PREPARING ONESELF FOR PASCHA The following is a list of things one can do to spiritually prepare himself/herself for Easter.
PRAYER- All good things begin with prayer. Think about it this way; when we meet someone
we like, we spend time talking with them. The more we talk with them the more we know them and
the more we want to know. Prayer is a conversation with God. We should tell him our fears, ask him
to guide us and thank him for our blessings. If you do not already have one, order an Orthodox
prayer book to help you.
GO TO CHURCH - We know some of us may think that church only occurs on Sunday.
Wrong! The Orthodox Church offers an entire cycle of worship throughout the year. No time is that
more evident than during Lent and Holy Week. We should go to the Divine Liturgy on Sunday, but
we should also go to the other liturgical services (Vespers, Compline, Salutations & Akathist Hymn,
Pre-Sanctified Liturgy, and all Holy Week Services). But here is the really important part, we should
not just "go" to the services…We need to be active participants in the services. Ask your priest
where you can get books for the services so that you can participate by reading, chanting and following
along. Many of the books can be found in our book store.
REPENTANCE/CONFESSION - We know it is hard, but confession is necessary for spiritual
growth. Do not look at it as going in with your shopping lists of sins and trying to rattle them off as
quickly as possible. Instead look at it as an opportunity to fix your relationship with God through repentance.
Repentance is accepting that we have done something wrong and (here`s the hard part)
committing to try very, very hard not fall into those sins again…Call Fr. Paul to schedule a Confession.
READ THE BIBLE – “Faith,” says the Holy Apostle Paul, “comes from hearing. And hearing
from the Word of God” (Romans 10:17).
FAST—Jesus fasted and He taught His Disciples to fast. Fasting is really about discipline. We
discipline ourselves in other areas of our life. We should be disciplining ourselves spiritually in what
we do as well as in what we eat.
GIVE - Take time during Lent and Holy Week to give to those in need. You do not need
money to do this. Ask yourself how can I give of my time, talents and treasure to give glory to God?
From the HOLY TRINITY/HOLY CROSS, Birmingham, AL newsletter


FROM THE CHANCELLOR`S DESK - HOLY WEEK AND PASCHA Holy Week in the Orthodox Church is the culmination and the zenith of liturgical
worship and the Christian life, as the Faithful gather to experience the Gospel portrayed before their eyes. During Holy Week, worship becomes almost continuous, from Palm Sunday Services on Sunday morning through the Resurrection Service early Sunday morning (midnight). We see and experience the whole drama of Christ’s Holy and Saving Passion and Resurrection through
liturgy, hymns, prayers, and Scripture readings. Each service opens our hearts and minds to the experience of Christ, giving us the precious opportunity to join with our brothers and sisters in declaring that Christ is the center of our lives.
Holy Week invites us to share with Christ the experience of betrayal, arrest, trial,
crucifixion, death and resurrection. In Holy Week we come face to face with Christ upon the Cross.
Since the early days of the Church, there has been a cycle of services celebrated during Holy Week and Pascha. We learn from the letters of Egeria, a Spanish nun made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 383 A.D. and experienced Holy
Week and Pascha in the same services still being conducted today by the worldwide Orthodox Church.
The journey begins with Lazarus Saturday, on April 7th. The Gospels clearly relate that six days before Christ`s own death, He raised His friend Lazarus from the dead.
On Palm Sunday (4/8), we celebrate His triumphal Entrance into Jerusalem, with a procession of palms towards the end of the Orthros Service and preceding the Divine Liturgy. On Sunday,
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings of Holy Week (4/8-11), the Nymphios, or Bridegroom Vespers, have as their theme Christ the Divine Bridegroom, and His Second Coming. The
solemn procession of the Icon of Christ-Bridegroom takes place around the church, as the Faithful, anticipating His sufferings, sing: “Thy
sublime sufferings, on this day, shine upon the world as a light of salvation”.
The services tell us to watch for we do not know when Jesus Christ will come again.
On Holy Wednesday evening, in addition to the Bridegroom Vespers, the ceremony of the Sacrament of Holy Unction takes place. The themes of the service are repentance, confession and the remission of sins by the Lord,preparing the faithful to receive Holy Communion. Holy Unction is one of the seven Sacraments of the Church, and it has its origin in the practice of the early Church as recorded in the Epistle of James (5:14-15). The Priest anoints the people with Holy Oil, as a sign of healing and remission of sins. The Vesperal Liturgy of Holy Thursday morning (4/12) commemorates the Last Supper,breaking the solemnity of the week with the Eucharist. In the Service of the 12 Gospels on Holy Thursday evening, we hear the dramatic events of the final hours of our Christ’s life, His betrayal and Crucifixion, from the Gospel
accounts. We witness the procession with a wooden cross as representing Christ carrying His own cross along the Via Dolorosa, and we see before us the King of Glory crucified.
On Holy Friday morning (4/13), we offer the Royal Hours as a vigil related to the Passion and Resurrection of our Lord, and in the afternoon, the body of Christ is removed from the wooden cross. That evening, the service begins with Lamentations, hymns of mourning, sung as we stand before the tomb of Christ
(pictured above), the image of our dead Lord lies inside, His funeral bier decorated with flowers offered by the faithful present. There is a solemn procession of the wooden “tomb” led by the clergy outside the church accompanied by all the people present holding candles.


