ATTENTION!

We thank you for your continued patience as we finalize the parking lot construction.
Our parking lot will be getting striped (painted) on Saturday, November 14th, and it's important to be mindful of this so that the paint can successfully dry. Additionally, we would like to avoid having incidents involving wet paint damaging cars, etc.
Please respect any areas that have cones in the parking lot - do not move them to park somewhere that has been blocked off. 
Once again, we appreciate your cooperation during this project that will improve our church and better serve our community!  

SUNDAY, 11/15

 @8:15aM Orthros & @9:30aM Divine Liturgy
+8th Sunday of Luke 

 Divine Services

Monday, 11/16 @8:00am Orthros & @9:00am Divine Liturgy:
+St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist

Saturday, 11/21 @8:00am Orthros & @9:00am Divine Liturgy:
+Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple

 LIVE OUR services HERE
Find OUr Written prayers and services HERE

Our General Assembly Meeting is TODAY
During Coffee Hour!
Please attend join us in the Social Hall as we discuss important topics and ratify our by-laws!

Greek Dance Lessons (ages 5-11) are today after Sunday School in the gym.
Please register your child(ren) if you haven't done so already.

The GOYA Basketball Friendly is today versus Westfield at 2pm

There is still time to donate to the Philoptochos Food Drive
in support of the Interfaith Pantry!
Please drop off your items no later than November 20th in the downstairs lobby.
We also accept perishable items, particularly hams, turkeys, potatoes and oranges. Be sure to let the office know you're bringing perishables into the church.
THANK YOU for your generosity!

I AM Hope NJ's Masquerade Tricky Tray is Friday, Nov. 20th at 6:00pm
at the Meadow Wood in Randolph. Proceeds benefit programs that help end the cycle of poverty for women and children throughout New Jersey.
Contact: IAMHOPENJ.ORG | 973-865-4852

Join us on Saturday, November 21st, at 10:30am to CLEAN OUR CHURCH!
After we prepare the church for Saint Andrew Day, Fr. John will share a special
religious lesson on the Sacraments and Sacramental items.
This is a great experience for all of our children!

Hope & Joy Οuting at Adrenova Park (Succasunna, NJ):
Sunday, Nov. 22nd, from 2:30pm to 4:30pm

Please come to church on Sunday, November 29th, for Divine Liturgy and Great Vespers as we welcome Metropolitan Athenagoras of NJ during his Archpastoral visit in honor of Saint Andrew Day!

Coffee hour is hosted by the Daughters of Penelope
Bagels donated by ALFA BAGELS Route 10 in Randolph 
Coffee donated by Aristotle Leontopoulos of Coffee Associates, Edgewater

LORD'S VOICE NOVEMBER 15, 2026

THE SUNDAY GOSPEL (Luke 10:25-37)
The person of the neighbor

At that time, a lawyer stood up to put Jesus to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read?" And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have answered right; do this, and you will live." But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and when he saw him, he had compassion, and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed mercy on him." And Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

ON THE MEANING OF THE NEIGHBOR
"And who is my neighbor?" This question, which the Jewish teacher of the law put to the Lord, as today's Gospel passage informs us, gives us the opportunity to interpret scripturally the meaning of the neighbor and to attempt to understand its theological content. The teacher of the law in question acknowledges that, as stated in the Mosaic Law, eternal life is inherited through love for God and for one's neighbor. How, however, did this man understand the meaning of the neighbor? Within the prevailing theological atmosphere of his time, there existed various opinions regarding its significance and, consequently, concerning the limits of the love that the Law required toward one's neighbor.
For example, the religious party of the Pharisees, who usually observed the Law in a formal and outwardly exact manner, did not include within the concept of the neighbor those people who were regarded as sinners. This is why they accused Christ, who treated sinners with sympathy, understanding, and love. Furthermore, the ascetic group of the Essenes, who lived in communal settlements near the Dead Sea, restricted the giving of love to the members of their own community. And, in general, the Jews limited the concept of the neighbor to those people with whom they were connected by ties of kinship, tribe, religion, or nationality.

The new meaning of the neighbor
Christ radically transforms the meaning of the neighbor and gives it its true dimensions. For this reason, He recounts to the teacher of the law the parable, well known to us all, of the Good Samaritan. The neighbor is not someone outside ourselves; rather, we ourselves become neighbors to others through our attitude and way of life. The teacher of the law’s question, “And who is my neighbor?”, focuses one-sidedly on the object of neighborliness, that is, on identifying who the neighbor is: Is he a compatriot or a foreigner? A friend or an enemy? Someone known or someone unknown? The Lord, however, places this question on an entirely new foundation, overturning what had previously been accepted. For His concern is not who the neighbor is, but rather who is the one who acts as a neighbor in coming to the aid of a fellow man.
For Christ, it is taken for granted that the neighbor, every wounded, wronged, and half-dead person, is unconditionally worthy of love and beneficence on the part of his fellow man, namely, the one who becomes the subject and bearer of neighborly love. Thus, the example held before us is that of the compassionate Samaritan, whose love is selfless, unconditional, and without limits. The merciful Samaritan, of course, is an image of the Lord Jesus Himself.

