13th Sunday of Luke. James of Persia; Nathaniel & Pinouphrios. Transfiguration of our Lord. Greek Orthodox Church

Transcript

1 Sunday Bulletin November 27, th Sunday of Luke James of Persia; Nathaniel & Pinouphrios Transfiguration of our Lord Greek Orthodox Church 414 St. Stephens School Road Austin, Texas (512) office@transfiguration.org website - Sunday Service Schedule Orthros 8:45am; Divine Liturgy 10am Reverend Fr. Vasileios Flegas, Proistamenos

2 HY M N S Hymn Ἀγγελικαὶ Δυνάμεις ἐπὶ τὸ μνῆμά σου, καὶ οἱ φυλάσσοντες ἀπενεκρώθησαν, καὶ ἵστατο Μαρία ἐν τῷ τάφῳ, ζητοῦσα τὸ ἄχραντόν σου σῶμα. Ἐσκύλευσας τὸν ᾍδην, μὴ πειρασθεὶς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ, ὑπήντησας τῇ Παρθένῳ, δωρούμενος τὴν ζωήν, ὁ ἀναστὰς ἐκ των νεκρῶν, Κύριε δόξα σοι. Angelike thinamis epi to mnima su, ke i filassontes apenekrothisan, ke istato Maria en to tafo, zitusa to ahranton su soma. Eskilefsas ton Athin, mi pirasthis ip aftu, ipintisas ti Partheno, thorumenos tin zoin, a Anastas ek ton nekron, Kirie thoxa Si. When the angelic powers appeared at your tomb and those who guarded You became as though dead, and standing by Your sepulchre was Mary seeking Your pure and sacred body. For You did vanquish Hades and uncorrupted by its touch You came unto the virgin woman, bestowing the gift of life O You who rose from the dead. Lord we give glory to You. Hymn for St. James Ὁ Μάρτυς σου Κύριε, ἐν τῇ ἀθλήσει αὐτοῦ, τὸ στέφος ἐκομίσατο τῆς ἀφθαρσίας, ἐκ σοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἔχων γὰρ τὴν ἰσχύν σου, τοὺς τυράννους καθεῖλεν ἔθραυσε καὶ δαιμόνων, τὰ ἀνίσχυρα θράση, αὐτοῦ ταῖς ἱκεσίαις Χριστέ, σῶσον τὰς ψυχὰς ἡμῶν. Thy Martyr, O Lord, in his courageous contest for Thee received as the prize the crowns of incorruption and life from Thee, our immortal God. For since he possessed Thy strength, he cast down the tyrants and wholly destroyed the demons' strengthless presumption. O Christ God, by his prayers, save our souls, since Thou art merciful. Hymn for the Transfiguration of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Μετεμορφώθης εν τώ όρει Χριστέ ο Θεός, δείξας τοίς Μαθηταίς σου τήν δόξαν σου, καθώς ήδυναντο, Λάμψον καί ημίν τοίς αμαρτωλοίς, τό φώς σου τό αϊδιον, πρεσβείαις τής Θεοτόκου, φωτοδότα δόξα σοι. Metemorfothis en to ori, Christe o Theos, dixas tis mathites Sou tin doxan Sou, kathos idynando Lampson ke imin tis amartolis to fos Sou to aidion, presvies tis Theotokou Fotodota doxa Si. When O Christ our God Thou wast Transfigured on the mountain Thou didst reveal Thy glory to Thy disciples in proportion as they could bear it. Let Thine everlasting light also enlighten us sinners. Through the intercessions of the Theotokos, O Thou Bestower of light, glory to Thee Kontakion Ἡ Παρθένος σήμερον, τὸν προαιώνιον Λόγον, ἐν Σπηλαίῳ ἔρχεται, ἀποτεκεῖν ἀπορρήτως. Χόρευε ἡ οἰκουμένη ἀκουτισθεῖσα, δόξασον μετὰ Ἀγγέλων καὶ τῶν Ποιμένων, βουληθέντα ἐποφθῆναι, Παιδίον νέον, τὸν πρὸ αἰώνων Θεόν. On this day the Virgin cometh to the cave to give birth to God the Word ineffably, Who was before all the ages. Dance for joy, O earth, on hearing the gladsome tidings; with the Angels and the shepherds now glorify Him Who is willing to be gazed on as a young Child Who before the ages is God. Sunday School is in session, please allow the children and their teachers to take communion first so they can go to their classes.

