Welcome

Jesus Christ taught us to love and serve all people, regardless of their ethnicity or nationality. To understand that, we need to look no further than to the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). Every time we celebrate the Divine Liturgy, it is offered "on behalf of all, and for all." As Orthodox Christians we stand against racism and bigotry. All human beings share one common identity as children of God. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatian 3:28)

Members of our Parish Council are:
Greg Jankura - Vice President
Susan Davis- Council Member at Large
Carolyn Neiss - President
Marlene Melesko - Council Member at Large
Susan Egan - Treasurer
Dn Timothy Skuby - Secretary

Pastoral Care - General Information

Emergency Sick Calls can be made at any time. Please call Fr Steven at (860) 866-5802, when a family member is admitted to the hospital.
Anointing in Sickness: The Sacrament of Unction is available in Church, the hospital, or your home, for anyone who is sick and suffering, however severe.
Marriages and Baptisms require early planning, scheduling and selections of sponsors (crown bearers or godparents). See Father before booking dates and reception halls!
Funerals are celebrated for practicing Orthodox Christians. Please see Father for details. The Church opposes cremation; we cannot celebrate funerals for cremations.

Announcements

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

Anne and I are intending to spend some time visiting Aaron, in NC, from May 9th through the 19th. Please contact Dn Timothy should you have any needs, do not take it upon yourself to contact any clergy outside of the parish. Services on the weekend of the 13th-14th will be held as schedule and lead by Dn. The decision concerning online services and meetings will be made shortly. Notification of changes (if any) will be made via email.

Prayers, Intercessions and Commemorations

Many Years! to Luba Martins on the occasion of her birthday and to Glenn PenkoffLedbeck on the occasion of his Name's Day.

Memory Eternal! on the anniversary of the repose of Fr Paul Lazor

Please continue to pray for our catecumens, David, James, Brent, Mark, Dierdre and Anthony (and his family).

Please pray for Evelyn Leake who is in need of God's mercy and healing; and for Kelley Hosking-Billings.

Pray for: All those confined to hospitals, nursing homes, and their own homes due to illness; for all those who serve in the armed forces; widows, orphans, prisoners, victims of violence, and refugees;
All those suffering chronic illness, financial hardship, loneliness, addictions, abuse, abandonment and despair; those who are homeless, those who are institutionalize, those who have no one to pray for them;
All Orthodox seminarians & families; all Orthodox monks and nuns, and all those considering monastic life; all Orthodox missionaries and their families.
All those who have perished due to hatred, intolerance and pestilence; all those departed this life in the hope of the Resurrection.

Repose of St. Alexis Toth, Confessor and Defender of Orthodoxy in America (1909). Paralytic. Commemoration of the Appearance of the Sign of the Precious Cross over Jerusalem in 351 AD. Martyr Acacius the Centurion at Byzantium (303). Repose of Ven. Nilus, Abbot of Sora (1508). St. John of Zaden in Georgia, and 12 disciples: Ss. Shio, David, Anthony, Thaddæus, Stephen, Isidore, Michael, Pyrrhus, Zeno, Jesse, Joseph, and Abibus (6th c.). Ven. Nilus the Myrrhgusher of Lavra (Mt. Athos—1651). Monastic Martyr Pachomius (Mt. Athos—1730).

Saints and Feasts

May 07

Sunday of the Paralytic

Close to the Sheep's Gate in Jerusalem, there was a pool, which was called the Sheep's Pool. It had round about it five porches, that is, five sets of pillars supporting a domed roof. Under this roof there lay very many sick people with various maladies, awaiting the moving of the water. The first to step in after the troubling of the water was healed immediately of whatever malady he had.

It was there that the paralytic of today's Gospel way lying, tormented by his infirmity of thirty-eight years. When Christ beheld him, He asked him, "Wilt thou be made whole?" And he answered with a quiet and meek voice, "Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool." The Lord said unto him, "Rise, take up thy bed, and walk." And straightaway the man was made whole and took up his bed. Walking in the presence of all, he departed rejoicing to his own house. According to the expounders of the Gospels, the Lord Jesus healed this paralytic during the days of the Passover, when He had gone to Jerusalem for the Feast, and dwelt there teaching and working miracles. According to Saint John the Evangelist, this miracle took place on the Sabbath.

