April 30, 2017
Sunday of the Holy Myrrh-bearers
About the beginning of His thirty-second year, when our Lord was going throughout Galilee, preaching and working miracles, many women who had received of His beneficence left their homeland and from then on followed after Him. They ministered unto Him out of their own possessions, even until His crucifixion and entombment; and afterwards, neither losing faith in Him after His death, nor fearing the wrath of the Jewish rulers, they came to His sepulcher, bearing the myrrh-oils they had prepared to anoint His body. It is because of the myrrh-oils that these God-loving women brought to the tomb that they are called the Myrrh-bearers. Of those whose names are known are the following: first of all the most holy Virgin Mary, who in Matthew 27:56 and Mark 15:40 is called Athe mother of James and Joses@ (these are the sons of Joseph by a previous marriage, and she was therefore their step-mother); Mary Magdalene; Mary, the wife of Cleopas; Joanna, wife of Chouza, a steward of Herod Antipas; Salome, the mother of the sons of Zebedee; Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus; and Susanna. As for the names of the rest of them, the evangelists have kept silence.
On this day we also make commemoration of Joseph of Arimathea, who was a secret disciple, and also of Nicodemus, who was a disciple by night. Joseph went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus, and together with Nicodemus, he gave Him burial out of reverence and love.
Acts 6:1-7: In the reading from Acts we see the establishment of the office of diaconate as an order of Church government with a purpose of serving the people and caring for their needs.
Mark 15:43-16:8: St Mark describes how Joseph of Arimathea claims the body of our Lord from Pilate to place it in his own tomb. On the third day, the three women learn from an angel that the Lord has risen from the dead.
Troparion of the Resurrection: When thou, O immortal Life, didst humble thyself unto death, then didst thou destroy death by the brightness of thy Godhead; and when thou didst raise the bowels of the earth, then all the heavenly powers exclaimed, O Christ, thou art the Giver of life! Glory to thee, O our God!
Troparia of the Holy Myrrh-Bearers: The pious Joseph, having brought down thy pure body from the Tree, wrapped it in fine linen, embalmed it with ointment, provided for it, and laid it in a new tomb. But thou didst truly rise, after three days, O Lord, granting the world the Great Mercy.
Verily, the angel came to the tomb and said to the ointment-bearing women, The ointment is meet for the dead, but Christ is shown to be remote from corruption. But cry ye, The Lord is risen, granting the world the Great Mercy.
Troparion of the Chains of St. Peter: O Holy Apostle, Peter, thou dost preside over the Apostles by the precious chains which thou didst bear. We venerate them with faith and beseech thee that by thine intercessions we be granted the great mercy.
Kontakion of Pascha: When Thou didst descend into the grave, O Immortal, Thou didst destroy the power of Hades. In victory didst Thou arise, O Christ God, proclaiming ARejoice@ to the myrrh-bearing women, granting peace to Thine apostles and bestowing resurrection on the fallen.
CALENDAR
Sunday, April 30 (Sunday of the Holy Myrrh-bearers)
8:50 a.m. — Orthros
9:00 a.m. — Christian Education
10:00 a.m. — Divine Liturgy
12:00 p.m. — Pot Luck Meal honoring the Fahmys
Monday, May 1
Office Closed — Father John’s Day Off
Tuesday, May 2 (Athanasios the Great)
6:00 a.m. — Daily Orthros
Wednesday, May 3
6:30 p.m. — Daily Vespers
7:15 p.m. — Choir Practice
Thursday, May 4
6:00 a.m. — Daily Orthros
11:30 a.m. — Men’s Lunch
Friday, May 5
Saturday, May 6
11:30 a.m. — Serving at Stewpot
5:45 p.m. — Ninth Hour followed by Great Vespers
Sunday, May 7 (Sunday of the Paralytic)
8:50 a.m. — Orthros
9:00 a.m. — Christian Education
10:00 a.m. — Divine Liturgy
12:00 p.m. — Special Coffee Hour honoring Oliver Strange, our high school graduate
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Eucharist Bread …was offered by the Karams for the Divine Liturgy this morning.
Eucharist Bread and Coffee Hour Schedule:
Eucharist Bread Coffee Hour
April 30 Karam POT LUCK MEAL (honoring Fahmys)
set-up: Algood/Strain/Dabit
May 7 Brock Schelver/Lavric/Karam (No Pot Luck)
May 14 Baker Henderson/Baker/Lockhart
May 21 R. Root Stewart/Turner/Waites
May 24 (Wed. p.m.) Henderson Mary Guy Lockhart
(Feast of the Ascension)
May 28 Algood Ellis/Zouboukos
Schedule for Epistle Readers – Page numbers refer to the Apostolos (book of the Epistles) located on the front pew. Please be sure to use this book when you read.
Reader Reading Page#
April 30 Kh. Be’Be’ Schelver Acts 6:1-7 38
May 7 Brenda Baker Acts 9:32-42 45
May 14 David Turner Acts 11:19-30 52
May 21 Walt Wood Acts 26:1, 12-20 384
May 24 (Wed. p.m.) Sh. Charlotte Algood Acts 1:1-12 63
May 28 Warren Strain Acts 20:16-18, 28-36 66
Please continue to pray for the health of His Grace, Bishop ANTOUN.
Please remember Fr. Joseph and Kh. Joanna Bittle, and their daughter Abigail, in your prayers.
Please be reminded of the following:
Be very careful with the Blessed Bread when you take it after communion. Because this bread has been blessed, we should take care not to let crumbs fall on the floor. Parents, especially, please help your children to choose a small piece and treat it carefully.
Also, at the end of the liturgy, maintain a prayerful disposition during the veneration of the cross as the prayers of thanksgiving after communion are still underway. Please exchange your greetings with each other in the Fellowship Hall during Coffee Hour.
