:30pm English
Vespers &Bible Study Arabic 5:30-7pm
Scouts 1:30 - 3pm
School of Deaconsgip 3 - 4pm
Sunday:
1st Mass 6:30 - 8:30 Arabic & English
2nd Mass.8:30 - 10:30 English - St Mary’s Church
3rd Mass 8:30 - 10:30 Arabic - St John’s Chrysostom Church
Family Meeting fortnightly 11:30am Hymns Class - English 11:45 - 12:30pm
Church Priests:
Fr Tadros Sharobeam 0414251251
Email: frtadros@me.com
Fr Habib Girgis Younan: 0401238177 – 94498871
Email: habibgirgisyounan@hotmail.com
Fr Michael Salib: 0422431821
Email: frmichael@sac.edu.au
Church Address: 5 Epsom Rd., Kensington Vic 3031 Tel: 93766651
Fr Kerillos Tawadros 0411 518 399
Fr John Makary 0433 445 636
Additional Liturgies during the Lent:
Tuesday 12- 3pm
Thursday 5 - 7 pm
The Martyrdom of St. Eusebius, Son of Basilides, the Minister.
3rd March - 23rd Amsher
On this day, St. Eusebius, the son of Basilides, the minister, was martyred. This Saint was one of the soldiers who fought in the war against Persia. When Diocletian abandoned the faith, Basilides, informed his son, Eusebius, of what Diocletian had done. Then St. Eusebius in turn told his companions, the holy men: Abadir, Yustos, Ecladius, and Theodore about this matter. They all agreed to shed their blood in the Name of the Lord Christ.
When the war was over, they returned to Antioch carrying the flag of victory. The Emperor went out to meet them, and asked them to worship his idols with him, but they all refused. Eusebius pulled his sword out, and tried to kill Diocletian and all who were with him, but Diocletian fled and disappeared. If not for the presence of Basilides, Eusebius and the saints with him could have killed all the leaders of the government.
Romanus, one of the ministers of the Emperor, advised him to exile Eusebius to Egypt to be killed there. He sent him to the governor of Qift (Coptos(, Maurianus, who inflicted upon him many tortures from the Hinbazeen (the squeezing wheel(, dismemberment, and by severe beatings.
The Lord sent to him His angel to strengthen him in his afflictions, to comfort him and to heal his wounds. The Lord showed him in a vision the paradise and the mansions of the saints, and the places that had been prepared for him, his father and his brother, and his soul exceedingly rejoiced.
The Governor ordered him to be burned in a fiery furnace outside the City of Ahnas. The angel of the Lord came and put out the fire and took St. Eusebius out safely. Finally the Governor ordered him beheaded and thus he received the crown of martyrdom. His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
The Departure of St. Agapetus (Agapius(, the Bishop. , 3rd March - 24th Amsher
On this day St. Agapetus (Agapius(, the bishop, departed. He was born of Christian parents during the time of the infidel emperors Diocletian and Maximianus. His parents brought him up in a Christian upbringing, and he was ordained a deacon. Then, he went to one of the monasteries and served the elders therein. He learned from them worship and asceticism and was accustomed to fasting and prayer. His food was legumes to break the fast. He grew in his ascetic life and in every virtue, and God wrought through him many miracles, among which were the following: He healed a girl from a debilitating sickness which had stricken her for a long time, and doctors had failed to cure her. He also prayed once and God destroyed a beast which was devouring people. By his prayers, God granted healing to many sick people. The news of his asceticism, righteousness and the power of his prayer spread everywhere. When Lucinus the governor heard about St. Agapius, he brought him by force and appointed him a soldier in his army. This did not prevent St. Agapius from continuing in his ascetic life and his worship and he rather increased in virtue.
Shortly after, God perished Diocletian and the God-loving Emperor Constantine took over the empire after him. St. Agapius desired to gain his freedom and to return to his monastery, and God
answered him.
