Rev. Economos Peter J. Thornberg, Proistamenos

April 5, 2015 Palm Sunday Monk-Martyrs Claudius, Diodore, Victor, Victorinus, and those with them Theodora the Righteous of Thessaloniki Agathopodes and Theodulos the Martyrs ENTRANCE HYMNS Resurrectional Apolytikion Sindafendes si ( We were buried with You through Baptism ) We were buried with You through Baptism, O Christ our God, and thus by Your Resurrection we have been granted immortal life, and extolling You we cry aloud, "Hosanna in the highest! Blessed are You, the One who comes in the name of the Lord." Apolytikion for Palm Sunday Tin kinin Anastasin ( To confirm the general resurrection ) To confirm the general resurrection before Your Passion, You resurrected Lazarus from the dead, O Christ our God. Therefore imitating the children, carrying the symbols of victory, we cry out to You the Victor over death: "Hosanna in the highest! Blessed are You, the One, who comes in the name of the Lord." Apolytikion of St. Sophia/Ss. Faith, Hope & Agape Greek Oς ελαία κατά καρπος ανεβλάστησας, έν ταίς ανλαίς του Κυρίου, Σοφία μάρτυς σεμνή, καί προσήγαγες Χριστώ καρπόν η δύτατον, τούς τής νηδύος σου βλαστούς, δί α γώνων εύαγων, Αγάπην τε καί `Ελπίδα σύν τη θεόφρονι Πίστει, μεθων δυσώπει υπέρ πάντων ήμων. English Phonetics for Greek Os elea kata karpos anevlastisas, en tes avles tu Kyriou Sofia martys semni, ke prosigages Christo karpon idytaton, tus tis nidyos su vlastus, di agonon evagon, Agapin te ke Elpida, syn ti theofroni Pisti; meth on dysopi yper pandon imon. English As an olive tree laden with fruit you sprouted forth, in the courtyards of the Lord, Sophia martyr dignified, and you brought to Christ a fruit most sweet, Namely your womb s own sprouts, brought up by instructive deeds: your daughters Faith and Hope, along with God-minded Love; together intercede with God for us all. Seasonal Kontakion To throno en ourano ( In heaven upon the throne ) In heaven upon the throne, on earth upon the colt, * You were carried, O Christ our God; * and the praise of the Angels, and the hymns of the children, You received as they cried to You, * "Blessed are You, the One, who is coming to call Adam back again."

AHEPA Scholarship Available 2015 District Scholarship Application Deadline: April 16, 2015 This application is from the AHEPA District 4, of which our AHEPA Chapter 432 Valley Forge is a member. For more information, please see an AHEPA member. To download the application, follow this link: http://www.ahepa4.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015_district4_scholarship_application.docx Camp Good Shepherd News Attention Young Adults and Adults of St. Sophia: We are pleased to announce that staff applications are being accepted for Camp Good Shepherd 2015 as well as the newly created Camp Good Shepherd-Virginia. If you or your child (at least 18 years of age) are interested in assisting with our Metropolis Camping Program, please contact the Parish office to obtain applications. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the Metropolis Youth Office at (908)301-0500. Registration Open: We are happy to announce that registration for Camp Good Shepherd - New Jersey and Camp Good Shepherd - Virginia is now open. As you know, this is an amazing camp program, and we encourage our GOYAns and JOYans to attend. This link will take you to the registration site: http://www.nj.goarch.org/youthyal/goodshepherd.htm The dates for the Camps are: 2015 Session Dates: CGS - Virginia - Sunday, June 28th - Friday, July 3rd JOY Sunday, July 12th Saturday, July 18th GOYA Week I Sunday, July 19th Saturday, July 25th GOYA Week II Sunday, July 26th Saturday, August 1st EPISTLE READING The Reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Philippians 4:4-9 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Verse: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His mercy endures