The Crucified Love
When a person, illumined by God, comes to realize that the model of his love for his neighbor is the infinite love of Christ upon the Cross, a love that cannot be explained or comprehended by human standards, then the boundaries of neighborly love become limitless. Our neighbor may be hostile toward us, may wrong us, afflict us, and wound us, just as those who crucified the Lord wounded Him. Yet whoever restricts his love only to those who love him acts merely in a human way. But whoever knows no such barriers imitates the God of love, who is, in the highest sense, our Neighbor.

Our salvation depends on our neighbor
The Professor of the Desert, Saint Anthony the Great, used to say the following remarkable words: “Upon our neighbor depend both our life and our death. If we gain our brother through love, it means that we have gained God Himself. But if we grieve him, then ‘we sin against Christ’; that is, we grieve the Lord and sin before Him.”
Besides, from the holy Gospel we learn that it does not belong to man to decide who is his neighbor, for our love must be manifested in deeds toward every person whom God places in our path. For this reason, Saint John Chrysostom points out:
“If you love one person because you regard him as your neighbor, but do not love another, then your love does not possess the characteristic of love according to God. But our love is not of such a kind; our Christian love is not so narrow-hearted.” May God grant to all of us a widening of love and a heart full of compassion toward our neighbor, upon whom, as has been said, our life and our death depend.

Archimandrite N. K.

Coffee Hour Hosts In November: 11/15 DOP, 11/22 GOYA, 11/29 Philoptochos*
(December: 12/6 PTA, 12/13 Parish Council*)         *=Please note change 

Monday 11/16 @8:00am +Orthros & @9:00am Divine Liturgy +St. Matthew the Apostle & Evangelist

Tuesday 11/17
@7:00pm GOYA Volleyball Practice

Wednesday 11/18
@11:00am Morning Knitting & Crocheting Group
@11:00am Little Angels Playgroup (in Gym)
@6:30pm Evening Knitting & Crocheting Group
@6:30pm GOYA Basketball Practice

Thursday 11/19
@11:30am Agape Luncheon
@7:00pm Bible Study
@7:30pm GOYA Dance Practice        

Friday 11/20
@6:00pm I AM Hope NJ Masquerade Tricky Tray – Meadow Wood in Randolph

Saturday 11/21 @8:00am +Orthros & @9:00am Divine Liturgy +Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple
@10:30am Church Cleaning and Sacraments Lesson

Sunday 11/22 @8:15am +Orthros & @9:30am Divine Liturgy +9^th Sunday of Luke         
Memorial: +Evagelia Kalavrouziotis
Memorial: +Sylvia Kalamaras
Memorial: +Nikolaos Staikos
-after Sunday School-GOYA Meeting
-after Sunday School-Greek Dance Lessons (Gym)
@2:00pm GOYA Volleyball & Basketball Games vs Wyckoff

Tuesday 11/24
@7:00pm Philoptochos Meeting
@7:00pm GOYA Volleyball Practice

Wednesday 11/25 @8:00am +Orthros & @9:00am Divine Liturgy +St. Katherine the Great Martyr,
@5:00pm +Thanksgiving Divine Liturgy | +St. Stylianos
No GOYA Basketball Practice

Prayer for a Sick Person:

Heavenly Father, physician of our souls and bodies, who have sent Your only-begotten Son and our Lord Jesus Christ to heal every sickness and infirmity, visit and heal (me) Your servant from all physical and spiritual ailments through the grace of Your Christ. Grant (me) patience in this sickness, strength of body and spirit, and recovery of health.  Lord, You have taught us through Your word to pray for each other that we may be healed.  I pray that You heal (me) as Your servant and grant (me) the gift of complete health. For You are the source of healing and to You I give glory, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen

Please keep these names in your prayers

Eleana, Ryan, Irene, Sotiria, Franco, George, Ioannis, Amanda, Dimitra, Eleni, Dustin, Sarah, Janet, Dimitri, Areti, Effie, Alexander, Ioannis, Irene, Lauren, Eleni, Dorothy, Carolyn, Ava Michelle, Demetrios, Eleftherios, Stelios, Sofia, Constantinos, Stamatina, Alexander, Alexandra, Constantinos, Christos, Maria, Henny, Theodora, Photini, Robert, Eleni, Ioannis, Margarita, Anna, Nicholas, MaryJane, George, Vasilios, Photeine, Chrissy, David, George, Maria, George, Gladys John, Gregory, Barbara, Helen, Michelle, Ennette, Eleni, Mary, Andreas, Sofia, Joseph, Catrina, Patricia, Erica, Maria, Angeliki, Maria, Dimitrios, Irene, Reta, Eleni, Maria, Kyriaki, Martin, Maria.

If you would like us to remember you or your loved one in our prayers, please contact the office. 973-584-0388 or send us an email to [email protected]    

Names will be kept on this list for approximately three months. Please resubmit Names if needed.   Fr. John will pray for the Names above during the PROSKOMIDI “Offering of gifts” during the first part of the Divine Liturgy when our priest prepares the mystical gifts of bread and wine. Please keep these names in your prayers as well.