Aug 3 bulletin - St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church, Allentown, PA

2014 St. George Church Staff and Organizations
Pastor
The Very Rev. Anthony G. Sabbagh
Administrative Committee
Elias Gharzouzi, Chairman
Albert Bitar, Treasurer
Rehab Tabchi
Robert Mimari
Abe Assad
Nasser Sabbagh
George Nassoor
Office Administrator
Donna Becker
Custodian
Adnan Sabbagh
Building/Planning
Dr. George Nassoor
Dave Davis
Altar Servers
Peter Attar, Subdeacon
Joseph Landino, Assistant Priest
Anthony Youwakim, Altar Boy Captain
Choir
Gail Ortner, Director
Naida Abraham, Treasurer
Members:
Kh. Minerva Sabbagh
Mary Landino
Christina Attar
Jouhayna Al-Amm
Mishleen Bashour
Sean Thornton
Wayne Burke
David T. Davis
George Nassoor
Vilma Abraham
Delores Edwards
Helena Yurconic
Ron Benner
Amjed Khalil
Chanters
Hweida Moussa
Marwan Sabbagh
Antoun Saba
The Fellowship of St. John the Divine
Christina Attar, Chair
Abe Assad, Co-Chair
Rehab Tabchi, Treasurer
Ladies Altar Society
Diane Gharzouzi, President
Suzanna Zoudeh, Vice President
Ebtisam Richie, Treasurer
Fay Moses, Secretary
Children’s Relief Fund
Kh. Minerva Sabbagh
Sunday School
Ebtisam Moussa, Director
Teachers:
Abe Assad
Jennifer Alraei
Sana Bitar
Dr. Rehab Tabchi
Mary Landino
Nadia Davis
Jaklin Sabbagh
Teen SOYO
The Very Rev. Anthony G. Sabbagh,
Spiritual Advisor
Kh. Minerva Sabbagh, Advisor
Khalil Yacoub, Advisor
Hope Sabbagh, Ass’t. Advisor
Joey Nehme, Ass’t. Advisor
Hilda Souid, President
Fadi Deeb, Vice President
Mishleen Bashour, Treasurer
Clara Yazji, Recording Secretary
Mike Chekeif, Corresponding Secretary
Lorita Moussa, Media Secretary
St. George Bookstore
Mary Landino, Chair
Kh. Minerva Sabbagh, Treasurer
Rehab Tabchi
Website
Elie Jabbour
George Issa
Charitable Ministries
Annual Appeal for Syrian Orphanages
Kamal Abboud, Chair
Pastoral Discretionary Fund
The Very Rev. Anthony G. Sabbagh
Albert Bitar
Newcomer Committee
August 3, 2014
Tone 7, Eothinon 8
Eighth Sunday of Pentecost and
Eighth Sunday of Matthew
On this day we commemorate: Isaac, Dalmatos and Faustus of the Dalmaton
monastery; Venerable Theoklito and Theodora; Salome the myrrh-bearer;
Venerable Anthony the Roman, wonderworker of Novgorod.
Divine Liturgy
THE EPISTLE
(For the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost)
The Lord will give strength to His people.
Ascribe to the Lord, O sons of God, ascribe to the Lord honor and glory.
The Reading from the First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians. (1:10-17)
BRETHREN, I appeal to you, by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all
of you agree and that there be no dissension among you, but that you be united
in the same mind and the same judgment. For it has been reported to me by
Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brethren. What I mean is
that each one of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified
for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized
none of you except Crispos and Gaius; lest anyone should say that you were
baptized in my name. (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond
that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send
me to baptize but to preach the Gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, lest the
cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
THE GOSPEL
(For the Eighth Sunday of Matthew)
The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew. (14:14-22)
AT THAT TIME, when Jesus went ashore he saw a great throng; and he had
compassion on them, and healed their sick. When it was evening, the disciples
came to Him and said, “This is a lonely place, and the day is now over; send
the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” Jesus said,
“They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” They said to Him,
“We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And He said, “Bring them here to
Me.” Then He ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass; and taking the five
loaves and the two fish He looked up to Heaven, and blessed, and broke and
gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And
they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides
women and children. Then Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go
before Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds.
Orthodox Thought for the Day
May this little word from St. Theophan (_Thoughts for Each Day of theYear,
2010, St. Herman of Alaska Press, Platina, CA, 157-158) about our Lord’s
words to the apostles, “you give them something to eat,” encourage you to stand
up against the cold and stinginess that the devil inspires in us.