forever. BRETHREN, rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you. Ἀνάγνωσις ἐπιστολῆς Πρὸς Φιλιππησίους 4:4-9 EASTER EGG HUNT The children of the parish are invited to join us for an Easter Egg Hunt following the Agape Service on Easter Sunday. The Agape Service begins at 12:00 noon. Εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου. Στίχ. Στίχ. Ἐξομολογεῖσθε τῷ Κυρίῳ ὅτι ἀγαθὸς, ὅτι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ. Ἀδελφοί, χαίρετε ἐν κυρίῳ πάντοτε πάλιν ἐρῶ, χαίρετε. Τὸ ἐπιεικὲς ὑμῶν γνωσθήτω πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις. Ὁ κύριος ἐγγύς. Μηδὲν μεριμνᾶτε, ἀλλʼ ἐν παντὶ τῇ προσευχῇ καὶ τῇ δεήσει μετὰ εὐχαριστίας τὰ αἰτήματα ὑμῶν γνωριζέσθω πρὸς τὸν θεόν. Καὶ ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ θεοῦ ἡ ὑπερέχουσα πάντα νοῦν, φρουρήσει τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν καὶ τὰ νοήματα ὑμῶν ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ. Τὸ λοιπόν, ἀδελφοί, ὅσα ἐστὶν ἀληθῆ, ὅσα σεμνά, ὅσα δίκαια, ὅσα ἁγνά, ὅσα προσφιλῆ, ὅσα εὔφημα, εἴ τις ἀρετὴ καὶ εἴ τις ἔπαινος, ταῦτα λογίζεσθε. Ἃ καὶ ἐμάθετε καὶ παρελάβετε καὶ ἠκούσατε καὶ εἴδετε ἐν ἐμοί, ταῦτα πράσσετε καὶ ὁ θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης ἔσται μεθʼ ὑμῶν.

GOSPEL READING The Reading is from the Gospel of John 12:1-18 Six days before Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazaros was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. There they made him a supper; Martha served, and Lazaros was one of those at table with him. Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was to betray him), said "Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" This he said, not that he cared for the poor but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box he used to take what was put into it. Jesus said, "Let her alone, let her keep it for the day of my burial. The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me." When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came, not only on account of Jesus but also to see Lazaros, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests planned to put Lazaros also to death, because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus. The next day a great crowd who had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" And Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it; as it is written, "Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!" His disciples did not understand this at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that this had been written of him and had been done to him. The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazaros out of the tomb and raised him from the dead bore witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign.

ΕVΑΓΓÉΛΙΟΝ Κατὰ Ἰωάννην 12.1-18 Πρὸ ἓξ ἡμερῶν τοῦ πάσχα ἦλθεν Ὁ Ιησοῦς εἰς Βηθανίαν, ὅπου ἦν Λάζαρος ὁ τεθνηκώς, ὃν ἤγειρεν ἐκ νεκρῶν. ἐποίησαν οὖν αὐτῷ δεῖπνον ἐκεῖ, καὶ ἡ Μάρθα διηκόνει ὁ δὲ Λάζαρος εἷς ἦν τῶν ἀνακειμένων σὺν αὐτῷ. ἡ οὖν Μαρία, λαβοῦσα λίτραν μύρου νάρδου πιστικῆς πολυτίμου, ἤλειψε τοὺς πόδας τοῦ Ιησοῦ καὶ ἐξέμαξε ταῖς θριξὶν αὐτῆς τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ἡ δὲ οἰκία ἐπληρώθη ἐκ τῆς ὀσμῆς τοῦ μύρου. λέγει οὖν εἷς ἐκ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ, Ιούδας Σίμωνος Ισκαριώτης, ὁ μέλλων αὐτὸν παραδιδόναι διατί τοῦτο τὸ μύρον οὐκ ἐπράθη τριακοσίων δηναρίων καὶ ἐδόθη πτωχοῖς; εἶπε δὲ τοῦτο οὐχ ὅτι περὶ τῶν πτωχῶν ἔμελεν αὐτῷ, ἀλλ ὅτι κλέπτης ἦν, καὶ τὸ γλωσσόκομον εἶχε καὶ τὰ βαλλόμενα ἐβάσταζεν. εἶπεν οὖν ὁ Ιησοῦς ἄφες αὐτήν, εἰς τὴν ἡμέραν τοῦ ἐνταφιασμοῦ μου τετήρηκεν αὐτό. τοὺς πτωχοὺς γὰρ πάντοτε ἔχετε μεθ ἑαυτῶν, ἐμὲ δὲ οὐ πάντοτε ἔχετε. Εγνω οὖν ὄχλος πολὺς ἐκ τῶν Ιουδαίων ὅτι ἐκεῖ ἐστι, καὶ ἦλθον οὐ διὰ τὸν Ιησοῦν μόνον, ἀλλ ἵνα καὶ τὸν Λάζαρον ἴδωσιν ὃν ἤγειρεν ἐκ νεκρῶν. ἐβουλεύσαντο δὲ οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς ἵνα καὶ τὸν