Bulletin for October 14, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …

St. Basil the Great

Store up in your minds the Lord’s words which you receive through your ears, for the word of the Lord is the nourishment of the mind. When His word is heard but not stored away in the memory, it is like food which has been eaten and then rejected by an upset stomach. A person’s life is despaired of if he cannot retain his food; so if you receive the food of holy exhortations, but fail to store in your memory those words of life which nurture righteousness, you have good reason to fear the danger of everlasting death. Be careful that the seed does not fall along the path, for fear that the evil spirit may come and take it from your memory. Be careful that the seed is not received in stony ground, so that it produces a harvest of good works without the roots of perseverance. Many people are pleased with what they hear and resolve to undertake some good work, but as soon as difficulties begin to arise and hinder them they leave the work unfinished. The stony ground lacked the necessary moisture for the sprouting seed to yield the fruit of perseverance.

Good earth, on the other hand, brings forth fruit by patience. The reason for this is that nothing we do is good unless we also bear with equanimity the injuries done us by our neighbors. In fact, the more we progress, the more hardships we shall have to endure in this world; for when our love for the present world dies, its sufferings increase. This is why we see many people doing good works and at the same time struggling under a heavy burden of afflictions. They now shun earthly desires, and yet they are tormented by greater sufferings. But, as the Lord said, they bring forth fruit by patience, because, since they humbly endure misfortunes, they are welcomed when these are over into a place of rest in heaven.

Announcements

Last Sunday, 92 souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, Priests’ Medical Insurance $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity. Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet:  Oct 21 – open. Oct 28 – open, Nov 5 – open. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to Murin family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Priests’ Medical Insurance Collection is taken today, Sunday, October 14th. This special collection helps subsidize the medical insurance premiums of our priests. Your outstanding generosity in previous collections has been extremely helpful. Bishop John, thankful as always, asks each eparchial household to pray and consider what it can contribute this year. Medical insurance premiums, as you undoubtedly know, are very expensive and still on the rise. Our Eparchy has been burdened financially with these increased premiums. Each month is a new struggle to make ends meet, even with practical efforts to curb expenses. The goal this year is $ per household, please be as generous as your financial situation allows. God bless you for your continued support and generosity.

Please help with the goods for Christmas around the World Festival held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento (on November 10).  We are hoping for more baked goods, as well as crafts and Christmas rummage for our tables.

Thank you to our baking crew who volunteered their Saturday for baking rolls (nut, poppyseed and apricot) for St. Philip’s table at Christmas Around the World Festival.

Altar Server Vestments. Thank you all for your generosity. We collected $ and have ordered new vestments.

Our Future Cantors, if you wish to learn liturgical singing, all Metropolitan Cantor Institute (MCI) Online classes are enabled for guest access for free. If you want to do the coursework and receive personalized feedback and assistance with your singing, you can register for the classes and they are inexpensive. The link is http://mci.archpitt.org/classes.  You are also invited to approach one of our serving cantors and ask to sing with them.

Upcoming events:

* November 10th – Christmas around the World Festival (at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church across from McKinley Park in Sacramento).

Liturgical schedule

Mon
Oct 15th
6:30 AM Divine Liturgy:  *Priests and Seminarians of FSSP.

Weds
Oct 17th
5:30 PM Akathistos to the Mother of God.

Sun
Oct 21st
8:30 AM Confessions.
9:10 AM Office of the 3rd Hour.
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
21st Sunday after Pentecost. Tone 5. Cantor: Gene Ford. Reader: Steve Prescott.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

Bulletin for Oct. 7, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …

St. Basil the Great

It is beneficial to communicate [meaning: receive communion] every day, to partake of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ, for he distinctly says: “He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life.”

St. Gregory of Nyssa
…the God who was manifested infused himself into perishable humanity for this purpose, viz., that by this communion with Deity mankind might at the same time be deified, for this end it is that, by dispensing of His grace, He disseminated Himself in every believer through that flesh, whose substance comes from bread and wine, blending Himself with the bodies of believers, in order that man, too, may be a sharer in incorruption by this union with the immortal. He gives these gifts by virtue of the benediction through which He transelements the natural quality of these visible things to that immortal thing.

Announcements

Last Sunday, 40+ souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, altar server vestments $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity. Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet: Oct 14 – Prescott family, Oct 21 – open. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to McDonough family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Parish Advisory Board will meet next Sunday, October 14th, at 11:15 in the parish hall.

