There are few things more vital to our lives than our homes. In so many ways, our homes are the center of our lives. The Church even has a name that expresses the centrality of our homes to our spiritual lives: "to kat' oikon ekklesian" (which means the church of the home and our homes should be a living icon of His Church, with Christ as the head).

By blessing our home, we make it "sacred space" consecrated for God, where we live in communion with our families. We work, we talk, we share meals, we work out problems, we order our lives, we work out our marriages, and we pray together. There is no more important place to pronounce for the Kingdom of God than our homes. Thus, we affirm that God rules in this house! 

The sanctification of the home takes place with prayer and the sprinkling of holy water.  The water sprinkled is a visible sign of the invisible grace of God. The Holy Water is a visible sign that, through His Incarnation, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, lived among us, is present among us, and acts in our lives every day.

When the priest comes, the whole family should be present in the house and should gather around an icon on a table with a small bowl of water, and candle. They should, if they are able to join in, say the Trisagion Prayers and sing of the apolytikon of the Feast of Epiphany. The priest leads prayers for those who live in and who visit the home. Then a family member leads the priest throughout the house as he sprinkles the holy water room by room. When they have gone through the entire house, the family gathers again around the table and the priest blesses each person present. The priest offers a final prayer and asks God to abide in the house, to rid it of every evil and to fill if with every blessing.

THE TRIODION begins on February 9th.

Saturday of the Souls is on Saturday, February 22nd.

Great Lent begins on Monday, March 3rd.

It is traditional to have our homes blessed each year on the occassion of the Feast of the Theophania. Fr. Milton Gianulis is happy to come to your home if you desire. Please call his church study (757) 220-0994, leave a message, and he will return your call as soon as possible.

There will also be holy water bottles available for take away on Sunday.

The annual cutting of the Vasilopita will be held following the Divine Liturgy in the hall on Sunday, January 12th. This is a beautiful, time-honored tradition of the Church in honor of the great philanthropist, Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesaria. It is hosted by the Philptochos Society. All proceeds from the Vasilopita support Saint Basil's Academy and youth and young adult programs throughout the Archdiocese and in all Metropolises.

The 2025 Stewardship Pledge Cards are now available in the anteroom at church. Filling out the card helps us update our records and will be crucial in securing financing when needed from lenders. It is also and most importantly, our Christian responsibility to be stewards of God's House. Thank you.

We are in need of volunteers to help in various areas of the church life. If you have expertise or a willingness to lend a hand, we could use your assistance with the following:

• Youth Work (JOY advisor; GOYA advisor)
• Greek Dance Instuctor
• Web Page Managment
• Photographer/Historian
• Gardening and Lawn Care
• Kitchen Assistance (cooking, cleaning, etc.)

Contact the church office or Fr. Milton if you are willing and able to help.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2025, AT 4:00 PM AT THE ANNUNCIATION GREEK ORTHODOX CATHEDRAL IN NORFOLK, VIRGINIA. The program will include students of the area Greek Schools as they narrate various poems, sing songs, and Greek dance with great pride. Please know that all the Greek Schools of the Southern Virginia Region are invited to participate in this wonderful event. Those wishing to attend please R.S.V.P. by contacting the Cathedral office at 757-440-0500 no later than Friday, January 24.

We appreciate all those who attended and those who made their special chilis to share. Through your support, we raised $790.51 to be contributed to the "roof fund". This was in part due to the donation of all the expenses or $385.01 from the Legion membership. God bless you all.

10% OFF on all Christmas decorations only for the next two weeks.

The College of William and Mary Orthodox Christian Fellowship, with the support of the Hampton Roads Orthodox Clergy, will host their annual pre-Lenten regional retreat. The venue will be a mix of St. Demetrios and W&M Wren Building. All students from throughout Virginia and beyond are welcome to attend this event. The retreat leader will be Fr. Christian Siskos (Holy Trinity Cathedral, Charlotte, NC). The dates are Friday, Feb. 21 through Sunday, Feb. 23.  More information will follow in next week's e-bulletin.

A former member of our Greek American community of Hampton Roads is still in need of a stem cell transplant. I have extra registration kits available for anyone who would like to join. To join the registry, all that is required is a short health survey and a cheek swab. Join the Registry | NMDP (Formerly Be The Match) Only persons between 18- 40 years old are eligible. Please contact me, Elaine Jansen at 757 810-5206 or [email protected] with any questions and to sign up. Thank you! 

Updates on Orthodox Church news items can be found on our Facebook page. We thank Presbytera for monitoring and administering the page.

Also, check out our St. Demetrios website.

Lift up in prayer:

Peter and Beverly Daikos

Demetria Emmanouil

Stavroula Gailey

Sonny Halioris

Jennifer Mary Hotz

Athanasia Jouvanis

Jim Kokolis

Nancy Marakos

Chris Marker

John and Connie Pavlides

Nick Vlahakis

Nick Vlattas