Emperor Constantine had a servant who was very dear to him for the good qualities he had. The servant was stricken with an evil spirit which tormented him. Some friends of the Emperor advised him to ask Agapius, the soldier, to pray for his servant to be healed. The Emperor was surprised to know that one among his soldiers had the gift of healing. The Emperor sent for St. Agapius who prayed upon the servant, made the sign of the holy cross over him, and God healed him.
The Emperor rejoiced and wanted to reward him. St. Agapius refused to accept any reward except to be granted his release from military service to go back to the place of his worship. The Emperor granted him what he wanted. The saint returned to where he was before and he lived a solitary life. After a while, he was ordained a priest.
After the departure of the bishop of his town, the people asked for this saint from the abbot of the monastery, and he gave him his permission to leave. St. Agapius was ordained bishop and shepherded the flock of Christ with the best of care. He was granted the gift of prophecy and performing miracles. He rebuked the sinners for what they had done in secret. He rebuked the priests for forsaking teaching and instructing their flocks. His biography included more than one hundred miracles that he had performed, and he departed at a good old age. His prayers be with us. Amen.
The Martyrdom of Sts. Archippus, Philemon and Lycia the Virgin. 4th March - 25th Amsher
On this day, the Sts. Archippus, Philemon and Lycia the virgin, were martyred. They believed through St. Paul when he was preaching in Phrygia.
One day the pagans were celebrating the feast of Artamis. The saints entered their temple to see what they were doing and to see their rituals. They saw them offering sacrifices to the idol and glorifying it.
The divine zeal inflamed their hearts, and they went out of the temple and went to the church declaring the glory of the Lord Christ and magnifying His Holy Name. When the pagans heard about what the saints had done, they informed the Governor, who attacked the church and arrested them. He tortured the saints by driving hot nails in to their sides. He threw St. Archippus into a ditch and ordered him to be stoned until he gave up his pure spirit. St. Philemon and St. Lycia were also tortured with different kinds of tortures until they gave up their spirits. Their prayers be with us. Amen.
The Departure of St. Hosea, the Prophet. 5th March - 26th Amsher
On this day, St. Hosea, the prophet, one of the twelve minor prophets of Israel, departed. This righteous man prophesied during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, King of Israel. (Hosea 1:1( He mentioned in his prophecy some remarkable and marvelous things. He rebuked the children of Israel for their sins and their transgressions, and warned them in advance about the evil things that would befall them because of their offenses. He
promised them the uplifting of these calamities if they returned to the Lord their God.
He also prophesied about the passions of our Savior, His resurrection and the salvation of the human race. He said, «He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in his sight. Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord... « (Hosea 6:1-3( He prophesied also about the abolishment of the sting of death and the dominion of hell by saying, «I will ransom them from the power of the grave, I will redeem them from death, O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction.« (Hosea 13:14( «O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?« (I Corinthians 15:55( He departed at a blessed old age. His prayers be with us. Amen.
The Departure of St. Eustathius, Patriarch of Antioch. 6th March - 27th Amsher
On this day of the year 330 A.D., St. Eustathius, Patriarch of Antioch, departed in exile. He was enthroned Patriarch of Antioch during the reign of the righteous Emperor Constantine the Great. He was righteous and well learned. He attended the Nicene Council, and the fathers gathered there agreed on excommunicating Arius and exiling him and all those who believed in his teachings. Those were Eusabius the Nicomedian; Thaoghonius, Bishop of Nicea; and Eusabius, Bishop of Caesarea.
After the council was concluded and the fathers went back to their parishes, those who were excommunicated pretended that they wished to go to Jerusalem, but instead they went to Antioch. There, they enticed a harlot with money and other things in order to accuse St. Eustathius the Patriarch that he fathered a child from her. She took the money and went to the church and said as they had instructed her. They pretended to disbelieve her and said, “Bring forth your proof if you are truthful in what you are saying. We will not accept your statement unless you swear on the Bible that what you claim against this father is true.” She swore to them and they replied, “We do not need any more proof.”
They condemned St. Eustathius and judged to strip him from his episcopal rank. They informed Emperor Constantine saying: “A council of clerics judged to remove Fr. Eustathius, Patriarch of Antioch, from his office”. The Emperor believed their unfounded judgement, and he deposed and banished St. Eustathius to Thrace where the saint remained until his departure.