The enemy destroys the desire to offer charity, and suggests that perhaps the
asker is not worthy of alms. But the Lord did not investigate the worthiness
of those who were sitting there. He served everyone equally, while, of course,
not everyone was equally devoted to Him. Perhaps even those who later cried,
‘Crucify Him!’ were there.
- St. Theophan the Recluse
Holy Bread
The Holy Bread is sponsored by
Fr. Anthony, Kh. Minerva and Hope Sabbagh
in loving memory of
Nawal Haddad Dockstader
Richard Esper
The Holy Bread is offered before the Altar of God by Father Anthony for the
living servants of God: Metropolitan Joseph; Fr. Anthony and Family; Fr. Joseph and Family; Fr. Demetrios and and Family; Peter and Family; clergy of our
Archdiocese; Theresa McAllister; Archbishop Paul Yazigi and Archbishop Youhanna Ibrahim Kh. Nadia, Niclas, Susan, George, Nebal, Helen Khouli; Makhoul Family; Chammas Families; Tabshi Families; Fadi, Marie, Nizar, Aida,
Sarar Tabshi; Amil Chammas; Mariam Rai; Rahme Tabshi; George, Hiyam,
Rehab, Resam, Simon, Melissa Tabchi; Janet Hanna; Leo, Neph; Zakieh Hanna; Afifeh Skaf; Faisal and Nadia Daher; Naife Khalouf; Nour Atiyeh; Assad
Family; Pavlick Family; Lawahiz, Abe, John, Kate Assad; Mary Assad; Tom
Pavlick and Joshua Assad Pavlick; George Assad; Layal Hanna; Michael, Mona,
Wail, Heather, Mitchell, Mallory, Abeer, Elyssa and Eyanna; Albert, Shadia and
Christian Bitar; for departed servants of God: Patriarch Hazim; Metropolitan
Philip; Fr. Atty; Fr. John; all Orthodox departed priests and khourias; Nawal
Haddad Dockstader; Richard Esper, Betty, Manera, Tom, Salim and Namnoume; Watfa; Issa and Jamileh; Mitchel; Nedal Makhoul; Latif Al Chammas;
Samir Saba; Mikhail Abboud; Assad Chammas; Assad Youssef Chammas; Hanna Rai; Habib Rai; Zakiah Atieyah; Zahia Khouly; Suleiman Tabshi; Brahim,
Resmeah, Nawal, Milie, Mtanios, Marie Hanna; Sueliman and Hanna Tabchi;
Georges and Tony Hanna; Khamal Hanna, Brahim, Adla, Mary, Ahthdel; Zaki
Skaf; Wajih Hanna, Jamileh Abboud; Hanna Daher; Elias and Danny Khalouf;
Youssef Atiyeh; John Ray and Sameer Assad; Alfred Hanna; Badih Bitar; Khalil,
Bassam and Nizha Bitar; Nedal Makhoul.
Memorial Service
A Memorial Service is held for the rest of the souls of the servants of God:
Nawal Haddad Dockstader
Richard Esper
May the Lord grant rest to His servants and remember them
in His kingdom, now and forever.
Special donations to the Church
We acknowledge families and friends who have honored dear ones with
monetary gifts given in the spirit of loving kindness.
$ Fr. Anthony, Kh. Minerva and Hope Sabbagh to the Church for the good
health of Metropolitan Joseph; Fr. Anthony and Family; Fr. Joseph and
Family; Fr. Demetrios and and Family; Peter and Family; clergy of our
Archdiocese; Theresa McAllister; for peace in Gaza, Middle East and the
world; Archbishop Paul Yazigi and Archbishop Youhanna Ibrahim; in loving memory of Patriarch Hazim; Metropolitan Philip; Fr. Atty; Fr. John; all
Orthodox departed priests and khourias; Nawal Haddad Dockstader;
Richard Esper, Betty, Manera, Tom, Salim and Namnoume; Watfa; Issa and Jamileh; Mitchel.
$ Kh. Nadia Khouli to the Church for the good health of Kh. Nadia, Niclas,
Susan, George, Nebal, Helen Khouli; in loving memory of Fr. George Khouli; Nicola, Halon Khouli.
$ The Makhoul Family to the Church in loving memory of Nedal Makhoul.
$ Aida Chammas Tabshi to the Church for the good health of Chammas and
Tabshi Families; Fadi for his 12th Birthday – Happy Birthday Fadi!; Marie,
Nizar, Aida, Sahar Tabshi; Amil Chammas; Mariam Rai; Rahme Tabshi; in loving memory of Latif Al Chammas; Samir Saba; Mikhail Abboud; Assad Chammas; Assad Youssef Chammas; Hanna Rai; Habib Rai; Zakiah Atieyah; Zahia Khouly; Suleiman Tabshi.