HOLY WEEK and PASCHA con`t The Vesperal Liturgy of Holy Saturday morning (4/14) celebrates “Christ descending into Hell” and breaking down its doors, His Victory over sin, death and hell. Christ, having been laid in the tomb began our vigil of the Resurrection.
The tomb has now become a place of life, and the service is bright and joyful.
The Priest passes through the congregation flinging bay leaves and chanting psalm verses as a symbol of Christ`s victory over sin and death.
The Services of Great and Holy Pascha (Easter), the Joy of Joys, Holy Day of Holy Days, celebrating Christ`s Resurrection begins with the Canon of the Crucifixion at 11:00 p.m. on Holy Saturday night, anticipating the Resurrection.
It is followed by the Paschal Service and Divine Liturgy at midnight (4/15)which continues on well into the early hours of Easter morning. At midnight, all the lights in the church are extinguished, and the Faithful wait expectantly in total darkness. The Priest then bears a lighted candle through the Royal Doors
and all the Faithful light their candles from this flame. Then all is light and joy,
with the great Paschal hymn – "Christ is risen from the dead, by death trampling down upon death, and to those in the tombs bestowing life!"
Early Sunday morning (4/15), the faithful return to church to hear the Resurrection Gospel of Christ proclaimed in as many languages as possible – proclaiming the universal message of salvation to the world. After this Vespers
Service of Love (Agape) – a red-dyed egg is given to all the faithful as they depart, encouraging them to proclaim the victory of life over death through the miracle of Christ’s death and resurrection for all.
Faithfully,
Very Rev. Fr. George Tsahakis
Chancellor


GLORY TO GOD! GREAT AND HOLY PASCHA
Glory Be To God.
Christ Is Risen!
Glory be to God for everything! Glory be to God for having created me to His image and likeness. Glory be to God for having redeemed me, the fallen. Glory be to God for having extended His solitude to me, the unworthy. Glory be to God for having led me, the sinner, to repentance. Glory be to God for having offered me His holy words, like a lamp in a dark place, thus setting me on the path of righteousness. Glory be to God for having illumined the eyes of my heart. Glory be to God for having made known to me His holy name. Glory be to God for having washed away my sins through the bath of baptism. Glory be to God for having shown me the way to eternal bliss. The way is Jesus Christ, Son of God, Who says of Himself, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life.’
Glory be to God, that He has not brought me to perdition through my sins, but suffered them because of His kindness. Glory be to God for showing me the vanity and emptiness of the world. Glory be to God for helping me in various temptations, misfortunes, and calamities. Glory be to God for protecting me in accidents and mortal dangers. Glory be to God for defending me against the Devil, who is the enemy. Glory be to God for raising me when I was prostrate. Glory be to God for comforting me in my sorrow. Glory be to God for converting me when I was erring. Glory be to God for punishing me as a father. Glory be to God for announcing to me His last Judgment, that I might fear it and repent of my sins. Glory be to God for revealing to me eternal torment and eternal bliss, that I might flee the one and seek the other. Glory be to God for offering to me, the unworthy one, food, clothing, and shelter.
From St. Tikhon of Zadonsk’s Will


HELLENIC COLLEGE/HOLY CROSS CELEBRATES 75TH ANNIVERSARY This year, Hellenic College Holy Cross is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of Holy Cross in 1937. As the oldest and largest Orthodox Christian institution of higher learning in North America, the school has launched a year-long series of activities designed to commemorate this milestone. Among these activities are academic events and symposia, 75th at the Pops, various events at the parish, metropolis, and archdiocesan levels, and 75 for 75—a commemorative album campaign to promote and strengthen Hellenic College Holy Cross. We ask for your prayers and invite you to join us in celebrating the anniversary of YOUR school.
Please contact Helen A. Carlos, hacarlo@aol.com, 404 790 3361 or go to http://www.hchc.edu/75years for more information and updates.


