June 2, 2019
Sunday of the Blind Man
Today is the Sunday of the Blind Man. Though the Gospel account of the healing of the blind man touches many subjects, there is but one theme: Christ is the divine Light which illuminates the hearts of those who behold Him in faith. Despite the intimidation of the authorities, despite the confusion of the people who know him, despite the fear of his parents, the blind man given sight refuses to deny what he knows is the truth: Jesus has given him sight, has healed the affliction he has born from birth, and one who does such good is from God. To deny his healer is to deny the truth, and he prefers persecution and rejection to that denial. More than his eyes have been opened; his heart has been opened to true and eternal Light. As were the Israelites cast into the dark despair of his fear, as are we all blinded by the frustration of sin and of our weakness, so this man was trapped by his closed eyes; and, as may all be, he was freed by the coming of the Messiah. In faith we open our eyes to the radiant glory of our Lord and King.
Acts 16:16-34: In our reading from Acts we see Paul and Silas imprisoned unjustly; but the Lord uses the circumstances to bring the jailer to Himself by means of a dramatic rescue.
John 9:1-38: After Jesus heals a man born blind, we see the hypocrisy and unbelief of the Pharisees as they seek to learn how the man came to see. After being put out of the temple, the formerly blind man again encounters Jesus, whom he worships as his savior.
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, June 2 (Sunday of the Blind Man)
8:50 a.m. — Orthros
10:00 a.m. — Divine Liturgy
Monday, June 3
Father John’s Day Off
Tuesday, June 4 (Metrophanes of Constantinople)
6:00 a.m. — Festal Orthros
6:30 p.m. — Paschal Vespers for the Leave-taking of Pascha
Wednesday, June 5
6:00 p.m. — Orthros followed by Divine Liturgy
Thursday, June 6 (Feast of the Ascension)
The fortieth day after Easter is the day of the Ascension, the liturgical end to the celebration of the Resurrection and the opening of the season observing the glory of the Messiah. This is a day too often associated with the sadness of departure; yet this day brought great joy to the Disciples. They saw not the departure of one dear to them, but the glorious entry of their King to His heavenly throne. They saw not the loss of their Intercessor, but the Father accepting the eternal sacrifice and blessing the completion of man’s salvation. They saw not their separation from Christ but their assumption with Him into glory through the Incarnation. They saw not the removal of the blessed One but the promise from Him of further blessings. This day is another step in our procession into eternity, a remembrance of heavenly things, a reminder that the essence of our lives is the heavenly, a refreshing of the image of our God in all His glory.
NO Daily Orthros
11:30 a.m. — Men’s Lunch
Friday, June 7
Saturday, June 8
10:00 a.m. — Ladies meet for Akathist
5:45 p.m. — Ninth Hour followed by Great Vespers
Sunday, June 9 (Sunday of the Holy Fathers of Nicea)
8:50 a.m. — Orthros
10:00 a.m. — Divine Liturgy
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Eucharist Bread …was offered by the Hendersons for the Divine Liturgy this morning.
Eucharist Bread and Coffee Hour Schedule:
Eucharist Bread Coffee Hour
June 2 Henderson Meadows/Jones/Turner
June 5 (Wed. p.m.) Katool Mary Guy Lockhart
(Feast of the Ascension)
June 9 Schelver Ellis/Zuoboukos/Waites
June 16 Morris PICNIC POT LUCK MEAL
(Feast of Pentecost) Set-up: R. Root/Habeeb/Cooper
June 23 Jones Henderson/Lockhart/Alaeetawi
June 29 (Sat. a.m.) D. Root Marica Pacurari
(Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul)
June 30 Davis Pigott/Dabit/Strain/Lavric
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#
June 2 Sam Habeeb Acts 16:16-34 58
June 5 (Wed. p.m.) Brenda Baker Acts 1:1-12 63
June 9 Walt Wood Acts 20:16-18, 28-36 66
June 16 Kh. Be’Be’ Schelver Acts 2:1-11 77
June 23 Warren Strain Heb. 11:33-12:2 84
June 29 (Sat. a.m.) Brenda Baker II Cor. 11:21-33; 12:6-9 389
June 30 Mildred Morris I Cor. 4:9-16 135
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 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.
