Please see our online calendar for dates and times of Feast Day services.
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
Position Vacant- President
Sharon Hanson - Member at Large
Luba Martins - 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) 322-2906, 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.
Annual Meeting
The Annual Meeting will take place after Liturgy on Sunday, Nov 17th. All parishioners (members and catecumens) are expected to particpate. All relevent documents will be available via the cloud (the link to be provided) a week before the meeting. If you would like to propose a resolution for the parish to consider, it must be presented to me in writing, the week before the meeting.
The Outreach Committee would like to thank all who participated in our Ice Cream Social and contributed to Scoops for Troops. We were able to donate $1000 to Michael Ahern from the New Britain Parish, founder of Scoops for Troops, to help with his work aiding our wounded military. Thank you all for your generosity!
Steward Sunday 2024
To the Clergy, Monastics, and Faithful of the Orthodox Church in America,
My Beloved Children in the Lord,
Today, we in the Orthodox Church in America mark our annual Stewardship Sunday. In thanksgiving for all the benefits that we receive from the work of the departments of the Orthodox Church in America and its central administration, and for the sake of the ongoing missionary, liturgical, and educational work of the holy Church, the Holy Synod has designated this day as a day of support for the Stewards of the Orthodox Church in America, one of the primary sources of funding for our departments and their projects.
This designated day of stewardship very much fits the spirit of the present season. We are coming to the end of the harvest season in much of North America, and winter’s cold will soon be upon us. At this culmination of the harvest, it has long been traditional to offer thanks for God’s bounties with harvest fairs and festivals. Today, this custom continues: in Canada, the day of Thanksgiving is celebrated in October, and in the United States, we will celebrate Thanksgiving at the end of this month.
As we offer up thanks for material bounties during this autumn season, it is all the more appropriate that we also take time and thought to give thanks for God’s many spiritual benefits, which we receive through his Church. After all, natural autumn is but a prefiguration of that great harvest at the end of the age, when the angels will thresh and winnow the inhabitants of the earth like wheat. The righteous will be stored up in the barns of God’s eternal love, while the unrighteous, like harmful tares and worthless chaff, will be consigned to the everlasting flame of their own passionate desires and sinful inclinations (Mt. 3:12; Mt. 13:24–30, 36–43; Rev. 14:14–16).
Contemplating this great autumn of all mortal things, we recall the Lord’s exhortation to store up our own treasures, not in earthly barns, but in heaven (Mt. 6:19–21). Therefore, it is most appropriate, on this Sunday in November, that we give generously to the Stewards of the OCA. Donations to the Stewards of the OCA go to support mission planting grants, youth and young adult ministry, the Department of Pastoral Life, the Department of Liturgical Music and Translation with its gamut of free resources for parish use, expanding educational and catechetical resources, and more.
The holy Tradition enjoins us to combine our fasting with charitable giving, and, at this outset of the Nativity Fast, we are given the opportunity to combine charitable giving with a concrete expression of thanksgiving to God by offering our support to the Stewards of the OCA. I exhort all of you to consider giving generously in support of the many missions of our Church’s departments and in support of our common vision for the proclamation of the Gospel and the propagation of the holy Orthodox Christian faith in North America, unto the upbuilding of the everlasting kingdom of God and the salvation of many souls.
With gratitude for your generous support,
And with my primatial blessing and prayers,
Sincerely yours in Christ,
+TIKHON
Archbishop of Washington
Metropolitan of All America and Canada
Donations can be made at oca.org/donate
Memory Eternal on the anniversary of the repose of Mother (Saint) Olga Michael - Nov 8th
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;
Please let Fr. Steven know via email if you have more names for which to pray.
Today’s commemorated feasts and saints
5th Sunday of Luke
9:30AM Divine Liturgy
Joannicius the Great
6:00PM Red House Meeting
Galaktion & his wife Episteme, the Martyrs of Emesa
8:30AM Matins
Paul the Confessor, Patriarch of Constantinople
33 Martyrs of Melitene
8:30AM Matins
Repose of Mother Olga
Synaxis of the Archangel Michael & the other Bodiless Powers: Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Salaphiel, Jegudiel, & Barachiel
8:00AM Akathist to Holy Archangel Michael
8:30AM Akathist to Mother Olga
Nektarius the Wonderworker, Metropolitan of Pentapolis
St. Nectarious of Pentapolis
5:30PM Great Vespers
Blessing of Icon of St Olga
8th Sunday of Luke
9:30AM Divine Liturgy
Menas of Egypt
Saint Acepsimas, a bishop, Saint Joseph, a presbyter, and Saint Aeithalas, a deacon, suffered exceedingly cruel torments and martyrdom during the reign of Sapor II, King of Persia (325-379). See also April 17.
