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SS. kosmas & damianos Orthodox Church (goa)
703 W. Center Street, Rochester, MN (507) 282-1529
http://www.rochesterorthodoxchurch.org
[email protected] Rev. Fr. Mark Muoz,
Proistamenos
/APOLYTIKIA FOR TODAY
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Let us worship the Word, O you faithful, praising Him that with
the
Father and the Spirit is co-beginningless God, Who was born of a
pure
Virgin that we all be saved; for He was pleased to ascend the
cross in the
flesh that He assumed, accepting thus to endure death. And by
His
glorious rising, He also willed to resurrect the dead.
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For those honoring your memory, and reverencing your body, and
with all piety venerate your myrrh-
giving relics, as you have boldness before God, intercede with
the loving Christ, any by your fervent
entreaties from dangers save us, Oh holy Athanasios. Having also
as co-intercessor the great Forerunner
of the Lord, as an unseen yet direct protector and rampart of
your Monastery.
/KONTAKION FOR TODAY
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Though You went down into the tomb, You destroyed Hades' power,
and You rose the victor, Christ God,
saying to the myrrh-bearing women, "Rejoice!" and granting peace
to Your disciples, You who raise up
the fallen.
Sunday of the BLIND MAN Sts. Andronikos & Junia the Martyrs,
St. Nektarios of Varlaam, Athanasios Archbishop of
Christianopolis,
the New Martyrs of Batak, Bulgaria
May 17th, 2015
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Todays scripture readings
Epistle reading
Acts of the Apostles 16:16-34
Prokeimenon. Mode Plagal 1.
Psalm 11.7,1
You, O Lord, shall keep us and preserve us.
Verse: Save me, O Lord, for the godly man has failed.
IN THOSE DAYS, as we apostles were going to the place of prayer,
we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of
divination and brought her owners much gain by soothsaying. She
followed Paul and us, crying, "These men are
servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of
salvation." And this she did for many days. But Paul
was annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, "I charge you in
the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it
came out that very hour. But when her owners saw that their hope
of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and
dragged them into the market place before the rulers; and when
they had brought them to the magistrates they said,
"These men are Jews and they are disturbing our city. They
advocate customs which it is not lawful for us Romans to
accept or practice." The crowd joined in attacking them; and the
magistrates tore the garments off them and gave
orders to beat them with rods. And when they had inflicted many
blows upon them, they threw them into prison,
charging the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this
charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened
their feet in the stocks. But about midnight Paul and Silas were
praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners
were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great
earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were
shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and every
one's fetters were unfastened. When the jailer woke
and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and
was about to kill himself, supposing that the
prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, "Do not
harm yourself, for we are all here." And he called for
lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down
before Paul and Silas, and brought them out and said,
"Men, what must I do to be saved?" And they said, "Believe in
the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your
household." And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to
all that were in his house. And he took them the
same hour of the night, and washed their wounds, and he was
baptized at once, with all his family. Then he brought
them up into his house, and set food before them; and he
rejoiced with all his household that he had believed in God.
Gospel pericope
John 9:1-38
At that time, as Jesus passed by, he saw a man blind from his
birth. And his disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned,
this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus
answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but
that the works of God might be made manifest in him. We must
work the works of him who sent me, while it is day;
night comes, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world,
I am the light of the world." As he said this, he
spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed the
man's eyes with the clay, saying to him, "Go, wash
in the pool of Siloam" (which means Sent). So he went and washed
and came back seeing. The neighbors and those
who had seen him before as a beggar, said, "Is not this the man
who used to sit and beg?" Some said, "It is he"; others
said, "No, but he is like him." He said, "I am the man." They
said to him, "Then how were your eyes opened?" He
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answered, "The man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes
and said to me, 'Go to Siloam and
wash'; so I went and washed and received my sight." They said to
him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not
know." They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly
been blind. Now it was a sabbath day
when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. The Pharisees
again asked him how he had received his
sight. And he said to them, "He put clay on my eyes and I
washed, and I see." Some of the Pharisees said,
"This man is not from God, for he does not keep the sabbath."
