Transfiguration of our Lord

Transcript

1 Sunday Bulletin May 31, 2015 HOLY PENTECOST Hermias the Martyr at Comana & Eusebius and Haralambos 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 10:00am Reverend Fr. Vasileios Flegas, Proistamenos

2 Hymns Hymn for Pentecost Εύλογητός εἶ Χριστὲ ὁ Θεος ἡμῶν ὁ πανσόφους τοὺς ἁλιεῖς ἁναδείξας καταπέμψας αὐτοῖς τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον καὶ δι αὐτῶν τῆν οἰκουμένην σαγηνεύσας φιλάνθρωπε δόξα Σοι. Blessed art Thou, O Christ our God, Who has shown forth the fishermen as supremely wise by sending down upon them the Holy Spirit, and through them did draw the world into Thy net. O Befriender of man, glory be to Thee. Save us, O Good Comforter, who chant to Thee: Alleluia. Hymn for the Transfiguration of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Μετεμορθώθης 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. By the intercessions of the Theotokos, O Thou Bestower of light, glory to Thee Kontakion Ὅτε καταβὰς τὰς γλώσσας συνέχεε, διεμέριζεν ἔθνη ὁ Ὕψιστος ὅτε τοῦ πυρὸς τὰς γλώσσας διένειμεν, εἰς ἑνότητα πάντας ἐκάλεσε, καὶ συμφώνως δοξάζομεν τὸ πανάγιον Πνεῦμα. Once, when He descended and confounded the tongues, the Most High divided the nations; and when He divided the tongues of fire, He called all men into unity; and with one ac -cord we glorify the All-holy Spirit. In place of Holy God. Όσοι εις Χριστόν εβαπτίσθητε, Χριστόν ενεδύσασθε, Αλληλούια Those who have baptized in Christ, have put on Christ for evermore, Alleluia. Megalynarion Μὴ τῆς φθορᾶς διαπείρᾳ κυοφορήσασα, καὶ παντεχνήμονι Λόγῳ σάρκα δανείσασα, Μῆτερ ἀπείρανδρε, Παρθένε Θεοτόκε, δοχεῖον τοῦ ἀστέκτου, χωρίον τοῦ ἀπείρου πλαστουργοῦ σου, σὲ μεγαλύνομεν. Without sustaining corruption you still conceived a child, and lent your flesh to the Word and general Artificer. Mother who knew no man, O Virgin Theotokos, receptacle and space of your uncontained and infinite Creator, you do we magnify. Communion Thy Good Spirit shall lead me in the land of uprightness. Alleluia

3 Epistle - Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11 WHEN THE DAY of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were amazed and wondered, saying, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontos and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God." Ἐν τῷ συμπληροῦσθαι τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς Πεντηκοστῆς, ἦσαν ἅπαντεςn ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό. Καὶ ἐγένετο ἄφνω ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἦχος ὥσπερ φερομένης πνοῆς βιαίας, καὶ ἐπλήρωσεν ὅλον τὸν οἶκον οὗ ἦσαν καθήμενοι. Καὶ ὤφθησαν αὐτοῖς διαμεριζόμεναι γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός, ἐκάθισέν τε ἐφʼ ἕνα ἕκαστον αὐτῶν. Καὶ ἐπλήσθησαν ἅπαντες πνεύματος ἁγίου, καὶ ἤρξαντο λαλεῖν ἑτέραις γλώσσαις, καθὼς τὸ πνεῦμα ἐδίδου αὐτοῖς ἀποφθέγγεσθαι. Ἦσαν δὲ ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ κατοικοῦντες Ἰουδαῖοι, ἄνδρες εὐλαβεῖς, ἀπὸ παντὸς ἔθνους τῶν ὑπὸ τὸν οὐρανόν. Γενομένης δὲ τῆς φωνῆς ταύτης, συνῆλθεν τὸ πλῆθος καὶ συνεχύθη, ὅτι ἤκουον εἷς ἕκαστος τῇ ἰδίᾳ διαλέκτῳ λαλούντων αὐτῶν. Ἐξίσταντο δὲ πάντες καὶ ἐθαύμαζον, λέγοντες πρὸς ἀλλήλους, Οὐκ ἰδοὺ πάντες οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ λαλοῦντες Γαλιλαῖοι; Καὶ πῶς ἡμεῖς ἀκούομεν ἕκαστος τῇ ἰδίᾳ διαλέκτῳ ἡμῶν ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθημεν; Πάρθοι καὶ Μῆδοι καὶ Ἐλαμῖται, καὶ οἱ κατοικοῦντες τὴν Μεσοποταμίαν, Ἰουδαίαν τε καὶ Καππαδοκίαν, Πόντον καὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν, Φρυγίαν τε καὶ Παμφυλίαν, Αἴγυπτον καὶ τὰ μέρη τῆς Λιβύης τῆς κατὰ Κυρήνην, καὶ οἱ ἐπιδημοῦντες Ῥωμαῖοι, Ἰουδαῖοί τε καὶ προσήλυτοι, Κρῆτες καὶ Ἄραβες, ἀκούομεν λαλούντων αὐτῶν ταῖς ἡμετέραις γλώσσαις τὰ μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ. IMPORTANT Special Parish Assembly Meeting Sunday, June 28 With the momentum of next year's consecration already upon us, the fundraising committee has proposed that the Capital Campaign be expanded to encompass more of the future development of our site. Come hear about and help decide our future as we will be making the most important financial decision since moving ahead with the construction of the sanctuary. Therefore, your comments and vote are critical to our future.

