Weekly Bulletin

His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas

120 W. Seneca St. Ithaca, NY 14850 http://www.stcatherine.ny.goarch.org

TEL. 607-273-2767 e-mail: stcatherinegoc@gmail.com

Fr. Zenoviy Zharsky /607/ 245-9988

 

Sunday, August 3, 2025

 

Welcome all visitors, please come again.

 

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"By changing ourselves in Christ, we are able to change the world around us"

 

Please let Father know who is in need of visiting and prayers. 

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Daily reading of the holy scripture, Saints for the day, liturgical schedule, news from the parish life, announcements and more, please read the Sunday Bulletin on the parish websitewww.stcatherine.ny.goarch.org 

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Scripture Reading: Matins: Gospel Reading: John 20-11:18. Divine Liturgy Epistle: 1 Corinthians 1:10-17. Gospel: Matthew 14:14-22.

When you write your will, won't you please remember St. Catherine's Church? Such a gift will live forever as our church minister to our spiritual needs and others It's an investment in the Gospel of our Lord and life eternal 

Announcement: If you didn't give names and date of your birthdays and your families birthdays please provide them. Also please give the names and dates of your family members who fell asleep in the Lord. We will remember them during the Liturgy. The list of the names located near the Sundays Bulletins. Thank you.                                                                                     

We pray for those who celebrate their birthday. Хρόνια πολλά & ευλογημενα! God grant you many years!  August 4 William Shezas, 4 Nick Stratakos, 6 Nico Karantzoulis, 9 Andrea Stephanou. 

Friday, August 1^st - Dormition Fast begins. Νηστεια της Παναγιας!                                             

To honor the Dormition (Koimisis) of the Mother of God, we warmly invite you to join us for the Paraklesis (Supplication) Service. Bilingual booklets will be available for congregational singing and praying this beautiful prayer to the Theotokos. Please bring the names of your loved ones to be lifted in prayers. Please inform in advance if you wish to offer artoklasia - the blessing of bread, wine, and oil - for your family's health and well - being in celebration of the Dormition Feast. The Fast of the Dormition of the Theotokos starts on August 1 and adheres to the fasting rules of Lent.                                            

Friday, August 1, at 6:00 PM - Paraklesis.        

Tuesday, August 5, at 6:00 PM - Great Vespers. Feast of the Metamorphosis / Transfiguration of Our Lord. Blessing of the grapes.

Wednesday, August 6, at 10:00 AM - Divine Liturgy. Blessing of the grapes.                                          

Friday, August 8, at 6:00 PM - Paraklesis.    

Monday, August 11, at 6:00 PM - Paraklesis.

Thursday, August 14, at 6:00 PM - Great Vespers. Feast of the Dormition.                                        

Friday, August 15, at 10:00 AM - Divine Liturgy. Feast of the Dormition.

 

Liturgical Schedule: 

Daily 3:00 PM. Let's pray Jesus Prayer for 10 minutes straight saying,"Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner." 

 

Monday, August 4 - 3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" Day of Fasting.  

 

Tuesday, August 5 - 3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" Day of Fasting.

6:00 PM - Great Vespers. Feast of the Metamorphosis / Transfiguration of Our Lord. Blessing of the grapes.  

 

Wednesday, August 6 - 10:00 AM. Divine Liturgy. Feast of the Metamorphosis / Transfiguration of Our Lord. Blessing of the grapes.

3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" 

Day of Fasting.  Every Wednesday we remember when Judas betrayed Christ.                                                      

6:00 PM. Prayers near Miraculous Icon Mother of God "The Tender Heart" St. George's Orthodox Church in Taylor, PA.

 

Thursday, August 7 - 3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" Day of Fasting.  

 

Friday, August 8 - 3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner." 

Every Friday we commemorate Christ's Crucifixion. Day of Fasting.                                   

6:00 PM. Paraklesis to the Mother of God. 

 

Saturday, August 9 - 3:00 PM. Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" Day of Fasting.

6:00 PM. Great Vespers/Confession. Reading the life of the Saints. Catechism classes following the Vespers. 

 

Sunday, August 10 - 8:45 AM Orthros/Confession. 10:00 AM Divine Liturgy. Trisagion in memory of Stergeos G. Arvantides, Heidi Kollias and Peter B. Nickles. Day of Fasting. Every Sunday we commemorate Christ's resurrection. 