Priests’ Medical Insurance Collection. On Sunday, October 14th, our Eparchy will once again take a special collection to help subsidize the medical insurance premiums of our priests. Your outstanding generosity in previous collections has been extremely helpful. Bishop John, thankful as always, asks each eparchial household to pray and consider what it can contribute this year. Medical insurance premiums, as you undoubtedly know, are very expensive and still on the rise. Our Eparchy has been burdened financially with these increased premiums. Each month is a new struggle to make ends meet, even with practical efforts to curb expenses. The goal this year is $ per household, please be as generous as your financial situation allows. God bless you for your continued support and generosity.

Please help with the goods for Christmas around the World Festival held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento (on November 10). We will have a baking day on October 13th, which will serve as demonstration or learning time for you to do some baking at home. The day will start at 10 AM, here at St. Philip’s. Come and bake. To estimate interest, please let Fr. Francis know you will be attending.

Altar Server Vestments. Thank you all for your generosity, we have now collected/pledged sufficient funds to order two sets of server vestments. To have them hand-made requires ordering fabric and trim, which will take some time, we hope to have the vestments completed by Christmas. The final amount of collected donation will be published in the bulletin. Thank you for your support.

November 2 – 4th: “Come and See” Men between the ages of 18 and 35 who may be considering a vocation to the priesthood in the Byzantine Catholic Church are invited to attend this weekend of discernment at the Metropolitan Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. There is no charge for the weekend (travel expenses are the responsibility of the individual). For further information or registration contact the Seminary at http://www.bcs.edu. Deadline for registration is October 10th.

Upcoming events:

*October 13th – 10 a.m. Baking Day!

*October 14th – Special collection “Priests’ Medical Insurance.”

* November 10th – Christmas around the World Festival (at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento).

Liturgical schedule

Thu
Oct 11th
5:30 PM Akathistos to the Mother of God.

Sun
Oct 14th
8:30 AM Confessions.
9:00 AM Baptism
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
Sunday of the Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Council. Tone 4. Cantor: Tim Del Castillo. Reader: Gene Ford.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

Bulletin for Sep. 30, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …

St. Isaac of Nineveh

When a man overcomes justice by mercy, he is crowned, though not with crowns awarded under the law to the righteous, but with the crowns of the mature who are under the gospel. The ancient law also dictates that a man must give to the poor from his own means, and clothe the naked, and love his neighbor as himself. It forbids injustice and lying. But the perfection of the gospels dispensation commands the following: “Give to every man that asks of you, and of him that takes away your goods ask them not again.” And further, a man must not merely with joy suffer injustice as regards his possessions and the rest of the external things that come upon him, but he must also lay down his life for his brother. This is the merciful man.

St. Ephrem the Syrian
“An eye for an eye” is the perfection of justice. “Whoever strikes you on the cheek, turn the other to him” is the consummation of grace. While both continually have their criteria, he proposed them to us through the two successive Testaments. The first Testament had the killing of animals for compensation, because justice did not permit that one should die in place of another. The second Testament was established through the blood of a man, who through his grace gave himself on behalf of all. One therefore was the beginning, and the other the completion. He in whom are both the end and the beginning is perfect. In the case of those who do not understand, the beginning and end are estranged one from the other. In the study of them, however, they are one. Therefore this principle of a blow for a blow has indeed been transformed. If you strive for perfection, whoever strikes you, turn to him the other [cheek].

Announcements

Last Sunday, 45 souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, altar server vestments $, jam sale $, Bishop’s Appeal rebate $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity.
Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet: Oct 7 – Murin family, Oct 14 – Prescott family. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to Agayoff family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Priests’ Medical Insurance Collection. On Sunday, October 14th, our Eparchy will once again take a special collection to help subsidize the medical insurance premiums of our priests. Your outstanding generosity in previous collections has been extremely helpful. Bishop John, thankful as always, asks each eparchial household to pray and consider what it can contribute this year. Medical insurance premiums, as you undoubtedly know, are very expensive and still on the rise. Our Eparchy has been burdened financially with these increased premiums. Each month is a new struggle to make ends meet, even with practical efforts to curb expenses. The goal this year is $100.00 per household, please be as generous as your financial situation allows. God bless you for your continued support and generosity.

