St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2025-07-27
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St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church

General Information

  • Phone:
  • (772) 464-7194
  • Fax:
  • (772) 464-5595
  • Street Address:

  • 2525 South 25th Street

  • Fort Pierce, FL 34981


Contact Information






Services Schedule

Orthros 9:00 a.m.

Divine Liturgy 10:00 a.m.


Past Bulletins


Christ is in our midst! He is and ever shall be!

Welcome!

 Join us for Orthodox Divine Liturgy every Sunday at 10:00 a.m.

 Our services are streamed live on the internet
at our Saint Nicholas website
https://stnicholasfp.com/
and on our Facebook page

Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church - Home | Facebook

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This Week and Upcoming Events

This Week: 

Sunday, July 27         7th Sunday of Matthew, Panteleimon the Great Martyr
                                     Matins 8:45 am, Divine Liturgy 10:00 am
                                  GraceWay Village cooking after the Liturgy

Monday, July 28        Discover Orthodoxy, 6:30 pm

Friday, August 1        The Dormition Fast Begins (through August 14th)

 

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Our mission is to proclaim the Gospel of Christ, to teach and spread the Orthodox Christian faith, to energize, cultivate and guide the life of the Church according to the Orthodox Christian faith and Sacred Tradition.  The Church serves as a beacon, carrier and witness of the message of Christ to all persons in the community, through Divine Worship, preaching, teaching and living the Orthodox faith.

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Hymns of the Day

Resurrectional Apolytikion in the Plagal Second Tone

When the angelic powers appeared at your tomb, and those who guarded You became as though dead, and standing by Your sepulchre was Mary seeking Your pure and sacred body. For You did vanquish Hades and uncorrupted by its touch You came unto the virgin woman, bestowing the gift of life. O You who rose from the dead — Lord we give glory to You.
Ἀγγελικαὶ Δυνάμεις ἐπὶ τὸ μνῆμά σου, καὶ οἱ φυλάσσοντες ἀπενεκρώθησαν, καὶ ἵστατο Μαρία ἐν τῷ τάφῳ, ζητοῦσα τὸ ἄχραντόν σου σῶμα. Ἐσκύλευσας τὸν ᾍδην, μὴ πειρασθεὶς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ, ὑπήντησας τῇ Παρθένῳ, δωρούμενος τὴν ζωήν, ὁ ἀναστὰς ἐκ των νεκρῶν, Κύριε δόξα σοι.

Apolytikion for Great Martyr Panteleimon in the Third Tone

Holy medaled Martyr and healer St. Panteleimon, make intercession to our merciful God, that He grant our souls remission of offenses.
Αθλοφόρε άγιε, καί ιαματικέ Παντελεήμον, πρέσβευε τώ ελεήμονι Θεώ, ίνα πταισμάτων άφεσιν, παράσχη ταίς ψυχαίς ημών.

Seasonal Kontakion in the Grave Tone

Upon the mountain were You transfigured, and Your disciples beheld Your glory as far as they were able, O Christ our God; so that when they would see You crucified they might understand that Your Passion was deliberate, and declare to the world that in truth You are the Father’s radiance.
Επί τού όρους μετεμορφώθης, καί ως εχώρουν οι Μαθηταί σου τήν δόξαν σου, Χριστέ ο Θεός εθεάσαντο, ίνα όταν σε ίδωσι σταυρούμενον, τό μέν πάθος νοήσωσιν εκούσιον, τώ δέ κόσμω κηρύξωσιν, ότι σύ υπάρχεις αληθώς, τού Πατρός τό απαύγασμα.
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Gospel and Epistle Readings