May 07

St Alexis

Born to a poor family in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1854, Alexis Toth was the son of a priest of the Greek Catholic Church. The Greek Catholics were citizens of the Empire who had originally been Orthodox. As a result of political agreements, they were required to enter into communion with the dominant Roman Catholic Church, still keeping some Orthodox practices and customs.
Alexis excelled in his early studies, and then in his preparation for the priesthood. In 1878, the same year he and Rosalie (Mihalich) were married, he was ordained to the priesthood and assigned as pastor of a Greek Catholic parish. The couple rejoiced the following year when a baby girl was born to them.
But Father Alexis would soon be plunged into deep grief. His wife, and then their infant daughter, died. With a heavy heart, he humbly continued to serve God and his parish. He also taught in the local seminary until he was sent to the United States in 1889 to serve a Greek Catholic parish in Minneapolis.
The Roman Catholic bishop in Minneapolis had never heard of a priest who'd been married. He made life difficult for Father Toth, thinking he was somehow not a proper priest. But Father continued, as always, humbly serving a parish which was so poor that the people could barely afford to pay him anything. He supported himself by working in a bakery, and in spite of having so little himself he managed to help others in need.
Needing to establish his priesthood, Father Toth and his followers appealed to the Russian Orthodox Bishop Vladimir of San Francisco. In 1891 the bishop received him, and 361 parishioners, into the Orthodox Church.
In the following years Father Toth traveled across the country and preached the truth of Orthodoxy, bringing many people back to the faith and gaining new converts as well. His writings and sermons helped them all understand their faith more deeply.
Father Toth helped Saint Tikhon, then the ruling bishop of the North American Church, establish Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk Monastery and Orphanage in South Canaan, Pennsylvania. He died in 1909, and is buried behind the monastery's altar. In 1994, he was glorified as a saint.

May 09

Isaiah the Prophet

The Prophet Esaias, the son of Amos, was descended from a royal tribe. He prophesied in the days of Ozias (who is also called Azarias), Joatham, Ahaz, and Hezekias, Kings of Judah. About 681 B.C, in the reign of Manasses, the son and successor of the most pious Hezekias, when this Prophet was censuring Manasses' impiety and lawlessness, he was sawn asunder with a wooden saw, and thus received a martyr's end.

Of all the Prophets, he is called the most eloquent because of the beauty and loftiness of his words. His book of prophecy, divided into sixty-six chapters, is ranked first among the greater Prophets. The Fifth Ode of the Psalter, "Out of the night my spirit waketh at dawn unto Thee, O God . . ." is taken from his book. It was this holy Prophet who foretold that a Virgin would conceive in the womb (7:14); that not an ambassador, nor an angel, but the Lord Himself would save fallen man (63:9); that the Messiah would suffer, bearing our sins (ch. 53). His name means "Yah is helper."

May 10

4th Wednesday after Pascha - Mid-Pentecost

After the Saviour had miraculously healed the paralytic, the Jews, especially the Pharisees and Scribes, were moved with envy and persecuted Him, and sought to slay Him, using the excuse that He did not keep the Sabbath, since He worked miracles on that day. Jesus then departed to Galilee. About the middle of the Feast of Tabernacles, He went up again to the Temple and taught. The Jews, marvelling at the wisdom of His words, said, "How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" But Christ first reproached their unbelief and lawlessness, then proved to them by the Law that they sought to slay Him unjustly, supposedly as a despiser of the Law, since He had healed the paralytic on the Sabbath. Therefore, since the things spoken by Christ in the middle of the Feast of Tabernacles are related to the Sunday of the Paralytic that is just passed, and since we have already reached the midpoint of the fifty days between Pascha and Pentecost, the Church has appointed this present feast as a bond between the two great feasts, thereby uniting, as it were, the two into one, and partaking of the grace of them both. Therefore today's feast is called Mid-Pentecost, and the Gospel Reading, "At Mid-feast"--though it refers to the Feast of Tabernacles--is used.

It should be noted that there were three great Jewish feasts: the Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Passover was celebrated on the 15th of Nisan, the first month of the Jewish calendar, which coincides roughly with our March. This feast commemorated that day on which the Hebrews were commanded to eat the lamb in the evening and anoint the doors of their houses with its blood. Then, having escaped bondage and death at the hands of the Egyptians, they passed through the Red Sea to come to the Promised Land. It is also called "the Feast of Unleavened Bread," because they ate unleavened bread for seven days. Pentecost was celebrated fifty days after the Passover, first of all, because the Hebrew tribes had reached Mount Sinai after leaving Egypt, and there received the Law from God; secondly, it was celebrated to commemorate their entry into the Promised Land, where also they ate bread, after having been fed with manna forty years in the desert. Therefore, on this day they offered to God a sacrifice of bread prepared with new wheat. Finally, they also celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles from the 15th to the 22nd of "the seventh month," which corresponds roughly to our September. During this time, they live in booths made of branches in commemoration of the forty years they spent in the desert, living in tabernacles, that is, tents (Ex. 12:10-20; Lev. 23).