The Lord God, Who loves His holy servants, did not neglect to reveal the truth. The woman became ill with a debilitating long illness and suffered great pain. She realized that her suffering was a punishment for her false accusation against the Saint. She came and confessed before the people of the city that the charge she had brought against St. Eustathius the patriarch was untrue. She pointed at those who bribed her with money to lie. She indicated that the Patriarch was innocent and that the child was born to another man whose name was the same as the Patriarch. They convinced her to swear against the Saint
but at the same time to mean in heart her friend who was the father of the child, to be saved from falsely swearing. The priests resumed mentioning the name of St. Eustathius in the divine liturgy after his innocence was evident. He was eulogized and praised by St. John Chrysostom (of the Golden Mouth( on the day of his commemoration. His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna.
8th March - 29th Amsher
On this day of the year 167 A.D., St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna(1(, was martyred. His life began at the end of the first Christian century, and he became the disciple of St. John the Evangelist. He was the one about whom the Lord said, “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, Who was dead, and came to life: I know your works, tribulations and poverty, but you are rich; and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.’” (Revelation 2:8-10( St. Polycarp went to Rome in the year 157 A.D. to settle a dispute with Arikestus, Bishop of Rome, in regard to the Easter feast. He shepherded his flock well and remained on his chair for a long time until a good old age. He wrote many articles and discourses about the Holy Advent, death, hell, torments of hell, the Virgin St. Mary and many others. He attracted many souls to the Lord with his life-giving teaching.
When Emperor Marcus Aurelius incited persecutions against Christians, they strongly pressured him saying, “Swear and we will set you free; curse Christ and we will spare your life.” Polycarp replied, “I have served my Lord Christ for 86 years and He never harmed me so how can I blaspheme against my King Who saved me?”
The Governor said, “If you do not fear the wild beasts, I will make the fire consume you if you do not repent.” St. Polycarp said, “You threatened me with fire that burns for a while, then burns out, for you do not know the everlasting fire of judgement and the eternal punishment that are awaiting the evil ones. Now why are you lingering? Do whatever you want.”
After severe tortures and many threats, the saint wished to shed his blood for Christ’s name. He commanded and taught his people to be steadfast in faith and told them that they would not see his face after that day. They wept and tried to hold him down to prevent him from leaving but they failed to stop him.
He went and confessed the Lord Christ before the Governor who ordered to cut off his head after much torture; thus he received the crown of life. Some of the believers took his body, shrouded and buried it with great honor. His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
Meditation on the Holy Bible Reading
First Sunday of the Great Lent
Matthew 6:19-33
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also Matthew 6:21.
Being concerned with vanity … is indeed one of the worst curses a man can be concerned with … to be concerned with worldly goals, continually seeking it all the days of his or her life and forgetting his or her spiritual life … because of this one might ignore the proper Christian up-bringing of his or her children … because of earthly treasures and earthly possessions … because of status and positions … because of worldly success … because of all these, man labours a lot … and becomes so involved that he or she forgets everything else … despite the fact that man will not gain any (spiritual( value from all these labours … indeed it ( is a vain labour and the cure for these vanity is explained by the Lord in three points:
Do not lay up yourselves treasures … the simple good eye … no one can serve two masters …
+ Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth …
This was main purpose of vanity concerns … which is the love of possessions … to love gathering up treasures … what is meant here is gathering much more than you need … Abraham, the father of fathers was a very rich man … and he had many possessions … but none of these possessions were in his heart for ever … he was willing to abandon all with pleasure because of his love of God … when the land was not enough to support him and his nephew Lot … he asked him (Lot( to choose a place of dwelling for himself … Lot had chose Sodom but Abraham went to dwell in tents in the wilderness (Genesis 13( … even his son Isaac who, God has granted him with, in his old age, he has offered him (Isaac( as an offering to God when God ( tested him and asked for him to offer his son Isaac as a burnet offering (genesis 22 & Hebrews 11:17(. (.