Our pre-Christmas events are fast approaching. As in years past, our parish will participate in Christmas around the world festival held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento (on November 10). We will have baking days in October (on Saturday mornings), to prepare for the event. If you are willing to chair the event for our parish, please contact Fr. Francis. Likewise, if you are interested in helping us bake, contact Fr. Francis.

Altar Server Vestments. Our altar server vestments are due for replacement. We are in need of 4-6 vestments of bright color at this time. The cost of one vestment is around $200, depending on size. Beginning this first Sunday of September and for two following Sundays, we’ll take the second collection for this purpose. You can also send your donation to parish office, please mark your donation “server vestments.” Thank you in advance for your support.

November 2 – 4th: “Come and See” Men between the ages of 18 and 35 who may be considering a vocation to the priesthood in the Byzantine Catholic Church are invited to attend this weekend of discernment at the Metropolitan Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. There is no charge for the weekend (travel expenses are the responsibility of the individual). For further information or registration contact the Seminary at http://www.bcs.edu. Deadline for registration is October 10th.

Upcoming events:

*October 1st – Feast of the Protection of Mary – Patronage of our Eparchy.

*October 14th – Special collection “Priests’ Medical Insurance.”

* November 10th – Christmas around the World Festival (at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento).

Liturgical schedule

Mon
Oct 1st
5:30 PM Divine Liturgy.
Holy Protection of the Theotokos – Solemn Feast, Patronage of our Eparchy.

Wed
Oct 3rd
5:30 PM Akathistos to the Mother of God.

Sun
Oct 7th
8:30 AM Confessions.
9:00 AM Baptism
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
20th Sunday after Pentecost. Tone 3. Cantor: Amy Seyfried. Reader: Tim Del Castillo.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

Bulletin for Sep. 23, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That He may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …

St. Maximus of Turin

That you may understand that the Lord was speaking of spiritual fishing, however, Peter says, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” It is as if he were saying, “Through the whole night our fishing has brought us nothing, and we have been laboring in vain. Now I will not fish with fishing gear but with grace, not with diligence acquired by skill but with the perseverance acquired by devotion.” When Peter lets down the nets at the word, therefore, he is in fact letting down the teachings in Christ. When he unfolds the tightly woven and well-ordered nets at the command of the Master, he is really laying out words in the name of the Savior in a fitting and clear fashion. By these words he is able to save not creatures but souls. “We toiled all night,” he says, “and took nothing.” Peter, who beforehand was unable to see in order to make a catch, enduring darkness without Christ, had indeed toiled through the whole night. But when the Savior’s light shone upon him the darkness scattered, and by faith he began to discern in the deep what he could not see with his eyes.

Announcements

Last Sunday, 67 souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, donations $, altar server vestments $, book sale $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity.
Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet: Sep 30 – McDonough family, Oct 7 – Murin family, Oct 14 – Prescott family. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to Ruby family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Our pre-Christmas events are fast approaching. As in years past, our parish will participate in Christmas around the world festival held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento (on November 10). We will have baking days in October (on Saturday mornings), to prepare for the event. If you are willing to chair the event for our parish, please contact Fr. Francis. Likewise, if you are interested in helping us bake, contact Fr. Francis.

Altar Server Vestments. Our altar server vestments are due for replacement. We are in need of 4-6 vestments of bright color at this time. The cost of one vestment is around $200, depending on size. Beginning this first Sunday of September and for two following Sundays, we’ll take the second collection for this purpose. You can also send your donation to parish office, please mark your donation “server vestments.” Thank you in advance for your support.

November 2 – 4th: “Come and See” Men between the ages of 18 and 35 who may be considering a vocation to the priesthood in the Byzantine Catholic Church are invited to attend this weekend of discernment at the Metropolitan Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. There is no charge for the weekend (travel expenses are the responsibility of the individual). For further information or registration contact the Seminary at http://www.bcs.edu. Deadline for registration is October 10th.

Upcoming events:

*October 1st – Feast of the Protection of Mary – Patronage of our Eparchy.

*Saturday, October 13th – Baptism of the Murin baby.

*October 14th – Special collection “Priests’ Medical Insurance.”

* November 10th – Christmas around the World Festival (at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento).

Liturgical schedule

Mon
Sep 24th
6:30 AM Divine Liturgy.

Wed
Sep 26th
5:30 PM Vespers.