LET HOLY WEEK TRANSFORM YOU! "Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of
your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and
acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2)
As we approach the most holy of times in our Church life, the Holy and Great Week and Pascha, I would like to share with you a few thoughts:
There is something very special about this time and the events it reminds us of. There is something very special about Holy Week.
In the wisdom that God gives the worshipping community of the faithful (the Church) we have been handed down along the centuries a most amazing set of hymns, prayers and services, which we can immerse ourselves in during this period of preparation for the great Feast of the Resurrection of Christ. The ultimate goal of these hymns and services is to transform secular time to spiritual Kairos (καιρός) - divine time.
These hymns are filled with theological wisdom and the services are designed to transport us
back to the events of Christ`s life allowing us to participate and be present at the Last
Supper, at the foot of Golgotha in front of the Cross, at the tomb for His burial and with the
Myrrh-bearing women at the empty tomb. They are meant to help us connect with God in a
mystical way, so that we may be sanctified. They are made for us and our salvation.
How can anyone live through the services of Holy Week, starting with Palm Sunday, and not
experience in a real way the events of the Passion and Crucifixion of Christ. How can one not
feel the pain and sorrow of the Virgin Mary as she beholds her son on the Cross and carries
away His dead body to burial. And, finally, how can one not experience the joy and triumph
of God over death as the light shines through the darkness on Holy Saturday night spreading
joy to the heart as the Lord is Risen from the dead.
Come join us, brothers and sisters. Here is where the miracle of our Faith takes place. Here
is where our hearts and minds are transformed by His power.
Let us give God a chance to reach in our hearts and heal our wounds. Let us approach Him
humbly and prayerfully. Let us offer ourselves to God in Faith and Trust during this Holy
Week so that the miracle of the Resurrection might happen in us, as well.
Come, let us taste Heaven together in the here and now!
In Christ`s Love,
Fr. Panayiotis Papageorgiou, HOLY TRANSFIGURATION, Marietta, GA


FEAST DAYS and NAME DAYS FOR THE COMING WEEK April 8
Palm Sunday

Agavos, Rouphos, Asynkritos, Phlegon, Herodion, & Hermes of the 70 Apostles
Rufus the Obedient of the Kiev Caves
Celestine, Pope of Rome

April 9
Holy Monday

Eupsychios the Martyr
Vadim the Righteous of Persia
Rafael, Nicholas, Irene, & Olympias of Mytilene

April 10
Holy Tuesday

Terence & his Companions beheaded at Carthage
Gregory V, the Holy Martyr & Patriarch of Constantinople
Holy Father Theona, Archbishop of Thessolonica

April 11
Holy Wednesday

Antipas, Bishop of Pergamon
Pharmuthios the Anchorite

April 12
Holy Thursday

Basil the Confessor, Bishop of Parios
Anthoussa the Righteous of Constantinople
Akakios of Kapsokalyvia

April 13
Holy Friday

Martin the Confessor, Pope of Rome

April 14
Holy Saturday

Aristarchos, Pudens, Trophimos the Apostles of the 70
Thomais the Martyr of Alexandria



APRIL CRTL SCHEDULE FROM OCN Orthodox Christian Network
Come Receive the Light Radio Program
PO BOX 4690
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33338-4690
954-522-5567
April 6
Speaker: Fr. Barnabas Powell
Topic: From Speaking in Tongues to Tearing Icons How does our religious affiliation affect our experience of miracles? Hear what Fr. Barnabas Powell thinks, who has witnessed a number of miracles both back when he was a Pentecostal pastor and now as an Orthodox priest. But first, we’ll prepare ourselves for Holy Week with Fr. John Behr who will help us better understand the significance of Christ’s words from the Cross.

April 13 (Pascha Show)
Speaker: Fr. John Morris
Topic: Why did Christ have to die?
Why did Christ have to die? Many of us learned an answer back in our Sunday School days, but how much have we really reflected on the question since then? Tune in to hear not only an Orthodox answer to the question, but also to learn how it compares to the teachings of other Christian churches.

April 20
Speaker: Fr. John McGuckin
Topic: Teachings of the Resurrected Christ Christ was with His disciples for only a short time after His Resurrection before He ascended to be with His Father. How did He spend that time? Join us as we ask Fr. John McGuckin about the teachings of the Resurrected Christ. But first, we continue our month-long discussion of miracles with Prof. Stamatis Vokos. He’s with us to offer his perspective on the miralcuous as both a scientist and devout believer.

April 27
Speaker: Sister Nektaria
Topic: Orphanage in Calcutta

We’re joined this week by two missionaries. First, Fr. Ernesto Obregon shares about some of the miraculous events he witnessed during his time in South America, as well as the connection he sees between missionary work and miracles. Then we’ll hear from Sister Nektaria, a Greek nun who runs an orphanage just outside Calcutta, India, about her work and personal faith.

Come Receive the Light, the only nationally syndicated Orthodox Christian radio broadcast, is a weekly program that features interviews with noted Orthodox Christian clergy, theologians, and lay leaders on theological, spiritual, pastoral, and modern social issues. Heard on the radio in the United States and the Bahamas, this unique weekly broadcast offers the ancient, Christ-centered message of Orthodox Christianity to the modern world. You can listen to past programs on demand and find many other online resources to deepen your faith at www.MyOCN.net.


ANNUAL PASCHA PICNIC Mark Your Calendar!
Metropolis of Atlanta
Annual Pascha Picnic
Saturday April 21, 2012
At Diakonia Retreat Center, Salem SC
Agape Vesper Service Followed by Panegyri
His Eminence Metropolitan Alexios invites you all for a Day or Weekend of Family Worship, Food, Fun and Fellowship!