Matins Gospel Reading

Seventh Orthros Gospel
Κατὰ Ἰωάννην 20:1-10

Τῇ μιᾷ τῶν Σαββάτων Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ ἔρχεται πρωῒ σκοτίας ἔτι οὔσης, εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον· καὶ βλέπει τὸν λίθον ἠρμένον ἐκ τοῦ μνημείου. Τρέχει οὖν, καὶ ἔρχεται πρὸς Σίμωνα Πέτρον, καὶ πρὸς τὸν ἄλλον μαθητήν, ὃν ἐφίλει ὁ Ἰησοῦς, καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· ᾞραν τὸν Κύριον ἐκ τοῦ μνημείου, καὶ οὐκ οἴδαμεν ποῦ ἔθηκαν αὐτόν. Ἐξῆλθεν οὖν ὁ Πέτρος καὶ ὁ ἄλλος μαθητής, καὶ ἤρχοντο εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον. Ἔτρεχον δὲ οἱ δύο ὁμοῦ· καὶ ὁ ἄλλος μαθητὴς προέδραμε τάχιον τοῦ Πέτρου, καὶ ἦλθε πρῶτος εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον, καὶ παρακύψας, βλέπει κείμενα τὰ ὀθόνια· οὐ μέντοι εἰσῆλθεν. Ἔρχεται οὖν Σίμων Πέτρος ἀκολουθῶν αὐτῷ, καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον, καὶ θεωρεῖ τὰ ὀθόνια κείμενα· καὶ τὸ σουδάριον, ὃ ἦν ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ, οὐ μετὰ τῶν ὀθονίων κείμενον, ἀλλὰ χωρὶς ἐντετυλιγμένον εἰς ἕνα τόπον. Τότε οὖν εἰσῆλθε καὶ ὁ ἄλλος μαθητὴς ὁ ἐλθὼν πρῶτος εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον, καὶ εἶδε, καὶ ἐπίστευσεν. Οὐδέπω γὰρ ᾔδεισαν τὴν Γραφήν, ὅτι δεῖ αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἀναστῆναι. Ἀπῆλθον οὖν πάλιν πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς οἱ μαθηταί.

Seventh Orthros Gospel
The Reading is from John 20:1-10

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran, and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him." Peter then came out with the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first; and stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; he saw the linen cloths lying and the napkin, which had been on His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not know the scripture, that He must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes.


Epistle Reading

Προκείμενον. Grave Tone. ΨΑΛΜΟΙ 63.11,1.
Εὐφρανθήσεται δίκαιος ἐν Κυρίῳ.
Στίχ. Εἰσάκουσον, ὁ Θεός, τῆς φωνῆς μου.

τὸ Ἀνάγνωσμα Πρὸς Τιμόθεον β' 2:1-10.

Τέκνον Τιμόθεε, ἐνδυναμοῦ ἐν τῇ χάριτι τῇ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ. Καὶ ἃ ἤκουσας παρʼ ἐμοῦ διὰ πολλῶν μαρτύρων, ταῦτα παράθου πιστοῖς ἀνθρώποις, οἵτινες ἱκανοὶ ἔσονται καὶ ἑτέρους διδάξαι. Σὺ οὖν κακοπάθησον ὡς καλὸς στρατιώτης Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ. Οὐδεὶς στρατευόμενος ἐμπλέκεται ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγματείαις, ἵνα τῷ στρατολογήσαντι ἀρέσῃ. Ἐὰν δὲ καὶ ἀθλῇ τις, οὐ στεφανοῦται ἐὰν μὴ νομίμως ἀθλήσῃ. Τὸν κοπιῶντα γεωργὸν δεῖ πρῶτον τῶν καρπῶν μεταλαμβάνειν. Νόει ἃ λέγω· δῴη γάρ σοι ὁ κύριος σύνεσιν ἐν πᾶσιν. Μνημόνευε Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν ἐγηγερμένον ἐκ νεκρῶν, ἐκ σπέρματος Δαυίδ, κατὰ τὸ εὐαγγέλιόν μου· ἐν ᾧ κακοπαθῶ μέχρι δεσμῶν, ὡς κακοῦργος· ἀλλʼ ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ οὐ δέδεται. Διὰ τοῦτο πάντα ὑπομένω διὰ τοὺς ἐκλεκτούς, ἵνα καὶ αὐτοὶ σωτηρίας τύχωσιν τῆς ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ, μετὰ δόξης αἰωνίου.

