Parish announcements

Christ is in our midst!

This week vigil light is offered by Vasyl Ivantsiv in memory of Vasyl. Memory eternal.

From July 3 until September 11 we will celebrate only one (1) Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m. in both the Ukrainian and English languages.

Today, June 19th, there will be one (1) bi-lingual Divine Liturgy served at 10:30 a.m. At 10:00 a.m., we will pray the Moleben to Jesus Christ (a June devotional prayer of petition to Our Lord).

The Ladies of our Parish will host a Father’s Day Celebration tomorrow, Sunday, June 19. The luncheon will take place immediately after the Liturgy. ALL ARE INVITED. The plan calls for a barbeque picnic in the backyard. In case of rain it will be held in the church hall.

If you would like to have a Confession, Holy Communion or prayer of the sick at your house or nursing home, please call the rectory at (203) 865-0388.

STAMFORD CHARITIES APPEAL : Please don’t forget to donate for Charities Appeal. Please make check payable to the Byzantine Rite Eparchy of Stamford. DO NOT MAIL THIS FORM TO THE CHANCERY OFFICE. We sincerely ask all parishioners to make generous contributions.

Ukrainian American Veterans Post 33 in New Haven, CT is seeking your support for the war effort in Ukraine. We are collecting medical equipment and supplies for the Lviv Regional Hospital for soldiers and war veterans in Vynnykiy (Lviv Region) to be used for the treatment of soldiers and civilians injured during war in Ukraine. We also need funds to purchase boxes packaging materials, cover transportation expenses, etc. We are working with UUARC (United Ukrainian American Relief Committee based in Philadelphia-UUARC.org) to transport all donated items to Warsaw for transport by truck to the hospital in Vinniki. All donated items can be dropped off at St. Michael`s Ukrainian Catholic Church hall at 569 George St. New Haven, CT. The collection center will be open on Tuesdays from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.mm. and Sundays from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.

Checks are to be made out to: UAV POST 33. In the memo section write in: Ukrainian soldiers welfare fund. Checks can be mailed to: Ukrainian American Veterans Post 33, Post Office Box 972, Orange, CT 06477. If you have any questions about this project, please call (203) 530-8232 or send e-mail to carlrharvey79@gmail.com

After each Divine Liturgy we have coffee and hard rolls are available in the church hall. Come and share some time.

A container is in our church vestibule for non-perishable food. This collection will be taken every week or twice per month. Father Iura will distribute the food to those in need. Thank you for your generosity.

For sale: varenyky (pierogi) $16.00 for each 2 dozen package.

Father’s Day at the Parish

Tomorrow, June 19th, there will be one (1) bi-lingual Divine Liturgy served at 10:30 a.m. At 10:00 a.m., we will pray the Moleben to Jesus Christ (a June devotional prayer of petition to Our Lord).

The Ladies of our Parish will host a Father’s Day Celebration tomorrow, Sunday, June 19. The luncheon will take place immediately after the Liturgy. ALL ARE INVITED. The plan calls for a barbeque picnic in the backyard. In case of rain it will be held in the church hall.

Holy Prophet Amos

The Holy Prophet Amos is known as the prophet of doom, the third of the Twelve Minor Prophets who lived during the eighth century before Jesus Christ. Amos accurately foretold the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel due to the unfaithfulness of the Israelites. That is, the tribes of Israel were governed by an idol-worshipper and the people joined in that worship of a golden calf (a false god) instead of the One, Living God. Thus, they rejected the God of Israel.

Biographically, little is known about his life and what we known comes from his book in the Bible, the first to be named after a Hebrew prophet.

The faith of the Church is seen in the liturgical hymns of the Divine Liturgy. In the Kontakion, therefore, for today’s Liturgy commemorates the Holy Prophet in this way:

Having purified your heart spiritually, O glorious Prophet Amos, you received the gift of prophecy from on high and proclaimed to all: “This is our God and beside Him there is no other.”

As point of comparison, today Amos is remembered liturgically by the Byzantine Catholics and Orthodox; the Armenians recall his memory on July 31 and the Latin Church has his feast on March 31.

