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St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2017-06-11
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Allsaint
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St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church

General Information

  • Phone:
  • 408.605.0621
  • Street Address:

  • 9th and Lincoln, Carmel-by-the-Sea

  • ,
  • Mailing Address:


  • PO Box 5808 Carmel by the Sea, CA 93921


Contact Information




Services Schedule

  • Sunday Orthros and Divine Liturgy: 8:30 a.m.
  • Week day feasts Orthros and Liturgy: 8:30 a.m. - see Liturgical Calendar
  • Paraklesis most Wednesdays: 6 p.m. - see Liturgical Calendar


Past Bulletins


Schedule of Services

Saturday, June 10
    5:00pm  Vespers - CANCELLED
Sunday, June 11
    8:30am  Orthros + Liturgy
Monday, June 12  Saints Onouphrious the Great and Peter the Athonite
--- Apostles Fast Begins  ------------------------------
Tuesday, June 13
   12 noon - Akathist to Saint Nektarios
Wednesday, June 14
    6:00pm  Paraklesis
    7:00pm  Potluck dinner, discussion: Be Roman for 5 Weeks - #2: "Roman Slaves by Choice"
Saturday, June 17
    5:00pm  Vespers
Sunday, June 18
    8:30am  Orthros + Liturgy
    11:30am  Father's Day Fellowship
Wednesday, June 21
    6:00pm Paraklesis
    7:00pm  Potluck dinner, discussion: Be Roman for 5 Weeks - #3
Friday, June 23
    6:00pm  Vespers
Saturday, June 24  Nativity of St. John the Baptist
    8:30am  Orthros + Liturgy
    5:00pm  Vespers
Sunday, June 25
    8:30am  Orthros + Liturgy

 

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Message from Father Ion

As you well know, our annual Festival is coming up in 3 months, this year on September 2-4. It is the largest event that our community organizes, touching thousands of people from the area and visitors. Starting this year we would like to take advantage of this blessing in a new way, by putting on a new hat, not to replace those of the cooks, servers, welcoming ministers etc., but to complement what we offer and to present to the world the meaning of what we do as Christ's followers. This new hat is the one of outreach. This year we will add to the event the most precious offering that we can share with the world: the witness of our faith. We will make a conscious effort to bring Christ to the world and, by the grace of God, the world to Christ though His Church (us).

Most of our sister churches that have festivals hold them on their own premises. Many of them organize church tours and some of them manage to turn their festival into the main venue for bringing new people to the faith. We do not have this privilege, given the location of the festival away from our church. However, after studying what made others successful, our Parish Council decided to focus on engaging our guests in the spirit as well. In other words, since the Festival is not by our church, we will bring our church to the Festival. This will allow us to hold church tours, to inform about our faith and traditions, to explain that when Christ comes first, even the food we prepare tastes better, and that there is much more to taste and see in the church: Christ Himself and His Body (us).

In order to have Church Tours at the Festival grounds we need a dedicated spot where we can set up our church. This spot has been identified and evaluated as being excellent for our purpose - the theater at the Dali Museum, at the Custom Plaza. It is in great location, right by the festival, yet quiet, spacious and equipped with audio-video technology. It will allow us to bring in the ambiance of our church and make it real - iconography, short services, chanting, photos and movies about our community and about our faith. There will be at least 3 church tours every day and, in between, something shown on the screen. This is an opportunity for you to help build the Little Church at the Festival. Here are estimated costs for the main expenses.

    • Theater rental for three days:             $ 1,650
    • Materials for iconostasis, icons etc.      $   500
    • Advertising and printed materials:       $   250
                                                         -------------
                                        Total:              $ 2,400

If you would like to donate by check, please specify in the Memo: Festival Outreach
There will be more details to follow.  I am looking forward to working with the Festival leadership and with you to make this happen. Please contact me directly if you would like to be part of this unique and exciting ministry. Thank you!

