ST JOSEPH THE
BETROTHED
Melkite-Greek
Catholic CHURCH
725 W. Mt. Hope
Ave, Lansing, MI 48910 517-575-6264
FMailing Address: 921 Westover Circle, Lansing, MI 48917E
Rev. Father James
K. Graham, Pastor frjamie@earthlink.net
Rev. Protodeacon
Joseph Daratony
248-719-5169
Phone or
email Fr James with items for the bulletin by Thursday night.
Troparion of St Gregory the Theologian (Tone1)
The sweet melody of your theological teachings has
overcome
the noisy blasts of orators, for God has granted you the
power
of penetrating spiritual depths and the gift of brilliant
literary talent.
Gregory, our Father, intercede with Christ God that He
may save our souls.
25 January 2011—16th
Sunday of the Holy Cross: the Pharisee and the Publican. Holy Father Gregory the Theologian. (Tone 8)
Readings Apostolos: Hebrews 7:26-8:2 Gospel: Luke 18:10-14
10:30 am Orthros (Morning Prayer)
11 am Divine
Liturgy of St John Chrysostom for the health and salvation of Fr James Babcock (34th
Ordination Anniversary), Marjorie
Daratony and Jean Graham (birthdays), Maarouf
Khouri, Dennis Flint, Eleanora Lindo, Mikayla Slocum, Michel Skouri, Samira
El-Chaer, Awatef Chahine, Raymond Rashid, Bonita Saba, Griffin Barna, Jim
Covello, David Georges, Elias Atallah, Ralph Farhat, Robert Kuri, Pam Nakfoor,
Isaac Salim, Iva Butler, Cam, Janice, Jeanne, Wayne Gowdy, Lucy Palmer, Kelsey,
Kamal & Eugenie Neimat,
Elaine & Eva-Genevieve Scarborough, Michael Maslowski, Clay Thomas, Michael
Harmuth, Elias Haggar, Dn. Joe Daratony, Fr Joseph Haggar,; in memory of Soad Haddad (William & Ramona
Haddad & Family), George Abdelkarim (Awatef
Fawaz), Ilham Sakr (Naemi Badawi), Rosie Bulos (Natalie Hazel), Charles Saba (Siham Calille), Nickolas Nakfoor (Joann Bell), and Louis Zarka (Linda Ketchum).
31 January 2015—2 pm:
Great Vespers.
1 February 2014—17th
Sunday of the Holy Cross: The Prodigal
Son. Celebration of the Great Feast of
Hypapanty (the Meeting of the Lord with His People) Holy Martyr Tryphon. (Tone 1)
Readings Apostolos: Hebrews 7:7-17 Gospel: Luke 15:11-32
11 am Divine Liturgy of St John Chrysostom for
the health and salvation of Eleanora
Lindo; in memory of Nickolas Nakfoor (Nara Carey), Louis Zarka (Siham Calille), Charles Saba (Ann Rashid), Michael
P. Garten and Fr. Howard Hall (Fr
James).
Troparia and Kontakion for Today
- Troparion of the Resurrection, in Tone 8, Liturgikon, page 195.
- Troparion of St Gregory the Theologian, in Tone 1.
- Troparion of St Joseph, in Tone 4, page 30A.
- Kontakion of Hypapanty, in Tone 1, page 238.
Our Offerings to the Lord
The collection taken in the Liturgy is part of our
worship. We offer the Lord our lives,
our prayers, our gifts of bread and wine, and our financial gifts. About 85 people attended last Sunday’s Liturgy. Our offering totalled $1052 in the ordinary
collection and $415 for memorials and houseblessings.
Enjoy Youth Group Soup After Church Today
What’s better for lunch on
a chilly Sunday than hot homemade soup? Our NAMY group will offer a Soup Lunch today
after the Liturgy. They will sell both
cups and bowls of at least four different homemade soups, to eat in the parish
hall or to take home and enjoy later.
Please buy soup from our teen group to support their efforts to attend
the National Youth Conference in the summer.
Many thanks to Jimmy Fawaz for repairing the broken fan in the
refrigerator, which caused all our soups to spoil last week.