Job, also, was a very rich man … and when the Lord agreed to let Satan test him and he lost all his possessions, wealth and his children … he did not revolt (against the Lord(, but in complete (, submission he said “the Lord gave, the Lord has taken, Blessed be the Lord’s name” (Job 1:21( ( They were very rich but their main concern was not possessions and laying up treasures … But look at another example like Gehazi, Elisha the prophet’s servant … he was too greedy for his master to refuse Naaman’s the Syrian gifts … so he rushed after Naaman and deceived him to take the gifts … the love of money and possessions was in his heart … for this he received Naaman the Syrian’s leprosy as well and it stayed with him and all his descendants after him (2Kings 5(
A rich man came to the Lord Jesus and asked Him, what to do to have eternal life?? And when the Lord asked him to sell all his possessions and give to the poor and follow Him carrying his cross, the rich man went away very sorrowful for he had great possessions (Matthew 19:22( … The Lord said to the multitudes ( “Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:23(. (.
There is a story from the Church history; about a bishop who became obsessed with the love of possessions … his name was John (Youhana( and he had a strong desire of possessing treasures and money … a friend of him heard of this desire and his name was St Epiphanius and he was greatly saddened and offered many prayers to God for guidance and for his friend to be saved from this terrible vice … he went to visit him … John had a great reception for his friend and put on show his great possessions of valuable silver wares … Epiphanius was greatly saddened and his heart troubled for the vain concerns of his friend the bishop … after Epiphanius return to his monastery, he sent a message to John asking him to lend him the silver wares for a reception to one of the nobles … and indeed, John sent the silver wares … Epiphanius sold all the silver wares and gave the proceeds to the poor … for the poor were the nobles he wanted to honour because they were the brethren of the Lord Jesus … the poor … after some days, John sent asking for the return of the silver wares … Epiphanius kept on delaying his requests for a long period … the two friends met in the resurrection church in Jerusalem … and there John caught his friend Epiphanius and with great anger asked for the silver wares … Epiphanius offered many prayers for the Lord to alert his friend to his John to what vice he has fallen into … and what followed is amazing; John became blind … which made him frightened, cried and felt what a great vice he (John( had fallen in by his love of money and ( possessions … Epiphanius, again prayed for for him and one eye was opened again but the other eye stayed blind and John learned his lesson and got out of his vice and since he became very merciful on the poor and became an exemplary in his ascetism and despising all worldly possessions.. How difficult it is for man to let the reigns loose for one’s self … wanting to satisfy one’s self with all vices … desiring and seeking all worldly possessions … for “the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear is filled with hearing (Ecclesiastes 1:8( (
You beloved … what is your goal or what is your wish out of this life?? What do you want?? Treasures on earth or treasures in Heavens?? Do you know; no matter how much you have laid up of trasures on earth; you will leave it all behind and regardless you will end up in a dark tomb, naked and void of all things. Why don’t you lay up your treasures heavens … make heaven where your treasure is … there your heart will be too. + The lamp of the body is the eye …
Vain labour and concern, starts with the eye … for the eye sees and desires and wants the earthly treasures … there are eyes which sees and thanks God for everything … and there are eyes which desires everything it sees … desires and covet … there are eyes which sees like the eyes of the stranger … all that it sees are just a passing scene does not enter and dwell in the heart … and there are eye which act like a gate for all things to enter (into the heart( … ( The Holy Bible tells us about the servant with evil eye (Mat-
thew 20( … this servant agreed with his master to work ( in his vineyard for a denarius … the servant worked a full day … but the master brought in other servants, some in the middle of the day and some at the eleventh hour (one hour before the end of the day( and at the time distributing ( the wages, the master gave all a denarius each, starting with the ones started at the eleventh hour and it came the one who started first, he thought he will be paid more … but the master paid him a denarius so he was enraged and objected … but the master said, I am doing you no wrong … did you not agree with me for a denarius … and he blamed him for his evil eye … an eye which covets and desires …
For the evil eye is the eye is not the eye which covets sin only … but it is the eye which seeks the eartly physical and materialistic as the main aim … such the eyes greed … the satisfied person shuts his eyes with satisfaction with what one has, but the greedy eyes desires everything it sees … and troublesome the greedy eyes can become and engage the person with many matters
The greedy eyes covets and seeks what others have … and more …
Greedy eyes covets and seek evil to possess what it does not have … it is evil eyes.