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News & Events

VACATION CHURCH SCHOOL - LAST CHANCE TO REGISTER

Vacation Church School 2017

BEHOLD THE LIGHT

Saint John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church

 Monday, June 26th – Friday, June 30th

8:30am – 12:30pm Grades K- 8th

 Early Registration April 1 – May 14

Register online: stjohn-monterey.org/youth-ministries/vacation-church-school

For more information contact Joan Ioannou:  j_ioannou2@msn.com 


NEW: BASICS OF ORTHODOXY

Here is a new opportunity for all to grow through learning in the BASICS OF ORTHODOXY. The class is structured as a set of 12 lectures covering 8 topics: Church History, Spirituality, The Liturgy, the Holy Trinity, the Theotokos, the Icons, the Holy Mysteries and the Holy Tradition. We will meet in the church after the coffee hour. Father Ion will be presenting using slides. Great material for catechumens, for those exploring the faith and, especially for all the Orthodox of our church. The first lecture will be on Sunday, June 18.


NEW: OUR OPEN HOUSE ON THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST

Open Door, Open Hearts

St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church welcomes all to our Open House

Yes, we are the church that puts on the Monterey Bay Greek Festival every year!

June 24th from 10:30 am till 2:00 pm

Arrive earlier to participate in church services
Join the free tours and learn lots of thoughtful information


We will be serving My Big Fat Greek Lamb Sandwiches,

home-made, with authentic Greek orzo salad for $15.00

(Preorder for take home: call xxx-xxx-xxxxx)

Greek pastries will also be available for sale

Location: All Saints Church lower level - Carmel by the Sea at Lincoln & 9th


NEW: BE ROMAN FOR 5 WEEKS!

Week 2: "Roman Slavery by Choice"

   6:00pm – Paraklesis

   6:45pm – Lenten Potluck dinner and discussion: “Romans Slavery by Choice”

This coming Wednesday we will continue the Wednesday evenings small group discussions inspired by delicious potluck dinners. The lectionary of the Church call for Saint Paul’s most significant letter, the Letter to the Romans to be read for 5 weeks after Pentecost. Therefore, we will be drawing stimulating topics from it. This is not a bible study class, but rather a venue for discussions on relevant subjects. However, the hope is that the participants will be stimulated to prayerfully study the Letter and that to reflect on topics of interest. This makes a great spiritual exercise for the Fast of the Apostles (this year June 12-29). The partition is as follows: week of June 5, chapters 1-3; week of June 12, chapters 4-6; week of June 19, chapters 7-8; week of June 26, chapters 9-11; week of July 3, chapters 12-16.


NEW: AKATHIST TO SAINT NEKTARIOS

Saint Nektarios the Wonderworker is a saint of or Church from the last century. He is known for healing the sick, including the ones with cancer. The service of the Akathist to Saint Nektarios will be prayed this Tuesday from 12 noon. We will ask for his intercessions for the many sick in our parish and their families, as well as for guidance and support to our community. We will then talk briefly about episodes from his life.


NEW: PILGRIMAGE TO SAINT JOHN MAXIMOVITCH

There is work in progress to finalize a pilgrimage to San Francisco to venerate the holy relics of Saint John, to take a guided tour of the cell and churches where he worshiped, prayed and performed miracles. Special prayers will be offered at the holy sites. July 15, from 11am. Departure from Carmel at 8am. We will be carpooling. Contact Father Ion.


THE APOSTLES FAST BEGINS

The Apostles Fast begins this Monday and ends on June 29, the feast of Saints Peter and Paul the Apostles.

Of the fasts we observe, the Apostles Fast is unique. Whereas the other fasts are a fixed number of days in length, the Apostles Fast varies in length. In some years it can be as long as five weeks and in other years it may only be one or two days in length, or not occur at all. This is because this fast begins on the Monday after the Sunday of All Saints. The Sunday of All Saints is dependent on Pentecost, which is a movable feast, celebrated on a different Sunday every year. Another characteristic of the Apostles Fast, which distinguishes it from the other three, is that this fast is not as strict. Fish, wine and oil can be consumed throughout the fast, except on Wednesday's and Friday's which are strict fast days.

To understand the purpose of the Apostles Fast we are invited to remember that both Saints Peter and Paul worked diligently to establish our Lord's Church. The focus of the Book of Acts is on the ministry of these two holy men as they preached our Lord crucified and resurrected. Hence, the Orthodox Church has always acknowledged Saints Peter and Paul as pillars of the Church, and especially Saint Paul, as a stellar example of what it means to be a missionary.


PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS

On June 4, nine very special ladies were nominated and elected to the Philoptochos Board. The new Board of Directors are:
    Rania Zavitsanos
    Sandy Sanders
    Alexandra Mouzas
    Jenny Stuhlmiller
    Chris Georgalos
    Anne Zavitsanos
    Marianna Leontis
    Sheila Rickenbacker
    Christina Pressas
Congratulations! Once the chapter is ratified by Philoptochos National, the executive officers will be elected, and Father Ion will administer the Oath of Office.

The last board meeting of the year will be Sunday, June 11th, all board members presence is requested.  Although the chapter is in summer recess July and August, the new board will be busy with Camp Agape, planning the September General Meeting, and the chapter’s Helping Hands Committee is always a resource of philanthropy for the community.  If you, or someone you know is in need, please do not hesitate to contact the chapter. 

The mission of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco Philoptochos Kids ‘n’ Cancer/Camp Agape Ministry founded by our own Metropolis is dedicated to providing support for children afflicted with cancer and their families. This beloved ministry offers a compassionate and caring environment, exemplary of Christ’s unconditional love, along with an opportunity to shape meaningful friendships and create precious memories.  The Ladies Philoptochos Society of St. John the Baptist, invites you to support the Kids ‘n Cancer weenie roast on Sunday July 9 after Divine Liturgy in the church gardens.  The whole family is welcome, enjoy a good old fashioned 4th of July style cook out.  There will be door prizes for the kids, chances to win wonderful prizes all in support of the chapter and Kids ‘n Cancer/Camp Agape.  Won’t you please give your heart to a child? 

Need list:  50 all beef hot dogs with buns, cookies, chips, and a crate of corn on the cob. 
  


SERVING THESE SUNDAYS

The teams on duty these coming Sundays are:

June 11
   Welcoming: Simi Georgalos
   Parish Council Member:  Euthimios Saites
   Fellowship: Team 2 (Red) - always on  2ndSunday of the month.

June 18
   Welcoming:  Presbytera Ana/Christina Pressas
   Fellowship: Team 3 (Orange) - always on  3rd Sunday of the month.



SUNDAY SCHOOL UPDATE

The Sunday School will meet this Sunday only for the services. There will be no classroom time after the liturgy.


ANNOUNCEMENT FROM PROPHET ELIAS CHURCH IN SANTA CRUZ

Father Milutin and Presbytera Josefina Janjic at Prophet Elias in Santa Cruz extend their personal invitation to us for their community event to celebrate the upcoming birth of their second child, a daughter.

BABY SHOWER & COMMUNITY LUNCHEON

Following Sunday liturgy this Sunday, our entire community is invited to the luncheon and Baby Girl Shower for Presbytera Josefina and Father Milutin. A special gift box will be available to donate for the needs of the new baby. If you wish make a gift of your own, please feel free to do so. Many hugs to Novak who will soon be a Big Brother!


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Gospel and Epistle Readings

Matins Gospel Reading

First Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from Matthew 28:16-20

At that time, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age. Amen."


Epistle Reading

Prokeimenon. 4th Mode. Psalm 67.35,26.
God is wonderful among his saints.
Verse: Bless God in the congregations.

The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Hebrews 11:33-40; 12:1-2.

Brethren, all the saints through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, received promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and scourging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were killed with the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, ill-treated - of whom the world was not worthy - wandering over deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though well attested by their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had foreseen something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.


Gospel Reading

The Sunday of All Saints
The Reading is from Matthew 10:32-33; 37-38; 19:27-30

The Lord said to his disciples, "Every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny him before my Father who is in heaven. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and he who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." Then Peter said in reply, "Lo, we have left everything and followed you. What then shall we have?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of man shall sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many that are first will be last, and the last first."


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Hymns of the Day

Resurrectional Apolytikion in the Plagal 4th Mode

You descended from on high, O compassionate One, and condescended to be buried for three days, so that from the passions You might set us free. Our life and resurrection, O Lord, glory be to You.

Apolytikion for All Saints in the 4th Mode

Your Church is arrayed in the holy blood of Your Martyrs who witnessed throughout the world, as though in purple and fine linen. Through them she cries to You, Christ our God, "Send down to Your people Your tender love, grant peace from above to Your commonwealth, and to our souls Your great mercy."