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George and Hiyam Tabchi to the Church for the good health of George,
Hiyam, Rehab, Resam, Simon, Melissa Tabchi; Janet Hanna; Leo, Neph;
in loving memory of Fr. George Khouli; Brahim, Resmeah, Nawal, Milia, Mtanios, Marie Hanna; Sueliman and Hanna Tabchi.
Anonymous to the Church in loving memory of Khamal Hanna, Brahim, Adla, Mary, Ahthdel.
Zakieh Hanna to the Church in loving memory of Georges and Tony Hanna.
Afifeh Skaf to the Church in loving memory of Zaki Skaf.
Faisal and Nadia Daher to the Church in loving memory of Wajih Hanna; Jamileh Abboud; Hanna Daher.
Naife Khalouf to the Church in loving memory of Elias and Danny Khalouf;
Youssef Atiyeh; for the good health of Nour Atiyeh.
Abe Assad and Mary Assad to Church School for the good health of the
Assad and Pavlick Families; Lawahiz, Abe, John, Kate Assad, Mary Assad;
Tom Pavlick and Joshua Assad Pavlick; George Assad; in loving memory of John Ray and Sameer Assad.
Layal Hanna and Family to the Church in loving memory of Alfred Hanna.
The Bitar Family to the Church in loving memory of Badih Bitar and for the good health of Michael, Mona, Wail, Heather, Mitchell, Mallory, Abeer,
Elyssa and Eyanna; Albert, Shadia and Christian Bitar.
Inspirational Quotes
• Success is maximizing your God-given abilities to help yourself and others.
• Kind words can be short and easy to speak but their echoes are truly endless.
• Do more than belong – participate.
• Do more than care – help.
• Do more than believe – practice.
• Do more than be fair – be kind.
• Do more than forgive – forget.
• Do more than dream – work.
Within the Church
We wish each parishioner and friend of St. George Church a Happy Birthday
or Anniversary. May God’s blessings shine down upon them throughout the
coming year. Please keep the church office (610) 439-1232 informed of birthdays, anniversaries and special family events.
Best wishes for a wonderful Birthday/Anniversary and a year filled with good health
and happiness! May happiness be yours on this special day and in the year ahead!
Happy Birthday
8/3 Jameal E. Hadeed
Hosam Kamhia
8/5 Cheryl Kilpatrick
Isabelle Moses
8/6 George N. Jarrah
8/7 Elizabeth Nassoor
David Fries
8/8 Joseph Younes Jr.
8/9 Sylvia Bandak
Look through our
new display!
Happy Anniversary
8/3/63
John & Helena Yurconic
8/9/81
Najeeb & Badrieh Hosni
• Arabic prayer books
• Bibles
• DVDs
• music
• children’s items
• jewelry • soaps
• lotions
• honey and jam
• religious books
• incense
Your financial donation needed
New custom-made oak display cabinets have been built and installed.
To help offset the cost, please consider a donation.
The Fast of the Dormition of the Holy Theotokos
From The Word, June 1977
FOR THE FIRST 14 days of August during each year, the Holy Orthodox
Church enters into a strict fast period in honor of the Mother of God, the
Virgin Mary. During this 14-day fast period, the Orthodox Church prescribes
that the Paraclesis Service be held in honor of the Mother of God. The fasting
discipline is no meat, poultry, eggs, cheese, milk or other dairy products, fish,
wine or oil, except on Saturdays and Sundays when there is an exception for
wine and oil and on the Feast of the Transfiguration (Aug. 6) when there is an
exception for fish, wine and oil.
The eminent Orthodox theologian, Father Sergei Bulgakov, beautifully
expresses the high regard which the Orthodox Christians have for the Blessed
Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, for her special role in the salvation of mankind, when he affirms, “The warm veneration of the Theotokos is the soul of
Orthodox Piety.” St. John of Damascus, one of the great Orthodox fathers,
pointed out that when the Blessed Virgin Mary became the Mother of God
and gave birth to Christ, the Redeemer of Mankind, she became the mother of
mankind. We call the Virgin Mary “Theotokos”, from the Greek, which means
“The Birth-Giver or the Bearer of God.” This is the highest title that can be bestowed upon any member of the human race. The Theotokos, the Virgin Mary,
was “blessed amongst women,” and she was chosen “to bear the Savior of our
souls.” We, therefore, as Orthodox Christians, consider her to be the Queen of
all the saints and the angels. Knowing that she holds such a high place in the
Kingdom of Heaven and that she is eternally present at the throne of God interceding for mankind, we, as good Orthodox Christians, must pray for her love,
guidance, and protection. We must never forget to ask for her intercessions in
times of sickness and danger, and we must constantly thank her for her care and
her prayers in our behalf.
