Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2024-03-17
Bulletin Contents
Eden
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Saints Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church

General Information

  • Phone:
  • 7076426916
  • Street Address:

  • 1224 Alabama Street

  • Vallejo, CA 94590


Contact Information



Services Schedule

A full listing of all our services and events is provided in this bulletin.  

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“Where two or three are gathered in my name, 
I am in the midst of them.” -Matthew 18:20

 

Since the time of the Apostles, the Divine Liturgy has offered us communion with our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ through hymns, prayers, the hearing of the Scriptures and the great miracle of the Holy Eucharist for the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

Upon entering this holy church, you are entering into worship with the angels and saints who continually worship God in heaven and are sanctified by His presence. Through your prayerful and heartfelt participation, through your sincere repentance and desire for union with Christ, the Divine Liturgy we celebrate today can be for you a powerful experience of "the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father and the communion of the Holy Spirit" (2 Corinthians 13:14). Join in this holy and grace-filled work by following the service in the Divine Liturgy book in your pew or by simply being present, praying in your heart, “Lord, Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.”

 


Past Bulletins


Worship Guidelines

We enter the temple of God with reverence, humbly and quietly so as not to disturb those who are in prayer and as an expression of faith and awareness of the presence of the Lord, his saints and angels. No loud talking, irrelevant conversations, joking, etc. should take place in the Narthex or in the Sanctuary at anytime. To stand during worship is to affirm that we are in the presence of the Almighty God. The elderly, the sick and children may be seated as needed. There are specific parts of the service during which no one should be moving about. These parts of the service are: 

The Small Entrance, the Epistle and Gospel; the Cherubic Hymn, Great Entrance, Nicene Creed, the hymn Se Ymnoumen, the prayers: "Take, eat, this is my Body..." and, "we offer to you these gifts...", the prayer of institution: "And make this bread the precious Body of your Christ...", the Lord's Prayer,  Holy Communion, the sermon, dismissal prayer, any special services, e.g, memorial services. Whenever the Priest is facing the people or outside of the altar, everyone should stand wherever they are.

Dressing for God: The church is not just any ordinary place. We dress as modestly and respectfully as we can, because we are in the presence of God Himself. If invited by any earthly king or queen, we would dress in our finest clothes. Therefore, we should dress similarly when accepting an invitation from the Lord of Heaven. The way Orthodox Christians dress, both in and outside the temple, reflects their way of life and dedication to and fear of God. We dress modestly at all times, not in a flashy or provocative way that brings attention to ourselves.  

GENTLEMEN: Collared, button-up shirts, clean dress pants, sweaters or vests, ties and coats. Avoid jeans and shorts.

LADIES: Modest dresses and blouses, knee-length skirts or longer, clean dress pants. Avoid jeans or shorts, short skirts, skin-tight clothing, and strapless or sleeveless tops, high-heels shoes as they make noise on our floors. Head coverings may be worn, according to the biblical tradition and are available in the narthex.

Only Orthodox Christians may participate in Holy Communion. Please be in church at the beginning, say the pre-communion prayers the previous evening or in the morning, fasting from food this morning (unless there is a medical reason) and had a recent confession. Allow the altar boys to place the red cloth under your chin. Do not wipe your mouth with it but consume everything that may be on your lips. Ladies please avoid wearing lipstick or lip-gloss when receiving Holy Communion.

 

 

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Hymns of the Day

Resurrectional Apolytikion in the 8th Tone

From on high you descended, O merciful Lord. You accepted the cross and three days in the tomb to free us from the bondage of sin, O our life and resurrection. Glory to you, O Lord.

Apolytikion for the Church in the 1st Tone

Tou stavrou sou ton typon en ourano theasamenos, ke os o Pavlos tin klisin, ouk exanthropon dexamenos, o en vasilefsin Apostolos sou, Kyrie, Vasilefousan polin, ti kheeree sou paretheto, een perisoze dia pantos en irini, presvies tis Theotokou, moni Philanthrope. 

