December 17, 2023

Sunday of the Forefathers (Ancestors) of Christ

Colossians 3:4-11: Brethren, when Christ, Who is our life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these, the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience. In these you once walked, when you lived in them. But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old nature with its practices and have put on the new nature, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator. Here there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free man, but Christ is all, and in all.

Luke 14:16-24: The Lord spoke this parable: “A man once gave a great banquet, and invited many; and at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for all is now ready.’ But, one by one, they all began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it; I pray you, have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them; I pray you, have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the servant came and reported this to his master. Then the householder in anger said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and maimed and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

Troparion of the Resurrection: Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad; for the Lord hath done a mighty act with his own arm. He hath trampled down death and become the First-born from the dead. He hath delivered us from the depths of hades, granting the world the Great Mercy.

Troparion of the Forefathers: Thou hast justified by faith the ancient forefathers and through them thou hast gone before and betrothed unto thyself the Church of the Gentiles. Let the saints, therefore, take pride in glory; for from their seed sprouted forth a noble fruit, and she it was who gavest birth to thee without seed. Wherefore, by their pleadings, O Christ God, save our souls.

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 Preparatory for Nativity: Today the Virgin comes unto the cave to give birth in an ineffable manner to the Word before the ages. Rejoice, therefore, O universe, when you hear, and glorify with the angels and the shepherds him who shall appear by his own will as a new babe, being God before the ages.

CALENDAR

UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE: All services listed on the calendar will be available through streaming and webcast. (Instructions can be found on the parish website.)

Sunday, December 17 (Sunday of the Forefathers of Christ)

8:50 a.m. – Orthros (webcast)

9:00 a.m. – Christian Education

10:00 a.m. – Divine Liturgy (webcast)

12:00 p.m. – Children’s Nativity Play

5:30 p.m. – Book Study in the Fellowship Hall

Monday, December 18

Father Herman off

Tuesday, December 19

NO Services

Wednesday, December 20 (Ignatios the God-bearer of Antioch)

6:30 p.m. – Advent Paraklesis

Thursday, December 21

NO Services

Friday, December 22

7:00 a.m. – Royal Hours for the Nativity

Saturday, December 23

4:30 p.m. – Choir Practice

6:00 p.m. – Great Vespers

Sunday, December 24 (Sunday before the Nativity of Christ)

8:50 a.m. – Orthros (webcast)

10:00 a.m. – Divine Liturgy (webcast)

8:00 p.m. – Festal Orthros followed by Divine Liturgy

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Eucharist Bread …was offered by the Schelvers for the Divine Liturgy for last Sunday and by the Morrises for the Divine Liturgy this morning.

Eucharist Bread Schedule:

Eucharist Bread Coffee Hour

December 17 Morris D. Root/Baker

December 24 (Sun. a.m.) Jones Henderson/K. Jones

December 24 (Sun. p.m.) Meadows Dansereau/Alaeetawi/

(Feast of the Nativity of our Lord) Lockhart/Karam/Snell

December 31 (Sun. a.m.) Davis Lavric/Skirtech/Dabit

December 31 (Sun. p.m.) Baker (Artos Bread)

(Feast of the Circumcision of Christ; Feast-day of St. Basil the Great)

Schedule for Epistle Readers – Page numbers refer to the Apostolos (book of the Epistles) located on the Chanters’ stand at the front of the nave. Please be sure to use this book when you read.

Reader Reading Page#

December 17 Reader Chad Miller Col. 3:4-11 233

December 24 (Sun. a.m.) Brandon Strain Heb. 11:9-10, 32-40 348

December 24 (Sun. p.m.) Sam Habeeb Gal. 4:4-7 351

December 31 Sh. Charlotte Algood II Tim. 4:5-8 354

Also, please remember that we still need your tithes and offerings which may be placed in the tray that is passed during the Divine Liturgy, in the tithe box at the back of the nave or be mailed to: St. Peter Orthodox Church, P.O. Box 2084, Madison, MS 39130-2084.

