Bulletin October 9, 2016

The Candles Before the Iconostasis are burning during the month of October in memory of +John and Mary Pipta. May their memory be eternal!

Let Us Remember in Prayer those who are ill or convalescing. May our Lord Jesus Christ, the Physician and Healer of souls and bodies, grant them peace and good health for many blessed years.
Please let Fr. Lewis know if anyone should be added or taken away from this prayer list.

Church Repairs Update: This past week, Perry Aire, the HVAC company who installed the church’s new system has completed their repairs of faulty workmanship around the units on the roof to prevent the leaking into the men’s bathroom and library. This work was covered by the one year warranty on their workmanship. The ceiling in the men’s bathroom will be fixed by the 21st of October.

New Lector Ministry: One element of the Pastor & Pasta meeting that Fr. Lewis would like to implement as soon as possible is the new addition of a variety of lectors for divine services. The lector chants the Epistle, as well as other duties in other divine services such as Matins. There is no need for experience because we will be having training sessions. There are already some who have lectored in the past and that should continue. If anyone else is interested, please let Fr. Lewis know either in person, by email, or phone call. We will then set up a training session to polish our skills. Thank you in advance for considering this beautiful way of participating in the liturgy.

Fr. Conan and Our Liturgical Schedule: Because of Fr. Conan’s injuries and recovery we will be following a new and temporary Sunday schedule of services. Father Deacon Bill will be celebrating Matins under special rubrics for the absence of a priest until we return to our normal schedule. Matins will be at 9:30AM and Divine Liturgy at 10:45AM until Ft. Conan recovers. So far, we should plan on the whole month of October to be the same schedule. If, however, the bulletin shows this schedule and we are able to go back to our normal schedule, then we will be sending out emails and phone calls to let people know that we will be returning to normal Thank you so much for understanding this need within our church.

Men’s Retreat: Fr. Lewis has been asked to give a Men’s retreat at the Patronage of the Mother of God parish in Arbutus, MD. The retreat was scheduled for October 15th, but because of unforeseen events, we are rescheduling it for Saturday, December 17th. All men from Patronage, St. Gregory’s, Epiphany, and dependent mission churches are encouraged to attend. It is my spiritual opinion, that in the state of our church in the United States, especially with the distances between our parishes, that we need to pull together as regions so that we can experience a more full and vibrant expression of our faith. The theme for the conference has not yet been decided, but it will definitely focus on a man’s role in spirituality for both himself, and as a role model for his family.

Parish Vision: Fr. Lewis and parishioners discussed what we would like to see happen within the church community in the near future. We have the notes from the meeting and will soon be putting those into a usable format. One goal is to reach out to former parishioners and invite them to join us again and to share with them our goals of making a stronger parish community focused on: education, prayer, and living out our vocation by serving others.

Special Hurricane Collection: While Hurricane Matthew is still raging along the Eastern Coast this weekend, we can only dare to imagine the path of destruction it leaves behind. Therefore Bishop Kurt has asked that a special collection be taken at all weekend Divine Liturgies in all parishes of the Eparchy of Passaic over the next two weeks. Let us continue to remember in our prayers all those suffered loss of life or property, as well as the relief workers who have come to offer aid and bring hope. Checks may be made to St. Gregory Byzantine Catholic Church with a memo for Hurricane Relief and with your envelope number. The parish will then make one check out to the Eparchy after all moneys have been collected.

Holupki Making: We will begin the next phase of our Food Festival preparation by making the Holupki on Friday and Saturday, October 14th and 15th both beginning at 9AM. We truly need all hands on deck for this very important fund raiser for our parish.

Wedding Jubilarians: We will be having the annual celebration for all wedding anniversaries of 5 year intervals beginning at the 5th year anniversary. Please let Fr. Lewis know if in 2016 you and your spouse are celebrating one of these anniversaries by Tuesday afternoon.

Prosphora Ministry: Also, we would like to allow others to participate in special ways in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. One of these ways is the baking of the Prosphora, or communion bread. Beginning in November (meaning, after the Food Festival) we will have lessons on how to properly make the bread. Anyone will be invited, so please consider if this is something you would like to offer to the church.

Upcoming Events
Oct. 14-15 Holupki Days: all parishioners needed to help in making our Holupki for the Food Festival on both of these days beginning at 9AM
Oct. 14-16 “Come and See” Retreat at the Byzantine Catholic Seminary in Pittsburgh for men ages 18-35–Is God calling you to be a priest?
Sat. Nov 5. 10AM-4PM The Great Slavic Food Festival
Sat. Nov. 12 2016 Wedding Anniversary Celebration in Annandale, VA
Sat. Nov. 19 Food Festival At Patronage Church
Sat. Dec. 17 Men’s Retreat in Arbutus conducted by Fr. Lewis

 

 

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