Newsletter March 8, 2025

Our dear family member Joe Y. passed into eternal rest Thusday night in his sleep. We extend our love and condolences and support to Peggy. Funeral details will be forthcoming.

Nina and Anna are starting a women & children prayer / fellowship group. It will meet Thursdays at 9:00 A.M. The gathering will begin by praying an Akathist together in Church, then will gather for fellowship (for adults) / play time (for children) afterward.

On the Interpretation of the Holy Bible, Part One

Jesus inaugurated the Christian reading of the Old Testament when He read from the book of Isaiah in the synagogue of Nazareth: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19, referencing Isaiah 61:1-2). He then applied this passage to Himself, declaring to His audience: “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). Christians read the Old Testament in the light of Christ. This approach unlocked many prophecies found in the Old Testament about Christ, the Trinity, the salvific plan, and other matters.

Read the entire article: https://www.antiochian.org/regulararticle/2357

Denver area Lenten Sunday evening pan-Orthodox Vespers will be held again this year. All services begin at 5:00 P.M.

Sunday of Orthodoxy (9 March): Assumption Cathedral, Denver
St. Gregory Palamas (16 March): Transfiguration Cathedral, Denver
Sunday of Cross (23 March): St. Elias, Arvada
St. John of the Ladder (30 March): St. Luke, Erie
St. Mary of Egypt (6 April): St. Herman, Littleton (co-hosted by St. Tikhon Mission)

Please remember that our full calendar continues to be available at our parish web site. Here is a link:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Calendar/calendar.php

Full schedule:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Ministries/Prosphora/Docs/prosphora sched 2025 web.pdf

Full schedule:
https://stjfc.org/Pages/Ministries/Altar/Docs/epistle readers for 2025.pdf

Epistle: ST. PAUL’S LETTER TO THE HEBREWS 12:1-10

BRETHREN, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation which addresses you as sons? ‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor lose courage when you are punished by him. For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.’ It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers to discipline us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time at their pleasure, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.

Gospel: JOHN 1:43-51

At that time, Jesus decided to go to Galilee. And he found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael, and he said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.”

The Mercy of the Dread Judgment

Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol

It’s a bit of a paradox to talk about it and analyze it since tears evoke pain, sorrow, difficulties, things that are not pleasing. The church, however, through the experience of the Saints and through her experience with man realized that, in the end, tears are really useful and beneficial and helpful to the spiritual life. The same goes for mental health. I will say a few words that I know on the latter.

Read / watch the entire article: https://otelders.org/theology-and-spirituality/its-not-bad-to-cry-tears-in-spiritual-life-met-athanasios-of-cyprus-part-1/