Sundays in the fall, winter & spring:
Matins: 9 a.m. & Divine Liturgy 10a.m. except during the summer
Summer hours for Sundays in July and August:
Matins: 8:30a.m. & Divine Liturgy 9:30a.m.
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.
Prokeimenon. Fourth Mode. Psalm 103.24,1.
O Lord, how manifold are your works. You have made all things in wisdom.
Verse: Bless the Lord, O my soul.
The reading is from Acts of the Apostles 11:19-30.
In those days, those apostles who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to none except Jews. But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Greeks also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number that believed turned to the Lord. News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large company was added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church, and taught a large company of people; and in Antioch the disciples were for the first time called Christians. Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabos stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world; and this took place in the days of Claudius. And the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brethren who lived in Judea, and they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
Sunday of the Samaritan Woman
The Reading is from John 4:5-42
At that time, Jesus came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and so Jesus, wearied as he was with his journey, sat down beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.
There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, and his sons, and his cattle?" Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."
Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here." The woman answered him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband'; for you have had five husbands, and he whom you now have is not your husband; this you said truly." The woman said to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain; and you say that Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." The woman said to him, "I know that the Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ); when he comes, he will show us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."
Just then his disciples came. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but none said, "What do you wish?" or, "Why are you talking with her?" So the woman left her water jar, and went away into the city and said to the people, "Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?" They went out of the city and were coming to him.
Meanwhile the disciples besought him, saying "Rabbi, eat." But he said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do not know." So the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought him food?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see how the fields are already white for harvest. He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor; others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."
Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman's testimony. "He told me all that I ever did." So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, "It is no longer because of your words that we believe, for we have heard ourselves, and we know that this is indeed Christ the Savior of the world."
Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen! Χριστός Ανeστη!
Αλιθωs Ανεστη! Welcome!
Orthodox Christians greet each other with the joyous greeting of “Christ is Risen” and the response is “Truly (indeed) He has Risen”. During the Paschal period, we do not kneel during our worship, as kneeling is a symbol of penitence, whereas, standing is the sign of Christ’s victory and joy in our midst.
Memorials: A 1 year memorial for Kyriakos Simeonidis and a 6 year memorial for Mercina Simeonidis, adored parents of Dina and her husband Tim McWalters and Nico and his wife Carolyn. Grandparents of Alex, Sean, Cleo and Kirk. Beloved to many relatives and friends.
A 2 year memorial for Eileen Karanikolas, beloved spouse of John, dear mother of Cleopatra and William, adored daughter of Raymond, beloved Sister of Kathleen and Patrick, sister in law of Panayiota, Katerina, Sousana and Paul and many dear family members and friends.
May their memory be eternal. Fellowship hour is sponsored by the Simeonidis and the Karanikolas families.
Religious Education: Classes are in session today after Holy Communion is distributed. Students & teachers will receive Holy Communion first.
|
Orthros 9:00 A.M.
|
Divine Liturgy 10:00 A.M.
|
Epistle: Acts 11:19-30 (pg. 1273)
|
Gospel: John 4:5-42 (pg. 1239) |
|
Ladies Philoptochos News: Christos Anesti! Today, the Philoptochos is offering an Artoclasia Service (Blessing of the Loaves) for the health and well-being of all our mothers. We wish all Grandmothers, Mothers, and Mothers in Law, Godmothers, Step Moms a very Happy Mother's Day!
The Annual Metropolis of NJ CLERGY LAITY ASSEMBLY Grand BANQUET will convene at the Venetian in Garfield, NJ tomorrow night, May 15th beginning at 6:00p.m., His Grace Bishop Apostolos will honor several of our stewards/parishioners for their service to our Metropolis and/or our parish.
Congratulations to the following honorees: Cathy Johnson, our Philoptochos honoree; Angela Hajiyerou our Community honoree; Fotini K. Tanzer, our Senior Steward honoree; Claire Melissas, our Parish Council honoree;Andrea Antoniou, our Greek Education Teacher honoree; Manoli Kontogiannis, our Parish Psalti honoree; George Gasparis, our Youth Advisor; Vasiliki Bachardy our GOYA honoree. May the Lord grant each of them many more years to serve His Church.