Evening Paraclesis Services held now through Aug. 14
In observance of the Dormition of the our Most Holy Lady, the Mother of
God, Paraclesis Services will be held Mondays to Saturday through Aug. 14 at
7 p.m. Of special note, the feast days of the Transfiguration will be observed on
Tuesday, Aug. 5 and the Dormition observed Thursday, Aug. 14.
In the month of August, the Orthodox Chris­tian Church worldwide celebrates the feast day of the Transfiguration. The event took place when Jesus took
Peter, James and John up Mount Tabor and manifested himself to them with
shining face and brilliant garments. This is no small matter. It is foretold in the
Old Testamenti (Exodus 24:9–18, Exodus 34:29–35, Habakkuk 3:2), described
in all three Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 17:1–9, Mark 9:2–13 and Luke 9:28–
36), and testified to by St. Peter himself (2 Peter 1:10–19). In the Transfigu­
ration we see a manifestation of the divinity of Christ.
Today (Aug. 3) is final day for Heritage Days at
Our Lady of Lebanon Church
Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic Church is held today, Aug. 3, 11
am-10 pm. Enjoy a variety of ethnic foods, dancing and music by singer Amin
Sultan and Ensemble. Free admission; held rain or shine. Our Lady of Lebanon
Church is located at 54 S. 4th St., Easton, PA 18042. For more information call
(610) 252-5275.
Ukrainian Folk Festival set for Aug. 24
The 23rd annual Ukrainian Folk Festival will be held Sunday, Aug. 24 beginning at 12 noon at Ukrainian American Sports Center, Lower State and County
Line Rds., Horsham, PA. Enjoy an outdoor concert of Ukrainian folk and modern dance, music and song featuring several dance ensembles; a choir and violinist. Ukrainian ethnic foods, baked goods, picnic fare and cool refreshments will
be plentiful; also a Vendor Grove and Kid’s Fun Area.
More information (267) 664-3857 or www.tryzub.org.
Day trip planned on Aug. 23
Please join us on Saturday, August 23 to visit The Convent of St. Thekla, a
female monastic community under the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. Located in Glenville, PA, the Convent of St. Thekla
property consists of 51 acres of land with house, barn, a pond and acres of farmland and woodland. For more information, please contact Kh. Minerva Sabbagh
at (610) 264-0566. To learn more about the Convent, visit www.antiochian.org.
St. Thekla Pilgrimage to be held Sept. 26-28
The annual St. Thekla Pilgrimage will be held Sept. 26-28 at Antiochian Village,
Bolivar, PA. This year we are expanding the focus of this pilgrimage to not only
include prayers for the intercession of St. Thekla, but also we will pray the Service of Supplication to St. Raphael that he may intercede on our behalf before
the throne of God. For more information, please visit www.antiochian.org.
You can register online or call Antiochian Village to make reservations at (724)
238-3677, ext. 426 or email [email protected]. A brochure is available
through the church office (610) 439-9972.
Middle Eastern violence and the place of Christians in
the region addressed in Patriarchal Statements
The Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East has issued two statements regarding, first, the violence in Iraq, Syria, and Gaza, and second, the place of Christians throughout the region. For the Arabic version, see www.antiochian.org.
The first statement dated July 23, 2014
AT A TIME when Syria’s wounds have been bleeding for more than three
years, amidst the wounds of Iraq, which has experienced conflict since the
1980’s, amidst the unrest that is sweeping countries near and far, and amidst
the world’s indifference to Palestine’s wounds, which have not healed in almost
seventy years, these days in particular we are witnessing a multiplication of these
wounds in the expulsion of Mosul’s Christians and the all-out assault on Gaza
amidst a disgraceful international silence.
The cycle of violence sweeping Iraq and Syria, expelling peaceful citizens has
not let up, as recent events in Iraq and specifically in Mosul have completed the
series of murder, religious prejudice, and terror.
We strongly condemn attacks on any segment of society in this Middle East
and we especially condemn the attack on the Christians of Mosul and their
being compelled by force of arms to change their religion under the penalty of
paying the Jizya or abandoning their homes and having their property confiscated.These fundamentalist movements that are trying to become mini-states
through force and terror with outside moral and material support are the greatest threat to people in the Middle East and to coexistence there. We ask the
international community and specifically the United Nations and all global
powers and organizations to take into proper consideration what is happening
in Iraq, Mosul and the entire Middle East.
