Sunday & Weekday Services
Orthros/Matins: 8:30 am
Divine Liturgy: 9:30 am
Youth Religious Education Ministry is currently offered Sundays in person and remotely following Holy Communion. Please see weekly updates from our ministry leaders for updates on each class. All are welcome to join us for Fellowship Hour after Divine Liturgy.
Beloved Parishioners and Friends:
I hope you had a peaceful, reflective and happy Thanksgiving, and that all is well in your household. I am grateful for our house of worship and for our collective ministry to Christ's Gospel. We all have much to be thankful for each and every week of the year.
This Sunday, if you are in town, I hope you'll join us at Saint Gregory. As on the first Sunday of every month now, our Sunday School children, and teachers, will sit up front during Liturgy. I'll also offer them a special homily all about the Icon of Christmas (Christ's Nativity). There will also be a pageant rehearsal after Sunday School with Mrs. Maimonis, and costumes will be distributed. This is a wonderful time of year for our youth at Saint Gregory--and really for all of us.
As we look ahead to next Sunday, the 11th, this will be the day of our Stewardship Sunday event, complete with a moving testimonial, an introduction to our 2023 theme (all about "Eucharistic Thanksgiving") and, of course, a "steward thank you" breakfast. All are welcome. Further, I thank our Stewardship Ministry Committee for their ongoing, tireless efforts on behalf of our church--and, of course, all of you, our beloved Stewards!
Looking forward to seeing you and another month of worship and friendship at our parish home,
Fr. Alex
HOMILY: "Engaging the Icon of Christmas."
EPISTLE: Parishioners of all ages are invited to read the Epistle. Please contact Fr. Alex to choose a date.
TRISAGION: Nicholas Cooper, 9 yrs; Alexandra Cooper, 32 years. May their memory be eternal!
TODAY'S ANTIDORON/MYRHHBEARERS SERVICE: Eleni LaFond. Servers are welcome to participate in this ministry throughout the summer. To get involved, contact Eleni LaFond or Fr. Alex.
TODAY'S ALTAR TEAM: Archangel Michael (Matthew Cromack, AJ & Matthew Georgilas, and Mario Salzillo). Altar Captain: Chris Botchis; Spencer Riley: Assistant Captain.
ALTAR FLOWERS: Please consider sponsoring Altar flowers on a coming Sunday or feast day. The donation for flower sponsorships is $50. Please contact the Church Office to learn more or sponsor.
FELLOWSHIP HOUR: Fellowship Hour sponsorships are welcome and needed. Please sign up in the hall this weekend or contact the Church Office to schedule your special day, in memory of a loved one, in honor of a special occasion or just to enable wonderful fellowship at Saint Gregory.
WORSHIPPING FROM HOME: STREAMING AND INTERNET MINISTRY
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ACCESS SERVICES VIA YOU TUBE:
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Third Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from Mark 16:9-20
When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.
After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. After this He appeared to the eleven themselves as they sat at table and He upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw Him after He had risen. And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in My name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover."
So then the Lord Jesus, after He had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that attended it. Amen.
Barbara the Great Martyr
The Reading is from St. Paul's Letter to the Galatians 3:23-29; 4:1-5
Brethren, before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under restraint until faith should be revealed. So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian; for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise. I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no better than a slave, though he is the owner of all the estate; but he is under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. So with us; when we were children, we were slaves to the elemental spirits of the universe. But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
10th Sunday of Luke
The Reading is from Luke 13:10-17
At that time, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your infirmity." And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath, said to the people, "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be healed, and not on the sabbath day." Then the Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?" As he said this, all his adversaries were put to shame; and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.
Saint Barbara was from Heliopolis of Phoenicia and lived during the reign of Maximian.