Seasonal Kontakion in the Plagal 4th Mode

O Planter of creation, Lord, to You does the entire world bring as an offering the God-bearing martyr Saints, as being nature's first fruits. At their earnest entreaties, keep Your Church in a state of profoundest peace, through the Theotokos, O Lord abundantly merciful.
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Saints and Feasts

Allsaint
June 11

The Sunday of All Saints

Honouring the friends of God with much reverence, the Prophet-King David says, "But to me, exceedingly honourable are Thy friends, O Lord" (Ps. 138:16). And the divine Apostle, recounting the achievements of the Saints, and setting forth their memorial as an example that we might turn away from earthly things and from sin, and emulate their patience and courage in the struggles for virtue, says, "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every burden, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us" (Heb. 12:1).

This commemoration began as the Sunday (Synaxis) of All Martyrs; to them were added all the ranks of Saints who bore witness (the meaning of "Martyr" in Greek) to Christ in manifold ways, even if occasion did not require the shedding of their blood.

Therefore, guided by the teaching of the Divine Scriptures and Apostolic Tradition, we the pious honour all the Saints, the friends of God, for they are keepers of God's commandments, shining examples of virtue, and benefactors of mankind. Of course, we honour the known Saints especially on their own day of the year, as is evident in the Menologion. But since many Saints are unknown, and their number has increased with time, and will continue to increase until the end of time, the Church has appointed that once a year a common commemoration be made of all the Saints. This is the feast that we celebrate today. It is the harvest of the coming of the Holy Spirit into the world; it is the "much fruit" brought forth by that "Grain of wheat that fell into the earth and died" (John 12:24); it is the glorification of the Saints as "the foundation of the Church, the perfection of the Gospel, they who fulfilled in deed the sayings of the Saviour" (Sunday of All Saints, Doxasticon of Vespers).

In this celebration, then, we reverently honour and call blessed all the Righteous, the Prophets, Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Shepherds, Teachers, and Holy Monastics, both men and women alike, known and unknown, who have been added to the choirs of the Saints and shall be added, from the time of Adam until the end of the world, who have been perfected in piety and have glorified God by their holy lives. All these, as well as the orders of the Angels, and especially our most holy Lady and Queen, the Ever-virgin Theotokos Mary, do we honour today, setting their life before us as an example of virtue, and entreating them to intercede in our behalf with God, Whose grace and boundless mercy be with us all. Amen.


Philbartbarnabas
June 11

Bartholomew the Holy Apostle

Saint Bartholomew was one of the Twelve Apostles, and had Galilee as his homeland; this is all that is known of him for certain according to the history of the Gospels. Concerning his apostolic work, certain say that he preached in Arabia and Persia, and especially in India, bringing to them the Gospel written by Saint Matthew, which had been written originally in Hebrew, and which was found there one hundred years later by Pantaenus, formerly a stoic philosopher and later an illustrious teacher of the Christian school in Alexandria (see Eusebius, Eccl. Hist., 5: 10). Other accounts say that he went to Armenia. According to some, he ended his life by being crucified, or by being flayed alive, in Albanopolis (Urbanopolis) of Armenia. This also confirms an ancient tradition preserved by the Armenians. According to some, Bartholomew and Nathanael are the same person, because the Evangelists who mention Bartholomew do not mention Nathanael; and John, who alone mentions Nathanael as one of the Twelve, says nothing of Bartholomew. Indeed, Bartholomew is a patronymic, "son of Talmai," which means "bold, spirited" (see also Jesus of Navi 15:14; II Kings 3:3), and Nathanael could have had this as a surname. According to the Synaxarion of the Menaion on April 22, however, it is Simon the Zealot and Nathanael who are the same; the Evangelists who mention Simon the Zealot (or "the Canaanite") do not mention Nathanael.


Philbartbarnabas
June 11

Barnabas the Holy Apostle

Saint Barnabas, one of the Seventy, was from Cyprus, of the tribe of Levi, and a fellow disciple with Paul under Gamaliel. He was called Joses, but was renamed Barnabas, which means "son of consolation," perhaps to distinguish him from the Joses called Barsabas and surnamed Justus (Acts 1:23). Saint Barnabas had a field, which he sold and brought the money to the Apostles (Acts 4:36-37). Before the conversion of Saul to Paul, it was Barnabas who was the leader of the Seventy Apostles, the first in preaching and chief spokesman. After Saul's vision on the road to Damascus, it was Barnabas who joined him to the Apostles when the others, because of Saul's reputation as a persecutor of the Church, still feared him (Acts 9:26-27); again it was Saint Barnabas who conscripted Paul as a preacher, bringing him from Tarsus to Antioch after the stoning of Stephen, to assist in spreading the Gospel (Acts 11:25-26). Saint Barnabas preached the Gospel in many places, traveled together with Paul, and finally was stoned to death by the Jews in his native Cyprus. During the reign of Zeno, in the year 478, his sacred relics were found, having on his chest the Gospel according to Matthew written in Greek by Barnabas' own hand. This Gospel was brought to Zeno. Because of this the Church of Cyprus received the right of autonomy, and its archbishop was given the privilege, like the emperor, of signing his decrees and encyclicals in vermilion.


Axion_esti
June 11

Revelation of the Hymn Axion Estin to a monk on Mt. Athos by the Archangel Gabriel

The Synaxis of the Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos is celebrated today for the following reason: In 980, during the reign of Emperor Basil II, when Nicholas Chrysoberges was Ecumenical Patriarch, the holy Archangel Gabriel appeared in the guise of a monk to the disciple of a certain elder living in a hermitage belonging to the Monastery of Pantocrator on the Holy Mountain. During Matins, after the monk had chanted the customary hymn, "More honorable than the Cherubim...," composed by Saint Cosmas the Hymnographer, the Angel chanted the same hymn, but with the following prelude: "It is truly meet to call thee blest, the Theotokos, the ever-blessed and all-immaculate and Mother of our God." Marveling at the hymn's beauty, the monk asked his visitor - who appeared also to be a monk - to record this new text in writing, which the Angel did by miraculously inscribing the words on a piece of slate, using only his finger, and straightway he vanished from sight. This slate was brought to the Church of the Protaton, and from thence to Constantinople, to the imperial court and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, as evidence of the miracle. Henceforth, this version of the hymn to the Most Holy Theotokos began to be chanted in the Divine Liturgy in all the churches. The place where the miracle took place is now called Adein, from the Greek word which means "to sing." The icon itself, before which this hymn was first chanted, is called "the icon of the Axion estin" ("It is truly meet") and it is kept in the sanctuary of the Church of the Protaton on the Holy Mountain.


Peteratheniteonouphrios
June 12

Onuphrius of Egypt

Saint Onuphrius flourished in the fourth century, first in the cenobium near Hermopolis of Thebes in Egypt, and later as a solitary in the desert, where he was discovered by Saint Paphnutius. When Paphnutius first encountered him deep in the desert, he was affrighted at the Saint's appearance, seeing him covered with hair like a wild beast and naked except for a garment sewn of leaves covering his loins. After relating his life and the bitter conflicts he had endured as a hermit, Onuphrius told Paphnutius that he was about to die, and that Paphnutius had been sent to bury him, which soon came to pass. Although Paphnutius desired afterwards to remain in the Saint's cave, as soon as he had buried him, the cave fell in and the palm tree, which had furnished the Saint with dates withered up, indicating that it was the will of God that Paphnutius return to his monastery and make Saint Onuphrius known to all.


Peteratheniteonouphrios
June 12

Peter the Athonite

Saint Peter was born of noble parents in Constantinople in the ninth century. Sent forth with the Roman army against the Saracens, he was taken captive and shut up in the prison of Samarra in Syria; this is no doubt the same prison in which the Forty-Two Martyrs of Amorion were kept (see Mar. 6). Released from prison through the prayers of Saint Nicholas of Myra and Saint Symeon the God-receiver, he fled to Rome, where he became a monk, and later came to the peninsula of Athos, where he lived in a cave as a solitary, suffering many temptations from the evil one, but also enjoying the manifest help of the most holy Theotokos. After many years, he reposed in peace.


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Wisdom of the Fathers

For in a contest there is much labor needed--and after the contest victory falls to some, to others disgrace. Is the palm ever given or the crown granted before the course is finished? ... Therefore no one can receive a reward, unless he has striven lawfully; nor is the victory a glorious one, unless the contest also has been toilsome.
St. Ambrose of Milan
Chapter 15, Three Books on the Duties of the Clergy, 4th century

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