Saint Joannicius was born in Bithynia about the year 740. His father was named Myritrikes and his mother Anastaso. When he had reached maturity, he excelled in soldiery and was counted worthy of royal honours for his bravery. He had been brought up an iconoclast, but while yet a soldier, he was converted to Orthodoxy by a certain holy elder. He later forsook all things and departed for Mount Olympus, where he spent the remainder of his life in asceticism. Becoming great in virtue, he reposed in the Lord in the year 834, having lived some ninety-four years. To this Saint is ascribed the brief prayer, "My hope is the Father ...."
Saint Galaktion was from Emesa, the son of Cleitophon and Leucippe, pagans who had been instructed in piety by a certain Christian named Onuphrius and received holy Baptism. Saint Episteme, born of unbelieving parents, was baptized before she was wedded to Galaktion. After their marriage they remained in virginity and lived in separate monastic houses. Betrayed as Christians, they suffered martyrdom during the reign of Decius, about the year 250.
All the Angels, according to the Apostle Paul, are ministering spirits, - sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation - (Heb. 1:14). God set them as overseers of every nation and people, and guides to that which is profitable (Deut. 32:8); and while one Angel is appointed to oversee each nation as a whole, one is also appointed to protect each Christian individually. He commands them to guard them that hope on Him, that nothing should harm them, neither should any evil draw nigh to their dwelling (Ps. 90:10-12). In the Heavens they always behold the face of God, sending up to Him the thrice-holy hymn and interceding with Him in our behalf, seeing they rejoice over one sinner that repents (Esaias 6:2-3; Matt. 18:10; Luke 15:7). In a word, they have served God in so many ways for our benefit, that the pages of Holy Scripture are filled with the histories thereof. It is for these reasons that the Orthodox Catholic Church, wisely honouring these divine ministers, our protectors and guardians, celebrates today the present Synaxis that is, our coming together in assembly for their common feast to chant their praises, especially for the Archangels Michael and Gabriel, who are mentioned in the Scriptures by name. The name Michael means "Who is like God?" and Gabriel means "God is mighty." The number of Angels is not defined in the divine Scriptures, where Daniel says that thousands of thousands ministered before Him, and ten thousands of ten thousands attended upon Him -(Dan. 7:10). But all of them are divided into nine orders which are called Thrones, Cherubim, Seraphim, Dominions, Powers, Authorities, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels.
Saint Nektarius was born in Selyvria of Thrace on October 1, 1846. After putting himself through school in Constantinople with much hard labour, he became a monk on Chios in 1876, receiving the monastic name of Lazarus; because of his virtue, a year later he was ordained deacon, receiving the new name of Nektarius. Under the patronage of Patriarch Sophronius of Alexandria, Nektarius went to Athens to study in 1882; completing his theological studies in 1885, he went to Alexandria, where Patriarch Sophronius ordained him priest on March 23, 1886 in the Cathedral of Saint Sabbas, and in August of the same year, in the Church of Saint Nicholas in Cairo, made him Archimandrite. Archimandrite Nektarius showed much zeal both for preaching the word of God, and for the beauty of God's house. He greatly beautified the Church of Saint Nicholas in Cairo, and years later, when Nektarius was in Athens, Saint Nicholas appeared to him in a dream, embracing him and telling him he was going to exalt him very high.
On January 15, 1889, in the same Church of Saint Nicholas, Nektarius was consecrated Metropolitan of the Pentapolis in eastern Libya, which was under the jurisdiction of Alexandria. Although Nektarius' swift ascent through the degrees of ecclesiastical office did not affect his modesty and childlike innocence, it aroused the envy of lesser men, who convinced the elderly Sophronius that Nektarius had it in his heart to become Patriarch. Since the people loved Nektarius, the Patriarch was troubled by the slanders. On May 3, 1890, Sophronius relieved Metropolitan Nektarius of his duties; in July of the same year, he commanded Nektarius to leave Egypt.
Without seeking to avenge or even to defend himself, the innocent Metropolitan left for Athens, where he found that accusations of immorality had arrived before him. Because his good name had been soiled, he was unable to find a position worthy of a bishop, and in February of 1891 accepted the position of provincial preacher in Euboia; then, in 1894, he was appointed dean of the Rizarios Ecclesiastical School in Athens. Through his eloquent sermons his unwearying labours to educate fitting men for the priesthood, his generous alms deeds despite his own poverty, and the holiness, meekness, and fatherly love that were manifest in him, he became a shining light and a spiritual guide to many. At the request of certain pious women, in 1904 he began the building of his convent of the Holy Trinity on the island of Aegina while yet dean of the Rizarios School; finding later that his presence there was needed, he took up his residence on Aegina in 1908, where he spent the last years of his life, devoting himself to the direction of his convent and to very intense prayer; he was sometimes seen lifted above the ground while rapt in prayer. He became the protector of all Aegina, through his prayers delivering the island from drought, healing the sick, and casting out demons. Here also he endured wicked slanders with singular patience, forgiving his false accusers and not seeking to avenge himself. Although he had already worked wonders in life, an innumerable multitude of miracles have been wrought after his repose in 1920 through his holy relics, which for many years remained incorrupt. There is hardly a malady that has not been cured through his prayers; but Saint Nektarius is especially renowned for his healings of cancer for sufferers in all parts of the world.
