Saint Basil Greek Orthodox Church

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1 733 South Ashland Ave Chicago, Illinois Rev. Fr. Dimitri Tobias, Proistamenos Saint Basil Greek Orthodox Church Saints and Feasts: 10th Sunday of Luke The Conception by St. Anna of the Most Holy Theotokos Sunday, December 9, 2018 Telephone: (312) Office Fax: Fax (312) Parish Council President: Ms. Jayme Schenk Hannah the Righteous, mother of Samuel the Prophet Narses the Martyr of Persia So great an evil is envy. For not against strangers only, but even against our own, is it ever warring. And yet here He speaks only; whereas elsewhere in many cases He heals by laying on of hands also. But nevertheless none of these things made them meek; rather, while the man was healed, they by his health became worse. For His desire indeed was to cure them before him, and He tried innumerable ways of healing, both by what He did in their presence, and by what He said: but since their malady after all was incurable, He proceeded to the work. St. John Chrysostom Homily 40 on Matthew 12, 4th Century Narthex Duty: Welcoming Ministry: Orthros Reader: Coffee Hour: Tom Sianis & Christine Rousakis Patoula Billiris Aris Kapsopoulos Philotoptochos PARISH COUNCIL ELECTIONS Before The Creed When the Priest says: The Congregation responds: Christ is in our midst. He is and always will be, now and ever and to the ages of ages. Communion Guidelines: As a reminder, only Baptized and Chrismated Orthodox Christians who are in good standing may receive Holy Communion. Follow the Ushers row by row and please exit towards the outside aisles.

2 Saint Spyridon the Wonderworker of Trymithous December 12 Spyridon, the God-bearing Father of the Church, the great defender of Corfu and the boast of all the Orthodox, had Cyprus as his homeland. He was simple in manner and humble of heart, and was a shepherd of sheep. When he was joined to a wife, he begat of her a daughter whom they named Irene. After his wife's departure from this life, he was appointed Bishop of Trimythus, and thus he became also a shepherd of rational sheep. When the First Ecumenical Council was assembled in Nicaea, he also was present, and by means of his most simple words stopped the mouths of the Arians who were wise in their own conceit. By the divine grace which dwelt in him, he wrought such great wonders that he received the surname 'Wonderworker." So it is that, having tended his flock piously and in a manner pleasing to God, he reposed in the Lord about the year 350, leaving to his country his sacred relics as a consolation and source of healing for the faithful. About the middle of the seventh century, because of the incursions made by the barbarians at that time, his sacred relics were taken to Constantinople, where they remained, being honoured by the emperors themselves. But before the fall of Constantinople, which took place on May 29, 1453, a certain priest named George Kalokhairetes, the parish priest of the church where the Saint's sacred relics, as well as those of Saint Theodora the Empress, were kept, took them away on account of the impending peril. Travelling by way of Serbia, he came as far as Arta in Epirus, a region in Western Greece opposite to the isle of Corfu. From there, while the misfortunes of the Christian people were increasing with every day, he passed over to Corfu about the year The relics of Saint Theodora were given to the people of