Λάζαρον ἀποκτείνωσιν,ὅτι πολλοὶ δι αὐτὸν ὑπῆγον τῶν Ιουδαίων καὶ ἐπίστευον εἰς τὸν Ιησοῦν. Τῇ ἐπαύριον ὄχλος πολὺς ὁ ἐλθὼν εἰς τὴν ἑορτήν, ἀκούσαντες ὅτι ἔρχεται Ιησοῦς εἰς Ιεροσόλυμα, ἔλαβον τὰ βαΐα τῶν φοινίκων καὶ ἐξῆλθον εἰς ὑπάντησιν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἔκραζον ὡσαννά, εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου, ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ Ισραήλ. εὑρὼν δὲ ὁ Ιησοῦς ὀνάριον ἐκάθισεν ἐπ αὐτό, καθώς ἐστι γεγραμμένον μὴ φοβοῦ, θύγατερ Σιών ἰδοὺ ὁ βασιλεύς σου ἔρχεται καθήμενος ἐπὶ πῶλον ὄνου. Ταῦτα δὲ οὐκ ἔγνωσαν οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ τὸ πρῶτον, ἀλλ ὅτε ἐδοξάσθη ὁ Ιησοῦς, τότε ἐμνήσθησαν ὅτι ταῦτα ἦν ἐπ αὐτῷ γεγραμμένα, καὶ ταῦτα ἐποίησαν αὐτῷ. Εμαρτύρει οὖν ὁ ὄχλος ὁ ὢν μετ αὐτοῦ ὅτε τὸν Λάζαρον ἐφώνησεν ἐκ τοῦ μνημείου καὶ ἤγειρεν αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν. διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὑπήντησεν αὐτῷ ὁ ὄχλος, ὅτι ἤκουσαν τοῦτο αὐτὸν πεποιηκέναι τὸ σημεῖον.

April 5, 2015 Palm Sunday Monk-Martyrs Claudius, Diodore, Victor, Victorinus, and those with them Theodora the Righteous of Thessaloniki Agathopodes and Theodulos the Martyrs SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 40 Day Baby Blessing: Today Mr. & Mrs. Andrew and Ellaine Kamateros present their second child, a girl, for the traditional 40 day blessing. 7 th Annual Antonios S. Thomas Palm Sunday Concert for the Youth: During today s luncheon we will be hearing the talents of several of St. Sophia's youth and also watching the Senior Dance Group perform. These youngsters recently performed at Sights and Sounds. Also, we will have on display the various pieces of art that some of these youngsters presented. This concert is dedicated to the memory of Antonios S. Thomas. Antonios was a child of this parish who died from leukemia a few years ago and he had a great love for music and the arts. Coffee Hour Sponsors Needed! : We are in need of coffee hour sponsors for the upcoming weeks. If you are interested in hosting a coffee hour, please put your name on the list at the back of the hall AND contact the Parish office (by e-mail, if possible; or call Elaine in the Parish office.) Calendar for the Week: Please see the Holy Week Schedule in this bulletin. Please note: The Parish Office will be closed on Good Friday and Bright Monday. Holy Week Items for Sponsorship: Thank you to all those who have sponsored Holy Week items that are needed by the church. We have received sponsors for everything on the list! If you are still looking to make a donation, you can still donate Easter Lilies (a form is enclosed for your convenience) or you may make a donation for Epitaphios flowers or a general Easter donation. Envelopes are at the Pangari. In addition, there are a few items that are needed throughout the year: 1) Help us keep the vigil lamps burning bright: Olive oil is a perpetual need for the church in order to keep the vigil lamps or καντήλια (kandilia) burning bright. If you would like to donate olive oil, you may bring it to the Parish office at any time throughout the year. 2) Communion wine as a church donation: Communion wine is always needed by the church. If you would like to make a donation of wine, the following wines are preferred: St. John Commandaria (of Cyprus), Mavrodaphne, or Manischewitz Concord Grape. 3) Prosphora needed: Between Saturday of Lazarus and Easter, especially, there is a great need for Prosphora (the bread prepared for use in the Divine Liturgy.) It is especially nice for the priest to have freshly baked prosphora. If you would like to make the offering of prosphora at any time during the year, please know that Fr. Peter must have the bread before Orthros begins (which is at 8:45 am) or the afternoon or evening before the Liturgy. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Parish office.