Sun
Sep 30th
8:30 AM Confessions.
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
19th Sunday after Pentecost. Tone 2. Cantor: Gene Ford. Reader: Richard Agayoff.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

Bulletin for Sep. 16, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …
St. Caesarius of Arles

What does this mean, “take up a cross”? It means he will bear with whatever is troublesome, and in this very act he will be following me. When he has begun to follow me according to my teaching and precepts, he will find many people contradicting him and standing in his way, many who not only deride but even persecute him. Moreover, this is true, not only of pagans who are outside the church, but also of those who seem to be in it visibly, but are outside of it because of the perversity of their deeds. Although these glory in merely the title of Christian, they continually persecute faithful Christians. Such belong to the members of the church in the same way that bad blood is in the body. Therefore, if you wish to follow Christ, do not delay in carrying his cross; tolerate sinners, but do not yield to them. Do not let the false happiness of the wicked corrupt you. You do well to despise all things for the sake of Christ, in order that you may be fit for his companionship.

When the Lord tells us in the Gospel that anyone who wants to be his follower must renounce himself, the injunction seems harsh; we think he is imposing a burden on us. But an order is no burden when it is given by one who helps in carrying it out. To what place are we to follow Christ if not where he has already gone? We know that he has risen and ascended into heaven; there, then, we must follow him. There is no cause for despair—by ourselves we can do nothing, but we have Christ’s promise…. One who claims to abide in Christ ought to walk as he walked. Would you follow Christ? Then be humble as he was humble. Do not scorn his lowliness if you want to reach his exaltation. Human sin made the road rough. Christ’s resurrection leveled it. By passing over it himself he transformed the narrowest of tracks into a royal highway. Two feet are needed to run along this highway; they are humility and charity. Everyone wants to get to the top—well, the first step to take is humility. Why take strides that are too big for you—do you want to fall instead of going up? Begin with the first step, humility, and you will already be climbing.

Announcements

Last Sunday, 50 souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, donations $, altar server vestments $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity.
Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet: Sep 23 – Agayoff family, Sep 30 – open, Oct 7 – Murin family. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to Baker family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Our pre-Christmas events are fast approaching. As in years past, our parish will participate in Christmas around the world festival held at the Greek Orthodox Church in Sacramento (on November 10). We will have baking days in October (on Saturday mornings), to prepare for the event. If you are willing to chair the event for our parish, please contact Fr. Francis. Likewise, if you are interested in helping us bake, contact Fr. Francis.

Altar Server Vestments. Our altar server vestments are due for replacement. We are in need of 4-6 vestments of bright color at this time. The cost of one vestment is around $200, depending on size. Beginning this first Sunday of September and for two following Sundays, we’ll take the second collection for this purpose. You can also send your donation to parish office, please mark your donation “server vestments.” Thank you in advance for your support.

Parish Visitation. Thank you, Fr. Stephen Washko, our Syncellus, for being with us this weekend.

Liturgical schedule

Mon
Sep 17th
6:30 AM Divine Liturgy.

Wed
Sep 19th
5:30 PM Vespers.

Sun
Sep 23rd
8:30 AM Confessions.
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
18th Sunday after Pentecost. Tone 1. Cantor: Amy Seyfried. Reader: Tim Belke.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

 

Bulletin for Sep. 9, 2018

O Holy Apostle Philip,
Intercede with the merciful God
That he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

*************

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever! + Slava Isusu Christu! Slava i vo viki!

From the Fathers of the Church …

St. John Chrysostom

The proof of God’s love for us is that Christ died for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5: 8).’ St. Paul also gives us the highest reason for hope when he wrote: ‘If, when we were alienated from God, we were reconciled to him by the death of his Son, how much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life! (Romans 5: 10).’ It is this, above all, that made Paul so proud, so happy, so full of joy and exaltation that he wrote to the Galatians: ‘God forbid that I should glory in anything but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (Galatians 6: 14).’ The John the Evangelist words telling us that the Holy Spirit had not yet come because Jesus was not yet glorified, calling the cross glory. And when John wanted to show God’s love, he pointed to the cross, say: ‘God so loved the world that He gave his only Son, that all who believe in him might not perish but have eternal life (John 3: 16).’ Paul also writes: ‘Since He did not spare his only Son, but gave him up for us all, how can He fail to lavish every other gift upon us (Romans 8: 32).’ And in his exhortation to humility, Paul uses the example of Jesus, saying: ‘You should have the same dispositions s you find in Christ Jesus. Although his nature was divine, He did not cling to his equality with God, but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave. Bearing the human likeness, sharing the human lot, He humbled himself and was obedient even to point of dying; dying on a cross (Philippians 2: 5-8)!’

