+ Sunday,
May 14th 2006 +
Sunday
of the Paralytic
Tone: 3
+ Eothinon: 5
*******************************************************************************************************
“Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!”
O Merciful Christ, Creator of all, You came to earth to
heal the sick. By Your word You raised up the paralyzed man at the pool near
the Sheep Gate. You cured the woman with the flow of blood. You showed mercy to
the daughter of the Canaanite woman possessed by an evil spirit. You healed the
servant of the centurion. You opened the eyes of Bartimaeus. You are the
physician of our souls and bodies. Therefore, we praise You: almighty Lord,
glory to You!
+ The
Epistle +
Verse: “Sing praises to our
God, sing praises.
Clap
your hand, all you nations.”
The Reading is from
the Acts of the Holy Apostles.
(Chapter
9:32-42)
In those days, as Peter went through all
parts of the county, he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda. There
he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was
paralyzed. And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise
and make your bed.” Then he arose immediately. So all who dwelt at Lydda and
Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. At Joppa there was a certain disciple
named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. This woman was full of good works
and charitable deeds which she did. But it happened in those days that she
became sick and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room.
And since Lydda was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was
there, they sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them.
Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the
upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and
garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them. But Peter put them all
out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said, “Tabitha,
arise.” And she opened her eyes and when she saw Peter she sat up. Then he gave
her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called the saints and widows,
he presented her alive. And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many
believed on the Lord. +
+ The
Holy Gospel +
The
Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to St. John
(Chapter 5:1-15)
At that time, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now
there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Hebrew called Bethzatha,
which has five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of invalids, blind, lame,
paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water; for an angel of the Lord went
down at certain seasons into the pool, and troubled the water; whoever stepped
in first after the troubling of the water was healed of whatever disease he
had. One man was there, who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw
him and knew that he had been lying there a long time, He said to him, “Do you
want to be healed?” The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me
into the pool when the water is troubled, and while I am going another steps
down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your pallet, and walk.” And
at once the man was healed, and he took up his pallet and walked. Now that day
was the Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath,
it is not lawful for you to carry your pallet.” But he answered them, “The man
who healed me said to me, ‘Take up your pallet and walk.’” They asked him, “Who
is the man who said to you, “Take up your pallet and walk”? Now the man who had
been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a
crowd in the place. Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him,
“See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse befall you.” The man went
away and told the Jews it was Jesus who had healed him.
Meditation:
Jesus Christ Makes You Well
“Jesus Christ makes you well!” (Acts 9:34),
St. Peter said to Aeneas, a man from Lydda, and at once Aeneas got up. These
words of the Apostle Peter parallel Christ’s command to the paralyzed man: “Get
up and walk!” (St. John 5:8). Christ’s saving words and works continued in the
words and works of the Apostles. What assurance of faith, what divine
authority, lie behind these words! Christ and the Apostles were men of
mountain-moving faith, men full of the inner powers of the Holy Spirit. They
could call upon God’s power with the great faith and the joyous confidence to
heal. They liberated people from sickness and the burden of sin. What a moment
of divine glory to see a person stand up and walk, free in his or her physical
movements. It is an even greater moment of divine glory when we see a person
healed from inner paralysis, free at last in his or her spiritual self and
energized by the grace of God.
+ Upcoming
Services & Synaxarion +
“Let my Prayer be set
before Thee as Incense, and the lifting up of my Hands
as the Evening Sacrifice” (Psalm 141:2)
v
Today - Sunday, May 14th:
Holy Great Martyr Isidore of Chios
Apolytikon (Tone 4): Thy Martyr, O Lord, in his
courageous contest for Thee received as the prize the crowns of incorruption
and life from Thee, our immortal God. For since he possessed Thy strength, he
cast down the tyrants and wholly destroyed the demons’ strengthless
presumption. O Christ God, by his prayers, save our souls, since Thou art
merciful.
Kontakion (Tone 4): In thy holy prayers to God,
thou hast shone brightly, a great guide for the world. Wherefore, we praise
thee on this day, O Saint, thou Martyr of godly mind and boast of Chios, O
glorious Isidore.
Reading: 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 professed
himself to worship Christ as God and refused to worship any other, he was
tormented and beheaded in 251, during the reign of Decius.