Having seen the image of Your Cross in Heaven, and, like Paul, having received the call not from men, Your apostle among kings entrusted the commonwealth to Your hand, O Lord. Keep us always in peace, by the intercessions of the Theotokos, O only Friend of man.

Seasonal Kontakion in the 6th Tone

O guide to wisdom, provider of prudence, disciplinarian of fools, and defender of the poor, fortify and discipline my heart, O Master; You, give me a word, O Word of the Father. For behold, I will not hinder my lips from crying to You: O merciful Lord, have mercy on me who have fallen.
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Gospel and Epistle Readings

Epistle Reading

Prokeimenon. 8th Tone. Psalm 75.11,1.
Make your vows to the Lord our God and perform them.
Verse: God is known in Judah; his name is great in Israel.

The reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Romans 13:11-14; 14:1-4.

Brethren, salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

As for the man who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not for disputes over opinions. One believes he may eat anything, while the weak man eats only vegetables. Let not him who eats despise him who abstains, and let not him who abstains pass judgment on him who eats; for God has welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for God is able to make him stand.


Gospel Reading

Forgiveness Sunday
The Reading is from Matthew 6:14-21

The Lord said, "If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

"And when you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."


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Saints and Feasts

Eden
March 17

Forgiveness Sunday

The Holy Fathers have appointed the commemoration of Adam's exile from the Paradise of delight here, on the eve of the holy Forty-day Fast, demonstrating to us not by simple words, but by actual deeds, how beneficial fasting is for man, and how harmful and destructive are insatiety and the transgressing of the divine commandments. For the first commandment that God gave to man was that of fasting, which the first-fashioned received but did not keep; and not only did they not become gods, as they had imagined, but they lost even that blessed life which they had, and they fell into corruption and death, and transmitted these and innumerable other evils to all of mankind. The God-bearing Fathers set these things before us today, that by bringing to mind what we have fallen from, and what we have suffered because of the insatiety and disobedience of the first-fashioned, we might be diligent to return again to that ancient bliss and glory by means of fasting and obedience to all the divine commands. Taking occasion from today's Gospel (Matt. 6:14-21) to begin the Fast unencumbered by enmity, we also ask forgiveness this day, first from God, then from one another and all creation.


Alexismanofgod
March 17

Alexios the Man of God

Saint Alexis was born in old Rome of illustrious parents named Euphemianus and Aglais, and at their request was joined to a young woman in marriage. However, he did not remain with her even for one day, but fled to Edessa, where he lived for eighteen years. He returned to Rome in the guise of a beggar and sat at the gates of his father's house, unknown to all and mocked by his own servants. His identity was revealed only after his death by a paper that he had on his person, which he himself had written a little before his repose. The pious Emperor Honorius honoured him with a solemn burial. The title "Man of God" was given to him from heaven in a vision to the Bishop of Rome on the day of the Saint's repose.


Allsaint
March 17

Patrick the Enlightener of Ireland

Saint Patrick, the Apostle of the Irish, was seized from his native Britain by Irish marauders when he was sixteen years old. Though the son of a deacon and a grandson of a priest, it was not until his captivity that he sought out the Lord with his whole heart. In his Confession, the testament he wrote towards the end of his life, he says, "After I came to Ireland - every day I had to tend sheep, and many times a day I prayed - the love of God and His fear came to me more and more, and my faith was strengthened. And my spirit was so moved that in a single day I would say as many as a hundred prayers, and almost as many at night, and this even when I was staying in the woods and on the mountain; and I would rise for prayer before daylight, through snow, through frost, through rain, and I felt no harm." After six years of slavery in Ireland, he was guided by God to make his escape, and afterwards struggled in the monastic life at Auxerre in Gaul, under the guidance of the holy Bishop Germanus. Many years later he was ordained bishop and sent to Ireland once again, about the year 432, to convert the Irish to Christ. His arduous labours bore so much fruit that within seven years, three bishops were sent from Gaul to help him shepherd his flock, "my brethren and sons whom I have baptized in the Lord - so many thousands of people," he says in his Confession. His apostolic work was not accomplished without much "weariness and painfulness," long journeys through difficult country, and many perils; he says his very life was in danger twelve times. When he came to Ireland as its enlightener, it was a pagan country; when he ended his earthly life some thirty years later, about 461, the Faith of Christ was established in every corner.