For more information, contact
Diakonia Center at 843.944.6788 or e-mail us diakoniacenter@yahoo.com
or Father Vasile Bitere 706.888.8382 frvasile@bellsouth.net
www.diakoniaretreatcenter.org


UPDATE - METROPOLIS OF ATLANTA SECOND ANNUAL JERUSALEM PILGRIMAGE Jerusalem Pilgrimage II

JERUSALEM-CAPPODOCIA-CONSTANTINOPLE PILGRIMAGE UPDATE:



We have changed the date for our second Pilgrimage to Jerusalem and Cappadocia to November 18 to December 1.

Since we announced this change, we have already booked 25% of our capacity (in ONE DAY). So please, if you are interested contact me today to secure a reservation as I am sure we will have many bookings coming in on Monday morning.



Feel free to call if you need more info…

For more information, you can email Gerry Clonaris at gclonaris@carolina.rr.com (please include your phone number). You may also call Gerry with any questions at 704 443 6174.


NEWS FROM THE YOUTH OFFICE...ST. STEPHEN`S CAMP ST. STEPHEN'S SUMMER CAMP IS ALMOST FULL!
>
> Hurry to register for St. Stephen's Summer Camp before it fills up!
> There are still a FEW spaces left in session III (July 15-21), and
> session IV (July 22-28). There is also still space left in Senior
> Week! Please note that the fee goes up to $400 beginning this Sunday,
> April 1st. Please use the link below to register:
>
>
>
> To register Campers:
> https://thriva.activenetwork.com/Reg4/Form.aspx?IDTD=3107661&RF=300975
> 6&mode
> =0
>
> ST. STEPHEN'S SENIOR WEEK MAKES A GREAT GRADUATION GIFT!
>
> ATTENTION All Churches, grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles,
> godparents,
> etc: Are you looking for that perfect gift for your high school graduate?
> How about a trip to St. Stephen's Camp Senior Week? Senior week is
> going to feature activities that are just for them as seniors,
> discussions with guest speakers about college life, and surprises
> around every corner! Cost is
> $375 (until Sunday), and if they want to attend their regular week of
> camp, there is an $80 discount for the second week (rising seniors
> only). Go to www.youth.atlanta.goarch.org and use the blue button
> about halfway down the screen on the right to make a deposit in your camper's account for St.
> Stephen's Camp Senior's Week! Feel free to call or email if you have
> any questions.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ST. STEPHEN'S COUNSELORS AND STAFF:
>
> Please be sure to fill out your online applications as soon as
> possible if you have not already done so! We are beginning to make
> decisions regarding staff assignments for each week, don't get left
> out! Fill out your application now! Use the link below to apply:
>
>
>
> To apply to St. Stephen's Camp as a counselor or staff member:
> https://thriva.activenetwork.com/Reg4/Form.aspx?IDTD=3107661&RF=300975
> 7&mode
> =0

Our theme this year is "I AM a temple of the Living God."

SENIOR’S Week: June 24-30, 2012
Session I: July 1-7, 2012
Session II: July 8-14, 2012
Session III: July 15-21, 2012
Session IV: July 22-28, 2012



SENIOR WEEK - ST. STEPHEN'S SUMMER CAMP St. Stephen's Summer Camp 2012 announces the first ever SENIOR WEEK!!!!

ATTENTION RISING AND GRADUATED SENIORS!!!
(CLASSES OF 2012 AND 2013)

You requested it! So now here it is! A week of camp JUST FOR YOU!
Senior week will feature off-site trips, activities and discussions that are just for you as you prepare to enter college!
Rising seniors (class of 2013), you may attend BOTH SENIOR week and your regular week of St. Stephen's Camp for a discounted price!

SENIOR WEEK will take place June 24-30, 2012!


PARISH NEWS AND NOTES ST. CHRISTOPHER, Peachtree City, GA Philoptochos is collecting toilet tissue, paper towels, bar soap, toothpaste, disposable razors, lotion, shampoo, liquid dishwashing detergent, laundry detergent, feminine products and disposable diapers for children and adults for One Roof Ministry. One Roof is supported by about 30 churches in Coweta County to help meet the financial and spiritual needs in the Newnan-Coweta area, including Resale House thrift store and Coweta Community Food Pantry, also provides families in need with financial support by paying rent, placing evicted or fire victim families in motels, and paying utility bills.

HOLY TRINITY, Raleigh, NC Children’s Change for Change, donated over $155 each to IOCC, SAMP and Hilltop Home.

ST. CHRISTOPHER, Peachtree City, GA Friday afternoon, April 27 through Sunday, April 29, 5th Annual Diakonia Center Volunteer Work Weekend, an opportunity to offer to volunteer at the Metropolis of Atlanta Diakonia Retreat Center in Salem, SC. This special weekend is a great opportunity to assist our Metropolis retreat center, as well as have fun, fellowship, and spiritual time together.