She was the daughter of a certain idolater named Dioscorus. When Barbara came of age, she was enlightened in her pure heart and secretly believed in the Holy Trinity. About this time Dioscorus began building a bath-house; before it was finished he was required to go away to attend to certain matters, and in his absence Barbara directed the workmen to build a third window in addition to the two her Father had commanded. She also inscribed the sign of the Cross with her finger upon the marble of the bath-house, leaving the saving sign cut as deeply into the marble as if it had been done with an iron tool. (When the Synaxarion of Saint Barbara was written, the marble of the bath-house and the cross inscribed by Saint Barbara were still preserved, and many healings were worked there.) When Dioscorus returned, he asked why the third window had been added; Barbara began to declare to him the mystery of the Trinity. Because she refused to renounce her faith, Dioscorus tortured Barbara inhumanely, and after subjecting her to many sufferings he beheaded her with his own hands, in the year 290.
SERVICES FOR DEC. 4, THE 10TH SUNDAY OF LUKE
We look forward to worshipping with you at Saint Gregory, whether in person or remotely: Orthros, 8:30 am; Divine Liturgy, 9:30 am. Sunday School classes have begun. If you have not already, please register your children here for another year of learning and growth in the Orthodox Faith.
STREAMING DETAILS/MEDIA CONNECTIONS FOR DEC 4
Access Services via You Tube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgvnXFV6xK1Nhm8ID84jFNg
Access Services and join our community on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/saintgregorythetheologian
Join our community on Instagram
@saintgregorythetheologian • Instagram photos and video
SUNDAY SCHOOL SEATING AND PAGEANT REHEARSAL, DEC 4
***Today is another first Sunday of the month—and that means it’s time for our Sunday Schoolers to sit right up front with their teacher’s today. Fr. Alex will offer a youth homily on the Nativity icon, highlighting Christ and the Theotokos, the Magi, the animals and more.
***Also, following Sunday School, today, Mrs. Maimonis will lead a rehearsal for our Christmas/Nativity pageant. Parents, please make sure your children make it back to the church after classes for this important event. Costumes will also be distributed today.
PARISH ELECTIONS, DEC 4
Today we are grateful to the following parishioners who have offered themselves for Parish Council: Steve Drugas, Dean Jumes, Stephan Katinas, Brian Kaufman, Phil LaFond and Maria Sweten. Likewise thanks to those parishioners offering to serve as our 2023 Board of Auditors: Steve Christo, Ann Johnson and Yvette Politis. As we have six Parish Council candidates for six available seats, we will not need to have a formal parish-wide election process. We look forward to submitting their names to the Metropolis for ratification and then to the Parish Council “pledge” on a coming Sunday. Please wish all of these fellow parishioners well and thank them for their dedication to our parish.
GOYA PIZZA PARTY AND HOLIDAY CONCERT AT WHEATON COLLEGE, DEC 4
All GOYAns are invited to tonight’s special holiday events! At 6 pm, there will be a pizza party at the Christo home (3 Sturbridge Drive, Mansfield, MA). Then it is off to Wheaton College for a Holiday Vespers concert, which begins at 7:30 pm. The concert will be 1.5 hours, so pickup will be between 9 - 9:30 pm. Please let Steve Christo know if your child will be attending one or both events: smchristo@comcast.net. We hope as many of our GOYAns as possible will join us for this wonderful evening.
PHILOPTOCHOS "ONE WARM COAT" DRIVE, CONT. DEC 4
Thank you to everyone who supported our Veterans Day Drive. We were able to purchase 5 winter coats and send $380.00 in Stop & Shop and Ocean State Job Lot gift cards to the Mansfield Veterans Affairs Office. Our current outreach effort is the "One Warm Coat" Drive, and it is underway! Please bring gently used coats for donation to the Narthex bin. This collection of child and adult-sized coats will go through Dec. 11.
STEWARDSHIP SUNDAY EVENT, DEC 11
***Our Stewardship Ministry Committee is grateful for the support and generosity expressed thus far in 2022. As we look toward the end of this year’s campaign and look to 2023, this would be a wonderful time to complete a 2022 Commitment Card and/or fulfill your existing commitment. Commitment Cards are in the Narthex, and they can also be filled out electronically within the Stewardship pages of our website. Online giving options are also available there for convenient and instant commitment fulfillment.