Prayer Service for Mid-East Christians Wednesday 7 pm
At 7 pm this Wednesday, 28
January, we will sing the service of the Paraklisis to seek the help of the
Theotokos for the Christians in the Middle East, especially in Iraq and Syria. Many have been forced out of their homes, and
many were martyred for their faith. Bishop
Francis Kalabat of St. Thomas Chaldean Diocese asked all Catholics in the US to
join the Chaldean Church and their Patriarch in Baghdad in prayer for this difficult
and horrific situation. Bishop Francis
sent this prayer to all US bishops:
Mother of God, Virgin Mary,
be for us a safeguard from all illnesses and hardships. Through the great love you have for Christ,
ask and beseech Him to be merciful to us, to give healing to our ailments, to
console the downtrodden, to reunite those who are scattered, and to forgive us.
Schedule Your House Blessing With Fr James
Fr James is blessing houses
(and places of business) with the “Jordan Water” blessed on Theophany. If possible, he would like to bless several
houses in the same neighborhood on the same day. With thanks in advance for your generous
hospitality, he asks that not everyone offer him food (his doctor has told him
he needs to lose weight!). If you wish
to make an offering for your house blessing, please make it to St Joseph
Church, not to Father James personally.
Contact him after the Liturgy or at home to set the day and time for
your house blessing.
Today is Youth Sunday
Many thanks to our youth for
singing, reading, serving, ushering, and providing hospitality today.
Choir Will Practice on Fridays of Great Lent
On the Friday evenings of
Great Lent, beginning 20 February, the choir will have a short practice either
before or after the singing of the Akathist Hymn. All members of the choir must make every
effort to participate in the practices, which will concentrate on the chants
for Holy Week and Pascha. Those people
who join the choir only for those services also need to come to the practices.
45th Annual Interfaith Day Set
for 24 February
The 45th Annual
Lansing Interfaith Day will be held from 9 am until 2 pm on Tuesday 24
February at Trinity African Methodist Episcopal Church, 3500 Holmes Road,
Lansing. “Faith in Community Action” is
the theme for this year. Tickets cost
$10 each, lunch included. Please bring a
box of healthy breakfast cereal for the Greater Lansing Food Bank. People from St Joseph’s who wish to attend
should contact Su Butler as soon as possible.
Su is willing to collect the money and purchase the tickets for our
group. If you prefer to order your own
ticket, send a check made out to “Interfaith” for $10 and a stamped
self-addressed envelope to Molly Beckwith, 2000 Holly Way, Lansing, MI 48910.
Saint Gregory the Theologian
Gregory,
one of the greatest names in Church history, was a theologian, writer, and
orator. Born in the year 329 in Arianza,
near Nazianza of Cappadocia, he studied in Caesarea, Alexandria, and Athen, the
last two cities being in those days the centers of western culture. In Athens, Gregory encountered Basil, who was
to become Basil the Great, and a deep friendship developed between them. In 357, Gregory returned to Cappadocia where
he was baptized and led a life of ascetical holiness with his friend. He was later ordained priest in
Nazianza. Still later, his friend Basil
consecrated him bishop of the suffragan see of Caesarea In 375 he retired once more into solitude,
leading the life of a hermit for four years.
He was elected Patriarch of Constantinople in 379, applying all his
talents to writing and preaching, suffering the while to restore peace in the
see of Constantinople, which was being torn by divisions and the Arian
heresy. Emperor Theodosius became a
helper and a friend. Gregory presided
over the Second Ecumenical Council, held in Constantinople in 381, after which
he resigned his patriarchal dignity and retired to the place of his birth,
where he died in 389 or 390. (From Byzantine Daily Worship by Archbishop Joseph Raya.)
St Gregory the Theologian, who was the
patron of our diocesan seminary until it was closed by Bishop John Elya, is
also commemorated, with Basil the Great and John Chrysostom, on 30 January. In the year 1100 there was a dispute over
which was the greatest. The Patriarch
prayed for God’s guidance, and the Three Holy Hierarchs appeared to him in a
dream. They said that they were equal
before God, each with his own personality, genius, and power, and asked him to
institute a feast honoring all three of them together. This returned peace and unity to the Church
of Constantinople. Perhaps the greatest
contribution of these three Cappadocian Fathers was their exposition of the
mystery of God as three persons in one essence.