Prokeimenon. Grave Tone. Psalm 63.11,1.
The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord.
Verse: Oh God, hear my cry.

The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to Timothy 2:1-10.

Timothy, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier on service gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to satisfy the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hardworking farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. Think over what I say, for the Lord will grant you understanding in everything.

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descended from David, as preached in my gospel, the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing fetters like a criminal. But the word of God is not fettered. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain salvation in Christ Jesus with its eternal glory.


Gospel Reading

7th Sunday of Matthew
Κατὰ Ματθαῖον 9:27-35

Τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ, παράγοντι ἐκεῖθεν τῷ ᾿Ιησοῦ ἠκολούθησαν αὐτῷ δύο τυφλοὶ κράζοντες καὶ λέγοντες· ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς, υἱὲ Δαυΐδ. ἐλθόντι δὲ εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν προσῆλθον αὐτῷ οἱ τυφλοί, καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς ὁ ᾿Ιησοῦς· πιστεύετε ὅτι δύναμαι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι; λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· ναί, Κύριε. τότε ἥψατο τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν λέγων· κατὰ τὴν πίστιν ὑμῶν γενηθήτω ὑμῖν. καὶ ἀνεῴχθησαν αὐτῶν οἱ ὀφθαλμοί· καὶ ἐνεβριμήσατο αὐτοῖς ὁ ᾿Ιησοῦς λέγων· ὁρᾶτε μηδεὶς γινωσκέτω. οἱ δὲ ἐξελθόντες διεφήμισαν αὐτὸν ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ γῇ ἐκείνῃ.

Αὐτῶν δὲ ἐξερχομένων ἰδοὺ προσήνεγκαν αὐτῷ ἄνθρωπον κωφὸν δαιμονιζόμενον· καὶ ἐκβληθέντος τοῦ δαιμονίου ἐλάλησεν ὁ κωφός, καὶ ἐθαύμασαν οἱ ὄχλοι λέγοντες ὅτι οὐδέποτε ἐφάνη οὕτως ἐν τῷ ᾿Ισραήλ. οἱ δὲ Φαρισαῖοι ἔλεγον· ἐν τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν δαιμονίων ἐκβάλλει τὰ δαιμόνια.

Καὶ περιῆγεν ὁ ᾿Ιησοῦς τὰς πόλεις πάσας καὶ τὰς κώμας διδάσκων ἐν ταῖς συναγωγαῖς αὐτῶν καὶ κηρύσσων τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς βασιλείας καὶ θεραπεύων πᾶσαν νόσον καὶ πᾶσαν μαλακίαν ἐν τῷ λαῷ.

7th Sunday of Matthew
The Reading is from Matthew 9:27-35

At that time, as Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, "Have mercy on us, Son of David." When he entered the house, the blind men came to him; and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord." Then he touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith be it done to you." And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly charged them, "See that no one knows it." But they went away and spread his fame through all that district.

As they were going away, behold, a dumb demoniac was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the dumb man spoke; and the crowds marveled, saying, "Never was anything like this seen in Israel." But the Pharisees said, "He casts out demons by the prince of demons."

And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.