3 Epistle - St. Pa u l ' s L e t t e r t o t h e Ep h e s i a n s 2 : 4 St. Pa u l ' s L e t t e r t o t h e Ep h e s i a n s 2 : B RETHREN, God who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God: not because of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. G o s p e l - L u k e 1 8 : A t that time, a ruler came to Jesus and asked him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.' " And he said, "All these I have observed from my youth." And when Jesus heard it, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." But when he heard this he became sad, for he was very rich. Jesus looking at him said, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?" But he said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Ἀ δελφοί, ὁ θεός, πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει, διὰ τὴν πολλὴν ἀγάπην αὐτοῦ ἣν ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς, καὶ ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν συνεζωοποίησεν τῷ Χριστῷ - χάριτί ἐστε σεσωσμένοι - καὶ συνήγειρεν, καὶ συνεκάθισεν ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ ἵνα ἐνδείξηται ἐν τοῖς αἰῶσιν τοῖς ἐπερχομένοις τὸν ὑπερβάλλοντα πλοῦτον τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ ἐν χρηστότητι ἐφʼ ἡμᾶς ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ τῇ γὰρ χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι διὰ τῆς πίστεως, καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐξ ὑμῶν θεοῦ τὸ δῶρον οὐκ ἐξ ἔργων, ἵνα μή τις καυχήσηται. Αὐτοῦ γάρ ἐσμεν ποίημα, κτισθέντες ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ ἐπὶ ἔργοις ἀγαθοῖς, οἷς προητοίμασεν ὁ θεός, ἵνα ἐν αὐτοῖς περιπατήσωμεν. Τ ῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, ἄρχων λέγων διδάσκαλε ἀγαθέ, τί ποιήσας ζωὴν αἰώνιον κληρονομήσω; εἶπε δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ Ιησοῦς τί με λέγεις ἀγαθόν; οὐδεὶς ἀγαθὸς εἰ μὴ εἷς ὁ Θεός. τὰς ἐντολὰς οἶδας μὴ μοιχεύσῃς, μὴ φονεύσῃς, μὴ κλέψῃς, μὴ ψευδομαρτυρήσῃς, τίμα τὸν πατέρα σου καὶ τὴν μητέρα σου. ὁ δὲ εἶπε ταῦτα πάντα ἐφυλαξάμην ἐκ νεότητός μου. ἀκούσας δὲ ταῦτα ὁ Ιησοῦς εἶπεν αὐτῷ ἔτι ἕν σοι λείπει πάντα ὅσα ἔχεις πώλησον καὶ διάδος πτωχοῖς, καὶ ἕξεις θησαυρὸν ἐν οὐρανῷ, καὶ δεῦρο ἀκολούθει μοι. ὁ δὲ ἀκούσας ταῦτα περίλυπος ἐγένετο ἦν γὰρ πλούσιος σφόδρα. ἰδὼν δὲ αὐτὸν ὁ Ιησοῦς περίλυπον γενόμενον εἶπε πῶς δυσκόλως οἱ τὰ χρήματα ἔχοντες εἰσελεύσονται εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ! εὐκοπώτερον γάρ ἐστι κάμηλον διὰ τρυμαλιᾶς ῥαφίδος εἰσελθεῖν ἢ πλούσιον εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰσελθεῖν. εἶπον δὲ οἱ ἀκούσαντες καὶ τίς δύναται σωθῆναι; ὁ δὲ εἶπε τὰ ἀδύνατα παρὰ ἀνθρώποις δυνατὰ παρὰ τῷ Θεῷ ἐστιν. Our Parish Assembly has been moved to Sunday, December 18