Tone 2 Troparion (Resurrection)
When You descended to death, O Life Immortal,
You slew hell with the splendor of Your Godhead.
And when from the depths You raised the dead,
all the powers of heaven cried out://
“O Giver of life, Christ our God, glory to You!”
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 3 Troparion (Martyrs)
You were pillars of the Church, O servants of godliness,
and you humbled the proud worshippers of fire.
Much afflicted hierarch Aképsimas, Joseph the presbyter and Aethalas the deacon,
pray to ↑Christ our God//
to grant us His great mercy!
Tone 4 Troparion (St. George)
O liberator of captives, defender of the poor,
physician of the sick, and champion of kings,
trophy-bearer, great martyr George,
intercede with Christ God//
that our souls may be saved!
Tone 2 Kontakion (Resurrection)
Hell became afraid, O almighty Savior,
seeing the miracle of Your Resurrection from the tomb!
The dead arose! Creation, with Adam, beheld this and rejoiced with You,//
and the world, my Savior, praises You forever.
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 the sheep who had been led astray
and brought them by his preaching to the Heavenly Kingdom.
Tone 2 Kontakion (Martyrs)
You celebrated the mysteries blamelessly, O wise one,
and became yourself an acceptable sacrifice, O divinely blessed one.
You gloriously drank of the cup of Christ, Holy Akepsimas.//
Together with your fellow sufferers you are praying unceasingly to Christ God for us all.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
Tone 8 Kontakion (St. George)
As we the faithful flee to you for refuge and seek your protection and speedy help,
We entreat you, O Champion of Christ, that we who sing your praises may be delivered from the snares of the enemy
and from every peril and adversary,//
that we may cry: “Rejoice, O martyr George!”
now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Tone 6 Kontakion (Steadfast Protectress)
Steadfast Protectress of Christians,
Constant Advocate before the Creator;
despise not the entreating cries of us sinners,
but in your goodness come speedily to help us who call on you in faith.
Hasten to hear our petition and to intercede for us,
O Theotokos, for you always protect those who honor you!
COMMUNION HYMN
Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the highest!
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Prokeimenon. 2nd Tone. Psalm 117.14,18.
The Lord is my strength and my song.
Verse: The Lord has chastened me sorely.
The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 11:31-33; 12:1-9.
Brethren, the God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed for ever, knows that I do not lie. At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas guarded the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped his hands.
I must boast; there is nothing to be gained by it, but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven -- whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows. And I know that this man was caught up into Paradise --whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows -- and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter. On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. Though if I wish to boast, I shall not be a fool, for I shall be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me. And to keep me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I besought the Lord about this, that it should leave me; but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." I will all the more gladly boast of my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
THE GOSPEL READING
Luke 8:41-56
[Jairus’ Daughter Raised, A Woman Healed]
THE SERMON
Twelve years tells the story of two daughters: a child, and an adult. Both daughters encounter Jesus and come back to life as they are touched by Christ, who is the Giver of life. The child is the daughter of Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, which means he was not a priest but the administrator of the local Jewish congregation. He was not yet a follower of Jesus, but undoubtedly, he had heard of Jesus of Nazareth, anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all because God was with Him.
The Jewish authorities who rejected Jesus were Jairus’ superiors and employers, so Jairus risked losing his position by coming to meet Jesus. However, Jairus’ daughter was sick and dying, and so in desperation, Jairus overcomes his fear and seeks the compassion and power of Christ. Because of his love for his daughter, he was not afraid of the repercussions this might have had. Jairus comes to Jesus, falls at His feet, and begs Him for help.
The hope of having his daughter healed, his only daughter (in Greek: μονογενής, the same word used for the Only Begotten Son of God), was worth all things. Jairus’ pain provided an opportunity for great faith in a time of desperation. He believed Jesus could save his daughter, and the Son of God rewarded his faith. Jesus recognizes his faith and has compassion on him. He responds to this plea for help and starts making his way to Jairus’ home.
On the other side of this story, there is another daughter of God. Like Jairus’ young daughter, this older daughter remains nameless. Yet, twelve years prior, about the same time when Jairus’ daughter was born, this woman became ill in a way that made her ceremonially unclean. According to Jewish law, she was unable to worship in the temple. She began to die slowly, while at the same time, Jairus’ child was growing. Twelve years later, the physicians could save neither the child nor the woman. We are told that for twelve years, the woman had spent all her living upon physicians and could not be healed by anyone.