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Memorials and Trisagions

Trisagion

8 years - AntonioTheodoropoulos
husband of Penny Theodoropoulos

 

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Wisdom of the Fathers

He puts an end to the woman's fear ... He sets her right, in respect of her thinking to be hid ... He exhibits her faith to all, so as to provoke the rest also to emulation ...
St. John Chrysostom
Homily 31 on Matthew 9, 4th Century

And then at last He for His part lays His hand upon them, saying, "According to your faith be it unto you." And this He does to confirm their faith, and to show that they are participators in the good work ...
St. John Chrysostom
Homily 32 on Matthew 9, 4th Century

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Saints and Feasts

July 27

7th Sunday of Matthew


July 27

Panteleimon the Great Martyr & Healer

This Saint, who had Nicomedia as his homeland, was the son of Eustorgius and Eubula. His father was an idolater, but his mother was a Christian from her ancestors. It was through her that he was instructed in piety, and still later, he was catechized in the Faith of Christ by Saint Hermolaus (see July 26) and baptized by him. Being proficient in the physician's vocation, he practiced it in a philanthropic manner, healing every illness more by the grace of Christ than by medicines. Thus, although his parents had named him Pantoleon ("in all things a lion"), because of the compassion he showed for the souls and bodies of all, he was worthily renamed Panteleimon, meaning "all-merciful." On one occasion, when he restored the sight of a certain blind man by calling on the Divine Name, he enlightened also the eyes of this man's soul to the knowledge of the truth. This also became the cause for the martyrdom of him who had been blind, since when he was asked by whom and in what manner his eyes had been opened, in imitation of that blind man of the Gospel he confessed with boldness both who the physician was and the manner of his healing. For this he was put to death immediately. Panteleimon was arrested also, and having endured many wounds, he was finally beheaded in the year 305, during the reign of Maximian. Saint Panteleimon is one of the Holy Unmercenaries, and is held in special honor among them, even as Saint George is among the Martyrs.


July 28

Prochoros, Nicanor, Timon, & Parmenas the Apostles of the 70

These Apostles of the Seventy are mentioned in Acts 6:5. Saint Prochoros became Bishop of Nicomedia and reposed in peace. Saint Nicanor was stoned to death in Jerusalem. Saint Timon became Bishop of Bostra in Arabia and ended his life in martyrdom by fire at the hands of the pagans. Saint Parmenas died in peace in Jerusalem.


July 28

Irene the Righteous of Chrysovalantou

Saint Irene, who was from Cappadocia, flourished in the ninth century. Because of her great beauty and virtue, she was brought to Constantinople as a prospective bride for the young Emperor Michael (842-867); however, as Saint Joannicius the Great foretold, it was God's will that she assume the monastic habit instead. She shone forth in great ascetical labours, and suffered many attacks from the demons; while yet a novice, she attained to the practice of Saint Arsenius the Great, of praying the whole night long with arms stretched out towards Heaven (see May 8). God showed forth great signs and wonders in her, and she became the Abbess of the Convent of Chrysovalantou. She was granted the gift of clairvoyance and knew the thoughts of all that came to her. She appeared in a vision to the king and rebuked him for unjustly imprisoning a nobleman who had been falsely accused. Through a sailor from Patmos to whom he had appeared, Saint John the Evangelist sent her fragrant and wondrous apples from Paradise. She reposed at the age of 103, still retaining the youthful beauty of her countenance. After her repose, marvelous healings beyond number have been wrought by her to the present day.


July 29

Kallinikos the Martyr of Asia Minor

Saint Callinicus was from Cilicia. Because he preached Christ and turned many pagans away from the idols, he was seized by Sacerdon the Governor, who subjected him to many tortures, then had him shod with shoes in which nails had been fixed upright, and compelled him to run to the city of Gangra, where he was burned alive in a furnace.


July 29

Holy Virgin Martyr Theodota

Concerning Saint Theodota, little is known except that she was a virgin who was horribly tormented and slain for her confession of Christ.


July 30

Silas & Silvanos the Apostles of the 70

Saint Silas was a companion and fellow labourer of the Apostle Paul: "And Paul chose Silas and departed...and he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches" (Acts 15:40-41). He later became Bishop of Corinth, and reposed in peace. Saint Silvanos became Bishop of Thessalonica, and also reposed in peace. Saint Crescents, whom Saint Paul mentions in his Second Epistle to Timothy(4:10), became Bishop of Chalcedon, and brought many to the Faith. As for him whom the Apostle of the Nations praises as "my well-beloved Epenetus, the first-fruits of Achaia unto Christ" (Roman 16:5), he became Bishop of Carthage, and after enduring many afflictions from the idolators, and bringing many of them to Christ, he departed to the Lord.