But others said, "How can a man who is a
sinner do such signs?" There was a division among them. So they
again said to the blind man, "What do
you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He
is a prophet." The Jews did not believe
that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they
called the parents of the man who had
received his sight, and asked them, "Is this your son, who you
say was born blind? How then does he
now see?" His parents answered, "We know that this is our son,
and that he was born blind; but how he
now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask
him; he is of age, he will speak for
himself." His parents said this because they feared the Jews,
for the Jews had already agreed that if
anyone should confess him to be Christ he was to be put out of
the synagogue. Therefore his parents said,
"He is of age, ask him." So for the second time they called the
man who had been blind, and said to him,
"Give God the praise; we know that this man is a sinner." He
answered, "Whether he is a sinner, I do not
know; one thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see."
They said to him, "What did he do to you?
How did he open your eyes?" He answered them, "I have told you
already and you would not listen.
Why do you want to hear it again? Do you too want to become his
disciples?" And they reviled him,
saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We
know that God has spoken to Moses, but
as for this man, we do not know where he comes from." The
man
answered, "Why, this is a marvel! You do not know where he
comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. We know that God does
not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and
does
his will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has
it
been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind.
If
this man were not from God, he could do nothing." They
answered
him, "You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?"
And
they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out,
and
having found him he said, "Do you believe in the Son of man?"
He
answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"
Jesus
said to him, "You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to
you."
He said, "Lord, I believe": and he worshiped him.
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Announcements
Liturgical/Program Schedule:
TODAY: Sunday School Recognition & Church School Picnic @
Oxbow Park
Tues. May 19th: Leavetaking of Pascha: Great
Vespers/Orthros/Liturgy beginning @ 7pm
Wed. May 20th: Parish Council Meeting, 6:30pm
Thurs. May 21st: Feast of the Ascension & SS. Konstantine
& Helen, Orthros/Liturgy, 8:30am
Church School Picnic: All Church School families and teachers
are invited to a Picnic (weather
permitting) TODAY @ Oxbow Park, Byron. Well gather at the first
picnic shelter on the left
(look for a sign) at 1pm; simply bring a dish to share and a
beverage. For more info please
contact Halina (251-6002) or Loredana (271-5928). Come and enjoy
the fellowship and fun!
HOW TO RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNIONOrthodox Christians in good
standing are encouraged to receive Holy Communion frequently,
provided they have prepared themselves spiritually, mentally and
physically. They must be on time for the Divine Liturgy, and be in
a Christ-like, humble state of mind. They should be in a confession
relationship with their priest or spiritual father, have observed
the fasts of the Church, and they should have self-examined their
conscience. On the day of receiving Holy Communion, it is not
proper to eat or drink anything before coming to church. When you
approach to receive Holy Communion, state your Christian
(baptismal) name clearly, and hold the red communion cloth to your
chin. After receiving, wipe your lips on the cloth, step back
carefully, hand the cloth to the next person and make the sign of
the Cross as you step away. Please do not be in a rush while
communing! Please take special care not to bump the Holy
Chalice.
ETIQUETTE REMINDER:
For this holy house and for those who enter it with faith,
reverence, and the fear of God, let us pray to
the Lord.
The summer months will soon be upon us and that means enjoying
warm weather and fun in the sun. While shorts (for males &
females), capris, flip-flops, tank tops, spaghetti straps, short
skirts well above the knees, etc. are practical and may be
acceptable at the pool or the lake front they are not appropriate
attire at church, and must not be worn during the Divine
Services
of the Church. At every Eucharistic celebration we are
spiritually and physically brought in the awesome presence of
Jesus
Christ Himself, and when we commune He comes to dwell within us
in a miraculous way. Therefore the sanctity, solemnity, and
dignity of the Divine Liturgy must be preserved for the
wellbeing of all. ******Parents, your assistance and guidance are
most
especially helpful and appreciated.******
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Todays liturgical commemorations
THE HOLY APOSTLE ANDRONICUS
Andronicus was one of the Seventy Apostles. He was a kinsman of
St. Paul, as Paul himself
writes: "Greet Andronicus and Junia, my relatives and my fellow
prisoners; they are prominent
among the apostles and they were in Christ before me" (Romans
16:7). Paul also mentions St.
Junia, assistant of Andronicus. Andronicus was installed as
bishop in Pannonia, but did not
remain in one place, rather preached the Gospel throughout
Pannonia. With St. Junia, he
succeeded in converting many to Christ and destroyed many
idolatrous temples. They both
possessed the power of Grace to work miracles through which they
drove out demons from men
and healed every type of disease and illness. They both suffered
for Christ and thus received the
two-fold wreath: the apostolic wreath and the martyr's wreath.