4 Welcome Visitors! We welcome all new visitors who worshipped with us this morning. We are pleased to have you with us! Please join us next door after service for coffee and fellowship. There is material in the entrance of the church regarding ministries and events of Transfiguration. We hope that you will return often to worship with us and grow in Christ! Receiving Holy Communion The sacrament of Holy Communion is reserved for only baptized and/or Chrismated Orthodox Christians who have properly prepared by fasting, prayer and confession. The Orthodox Church is not in sacramental communion with any other church outside the Orthodox Christian Faith. If you are not Orthodox, you are invited with everyone to receive the Antidoron (blessed bread) at the end of service. If you would like information about the Orthodox Church, please see Fr. Vasileios after services. he is always wrestling in prayer for you (Colossians 4:12) Prayers for those in our Armed Forces SGT Jennifer D. Atkinson, SSG John Atkinson, COL Dave Romine, CPT James Alfaro, SSG Deane Anderson, CPT William Willett, MAJ Timothy Ullman, MAJ Chris Chase, SPC Mindy Keys, SPC Andrew Bentzel, MAJ Scot Thornhill, CPT Christopher Gilbert, Major Alexander Stathos, 1st LT Angela Bahlatzis, MIDN 1/C Joseph Barone, SGT Walter Hurbert ( Nikolaos ) Willoughby IV, LCDR Thomas Uhl, Lt. Lance Shannon The Prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16) Prayers for Health Nicholas Wyatt, Presvytera Jenny Newlin, Marihiam, Archie, Paul, Rebecca, Lynne Marie, Simone, Dennis Luke, Jacquie, Hunter, Zenon, Bill, Douglas Edwards, Paul Thomas, Thomas James, Maria, Nancy, Cassandra, Efstathia, Evan, Victoria, Terri, Elias, Tim, Rhonda, Prsv. Aspazia, George Geuras, Sharon, Dante, Loukas, Charlie, Despina, Anna, Mary, Wanda, Kathreen, Chuck, Stephenie, Athena, Asterios, Bill, Kathryn, John, Harriet Angel, Clarisa, Damon, Athanasios, Niky, Niky, Dino, Diakonissa Claire, Pete, William, George, Ioanna, Panayiotis, Athanasia, Andrea & unborn baby, Katherine, John, Anna, Emmanuel, George, William, Julia, Andrew, Mary, Ignatius, Eva, Philip Sorak, Jennifer, Antonis, Pete, Maria, Michael, Louis, Cecilia, Gwendolyn, Christine, Athena Cheryl, Dean, Margot, Kyriakos, Costa, Maria, Joy Jackie, Evangelos, Sophia, Alexander, Jim

5 YOUTH ACTIVITIES GOYA Garage Sale - Saturday, December 3 This is a GOYA fundraiser with the proceed going towards offsetting costs during the Basketball Tournament in Dallas. GOYA Gathering at the Bjeletich home - Saturday, December 3 at 6:30pm A fun gathering to relax, bond, learn and grow through faith GOYA Luncheon Fundraiser - Sunday, December 11 This is a GOYA fundraiser for the Dallas Basketball Tournament. Please sign up to help through the that will soon be sent out GOYA Service Project - Saturday, December 17 at 8:30am More details to come soon 2017 GOYA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT DALLAS - January Registration is open until November 30. Click here to register Practices are every Sunday at 1pm at O Henry s Middle School until December 18. There will be some practices during the Christmas break and those dates will be announced soon. Mobile Fishes & Loaves - Saturday, February 4, 8:30am More details coming soon GOYA Basketball Reunion Party - Saturday, February 4. More details coming soon 2017 Transfiguration St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival - Sunday February 12, 2pm 2017 Austin YES Trip - Friday, February 17 - Sunday, February 19 GOYA Kite Flying - Sunday, February 26. Place and time to be determined. GOYA Southern Region Spring Retreat - March 3 - March 5 GOYA NEEDS DONATIONS FOR GARAGE SALE AND CHRISTMAS SERVICE PROJECT Garage Sale, Saturday, December 3. Any and all donations of clothing and items that can be sold at the GOYA Garage Sale are greatly appreciated. Please bring the items to the office by Wednesday, November 30, or to the Price house by Friday evening. GOYA Christmas Service Project, Saturday, December 17 at 8:30am. More details about the location will come soon, but in the meantime we need to collect SOCKS, GLOVES, SMALL SIZE TOILETRIES, etc. Please bring them to the Church and place in the designated box. GOYA Basketball practice after church at O Henry s Middle School TODAY!!!