Corfu; but those of Saint Spyridon remain to this day, according to the rights of inheritance, the most precious treasure of the priest's own descendants, and they continue to be a staff for the faithful in Orthodoxy, and a supernatural wonder for those that behold him; for even after the passage of 1,500 years, they have remained incorrupt, and even the flexibility of his flesh has been preserved. Truly wondrous is God in His Saints! (Ps. 67:3 5) Apolytikion of Spyridon the Wonderworker First Tone O Father, God-bearer, Spyridon, you were proven a champion and Wonder Worker of the First Ecumenical Council. You spoke to the girl in the grave and turned the serpent to gold. And, when chanting your prayers, most sacred One, angels ministered with you. Glory to Him who glorified you; glory to Him who crowned you; glory to Him who, through you, works healing for all. Download the APP DIGITAL CHANT STAND by AGES Initiatives To follow along during Orthros, Liturgy, Vespers, and Holy Week Services right on your smart device

3 Hymns of the Day After the Small Entrance Resurrectional Apolytikion 2 nd Tone When You descended to the realm of death, You as Life immortal, rendered to Hades a mortal blow by Your all radiant divinity; and when You raised the dead from the infernal depths and from the darkness below, all the hosts of heavenly powers proclaimed and cried out to You: O life giving Christ, our God, glory to You. Ἀπολυτίκιον Ἀναστάσιμον Ήχος β Ὅτε κατῆλθες πρὸς τὸν θάνατον, ἡ Ζωὴ ἡ ἀθάνατος, τότε τὸν ᾍδην ἐνέκρωσας τῇ ἀστραπῇ τῆς Θεότητος, ὅτε δὲ καὶ τοὺς τεθνεῶτας ἐκ τῶν καταχθονίων ἀνέστησας, πᾶσαι αἱ Δυνάμεις τῶν ἐπουρανίων ἐκραύγαζον Ζωοδότα Χριστὲ ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν δόξα σοι. Apolytikion for Conception of the Theotokos 4 th Tone Today the bonds of childlessness are loosed; for God hearkened to Joachim and Anna. And though it was beyond hope, He clearly promised them that they should bear a divine child, from whom was born the Uncircumscribable One Himself Who became a mortal, and through an Angel commanded them to cry unto her: Rejoice, thou who art full of grace; the Lord is with thee. Apolytikion for the Church 1 st Tone Your proclamation went forth into all the earth, for it accepted your word, through which you taught the dogmas befitting God, you expounded on the nature of all that is, and you arranged the morals of society. A royal priesthood! Devout father Basil, intercede with Christ our God, to grant us His great mercy. Kontakion 3 rd Tone Today the world rejoices in the conception of Anna, wrought by God. For she bore the One who beyond comprehension conceived the Logos. Απολυτίκιον Ήχος δ' Σήμερον τής ατεκνίας δεσμά διαλύονται, τού Ιωακείμ γάρ καί τής Άννης εισακούων Θεός, παρ' ελπίδα τεκείν αυτούς σαφώς, υπισχνείται θεόπαιδα, εξ ής αυτός ετέχθη ο απερίγραπτος, βροτός γεγονώς, δι' Αγγέλου κελεύσας βοήσαι αυτή, Χαίρε Κεχαριτωμένη, ο Κύριος μετά σού. Απολυτίκιον τοῦ Ναοῦ Ήχος α' Εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν ἐξῆλθεν ὁ φθόγγος σου, ὡς δεξαμένην τὸν λόγον σου, δι' οὗ θεοπρεπῶς ἐδογμάτισας, τὴν φύσιν τῶν ὄντων ἐτράνωσας, τὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἤθη κατεκόσμησας, Βασίλειον Ἱεράτευμα, Πάτερ Ὅσιε, Χριστὸν τὸν Θεὸν ἱκέτευε, δωρήσασθαι ἡμῖν τὸ μέγα ἔλεος. Κοντάκιον Ήχος γ Εορτάζει σήμερον, η οικουμένη, τήν τής Άννης σύλληψιν, γεγενημένην εν Θεώ, καί γάρ αυτή απεκύησε, τήν υπέρ λόγον, τόν Λόγον κυήσασαν.