PILGRIMAGE to the Holy Land! israel & CONSTANTINOPLE (ISTANBUL) october 27 to november 8. DO NOT DELAY! Cloud Tours is still ACCEPTING deposits for reservations go TO OUR PARISH WEBSITE AT WWW.STNICHOLASNJ.ORG
Parish Council: The regularly scheduled Parish Council meetingwill be held this Thursday, May 18th at 7:30pm in the Conference room.
Parish General Assembly: Sunday, June 11th after worship services.
Mark your Calendar: VACATION CHURCH SCHOOL (VCS 2023) June 26-30 9am – 12:30pm on site for kids 5-11 yrs. old. $50/camper VCS Theme: “Our Superhero Saints!” contact Dee Bouloukos at [email protected] and to register contact Tina Mouikis at [email protected]
Saint Nicholas Ladies Prayer Group prayer meetings continue to be held on the 2nd and 4th Thursday evening of each month at 7:30 pm. We pray for our nation, church, community, families and friends. We continue to see countless answers to prayers, fellowship together and encourage and deepen our own faith. All Ladies are Welcome to Join Us and all prayer requests are kept confidential. Call the parish office or Irene Ayvas at 201-803-2307, if you wish to join us. You may also contact Irene or the church office with any prayer requests you want added to our list or to the "Email Urgent Prayer Chain".
“E-mail Urgent Prayer Chain”: Please join our prayer chain of over 100 faithful, who are committed to praying for those with urgent needs or those facing sudden crisis or disaster.
Prayer is a Simple Yet Powerful Way to Show Your Love for Others. Contact Irene Ayvas at [email protected] or at 201-803-2307 to be added to the urgent prayer chain list.
Saint Nicholas Charity Golf Classic and New Pickleball Classic:
Save-the-Date: Monday, June 26, 2023 at Edgewood Country Club, River Vale, NJ. Don’t miss this 26th annual Saint Nicholas-sponsored celebration with longtime golf and racquet friends as well as new players and supporters. Not a golfer or a pickleball player, not a problem. Join us as a dinner guest at the country club for a wonderful night of dinner, raffles, auctions and fun. Contact Jason Fink 201-206-7310 or Charlie Charllis 201-245-6057 for more information.
Camp Good Shepherd: Join us for a week of fun, faith, and fellowship at overnight Camp Good Shepherd-NJ! July 16-22 in Sandyston, NJ, $600 per camper, ages 8-18. Registration is OPEN! For camper and counselor inquiries please email [email protected] and follow us on social media @cgs_nj_official
MINISTRY THROUGH HYMNS! Participate fully in worship…just contact our choir director, Andrew Bacalakis, at [email protected] to learn how. PLUS our lead cantor, Mr. Manolis Anastasiou, [email protected], offers free Byzantine music lessons every Sunday directly after worship concludes. Lessons in Greek and English. No experience needed. All ages welcome. Please meet at cantors’ stand immediately after worship concludes!
2023 Stewardship: As Orthodox Christians, we affirm that every aspect of our lives is a gift from God. Stewardship calls on us, the faithful, to cheerfully offer back to our Lord a portion of the gifts we have been blessed with. Your offering enables our church to carry out Her mission to bring Christ and Orthodoxy into the lives and hearts of all we serve. This Lenten season, please consider making your 2023 Stewardship Pledge. Thus far, 249 households have made their pledge to Saint Nicholas. To obtain your 2023 pledge card, pick up one in our Narthex or e-mail us at [email protected] additionally, you can make your pledge on our website by going to https://www.stnicholasnj.org
One of the most ancient cities of the Promised Land was Shechem, also called Sikima, located at the foot of Mount Gerazim. There the Israelites had heard the blessings in the days of Moses and Jesus of Navi. Near to this town, Jacob, who had come from Mesopotamia in the nineteenth century before Christ, bought a piece of land where there was a well. This well, preserved even until the time of Christ, was known as Jacob's Well. Later, before he died in Egypt, he left that piece of land as a special inheritance to his son Joseph (Gen. 49:22). This town, before it was taken into possession by Samaria, was also the leading city of the kingdom of the ten tribes. In the time of the Romans it was called Neapolis, and at present Nablus. It was the first city in Canaan visited by the Patriarch Abraham. Here also, Jesus of Navi (Joshua) addressed the tribes of Israel for the last time. Almost three hundred years later, all Israel assembled there to make Roboam (Rehoboam) king.
