Christ is in our midst!
PARISH COFFEE HOUR: Dear parishioners and guests, after each Divine Liturgy, coffee and hard rolls are available in the church hall.
VIGIL LIGHT: This week vigil light is offered for God’s greater glory by Chris Komondy for the all deceased of Komondy family.
PHILIP’S FAST, ПИЛИПІВКА: the pre-Christmas fast which began on November 15 – the day after the feast of St. Philip – is a 40 day period of spiritual preparation for the celebration of the Nativity/Theophany cycle of the church year. It was once a period of strict fasting which has now been changed to a period of voluntary fasting and works of penance and charity.
The annual St. Nicholas pageant will be held on Sunday, December 23 after the 2nd Divine Liturgy. All children are invited to meet with St. Nicholas on this joyous occasion.
From the Ukrainian Heritage Center(New Haven) 2018 Christmas Bazaar: The Ukrainian Heritage Center’s Christmas Bazaar will be held on Saturday, December 8, Sunday December 9, Saturday, December 15 and Sunday, December 16 in the Heritage Center Gift Shop from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. This offers you an excellent opportunity to purchase, at very reasonable prices, the Ukrainian gifts and cards(for Christmas and other special occasions) that you would like to give to family members, friends, co-workers or teachers of your children. On Sundays only, please enter the Heritage Center through the front door of the building.
Update on parish property repairs: the parking lot between the Heritage Center and the church has been regraded for better drainage of water. The French curtain drain has been expanded an additional six feet and the roof drain in the back of the Heritage Center has been redirected into the expanded French curtain drain. This will help eliminate water in the Heritage Center basement. Finally, the parking lot has been painted with parking lines and no parking signs for everyone’s usage. This parking lot has four handicapped spaces assigned, one space customized for van access. Additional paving on the edge by the fence and new car stops are planned for the next summer.
SESTRECHI: we will be enjoying our winter recess during the months of January and February 2019. The next regularly scheduled monthly meeting will resume on March 10, 2019. The meeting will be held in the church hall classroom after the 9:00 Divine Liturgy.
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS: we will be enjoying our winter recess during the month of January. The next meeting of Knights of Columbus Blessed Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Ukrainian Council will resume on February 4, 2019, 7:00 p.m. in the Holy Name Room. All men of the parish are invited to attend.
UKRAINIAN AMERICAN VETERANS: the next meeting of the UAV Post 33 will be held on December 16, 2018. The meeting will be held in Classroom 2.
STUFFED CABBAGE: will be available for Christmas by calling the rectory at 203-865-0388 and placing your order for either buckwheat, meat or mushroom stuffed cabbage. Please see Fr. Iura for details.
BULLETIN UPDATES: Dear parishioners, as you may have noticed there have been some changes and improvements to our parish bulletin. In a continuing effort to make the bulletin more “parishioner friendly,” I call upon you to let me know what else you would like to see and or change. As always I appreciate the various informational materials that you have provided and I am looking forward to your continued responses. Father Iura.
ST. GIANNA CENTER OF NEW HAVEN: The parish is collecting diapers, seats, strollers and gift cards to be given to the St. Gianna Center of New Haven (www.giannacenter.org). Useful diapers sizes: 3, 4, 5. Gift cards are needed from Walmart or Target. Please place the gift card in an envelope marked “St. Gianna Center” and give it to directly Fr. Iura. Also, NEW car seats/strollers are needed (sorry, old car seats/strollers can’t be accepted due to legislation.) Items can be placed in the labeled box at the entrance of the Church. The St. Gianna Center is a ministry of Catholics in New Haven helping at-risk pregnant women and their children. Thank you for your generosity!