TRANSFIGURATION, Florence, SC Father Athanasios is offering a special program “Our Journey through Holy Week” Monday through Friday at noon, a special study on the themes and development of Holy Week in the Orthodox Church. This program is designed especially for those who are able to come to the Church during their lunch break at work and will not exceed 1 hour each day.



HOLY WEEK and PASCHA “HYMNS OF ORTHODOX LENT & PASCHA SACRED CONCERT,” Fri, Apr. 6, 7pm, ST. BARBARA, Durham, NC reception follows

ST. NEKTARIOS, Charlotte, NC Teaching Liturgy, palm crosses, Apr. 7

ST. MARK, Boca Raton, FL JOY Apr. 7, 9am Saturday of Lazarus Liturgy, palm crosses, discussion about Holy Week. Confession. Snacks

HOLY TRINITY, Orlando, FL, Lazarus Saturday, Apr. 7, Divine Liturgy, pancake breakfast, Palm Crosses

HOLY TRINITY, Biloxi, MS Youth Retreat Sat, Apr.7,10am, movie & discussion, activities,craft projects. Lunch & dinner

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, Tallahassee, FL Saturday of Lazarus Divine Liturgy, Pancake Breakfast(Hosted by GOYA), Apr. 7,Palm-folding,fellowship & Crafts

STS. MARKELLA & DEMETRIOS, “Repair & Clean-up Day” Sat, Apr. 7. Liturgy 8am, 9:30am cleaning & repairing. Lunch

HOLY TRINITY, New Orleans, LA Apr. 7 Divine Liturgy 10am, Communion Breakfast, palm crosses

TRANSFIGURATION, Florence, SC Annual Communion Breakfast Apr. 7,Palm crosses

STS. RAPHAEL, NICHOLAS & IRENE, Cumming, GA Lazarus Saturday, Apr. 7, Liturgy & potluck, palm folding, candlemaking & pysanky egg decorating

HOLY TRINITY, Charlotte, NC Palm Sunday fish luncheon, $10/Adults, $5/children 12 & under

ANNUNCIATION, Pensacola, FL Palm Sunday, Apr. 8, fish luncheon hosted by Philoptochos. Donations Adults: $10, Children (12& under)$5 benefits Holy Cross Seminary

STS. RAPHAEL, NICHOLAS & IRENE, Cumming, GA Palm Sunday Plaki Fish Luncheon Apr. 8, Adults $15, Children 10-17 $10, 4-9 $7, 3 & under FREE

ST. GEORGE, Greenville, SC Palm Sunday Luncheon

ST. NICHOLAS, Wilmington, NC traditional Palm Sunday Luncheon; fish plate $12, Spaghetti plate $5, Seniors $9

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Palm Sunday Luncheon, Apr. 8 Donation $12

ST. JOHN, Myrtle Beach, SC Palm Sunday Fish Luncheon, Apr. 8

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Holy Week Play, Apr. 8

HOLY TRINITY, Orlando, FL, Apr. 8, annual Palm Sunday Luncheon, $12/adults, $7/children 4-12, under 3 free

HOLY TRINITY, Clearwater, FL PTO Bake Sale Palm Sunday Apr. 8

ST. ATHANASIOS, Gulf Shores, AL Palm Sunday Luncheon Apr. 8,Seafood Chowder

ST. NICHOLAS, Wilmington, NC HOPE/JOY & GOYA & LOVE Holy Friday Retreat 10:30AM led by seminarian Steven Klund

HOLY TRINITY, Clearwater, FL Holy Friday Youth Retreat: A Journey through Holy Week, Friday, Apr.13, 10:30-3pm, Apokathelosis service 3:30pm

ST. MARK, Boca Raton, FL Holy Friday JOY retreat, Apr. 13, 1-4pm. 3pm Apocathelosis service

ST. NICHOLAS, Tarpon Springs, FL Good Friday Retreat, Apr. 13, Preschool-8th grade, 8:30am

ST. NICHOLAS, Tarpon Springs, FL 4TH annual Pascha picnic, Sunday, Apr. 15, Adults/$15,4—10/$7 under 3 Free

ST. NEKTARIOS, Charlotte, NC Community Agape Picnic Pascha Sunday, Apr. 15, donation $8/adult

ST. JOHN, Myrtle Beach, SC Easter Egg Hunt, Apr. 15

ST. GEORGE, Knoxville, TN Agape Vespers,Easter Egg Hunt, Apr. 15,11am

ST. NICHOLAS, Wilmington, NC Agape Service & Picnic, 12:30 PM Sunday, Apr 15, McCrae Park.