Feast of the Metamorphosis - Transfiguration of Our Lord. The Transfiguration of Christ is one of the central events recorded in the Gospels. Messiah, the Son of the Living God, took Peter, James, and John "up to a high mountain" by Mount Tabor and was "transfigured before them." (Mt 17:1-92. Mk 9:1-9. Lk 9:28-36. 2 Peter 1:16-18).  The Jewish Festival of Booths was a feast of the dwelling of God with men, and the transfiguration of Christ reveals how this dwelling takes place in and through the Messiah in human flesh. There is little doubt that Christ's transfiguration took place at the time of the Festival of Booths, and that the celebration of the event in the Christian Church became the New Testamental fulfillment of the Old Testamental feast in a way similar to the feasts of Passover and Pentecost. In the Transfiguration, the apostles see the glory of the Kingdom of God present in majesty in the person of Christ They see that in Him, indeed, all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell," that "in Him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily" (Col 1:19, 2:9). They see this before the crucifixion so that in the resurrection they might know who it is who has suffered for them, and what it is that this one, who is God, has prepared for those who love him. This is what the Church celebrates in the feast of the Transfiguration.

Besides the fundamental meaning which the event of the Transfiguration has in the context of the life and mission of Christ, and in addition to the theme of the glory of God which is revealed in all of its divine splendor in the face of the Saviour, the presence of Moses and Elijahis also of great significance for the understanding and celebration of the feast. Many of the hymns refer to these two leading figures of the Old Covenant as do the three scripture readings of Vespers which tell of the manifestation of the glory of God to these holy men of old (Ex 24:12-18; 33:11-34:8; 1 Kings 19:3-16). Moses and Elijah, according to the liturgical verses, are not only the greatest figures of the Old Testament who now come to worship the Son of God in glory, they also are not merely two of the holy men to whom God has revealed himself in the prefigurative theophanies of the Old Covenant of Israel. These two figures actually stand for the Old Testament itself: Moses for the Law and Elijah for the Prophets. And Christ is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets (Mt 5:17). They also stand for the living and dead, for Moses died and his burial place is known, while Elijah was taken alive into heaven in order to appear again to announce the time of God's salvation in Christ the Messiah. Thus, in appearing with Jesus on the mount of Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah show that the Messiah Saviour is here, and that he is the Son of God to whom the Father himself bears witness, the Lord of all creation, of the Old and New Testaments, of the living and the dead. The Transfiguration of Christ in itself is the fulfillment of all of the theophanies and manifestations of God, a fulfillment made perfect and complete in the person of Christ. The Transfiguration of Christ reveals to us our ultimate destiny as Christians, the ultimate destiny of all men and all creation to be transformed and glorified by the majestic splendor of God himself. The feast of the Transfiguration is presently celebrated on the sixth of August, probably for some historical reason. The summer celebration of the feast, however, has lent itself very well to the theme of transfiguration. The blessing of grapes, as well as other fruits on this day is the most beautiful and adequate sign of the final transfiguration of all things in Christ. It signifies the ultimate flowering and fruitfulness of all creation in the paradise of God's unending Kingdom of Life where all will be transformed by the glory of the Lord. 