Please remember the following in your prayers: Steve, Sheryl Chamblee; Aidan Milnor, the Milnor family; Sam and Lamia Dabit and Sammie; Mary Greene (Lee and Kh. Sharon’s sister); Lynda Costas; Fr. Nicholas, Kh. Jan and Angelina Speier; David Morris and his family; Vernie Meadows, Fr. James and Kh. Sharon and their family; Walt and Charlotte Wood and their family; Lou Turner’s cousin Amy and her husband John; Noah and Beth Ann (Baker) Pappas, the Reader Basil and Brenda and all of the Baker family; Chris and Rebecca Dansereau and their daughters; Fr. Leo and Kh. Be’Be’ and their family.
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 remember Fr. Joseph and Kh. Joanna Bittle, and their daughter Abigail, in your prayers.
Please keep Fr. John Morris and Kh. Cheryl in your prayers. They have both been ill recently.
For updates on Fr. Leo’s condition, please go to caringbridge.org/visit/leofredrichschelver.
Welcome Home for the summer to Dn. Herman and Sh. Emelia Lasseter and their sons Titus and Thatcher! We are glad to have you with us again!
For Parents: Children in the nursery during Coffee Hour MUST be supervised just as they are on the playground. This room is used for Sunday School each week. Children who are unsupervised create disarray and use materials set aside for the teaching of Christian Education. This creates extra work for the Sunday School teachers who have to come in and set the room in order before class or who find supplies depleted unexpectedly. A parent must be in the room with their children at all times. Please help us with this! — Fr. John
Fasting Discipline for June
There is no fasting the Week following Pentecost (June 16th). The Fast of the Apostles will run from June 24th through the 28th. During this time the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, dairy, eggs, fish, wine or oil) is observed on all days.
Major Commemorations for June
June 2 Sunday of the Blind Man
June 4 Metrophanes of Constantinople
Leave-taking of Pascha
June 6 Feast of Ascension
June 8 Theodore the General (transfer of relics)
June 9 Sunday of the Holy Fathers of Nicea
June 11 Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas
June 16 Feast of Pentecost
June 23 Sunday of All Saints
June 24 Nativity of the Forerunner
June 29 Chief Apostles Peter and Paul
June 30 Synaxis of the Twelve Apostles
Calendar Items:
* The Men of the parish meet for lunch and fellowship on the first Thursday of the month.
* The Ladies of St. Peter 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 last Tuesday of the month.
* We will celebrate the Feast of the Ascension with Orthros followed by Divine Liturgy on Wednesday evening, June 5th, beginning at 6:00 p.m.
* The Parish Life Conference will be held in Raleigh NC, June 13-16.
* We will celebrate the Feast of Pentecost with a Picnic Pot Luck Meal following the Divine Liturgy on Sunday, June 16th.
* We will have the Kneeling Vespers of Pentecost on the evening of June 16th, beginning at 6:30 p.m.
* Vacation Church School will be held again this year in July on the 11th,12th, and 13th. More information will be available later.
* Our next date for serving at the Stewpot is Saturday, September 28th.
Unsupervised children in the Kitchen: For health and safety concerns children are not to be allowed in the kitchen unless accompanied by a parent. Please get ice for your children and do NOT allow them to use the icemaker themselves.
ead of ManHead of Maonasteries
Quotable: “In the writings of the men of God, who were honoured with this grace of the Spirit and even lived permanently under its influence, we find that two things in particular are required if a man is to achieve this: he must cleanse hs heart from the passions, and turn to God in prayer. The Apostle Paul stressed these two things, as does St. John Chrysostom. Prayer, as he says, allows the Holy Spirit to act freely on the heart: ‘Those who sing psalms, fill themselves with the Spirit.’ And he speaks later of the cleansing from the passions which leads to the same end: ‘Is it in our power to be filled with the Spirit?’ he asks. ‘Yes, it is in our power. When we purify our souls from lies, cruelty, fornication, impurity and cupidity, when we become kind hearted, compassionate, self-disciplined, when there is no blasphemy or misplaced jesting in us—when we become worthy of it, then what will prevent the Holy Spirit from drawing near and alighting within us? And He will not only draw near, but fill our heart.’”
St. Theophan the Recluse
Worship: Sunday, June 9, 2019 (Sunday of the Holy Fathers of Nicea)
Scripture: Acts 20:16-18, 28-36; John 17:1-13
Celebrant: Father John
Epistle Reader: Walt Wood
Prosphora: Schelver
Coffee Hour: Ellis/Zouboukos/Waites
Saint Peter Antiochian Orthodox Church 
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