Their holy relics were discovered
in the regions of Eugenius (February 22).
THE HOLY MARTYR SOLOCHON
Solochon was an Egyptian by birth and a Roman soldier under
Commander Campanus during
the reign of the nefarious Emperor Maximian. When the directive
from the emperor was handed
down that all the soldiers must offer up sacrifices to the
idols, Solochon declared himself a
Christian. Two of his companions also declared themselves
Christians: Pamphamir and
Pamphylon. The commander ordered that they be flogged and
cruelly tortured from which Saints
Pamphamir and Pamphylon died. Solochon remained alive and was
subjected to new tortures.
The commander ordered the soldiers to open his mouth with a
sword and to pour the sacrifices of
the idols into his mouth. The martyr broke the iron sword with
his teeth and did not consume the
foul sacrifice of the idols. Finally, they pierced a quill
through both ears and left him to die. The
Christians removed the martyr and brought him to the home of a
widow where he gradually, by
food and drink, became a little stronger and, again, continued
to counsel the faithful to be
persistent in their faith and in their sufferings for the Faith.
Following that, he gave thanks to
God, completed his earthly life and presented himself to the
Lord in the kingdom of heaven in
the year 298 A.D.
SAINT STEPHEN, PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE
Stephen was the son of Emperor Basil the Macedonian and brother
of Emperor Leo the Wise. He
succeeded to the patriarchal throne after Photius and governed
the Church of God from 889-893
A.D. He died peacefully and presented himself to the Lord Whom
he greatly loved.
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Memorial Day Commemorations In the United States Memorial Day
was originally and specifically dedicated to remembering those
military men and women who fell in service to their country, as
opposed to a general commemoration of all loved ones. In addition
we as Orthodox Christians should defer, and give priority to, the
liturgical calendar of the Church for commemorating our departed
loved ones (i.e. the four Saturday of Souls commemorations) thereby
uniting our prayers with the Church at large through the offering
of the Divine Liturgy. Notwithstanding, it has now become tradition
to remember all departed loved ones on this day. We will gather
Monday, May 25th-10am, at Oakwood Cemetery to chant the Trisagion
Service for our departed loved ones. Please bring a list of your
family members (baptismal first names only). You may include those
departed relatives who are not laid to rest at Oakwood in your
lists.
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"If you guard your tongue, my brother, God will give you the
gift of compunction of heart so that you
may see your soul, and thereby you will enter into spiritual
joy. But if your tongue defeats you -
believe me in what I say to you - you will never be able of
escape from darkness. If you do not have a
pure heart, at least have a pure mouth. -St. Isaac the Syrian
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AHEPA 2015 CONVENTION IN ROCHESTER
Friday, June 5th: Traditional Greek Glendi, family style;
outside @ the Civic Center
on the patio w/ dancing, lambs on the spit, Gyro/Souvlakia bar,
and tons of fun
activities. Join us for a great casual evening w/ friends and
family from around the
Midwest.
Saturday, June 6th: Gran Banquet @ the Doubletree Hotel w/ live
music, steak or
chicken dinner, Greek Dancers of Minnesota and other
entertainment. Mr. Randy
Chapman, publisher of the Post Bulletin, will deliver the key
note address.
Sunaday, June 7th: Orthros/Divine Liturgy @ Holy Anargyroi Greek
Orthodox
Church, home parish of the host chapter. Catered brunch to
follow by Johnny Mangos
@ Civic Center w/ a delicious variety of foods!
For more information and tickets please see Ari Kolas!