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Family Easter Picnic, Agape service 11am, lunch 12:30-1:30pm, donation $18, children’s menu 12 & under $10

ST. DEMETRIOS, Ft. Lauderdale, FL Agape Service, Pascha Glendi, Apr. 15, $30 Parishioner, $35 Non-Parishioner $15 ages 10-15 Children 9 & under free

ST. JOHN, Jacksonville, FL Agape service & Easter Picnic, Apr. 15, Metropolitan Park, noon

HOLY TRINITY, Raleigh, NC Agape Service 11AM, annual Easter Picnic & pot luck lunch following

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Family Easter Picnic, April 15, Adullts $18, 12 & under $10

HOLY TRINITY, New Orleans, LA Agape, Hope & Joy Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Picnic, 12:30pm

ST. PHILOTHEA, Athens, GA April 15Pascha Agape Vespers, Luncheon 2pm, & Easter Egg Hunt for the children

ST. PAUL, Savannah, GA Agape Picnic, Apr. 15

ANNUNCIATION, Pensacola, FL Pascha Family Picnic, Sunday, Apr. 15, following Agape Vespers




SAVE THE DATE! APRIL/MAY ST. KATHERINE, Naples, FL Men’s Club Golf Outing, Apr. 17, 1pm, Royal Palm CC

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Golden Group Spring Luncheon Thursday, Apr. 19, 10:30am, Sponsored by the Laconian Society. Walter Reeves, guest speaker

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, Tallahassee, FL Friday, Apr. 20 "My Big Fat Greek Gyro Night-A Night at the Taverna" 4-9pm.

HOLY APOSTLES, Greenville, NC Philoptochos rummage sale Apr. 21

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA 2012 Youth Basketball Awards Luncheon,Sun, Apr. 22

ST. GEORGE, Greenville, SC Saint George Luncheon Sunday, April 22

ST. GEORGE, Knoxville, TN, St. George Picnic Apr. 22

HOLY TRINITY, Orlando, FL Golf Tournament, Mon. Apr. 23, Orange Tree GC, 1pm

ST. MARK, Boca Raton, FL Name Day celebration, Apr. 24 Vespers, Apr. 25 Liturgy, Apr. 28 Nameday Dance 6:30pm, music by Kostas Filippakis band, mezedes (appetizers), drinks, great fellowship, & dancing

ST. PHILOTHEA, Athens, GA Spaghetti Supper Thursday, Apr 26 UGA Collegium Musicum

ST. GEORGE, Greenville, SC Agape Fellowship Apr. 26, Thursday visit the new Holy Trinity Church, Columbia, SC

ST. NEKTARIOS, Charlotte, NC GOYANs Gone Gray “Sports Night,” Apr. 27, 7pm, benefits George Kantsios Scholarship Fund

ST. NEKTARIOS, Charlotte, NC Council of Ministry Workshop/Retreat, “Draw Near and Enter In,” Apr. 28; 9:30am-5pm

STS. MARKELLA & DEMETRIOS, Ft. Walton Beach, FL Church Yard Sale, Saturday, April 28, 7am

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA Golden Group,Wolf Mountain Winery, Dahlonega, GA, Saturday. April 28, 10am. wine tasting and lunch, Shopping in Dahlonega after lunch, Return to the Cathedral by 6pm. Transportation cost $20.

HOLY TRINITY, Raleigh, NC 2nd Annual GOYA LUAU Saturday, Apr. 28,6:30- 11pm, dinner & dancing

ANNUNCIATION, Atlanta, GA 2nd Annual Annunciation Cathedral Golf Classic April 30, 9:30 AM Shotgun Start Windermere GC Cumming, GA

HOLY TRINITY, Raleigh, NC “A Night in Athens” May 5th Spring Celebration, benefits Holy Trinity Building Fund and The American Cancer Society.

HOLY TRANSFIGURATION, Marietta, GA Outreach Ministry for those with special needs, Divine Liturgy, Sat. May 5, 10am, confession available 9:30am, Holy Unction following, reception afterward

ST. JOHN, Jacksonville, FL Phillies’ Night Out! ladies’ night with dinner, raffle, prizes & lots of fun!!
Sponsored by Philoptochos, Tuesday, May 8, 6pm

HOLY TRINITY, Baton Rouge, LA Greek Festival Saturday, May 12, noon-10pm, Town Square, 222 North Blvd.,
Free Admission, music, food, dancing, crafts, featuring the “Alpha Omega Greek Band” from Atlanta

HOLY TRINITY, St. Augustine, FL GREEK NITE Saturday, May 19, Greek food, music, and dancing

HOLY TRINITY, St. Augustine, FL “My Big Fat Greek Food Fest”, June 8-10 summer Greek food festival featuring delicious Greek dinners such as lamb, souvlaki, gyros, Aegean chowder. Kids area with face painting and games,Greek wine tastings, specialty Greek food items. Featured event is an “An Evening of Comedy with Basile” 8pm Saturday, June 9


THIS WEEK FROM THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN NETWORK Orthodox Christian Network
Come Receive the Light Radio Program
PO BOX 4690
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33338-4690
954-522-5567