Θεία Μεταμόρφωση του Σωτήρος - 6 Αυγούστου. Ο Ιησούς στο όρος Θαβώρ, μπροστά στα έκπληκτα μάτια των τριών Μαθητών Του, "μεταμορφώθηκε μπροστά τους· έλαμψε το πρόσωπό Του σαν τον ήλιο και τα ενδύματά Του έγιναν άσπρα σαν το φως" (Ματθ. 17,2). Οι Μαθητές ήσαν συνηθισμένοι να βλέπουν τον Διδάσκαλό τους ως ένα απλό άνθρωπο. Πρώτη φορά Τον βλέπουν μέσα στο λαμπρό φως και να ακτινοβολεί το υπερκόσμιο φώς Του ως άλλος ήλιος. Μεγάλη η έκπληξή τους και όταν είδαν να εμφανίζονται δίπλα στον Ιησού οι Προφήτες Μωυσής και Ηλίας, να συνομιλούν μαζί Του, και να επιβεβαιώνουν με τη στάση τους ότι ο Ιησούς είναι ο Μεσσίας, του οποίου τον ερχομό στον κόσμο ως Σωτήρα είχαν εξαγγείλει αιώνες πριν. Και ο θαυμασμός των Μαθητών κορυφὠθηκε όταν μέσα από ένα φωτεινό σύννεφο που τους σκέπασε, άκουσαν τη φωνή του Θεού Πατέρα να τους λέγει: "Αυτός είναι ο αγαπημένος μου Υιός, αυτός είναι ο εκλεκτός μου· αυτόν να ακούτε" (Ματθ. 17,5). Η Μεταμόρφωση, όπως επεξηγούν και οι ύμνοι της Εκκλησίας, έγινε για να ενισχύσει ο Κύριος τους Μαθητές Του και να στερεώσει την πίστη τους προς Αυτόν, ώστε να μη σκανδαλιστούν και απογοητευτούν, όταν αργότερα θα Τον έβλεπαν να υποβάλλεται σε φρικτά πάθη και να πεθαίνει επάνω στον Σταυρό! Έτσι, τους διαφύλαξε από την απελπισία, και τους έδωσε τη δύναμη, αργότερα, κατά τις αποστολικές τους περιοδείες στα έθνη, να διακηρύττουν με επιχειρήματα ότι ο Ιησούς είναι ο αληθινός Θεός. Αργότερα, ο Πέτρος στην Β' Επιστολή του με έμφαση αναφέρεται στο γεγονός της Μεταμορφώσεως του Κυρίου, για τα όσα είδε και άκουσε, και βεβαιώνει: "Δεν βασιστήκαμε σε περίτεχνους μύθους για να σας γνωστοποιήσουμε τη δυναμική έλευση του Κυρίου μας Ιησού Χριστού. Με τα ίδια μας τα μάτια είδαμε το μεγαλείο Του, τότε που ο Θεός Πατέρας Του έδωσε τιμή και δόξα, κι η ένδοξη μεγαλοπρέπειά Του αναφώνησε γι' Αυτόν τέτοια φωνή: Αυτός είναι ο αγαπητός μου Υιός, αυτός είναι ο εκλεκτός μου. Κι αυτή τη φωνή εμείς οι ίδιοι, που ήμασταν μαζί Του στο άγιο εκείνο βουνό, την ακούσαμε να έρχεται από τον ουρανό" (Β' Πέτρ. 1,16-18). *** 

The Seven Holy Maccabee Martyrs - August 1.  The seven holy Maccabee martyrs Abim, Antonius, Gurias, Eleazar, Eusebonus, Alimus and Marcellus, their mother Solomonia and their teacher Eleazar suffered in the year 166 before Christ under the impious Syrian king Antiochus IV Epiphanes. This foolish ruler loved pagan and Hellenistic customs, and held Jewish customs in contempt. He did everything possible to turn people from the Law of Moses and from their covenant with God. He desecrated the Temple of the Lord, placed a statue of the pagan god Zeus there, and forced the Jews to worship it. Many people abandoned the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but there were also those who continued to believe that the Savior would come. A ninety-year-old elder, the scribe and teacher Eleazar, was brought to trial for his faithfulness to the Mosaic Law. He suffered tortures and died at Jerusalem. The disciples of St. Eleazar, the seven Maccabee brothers and their mother Solomonia, also displayed great courage. They were brought to trial in Antioch by King Antiochus Epiphanes. They fearlessly acknowledged themselves as followers of the True God, and refused to eat pig's flesh, which was forbidden by the Law. The eldest brother acted as spokesmen for the rest, saying that they preferred to die rather than break the Law. He was subjected to fierce tortures in sight of his brothers and their mother. His tongue was cut out, he was scalped, and his hands and feet were cut off. Then a cauldron and a large frying pan were heated, and the first brother was thrown into the frying pan, and he died. The next five brothers were tortured one after the other. The seventh and youngest brother was the last one left alive. Antiochus suggested to St. Solomonia to persuade the boy to obey him, so that her last son at least would be spared. Instead, the brave mother told him to imitate the courage of his brothers. The child upbraided the king and was tortured even more cruelly than his brothers had been. After all her seven children had died. St. Solomonia, stood over their bodies, raised up her hands in prayer to God and died. The martyric death of the Maccabee brothers inspired Judas Maccabeus, and he led a revolt against Antiochus Epiphanes. With God's help, he gained the victory, and then purified the Temple at Jerusalem. All these events are related in the Bible, Second Book of Maccabees (Ch. 8-10). The incorruptible body of Saint Solomoni is treasured at the Patriarchal Church of Saint George in Constantinople.

 

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Methods of Giving:

Cash and checks can be brought to the church and put in the donation baskets.

 

Checks made out to Saint Catherine Greek Orthodox Church can also be mailed to:

St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church

120 W. Seneca St Ithaca, NY 14850

 

When you write your will, won't you please remember St. Catherine's Church? Such a gift will live forever as our church minister to our spiritual needs and others. It's an investment in the Gospel of our Lord and life eternal.

 

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