S T . J OHN THE B APTIST G REEK O RTHODOX C HURCH
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3. The purpose of marriage We can probably understand better now that the purpose of marriage and the establishing of a new family is not, or, better said, it should not be solely material in nature. Yes, we get married because we fall physically in love, we marry because we want children, because we enjoy company, lower taxes (this one is still uncertain to me) etc. All these are good, but, if we have eternity in mind and, if we are committed to the path of askesis, we also know that there we cannot stop here. The greatest gift family bring is that man, (and I say this in the universal understanding of the word, void of any gender specificity) receives a partner on the journey towards salvation, a fit helper that will ease the achievement of this life’s goal. Family becomes as such a medium to achieve this salvation. The home, where a family lives, is the small Church, according to St. John Chrysostom. It is the place where we support each other on the journey. We should say and act towards one another, in the same way the geese fly in a V shape, supporting each other with their wings, taking turns at the lead, as they cross the earth during their great migration. The fact that we are all committed to the same goal should render the spouses, and all the members of a family, to collaborate, to communicate (proper communication - yelling does’t count)
S PECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST :
The Christian Family suspended between tradition and temptation - Part two
Parish Council Capsule
Talents needed! - See Stewardship Page
New Orthodox Church Natural Development Program
Youth Ministries News
Choir News
Fasting for the Liturgy of the pre-Sanctified Gifts
The prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian
(Continued on page 3)
I NSIDE THIS ISSUE :
C OUNCIL C APSULE Well, February has come and gone along with what appears to have been winter. It’s with a heavy heart I write, as you may know, our city has lost one of our finest. Officer David Hofer gave his life in the line of duty on March 1st. I kindly ask that you please keep him and his family in your prayers. He is the first officer since 1982 to lose their life in the line of duty. We hosted, as most of you may know, the NTOM Orthodox Christian Perspectives lecture w/ Dr. Philip Mamalakis as the keynote speaker, having the Christian family in focus. It was a very insightful lecture, with more than 85 attendees. An audio recording of the lectures will be made available soon though NTOM, you can visit them at http://ntom.org/ website. Please mark your calendar for April the 3rd, to attend the Spring General Assembly. (Continued on page 2)
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C OUNCIL ’ S C APSULE (Continued from page 1)
I would also like to inform you of a new program we are starting in our parish that will be kicked off at our general assembly, called Orthodox Natural Church Development. Orthodox Natural Church Development (ONCD) is a way of thinking about church growth by first thinking about church health. Growth should be about quality (health) and not just quantity (numbers).
P LEASE MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR A PRIL THE 3 RD , TO ATTEND THE S PRING G ENERAL A SSEMBLY .
decline. Surveys are done cyclically (about every 18 months), offering an accurate up-todate "snapshot" of your church’s health. Each Survey enables the church leadership to see the current state of health, how the church's health has changed over the previous year, and what areas need greatest attention over the coming year. Growing a church, like growing a plant, requires a long term commitment which is intentional and consistently addressing the most critical issues facing the church at each stage of growth.
ONCD is also a long term strategic process for progressively improving a church's health. It is a process of continual improvement, not a For this purpose Fr. Vasile has program which guarantees "a assembled a new tem consisthealthy church" if implementing (so far) by ed to the letter. Hope File At the heart of the ONCD Liz Strong process is a sophisticated diagnostic tool, the ONCD SurSerban Morcuvescu vey. It is based on the only George Genovezos comprehensive international research ever done into what The team had an initial traincauses churches to grow or ing in February at Holy Trini-
A GELESS WO NDERS The Ageless Wonders will will do lunch or dinner, meet on Saturday, March
depending on show time.
26, 2016, to hopefully go
More details will follow.
to see “My Big Fat Greek
Margaret.
