Sunday, February 27, 2022
Sunday of the Last Judgment (Meat Fare)
Tone 3 and Eothinon 3
Venerable Prokopios the Confessor of Decapolis
We are pleased to welcome you to worship with us today. Please note that only Orthodox Christians who have prepared themselves with prayer, fasting and a recent confession may approach to receive Holy Communion. Everyone is welcome to reverence the cross and to partake of the blessed bread at the dismissal. Please introduce yourself to our pastor, and ask him about membership in the Orthodox Church.
Today’s Hymns and Readings
Apolytikion of the Resurrection – Tone 3
Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad; for the Lord hath done a mighty act with his own arm. He hath trampled down death and become the First-born from the dead. He hath delivered us from the depth of hades, granting the world the Great Mercy.
Apolytikion of the Nativity of the Theotokos – Tone 4
Thy nativity, O Theotokos, hath proclaimed joy to the whole universe. For from thee did shine forth the Sun of justice, Christ our God, annulling the curse, and bestowing the blessing, abolishing death and granting us life everlasting.
Kontakion of Meat Fare Sunday – Tone 1
When thou comest, O God, to earth with glory, and all creatures tremble before thee, and the river of fire floweth before the Altar, and the books are opened and sins revealed, deliver me then from that unquenchable fire, and make me worthy to stand at thy right hand, O righteous Judge.
Epistle – I Corinthians 8:8-9:2 (Meat Fare Sunday)
Prokeimenon. Psalm 117.14, 18. The Lord is my strength and my son.
Verse. The Lord has chastened me sorely.
BRETHREN, food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. Only take care lest this liberty of yours somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if any one sees you, a man of knowledge, at table in an idol’s temple, might he not be encouraged, if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to idols? And so by your knowledge this weak man is destroyed, the brother for whom Christ died. Thus, sinning against your brethren and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food is a cause of my brother’s falling, I will never eat meat, lest I cause my brother to fall.
Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the lord? If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you; for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
Gospel – Matthew 25:31-46 (Meat Fare Sunday)
THE LORD SAID, “When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left. Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see the hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee? And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to thee?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.’ And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Next week’s homework: Romans 13:11-14:4 (Forgiveness Sunday)
Matthew 6:14-21 (Cheese Fare)
HOLY BREAD – Gloria Zain Darzi offers the Holy Bread of Oblation for the month of February in loving memory of her beloved husband, Elias Darzi. Memory eternal! Additional donors are welcome for February and succeeding months. We ask for a donation of $50/week.
PLEASE MAKE SURE all cell phones and electronic devices are turned off in church or at home.
FEBRUARY 27, 2022 – SUNDAY OF THE LAST JUDGMENT (MEAT FARE)
Mission Statement - The mission of St. Mary’s Antiochian Orthodox Church of Brooklyn, NY, is to love and worship God through participation in the liturgical life of the Church, and to live and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We carry out this mission through education, outreach, fellowship, and works of mercy with love for each other, our neighbors, and our diverse world.
TODAY, FEBRUARY 27 - We pray for the repose of the souls of the servants of God Yvonne Absey, Najibi Anthony, Jodat Arida, Tamina Arida, Mary Assatly, Donald Farkouh, Regina and Alexander Ghazal, William Haddad Sr., Monir Kaba, Walter John Lattof, Dianna G. Lewis, Lillian Malouf, Isabel Massabni, Eugenie Morgan, Naaman Nehme, Amin Salem, George Senior, George Shamyer, Wendy Sadaka, and Malak Karkenny. Memory eternal!
Carol Makhoul offers Prayers of Oblation for the health of her sister, Denise McBride. Many years!
Irene Tashji, Gale Zarr, and Marie Zarr offer Prayers of Oblation for the repose of the soul of the handmaiden of God Nouhad Massouh Kaiami. Memory eternal!
NEXT SUNDAY, MARCH 6 – We will pray for the repose of the souls of the servants of God Albert Bittar, Nicholas Ghiz, Emeline Halibi, Gloria L. Harris, Georgette Hamwi, Adma Jabran, Charles Kassatly, William Simon, Maude Sarkis, Laurice Merhige Schuh, Gloria Sparsidis, and Robert William Thabit. Memory eternal!
Lina and George Zaher and Family will offer Prayers of Oblation for the repose of the soul of the servant of God Monir Kaba. Memory eternal!
The Castley Family will offer Prayers of Oblation and a One-Year Memorial for the repose of the soul of the servant of God Albert Castley. Memory eternal!
The Family of Monir Kaba offers Prayers of Oblation and a 10-Year Memorial for the repose of his soul. Memory eternal!
FOR THE INFIRM - Please remember our ailing brethren in your daily intercessions, especially, Patricia DeLuca (Helen Hayes), Khalil Eid (Hamilton Park), Rouda Abboud, Albert Absey, Yvonne Allawh, Claudette Budai, Diana Finger, Mary Ganim, Gabe Golam, Lily Lang, Alfred Nahas, Wanda Salloum, Leon Smatt, Jim Thompson (NJ), George Trisciuzzi, Dr. Samir Zamaria (MD), and Rose Zrake (at home).
POST-COMMUNION PRAYERS – As the faithful approach to reverence the cross, receive a blessing and a piece of antidoron (holy bread) at the dismissal, a reader will read the Post-Communion Prayers of Thanksgiving. Please greet each other quietly as we reverently hear these prayers.
FASTING DISICIPLINE – The traditional fasting discipline (no meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish, wine, olive oil or their byproducts) is observed on Wednesday and Friday this week. Cheese Fare Sunday is next Sunday, March 6, and Great Lent begins on Clean Monday, March 7.
