February 19, 2012 Bulletin

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church Orthodox Church in America 2143 S. Center Rd, Burton, MI 48519 Served by: Fr. Matthew-Peter Butrie – Rector Deacon Kerry Luke Gonser Web Page: www.saintnicholasburton.org Church: 810-744-0070 Fr Matthew: 810-695-2023

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2012 SUNDAY OF MEATFARE — Tone 3. Sunday of the Last Judgment. Apostles of the Seventy Archippus (Arkhipp) and Philemon, and Martyr Apphias (1st c.). Martyrs Maximus, Theodotus, Hesychius and Asclepiodota, of Adrianopolis (305-311). Ss. Eugene and Macarius, Presbyters and Confessors, at Antioch (363). Ven. Dositheus of Palestine, disciple of Ven. Abba Dorotheus (7th c.). St. Rabulas of Samosata (ca. 530). Ven. Theodore of Sanaskáry (1791).

TROPARIA (Tone 3) Let the heavens rejoice! Let the earth be glad! For the Lord has shown strength with His arm. He has trampled down Death by death. He has become the first-born of the dead. He has delivered us from the depths of Hell, and has granted to the world great mercy. (Tone 4) In truth you were revealed to your flock as a rule of faith, a model of meekness, and teacher of abstinence, so you won the heights by humility, and riches by poverty, O Holy Father Nicholas, intercede with Christ God to save our souls.

KONTAKION (Tone 1) When Thou, O God, shalt come to earth with glory, / all things shall tremble, / and the river of fire shall flow before Thy judgment seat; / the books shall be opened, and the hidden things disclosed; / then deliver me from the unquenchable fire, // and make me worthy to stand at Thy right hand, O Righteous Judge!

The Prokeimenon in the Third Tone: Sing praises to our God, sing praises; / Sing praises to our King, sing praises! v. Clap your hands, all ye people, shout to God with loud songs of joy.

THE READING FROM THE FIRST EPISTLE OF THE HOLY APOSTLE PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS (8:8 - 9:2) 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.

Alleluia, Tone 3 v. In Thee, O Lord, have I placed my hope; let me not be put to shame. v. Be Thou a God of protection for me, a house of refuge in order to save me.

THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST MATTHEW (25:31-46) At that time Jesus said, “When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the 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 thee 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.”

COMMUNION HYMN Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the highest! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

On February 20 the Church celebrates the memory of a saint known for compassion and love toward for the poor. Yet he is also associated with a shocking act of violence. He is Saint Leo of , in .

Born in 709 in the northern Italian town of , Leo became a Benedictine monk at a young age. He spent the next years in Reggio , at the southern tip of Italy and close to Sicily. Destitute families in the area soon learned that the young monk was a reliable helper, giving them food and money, and encouraging them through his example of prayer and trust in God.

When Catania needed a bishop, the people and the nearby bishops immediately thought of Leo. He was consecrated, and continued his work among people in need. But poverty was not the only problem he faced— the island of Sicily and the neighboring parts of Italy were strongly influenced by sorcery, magic and witchcraft. As bishop, he spent many hours working to keep people from placing their hope in these things instead of God.

Among the sorcerers in the area was a man named Heliodorus, who could speak convincingly and had a striking appearance. He loved attention; in fact he hoped to dazzle people. There seemed to be no way of doing this in his position as a deacon in the Church, so he took up sorcery, and became highly skilled at doing magic tricks that made crowds gasp in amazement. He also claimed that he knew how to cast spells, which inspired fearful admiration in the gullible. Troparion - Tone 1 Saint Leo attempted with gentle persuasion to turn You were shown forth as a resplendent priest, Heliodorus away from magic and back to faith. He a teacher of godliness and a wonderworker, blessed hierarch failed, partly because Heliodorus resented his rise Leo; to the rank of bishop. As a native of Catania, by the light of heavenly virtue you were enriched with the Heliodorus felt that he should have been the one power of the Spirit, chosen—why should a "foreigner" be brought in as and heal the souls and bodies of those who hasten to you. bishop, leaving him still a deacon? Glory to Christ who has glorified you! Glory to Him who has crowned you! Heliodorus tried more and more boldly to challenge Glory to Him who through you works healing for all! Saint Leo with his sorcery. Finally one Sunday he interrupted the Liturgy, shouting and flashing his magic tricks to divert people from the service. Saint Leo, for all his patience and compassion, couldn't allow this. He finished the service, and took Heliodorus outside, challenging him to prove his power. Then he built a fire and dragged the magician into it with him. When the fire died down, Leo was unharmed; Heliodorus had been burned to ashes.

The Old Testament (I Kings 18) contains a famous story of similar violence, in which the prophet Elijah destroys the prophets of Baal. Such stories are disturbing, but their point is that God will not permit false teachers to entice people away from Him. He will not let them confuse His people, trying to show that He is not God.

When those teachers refuse to repent, as Heliodorus did, God may carry out His warning to destroy their earthly lives so that they can no longer destroy the lives of others with falsehood.