6 Hellenic Professional Society of Texas Scholarship Call for Scholarship Applications for 2017 Each year since 1977, the Society awards scholarships to qualified high school seniors, undergraduate and graduate full-time students. Over the years, more than one hundred fifty scholarships have been awarded. Applicants are eligible for a scholarship if they: * currently attend or have been accepted to a college or university in Texas, * have shown excellent scholastic performance in their corresponding field of study, and, * are of Hellenic heritage. The Society also accepts applications from students of non-greek descent that have demonstrated clear, strong and sustained excellence in academic studies related to Greek letters or affairs. The deadline is December 31, Students may access the application at or, contact the HPST Scholarship Chair, Eleni Beyko at HPSTscholarship@gmail.com. Greetings from The Monastery of the Holy Martyr Saint Paraskevi in Washington, TX. We pray this message finds you well. Our community of Greek Orthodox nuns was founded in 2004 under the auspice of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. During this 5 th year of our Monastery s annual fundraising campaign, we present to the community a sample of our handcrafted gift items. We invite you to visit us online at thesweetmeadow.org and browse our 2016 Christmas Gift Catalog, and consider our various made-to-order gift options made by the sisters in our certified bakery, The Sweet Meadow. These include exquisite cookies and pastries, Belgian chocolates, and onsite produced Texan wine packaged separately or in beautiful gift baskets. Our collection fits all budgets and each item is prepared with high quality ingredients and attention to detail. We hope you will find within our selection suitable gift ideas that will bring cheer to the hearts of your colleagues, friends and family during this holiday season. We thank you in advance for your support! CONSECRATION Commemorative Album ONLY 3 WEEKS LEFT to buy your Album! and we ONLY have 23 Albums left, so harry up and buy your copy TODAY!!! The best Christmas pageant ever!!! Sunday, November 27 - Rehearsal 1pm Saturday, December 3 - Rehearsal 3pm Sunday, December 4 - Rehearsal 1pm Wednesday, December 7 - Rehearsal 6pm Friday, December 9 - Rehearsal 6pm Saturday, December 10 - Rehearsal 1pm Sunday, December 11 - SHOW TIME!!!