Where does your eyes look, beloved?? Are your eyes concerned with heavenly scenes??? Are your eyes filled with the Lord Jesus Christ Crucified for you?? Or, your eyes are eyes of greed and coveting earthly possessions Is your eye a critical eye?? Searching for the mistakes (of others(?? Or it is a simple eye, which sees good and good- (?? good ness in everyone??
The critical eye is the eye of a haughty person who is not satisfied with anything … wanting to be higher and better than others … it is a conceited eye … ask God to give you a simple eye … a thanful eye … the eye of prayers … the repentant eye … the eye which is fixed on heavens. + No one can serve two masters …
Love of Money is a very harsh master … it is a master with no mercy … if it controls a person, it will rule him or her and one becomes a slave without any will power … who ever becomes a slave of this harsh master cannot serve any other master … how harsh and powerful being a slave to the love of money … Judas Iscariot was a lover of money … he was a thief and a robber … the love of money led him to sell his Master for coins of silver. There was a rich man called Theropodous … but he was a very stingy … he was called by the patriarch pope Yohana (John( the merciful to accompany him in some visitations ( of the sick in a hospital … and the patriarch had no money on this day to give out as charities to the needy so he desired that Theropodous will receive the blessing of this charity, so he asked him to give to the needy and the Lord will compensate him greatly … Theropodous was embarrassed and did not wish the to disobey the pope or to show his stinginess in front of the patriarch, so he ordered his servant to give a gold coin to each patient … Theropodous
on his return to his house, he worked out how much he had given away and found it be a large sum of money … so, he became sad and regrated losing so much gold coins to the extent that he became sick with a fever … the patriarch heard what happened to Theropodous … and he had pity on him, so he collected a sum of money and went to him and offered him the money a compensation for the sum he gave away and pope told him that he considered this money as a loan and now he is returning it … Theropodous was very happy with this and he recovered from the fever … at night he had a terrifying dream … that he died and his soul went to the everlasting and he was in front of a very prominent palace and it was written on the door, here lives Theropodous the generous giver of charity, but after a little while a very respectable man came and asked for the name to erased and the name of the patriarch to be written in it’s place who has bought this palace with his charity which he has given ti Theropodous the stingy … he woke up from his sleep worried and recognised his end if he continued in his stinginess … and he decided from this moment onward to offer a true repentance and became a great giver of charity to the poor giving with great love and generosity Also, there is a famous story about the late father Mikhail Ibrahim before he was ordained as priest … he was a clerk in a police station and he used to attend church on Sunday (Sunday is a working day in Egypt( and ( commander of the police station had given him special dispensation to come at 10:00 am on Sundays … one day an inspector came to the station on Saturday a requested that he will inspect all the clerks on Sunday at 8:00 am including Mr Mikhail Ibrahim but on Sunday morning, Mr Mikhail went to church as usual despite the instructions of the inspector … which enraged the inspector and sent to call him from the church but he refused to leave the church till the end of prayers … and when he came to work at 10:00 am the inspector was at height of his rage but Mr Mikhail answered his saying in absolute calmness that he was before a great king who would not allow him to leave till now … and he asked him not be angry and that he was willing to accept whatever punishment he sees fit to impose on him … the inspector rushed to contact the local general manager asking for a severe punishment and an investigation, but the commander of the station intervened on behalf of Mr Mikhail saying that he is an exemplary in his honesty and attitude and he defended him before the general manager and his good conduct and good work. And, you beloved … do you serve God or the world … who is your master?? Do not deceive yourself and say God and the world … either you serve God or serve the world … you can not serve two masters ever … be concerned with your own salvation … seek the kingdom of God and His glory … First … and all these will be given to you and increased.