4 THE EPISTLE / Ο ΑΠΟΣΤΟΛΟΣ Prokeimenon. Grave Mode. Psalm 63.11,1 The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord. Verse: Oh God, hear my cry. The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Galatians 4:22-27 Brethren, Abraham had two sons, one by a slave and one by a free woman. But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, the son of the free woman through promise. Now this is an allegory: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written, "Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear; break forth and shout, you who are not in travail; for the children of the desolate one are many more than the children of her that is married.". Προκείμενον. Ήχος βαρύς. ΨΑΛΜΟΙ 63.11,1 Εὐφρανθήσεται δίκαιος ἐν Κυρίῳ. Στίχ. Εἰσάκουσον, ὁ Θεός, τῆς φωνῆς μου. Πρὸς Γαλάτας 4:22-27 τὸ ἀνάγνωσμα είναι απο Ἀδελφοί, Ἀβραὰμ δύο υἱοὺς ἔσχεν ἕνα ἐκ τῆς παιδίσκης, καὶ ἕνα ἐκ τῆς ἐλευθέρας. Ἀλλʼ ὁ μὲν ἐκ τῆς παιδίσκης κατὰ σάρκα γεγέννηται, ὁ δὲ ἐκ τῆς ἐλευθέρας διὰ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας. Ἅτινά ἐστιν ἀλληγορούμενα αὗται γάρ εἰσιν δύο διαθῆκαι μία μὲν ἀπὸ ὄρους Σινᾶ, εἰς δουλείαν γεννῶσα, ἥτις ἐστὶν Ἅγαρ. Τὸ γὰρ Ἅγαρ Σινᾶ ὄρος ἐστὶν ἐν τῇ Ἀραβίᾳ, συστοιχεῖ δὲ τῇ νῦν Ἱερουσαλήμ, δουλεύει δὲ μετὰ τῶν τέκνων αὐτῆς. Ἡ δὲ ἄνω Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐλευθέρα ἐστίν, ἥτις ἐστὶν μήτηρ πάντων ἡμῶν γέγραπται γάρ, Εὐφράνθητι, στεῖρα, ἡ οὐ τίκτουσα ῥῆξον καὶ βόησον, ἡ οὐκ ὠδίνουσα ὅτι πολλὰ τὰ τέκνα τῆς ἐρήμου μᾶλλον ἢ τῆς ἐχούσης τὸν ἄνδρα.

5 THE HOLY GOSPEL / ΤΟ ΘΕΙΟΝ ΕΥΑΓΓΕΛΙΟΝ The Gospel According to Luke 13:10-17 At that time, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your infirmity." And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, said to the people, "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be healed, and not on the sabbath day." Then the Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?" As he said this, all his adversaries were put to shame; and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him. Ἐκ τοῦ Κατὰ Λουκᾶν 13:10-17 Εὐαγγελίου τὸ Ἀνάγνωσμα Τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, Ην δὲ διδάσκων ἐν μιᾷ τῶν συναγωγῶν ἐν τοῖς σάββασι. καὶ ἰδοὺ γυνὴ ἦν πνεῦμα ἔχουσα ἀσθενείας ἔτη δέκα καὶ ὀκτώ, καὶ ἦν συγκύπτουσα καὶ μὴ δυναμένη ἀνακῦψαι εἰς τὸ παντελές. ἰδὼν δὲ αὐτὴν ὁ Ιησοῦς προσεφώνησε καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῇ γύναι, ἀπολέλυσαι τῆς ἀσθενείας σου καὶ ἐπέθηκεν αὐτῇ τὰς χεῖρας καὶ παραχρῆμα ἀνωρθώθη καὶ ἐδόξαζε τὸν Θεόν. ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ ὁ ἀρχισυνάγωγος, ἀγανακτῶν ὅτι τῷ σαββάτῳ ἐθεράπευσεν ὁ Ιησοῦς, ἔλεγε τῷ ὄχλῳ ἓξ ἡμέραι εἰσὶν ἐν αἷς δεῖ ἐργάζεσθαι ἐν ταύταις οὖν ἐρχόμενοι θεραπεύεσθε, καὶ μὴ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ σαββάτου. ἀπεκρίθη οὖν αὐτῷ ὁ Κύριος καὶ εἶπεν ὑποκριτά, ἕκαστος ὑμῶν τῷ σαββάτῳ οὐ λύει τὸν βοῦν αὐτοῦ ἢ τὸν ὄνον ἀπὸ τῆς φάτνης καὶ ἀπαγαγὼν ποτίζει; ταύτην δέ, θυγατέρα Αβραὰμ οὖσαν, ἣν ἔδησεν ὁ σατανᾶς ἰδοὺ δέκα καὶ ὀκτὼ ἔτη, οὐκ ἔδει λυθῆναι ἀπὸ τοῦ δεσμοῦ τούτου τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ σαββάτου; καὶ ταῦτα λέγοντος αὐτοῦ κατῃσχύνοντο πάντες οἱ ἀντικείμενοι αὐτῷ, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος ἔχαιρεν ἐπὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἐνδόξοις τοῖς γινομένοις ὑπ αὐτοῦ.