7 Stewards of the Gospel You are the Voice of Christ in a Changing World As the Father has sent me, so I send you. John 20:21 Are you a good and faithful servant? As Orthodox Christians, we have been given a sacred trust. We have received the treasure of the Gospel the Good News of Jesus Christ. With this sacred trust comes the great responsibility to share it. If we compare ourselves to the stewards in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30), do we multiply the treasure for which we are responsible and for which we will be held accountable when the master returns? Or do we bury our treasure in the ground, offering back only that which was given to us? Jesus said As the Father has sent me, so I send you (John 20:21). At the end of our life, will He say to us, Well done good and faithful servant? As recipients and stewards of this great treasure, we are called to protect it, keeping its message pure. This is difficult to do in a time when knowledge of the faith is informed so much by popular culture. Orthodox Christians in America may rely too heavily on our culture to bind people to the faith, often at the expense of knowledge of the Gospel message and the faith. As each generation becomes increasingly assimilated, these cultural ties become less effective in keeping people engaged in the life of the Church. For many, knowledge of the faith is insufficient to appreciate the unique teachings and traditions of Orthodox Christianity. Without a clear knowledge of our faith, we have become less able to share our it as we have been called to do. We are called to guard the Gospel message, but not to hoard it. We are instructed not to hide our light under a bushel (Matthew 5:15). As Jesus Christ sends us to be His voice in a changing world, we must also remove impediments or perceived impediments to non-orthodox inquirers that seek His Truth. What messages do we send out intentionally or unintentionally? What might cause the Gospel message to be ignored or misunderstood? Since the first Orthodox Christians came to America, the local parish has served as a guardian of the faith and also of the culture from which it was transplanted. Parishes must think carefully about how they share the faith with others. Thoughtful and sensitive consideration must be given to our outreach efforts in order to identify what aspects of our parish life may be creating potential stumbling blocks for others. As we share the voice of Christ, the message we share is one of hope, truth, grace, divine power, life and invitation. In this busy, ever-changing world, His voice of wisdom is needed to guide us in discerning what is good, what is true and what will bring us closer to Him and to one another. We live in a physical world that places great value on material possessions. Material possessions and wealth may bring power and status. But wealth and possessions can be fleeting. Circumstances change. It is the voice of Jesus Christ and the truth of His Gospel that remain constant. In our spiritual relationship with our Creator, we realize that we are called to be good stewards of His creation. And as stewards of His Gospel, we are called to use our material, worldly possessions to meet the needs of others. The base from which we serve as the Voice of Christ in a Changing World is the parish. A strong parish provides opportunities for sharing the Good News of Christ, for welcoming those that are searching for a spiritual home, and a base from which we are sent out into the world. The parish also provides a place for worship, community and education in the faith. To be stewards of the Gospel, we need to be stewards of our parish. This requires the vision and inspiration to see the parish, not as it is, but as it could be. We are called to offer ourselves and our treasure to make our local church all that is can be. We conclude with these words of Archbishop Demetrios of America: we are called to be the light of the world; we are sent into a changing world to offer the voice of Christ to those who are not connected to the Church. This includes those who have never heard the voice of Christ, others who have not been prepared to listen, and still others who need a new invitation to return to Him. For these and even others who are distracted by disparate and deceptive ideas, the voice of Christ through us offers meaning and purpose in truth and love. In fulfilling our commission from God, we must continue to strengthen our ministries of outreach and evangelism so that our clergy and laity have the guidance, programs, and resources to offer His voice clearly and effectively (from the Reflections of Archbishop Demetrios of America on the Theme of the Clergy-Laity Congress of 2016). TEXT: Department of Stewardship, Outreach & Evangelism ICONOGRAPHY: Miltiadis Afentoulis / afentoulis.com GRAPHIC DESIGN: Christina Meares / christinameares.com

8 WEEKLY SERVICES Sunday, November 27, 2016 Services for this Week : Wednesday, November 30 - Feast of St. Andrew the First-Called Apostle - Orthros 9am Liturgy 10am Saturday, December 3 - Great Vespers - 5pm P h ilo pto chos News Become a Philoptochos member TODAY! Come by our table to sign up! There are still a lot of CASA Angels on our tree. Help children have a wonderful Christmas this year by picking up an angel and fulfilling their wish. All gifts need to be dropped off unwrapped at Mt. Tabor Hall by the latest Sunday, December 4. Did you sign up for out Parish Christmas card? Come to the Philoptochos table and make sure your name is included this year as we are starting a new list. Don t miss this year s Philoptochos Christmas Party, Saturday, December 3 at 11am at the Blue Café. Get your reservation in today. CASA Angels Tree The CASA Angels tree is once again up in our hall, full of wishes of children that without our help will not have a gift waiting for them Christmas morning. The task is simple: 1) pick up a card from the tree; on the bottom part fill out your name, and phone number and drop it in the basket under the tree; you keep the top part 2) purchase wish 1 or wish 2 or clothing for your child (all information is on the card) and 3) return it unwrapped to our church by Sunday, December 4. Please remember that everything needs to be at the church by Sunday, December 4. Thank you to last week s Luncheon Sponsors Thank you to this week s Coffee Hour Sponsors: Next week s Coffee Hour Sponsors: PARISH COUNCIL Kalpaxis, Kangos, Jones, Keriotis, Kenna, Kenyon Thank you to last week s ushers: Thank you to today's ushers: Next week s ushers are: Pat Mitchell (PCM) Christa Sewell (PCM) Tom Suehs (PCM) Dan Appling, Gigi Appling, Nyda Glaros Argyro Justice, Maria Justice Chrissie Spiropoulos, David Horwedel, Vaios Athanasiou Klaras, Keys, Karides, Kidd Kinnas, Kersch