When our Lord Jesus Christ, then, came at midday to this city, which is also called Sychar (John 4:5), He was wearied from the journey and the heat, and He sat down at this well. After a little while the Samaritan woman mentioned in today's Gospel passage came to draw water. As she conversed at some length with the Lord and heard from Him secret things concerning herself, she believed in Him; through her many other Samaritans also believed.
Concerning the Samaritans we know the following: In the year 721 before Christ, Salmanasar (Shalmaneser), King of the Assyrians, took the ten tribes of the kingdom of Israel into captivity, and relocated all these people to Babylon and the land of the Medes. From there he gathered various nations and sent them to Samaria. These nations had been idolaters from before. Although they were later instructed in the Jewish faith and believed in the one God, they worshipped the idols also. Furthermore, they accepted only the Pentateuch of Moses, and rejected the other books of Holy Scripture. Nonetheless, they thought themselves to be descendants of Abraham and Jacob. Therefore, the pious Jews named these Judaizing and idolatrous peoples Samaritans, since they lived in Samaria, the former leading city of the Israelites, as well as in the other towns thereabout. The Jews rejected them as heathen and foreigners, and had no communion with them at all, as the Samaritan woman observed, "the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans" (John 4:9). Therefore, the name Samaritan is used derisively many times in the Gospel narrations. After the Ascension of the Lord, and the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the woman of Samaria was baptized by the holy Apostles and became a great preacher and Martyr of Christ; she was called Photine, and her feast is kept on February 26.
This Saint was a soldier from Alexandria. He came with the Roman fleet to Chios, where he was betrayed as a Christian to Numerian, Commander of the Fleet. Because he boldly pro-fessed himself to worship Christ as God and refused to worship any other, he was tormented and beheaded in 251, during the reign of Decius.
Saint Pachomius was born of pagan parents in the Upper Thebaid of Egypt. He was conscripted into the Roman army at an early age. While quartered with the other soldiers in the prison in Thebes, Pachomius was astonished at the kindness shown them by the local Christians, who relieved their distress by bringing them food and drink. Upon inquiring who they were, he believed in Christ and vowed that once delivered from the army, he would serve Him all the days of his life. Released from military service, about the year 313, he was baptized, and became a disciple of the hermit Palamon, under whose exacting guidance he increased in virtue and grace, and reached such a height of holiness that "because of the purity of his heart," says his biographer, "he was, as it were, seeing the invisible God as in a mirror." His renown spread far, and so many came to him to be his disciples that he founded nine monasteries in all, filled with many thousands of monks, to whom he gave a rule of life, which became the pattern for all communal monasticism after him. While Saint Anthony the Great is the father of hermits, Saint Pachomius is the founder of the cenobitic life in Egypt; because Pachomius had founded a way of monasticism accessible to so many, Anthony said that he "walks the way of the Apostles." Saint Pachomius fell asleep in the Lord before his contemporaries Anthony and Athanasius the Great, in the year 346. His name in Coptic, Pachom, means "eagle."
Saint Achillius was one of the 318 God-bearing Fathers who were present at the First Ecumenical Council; after returning to Larissa he cast down many pagan temples, delivered many from the demons, and raised up churches to the glory of God. He reposed about the middle of the fourth century.
REGISTER NOW AND SEND IN YOUR DEPOSIT
check out what sites we are visiting this autumn in Israel and Istanbul, Turkey
Help provide relief to Ukrain
The translations of hymns are under copyright and used by permission. All rights reserved. These works may not be further reproduced, in print or on other websites or in any other form, without the prior written authorization of the copyright holder: