Hellenic Orthodox Mission

Hellenic Orthodox Mission of Hernando County

“A Pan-Orthodox Christian Community”

Ecumenical Patriarchate + Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America + Diocese of Atlanta

Services Held at St. Nicholas Chapel, 13460 Olympic Village Lane, Brooksville, FL - (352) 796-8482

The Hellenic Orthodox Mission Website: http://worship.nu/hellenicorthodoxmission/index.htm

FR. STANLEY S. HARAKAS, PROTOPRESBYTER - (352) 688-2382 (Afternoons)

Today is the 1^st day of September. From the point of view of the Orthodox Church’s calendar it is also the first day of the ecclesiastical year. Three things come to mind on this day because of this. First, the word “indiction” comes from the Latin, meaning, “to proclaim.” The Church uses this term to proclaim the beginning of the new Church year. As a result, the Church service books begin with the services and hymns for September and end with the services of August.

This means that as Orthodox Christians, today is a new beginning. It means that if we have been looking for an opportunity to change our patterns of behavior, the new Church year gives us a chance to make a new resolution and begin new habits and practices. Is this the time that you should resolve to come to Church each Sunday?

Second, it is interesting that in the Orthros for today, the Indicton, our Church points us to personal prayer, and in particular, to the Lord’s Prayer. Here is the hymn as translated by the St. Gregory Palamas Monastery of Perrysville, Pa.: “Since we have all learned the Lord’s Prayer which Christ himself pronounced in His divine instruction, every day let us say it and cry aloud, ‘Our Father who dwells above in the heavens, give this day our daily bread, and forgive us our every debt overlooking our trespasses.’” Every day let us say it!

Third, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has declared this day to be celebrated annually as “Environmental Protection Day,” in which we remember our spiritual and moral responsibility to preserve and protect God’s Creation. Let us help keep God’s Creation clean and unpolluted.

Enclosed in today’s Orthodox Messenger is Archbishop Demetrios’ Indiction Encyclical. Please read it!

Service Hours: Sundays and Feast days: Orthros at 9:30 a.m.; Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m. Evening Services as announced.

Saints: Symeon the Stylite (+459); the 40 holy women and their teacher Ammoun the Deacon; Symeon of Lesvos; Righteous Meletios; Anthony of Verroia;

Neomartyr Angeles; the martyrs Calliste, Evodos and Hermogenes, the siblings;

and Joshua, son of Nun.

EPISTLE –Timothy 2:1-7. Timothy, my son, first of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way. This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to which was borne at the proper time. For this I was appointed a preacher and apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

GOSPEL For the Indiction – Luke 4:16-22. At that time, Jesus came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the Sabbath day. And he stood up to read; and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the book and found the place where it was written, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words

GOSPEL ENTRANCE HYMNS

Dismissal Hymn – 1st Tone

(Sing in Greek before the Entrance) (“Tou lithou sfragisthentos”).Hymnal, 80-81.

(Sing in English after the Entrance) (“The Stone was sealed”). (Same)

(Read) O Fashioner of all creation, / You determine seasons and years / by Your own authority. / Bless the crown of this year / in Your goodness, / O Lord, / and preserve our rulers / and Your city in peace, / at the intercession of the Theotokos, / and save us.

(Read) You became a pillar of patience, / O devout one, / emulating the forefathers, / Job in his sufferings / and Joseph in his temptations, / and the lifestyle of the bodiless, though you were still in body. / O devout father Symeon, / intercede with Christ God, / that our souls be saved.

(Read) Rejoice, Maiden full of grace, / O Virgin Theotokos; / a haven and protection are you for all of humanity. / From you did the Redeemer of the world / become incarnate, / only you are both mother and virgin. / O Lady ever blessed / and ever filled with glory, / with Christ God intercede, / beseeching Him to grant peace to the universe.

(Read) You the Creator and the Lord of the ages, / O God of all, / truly transcending all essence, / we earnestly entreat that You will bless the year, / and, O tender- loving Lord, / in your infinite mercy, only Master, / save us all who worship and serve You, / O our Redeemer, and who cry with awe, / ‘For all Your servants, / make fruitful the coming year.

SEPTEMBER BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES: Birthdays: Louis Sheedy-9/6; Louis Mavrogian-9/7; John Haskedakis-9/18; Janice Vardakis-9/21; John Kotsifakis-9/23. Wedding Anniversaries: John & Dora Havatzes-9/7; Tony & Glory Vardakis-9/20; Bill & Harriet Pasisis-9/20; John & Gerry Levandis-9/27. Prayers of blessings for birthdays and wedding anniversaries will be offered after Church today.

40 DAY MEMORIAL SERVICES for the rest of the soul of Dorothy Haskedakis will be conducted today. Many her memory be eternal!

