S t . B a s i l t h e G r e a t A nt i o c h i a n O r t h o d o x C hu r c h
S t . B a s i l t h e G r e a t A nt i o c h i a n O r t h o d o x C hu r c h His Eminence Metropolitan JOSEPH, Archbishop of New York and Metropolitan of all North America.
His Grace Bishop THOMAS, Auxiliary Bishop of The Diocese of Oakland, Charleston, and the Mid-Atlantic.
REV. FATHER JAMES PURDIE, PASTOR 1520 Todds Lane Hampton, VA 23666 Phone: Office (757) 223-4159, Cell: (412) 327-4099 Email: OrthodoxHampton@gmail.com Web Site: www.OrthodoxHampton.com
Welcome visitors! If you are visiting with us for the first time, we greet you in the Holy Name of Christ, our Saviour, and hope you will join us in fellowship after worship. We are genuinely pleased to have you with us today. We must remind you that while the Orthodox Church prays for the unity of all, we do not practice “open Communion.� Only those Orthodox Christians who have prepared themselves with prayer, fasting, and regular confession should approach the chalice.
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For questions, please contact Fr. James Purdie. Blessings.
Seraphim the Wonderworker of Sarov
On January 2, we commemorate the life of St. Seraphim of Sarov. This beloved saint’s humility and kindness to both people and animals provide an excellent example for all of us. His name day falls right after the beginning of the new calendar year. We are writing this blog post a whole month before his commemoration, in order to allow time for us to learn about him and teach our children about his life before any of us make our New Year’s resolutions. Emulating his life – even just one aspect of his holy way of living – would be an excellent New Year’s resolution for any Orthodox Christian. St. Seraphim, first named Prochor Moshnin, was born in in Kursk, Russia, in 1759, to devout parents who took him to church and taught him the things of God. At an early age, miracles began to happen in Prochor’s life. For example, when he was only 7 years old, he once fell from the bell tower (which was 3 or 4 stories tall) of the Kursk Cathedral. He should have been seriously injured, but God worked a miracle, and he was unharmed. When he was 10, he became very ill. One night, the Mother of God appeared to him and told him that he would soon be healed. A few days later, a wonder-working icon of the Theotokos was processing through Kursk when rain suddenly began to pour down from the clouds. The procession took a shortcut through Prochor’s family’s yard. His mother carried her sick boy outside to venerate the icon as it passed, and he recovered from his illness that very day. Throughout the early years of his life, Prochor studied the scriptures and attended church. At age 19, he went to live in a monastery so that he could become a monk. At the monastery, he worked hard and prayed hard. Years later, at age 27, he was tonsured as the monk “Seraphim,” and a few years after that, he was ordained to the priesthood. After he became a priest, St. Seraphim served God in a variety of ways. He served as the priest for the monastery in Diveyevo; he lived for a while in solitude in the forest; he prayed on a rock for 1,000 days/nights; and much more. Throughout these experiences, he welcomed all visitors, whether they were children, adults, or animals. All the while, he worked at praying the Jesus Prayer. Sometimes when he prayed, he shone with holy light because of how close he was to God. When the Abbot of Sarov asked St. Seraphim to go back to the monastery to help the pilgrims who came there, he obeyed. The pilgrims who came to see St. Seraphim were greeted with, “Christ is risen!” and he called everyone, “My Joy.” God often revealed to him what the pilgrims’ struggles were, even before they told him about the troubles they were having. Each pilgrim left their meeting with St. Seraphim feeling happy and full of the hope of the resurrection of Christ. The Theotokos appeared to St. Seraphim 12 times over the course of his lifetime. One of the last times she appeared, he was working at the monastery when he saw her walking around the outskirts of the property. When he saw her, he understood that she was protecting the monastery, and that whoever followed her footsteps in that path would be blessed. He and the nuns spent years digging a canal where she had walked so that pilgrims could also walk there, praying to the Theotokos, and be blessed. To this day, they do. And they are. St. Seraphim reposed in the Lord a few days after the canal was completed. There are many accounts of miracles through his prayers, since his repose in the Lord.
ANTIPHON THE
RESURRECTIONAL APOLYTIKION IN TONE FIVE Let us believers praise and worship the Word; coeternal with the Father and the Spirit, born of the Virgin for our salvation.
the f irst robe again. Christ hath appeared, for He truly willeth to renew all creation. TROPARION OF ST. BASIL THE GREAT IN TONE ONE
In all the earth that received thy sayings, thy melody did resound, O righteous father, through which thou didst go about and proclaim, as worthy of God, the nature of creatures, cultivating the character APOLYTIKION OF THE FOREFEAST of mankind, OF THEOPHANY IN TONE FOUR O thou of kingly Priesthood, Basil. Be thou ready, Zabulon; prepare thyself, O Nephthalim. * River Wherefore, plead thou with Christ Jordan, stay thy course and skip God to save our souls. for gladness to receive * the Sovereign Master, Who cometh KONTAKION OF THE FOREFEAST now to be baptized. OF THEOPHANY IN TONE FOUR For, He took pleasure in ascending the Cross in the flesh to suffer death; and to raise the dead by His glorious Resurrection.
