+
Sunday, January 21st 2007 +
32nd Sunday after Pentecost
Tone:
7 + Eothinion: 10
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+ In the
Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +
“Come, Lord Jesus, as You came to
Zacchaeus. We too seek You, for we are restless for the peace, the wholeness,
the salvation which only You can bring. We hear Your knock on the door of our
souls. We open to invite You to come in. Fill us with Your loving Presence. May
we too hear from Your lips those precious words, “Today salvation has come to
this house. Amen.”
+ The
Epistle +
Verse: The Lord will give strength to His people,
Bring to the Lord, O
sons of God.
The Reading is from
the First Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to Timothy.
(Chapter
4:9-15)
Timothy, my son, this is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach,
because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of
those who believe. These things command and teach. Let no one despise your
youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in
spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to
exhortation, to doctrine. Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was
given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership.
Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress
may be evident to all.
+ The
Holy Gospel +
The
Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke
(Chapter 19:1-10)
At that time, Jesus entered and
passed through Jericho. Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a
chief tax collector, and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but
could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. So he ran ahead
and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that
way. And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to
him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your
house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. But when
they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man
who is a sinner.” Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I
give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by
false accusation, I restore fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation
has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man
has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Meditation:
“God’s Liberation of Zacchaeus”
God’s whole purpose in sending Christ to us
was to give us abundant life, full life. Christ said once: I have come in order
that you may have life – life in all its fullness (John 10:10). The abundant
life of Christ is described in many ways in the New Testament. Even a person
who doesn’t consider himself ‘religious’ and who does not seem to have deep
spiritual interests can experience the miracle of Christ’s abundant life.
Although a Jew, Zacchaeus was a tax collector for the hated Roman state which
practiced oppressive taxation during the times of Christ. As a tax collector
Zacchaeus was regarded by his fellow Jews as a great sinner completely given
over to worldly values. But he was interested in Christ. And it was not mere
curiousity but the first stirrings of faith that made him even climb the tree
just to see Christ. Because of that faith, God brought about a wonderful change
in Zacchaeus that day. An astonishing liberation from his old self. It was the
love of God working through Christ that brought about this change. The
conversion power of God’s love flowing through Christ transformed Zacchaeus
into a new, free and joyful man. Truly with God, all things are possible.
* Announcements,
Activities & Upcoming Services *
“It is good to be Zealous in a Good Thing
Always…” (Galatians 4:18)
v
Every Saturday at 6:00 p.m. - Great Vespers
v
Vespers for the Feast of the Three Hierarchs &
Ecumenical Teachers: Sts. Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John
Chrysostom; on Monday, January 29th at 6:00 p.m. (If you would like
to sponsor the ‘5 Breads’ for the Artoklasia
Service during the Vespers in prayerful memory of loved ones (living or reposed),
please call the Office).
v
Vespers for the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord
Jesus Christ in the Temple; on Thursday, February 1st at 6:00 p.m. (If
you would like to sponsor the ‘5 Breads’
for the Artoklasia Service during the Vespers in prayerful memory of
loved ones (living or reposed), please call the Office).
ü
Annual Dues 2006
Dear Parishioners, please remember to pay your
Annual Dues for the year 2006 ($350.00) as soon as possible. Your generous
contributions are directed towards the reduction of the debt and the general
operation of the Church. The deadline
to pay your 2006 dues is January 31st, 2007.
ü
2007 Church Calendar
We have received the 2007 Church Calendar with
two selections of beautiful Icons for your homes and offices, please take a
copy from the Vestibule today, we are asking for a generous $5.00 donation. God bless you!
ü
Summer Trip to Greece (Reservation Deadline is Near!!!)
Interested in traveling to Greece this summer
(June 3rd – 15th) and visiting lots of beautiful Churches
& Monasteries, Historic Ruins, Old Markets, Beautiful Beaches, Land Marks
& Awe-inspiring Scenery?
We had our first important information session
with Mr. Ghassan Naufal from ‘Skyexpress Travel’, who, upon the request of many
of our parishioners, introduced this trip to us and answered many questions. The deadline for
reservations and downpayments is the end of this month (January), for
more details please call the Cathedral Office.