Wedding, Part 2”. It’s supposed to open on Friday of that week. We
ty GOC with Fr. Jonathan Ivanof that provided all the information necessary to start this program in our parish. But more about it at the General Asembly, we just hope to have stimulated your appetite for participation. :) In closing, I wish everyone a blessed and spiritually rewarding Great Lent! Sincerely, Michael Eftimie Parish Council President
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and to agree in all aspects of their life together. 4. Temptations of the modern family Unfortunately, living in a fallen world, these wonderful ideals are drowned many times under the avalanche of material problems and conflicting ideologies a family faces everyday. We see empty forms of family emerging, forms that are not conducive to the common goal that is salvation, because they are built on a foundation that is against man's very nature: sin. Sin that is not understood as breaking of an imposed moral code, but as a failure to pursue man’s original pathway to reach full union with God, through His Grace and Love for mankind. This terrible reality is the result of the great temptations that attack at the core of the Christian family. I would like to refer to three of them that I consider, personally, as defining our age. First one is technology. Looking around us, we see a world that evolves into technologies that were not even in man’s imagination just a century ago. Think only of those black devices, which all of us, including the suckling’s, are holding in our hands. How much power at literally our fingertips! This can make one’s ego boost! Why do I need God when I hold the universe right here, in my palm? Not only I can listen to anything I want, or read anything I want,
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C HRISTIAN F AMILY (C ONT .) but I can control my thermostat from it, I can lock and unlock my house and I even know where my wife at all time, yes, there is an app for that. But this is only an illusion of control because, in fact, we become more dependent of the same technology that makes us boast and we come to be less dependent of God. The second one is the revolution of birth control and assisted reproduction. In the old times people had big families because they allowed God to bless them with offspring as He saw fit, not as they saw as convenient. If some families could not have children, they prayed to God for guidance and used adoption and spiritual parenthood to fulfill and transfigure their desire for offspring. God was part of these families because He was allowed to act in all aspects of family life. Nowadays all is planned and God retires as a polite Being. He leaves us alone watching how we try to put together the pieces we are left with after deconstructing the family. We act bipolarly in this aspect: on one hand we don’t want children and we use contraception and abortion to stay away from parenting and live “free” lives, while, on the other hand, we invent more and more complicated ways to pro-create. Anyone can conceive a child nowadays, you don’t need a partner of the opposite sex anymore, you don’t even need to be fertile; you just go to the cellbank and shop for what you want. The in vitro fertilization
(IVF) and the surrogate motherhood takes care of the rest, ignoring the consequences. And this again makes us feel like gods. The third aspect is the misunderstanding of the word love. When anyone speaks on family they use this magic word: love. However they are not specific, or rather choose to be vague about what they mean by it. The Greeks, on the other hand, were very specific. They had four different words for it: storge, the love for family members, filia, the love for friends, agape the sacrificial type of love (like Christ dying on the Cross for us) and, finally, eros, the most misunderstood of them all. I usually leave agape at the end, as the highest type of love, but I chose eros this time, because it has been grossly hijacked and sexualized. This was not always the case. Vladmir Moss explains that eros was understood as the “incorrupt movement [that] propels the soul out of itself towards other rational beings and above all towards God. Eros occupies […] a central place in Christian theology and anthropology precisely because Christians understand that it is the quality of our love more than anything else that determines our relationship with God, because God is love.” Eros is a force that unites, that makes people feel attracted to one another, outside of sexuality. St. Ignatios of Antioch famously said “my Eros is Crucified” referring to Christ. God loves us so much that He chooses to die on the Cross to be (Continued on page 9)
S IN IS NOT UNDERSTOOD AS BREAKING OF AN IMPOSED MORAL CODE , BUT AS A FAILURE TO PURSUE MAN ’ S ORIGINAL PATHWAY TO REACH FULL UNION WITH G OD ,
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2016 STEWARDSHIP: BRING THEM TO ME! In a well known parable we see the Apostles bringing to Jesus Christ their concerns about the 5,000 men plus women and children that are with them in the wilderness. His disciples lament that all they have are five loaves and two small fish a boy has offered. Jesus’ response is “Bring them to me.” He then takes the loaves, blesses and breaks them, and feeds 5,000 men plus women and children with abundant leftovers. “ WE
FIND
OURSELVES BY OFFERING OURSELVES .”