July 31

Forefeast of the Precious Cross


July 31

Joseph the Righteous of Arimathea

Saint Joseph of Arimathea was a prominent Jewish leader during the time of Jesus Christ. He is mentioned in the Gospels as being a rich man from Arimathea who was a secret disciple of Christ due to his status in the Sanhedrin. After the crucifixion and death of our Lord, Joseph approached Pontius Pilate out of piety and asked for the body of Jesus so that he might bury it honorably. He, together with Saint Nicodemus, removed the body of Christ from the cross in the presence of the Theotokos and the Myrrh-Bearing Women, wrapped it in a linen shroud, anointed it with spices, and laid it in a new tomb that he owned. This disciple later traveled the world proclaiming the Gospel until he reposed in peace in England. The Church commemorates him individually on July 31st and along with the Myrrh-Bearing Women and Nicodemus on the 3rd Sunday of Pascha (the Sunday of the Holy Myrrh-Bearers).


July 31

Eudokimos the Righteous of Cappadocia

Saint Eudocimus was from Cappadocia, the son of pious and most illustrious parents, patricians in rank. He especially cultivated chastity and mercy, the one by never meeting the gaze of a woman, the other by cheerfully providing the needs of the poor. When he was made military commander of Cappadocia, he continued in his righteous ways, showing mercy and uprightness in all his dealings. Having so lived in piety, quietly and without ostentation, he was called from this life at the age of thirty-three, about the year 840, during the reign of the Iconoclast Theophilus. Not long after his burial, his grave became a fountain of unending miracles, as God revealed the virtue that Eudocimus had striven to hide; when his grave was later opened, his body was found incorrupt. His holy relics were translated to Constantinople.


August 01

Procession of the Precious Cross

Because of the many diseases that occur in the month of August, the custom prevailed of old in Constantinople to carry the precious Wood of the Cross in procession throughout the city for its sanctification and its deliverance from illnesses. It was brought forth from the imperial treasury on the last day of July and placed upon the Holy Table of the Great Church of the Holy Wisdom; and beginning today, until the Dormition of the Theotokos, it was carried in procession throughout the city and was set forth for veneration before the people.


August 01

The Holy Seven Maccabees, Eleazar the Martyr

The names of the Holy Maccabees are Abim, Anthony, Guria, Eleazar, Eusebona, Achim, and Marcellus. They were Jews by race and exact keepers of the Laws of the Fathers. They lived during the reign of Antiochus, who was surnamed Epiphanes ("Illustrious"), the King of Syria and an implacable enemy of the Jews. Having subjugated their whole nation and done many evil things to them, not sparing to assail the most sacred matters of their Faith, he constrained them, among other things, to partake of swine's flesh, which was forbidden by the Law. Then these pious youths, on being apprehended together with their mother and their teacher, were constrained to set at nought the Law, and were subjected to unspeakable tortures: wrackings, the breaking of their bones, the flaying of their flesh, fire, dismemberment, and such things as only a tyrant's mind and a bestial soul is able to contrive. But when they had endured all things courageously and showed in deed that the mind is sovereign over the passions and is able to conquer them if it so desires, they gloriously ended their lives in torments, surrendering their life for the sake of the observance of the divine Law. The first to die was their teacher Eleazar, then all the brethren in the order of their age. As for their wondrous mother Solomone, "filled with a courageous spirit, and stirring up her womanish thoughts with a manly wrath" (II Macc. 7:21), she was present at her children's triumph over the tyrant, strengthening them in their struggle for the sake of their Faith, and enduring stout-heartedly their sufferings for the sake of their hope in the Lord. After her last and youngest son had been perfected in martyrdom, when she was about to be seized to be put to death, she cast herself into the fire that they might not touch her, and was thus deemed worthy of a blessed end together with her sons, in the year 168 before Christ.