ü Church Beautification
“Blessed are those who love the beauty of Thy House, O Lord”
Our Iconographer may unfortunately
be retiring in the near future and we are looking to finish (while we still
can) the empty areas over the Altar and over the Choir Loft with a beautiful
new set of icons. Some icons are already donated by some parishioners and they
will be delivered and installed in the near future. Other icons left for
selection are: Thomas Sunday; The Mystical/Last Supper; The Holy Hymnographers;
Myrrh Bearers at the Tomb; Christ appearing at Tiberias; Christ appearing at
Emmaus and the Breaking of the Bread; and many more! If you are
interested in donating any icons, please contact Fr. Ghattas in the office or
speak to him after the Divine Liturgy.
ü
Fellowship of St. John
the Divine (New Time)
Weekly Meeting every Tuesday from 6:45 p.m. – 7:45 p.m. SHARP!
Please be on time. A Bible Study/Religious Discussion will take place in
the Church School Building (1st Floor). Please give us your email
address if you are not receiving our weekly online newsletter & calendar.
* For our regular weekly meeting on Tuesday,
January 30th at 6:30 p.m. in the Cathedral Hall downstairs,
Sub-Deacon George Saikali will be giving a presentation about the meaning of “Great
Lent”, based on the book:
‘Great Lent – Journey to Pascha’ by Fr. Alexander Schmemann.
ü
Teen SOYO (New Time)
Weekly Meeting every Wednesday from 7:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. SHARP! in the Cathedral Hall downstairs. Please be on time.
* Attention
Parents: We are responsible for
your children when they are inside the Church Building attending the Teen SOYO
activity, which is under the supervision of the Clergy and Youth Workers. Please be sure to bring and pick them up
from the meeting on time, as we are not responsible for them after 8:30 p.m.
when the meeting is over. If your teen(s) are not attending (or do not know about) the meetings
and would like to attend, please call the Office and let us know so that we can
welcome your children when they come. We have a mix of activities: Sports,
Games, Activities, Fundraising, Religious Discussions, Bible Studies, etc.
Please give us your email address if you are not receiving our weekly online
newsletter & calendar. Also, if you would like to know and make sure that
your teens are attending the meetings, we do take attendance each time, please call the Office and speak with
Fr. Mark.
ü
Altar Boys 12th
Reunion – Sunday, February 4th 2007
Attention all Altar Boys, who are serving now
and have served in the past. You are all invited to participate in the
celebration of the 12th Reunion of the Altar Boys of St. Elias
Cathedral on Sunday, February 4th 2007. You are welcome to come and
serve in the Altar and join us for a small lunch after the Divine Liturgy in
the Cathedral Hall downstairs.
ü
Solemn Vespers for the
Unity of the Churches
You are all invited by Archbishop Marcel
Gervais to a Solemn Vespers Service for the Unity of the Churches at Notre Dame
Cathedral today (Sunday, January 21st 2007) at 3:00 p.m. which will
be followed by a reception. The Orthodox Churches will be represented by His
Grace Bishop Seraphim of Ottawa (OCA) and Fr. Ghattas Hajal, who is the
President of the Eastern Orthodox Clergy Association of Ottawa, along with the
participation of other Orthodox Priests in Ottawa.
+ May Their Memory Be Eternal +
+ St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral +
(2975 Riverside Drive – Ottawa)
Cathedral Office: 700 Ridgewood Ave
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1V 6N1
Telephone: (613) 738-2222, Fax: (613) 737-4392
Email: info@steliascathedral.com, Website:
www.steliascathedral.com
The Rt. Rev. Bishop ALEXANDER
Bishop of Ottawa, Eastern
Canada and Upstate New York
The Very Rev. Father Ghattas Hajal – Dean
Rev. Father Mark Arsenios Wyatt – Assistant Priest
The Very
Rev. Father Daniel Matheson – Emeritus
St. Elias Antiochian
Orthodox Cathedral
Invites you and your family to a delicious
Fundraising Dinner
(Featuring: Lebanese Food)
All proceeds to assist Orthodox
Christian Orphanages in Guatemala and Mexico.
“Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father
is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” – James 1:27
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Date: Sunday,
January 21st, 2007
Time: 6:00pm - Little Compline
at St. Elias Orthodox
Cathedral.
6:30 p.m. - Dinner, St. Elias Centre
Tickets: $20.00 Adults, $10.00 Children
(Children 2 years and under – FREE)
*If you would like to make
a donation to the orphanage, please make cheques payable to St. Elias
Cathedral for tax-deductible receipts with Orphanage – Guatemala in the memo.*
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