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THE HOLY ANARCHISTS
As of the 4th century A.D., the desert lands of Egypt saw the
beginning of the longest-
living anarchic society of all time: that of the Christian
anachorites. These were
people who had chosen to live there, in order to find the
tranquility that was necessary
for their praying. Comparatively speaking: when we want to
listen very attentively to
some very subtle music, we usually shut doors and windows and
isolate ourselves in
our quietest corner (according to Fr. Sophrony of Essex). The
same applies when you want to hear the
voice of God you isolate yourself in the quietest place you can
find. You dont do it out of spite or aversion to the world, or to
your body or to the joys of life etc.. This has been made clear
innumerable
times in the history of Christianity; quite simply, the quietest
place on earth that enables one to hear is the
desert. This amazing ultra-desert society -as it was called-
albeit host to several monasteries (which were organized societies
complete with a hierarchy), was basically an anarchic society
overall, because it did not possess any authoritative structure
whatsoever, except for the informal (but most essential)
relationship between teacher and pupil, i.e. that of a Geron
(Elder) and a subject (pupil). Every new addition to the denizens
of the desert would be initiated through this form of relationship
to the spiritual
sciences, for example to humility and discernment (the ability
to evaluate spiritual experiences). This
form of relationship was liberal: you had to be absolutely
obedient to your Elder (to trust him with your
very life, in order to release yourself from your dependence on
your personal desires), but you could also
leave him to go to another Elder, or even to live without an
Elder. No-one would force you to do
anything. In this society -which was replete with more love than
our secular, conventional societies-
many lost the path; however, thousands did attain sainthood.
The Gerontikon (a collection of narrations about the desert
Elders) mentions how saint Jacob of Panepho, when asked by a
certain wavering monk to what spiritual heights a denizen of the
ultra-desert
can reach, the saint lifted up his arms in prayer and flames
sprang from his fingertips. If you want to, make your whole become
a fire he replied. Naturally the ultra-desert society was not cut
off from the
worldwide Church, nor was it hostile towards the other
expressions of Christian living. Even more so, it did not deny
priesthood and the holy sacraments, which were given to us by
God to help us in our union with Him as well as between us. This
is why monasteries and anachorites coexisted harmoniously,
while some anachorites even ended up as Bishops and Fathers
of
the Church, without regarding that this conflicted with their
special way of approaching God. Anachorites would visit (or have
among them) priests canonically ordained by a Bishop; they
would officiate and they would partake of the Body and the
Precious Blood of Christ. But in the ancient and the
Orthodox Church, priesthood was not an institution of power; it
was seen as a gift of the Holy Spirit, and the priest was not
some
kind of representative of God, but was the bearer of that gift
(and of the responsibility) of performing the Divine Liturgy, of
confessional and the other fundamental ecclesiastic
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practices and of bringing the immaculate sacraments to other
Christians. As a person, that same priest
could well be subject (as a pupil) to a holy teacher, who could
quite easily not be a priest.
Modern-day, rebel thinkers who have removed God from their
hearts without ever having discovered Him
have instead discovered anarchism; and yet, they never learnt of
the existence of this anarchic society,
despite the fact that during the time they were struggling or
writing about it in their own various ways, at
least the Russian and the Athonite ultra-deserts were already
flourishing. The latter (the Holy Mountain
Athos) continues to prosper to this day, albeit confronting the
various difficulties and adventures of
human history.
Saints have been produced and continue to be produced, even in
bustling cities, unobtrusively and
humbly, in the way that befits our humble God (which is nothing
like the bogey-man that others
acknowledge, known as morality). Most certainly, every saint man
or woman regardless whether they live in a condominium or a wooden
shack, possibly even raising ten children, also has a piece of
desert in his/her heart. They need it, in order to withdraw
there and to hearken to the subtlest music in the
world: prayer.
By focusing our gaze on the saint-producing ultra-deserts,
either by actually visiting them or by perusing
books like the Gerontikon (Elder Fathers), the Miterikon (Elder
Mothers), the Leimonarion (the Prairie narratives), the Thebes of
the North, the Hagiorite Fathers and the Hagiorite Narrations by
the Elder Paisios and many other such books, I am convinced that it
is the best way, for one who desires
to truly become acquainted with Christianity, to begin their
journey. It is possible that the experience they
will encounter may become scandalous, and it may be that they
will even unwittingly stray onto a wrong path. Whatever the case,
may the blessing of all the saints of the deserts - the sandy
desert of
Egypt and Palestine, the wooded desert of Athos, the wooded,
boggy or frozen desert of Russia, the
woods of Rumania or Serbia, even the frozen desert of Alaska
where Saint Herman of Alaska, Saint
Innocent Beniaminov, Saint Jacob Netchetov and others attained
sainthood, but also the cement desert of
Omonoia Square in the heart of Athens where the Elder Porphyry
attained sainthood be their valuable companions and their polar
star that will guide them along the way.