THIS WEEK FROM THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN NETWORK COME RECEIVE THE LIGHT - THE NATIONALLY SYNDICATED RADIO PROGRAM OF ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY, How does our religious affiliation affect our experience of miracles? Hear what Fr. Barnabas Powell thinks, who has witnessed a number of miracles both back when he was a Pentecostal pastor and now as an Orthodox priest. But first, we’ll prepare ourselves for Holy Week with Fr. John Behr who will help us better understand the significance of Christ’s words from the Cross.
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OCN PODCASTS
On Theologically Thinking, Fr. Thomas Hopko explains why Christ had to die on the Cross. On Special Moments in Orthodoxy, join us for a vaulted Come Receive the Light as Fr. Christopher Metropulos enlightens us on a journey to a place of Love. Also don’t forget Readings and Remembrances daily podcast is back! Tune in each day to hear the Scriptural Readings and lives of the Saints celebrated on that day.
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OCN ISSUES VIDEO RESPONSE TO YOUTUBE VIDEO “WHY I HATE RELIGION BUT LOVE JESUS.”
Recently, an anti-religion video entitled Why I Hate Religion But Love Jesus received national attention after going viral and getting over 20 million views on YouTube. Its main points are as follows:
- Jesus came to abolish religion.
- God called religious people whores.
- Religion tells divorced moms that God doesn't love them.
- The church doesn't feed the poor.
- That religion starts wars.
If the video had only received a few hundred views with that kind of nonsense, we would have ignored it. But with over twenty million views and counting, we felt that we had an obligation to explain why none of that is historically or theologically accurate.
With Easter fast approaching, we have decided to fight YouTube video with YouTube video, with a response that fights fiction with facts. We are asking Christians all over the United States to send this response video to as many people as possible through email, Facebook, Twitter, and any other social media services. Visit our site to see it or watch it at http://www.myocn.net/administrator/components/com_civicrm/civicrm/extern/url.php?u=1490&qid=110
All programs available on Internet Radio, Podcast and On Demand at www.myocn.net.


IOCC RUN/WALK - ATLANTA April 28 for our 12 annual IOCC 5K Run-Walk. This event has been a success in the past because of your generous and enthusiastic support, and we look forward to another fun-filled event this year.

Please visit the IOCC website at: www.iocc.org/atlanta for more information and to register online!

Your donations & participation will help our brothers & sisters in Greece, Syria, Lebanon, Serbia, Kosovo, Romania, Somalia, Ethiopia, & Zimbabwe.

We look forward to seeing you and your families there this year! Please register online Today!!!

Click here or Register & Donate:

www.iocc.org/atlanta


THE CROSS: NOT AN ACCIDENT BUT AN MO During this Paschal Season we celebrate Christ’s Passion and Resurrection. On Holy Thursday we read the Twelve Gospels and walk with Our Lord on the road to Golgotha. The Cross is the critical event in the history of the world, on which
all of eternity hinges, because this signifies the re-opening of the gates of Paradise. This is the moment Christ descends into Hades and sets free the
captives; for Death cannot conquer Life. The Cross however is not an anomaly, a one-time event out of character with the nature of who God is in His essence. The
Cross is His MO, His modus operendi. The Cross represents the giving of oneself for the other; the laying down of your life no matter what the cost; the doing for another what they cannot do for themselves. Sometimes truth and love are seen as opposites, but they are sides of the same coin. The Cross was an act of Truth and Love. The ‘Truth’ that God
‘Loves’ us enough to die for us. Anselm’s theory that Christ had to die to pacify the wrath of a Holy God, i.e.
the Father killed the Son, just makes no sense to Orthodox Christians. Rather it is the act of God to do for us
what we could not do for ourselves, that is to conquer Death by Death and restore us to eternal Life with Him.
This has great implications for us who are created in the Image of God, and asked to become like Him through
our life on earth.
The Cross for us is to constantly yield our will to God and offer ourselves to our neighbor for their edification.
If this at times feels like death, it is because it is a death of sorts. It is dying to ourselves in order to benefit the
other. It is a subtle moment when we choose not to in conscious or unconscious ways, but it is a decision we
make hundreds of times a day. Myriads of opportunities are presented to each of us to deny ourselves and take
up our cross and follow Him. We see a person in need, we lash out at our spouse, we criticize our children, our
employer or our parents, we eat the last piece of cake, we don’t pick up trash, dirty laundry or misplaced items,
we indulge our eyes, our appetites, our fantasies, our greed. In avoiding the opportunity for self sacrifice we
fundamentally avert the Cross of self denial and as a result deny God and become prisoners of self. St. Paul tells
us he “dies daily” and that means that this is a daily reality that he must embrace if he is to live in “God’s
Likeness”. Even after many years of ‘following’ Christ my heart resists dying to self. I make a better lawyer
than I do a Christian because I can come up with all kinds of excuses and justifications to avoid doing what I
know I should. I long to be supple and compliant as it is written in Proverbs 21:1-3 1
The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes. 2
Every man’s way is right in his own eyes; but the LORD weighs the hearts. 3 To do righteousness and
justice is desired by the Lord more than sacrifice.
The Cross inevitably leads to Resurrection, but it comes through dying to our own will. This is a mystery but it
is the equation for God-like existence. The way of the cross is a way of being that characterizes God’s essence.
It is not morbid or evil or oppressive but it is the foundation of joy, love, peace and goodness. So come to Holy
Thursday this year and pay close attention to see and experience the “Life Giving Cross”.
KaloPascha--Blessed Easter,
Fr. Anthony Salzman