***Looking to Dec. 11, we are all invited to the annual Stewardship Sunday event—including awonderful breakfast to celebrate all our Stewards. The morning’s event will also include a testimonial on the importance of Stewardship and information on the 2023 Archdiocesan theme: “Giving Thanks: Eucharistic Worship.” Commitment cards and other materials will soon be available, and we look forward to embarking on another year of loving service to Saint Gregory.
USHERING AND "RIDES TO CHURCH" MINISTRIES
This spring and summer, those interested in our Ushering Ministry are invited to contact George Dimitriou: 781-769-2085; Gdimitriou@yahoo.com. Offering yourself as an usher is a wonderful way to meet new people and helps create a welcoming environment at Saint Gregory. Throughout the coming months, we will also reinvigorate our efforts to provide rides to church for anyone who needs one. Once again, contact George Dimitriou if you could use a “lift” or would like to help drive.
LITURGICAL SINGING
This ministry engages musical leadership not only for Sunday liturgy but all the liturgical needs of the year, from Vespers services to Great Lent and Holy Week. Your time and talent is most welcome within our Liturgical Singing Ministry. Please contact Kathy Kalogeras to learn more: kalogeras1@earthlink.net.
MYRHHBEARERS MINISTRY
Within the context of our fledling Myrrhbearers Ministry, our girls and young women are invited to hold Antidoro during Divine Liturgy, read the Epislte and otherwise participate in the entire life of the Church. Please contact Eleni LaFond to pick a date for Antidoro service and Fr. Alex to plan a date for an Epistle reading.
FELLOWSHIP HOUR & SPONSORSHIPS
Join us in the hall for Fellowship Hour following Divine Liturgy after Sunday services. We are also welcoming sponsors for Sundays this summer. Please sign up this Sunday during Fellowship Hour or simply contact the Church Office.
WHAT'S NEW ON OUR WEBSITE?
Within our Youth Ministry pages, you'll soon see two new June resources under "Youth and Family Resources": "Saintly Lives" and "For Your Home." Both can be a resources for parents as they strive to bring the life of the Church into their homes.
CHURCH OFFICE HOURS
Fr. Alex: Tue. (1 pm – 5 pm), Wed. (9 am – 1 pm) & Thur (9 am – 1 pm); or by appointment when convenient for our parishioners. Please note that on occasion, Fr. Alex may be seeing to a pastoral situation, visitingn with another parishioner, attending a Metropolis event or otherwise engaged in Church life during office hours. Cathy Cooper: Tue. (9 am - 1 pm) and
8:30AM Orthros
9:30AM Divine Liturgy
10:30AM Sunday School classes
11:30AM Nativity Pageant Rehearsal
11:30AM Parish Elections
6:00PM GOYA Dinner & Wheaton College Concert
Stewardship Sunday
8:30AM Orthros
9:30AM Divine Liturgy
10:30AM Sunday School classes
11:30AM Nativity Pageant Rehearsal
11:30AM Last Day for "One Warm Coat" Drive
4:00PM Parish Council Christmas Party
8:30AM Orthros
9:30AM Divine Liturgy
10:30AM Christmas/Nativity Pageant
Enjoy our latest newsletter, highlighting worship events like our Dec. 24 Christmas Eve Vesperal Liturgy and vital fundraising efforts such as the Nov. 20 Philoptochos Bake Sale. Enjoy!
Our Parish Council offers these financial updates monthly, so our parishioners can be fully aware of financial and Stewardship trends within Saint Gregory.
Dear Reverend Clergy, Parish Council Members, and Parishioners,
As we continue on our journey towards the Birth of Our Savior, it brings me great joy to invite you all, on behalf of His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, to our Christmas Open House on Wednesday, December 21, 2022, at our Holy Archdiocese of America Headquarters.