A RCHBISHOP A NASTASIOS OF A LBANIA
In a similar way, we also bring what we have to Jesus. We offer bread and wine and it may not seem much, but He returns them to us, in the overabundance of His Grace, as His Own Body and Blood, the Holy Communion. By the bread and the wine, foods that are specific to human nature, we offer our lives to Christ, and, through the Holy Spirit that transforms them, we become the Church, His Body on earth. We give our earthly lives in exchange for life ever-
lasting. What a favorable exchange of gifts! No matter how much we give, He cannot be outdone. Just like the boy who offered the loaves and the fish, if we offer what we have – however great or small our gift – with prayer and humility, God will receive our gifts and multiply them to feed His people, both materially and spiritually.
Christian Stewardship is about becoming good caretakers of all that God has given us. God has given each of us special and unique gifts. He also teaches us all that we have is a loan. He lends everything to us, and reminds us that one day He will ask us to give a detailed accounting of what we have done with these gifts He has given us. The only way to multiply these gifts is by offering them to God through the people around us. Archbishop Anastasios of Albania has noted “we find ourselves by offering ourselves.” Have we learned the blessedness of generously giving to others
out of all we have without worrying? Our vibrant parish is on a continuous and sustained growing pathway. Our children, our youth, our young adults, our seniors, our women and men, our inquirers in the faith, our poor and needy, demand the help of our ministries more than ever. The only way for them to fulfill their mission is through your support. Stewardship is not only about how much you give, although this is important, it is also about how much you are engaged, how much time and talent you invest, ultimately in yourselves. If we give the little we have to our brothers and sisters, God will make us heirs of the Kingdom. By giving from what we have, big or small, we become part of the eternal Kingdom that never suffers neither famine nor thirst. I encourage you all to prayerfully consider your contribution in your 2016 stewardship program and getting fully engaged in the life of you parish. May the Lord richly bless you and your family in all
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Spring will be here before we know it and our stewardship program is going great with your help. If you have not become a member yet now is the perfect time to get involved in your parish and put to good use your time, talent and treasure.
teams that fuel the spiritual growth of our parish.
There are so many areas where you can get involved, just contact any member of the parish council (you can recognize them by their badges) and ask where help is most needed. They will be thrilled to make you part of their
We also need people that can feed us content for the Forerunner. We are interested in stories of conversion to Orthodoxy, book reviews, comments on current Christian news, explanation of services etc. Please contact Fr. Vasile if you are interested.
Currently we are looking especially for volunteers for the Hospitality Team that welcomes visitors and potential new members in our parish. Contact Mike Strong and Connie Rafailides.
TA LENTS !
And there is more: grounds and maintenance, adult education, JOY, our music programs, they all are awaiting for your participation. We hope that we can encourage you all to get involved in your vibrant community! Your Stewardship Committee Angela Cline Cecelia Junell Stewardship 2016 information as of 2/28/2016: Goal to cover expenses: $328,521 Pledged: $230,961 Short: $97,560
WE
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TA LENTS ! S EE ARTICLE FOR
H OW TO BECOME A STEWARD IN 2016? FAQ S How do I become a member of the parish? Membership in the Orthodox Church begins at Baptism (Chrismation for some) and continues throughout our life. We are united with Christ through the sacraments and through our faithful offering of our lives to Christ. We have to distinguish however between voting members and non-voting members. A voting member is over 18 years old and has turned in a signed stewardship commitment card (for time, talent and treasure). The Archdiocese also requires the voting member to remain current through the year on their commit-
ments. Overall true membership in the Body of Christ, involves living daily according to His word and within His Church. Why must I commit to give a specific amount? Knowing the amount of your monetary participation helps our parish plan the activities throughout the year. Your monetary stewardship is kept in the strictest of confidence. What if I cannot fulfill my stewardship commitment? During the course of a year,
people’s circumstances change. Your stewardship is valued because it is made out of your love for God and His Church. Please do not be concerned if you are unable to meet your stewardship commitment – we are glad you are a part of this parish. How do I submit a Stewardship Card? You can find the card in the pews in Church or you can fill one on-line and e-mail it to our church office at stjohndfw@gmail.com. More info here
DETAILS
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2016 P HILOPTOCHOS S CHOLARSHIP