May 11

Methodios & Cyril, Equal-to-the Apostles Illuminators of the Slavs

Born in Thessalonica, Saint Methodius was a military man before becoming a monk on Mount Olympus. His brother Constantine, known as the Philosopher because of his erudition, was Librarian at the Church of the Holy Wisdom in Constantinople; he later became a monk with the name of Cyril. The Emperor Michael sent him with his brother Methodius to the Khazars in response to their petition for teachers to expound to them the Christian Faith. On their way, they stayed in Cherson, where they recovered from the Black Sea the relics of Saint Clement of Rome. Later, they were called by Prince Rostislav of Moravia to instruct his people in the Orthodox Faith (Saint Rostislav died a martyr's death and is celebrated Oct. 15). The Saints devised an alphabet for the Slavs, and used it to translate the Greek books into the language of the people. In their apostolic labours throughout the Balkans, the holy brothers were slandered by certain Germanic bishops who opposed the use of the vernacular in the church services. Summoned to court at Rome in 867, they presented their Slavonic translations to Pope Adrian II, who received them with love and full approval. Two years later, Saint Cyril reposed in Rome on February 14 and was buried in the Church of Saint Clement. Saint Methodius was made Bishop of Moravia, but at the intrigues of certain Latin clergy, was cast into prison by the "Holy Roman Emperor" (the Germanic Emperor of the West), where he was cruelly tormented for some three years. In 874, through the defence of Pope John VIII, he was freed and made Archbishop of Moravia. Because he reproved the lax morals of the German priests in Moravia, he was soon accused of heresy by them, and was forbidden to celebrate the Liturgy in Slavonic. Summoned to Rome again in 879, he was completely exonerated and allowed once again to use the Slavonic tongue for the divine services. He reposed on April 6, 885.

Hymns of the Day

Priest: “Blessed is the Kingdom…”
Choir: “Amen.”
Priest: “Christ is risen… “ (2 ½ times)
Choir: “and upon those in the tombs bestowing life!”
(The Divine Liturgy is begun in this manner until the Leavetaking of Pascha.)

Tone 3 Troparion (Resurrection)

Let the heavens rejoice!
Let the earth be glad!
For the Lord has shown strength with His arm.
He has trampled down death by death.
He has become the first born of the dead.
He has delivered us from the depths of hell,
and has granted to the world//
great mercy.

Tone 4 Troparion (St. Alexis)

O righteous Father Alexis,
our heavenly intercessor and teacher,
divine adornment of the Church of Christ,
entreat the Master of All
to strengthen the Orthodox Faith in America,
to grant peace to the world//
and to our souls great mercy!

Tone 5 Kontakion (St. Alexis)

Let us, the faithful, praise the Priest Alexis,
a bright beacon of Orthodoxy in America,
a model of patience and humility,
a worthy shepherd of the flock of Christ!
He called back sheep who had been led astray
and brought them by his preaching//
to the Heavenly Kingdom.

Tone 3 Kontakion (Pentecostarion)

By Your divine intercession, O Lord,
as You raised up the Paralytic of old,
so raise up my soul, paralyzed by sins and thoughtless acts;
so that being saved I may sing to You://
“Glory to Your power, O compassionate Christ!”

Note: The Kontakion of Pascha is not sung on this day.

Tone 1 Prokeimenon (Pentecostarion)

Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us /as we have set our hope on You! (Ps. 32:22)

V. Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous! Praise befits the just! (Ps. 32:1)

Tone 7 Prokeimenon (St. Alexis)

The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord / and shall hope in Him. (Ps. 63:11a)

(Instead of “It is truly meet…,” we sing:)

The Angel cried to the Lady, full of grace:
“Rejoice, O pure Virgin! Again, I say: Rejoice,
your Son is risen from His three days in the tomb!
With Himself He has raised all the dead.”
Rejoice, O ye people!

Shine, shine, O new Jerusalem!
The glory of the Lord has shone on you.
Exult now, and be glad, O Zion!
Be radiant, O pure Theotokos,
in the Resurrection of your Son!

Communion Hymn

Receive the Body of Christ; taste the fountain of immortality!
The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance! He shall not fear evil
tidings! (Ps. 111:6)
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!

Priest: “In the fear of God…”
Choir: “Blessed is He that comes in the Name of the Lord… “
Priest: “O God, save Your people… “
Choir: “Christ is risen from the dead… “ (sung once, instead of “We have seen the True Light…)
Priest: “Always, now and ever…”
Choir: “Let our mouths be filled…”

At the Dismissal, the Priest says: “Glory to You, O Christ…” and the choir sings “Christ is risen from the dead…” (thrice).

And unto us He has given eternal life.
Let us worship His Resurrection on the third day!

Gospel and Epistle Readings

Epistle Reading

Prokeimenon. 3rd Tone. Psalm 46.6,1.
Sing praises to our God, sing praises.
Verse: Clap your hands, all you nations.

The reading is from Acts of the Apostles 9:32-42.