Please remember the following in your prayers: Aidan Milnor, the Milnor family; Lamia Dabit and her family; Mary Greene (Lee and Kh. Sharon’s sister); Jay and Joanna Davis; Fr. Leo and Kh. Be’Be’ Schelver and their family; Kathy Willingham; Marilyn (Kyriake) Snell; Jack and Jill Weatherly; Lottie Dabbs (Sh. Charlotte Algood’s mother), Sh. Charlotte and their family; Reader Basil and Brenda Baker and their family; Buddy Cooper; Georgia and Bob Buchanan; Fr. Joseph Bittle; Steve and Sheryl Chamblee; Rick Carlton; Very Rev. Fr. Nicholas and Kh. Jan Speier; Dora Lambert (Dimitri Zouboukos’ fiancée); Lee Greene; Joseph, Amanda and Hunter Hines.

Memory Eternal! Tommy Hontzas, a friend of many at St. Peter and a member of Holy Trinity/St. John the Theologian Greek Orthodox Church, fell asleep in the Lord this past Tuesday morning. Please remember his wife, Ellen, and all of their family in your prayers.

St. Nicholas Fund: Last Sunday we began to accept donations for our annual St. Nichols Fund. We will continue to accept donations until the end of the month.

DOMSE Winter Camp: If your child is interested in attending Camp St. Thekla WAMP, February 16-19, 2024, please see Fr. Herman for the link to registration. Please note that the ages for WAMP are 12-17 years of age.

Calendar Items:

* The men of the parish meet for lunch at 11:00 a.m. on the first Thursday of the month.

* The Ladies meet at the church at 10:00 a.m. on the second Saturday of the month to pray the Akathist to the Mother of God, Nurturer of Children on behalf of our children.

* The Ladies meet for lunch at 1:00 p.m. on the last Tuesday of the month.

* The Fast of the Nativity began on November 15th and runs until December 25th. As is our parish custom, we will pray the Paraklesis Service to the Theotokos on Wednesday evenings instead of Daily Vespers during the Fast. However

* The Festal Orthros and Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ will be celebrated on Sunday evening, December 24th, beginning at 8:00 p.m. followed by our festal meal.

* We will celebrate the Feast of the Circumcision of the Lord and the Feast-day of St. Basil the Great with Great Vespers with Litia and Artoklasia on Sunday evening, December 31st, beginning at 6:30 p.m.

* His Grace, Bishop NICHOLAS will be making his next Arch-pastoral visit in January. The date is yet to be determined and more information will be forthcoming in the future.

* Stewpot dates for 2024 will be March 30th and November 30th.

Fasting Discipline for December

The Fast of the Nativity began on November 15th. During this fast the traditional fasting (no meat, dairy, eggs, fish, wine or oil) is observed on each day of the week. Note, however, through December 19th there is a katlysis on Tuesdays and Thursdays when wine and oil are permitted, and on Saturdays and Sundays when fish, wine and oil are permitted. There is no fasting of any kind from December 25th through January 4th.

Major Commemorations for December

December 20 Ignatius the God-bearer of Antioch

December 25 The Nativity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

December 26 Synaxis of the Theotokos

December 27 Protomartyr Stephen

A new date for the Pilgrimage to Holy Dormition will be forthcoming. More details will be available at a later date.

Quotable: “As we read the Bible, we are all the time gathering information, wrestling with the sense of obscure sentences, comparing and analysing. But this is secondary. The real purpose of Bible study is much more than this- to feed our love for Christ, to kindle our hearts into prayer, and to provide us with guidance in our personal life. The study of words should give place to an immediate dialogue with the Living Word himself. ‘Whenever you read the Gospel,’ says St. Tikhon of Zadonsk ‘Christ himself is speaking to you. And while you read, you are praying and talking with Him.’”

Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way

Worship: Sunday, December 24, 2023 (Sunday before Nativity of Christ [Sunday of the Geneaology] which Falls on the Paramon [Eve] of Nativity of Christ)

Scripture: Hebrews 11:9-10, 32-40; Matthew 1:1-25

Celebrant: Father Herman

Epistle Reader: Brandon Strain

Prosphora: Jones

Coffee Hour: Henderson/K. Jones