Meanwhile, Jairus did not consider the repercussions and took a leap of faith to reach out to Jesus, hoping to save his daughter’s life. At the same time, this woman does the same. She boldly takes a leap of faith and reaches out to Jesus, touching the hem of His garment because of her great faith in a time of desperation. The Lord notices great faith and responds in a personal and compassionate way. He stops to attend to the one who placed all her faith and hope in Him. And says, “Who was it that touched me?” He asked not because he did not know but to honor her faith.
The Apostle Peter said, Master, everyone is touching You. There is a crowd pressing on You as You walk. But Jesus said, someone special, with great faith, touched Me. This was not a mere rubbing of shoulders with the multitude, but someone who believed in Him for eternal life and placed all her hopes in Him. Jesus instantaneously heals her the minute she touches Him because of her faith. “I perceive that power has gone forth from me,” the Lord says. And when the embarrassed woman realized God the Son was speaking about her, she came trembling and fell before Him. The Lord calls her His daughter and says, “Your faith has made you well; go in peace.” Because of His great love and her great faith, the Lord Jesus heals her completely. Saint Ephraim the Syrian says, “Faith is the means by which anyone now may enter the family of Jesus, and peace is the crown of victory she receives because of her faith.” An ancient hymn of the Church says, “Then a woman, weak and timid, touched his sacred garment’s hem: instant was his blessed healing, and the pallor left her cheek, as the hemorrhage she had suffered through so many years was stopped.”
At the same time that Jesus heals the woman, messengers come to Jairus with the word that his daughter has died. The roles of the two daughters are now reversed. When that child was born, the woman began to die. Now, the child died when the woman began to live again. Jairus was there with Jesus and witnessed the healing of the woman, but the messengers tell him that his daughter is dead and not to trouble Jesus anymore.
However, Jairus also had the same faith that the woman had in the face of hopelessness, and he wanted Jesus to still go with him. “Do not fear,” Jesus said, “only believe, and she shall be well.” In Greek, the text literally says, “only believe and she will be saved.” This means that not only will her body be well, but she will be saved as a whole: body, mind, and soul. It shows us how faith can save us, help us to follow Christ and the Gospel, and enter into union with God in His Kingdom, even in this life.
The entire passage presents two daughters, two sicknesses, and two resurrections. All is made well by the unwavering faith resulting in new life. Faith is the opposite of fear. “Do not fear,” Jesus said. The Lord said that many times in the Gospels to His beloved ones. Such as, when the disciples were in a storm, afraid they were going to sink, they saw Jesus walking on water toward them in the middle of the night and thought it was a ghost. Immediately, Jesus spoke to them and told them not to be afraid because He was with them.
Also, when Jesus was transfigured before His disciples, they fell to the ground, covering their faces. Jesus came and touched them, telling them not to be afraid. When Jesus appeared to his disciples, risen from the dead, they took hold of His feet and worshiped him, and He told them not to be afraid. The presence of the Lord takes away fear, because He is the Son of God who loves us, and who can do all things. Out of faith, the woman with the flow of blood overcame her fear and touched His garment. Jesus healed her. Now Jesus tells Jairus not to fear. Therefore, with faith, Jairus accompanied Jesus to the house, and the Lord came to the child. In Christ, death is defeated, because He destroyed death by death. In Christ, death is like momentary sleeping. As the woman had touched Jesus, now Jesus touches the child, takes her by the hand, and says, “Child, arise!” When the Son of God, speaks, life overcomes death. Immediately, the child’s spirit returned, and she rose from the dead.
The child became a type of Christ, risen from the dead, as the woman with the flow of blood also became a type of humanity, wounded after the Fall and restored by Jesus. Both daughters were saved by faith — one, by her own faith, the other, by the prayers and faith of another, that is, her father. We are also the sons and daughters of Christ, who, by our faith, and by the faith and prayers of the Saints in heaven and the prayers of the Church on earth, are touched by the Lord and restored to life.
Let us trust Christ without fear, even in the darkest moments of life. He calls us sons and daughters. Let us pray for one another as well as brothers and sisters. All it takes is for us not to be afraid but only believe in Him, Who rose from the dead. The Lord loves us and always responds to our cries for help, especially when we face the darkest of situations. As Christ shows us through Jairus’ daughter and the woman healed of a flow of blood, when we are in our darkest moment, an unimaginable resurrection is waiting around the corner. Trusting in God’s love, we can simply abandon ourselves in His arms.
Orthodox Burial Preparation Ministry
Stewards of the Orthodox Church in America Sunday, November 17th
Three Saints Orthodox Church
All Saints Orthodox Church