Why is the Holy Prophet important for us today in the 21st century? The prophets remind us, like they did when they lived, to be faithful to the God who made us and continues to give us his gifts. Perhaps Amos’ own words are helpful to answer the question when he delivers God’s message:

“The people of Israel have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They sell into slavery honest people who cannot pay their debts, the poor who cannot repay even the price of a pair of sandals. They trample down the weak and helpless and push the poor out of the way’’ (Amos 2:6).

Holy Prophet Amos, keep us faithful to God and not false gods, pray for us.

Divine Liturgy for the coming week

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Sunday, 6/05, Pentecost Sunday —Moleben to Jesus Christ

9:00 a.m. +Irene Pospolita requested by Luba Dubno
10:30 a.m. For the people of the parish

Epistle: Acts 2:1-11
Gospel: John 7:37-52 and 8:12, Tone 7

Monday, 6/06, Pentecost Monday
9:00 a.m. +Marguerite Komondy (5th Anniv.) requested by Chris Komondy

Tuesday, 6/07, Holy Bishop Martyr Theodotus
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Wednesday, 6/08, Trans. of relics of Theodore the Great
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Thursday, 6/09, Holy Archbishop Cyril
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Friday, 6/10, Holy Bishop-Martyr Timothy
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Saturday, 6/11, Holy Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Sunday, 6/12, Sunday of All Saints —Moleben to Jesus Christ
9:00 a.m. +Orest Dubno requested by Luba Dubno
10:30 a.m. For the people of the parish

Epistle: Hebrews 11:32-12:2a
Gospel: Mathew10:32-33, 37-38 and 19:27-30, Tone 8

Parish announcements

Christ is risen!

From July 3 until September 11 we will celebrate only one (1) Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m. in the Ukrainian and English languages.

The Panakhyda Service at the grave sites will take place on Sunday, June 5, at 1:00 p.m. at St. Lawrence Cemetery. Please call the rectory office for appointment.

The Ladies of our Parish will host a Fathers Day Celebration on Sunday, June 19. There will be only one (1) Divine Liturgy on this day at 10:30 a.m. The luncheon will take place immediately afterwards. ALL ARE INVITED. The plan calls for a barbeque picnic in the back yard. In case of rain it will be held in the church hall.

STAMFORD CHARITIES APPEAL: Please don’t forget to donate for Charities Appeal. The forms are designed for each family of our parish. Attached to the form is an envelope into which you can place your contribution. The form along with your contribution, we ask you enclose in the envelope and place it in the collection basket during church services. Please make check payable to the Byzantine Rite Eparchy of Stamford. DO NOT MAIL THIS FORM TO THE CHANCERY OFFICE. We sincerely ask all parishioners to make generous contributions.

Ukrainian American Veterans Post 33 in New Haven, CT is seeking your support for the war effort in Ukraine. We are collecting medical equipment and supplies for the Lviv Regional Hospital for soldiers and war veterans in Vynnykiy (Lviv Region) to be used for the treatment of soldiers and civilians injured during war in Ukraine. We also need funds to purchase boxes packaging materials, cover transportation expenses, etc. We are working with UUARC (United Ukrainian American Relief Committee based in Philadelphia-UUARC.org) to transport all donated items to Warsaw for transport by truck to the hospital in Vinniki. All donated items can be dropped off at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic church hall at 569 George St., New Haven. The collection center will be open on Tuesdays from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and Sundays from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.

Checks are to be made out to: UAV POST 33. In the memo section write in:Ukrainian soldiers welfare fund. Checks can be mailed to: Ukrainian American Veterans Post 33, Post Office Box 972, Orange, CT 06477. If you have any questions about this project, please call (203) 530-8232 or send e-mail to carlrharvey79@gmail.com

PARISH COFFEE HOUR: Dear parishioners and guests, after each Divine Liturgy, coffee and hard rolls are available in the church hall.

If you would like to have a Confession, Holy Communion or prayer of the sick at your house or nursing home, please call the rectory at (203) 865-0388.

A container is in our church vestibule for non-perishable food. This collection will be taken every week or twice per month. Father Iura will distribute the food to those in need. Thank you for your generosity.