O Adam, be thou glad with our f irst mother, Eve; hide not as ye did of old in Paradise. Seeing you naked, He hath appeared now to clothe you in 4
In the running waters of * the Jordan River, * on this day the Lord of all * crieth to John: Be not af raid * and hesitate not to baptize Me, * for I am come to save Adam, the f irstformed man.
EPISTLE THE
O Lord, save Thy people and bless Thine inheritance. Unto Thee will I cry, O Lord my God. The Reading f rom the Second Epistle of St. Paul to St. Timothy. (4:5-8) Timothy, my son, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulf ill your ministry. For I am already on the point of being sacrif iced; the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good f ight, I have f inished the race, and I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved His appearing. 5
GOSPEL THE
The reading f rom the Holy Gospel according to St. Mark. (1:1-8) The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, “Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way; the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” John the Baptizer appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 6
And there went out to him all the country of Judea, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, and had a leather girdle around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes He Who is mightier than I, the strap of Whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
THE
KOINONIKON ( COMMUNION HYMN) Praise the Lord f rom the Heavens; Praise Him in the highest; Alleluia.
POST COMMUNION PRAYER OF ST. BASIL THE GREAT (PRAY SILENTLY AFTER RECEIVING THE HOLY GIFTS) O Master, Christ our God, King of all ages and Maker of all things, I thank Thee for all the good things which Thou hast given me and of partaking of Thine immaculate and life-giving Mysteries. Wherefore, I pray Thee, who art good and loves mankind, keep me under Thy protection and in the shadow of Thy wings, and grant me a pure conscience, even unto my last breath to partake of Thy Holy Gifts for unto Thee we ascribe glory and thanksgiving, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen. 7
OFFERINGS + Prayers of Health and Safety are offered for +
June, Maksimenko Fam, Wenker Fam, Mariya, Fritts Fam, Elmily, Bob, Elena, Tomashevskiy Fam, Danece, Daniel, Irina, Daria + child, Christopher, Daniel, Christopher, Sophia, George, Angelina, Ekaterina, Daniel, Nun Thekla, Igor, George, Alexander, Mark, Alexander, Caroline, Vladimir, Anna, Olga, Dahnil, Whelan Fam, Marcia, Daniel, Jack + child, Margaret, Jane, Fr. Antonio, 8
Fr. Adam, Fr. James, Fr Elia, Fr Earl, Fr Isaac, Fr Gabriel, Fr Christopher, Dn John, Dn Steve, Dn Kirk, Saur, Edens, Davis, Simerick, Crawford, Leavy, Hovarter, Zambonni, Freedman, Nasi, Holden, Hovan, Adam, Jake, Jonah, Riske, Susan, Cheryl, Ben + fam, Diana + fam, Thadeus, David, John, Aaron, Lee, Nathan, Camron, Lisa, Alix, Seraphim, Grant, Scott, Bridgit, Kathy, Charlie`
OFFERINGS +++ Prayers of Loving Memory are offered for +++
Edd, Alexandra, Yuri, Boris, Valentin, Elena, Valentina, Vladimir, Evdoria, Radovanka, John, Steven, Connie, William, Lazar, Steven, Roger, Bill, Kelly, Mary, Gerhard, Lena, Marcie, Priscilla, Mariya, Ivan, Alexsandra, Vladimir, Agrafena, Pavel, Evgenia, Iakov, Vladimir, Alexsandr, Nina, Richard, Elcha, Lydia, Victor, Tatyana, Alexandr, Evdania,
Ephimia, Ephim, Michael, Alexey, Alexander, Alexandra, Yuri, Boris, Valentin, Valentina, Vladimir, Seraphima, Elena, Evdokia, Fr. Neil, Priscilla, Dan, Lazar, Agrapena, Gabby, Patricia, Agripina, Klaudia, Pavel, Richard, Eleanor, Richard, Beatrice, David, Robin, Marvin, Erica, Elena, Fr. Niel, Ivan, Klaudia, Alexandra, Agrafena, Pelagea.
Holy Bread is offered by Planinka Whelan for the health, safety, and memory of her loved ones. 9
Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia Commemorated on January 1
Saint Basil the Great was born about the end of the year 329 in Caesarea of Cappadocia, to a family renowned for their learning and holiness. His parents’ names were Basil and Emily. His mother Emily (commemorated July 19) and his grandmother Macrina (Jan. 14) are Saints of the Church, together with all his brothers and sisters: Macrina, his elder sister (July 19), Gregory of Nyssa (Jan. to), Peter of Sebastia (Jan. 9), and Naucratius. Basil studied in Constantnople under the sophist Libanius, then in Athens, where also he formed a f riendship with the young Gregory, a fellow Cappadocian, later called “the Theologian.” Through the good influence of his sister Macrina (see July 19), he chose to embrace the ascetical life, abandoning his worldly career. He visited the monks in Egypt, in Palestine, in Syria, and in Mesopotamia, and upon returning to Caesarea, he departed to a hermitage on the Iris River in Pontus, not far f rom Annesi, where his mother and his sister Macrina were already treading the path of the ascetical life; here he also wrote his ascetical homilies. His writings are replete with wisdom and erudition, and rich are these gifts he set forth the doctrines concerning the mysteries both of the creation (see his Hexaemeron) and of the Holy Trinity (see On the Holy Spirit). Because of the majesty and keenness of his eloquence, he is honoured as “the revealer of heavenly things” and “the Great.”