MEMORY ETERNAL! We are saddened to announce that the servant of God Robert Sabbagh departed this life in the hope of the Resurrection on Tuesday following a prolonged hospitalization. We extend our sympathies to Brenda and her children, Rob (Doratea) and Danielle (Billy) and their entire family. They will receive visitors today from 2-5 and 7-9 PM at McLaughlin’s Funeral Home, and the funeral will be here at 10 AM tomorrow. We will continue to commemorate Bobby for the full 40 days. Memory eternal!
HOUSE BLESSINGS – Please note that there is only one more Sunday before the beginning of Great Lent. If you would like the priest to bless your home, please make an appointment as soon as possible.
COVID POLICY – We have returned to our previous policy whereby everyone wears masks coming into and moving around the church; however, we recommend that worshippers who are up to date with vaccinations and boosters can remove their masks when seated. We will continue to ask singers in the choir to wear masks, and we will ask everyone in Church School to continue masking. We will revisit these protocols on a weekly basis.
MAN OF GOD – On Monday, March 21, at 7:00 PM the AMC Theater at Sheepshead Bay will present “Man of God,” the story of St. Nektarios of Aegina, a saint of the early 20th century. His story is very inspiring and is a welcome addition to a medium which often brings us unedifying content. We are organizing a group from our church and the Cathedral and have reserved 50 tickets. Please put your name on the sign-up sheet in the back of the church if you are interested. Go to https://www.fathomevents.com/events/Man-of-God for more information.
BYZANTINE CHANT CLASS – In an effort to cultivate additional chanters and readers for the divine services the pastor will offer a class on the rudiments of Byzantine chant at 4:30 on Saturday afternoons prior to the celebration of Great Vespers. Singers and readers of all ages, experience, and abilities are welcome to participate.
ANTIOCHIAN VILLAGE CAMP – If any of our campers who have received their acceptance notices from the camp are in need of scholarship assistance, please be in direct contact with Fr. Michael in confidence. We will make every attempt to meet everyone’s financial need. We want as many of our children as possible to have a wonderful camping experience.
LADIES OF ST. MARY’S - The Ladies of St. Mary’s invite all our parishioners (men too!) to participate in our humanitarian project this year. We once again request the preparation of hygiene kits to be distributed to the homeless during the Midnight Run each month. In a one gallon ZipLock bag please include: 1 washcloth, bar of soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, nail clipper, comb, 3 band-aids, disposable razor (optional). Feel free to prepare more than one kit! The kits can be given to Sandra Arida or any one of the Ladies. Thank you all for your support.
WORD MAGAZINE – Every member of a parish in the Antiochian Archdiocese is entitled to receive the Word Magazine at their home. If you are not receiving the Word and wish to subscribe, go to https://forms.gle/sughatopgYmqJXXE7 to submit your address, or let Fr. Michael know. The Archdiocese also publishes the Word each month on its website www.antiochian.org.
DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME – Please remember to turn the clocks ahead one hour on Saturday night, March 12. Daylight Saving Time begins Sunday, March 13.
PASTORAL EMERGENCY – Fr. Michael will be out of town from Thursday through Saturday this week. In the event of a pastoral emergency, please call Fr. Thomas Zain, Dean of St. Nicholas Cathedral, at (718) 855-6225 (office) or (718) 748-7940 (rectory).
ANTIDORON – After receiving Holy Communion and at the end of the Divine Liturgy, it is customary to receive a piece of blessed bread or antidoron, the bread that remains after the preparation of the Holy Communion. While antidoron is not Holy Communion, it is blessed, and as such should be eaten carefully so that crumbs do not fall. Both adults and children should always remember to treat and consume the antidoron with respect.
OFFERING ENVELOPES – Please note that if you receive monthly envelopes and do not use them, we cannot guarantee proper credit to your account. There are always envelopes in the vestibule for this purpose. Kindly use one of these envelopes if you have forgotten your own instead of just depositing a check or cash in the basket. If you do not receive monthly envelopes, kindly inform the office, and the secretary will submit your name to the mailing company. Thank you!
PLEDGE GIVING – During these extraordinary times we ask everyone to maintain their pledge giving as much as possible. Please remember that St. Mary's Church now accepts donations online. Just visit https://smaoc.squarespace.com/donate and pay securely by credit card, debit card, or check. There is an option to indicate gifts made in honor of or in remembrance of someone.
ESTATE PLANNING – A bequest is one of the easiest gifts to make in order to impact the ministry of the Church significantly. An estate plan can include a provision that leaves a lasting gift to St. Mary’s Church. A bequest could be a gift of specific assets, a dollar amount, or a percentage of the estate. A bequest could also be the residue of an estate after all gifts have been made to heirs. Consider naming St. Mary’s as a beneficiary on your retirement accounts (such as an IRA). Qualified charities are able to receive the full value of dollars in these plans without incurring income taxes
DATES TO REMEMBER
Saturday, March 5 Great Vespers, 5:00 PM
Sunday, March 6 Forgiveness Sunday
Forgiveness Vespers following the Divine Liturgy
Monday, March 7 Clean Monday – Great Lent Begins
Great Compline, 7:00 PM
Wednesday, March 9 Divine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, 6:30 PM
Pot Luck Supper to follow
Friday, March 11 Community Dinner – Parish Council Hosts, 6:30 PM
First Madayeh/Akathist Hymn, 7:30 PM
All services will be live streamed via twitch.tv/smaoc.
FROM THE FATHERS – “Sometimes evil presents itself as an endeavor to God’s glory, or as something with good intentions towards your neighbor. Even in these cases, don’t trust this feeling. It’s a wrong labor and is not filled with wisdom. Instead, work on chasing evil from yourself. Evil, however innocent it looks, offends God’s long-suffering love, which is His foremost glory.”
- St. John of Kronsadt