SCHEDULE OF UPCOMING SERVICES AND EVENTS TODAY - Palm Sunday Sat., April 18 th Sun., April 19 th Sun., April 19 th Sun., May 17 th May 27 May 31 Philoptochos Fish Luncheon 7:00 pm - Great Vespers for Feast of St. Thomas to be held at St. Thomas Greek Orthodox Church, Cherry Hill, NJ to be followed by a reception hosted by the St. Irene Philoptochos Society. 8:45 am Orthros & Hierarchical Divine Liturgy for the Feast Day of St. Thomas to be held at St. Thomas Greek Orthodox Church, Cherry Hill, NJ to be followed by a reception. 4 th Annual Benefit Banquet for IOCC @ Adelphia Restaurant, Deptford, NJ See Cathy Zarcone for details. Parish Spring General Assembly Meeting Spring Grecian Festival GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Egg Cartons Needed: We are collecting empty egg cartons for the children's Good Friday Retreat. You can drop off egg cartons in the Flex Room. We specifically need paper cartons (not foam), that hold a dozen eggs only. School Excuse Letters: Letters to excuse the children from school on Holy Wednesday and Good Friday have been prepared and are available at the Pangari. Altar Servers: We will need your help for Holy Week. Families, if you have young men who serve in the Altar, please make it a priority for them to be here in church during Holy Week. Absence excuse letters are available at the Pangari if needed. We need their help. Myrofores: We are looking for young girls of the parish who would like to serve as Myrofores on Good Friday evening. SEE ENCLOSED MYROFORES INFORMATIONAL SHEET. Readers for Agape Service: We are looking for readers for the Agape Service. As tradition, the Gospel is read in several languages. We have the Gospel available in Latin, French, German, and Spanish. If anyone would like to read in any other language, the specific Gospel reading is John 20:19-25. Please contact Fr. Peter if you are interested.

