Sunday August 10^th , 9^th Sunday of Matthew

SERVICES THIS WEEK:

Wednesday, August 13 – PARAKLESIS SERVICE, 6:30 pm Saints Constantine and Helen, Westland

Thursday, August 14 – GREAT VESPERS, DORMITION OF THE THEOTOKOS,

Assumption Church, St. Clair Shores - 7:00 pm

Assumption Church, Grand Blanc – 6:00 pm

Friday, August 15 – DORMITION OF THE THEOTOKOS, Orthros 8:45 am,

Divine Liturgy 10:00 am

Saints Constantine and Helen, Westland

VIDEO ARCHIVE:  Previously recorded Sunday Divine Liturgy services are archived and available on our website! Go to https://www.stcons.org/video-streaming and you can click on the service you would like to view. 

LIGHT A CANDLE AND SAY A PRAYER:  When you are not able to attend church, you can purchase a candle from our church website (home page or video-streaming page), which will be lit before the following service or a service that you specify.  Please give specific names, living or deceased, that you would like Father to remember in prayer. Father will light candles one hour before each service. For Sunday services, please place candle orders prior to 8:00 am Sunday morning.

PLEASE PRAY FOR:   Alexsa and child, Frank, Pamela, Michele, Fania, Diana, George, Theodore, Anastasia, Constantinos, Phyllis, Joe, Dina, Pamela, Mia, Michael, Tracy, Anna, Sue, Nicole, Amalia, Nydia, Ann, John, Janek, Frank, George, Patrick, Joanne, Betty, Deana, Gloria, Jeannette, Michael, Niko, Maria, Sevasti, Mariam, George, Gene, Pete, Lazaros, John, Christopher, George, David, Marcos, Lela, Dawn, Panagioti, Joanna, Suzanne, Nick, Fotini, Niki, George, Matthew, Stefanos, Georgia, Leonidas, Gus, Connie, Maria, Brenda, Panagiota, Nicholas, Vicki, Susan, Tom, Thomas, Jim, Gloria, Evans, Phyllis, Marti, Janet, John, Zacharias, Vanessa (Vasiliki), Jake, Maegan, Irene, Lisa, Pat, Jonathan, Tracy, Dianna, Betty, Catherine, Evelyn, Gregg, Peter, Angela, Bill, Carrie, Vito, Stephanie, Lisa, Kylie, Nicholas, and Maria.  If you would like to add a name to the prayer list, or if there is a name that should be removed from the prayer list, please contact the church office.

EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES:

PHILOPTOCHOS GENERAL MEETING:  There will be a General Meeting of the St. Helen Philoptochos after church TODAY, Sunday August 10^th.  All members of Philoptochos are asked to attend.  We will be discussing upcoming events and activities

GOLF OUTING:  Our Men’s Group will be holding a 9-hole Golf Scramble on Sunday, August 17^th to raise funds for their “Feed the Needy” program and other activities. They are currently looking for hole sponsors and volunteers to assist with the event, along with golfers who wish to participate.  Reach out to [email protected] to get involved.

SAVE THE DATES!  As you enjoy the last weeks of summer, please mark your calendars for these upcoming fall events and activities:

·         September 14 - Welcome Back Luncheon/ First Day of Sunday School

·         September 16 – TLC Luncheon

·         September 27 - Philoptochos Fall Fashion Show

·         November 9 - BASILE/”Putting on the Glitz” Event

NEWS AND NOTICES:

SUMMER SURVIVAL: Our Summer Survival Board is back in the church Narthex. Even though church attendance unfortunately decreases during the summer months, regular building and property maintenance, utilities, and other expenses continue. That is why, again this year, we are asking for your help by making an additional donation to our “Summer Survival” campaign. You can make a donation online at stcons.org or by cash or check at the church office (or by mail).  Your help will make a big difference! 

THE LIGHT OF THE SANCTUARY:  The Light of the Sanctuary Campaign, a community-wide effort to install elegant chandeliers. There are still two chandeliers to be sponsored. Here’s how you can help:

• Make a donation of any amount - every gift helps illuminate the house of God.
• Sponsor a chandelier in full, in your name or in honor/memory of a loved one. 

SCHOOL SUPPLY COLLECTION:  Join our St. Helen Philoptochos in collecting new school supplies to be donated to FOCUS Detroit for students and teachers at Detroit’s Commonwealth Academy.  All items must be new and in original packaging, and to the church by September 7^th.  Collection box is located outside the church office.

GREEK FESTIVALS: It’s Greek festival season!  Please attend these upcoming events and support our sister churches.

·         8/15-8/17- Assumption GreekFest 

·         8/22-8/24- Taste of Greece Festival @ Nativity

MEMORIAL SERVICES:  Please call the church office to schedule all memorials and coffee hour sponsorships at least two weeks in advance.  On the day of the service, please bring a list of family names you would like Father to remember in prayer. Koliva will be distributed at the coffee hour; if you wish to bring in paximadia, koulourakia, or other dry cookie it may also be distributed. Coffee Hour sponsorship is not required, however the church is grateful to those who wish to make a sponsorship donation of $200, and the HCC will set up a table with cloth and coffee, etc. for your family.

DID YOU KNOW: Worship on Sunday 

Did you know Orthodox Christians observe the Sabbath on Sunday — the Lord’s Day? 

In the book of Exodus, God commands His people to keep the Sabbath — Saturday — as a day of rest, because on the seventh day, God rested after creating the world (Exodus 31). This was a holy command for the people of Israel, shaping their entire rhythm of life.

But everything changed with Christ’s Resurrection. In the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 28), we read that “after the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week,” the women came to the tomb — and found it empty. Christ had risen. That first day of the week, Sunday, became “the Lord’s Day” (Κυριακή in Greek), the day of joy, of new creation and eternal life in the light of the Resurrection. 

The early Christians, including the Apostles, gradually shifted communal worship from Saturday evening into Sunday, celebrating the Holy Eucharist (the breaking of bread — what we now know as the Divine Liturgy) and gathering in the joy of the Resurrection.  The Didache, a first-century Christian text, tells believers to gather and give thanks on “the Lord’s Day.” By the second century, Saints like Ignatius of Antioch encouraged Christians to worship on Sunday, not the Sabbath. By the time of the First Ecumenical Council in 325, Sunday had become the central day of Christian worship. 

In Greek, we don’t call it “Sunday” but Kyriake (Κυριακή) — “the Lord’s Day.” We don’t rest because of the seventh day — we rejoice because Christ is risen. We worship the Risen Son of God, who fulfilled the Sabbath and gave us eternal rest in Him.

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America