August 02

Translation of the Relics of Stephen the Protomartyr

After the First Martyr had been stoned to death (see Dec. 27), Gamaliel, his teacher, encouraged certain of the Christians to go by night and take up the Saint's body and bury it in his field, which was at a distance of some twenty miles from Jerusalem and was called by his name, "Kaphar-gamala," that is, "the field of Gamala," where Gamaliel himself was later buried. About the year 427, a certain pious man called Lucian, who was the parish priest of a church near to that field, received from God a revelation in a dream concerning the place where the First Martyr was buried. He immediately made this known to John, the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Thus, coming to the place indicated, and digging there, they found a box with the word "Stephen" in Aramaic letters. On opening it, they took these most sacred relics and transferred them to Jerusalem with great honor and in the company of a very great multitude of the faithful.


August 02

Phocas the Martyr

Saint Phocas was a gardener in a small village on the south coast of the Black Sea. He lived a simple life, carrying out acts of piety and love for all around him, even serving the pagans of the village, some of who left their ways and followed Christ. The local governor heard of this and sent soldiers to kill him. The saint stumbled upon these very soldiers and, without disclosing his name, ministered to them by receiving them into his home, feeding them, and giving them rest. That night he dug a grave for himself in his garden and prepared for all his possessions to be given away after his death.

The next morning, Phocas disclosed to the soldiers that it was he whom they were seeking to kill. The soldiers were distraught, not wanting to kill the saint who had shown them so much kindness. Phocas insisted that they must carry out their mission as he willingly laid his head beneath the sword. They proceeded to execute him and then bury him in the grave he dug in his garden. The site later became a source of miracles, and eventually a Church was erected upon it. Saint Phocas is frequently invoked for those who travel by sea. His life was recorded by Saint Asterius of Amasia (see October 10th).


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Saint Nicholas News and Events

    The Voice

    The Voice

    Our monthly publication, The Voice, is available for your viewing at our website, https://stnicholasfp.com. The August issue is now online. There will be printed copies at the Pangari in the Narthex and the Church Hall for those who do not have internet access. The online edition is in full color.


    The Catechist Conference 2025

    The Catechist Conference 2025

    This is the 3rd Annual Catechist Conference of our Metropolis. There are two presentations. The second one is close to us at Saint Mark in Boca Raton. The conference is open to all, including Sunday School teachers, Adult Religious educators, parents and grandparents of catechism students, Parish Team Ministry leaders, and Clergy. Those who cannot attend in person may attend virtually. Please read the flyer.


    2025 Stewardship Program

    2025 Stewardship Program

    “Ekklesia exists when the dispersed, divided, self-preoccupied people unite and become a family, where people see one another as brothers and sisters with God as their common father, and try to share whatever they have and whatever they are, and be united in heart and soul”


    Children's Medical Fund Luncheon 2025

    Children's Medical Fund Luncheon 2025

    The Metropolis of Atlanta Philoptochos is hosting the 20th Anniversary Children's Medical Fund Luncheon on Saturday, September 27th in Atlanta. Please see Fr. Andrew for details.


    Online Learning Opportunities from Hellenic College/Holy Cross

    Online Learning Opportunities from Hellenic College/Holy Cross

    Are you ready to take the Leap for Faith? Learning has never been easier! With Hellenic College Holy Cross online offerings, you can now learn and grow in your faith from convenience of home. We offer a wide range of educational opportunities spanning a variety of subjects.


    The Liturgical Arts Academy

    The Liturgical Arts Academy

    Learn Byzantine Music and Byzantine Iconography with intensive in-person training at our Diakonia Retreat Center.