February 19, 2012

CANDLE INTENTIONS FOR THE HEALTH & BLESSINGS OF Happy Birthday & God‟s Blessings Stojan Prusac (Feb. 20), Prayers & God‟s Blessings Mira Prusac & Bosa Kantar Rosemary Vuckovich Tom Branoff for his Birthday 2-18 Linda Branoff Nadja & Sean Bernecke, Reagan, Heather & Chris Hogg, Teri & Jeremy Hogg, Evdokia, Nick Ponomarenko Lucy Hogg Happy Birthday & God‟s Blessings Stojan Prusac, Mark Liley, Matushka Lisa Mira Prusac Deacon Anthony, David, Anna, Reggie, Bosa, Allen & Deborah, Elaine, Mary, John & Gloria, , Alex, Ted, Fr. David, Gladys, My family & friends J. Tome Happy Birthday & God‟s Blessings Stojan Prusac, Health & God‟s Blessings Mira Prusac & Bosa Kantar Peter & Jo Sredich Katherine Gonser Hopkins, Dorothy Campbell, Happy 83rd Birthday to Mickey Gonser Deborah Gonser-Adams Special Intention Diane, Arthur Zambito & Family, Nancy, Ken & Maggie Laycock, Pat Miculka, Helen & Doug Phillips, Fred Oginsky, Gloria & John Zelenko, Anne Smith Anne Smith Prayers & God‟s Blessings for successful surgery & speedy recovery Gerald Hall Rosemary Vuckovich Health & God‟s Blessings Carol & Jerry Smith, Families of Oginsky, Kuptz & Miculka, Evdokia Naumoff, Sick & Shut-ins of St. Nicholas Anne Smith Special Intention J. Tome Prayers & God‟s Blessings Bosa Kantar, John & Gloria Zelenko, Gladys Edwards Rosemary Vuckovich ETERNAL LIGHT AT THE ALTAR Health & God‟s Blessings Nadja Bernecke Lucy Hogg

CANDLE INTENTIONS FOR ALL THOSE IN BLESSED REPOSE Blessed Repose-Prota Urosh Bulatovich Stojan & Mira Prusac Carl Smith & our son, Nick Polonic-Memory of my father‟s birthday, Helen Polonic, Olga Elasivich, Olga Haw, Nicholas Brock-10 yrs Blessed Repose Anne Smith Repose of the Soul of our son Charles Dennis & Sharon Jernigan Stella Branoff in memory of her Birthday 2-16 Linda Branoff Olga Haw, Nick Brock, Carl Paul, Joann Triplett, Mildred Aleksoff, Tony Brayanis, Cindy Gillenwater Deborah Gonser-Adams Anthony Dorohov Lydia Dorohov Blessed Repose George Montague (Michelle Ford‟s Father) Rosemary Vuckovich

ANNOUNCEMENTS We welcome all of our friends and visitors to St. Nicholas. Please join us for St. Juliana‟s annual Meatfare Luncheon.

MEATFARE LUNCHEON Everyone is invited to join us for St. Juliana‟s annual Meatfare Luncheon. Roast Beef & Roast Pork, Salad, Bread, Vegetables, Potatoes and dessert will be served. Cost $10.00 adults, Children: Free

THE CATHOLIC CHARITIES FOOD VAN will be at our church today from 9am to 1 pm. The food and the personal items that are donated are used by Catholic Charities to provide meals for the hungry and to help those in need, through their various area ministries. We at St. Nicholas Orthodox Church can make a difference in people‟s lives by donating these items and encouraging our friends to stop by to drop off their donations of food and supplies next weekend.

OCA METROPOLITAN COUNCIL MEETING Father Matthew will be attending this meeting as the clergy representative from our Diocese. The meeting is from February, 21-24 in Syosset, NY. If you have a pastoral emergency, please call: Fr. Paul Jannakos at 810-845-9015 or Fr. Angelo Maggos at 810-471-0316 or Fr. Joe Abud at 810-444-9108.

CHEESEFARE LUNCHEON will be held next Sunday, February 26. All are invited to attend.

YOUTH ON SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY Parish youth, please bring an icon from home to carry in procession on the First Sunday of Lent, March 4.

CHANGE CANDLES Faithful of St. Nicholas Church, your help is needed to change our candles from red to purple for Lent. Please mark your calendars for Monday, February 27 at 10 am to help.

Schedule of services and events for the week of February 19, 2012

Monday, February 20 St. Leo of Catania 9:00 am Divine Liturgy

Saturday, February 25 4:30 pm Great Vespers followed by Confessions 5:30 pm Choir Practice

Sunday, February 26 Forgiveness Sunday 9:30 am Third Hour 10:00 am Divine Liturgy Cheesefare Luncheon 12:30 pm Forgiveness Vespers

Sunday Offerings for February 12, 2012

Weekly Income Weekly Offering Envelope $ 1,480.00 Children’s Offering $ 0.00 Income to date $24,512.79 Cemetery Maintenance $ 30.00 Expense to date $21,688.66 Charity Envelope $ 20.00 +/- to date $2,824.13

Diocesan Support $ 0.00

OCA Envelope Charities $ 0.00 Candle Fund $ 205.00 Kitchen/Coffee $ 0.00 Seminarian Fund $ 0.00 Loose Offering $ 44.00 Kiosk $3.00 Total Income $1,782.00 111 People were in attendance on Sunday Avg. Weekly Budget $3,798.56 February 12, 2012. +/- Budget -$2,016.56