Continue to pray for Metropolitan Paul (who is also the brother of our Patriarch) and the Syriac Archbishop John of Aleppo who were abducted while on a humanitarian mission in Syria.
Please be reminded that the Sacristy/Vestry which is adjacent to and behind the altar in our church is considered by the Orthodox Church to be part of the Sanctuary (Altar area) and should not be entered without the blessing of the priest for a specific purpose. If you need to speak with a member of the clergy while they are in the Sanctuary, please ask them to come to you in the nave.
Please remember the following in your prayers: Steve, Sheryl Chamblee; Aidan Milnor, the Milnor family; Sam and Lamia Dabit and Sammie; Georgia Buchanan, George and Michael Johns (Georgia’s grandsons) and their family; Mary Greene (Lee and Kh. Sharon’s sister); Fr. Stephen Tewfik; Sue Thayer (Charlotte Wood’s mother), Walt and Charlotte and their family; Lynda Costas; Fr. Nicholas, Kh. Jan and Angelina Speier; Tom and Kathy Willingham and Tom’s stepdaughter, Marica, who has been diagnosed with MS; Peggy (David Turner’s paternal aunt) who is suffering from cancer and related complications; Alexa (Lou Turner’s very close friend) who sustained multiple injuries in a serious car wreck; and George (Dorothea and Daniel Staursky’s uncle) who sustained injuries in a bad fall.
Chanters’ Stand: We are looking into the purchase of a Chanters’ Stand for the church. The ones that are currently under consideration are carved and are similar to the beautiful tables in the nave and narthex. The cost would be somewhere between $2000 and $4000. We are soliciting donations to cover the cost. If you would like to participate, please let Fr. John know.
Sad Farewell! Nimr and Mona Fahmy will be moving to Franklin, TN in May and will be leaving St. Peter to be closer to their children and grandchildren. They will be greatly missed! In their honor we will be having a Pot Luck Meal this morning. (There will not be a Pot Luck Meal in May as listed on the Quarterly Schedule.)
On Sunday, May 7th we will have a Special Coffee Hour in honor of Oliver Strange who will be graduating from high school this year. He plans to attend the University of Southern Mississippi in the fall.
Our special collection to benefit FOCUS (Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve) last month netted $600, which was forwarded to them. Thank you for your generosity.
Calendar Items:
* The Men of the parish meet for lunch and fellowship on the first Thursday of the month.
* The Ladies of St. Peter will meet at 10:00 a.m. on the second Saturday of the month to pray the Akathist to the Mother of God, Nurturer of Children.
* The Ladies of the parish meet for lunch and fellowship on the fourth Tuesday of the month.
* Pot Luck honoring the Fahmys TODAY.
* The next time for serving meals at the Stewpot will be Saturday, May 6th.
* Special Coffee Hour honoring Oliver Strange, our graduating high school senior, on Sunday, May 7th.
Parents of Young Children: Please make sure that your children are supervised if they are in the Nursery during Coffee Hour, just as they are supervised if out on the Playground. The Nursery is being left in a mess on Sunday mornings following Coffee Hour and the clean-up is falling on the same people (i.e. those who teach Sunday School classes in that room). If you leave and there are still children using the room, please make sure that your children pick up the things with which they have been playing.
Fasting Discipline for May
Following Bright Week, the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, dairy, eggs, fish, wine or oil) is observed on the remaining Wednesdays and Fridays of the month. In May the traditional fasting discipline is observed on all Wednesdays and Fridays of the month.
Major Commemorations for May
May 2 Athanasios the Great
May 7 Sunday of the Paralytic
May 8 Apostle Johnthe Theologian
May 10 Apostle Simon the Zealot
May 14 Sunday of the Samaritan Woman
May 21 Sunday of the Blindman
Sts. Constantine and Helen
May 24 Leave-taking of Pascha
May 25 Feast of the Ascension
The Forerunner (3rd Discovery)
May 28 Sunday of the Holy Fathers of Nicea
If you are the last to leave, please make sure that the doors in the Fellowship Hall, the kitchen and the hallway are all locked.
Burial and Funeral Care Instructions forms: These forms are located on the bureau in the hallway outside the nave. There are two forms: one for the church and one for the family (with a copy given to the church). Please fill out your forms and return to the office as soon as possible.
Please be sure to have your forms notarized. The forms will be kept in a file in the office so that we have your instructions should the need arise.
Quotable: “The general significance of the sacrifice
The essential act in the celebration of the holy mysteries is the transformation of the elements into the Divine Body and Blood; its aim is the sanctification of the faithful, who through these mysteries receive the remission of their sins and the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. As a preparation for, and contribution to, this act and this purpose we have prayers, psalms, and readings from the Holy Scripture; in short, all sacred acts and forms which are said and done before and after the consecration of the elements. While it is true that God freely gives us all holy things and that we bring him nothing, but that they are absolute graces, he does nevertheless necessarily require that we should be fit to receive and preserve them; and he would not permit those who were not so disposed to be thus sanctified. It is in this way that he admits us to Baptism and Confirmation; in this way that he receives us at the divine banquet and allows us to participate at the solemn table. Christ, in his parable of the sower has illustrated this way that God has of dealing with us.”
Nicholas Cabasilas, A Commentary on the Divine Liturgy
Worship: Sunday, May 7, 2017 (Sunday of the Paralytic)
Scripture: Acts 9:32-42; John 5:1-15
Celebrant: Father John
Epistle Reader: Brenda Baker
Prosphora: Brock
Coffee Hour: SPECIAL COFFEE HOUR honoring Oliver Strange
(set-up: Schelver/Lavric/Karam)
Saint Peter Antiochian Orthodox Church 
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