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Metropolis of Atlanta News

Metropolitan Sevastianos' Message

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

As a member of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops, I am pleased to write a special commemoration for Prison Ministry Awareness Sunday (July 27th). Many are unfamiliar with the Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM), and so the Assembly of Bishops has dedicated a specific Sunday to raise understanding of this important work. Many more recall our Lord's words from the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, to visit those in prison. However, it can be all too easy to think of Christ as the prisoner before His Crucifixion; we forget that Christ is placing Himself in the position of ordinary human beings. Indeed, there is great stigma surrounding prisoners and their families—even though the incarceration rate of 1.8 million people in this country means it is very likely that at least one parishioner knows someone serving time in prison.

It is for this very reason that the Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry was created: to emphasize that all of God's servants are continually worthy of love, regardless of their circumstances or past actions. The work of the OCPM ensures that parishes are properly trained in their own efforts to offer religious education to prisoners, to establish and maintain relationships between prisoners and volunteers (both clergy and laity), and even to help prisoners record their own readings of storybooks, so that they can keep connections with their children.

My beloved, the date of Prison Ministry Awareness Sunday was selected to fall closest to the feast of St. Silas (July 30th), who is the Patron of the OCPM because he was imprisoned as a companion of the Apostle Paul. Indeed, in this week's Epistle, Paul writes to Timothy, “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descended from David, as preached in my gospel, the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing fetters like a criminal. But the word of God is not fettered” (II Timothy 2:8-9). Christ, Silas, Paul may have all been imprisoned unjustly, but we must remember this Sunday, and all Sundays, that the word of God is indeed not chained and bound. The word of God has the power to touch the hearts of those who have committed crimes, and those who are affected by imprisonment.

I hope and pray that at the conclusion of Divine Liturgy, you will visit the official website of the Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (theocpm.org/), and then consider offering a gift to support this valuable work. Together, we can continue to observe our Lord's commandment to offer true Christian love to “the least of these” who are among the very people our Lord came to this earth to save. Amen.

+SEVASTIANOS 
Metropolitan of Atlanta

 

 

 


The Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate (AEP) have created a unique Sunday
School program that enables educators to introduce their students to the
Ecumenical Patriarchate, and to the challenges that His All-Holiness Ecumenical
Patriarch Bartholomew and the Holy Mother Church of Constantinople face today. 
To view the lesson plans, click here.

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Archdiocese News

Archon Carl R. Hollister Appointed Executive Director of St. Photios National Shrine

07/03/2025

His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America announces the appointment of Archon Carl R. Hollister as Executive Director of  St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine in St. Augustine, FL. This appointment will begin in August and follow the retirement of Polexeni Maouris Hillier, who has served at the helm of St. Photios Shrine since 2005.  


St. Mark Church in Boca Raton, Florida Builds Sister Church in Kapsabet, Kenya

07/02/2025

A team of 21 faithful parishioners from Saint Mark Greek Orthodox Church in Boca Raton, Florida, led by His Eminence Metropolitan Sevastianos of Atlanta, parish priest Fr. Mark Leondis and OCMC (Orthodox Christian Mission Center) Development Director, Dan Christopulos, recently returned from a transformational mission pilgrimage to Kenya, where they celebrated the consecration of the newly built Saint Mark Orthodox Cathedral in Kapsabet.


Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: "There are Dimensions of Human Life Inaccessible to Scientific Knowledge"

07/02/2025

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is not just a powerful and prophetic voice for peace and reconciliation, and for stewardship of the natural environment. He is also, among many other things, a strong advocate for the importance of the arts and literature, saying that “there are dimensions of human life inaccessible to scientific knowledge and to all forms of objectification,” and describing poetry as an “invaluable gift from heaven to humanity.”


Camp Saint Paul Welcomes Visit of Archbishop Elpidophoros

07/02/2025

His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America made a deeply inspiring visit on July 1, 2025 to Camp Saint Paul in Litchfield, Connecticut, the camping ministry of the Archdiocesan District.


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