In those days, as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints that lived at Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years and was paralyzed. And Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed." And immediately he rose. And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord. Now there was at Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which means Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity. In those days she fell sick and died; and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him entreating him, "Please come to us without delay." So Peter rose and went with them. And when he had come, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping, and showing tunics and other garments which Dorcas made while she was with them. But Peter put them all outside and knelt down and prayed; then turning to the body he said, "Tabitha, rise." And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. And he gave her his hand and lifted her up. Then calling the saints and widows he presented her alive. And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.

Gospel Reading

Sunday of the Paralytic
The Reading is from John 5:1-15

At that time, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Hebrew called Bethesda which has five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of invalids, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and troubled the water; whoever stepped in first after the troubling of the water was healed of whatever disease he had. One man was there, who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew that he had been lying there a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be healed?" The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is troubled, and while I am going another steps down before me." Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your pallet, and walk." And at once the man was healed, and he took up his pallet and walked.

Now that day was the sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who was cured, "It is the sabbath, it is not lawful for you to carry your pallet." But he answered them, "The man who healed me said to me, 'Take up your pallet, and walk.' "They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Take up your pallet, and walk'?" Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse befall you." The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him.

Wisdom of the Fathers

In that case [Matt 9:2] there was remission of sins, (for He said, "Thy sins be forgiven thee,") but in this, warning and threats to strengthen the man for the future; "Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto you."

St. John Chrysostom

Homily 37 on John 1, 4th Century

Beyond the Sermon

Metropolitan Anthony Sourozh
Sunday of Paralytic
7 May 1989

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.
We have heard today in the Gospel of a man who for thirty eight years had laid paralysed. The only thing that separated him from healing was the possibility to reach the waters, which the angel brought into motion once a year. Thirty eight years had he attempted to move towards healing but someone else has been quicker than he and stolen healing from him. How many are there now in the world, how many have been and will be in this world of ours who need healing, who are paralysed by fear, paralysed by all that prevents us from moving with boldness and purpose towards fullness of life? How many? And who are those who will take them and help them to receive healing instead of seeking it for themselves? Let us look at ourselves, not at each other but ourselves. What have we learnt from the Gospel?
Christ says that no-one has true love who is not prepared to give his life for his neighbour, and the neighbour, as it is quite clear also from the Gospel, is not the one whom we like, whom we love, who is close to us, it is whoever needs us. Ask yourself this question. There are number of people around you who would believe, who would gladly start a new life, who would bless you and God for giving them courage to move not physical but spiritual limbs that are tied. And let us ask ourselves, what do we do, what have we done, what are we capable of doing to help them? The waters of Siloam are an image of God, of His healing power. When God comes close, when we become aware that He is there, near, do we look around to see who needs Him more than we do? No. We rush forward, we want to be those who will sit at His feet, we are those who wish to touch the hem of His garment and be healed, we are those - and this is even worse, - we are those who wish to be seen as His disciples and companions so that people may look at us and wonder, admire us, at times almost worship us, the companions of Jesus, the friends of God become man. Who of us is prepared to step aside, to become inconspicuous, or rather to help another to step forward instead of us when we know that we will be the loosers in a way, - in a way only because if we do this, we will have lost what is thought we coveted but we will have become disciples of Christ who gave His life that others may live.
Let us reflect on the story. It is not simply an old story about things that happened about two thousand years ago, it is something that is happening every day and we are those who rush forward and prevent others from merging themselves into the healing waters of Siloam. Let us listen to St. John the Divine, the teacher of true love, let us be ready to sacrifice all we long for, all we desire for someone else to have it, to be given it by God, let us be prepared to pay the price of other people’s finding freedom, life on all levels, even on the simplest level of food and shelter and the warmth of an attentive gaze or a loving, sober word. Let us become free of selves, and then how many will be saved, saved from hunger, from homelessness, saved from the dominion of others, saved from all that is fetters and imprisonment of life. Let us become what Christ was - the One that sets free in the name of truth and of life. Amen.

The Back Page

Parish Shared Folder (for all documents, bulletins etc) - http://bit.ly/St-Alexis

The QR Code here may be used as well.

Parish Web Site - http://www.stalexischurch.org ; calendar (https://bit.ly/StA-Calendar)

Facebook - @stalexisorthodox

Youtube Channel - https://bit.ly/StA_Youtube

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Resources for learning more about St Alexis

https://www.oca.org/reflections/misc-authors/saint-alexis-toth-and-the-return-to-orthodoxy-of-the-uniates-in-north-america

https://www.oca.org/news/headline-news/saint-alexis-confessor-and-defender-of-orthodoxy-in-america

The Life of St. Alexis Toth
Liturgical Music Downloads
Icon of St. Alexis with scenes from his life
Life icon of St. Alexis scenes explained
Photos of the Glorification of St. Alexis
Photos of the birthplace of St. Alexis

https://orthochristian.com/86813.html

https://www.stmarysoca.org/stalexis/index.html

https://sttikhonsmonastery.org/st_alexis_wilkes_barre1