4 Gospel - John 7 : ; 8 : 12 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and proclaimed, "If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, 'Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. When they heard these words, some of the people said, "This is really the prophet." Others said, "This is the Christ." But some said, "Is the Christ to come from Galilee? Has not the scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?" So there was a division among the people over him. Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. The officers then went back to the chief priest and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why did you not bring him?" The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this man!" The Pharisees answered them, "Are you led astray, you also? Have any of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, who do not know the law, are accursed." Nikodemos, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, "Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?" They replied, "Are you from Galilee too? Search and you will see that no prophet is to rise from Galilee." Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." Εν δὲ τῇ ἐσχάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ μεγάλῃ τῆς ἑορτῆς εἱστήκει ὁ Ιησοῦς καὶ ἔκραξε λέγων ἐάν τις διψᾷ, ἐρχέσθω πρός με καὶ πινέτω. ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμέ, καθὼς εἶπεν ἡ γραφή, ποταμοὶ ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας αὐτοῦ ῥεύσουσιν ὕδατος ζῶντος. τοῦτο δὲ εἶπε περὶ τοῦ Πνεύματος οὗ ἔμελλον λαμβάνειν οἱ πιστεύοντες εἰς αὐτόν οὔπω γὰρ ἦν Πνεῦμα Αγιον, ὅτι Ιησοῦς οὐδέπω ἐδοξάσθη. Πολλοὶ οὖν ἐκ τοῦ ὄχλου ἀκούσαντες τὸν λόγον ἔλεγον οὗτός ἐστιν ἀληθῶς ὁ προφήτης ἄλλοι ἔλεγον οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός ἄλλοι ἔλεγον μὴ γὰρ ἐκ τῆς Γαλιλαίας ὁ Χριστὸς ἔρχεται; οὐχὶ ἡ γραφὴ εἶπεν ὅτι ἐκ τοῦ σπέρματος Δαυῒδ καὶ ἀπὸ Βηθλεὲμ τῆς κώμης, ὅπου ἦν Δαυΐδ, ὁ Χριστὸς ἔρχεται; σχίσμα οὖν ἐν τῷ ὄχλῳ ἐγένετο δι αὐτόν. τινὲς δὲ ἤθελον ἐξ αὐτῶν πιάσαι αὐτόν, ἀλλ οὐδεὶς ἐπέβαλεν ἐπ αὐτὸν τὰς χεῖρας. Ηλθον οὖν οἱ ὑπηρέται πρὸς τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ Φαρισαίους, καὶ εἶπον αὐτοῖς ἐκεῖνοι διατί οὐκ ἠγάγετε αὐτόν; ἀπεκρίθησαν οἱ ὑπηρέται οὐδέποτε οὕτως ἐλάλησεν ἄνθρωπος, ὡς οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος. ἀπεκρίθησαν οὖν αὐτοῖς οἱ Φαρισαῖοι μὴ καὶ ὑμεῖς πεπλάνησθε; μή τις ἐκ τῶν ἀρχόντων ἐπίστευσεν εἰς αὐτὸν ἢ ἐκ τῶν Φαρισαίων; ἀλλ ὁ ὄχλος οὗτος ὁ μὴ γινώσκων τὸν νόμον ἐπικατάρατοί εἰσι! λέγει Νικόδημος πρὸς αὐτούς, ὁ ἐλθὼν νυκτὸς πρὸς αὐτόν, εἷς ὢν ἐξ αὐτῶν μὴ ὁ νόμος ἡμῶν κρίνει τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἐὰν μὴ ἀκούσῃ παρ αὐτοῦ πρότερον καὶ γνῷ τί ποιεῖ; ἀπεκρίθησαν καὶ εἶπον αὐτῷ μὴ καὶ σὺ ἐκ τῆς Γαλιλαίας εἶ; ἐρεύνησον καὶ ἴδε ὅτι προφήτης ἐκ τῆς Γαλιλαίας οὐκ ἐγήγερται. Πάλιν οὖν αὐτοῖς ὁ Ιησοῦς ἐλάλησε λέγων ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ φῶς τοῦ κόσμου ὁ ἀκολουθῶν ἐμοὶ οὐ μὴ περιπατήσῃ ἐν τῇ σκοτίᾳ, ἀλλ ἕξει τὸ φῶς τῆς ζωῆς. HOPE/JOY Pool Party SATURDAY, June 13, 11 AM to 1 PM Join us for a pool party at the Dow's home. Lunch will be provided. For Pre-schoolers through 5th graders! Please RSVP at this evite link:

5 Pentecost and the Great Vespers of Pentecost The Birthday of the Church The feast of the Holy Trinity (otherwise, Pentecost) is dedicated to the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles on the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of Christ. This event brought into existence the Church of Christ and gave rise to the Christian faith on earth. On the feast of Pentecost the Church brings its children to the doors of its spiritual life and appeals to them to renew and strengthen in themselves the gifts of the Holy Spirit given to them in Baptism. Spiritual life of an individual is impossible without God's grace, which possesses the mysterious power of rebirth and transforms the whole of the Christian's inward life. However lofty and valuable his desire might be, it will be fulfilled by the Holy Spirit. That is why the feast of Pentecost is always so joyfully celebrated by Orthodox Christians. Throughout all of history God gradually revealed himself to mankind. During Old Testament times people knew only about God the Father. Since the birth of the Savior they learned of his Only-begotten Son, and on the day of the descent of the Holy Spirit people learned of the existence of the Third Person of the Holy Trinity. Thus mankind was instructed to believe and praise God, one in essence and Threefold in Persons, that is, God the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity one and indivisible. The Service of Pentecost On the feast of Pentecost, to remind Christians of the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit, the churches are decorated with greenery and flowers and the priests wear green vestments. In the feast's prayers, like the troparion and kontakion cited bellow, thanks is expressed to God for sending us the Holy Spirit. Blessed art Thou, O Christ our God, who has shown forth the fishermen as supremely wise by sending down upon them the Holy Spirit, and through them didst draw the world into Thy net. O befriender of man, glory to Thee. Once, when He descended and confounded the tongues, the Most High divided the nations (Tower of Babel, see Genesis 11: 1-9); and when He divided the tongues of fire (on Pentecost), He called all men into unity; and (because of this) with one accord we glorify the All-holy Spirit. During Matins (the second half of the Vigil service) the two canons of the holiday are sung. The first one, written by Saint Cosmas the Monk (8th Century), is given here in English translation. This canon is a hymn honoring the Holy Trinity. The canon reminds us of several ancient prophecies concerning the descent of the Holy Spirit. It glorifies the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, as equal in all to the Father and the Son. The main events related to the descent of the Holy Spirit are described, and the importance of divine grace in a Christian's life is emphasized. The main feature of worship on the day of Pentecost is the reading with genuflection of the special prayers of St. Basil the Great, which are read during the Vesper's service right after the Liturgy. The Kneeling Vespers An extraordinary service called the Kneeling Vespers, is observed on this day. This is a Vespers service to which are added three sets of long poetical prayers, the composition of Saint Basil the Great, during which everyone kneels. This service is done immediately after the Liturgy.