THE LIGHT AHEAD On the horizon we begin to see the light of the Feast of feasts, but it is still quite far away. Maybe we are a little tired and growing impatient at the time that still remains in our ascetic journey. Let us then listen to the words of St. John Chrysostom, and draw new strength for them to take us to Holy Pascha the saint says:
“Fasting is a medicine...[It] is the change of every part of our life, because the sacrifice of the fast is not the
abstinence but the distancing from sins. ... Are you fasting? Show me your fast with your works. Which
works? If you see someone who is poor, show him mercy. If you see an enemy, reconcile with him. If you see
a friend who is becoming successful, do not be jealous of him! If you see a beautiful woman on the street,
pass her by. ... Let the mouth fast from disgraceful and abusive words, because, what gain is there when, on
the one hand we avoid eating chicken and fish, on the other, we chew up and consume our brothers? He who
condemns and blasphemes is as if he has eaten brotherly meat, as if he has bitten into the flesh of his fellow
man. (from St. John’s Homily No. 3 to the people of Antioch at www.ccel.org)
The fast that relates to food is perhaps the easiest element of Great Lent. As St. John reminds us, fasting is
made manifest in our actions and even in our words. Control of the mouth can indeed be very difficult, because
we seem to have stopped really listening to words. Words that 50 years ago, 20 years ago, some
even five years ago may not have made it on television are now everywhere. There are so common that we
do not pay attention to them when we hear them, and we are little surprised when they come out of our own
mouths. That doesn’t even begin to cover the issue of gossip, encouraged at large by tabloids and “insider”
TV shows.
Yet we know that “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John
1:1). These words are read at the Divine Liturgy of the Resurrection. On the greatest feast of the Church, we
are reminded that our Lord is the Word of God. The entire creation came into existence through
Him. Indeed, God creates through His Word, for “God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light” (Gen.
1:3). If our salvation comes through the Word, then our words are important, because we are created in the
image and likeness of God. Of course, any word we can say is not the Word, but that does not diminish the
importance of the words that we speak, nor the power that they have to bring healing or suffering, to create or
destroy.
Let us then pray with the psalmist, as we do at every Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts: “Set a watch, O Lord,
about my mouth and a protecting door about my lips” (Ps. 140:3), so that our mouths may be a fountain of life
(cf. Prov. 10:11). With this preparation, let us then come to the glory of the Resurrection to open our mouths in chanting “Christ is risen” and in receiving the Holy Body and Blood of Christ at the divine banquet of the Paschal Liturgy.
May our Lord, through the prayers of St. John Chrysostom, guide us and bring us to the Paschal feast.
With love in Christ,
+Fr. Peter Andronache


HOLY WEEK The Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ is the single cosmic event that gives meaning, purpose and hope to all humanity. Our worship services, our prayers, our good deeds and our discipline of fasting are all beautiful and meaningful only because they lead to the reality of our Lord’s Resurrection.
With tears in our eyes we commemorate our Lord’s death of Holy and Good Friday. We know very well that it was because of our sins that our Lord was nailed to the Cross. His death was the terrible price that had to be paid for our salvation. And so, we preach the “Crucified Christ.” However, we worship the “Resurrected Lord.”
The Resurrection is our only true hope! There is no tragedy in the eyes of God. There is no death. The deep darkness of all human sufferings is totally dispelled by the brilliant light that emanates from the tomb of Christ. We proclaim triumphantly with Saint Paul: “I consider that the sufferings of this world are not worthy to be compared with the future glory which shall be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18)
Trampling death by death, our Lord offers us eternal life instead of death, hope in place of despair and bliss in lieu of sorrow. As we “enter into the joy of our Lord,” according to Saint John Chrysostom, may we also exclaim with him, “O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? For Christ, having risen from the dead, has become the first fruits of those who fall asleep.”
In sin there is death; in holiness there is life. And the life of Christ transforms our life. Though we are sinners, yet we are holy. Day by day our life is changing and some day, through the grace of God, we will be able to proclaim with Saint Paul: “It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20)
During our life journey, and especially during Great Lent, we strive to empty ourselves of the “death” that dwells within us, in order to become worthy vessels of the “new life” in Christ. Let us have constantly before us the glorious icon of our Lord’s Resurrection, as we carry our cross, as we pray and fast, as we seek repentance, and as we grow closer to Him. By the grace of God we will fight the “good fight” and we will keep the Faith. And by His grace we will be deemed worthy to receive the crown of righteousness, which He gives to all who have loved His appearing (II Timothy 4:8).
I pray that Christ our true God who rose from the dead abundantly bless you and your loved ones and may the light of Holy and Great Pascha shine brilliantly within your hearts
Fr. Panagiotis Papanikolaou, ANNUNCIATION, Pensacola, FL