D EADLINE TO APPLY IS S UNDAY , M ARCH 28
2016 S OUTHERN R EGION L ENTEN R ETREAT WILL BE A PR 15-17 AT S KY R ANCH IN V AN , T EXAS .
Y OUTH M INISTRIES R EPORT Youth Ministries had a successful Loucoumades Fundraiser on Feb. 7. We thank all parishioners for supporting us. It certainly takes a village to meet our goals and we could not have accomplished this without the help of Connie Rafailedes, Khanh, George & Katie Moutafis, Maria Kerbow and Chris Geil. A big thank you, too, to Pres. Mirela who figured out how to dismantle the mixer - an architect to the rescue! The Oratorical Festival for St. John’s was held Feb. 21. We had six students participate. The Junior Division, open to students in grades 79, was comprised of Joseph Berca, Penelopi Yiantsou and Matei and Luca Tudora The Senior Division, for students in grades 10-12, was made up of Alex Shah and Maria Tudora. Besides the presenters, we are hoping to still have most students write at least a paragraph on the topics. Our three judges were: Christina Andreson, and Stephanie Kallis Meeks of Holy Trinity; and Timothy Shanks of St. Sava in Allen. The winners of the contest were: Penelopi Yiantsou for the Junior Division; and Maria Tudora for the Senior Division. Congrats to all! The next round, sponsored by the Denver Diocese, will be held in Boulder, Co. on April 810. The finals take place June 10-12 in Charlotte, NC. Applications for the 2016 Philoptochos Scholarship are now available, online or hard copy. Deadline to apply is the last Sunday, March 28. See Gail Pori-
otis (poriotis@sbcglobal.net; 214-707-1827) for details. All high school seniors whose families are members of St. John’s are eligible. The 2016 Southern Region Lenten Retreat will be held Apr 15-17 at Sky Ranch in Van, Texas. GOYAns, ages 11-18, are invited to retreat away from every day challenges for a weekend of growth and fellowship. Cost: $145. Deadline: April 3 (midnight). Luminaries for Good Friday. Good Friday is April 29. Details on this YM fundraiser to come. High School and College Graduation Luncheon is tentatively planned for May 15. This year we have nine high school grads: Katie Moutafis, Jackson Wright, Christaki Zingas, Christopher File, Andreas Arapis, David Leimbacher, Ian Rehmet, Yianni Noulas and Rosemary Espinoza. 2016 Camp Emmanuel. Junior Session: June 1218, 2016 (Ages 11-14); Senior Session: June 19-25, 2016 (Ages 15-18). Each year Camp Emmanuel offers participants ages 11-18 an opportunity to retreat away from the everyday and experience life in a nurturing Orthodox Christian community. Camp Emmanuel utilizes the Manzano Mountain Retreat facility in Torreon, New Mexico, outside of Albuquerque. Deadline to register is by midnight on April 30. Registration is $375 ($355 for families with multiple children); early registrants (March 31) receive a 10% discount. Another great summer oppor-
T HE F ORERUNNER tunity is Ionian Village. As noted by IV director Fr. Evagoras Constantinides (yes, the son of Father Chris at Holy Trinity), “Ionian Village gives the youth of our Archdiocese a chance to encounter the Orthodox faith… and is an invitation to change the way our youth live as Orthodox Christians in this world.” The camp is open to students in grades 912. There is also another option for older students - the Spiritual Odyssey for young adults, ages 19-24. Registration opens March 1. See the camp’s website: www.ionianvillage.org or email: ionianvillage@goarch.o rg. St. John’s Vacation Bible School is tentatively scheduled for June 6-9. Youth Ministries is seeking a couple of folks to run a lively interactive VBS for ages 5-10 with guidance from the committee; we also need teen-age helpers to assist (it’s a great way to earn community service hours!). Interested? See Harriet Blake. Peter Agris Memorial Scholarship is now taking applications. The scholarship is for students of Greek American heritage who are majoring in communications at an accredited U.S. college and who have been active in the church and hold a minimum of a 3.0 GPA. Deadline is March 1. See www.alphaomegacouncil.org. The Spring Planning Meeting for Youth Ministries will be held Sunday, March 27. Harriet Blake
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PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS Greetings… We had a fabulous Dessert Auction on February 14th. We partnered with the GOYAns, for a wonderful and yummy day. It was very well supported, and we thank all the terrific Philoptochos ladies that donated baked goods; and all the dessert-hungry folks, who joined in on the Raffle fun. This was an important fundraiser for the St. Irene Philoptochos. If you are a graduating senior and would like to apply for the Philoptochos Scholarship, the applications are now available in the narthex and on our church
website. If you have any questions, please ask Gail Poriotis or Veronica Fisher. I continue to extend an invitation to all of the ladies who have been visiting Saint John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church. The Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society is a longstanding organization for women of the Orthodox faith.