Our next Sunday Feast Day Luncheon will be on September 15, 2002, for the Feast of the Holy Cross, which will feature Sub Sandwiches, Cole Slaw, Baked Beans, Fruit Salad for dessert and Beverage. All for $6.00 for adults, $3 for 7 to 12 year olds, and free for children under 6 when accompanied by parents or yiayias our papous. Plan on attending with friends and family. A Parish fundraising project.

STEWARDS OF PROSFORON BAKING: Fran Triantafilon 9/1; Venice Cosmadelis 9/8; Connie Mourgides 9/15; Fran Mather 9/22; George Nikas 9/29. Remember to include names of your living and deceased relatives for commemoration.

SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS ARE NEEDED to begin our new Children’s Education Program. Volunteers will be trained and instructed by Fr. Stanley in preparation of classes. You are invited to an organizational meeting on Thursday, September 12 at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be held at Fr. Stanley and Presbytera Emily’s home. Call 688-2382 for directions.

PARISH EDUCATION PROGRAM: We will study the Gospel of John for our P.E.P. sessions starting Friday, September 13. Six other Survey themes will alternately be studied: Orthodox Saints; Introducing Orthodoxy; Church History; Parables of Christ; Church Beliefs; and, Our & Other Churches. Attend! 2:00 p.m. each Friday.

OUR WEBSITE: You can find a lot of interesting information about our Mission and about the Orthodox Church. You’ll find our weekly bulletins and the outlines of the P.E.P. sessions. (You can check back to every issue since the beginning of the year.) Also, there are links (connections) to the award-winning site of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, and other Orthodox Church websites, writings of the Church Fathers, etc. Try it; you’ll like it: http://worship.nu/hellenicorthodoxmission/index.htm. Special thanks to our Mission Parish Webmaster, Dorothy Triantafilon, for making it possible!

MANY THANKS TO OUR LIBRARY COMMITTEE! This past Sunday we had the unofficial opening of our Mission Library. Thanks to Venice Cosmadelis, Theona Hatzi, Helen Nikolelis, Harriet Pasisis, and Dorothy Triantafilon. Borrow a book today!

HOSPITALIZED AT BROOKSVILLE REGIONAL this past week was Nanka Kastelon. We pray for her health and well-being!

THIS WEEK’S SPONSORS: Henry and Ann Prestage
In Memory Of Their Parents John & Maria Kalogeros; Sister Lib; and Brother John

8-10 East 79th St. New York, NY 10021 Tel: (212) 570-3530 Fax: (212) 774-0215

To the Most Reverend Hierarchs, the Reverend Priests and Deacons, the Monks and Nuns, the Presidents and Members of the Parish Councils of the Greek Orthodox Communities, the Day and Afternoon Schools, the Philoptochos Sisterhood, the Young Adults and Youth, the Hellenic Organizations, and the entire Greek Orthodox Family in America

It is with heartfelt joy in the Lord that I communicate with you at the beginning of a new ecclesiastical year.

Much like our natural world, our Church follows a cycle of growth and renewal, setting aside one day out of each liturgical year where we as Orthodox Christians mark new beginnings and define new challenges. Our Orthodox faith is not static, but dynamic, with the power to transform our lives, our relationships with one another, and the society in which we live.

Considering the importance of beginnings, it is not by accident that we also designate, under the direction of our Ecumenical Patriarch, September 1 as a Day for the Protection of the Natural Environment. We recognize this immediate connection in the very first words of the book of Genesis, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Gen. 1:1). Reading the creation account further, we encounter a God who creates all things good and who bestows with endless love the gift of the natural environment to us human beings. Such an offering inspired the Psalmist to ponder: "When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him?" (Psalm 8: 3-4)

As members of a technologically advanced society and as Orthodox faithful, we bear a special obligation towards protecting the natural environment and raising ecological awareness. On a global level our Orthodox Church offers Her prophetic and redemptive voice towards this end. The many ecological initiatives of our Ecumenical Patriarchate, speak to this contribution, the most recent being a seaborne symposium on the Adriatic Sea this past June where scientists, religious leaders, policy-makers, and journalists from around the world met in order to address growing environmental concerns affecting this body of water.

The commitment of our Orthodox Church to protecting our environment must also be a part of the local ministry of our parishes. On this day, September 1, we are called as members of the Body of Christ to address the needs of our own communities concerning the environment. We are challenged to behold with sensitivity the state of the natural world around us, and to respond decisively when we witness the degradation of natural resources and the problems of increasing air and water pollution in our cities.

In the face of these and other challenges, we remember on this day that the natural environment is a freely given gift from God, and we reaffirm our responsibility to act as stewards of His creation, offering back to God the same precious gifts which He has so lovingly given to us. In so doing, we pray that we may be imparted the Divine wisdom to behold how "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork." (Psalm 19: 1).

May we mark the beginning of this ecclesiastical New Year with a renewed dedication to our natural environment, and may the infinite mercies of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ be with all of you.