6 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, CPT. Alexander Stathos, 1st LT Angela Bahlatzis, MIDN 1/C Joseph Barone, SGT Walter Hurbert ( Nikolaos ) Willoughby IV, LCDR Thomas Uhl, The Prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16) Prayers for Health JoGeo, Konstantinos, Shelly, Ruthie, Barbara, Samantha, Maria, Efstathia, Tony, Rouba, Sarah, Emily, Kynlee, Wesley, Afrodite, Nick, Nicholas Wyatt, Cameren, Helen, Chrissy, Nancy, MaryAnn, Marian, Tina, Salin, George-Panagiotis, Raphael, Marta, Guadalupe, Caroline, John, Lili, Archie, Kelsey, Eva, Virginia, Makena, Dolly, Afrodite, Alexandros, Lou, Thomas, Greg, Bill, Kathryn, John, Kathy, Nakis, Maggie, Rosemary, Mindy, Pat, Louella, Steve, Marie, Clifford, Tina, Cynthia, Chad, Douglas, Mat. Sissy Yerger, Fr. Paul, Katerina, Vasili, Harry, Angie, Francis, Petya, Thomas, Romeo, John, John, Brenda, Georgie, Dale, Dale, Anna, Brenda, Carol, Jan, Nick, Damon, Afrodite, Nick, Alex,, John, Fr. Jason and family, Presv. Tiffany, Maria, David, Boyd, Chris, Jennifer, Jay, Dede, Michael, Jason, Ling, Josh, Chrissy, Bradley, Jim, Patricia, Argyre-Lisa, Rick, Milton, Gregg, Aphrodite, Carol, Lisa, Johanna, Candace, Kyle, Nicholas, Alex, Boriska, Judith, Dominique, Stephen, Irenaeus, Alexander, Mike, Lori, Annie, Anesti, Efstathia, Hannah, Papoulas, Anna, Cecelia, James, Celie, Sheila, Kathi

7 SAVE THE DATE!!! St. Nicholas Vacation Church Camp August 3-7 Registration is now open! Camp St. Nicholas is for all children from 2 years old to those entering 5th grade in the Fall, and children from all over the Austin area are welcome to attend! Camp runs from Monday, August 3 - Thursday, August 7, from 9:00-12:00 at Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church, 414 St. Stephens School Road, every day. On Saturday, August 8, we hope you'll join us for a Family Field Trip to Holy Archangel's Monastery in Kendalia, Texas Mini Retreat at Transfiguration Saturday, June 27 All women in our parish are invited to our next miniretreat with Father Vasileios and Presbytera Vasiliki, sponsored by TGOC Philoptochos. Please mark your calendars for Saturday, June 27. We will have breakfast at 8:30am and the retreat will start at 9am with a break for lunch at 12pm. More details to follow soon. The Retreat at Balcones Springs September 18 - September 20 A Parish wide retreat! Our first Parish wide camp for all members, where we can all relax and put behind us our everyday troubles and worries while we grow our faith and understanding of Orthodoxy. AHEPA invites you to GREEK NIGHT a community wide event on Saturday, June 13 Menu Steak or Fish Greek Style Oven Potatoes Salad Dessert wine beer RSVP by Wednesday, June 10 Prices are: adults $20 (includes a drink voucher) Children under 12: $10 Please call the office with your RSVP and your choice of meal at

8 WEEKLY ANNOUNCEMENTS Sunday, May 31, 2015 Services for this Week Monday, June 1 - Monday of the Holy Spirit - Orthros 9am Divine Liturgy 10am Saturday, June 6 - Apodosis of Pentecost - Orthros 8am Divine Liturgy 9am Great Vespers - 5pm GOLF and MOMMY & ME Thursday mornings at 10am GOLF (Greek Orthodox Ladies Fellowship) and Mommy & Me (a ministry that focuses on mothers and their children) ministries are getting together on Thursday mornings at 10am in Mt. Tabor Hall to study the book The Acts of the Apostles: Spreading the Word, by Lawrence R. Farley, which is available for purchase at our bookstore. All ladies are welcome to join the groups and of course, their little ones or not so little ones as well. There will be a short social hour until 10:30am to get to know each other and then we will start our study. Time Change! Orthros 8:15am Divine Liturgy 9:30am Starting on Sunday, June 7 we will be going back to our summer schedule with Orthros starting at 8:15am and the Divine Liturgy at 9:30am Arabian Nights at St. Elias to benefit IOCC coming soon Arabian Nights is coming back to St. Elias on a Friday either end of June or mid-july, from 7pm- 10pm. Once again we will have the opportunity to help IOCC help the less fortunate around the globe. Live music, DJ, mezzes, and chilling under the stars, Arabian style! The cost will be $40, which includes mezzes and drink. Thank you to last week s Coffee Hour Sponsors Keriotis, Kenna, Kenyon, Kersch, Keys, Khan Thank you to this weeks Coffee Hour Sponsors: Kidd, Knisely, Kinnas, Klaras, Korioth, Kobzar Next week s Coffee Hour Sponsors: Kounelias, Kourkounakis, Kwasny, Lambros, Landon, Leara Thank you to last week s ushers: Lou Apostolakis (PCM) Chrissie Spiropoulos, David Horwedel, Gregory Chronis Thank you to today's ushers: Maria Burke (PCM) Kevin Korioth, Tricia Korioth, Stella Rossnagel Next week s ushers are: Stephen Dow (PCM) Harry Stamatis, Brian Holland, Allen Wynn