to count you among us. Stay tuned for news of our Membership Tea. It is a great opportunity to visit with us and get to know some of the ladies. Veronica Fisher President, St. Irene Philoptochos
This is an excellent time to get involved in our community, enjoy fellowship with our fabulous ladies and fulfill the mission in our name: “to be a friend to the poor”. I hope you will join us this year. Whether you have attended our church for a while now, or are new to the area, we would love
C HURCH S CHOOL We now have our Passports to help keep up with our Lenten Journey. Passport stamps will be available for each Sunday of Lent during Church School. Stamps will be available in the Narthex for “Trips”/Services attended during the week. Here are some upcoming dates that you may want to mark on your calendar: 3/6 --class 3/13 --no class due to Spring Break (Forgiveness Sunday)
3/20 --class, Sunday of Orthodoxy (Procession of Icons) 3/27 --class 4/3 --class 4/10 --class 4/17 --class 4/23 --Lenten Retreat 4/24 --Palm Sunday 5/1 --No Class, Great and Holy Pascha Please remember to register your children for Church School, if you have
not yet had the opportunity. Each classroom has extra forms and you may also download the registration form and church school calendar from www.stjohndfw.info. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, you can contact me any time at: veronicafisherps50@gmail.com
Earlier in 2016, we had 20+ Goyans attend the Denver Metropolis basketball tournament. We had a great time!
year, make sure to stay active year round!
For any Goyans who would like to go next
Alex Shah
Veronica Fisher Church School Coordinator
GOYA NEWS Fellow Parishioners, Thank you to everyone who helped us in our Valentine’s Day spaghetti luncheon, it was a huge success!
We’re also planning a fun event in March. Stay tuned!
S TAY
TUNED FOR NEWS OF OUR M EMBERSHIP T EA . I T IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO VISIT WITH US AND GET TO KNOW SOME OF THE LADIES .
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T HE L ITURGY OF THE P RE -S ANCTIFIED G IFTS
The hand of St. Ephraim the Syrian, a patron Saint of Church Musicians
A LITURGY OF A GREATER ASCETIC STRUGGLE , FOR THOSE WHO HAVE RESTRAINED THEMSELVES FOR THE SAKE OF THE BROADNESS OF THE H EAVENLY K INGDOM .
Saturdays and Sundays of Great Lent are not considered fasting days. This is not because nonfasting foods are allowed on these days. (Non-fasting food is prohibited until Pascha for the physically healthy.) Rather, it is because on Saturdays and Sundays the full, real Liturgy is served. The Liturgy is the cornerstone of the Church, and whether or not it is celebrated determines whether it is a feast day or a day of mourning. If during all of Great Lent you go to church only on Sundays you will not sense that it is Lent, regardless of abstention from food. One also needs to attend the special Lenten services to experience the contrast between these days and the other days of the year and to breathe in deeply the healthful spirit of the Forty Day Fast. The most important of these special services is the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.