Announcements

Last Sunday, 52 souls came to pray at St. Philip’s, our tithes to the Lord were $, candles $, donations $, gift shop $, book sale $, altar server vestments $. Thank you for supporting our church, may God bless you abundantly for your generosity.
Please consider making St. Philip’s parish a part of your estate planning.

Prayer requests. Fr. Basil, Fr. Marcus, Fr. Chris, Fr. Jozef, Fr. Randall, Fr. Brendan, Fr. Ted & Barbara, Sr. Patricia, Gary and Ingrid, Margaret and Don, Walter, Adam, Margaret, Oceana, Becky, Alexis, Marion, Curtis, Ronald, Taylor, Lorrie, Rosa, Frances, Maros, Alex, Ted, Juraj, Joan, Stefan.

Hospitality signup sheet: Sep 16 – Ruby family, Sep 23 – Agayoff family, Sep 30 – open. Please sign up for hospitality for the upcoming Sundays; the signup sheet is in the parish hall. Thank you to Amy and Janson family for providing hospitality for us last Sunday.

Solemn feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is on Friday, September 14. By tradition, this is a day of strict fast and abstinence from meat and dairy foods.

Altar Server Vestments. Our altar server vestments are due for replacement. We are in need of 4-6 vestments of bright color at this time. The cost of one vestment is around $200, depending on size. Beginning this first Sunday of September and for two following Sundays, we’ll take the second collection for this purpose. You can also send your donation to parish office, please mark your donation “server vestments.” Thank you in advance for your support.

Parish Visitation. Fr. Stephen Washko, our Syncellus, will visit St. Philip’s September 13-17. Father will celebrate liturgies with us on the feast of the Exaltation (9/14), and Sunday 9/17. He will be available to meet with you during his time here, you can contact him at the Annunciation parish to arrange (714-533-6292).

Liturgical schedule

Mon
Sep 10th
6:30 AM Divine Liturgy.

Fri
Sep 14th
5:30 PM Divine Liturgy.
Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Solemn Feast.

Sun
Sep 16th
8:30 AM Confessions.

9:30 AM Divine Liturgy.
Sunday after the Exaltation (17th after Pentecost). Tone 8. Cantor: Tim Del Castilo, Amy Seyfried. Reader: Tim Belke.

For Confession, please come half an hour before the scheduled services, or schedule an appointment. Fridays in general are days of penance and fasting. Feast of the Exaltation is a day of strict fast (from meat and dairy foods). Let us remember one another as we offer our prayers and sacrifices to the Lord.

A Message from our Bishop

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

The month of August 2018 will be remembered as a month of infamy for the Catholic Church in the United States. The revelations of the Pennsylvania Grand Jury about clerical abuse of children by priests and the cover-up that happened after the fact is a stain that the Church will have to live with for generations. The victims of this abuse have had their lives irreparably damaged physically, psychologically and spiritually that it is impossible to know how harmed they and maimed their lives have been. Please remember these innocent victims whose souls have been ravaged by clerical sexual abusers in your daily prayer. There are no excuses for this behavior by men who masquerade as priests of our loving Lord.

During the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great we pray: “Remember, O Lord, the presbyterate, the diaconate in Christ and every holy order (Bishops & Cardinals) let none of us who surround your holy altar be put to shame.” This prayer has been violated in the most extreme way. Nonetheless, we need to remember how much those of us who serve at the Lord’s altar need to live our life in a most worthy way. This is a time of penance and purification for us who serve at the altar of the Lord. The Holy Father has spoken about this terrible wound inflicted on the Body of Christ and I do hope that we trust in the Lord and the Holy Spirit to show us the way to regain the trust that has been lost by the scandalous horrible actions of the unfaithful men of the cloth. Again if there are any kind of allegations in our Eparchy please contact the Safe Environment Office. Hopefully, all our priests are faithful in their service to the Lord.

I will conclude with the latter section of that prayer: “ Visit us in your goodness, O Lord. Reveal yourself to us in your rich compassion.” Despite the horrific actions of priests and the hierarchy the Church is Christ’s work from the beginning at Pentecost and He has promised us that the “gates of hell will not prevail or destroy it.” Thank you for your love and faithfulness and may Mary, our Eparchy’s Protectress show us the way to wholeheartedly serve her Son, our Saviour and Redeemer.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Bishop John Pazak, C.Ss.R.