For sale: borsht $5.00 one container, $9.00 two containers, $12.00 three containers. Meatballs and macaroni $8.00 per container.

Final All Souls Saturday (SOROKOUSTY)

The final All Souls Saturday –Sorokousty– will be on June 4, at 9:00 a.m. The Divine Liturgy with the prayers for the dead will be prayed.

There are 5 All Soul’s Saturdays. 2, 3, and 4 were on Saturdays during the Great Fast on days that had no other commemoration (e.g., the Miracle of Theodore and Akathistos). This is due to the liturgical law that fasting periods are more conservative and retain ancient customs. Saturday, the day our Lord was in the tomb was a day for remembering the departed, and that has persisted until the present in Lent.

The All Souls’ Saturday before Meatfare Sunday was due to the Church Year. Meatfare Sunday was the Gospel of the Last Judgment and, in a way, concluded the regular cycle of Gospel beginning with Pascha and lasting until the next Great Fast (beginning with Cheesefare Sunday). It was natural, therefore, to remember the departed as we pray for all before the final and last judgment.

The fifth All Souls’ Saturday the day before Pentecost does not have clear origins. Some have said that it is the Christianization of the pagan feast of Rosalia, which remembered virgins who have died a violent death. Their souls were locked in trees and were released on this feast day. The Christians generalized this into a general feast for all the departed. Some find this controversial, since the ideology is that Christians owe nothing to pagans. We have no concrete evidence one way or the other. It might be connected with All Saints, which in the Byzantine Church was the Sunday after Pentecost, but this does not explain the one week delay.

At any rate, though Pentecost is the Christian feast of the 50th day, corresponding directly to the Jewish feast of the Mt. Sinai covenant (note the Upper Room), it was also called Rusalka (in Slavonic) since it happened closely to the pagan feast. The All Saints feast was originally “All Martyrs,” namely those who died a violent death in witness to Christ. Rome originally celebrated it at the same time as the Byzantines, but moved it to November 1, the Dedication of the Pantheon, the pagan temple made into the Christian Church of the All Saints. In our faith and worship, though, this all has a clearly Christian meaning.

Meditation by Archpriest David Petras

Green for Pentecost

Reminder – Pentecost is this Sunday (new calendar): Byzantines, remember to wear the green. The tradition of wearing green on Pentecost is mostly a Slavic tradition, but it is one that we all can embrace because of green being a symbol of new life in the Holy Trinity.

Our celebration of Pentecost –the coming of the Holy Spirit promised by Jesus before He ascended to the Father– is a constant reminder of our own ” baptism by the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1 :5)

St. John Chrysostom (d . 407) admonished the faithful of his time not to celebrate the feast superficially, only adorning their homes with garlands (flowers), but rather spiritually adorning their souls with virtues in order to be more able to receive abundant fruits of the Holy Spirit (II Homily on Pentecost).

READ:

Byzantine Catholics and the Feast Of Pentecost: “Your good Spirit shall lead me into the land of righteousness. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!”

 

Divine Liturgy for the coming week

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Sunday, 5/29, Sunday of the Fathers of 1st Council of Nicea —and the Moleben to the Mother of God
9:00 a.m. +Rosemary and Michael Waselik requested by the family
10:30 a.m. For the people of the parish

Epistle: Acts 20:16-18 and 28-36
Gospel: John 17:1-13, Tone 6

Monday, 5/30, Our Venerable Isaak
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Tuesday, 5/31, Holy Apostle Hermas, Martyr Hermeas
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Wednesday, 6/01, Holy Martyr Justin
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Thursday, 6/02, Holy Patriarch Nicephor
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Friday, 6/03, Holy Martyr Lucillian and others martyrs
9:00 a.m. No scheduled intention for the Divine Liturgy

Saturday, 6/04, Holy Patriarch Metrophanes
9:00 a.m. All deceased of Parish —Sorokousty

Sunday, 6/05, Pentecost Sunday —and the Moleben to Jesus Christ
9:00 a.m. +Irene Pospolita requested by Luba Dubno
10:30 a.m. For the people of the parish

Epistle: Acts 2:1-11
Gospel: John 7:37-52 and 8:12, Tone 6