Ø
Every Saturday at 6:00
p.m.: Great Vespers/Confession (due to the limited time on Sunday morning,
confessions will be heard also during Great Vespers, as well as on Sunday
morning during the Matins Service)
* Announcements
& Activities *
“It is good to be Zealous in a Good Thing
Always…” (Galatians 4:18)
ü
*** General
Assembly ***
Our General Assembly Meeting will be held on May 28th immediately following the Divine Liturgy
in the Cathedral Hall downstairs. We encourage all of you to attend! If you
haven’t paid in full your membership/dues for 2005, please do so before the
meeting.
ü
Thank You! - Mother’s
Day Committee
We would like to
thank the Chairwoman of the Mother’s Day Committee, Khouriyee Helene Hajal, and
the members who did a tremendous job at preparing and having another successful
annual Mother’s Day Event: Rosemary Kajjouni, Michelle Fayad, Elizabeth (Betty)
Saikaley, Cindy Naufal, Camie Malouf, Susanne Zeidan, Helen Jeffrey, Fifi
Ayoub, Amal Saikaley, and Sonia Tannis. God bless you all!
ü
53rd Annual
Parish Life Conference
The 53rd Annual Parish Life
Conference will be held from June 29th
– July 2nd , hosted by St. George Antiochian Orthodox
Church, Richmond Hill (Toronto), and presided by His Grace Bishop ALEXANDER.
Please contact the Cathedral Office for booking and travel information
(Departure time for the bus will be Thursday morning (June 29th) at
7:00 a.m. and again departing for Ottawa at 3:00 p.m. on July 2nd).
Help yourself to informative pamphlets that are available today at the Candle
Stand in the Vestibule. Also, further information can be obtained at the
following website: (www.stgeorgeto.com).
ü
Free Summer Workshops
South-East Ottawa Centre for a Healthy
Community (SEOCHC) is hosting a series of 5 Free Workshops at their centre,
open to volunteers, community members, caregivers, and home support workers. It
is a great way to learn new skills during the summer in a fun and interactive atmosphere.
A certificate is awarded to participants who attend all 5 workshops, which are
the following: “Assertiveness and Awareness” (June 27), “Safety Strategies”
(July 4), “The Importance of CPR and what to do in an Emergency Situation”
(July 11), “The Effects of Parkinson’s” (July 18), and “Palliative Care:
Support and Resources” (July 25). Refreshments Served. The Workshop location is
1355 Bank St., 7th Floor. To Register and find out more details
about the workshops please call 737-5115, ext 326.
ü
Camp Transfiguration (www.stgeorgemontreal.org)
This summer Camp Transfiguration 2006 will be
from (July 30th – August 5th),
all necessary forms and information can be obtained at the above mentioned
website.
ü Lebanese Fun Festival 2006 (www.lebanesefunfestival.com)
The festival preparations are underway.
A letter was sent out to all of you this past week outlining ways to take
part in this year's activities. We encourage all of you to do so because
this is the only way we can make this event even more successful than it
already is! We invite you to check our new website noted above. We
continue to update the site as we count down the days to the
festival, which will be held on July 19th through to July 23rd.
(George
Hanna and Yolanda Hanna - Co-chairpersons)
+ Memorials +
“I am the Resurrection
and the Life. He who believes in Me,
though he may die, he
shall live.” (St. John 11:25)
This
Week:
v
40th Day
Memorial Service for Malvina Saikaley, offered by her
children Halim, Evelyn and Naim Saikaley & their families.
v
2nd Week
Memorial Service for George Al-Aaraj, who fell asleep in
the Lord in Lebanon, offered by his son Toni (Joyce) Al-Aaraj and their family;
also by the Saghbini & Ghantous families.
Today the Coffee Hour is
offered in memory of
Malvina Saikaley & George AlAaraaj
Please
join their families after the Divine Liturgy in the Cathedral Hall.
Next
week:
v
40th Day
Memorial Service for Antoun Hajjar, offered by his wife
Mona Al-Chami Hajjar, and his daughter Rania (Akram) Arnouk, and his brothers
and sister Simon, Elie, Lily Souheil Hajjar & their families.
v
2nd Week
Memorial Service for Mariam Ataya Kassis, who fell asleep in the Lord in Lebanon, offered by her
grandchildren Toufic, Issa, George, Andre Abou Assali and their families, and
Imad Hanna and his family
+ May Their Memory be Eternal +