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Wisdom of the Fathers

Spiritual delight is not enjoyment found in things that exists outside the soul.
St. Isaac of Syria
Unknown, 7th century

Do we forgive our neighbors their trespasses? God also forgives us in His mercy. Do we refuse to forgive? God, too, will refuse to forgive us. As we treat our neighbors, so also does God treat us. The forgiveness, then, of your sins or unforgiveness, and hence also your salvation or destruction, depend on you yourself, man. For without forgiveness of sins there is no salvation.
St. Tikhon of Zadonsk
Unknown, 18th century

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News and Announcements

Prayer List - Email StsCaH@gmail.com to add

Please keep in your prayers the servants of God: Maro, Roger, Joshua, Andreas, Michael, Dorothy, Amy, Evangelos, Mary, Alberto and Rosa, Stephanie Val, Michael, Gregory, Nick, Julie, Nitsa, Sayge, Stamatoula, Emilio, Sitheri, Ghassan, Maria, Daniel, Porphyrios, Ray Elias, Paul, Mac, Irvin, Katrina, Lygeri, Iris, Georgia, Jana, Serafim, Iris, Suzanna, Despina


Memorial Today

Today we have a 40 day memorial for Stephanos Master


Orthodox Men's Group

We will be reviving our Orthodox men’s group for a Lenten meal and fellowship, along with a spiritual talk from Fr. Ninos on Thursday, April 11th. The meeting will be held at the church beginning with the Akathist to Christ prayer at 5 pm, followed by a meal in the hall at approximately 5:45 pm, and then concluding with a spiritual talk from Fr. Ninos and a discussion directly following the meal. 

If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Justin Bailey at justinbailey2@yahoo.com no later than Monday, April 1st. You can also reply directly to Justin and he will keep the tally. We hope you all can make it and look forward to seeing you there. 

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This Week's Events

  • Upcoming Events

    March 17 to April 1, 2024

    SUN
    MON
    TUE
    WED
    THU
    FRI
    SAT
    17
    🧀 Forgiveness Sunday
    8:30AM Matins
    10:00AM Divine Liturgy
    11:45AM Stephanos 40
    12:00PM Forgiveness Vespers
    18
    ☦️ Cyril, Patriarch of Jerusalem
    5:00PM Great Compline
    19
    ☦️ Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria
    4:00PM Matthew 25 Food Program
    5:00PM Great Compline
    5:30PM Catechism Class
    20
    ☦️ Righteous slain at Monastery of St. Savas
    5:00PM Presanctified Liturgy
    6:30PM Faith Discussion
    21
    ☦️ James the Confessor
    5:00PM Great Compline
    22
    ☦️ Basil the Holy Martyr of Ancyra
    4:00PM Akathist
    5:30PM Presanctified Liturgy
    23
    🍇 Miracle of Kollyva & St Theodore the Tyro
    10:00AM Liturgy
    5:00PM Great Vespers
    24
    🍇 Sunday of Orthodoxy
    8:30AM Matins
    10:00AM Divine Liturgy
    12:00PM Theodoros Samaritis - 40 Day
    12:30PM Philoptochos Luncheon
    25
    🐟 Annunciation of the Theotokos
    7:30AM Matins
    9:00AM Liturgy
    5:00PM Great Compline
    26
    🍇 Archangel Gabriel
    4:00PM Matthew 25 Food Program
    5:30PM Catechism Class
    27
    ☦️ Matrona of Thessalonica
    5:00PM Presanctified Liturgy
    6:30PM Faith Discussion
    28
    ☦️ Hilarion the New
    29
    ☦️ Mark, Bishop of Arethusa
    4:00PM Akathist
    5:30PM Presanctified Liturgy
    30
    🍇 Second Saturday of Lent
    5:00PM Great Vespers
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