the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts – its ritual, origin, and necessity – without love for the Mysteries and for the practice of frequent Communion. Say what you will and think what you will, but if the tradition of the Early Church had been to Commune five or six times a year, then the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts would never have arisen. The very need for it would not have arisen. The need, however, is that one cannot be without Christ and without Communion. “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
If one Communes rarely, then the Liturgy need only be served rarely, and the remaining days can be filled with the reading of the Typika, psalmody, akathists, teaching, and preaching. But this is an honest path to nowhere, which even a blind man should understand. The Liturgy cannot be abandoned. It is our only wealth. Rather, one should so love the Liturgy that one understands all of church life through it. Khomiakov was perfectly correct when he said: It differs from the traditional “Christianity is understood only by Liturgy in that the Bloodless Sacrifice is not offered to God those who understand the Liturgy.” in it. The Sacrifice is offered and Mary of Egypt did not go into the desert for many years without first the Gifts are consecrated in advance, and one can Commune Communing. Not yet cleansed of of these. The entire service is a the passions, she received Compreparation for Communing of munion and grace as a pledge for the Gifts prepared in advance. the future, so that she could receive The main idea that should arise Divine help in the desert. We, too, in the words of Andrew from a consideration of the present topic is the yearning for of Crete, should settle “in the desert Communion and the sorrow of of repentance for the passions.” separation. It is the reluctance During Lent the passions are awokto remain even for a single week without the Holy Gifts – en, tormenting and disturbing the soul. At times they do not simply even if one is not to feast, but trouble us, but burn and scorch us. rather to humble oneself and weep. Nonetheless, one cannot The need for Divine help becomes go without Communion, which more urgent and palpable. The Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts means that one should at least Commune of the Gifts prepared was established for just the sort of people who labor in pious fasting, in advance. people who perceive their weakness with special keenness. It is impossible to understand
The service is united with Vespers and best served in the evening. The unusually long Eucharistic fast is the only serious concern in regards to serving the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts in the evening. But does not the fast exist precisely in order that we experience hunger and thirst, a subtle physical weakness, and a light dryness in the belly? Have we really entirely abandoned labor, effort, and abstinence, and become fit only for gratifying our weaknesses? One only needs to try, and there will turn out to be more people prepared to struggle and pray than we had thought. [...] Those who can go without eating and drinking until evening, those who are strong and healthy, those who are disturbed by carnal passions due to their youth and excess of strength, let them endure and do battle with themselves. I will say more: in actual fact it turns out that older people are often more ready than young people to abstain from eating and to pray in preparation for Communion. And even young people yearn for ascetic struggle more often than we think. All the singing, censing, and kneeling; all the processing with candles and incense around the Eucharistic Lamb; and all the prayers of St. Ephraim are intended for the evening. This service is mysterious and especially intimate. It eschews sunlight and electric light, inasmuch as the people Communing of Christ are those who have decided to take on a greater ascetic struggle, those who have restrained themselves for the sake of the broadness of the Heavenly Kingdom. Archpriest Andrei Tkachev Read more here
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(Continued from page 3)
back together with His greatest of creations. All is left nowadays of this beautiful meaning are its sexual connotations. Physical desire, although a natural part of a marital union, is not a good focal point for a marriage because it can be easily derailed. Eros, rather than remaining a bond between two people joined in their goal towards God, has become a way of self -gratification with consequences we all experience nowadays. The free and unrestricted access to more and more of this compulsion, has greatly disturbed our understanding of family and gender and has allowed for a vast redefinition at a societal level. 5. A new family in Christ The hope of our current sorry state of affairs is the rediscovery of the bi-dimensional aspect of marriage: material and spiritual. Our family of flesh cannot fulfil it’s purpose if we retire ourselves from our spiritual family in Christ. Separated from God we have no power and no direction and our efforts of self-redemption will fail time after time. But this is not what God wants. Christ became man so His dysfunctional human family will be reunited and made one with Him. Although we failed to become one with God before the Fall, He
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C HRISTIAN F AMILY (C ONT .) chooses to become Man in the aftermath of our corruption. God becomes the new Adam so that the old Adam will become god. The original man family is restored in the incarnate and crucified Christ, Who, spread upon the cross, reunites God with man and mankind within itself. Christ’s genealogy tree has two sets of roots. Looking down towards His human roots, we see a family of flesh and blood, in need of redemption. Looking up, to his heavenly roots, we see the perfect communion of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. In between them, as the fruit of God’s love, is Christ and, through Him a new family is emerging. His new brothers and sisters, starting in Jerusalem, begun to spread the good news around the globe, begetting a greater family that incorporates all our individual families, in the beautiful bond of the Holy Spirit: the Church. Only participating in this One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Family, we have chance to overcome the many temptation that threatened the very fiber of the Christian family. Yes, our family is dysfunctional, because is made out of many dysfunctional members, but the head of the Family, Christ, is the One that makes it holy, makes it functional and makes it His. This family can be redeemed, but only by staying in Communion with Him. “But Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?" And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He
said, "Behold My mother and My brothers! "For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." (Matthew 12:48-50) 6. Sanctifying our family tree downwards and upwards. Prayer makes all of this possible. Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica says: “It is of great significance if there is a person who truly prays in a family. Prayer attracts God’s Grace and all the members of the family feel it, even those whose hearts have grown cold. Pray always.” Elder Cleopas, used to say that if in a family one person enters monastic life, seven generations are spared the sufferings of hell. Why? Because by definition a monk is a person that prays; not selfishly, but selflessly, for the entire mankind. A monks strives to embody Christ in His love for mankind. This unceasing prayer for the world is what is missing in the world. If we will be able to bring back prayer in our lives, in our families, we will be able to sanctify our family tree downwards and upwards, becoming again part of the great plan the God continues to hope that, one day, we will engage in.
Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica
. L ET
US TAKE COURAGE AND BRING BACK PRAYER IN OUR LIVES , IN OUR FAMILIES , AND WE WILL BE ABLE TO SANCTIFY OUR FAMILY TREE DOWNWARDS AND UPWARDS
Love has become flesh, Emmanuel is born which means God is with us. Let us acknowledge His loving presence, let us invite Him back to our family table, let us make Him part of our everyday routine, and our family will grow stronger as it takes roots from both heaven and earth. Elder Cleopa of Romania
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A PRAYER F OR L ENT Lord and Master of my life, from the spirit of laziness, meddling, the lust for power, or gossip, deliver me (Prostration) Rather, the spirit of self control and humility, the spirit of patience and love, bestow upon me Your servant (Prostration) Yes, Lord and King, grant that I may see my own faults and not judge my brother; for You are blessed to the ages of ages. Amen. (Prostration)
P LEASE RESERVE YOUR S UNDAY C OFFEE HOUR DATE FOR
2016
The prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian is read at the end of all prayer service during Lent and is always accompanied by prostrations.
U SHER S CHEDULE 1st Sunday: Cecilia Junell 2nd Sunday: Michael Eftimie / Michael Poriotis 3rd Sunday: Jeremy Ellis / Mike Strong 4th Sunday: Angela Cline / Connie Rafailides 5th Sunday: Larry Leeders / Michael Poriotis
C OFFEE H OUR D UTIES SETUP Arrange pastries/food in a desirable manner on the appropriate tables in the parish hall. You are responsible for making the coffee. Make two pots: one regular, one decaf. Plug in be-
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C ATECHISM 2015-2016 G OING S TRONG !
Our Catechism / faith enrichment classes continue. See us every Sunday after Divine Liturgy in the Church Bridal Room. The program is open for non-Orthodox as well as for Orthodox Christians that want to learn about the Faith. Join us to learn more about the Orthodox Faith and don't forget to bring a friend. Don’t forget our Parish Library is open. See Steven or Serban if you want to borrow a book.
A COLYTE S CHEDULE 1st Sunday: Alex Genovezos, Caleb Ellis, Luca Tudora, Matei Tudora 2nd Sunday: Dimitri Rodgers, Alex Shah, Chris Eftimie, Joseph Berca, Noah Ellis 3rd Sunday: Alex Genovezos, Caleb Ellis, Luca Tudora, Matei Tudora 4th Sunday: Noah Ellis, Alex Shah, Chris Eftimie, Dimitri Rodgers 5th Sunday: Matei Tudora, Alex Genovezos, Alex Shah, Luca Tudora fore going into church. The instructions are in the kitchen. Prepare a tray with sugar, creamer, sugar substitute, mixing straws, a few spoons. Set with trash bucket. Put donation basket out with appropriate sign.
C OFFEE H OUR H OST
As you probably know already , we have recently switched to a new Coffee hour system where every family will host a coffee hour per year. Please see Connie Rafailedes or Michael Strong to schedule Your Sunday.