We call on them to deal with the current situation courageously, with a
genuine language of human rights and not a language of interests that uses the
principles of human rights and exploits them in the service of narrow aims and
interests. We ask the countries that provide outside support to these groups,
whether directly or indirectly, to cease immediately from all forms of material,
moral, logistical and military support for these extremist groups and so cut off
at its root the terrorism that is first of all a threat to the peace and peoples of
those countries. We likewise call for an end to resorting to any form of violence
as a means by which citizens deal with each other.
Because we in the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East
constantly affirm that Christians and Muslims are two lungs of a single Middle
Eastern body that stands on citizenship and common life, we reject anything
that would first of all hurt Islam’s reputation for tolerance, brotherhood and
peaceful life, which we have experienced, and secondly disrupts the right of
citizens to have a civic presence free from sectarian or racial pressures.
As the world watches what is happening in Mosul, the chain of violence is
repeated in the Gaza Strip under various justifications, amidst a frightening
international silence. This is happening while the outside world is content to
watch a bloodbath that has not spared women, children and the elderly. It is as
though the Middle East has become a testing-ground for every sort of weapon
and a fertile soil for every sort of plot. It is as though the people of the Middle
East are a commodity created to be dough in the hands of the forces of evil,
when they are created to be the image of the Lord’s splendor and the focus of
the Creator’s good pleasure, with good relationships with their fellow citizens
and fellow humans.
We in the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East understand the common fate that binds us to our Christian and Muslim brothers in
Palestine. We implore the international community for a ceasefire in Gaza and
an end to the sinful siege on our brothers in Palestine, whose cause remains par
excellence the cause of Humanity.
The attachment of the Palestinians to their land and their longing to return
to it is a cause for hope for all those suffering in this Middle East and a mark of
shame upon the faces of those for whom “human rights” end at the hills of Palestine while at the same time that they traffic in these “rights” in order to intervene in the affairs of other peoples. We pray that God give peace to the world,
that He give strength to all those in distress, that He cause peace to be lasting in
the Middle East, so that humanity may enjoy well-being and tranquility.
The second statement dated July 30, 2014
In the midst of all destruction which is taking place in the Middle East and
with the recent events like killings and displacements which affected Christians and others, and in the midst of the conflicts in Syria and the attack on
Gaza, we hear some officials of Western governments giving declarations from
time to time or publishing some “studies” to express their unreal empathy with
Christians of certain areas and showing their solidarity with them, describing
their circumstances in a way that supports the logic of minorities. But the most
recent of these declarations is that of the French government regarding its readiness to accept the Iraqi Christians and granting them a political asylum, in
addition to the study issued by the American Ministry of Foreign Affairs that
describes the presence of the Christians in the Middle East as “a shadow of its
former status”.
We, in the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East, would
like to confirm that the difficult circumstances in the East do not justify anybody’s attempt to misuse them as “Trojan Horse” to empty the East from its
Christians, declaring that what Christians are confronting in the East is similar to what is happening to religious or ethnic minorities in other places of the
world. We believe that helping the inhabitants of the East, Christians or Muslims, starts with uprooting terrorism from its homeland and stop nourishing
the movements of extremism and Takfirism (religious prejudice), whose financial resources are very well known as well as the states and the governments that
offer them the ideological, logistic and military support through undeclared
international alliances. The best way to help Christians and Muslims in the
East is by restoring peace through dialogue and political solution, and through
practical rejection of all resources that nourish the reasons of this extremism,
refusing the injustice towards Palestinians, adapting an honest Media that shows
the active role of the Christians in the life of their homelands away from any
statistical division of people.
We say it to all: the only embracing place for Christians and Muslims of
this area is their homelands, in which they have been living together for many
centuries, building a unique civilization recognized by a real partnership; a civ-
ilization that transferred to the West the human heritage and enriching it. We,
the Christians of this land, will not accept to be treated through the logic of
minorities which is imposed on us from abroad, and we reconfirm that we were
and are still committed to the message of our Gospel, which has arrived to us
from our ancestors 2000 years ago. Our forefathers carried and transferred this
message to us enduring numerous afflictions. And we will keep this seed which
we have received here in the East, growing it and being loyal to it.
Save the date!
2014 Saturday-Sunday
Wednesday Aug. 16-17
Dec. 31
Dormition Festival
New Year’s Eve Hafli
2015 Friday-Sunday
Jan. 30-Feb. 1
Winter Festival at The Palace
2016 Saturday
May 14
100th Anniversary Celebration
of St. George Church (1916-2016)
Teen SOYO Fundraiser
Gertrude Hawk Chocolate Bar Fundraiser for Teen SOYO every Sunday after
Divine Liturgy. Only $1 each. Your support is appreciated.