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10 We need your help - You Might be Missing Out We have started a new weekly St. Basil E-Bulletin - which goes out early each week - and, for some of you, this is going into "spam" or "trash". Please take a look at your spam and trash files and if you see it there, with most servers there's a button you can push to stop it's going into trash/spam. Or, enter stbasilchicago@comcast.net into your contacts list. Thanks! Books for Prisoners - Many inmates with whom we correspond through the prison ministry request books to read. Topics include self-help, vocational training, orthodoxy, history, and fiction. If you can make a small donation to defray the cost of purchasing and sending books, please see Vicky in the church office. Any size donation is appreciated. Stewardship - Have You Become A Steward For 2018? If not, know that everything we have is God's and we are just managers during this brief life. Become a steward today. "He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your resources and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for great generosity, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God" (2 Cor. 9:10-11). Calendar for the Week Ahead - Sunday, December 9, 11:30am - Parish Council Elections - Tuesday, December 11, 7:00pm - Great Vespers of St. Spyridon - Wednesday, December 12, 6:30am - Divine Liturgy for St. Spyridon - Wednesday, December 12, 8:00am - Orthros and Divine Liturgy for St. Spyridon at Palos Heights - Wednesday, December 12, 6:00pm - Paraklesis (Supplication Service) to the Virgin Mary - Sunday, December 16, 8:15am - Orthros and Divine Liturgy, Christmas Pageant, Metropolis Open House Parish News and Events Philoptochos BAKE SALE Will be Sunday December 16th, same day as preorder pickup, after Divine Liturgy. The following items will be for sale: BAKLAVA, KOULOURIA & KOURAMBIETHIES. Be there to get some delicious treats. St. John the Almsgiver Ministry We offer Survival Packs to our neighbors in need. Each pack includes the following items: 1 Jewel gift card ($10), 1 CTA single-transit ticket, 1 white t-shirt, 1 pair of white tube socks, 1 toothbrush, 1 travel-sized toothpaste, 1 comb, 6 Band-aids, 3 Wet Ones pocket-size singles hand wipes, 1 granola bar, and 1 bottle of water. Please ask Fr. Dimitri, Nick Katsoulis, and Pat and Steve Cole about the rewarding experiences they ve had distributing the packs! If you would like to contribute to these efforts by distributing packs, please see Vicky Crosby in the church office. If you would like to contribute money or items to create more packs, please speak to Vicky Crosby or Marina Arvanitis. A Year-End Charitable Giving Tip - If you have benefited from the significant gains in the stock market this year, you can do well as you do good. Consider making a gift of appreciated stock to St. Basil, the Church you love. Consult your financial advisor and ask about the potential tax benefits of a gift of stock to St. Basil Greek Orthodox Church. You may be surprised how generous you can be thanks to a bull market. The Conception by St. Anna of the Most Holy Theotokos According to the ancient tradition of the Church, since Saint Anna, the Ancestor of God, was barren, she and her husband Joachim remained without children until old age. Therefore, sorrowing over their childlessness, they besought God with a promise that, if He were to grant them the fruit of the womb, they would offer their offspring to Him as a gift. And God, hearkening to their supplication, informed them through an Angel concerning the birth of the Virgin. And thus, through God's promise, Anna conceived according to the laws of nature, and was deemed worthy to become the mother of the Mother of our Lord (see also Sept. 8).