Festival Committee Meeting: The next festival committee meeting will take place on Tuesday evening, April 14, 2015, at 6:30 pm. Future meetings will occur on Tuesday evenings at 6:30 pm until the festival. All those interested in participating in the organization of the festival are welcome to attend. SHOP-RITE or GIANT shoppers: We have enrolled in their Gift Card Program and the gift cards are on sale during coffee hour. If you are interested, please see Alexis Witt. Register Tapes: Don t forget to save your Shop-Rite register tapes. We can only use receipts from any of the ten Brown s stores located in: Bensalem PA, East Norriton, PA, Fairless Hills PA, Cheltenham, PA and in Philadelphia, PA, on Island Ave., Oregon Ave., 52 nd & Parkside, Haverford Ave., and Ridge Ave. in the Roxborough section. They also have one store in Brooklawn, NJ. The drop off box is located in the lobby of the Cultural Center. Please submit receipts timely, only tapes from within 4 months of the transaction date are accepted. REDNER S Register Tapes: We are now collecting Redner s Market register tapes. Remember to use your Pump Perks card when making purchases. The drop off box is located in the lobby of the Cultural Center. Movie Tavern Tickets: This is the fabulous movie theater in town that offers first run movies as well as an "in-house" dining experience. The Ladies Philoptochos is selling discounted MOVIE TAVERN movie tickets for $8.50 each. They can be used on any day and even for new releases. For more information, or to purchase tickets, contact Maria or Kathy Tsipras. For show times visit www.movietavern.com. AHEPA Track Meet: This year s AHEPA Pan-Hellenic Track Meet will take place on Saturday, May 30 th at 12 noon at Upper Darby High School (rain date Sunday, May 31 st at 12 noon at Upper Darby H.S.) 2015 Ecclesiastical Calendars: The new calendars are still available for pick up in the Parish office. Each calendar is in an envelope addressed to each family (2014 stewards) of our parish. If you cannot find your packet, please call the Parish Office. Pastoral Visits - A Request to All Parishioners: If you desire a pastoral visit in case of a hospitalization, or for someone who is homebound, in a nursing facility, or in prison, please have an immediate family member notify the Parish office at 610-650-8960 so that a visit can be arranged. In Case of Emergency: If you are having an extreme medical emergency and are in need of an Orthodox priest, please call the Parish office at 610-650-8960.

Church Beautification Update April 5, 2015 We continue to focus on meeting our mortgage obligations (please see below for the latest) as well as to take care of buildings and grounds. We are also continuing the process of beautifying the church. We are pleased to announce that the Bishop s Throne was recently sponsored by an anonymous donor. God Bless them! Many sponsorship opportunities are still available for both iconography and the furnishings. As you ve probably noticed, we have new Narthex furnishings. They were carved by the world-renowned artisans at S. Kavroulakis Company of Chania, Crete, the same firm that carved our beautiful icon screen and other artifacts. This beautiful furniture now greets everyone who enters our church! Some of these items are still available for sponsorship. In order to protect our iconography and artifacts, we have installed a special humidity control system which will help stabilize the humidity levels especially during the winter months. We will be installing a donor plaque to acknowledge those who have contributed to make our new church and its decoration possible. Our iconographer, Dr. George Kordis may return for a brief visit later this year to decorate the donor plaque and apply a protective varnish to the icons on the icon screen and other items. St. Sophia Church Mortgage Mortgage balance as of 3/31/2015 is $1,370,000. We recently negotiated a lower rate with QNB Bank, which will lower our payment by $1,000/month. Stewardship Update April 5, 2015 This weekend we celebrate Christ s raising of Lazarus from the dead and His triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. As we enter Holy Week, now is a most appropriate time to consider God s many blessings upon us and how we can live better Orthodox lives. Over the next week, we will travel with Christ as he gloriously enters Jerusalem, is Crucified, and then Resurrected. Throughout the year, and especially during the Lenten and Easter season, God is calling each and every one of us! Are you listening?? As Stewards of the faith, it is important that we thank God for His blessings by giving of our time, in addition to talents and treasure. In the days leading up to Pascha, we must all make time to come to church! And not just for adults but for children too. It seems these days that kids sports and video games are treated as THE most important way for kids to spend their time. Responsible parents need to make sure they are teaching their kids that making time for God should be a top priority. After all, school sports will eventually fade away, but what we teach our children now about our faith and being good Orthodox Christians will remain with them the rest of their lives. So, please make sure you come and worship with your family this Holy Week (and beyond!). Our 2015 Stewardship Program is off to a great start. Thank you to everyone who has already returned their 2015 Pledge Card. If you have not yet returned your Pledge Card please do so today. As a busy parish, there are plenty of opportunities for all of us to get involved by giving of our time and talents to support His work. Actively participating is not only spiritually rewarding it can be really fun too! God Bless You for your support of His Work and our parish! 2014 (Year End) 2015 (04/03/15) Pledge Unit Goal 240 240 Pledge $ Goal $210,000 $210,000 Number of Pledges 215 141 Amount Pledged $209,857 $167,020 Average Pledge $976.08 $1,185 New Stewards 23 4