CLEAN UP Wash all dishes soiled, including coffee pots. Return sugar tray to kitchen and replenish it. Wash off hall tables and kitchen counters. Thank-You
St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church
March 2016 SUN
MON
TUE
WED
THU
1
2
3
FRI
SAT
4
5
Strict Fast
Saturday of Souls
Eudokia of Heliopolis Andonina the New Martyr
Wine/Oil Allowed Fish Allowed
Hesychios the Martyr Nicholas Planas
Eutropios, Kleonikos, Vasiliskos, Theodoretos of Antioch
Small Paraklesis 6pm
Gerasimos the Righteous Paul & his sister Juliana
Dairy Allowed
6
Konon the Gardener Theodore the Recruit
Orthros 8 am Divine Liturgy & Memorial Service 9am Vespers 5pm
7
8
9
10
11
12
7 Hieromartyrs of Cherson Laurence of Megara
Theophylaktos, Bp. Nicomedea Hermas of the 70
40 Martyrs At Lake Sebaste Caesarios the Righteous
Kodratos & His Companions Anastasia of Alexandria
Sophronios, Pat. of Jerusalem Theodora The Righteous
Theophanes The Confessor Symeon The New Theologian
Vespers 6pm
Divine Liturgy 6am
15
16
Judgement Sunday (Meatfare) 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Divine Liturgy 42 Martyrs of Amorion Finding the Cross by Helen Catechism Class
13 Forgiveness Sunday (Cheesefare) 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Divine Liturgy Removal of relics of Nicephoros Pouplios, Bishop of Athens Catechism Class Forgiveness Vespers 6 pm
20 Sunday of Orthodoxy 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Divine Liturgy Fathers Monastery of St. Savas Cuthbert the Wonderworker Catechism Class Pan-Orthodox Vespers 6 pm (Holy Trinity)
27 Sunday Of Gregory Palamas 8:30 am Orthros 9:30 am Divine Liturgy Parish Council meeting Matrona of Thessaloniki Paul, Bishop of Corinth Pan-Orthodox Vespers 6 pm (St. Mary’s)
14 Benedict of Nursia Euschemon, Bp. Lampasakos
Agapios & his Companions Manuel of Crete
GREAT LENT STARTS Great Compline 6pm
Great Compline 6pm
Savinos of Egypt Christodoulos of Patmos Presanctified Liturgy 6pm Book and Soup 7pm
Vespers 5pm
17
18
19 Chrysanthos & Daria Demetrios The New Martyr
Alexios the Man of God Patrick of Ireland
Cyril, Patriarch of Jerusalem Trophimos & Eukarpion
Great Compline 6pm
Akathist Hymn 6pm
Vespers 5pm
25
26
Great Compline 8 pm
21 James The Confessor Thomas, Pat. Of Constantinople
22 Basil of Ancyra Kalliniki & Vassilisa
Hilarion the New Herodion of the 70
Great Compline 6pm
24
Annunciation Greek Independence Day
Nikon & Companions Antolios & Protoleon
Forefeast of Annunciation Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow
Presanctified Liturgy 6pm Book and Soup 7pm
Vigil 6pm
Divine Liturgy 6am Akathist Hymn 6pm
29
30
31
1
Mark, Bishop of Arethusa Cyril the Deacon
John Climacus Sosthenes, Apollos, Cephas, Caesar & Epaphroditos
Great Compline 6pm
28
23
Presanctified Liturgy 6pm Book and Soup 7pm
Hypatios the Wonderworker Innocent, Enlightener of Siberia & Alaska Akathist Hymn 6pm
Synaxis of Archangel Gabriel 26 Martyrs in Crimea Vespers 5pm
S T . J OHN
THE
NONPROFIT
B APTIST
G REEK O RTHODOX C HURCH
303 Cullum Dr. Euless, TX 76040 Tel 817 283-2291 Return Service Requested
Sponsorship for This Month’s Forerunner
W E ’ R E O N T H E W E B AT HTTP:/ / STJOHNDFW. INFO
March 2016
THE FORERUNNER
Vol. XXXIII No. 3
The Holy 40 Martyrs of Sebasta March 9, 2016