11 St. Basil Greek Orthodox Church December 2018 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 2 8:15 am Orthros and Divine Liturgy 9 8:15 am Orthros and Divine Liturgy 11:30 am Parish Council Elections :00 pm Parish Council Meeting Barbara and John of Savas the Sanctified 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for Ss. 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for St. Damascus 10:00 am Bible Study 7:00 pm Teacher's meeting 7:00 pm Great Vespers of St. Nicholas :00 pm Great Vespers for St. Spyridon (at Palos Heights parish) 6 Pastoral Day for Fr. Dimitri 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for St. Nicholas 8:30 am Hierarchal Orthros and Divine Liturgy for St. Nicholas (at Oak Lawn Parish) 7:00 pm Online Adult Education Pastoral Day for Fr. 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for St. Dimitri Spyridon 8:00 am Orthros and Divine Liturgy for St. Spyridon at Palos Heights 6:00 pm Paraklesis (Supplication Service) 7 8 Philoptochos Christmas Lunch Nativity Pageant 8:15 am Orthros and Divine Liturgy 7:00 pm Great Vespers for St. Dionysios of Zakynthos at Holy Trinity, Chicago 23 Sunday School - no class, Christmas break 8:15 am Orthros and Divine Liturgy 30 Sunday class, break no 31 New 7:00 pm Hierarchal Vespers cumcision am Orthros and Divine Liturgy Basil 17 8:30 am "Orthros and Divine 10:00 am Bible Study Liturgy os of Service) Holy the Virgin Mary for St. Dionysios 6:00 pm Paraklesis Zakinthos (at (Supplication Trinity Chicago to chapel)" 24 Christmas Eve 25 Christmas Day 8:30 am Royal Hours of Christmas Liturgy of Christmas 8:15 am Orthros and Diving 4:00 pm Vesperal Liturgy of Christmas Eve 26 10:00 am Bible Study 6:00 pm Paraklesis (Supplication Service) to the Virgin Mary 20 Pastoral Day for Fr. Dimitri 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for St. Ignatios the Godbearer 12:00 pm Lunch Faith Group 7:00 pm Online Adult Education 27 Pastoral Day for Fr. Dimitri 6:30 am Divine Liturgy for St. Stephen the Protomartyr 7:00 pm Online Adult Education :30 am "Orthros and Divine Liturgy for St. Themistocles" 28 29

12 Matthew 25: The Last Judgment For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty, and you gave me drink: Please donate food for the needy. I was a stranger, and you took me in: Please welcome our Catechumens and Guests Naked, and you clothed me: Please consider donating clothes to the local shelter. I was sick, and you visited me: Please pray for the speedy recovery of: Nicholas, Anthony, Aphrodite I was in prison, and you came unto me: Please pray for: Robert, Choice, Centrell, Maurice, Tyree, Clarence, Pierre, Anthony, Bryant, Angelo, Pierre, Timothy, Arthur, Kerwin, Willie, Bryant, Darron, Pablo, Lee, Derrick, Eugene, Clarence, Demetrius, Rashee, Joseph, Damien, Terrell, Lamar, Clarence, Antwon, James, John, Donald, Eddie, James Please pray for and consider visiting our shut-ins. Please also see Pat Cole to see about writing Letters to those Incarcerated through our prison ministry. It means the world to them to receive love. VISITATION POLICY If you would like Fr. Dimitri to visit you in the hospital, please call him or have a family member call. Fr. Dimitri will not go unless he is asked by the family. This is in compliance with both HIPAA and patient privacy. If You are not receiving the Observer, please contact the Church Office. STEWARDSHIP CORNER St. Basil Stewardship Facts: State of the Parish 2018 Operational Expenses 2018 Stewards Pledged at St. Basil $338,833 ($928 per day) 152 of goal of 190 Dollar Amount Pledged Dollar Amount Collected Average Pledge $175,619 $160, 750 $1,147 Remember this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. Each person should do as he has decided in his heart not reluctantly or out of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 REFLECTION I do not know whether anyone has ever succeeded in not enjoying praise. And, if he enjoys it, he naturally wants to receive it. And if he wants to receive it, he cannot help but being distraught at losing it. Those who are in love with applause have their spirits starved not only when they are blamed off-hand, but even when they fail to be constantly praised. -St. John Chrystotom