Tenth Sunday after Pentecost
Leave-taking of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ
Righteous Maximos the Confessor; Eudokia and Irene (Xenia) the empresses; Venerable Dorotheos of Gaza and his disciple Dositheos
Thought for Today: “In the mercy of God, the little things done with humility will enable us to be found in the same place as the saints who have labored much and been true servants of God.” – St. Dorthea of Gaza-
Feast of the Dormition of our Holy Theotokos August15
VARIABLE for CHOIR and PARISH
Resurrectional Apolytikion – Tone 1
While the stone was sealed by the Jews, and the soldiers were guarding Thy most pure body, Thou didst arise on the third day, O Savior, granting life to the world. For which cause the heavenly powers cried aloud unto Thee, O giver of life. Glory to Thy Resurrection O Christ, glory to Thy kingdom, glory to Thy providence, O Thou Who alone art the lover of mankind.
Apolytikion of the Transfiguration – Tone 7
When, O Christ our God, Thou wast transfigured on the mountain, Thou didst reveal Thy glory to Thy Disciples in proportion as they could bear it. Let Thine everlasting light also enlighten us sinners, through the intercessions of the Theotokos. O Thou Bestower of light, glory to Thee.
Kontakion of the Transfiguration – Tone 7
Thou wast transfigured on the mount, and Thy Disciples, in so far as they were able, beheld Thy glory, O Christ our God; so that, when they should see Thee crucified, they would remember that all Thy suffering was voluntary, and could declare to all the world that Thou art truly the effulgent Splendor of the Father.
EPISTLE and GOSPEL READINGS
The Epistle
Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous.
The Reading from the First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians. (4:9-16)
Brethren, God has exhibited us Apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to men. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are ill clad and buffeted and homeless; and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become, and are now, as the refuse of the world, the off scouring of all things. I do not write this to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the Gospel. I urge you, then, be imitators of me.
The Gospel
The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew. (17:14-23)
At that time, a man came up to Jesus and kneeling before Him said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly; for often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. And I brought him to Thy disciples, and they could not heal him.” And Jesus answered, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” Jesus said to them, “Because you have no faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. This kind never comes out except by prayer and fasting.” As they were traveling together through Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him, and He will rise on the third day.
Receiving the Eucharist:We invite you to receive the Holy Eucharist if you are an Orthodox Christian who has prepared yourself through fasting, prayer, and recent confession. If you are not Orthodox, or are Orthodox but have not prepared, we invite you to receive a piece of the blessed bread in the wooden bowls held by the altar servers at the front of the church.
Father Peter Jon will be traveling Thursday & Friday (August 17-18) to attend a conference.
THIS WEEK
Monday, August 14: Divine Liturgy at 9:00 am; Great Vespers at 6:00pm (with Artoklosia for the Feast of the Dormition of the Holy Theotokos).
Tuesday, August 15 – Holy Dormition: Matins at 8:00am, Divine Liturgy at 9:00am.
Wednesday, August 16: 6th Hour Prayers, at 12:00 noon; Daily Vespers, at 6:00pm (followed by Ask Abouna).
Thursday, August 17: 3rd Hour Prayers at 9:00am.
Friday, August 18: 6th Hour Prayers at 12:00 noon.
Saturday, August 19: Bible Study at the Webb’s home, 9:00 am; Baptism of infant Selena Kappas at 11am; Great Vespers at 5:00 pm; jr.SOYO at 3:30pm; SOYO at 6:30pm.
Sunday, August 20: Matins at 9:00am; Divine Liturgy at 10:00am.
FAMILY NEWS
Names Day Celebration: Max Williams, Max Pitchkite, Righteous Maximos the confessor (13th); Micah Finchum, Prophet Micah (14th); Mary Barger, Kh. Marilyn Gillquist, Mary Ann Griggs, Alice Marie Piercefield, Mae Sampanis, Maya Ramly, Nanette Maria Metaska, Mary the Holy Theotokos (15th); Stephen Kozak, St. Stephen of Hungary (16th).
Birthday Celebrations: Casey Barbarick, (13th), Vicki Gans (14th).
Memory Eternal: Emmalyn, Paul; Ernestine, Natalie, Archpriest Raphael, John; Mother Nektaria, Ron.
Prayer List: Michael, Olga, Eileen, Soren, Kathy; Toni;Jan; Don and Dee; those suffering the war of Ukraine; Peace talks; our nation and all nations’ leaders; Earthquake victims and relief efforts in Syria and Turkey; schools: school children, youth and personnel across the nation; Mat. Raisa; Mary Ann; Emma (Mary Ann’s granddaughter); Bob & Bonnie Thelen; Wes (infant with brittle bone disorder); Wes’s grandfather; Megan (lymphoma); Mark (CHF) and (caregiver) Barbara;Josiah; Vicki;Vicki’s granddaughter; Steve Crandall; Fr. Athanasius; Jack; Christopher; Fr. Jerome; Catherine; Wadia; Jayci; Patricia; Marvin; Alice; Kitsa; Apthrodite; Kim; Kristy; Dusty; Cari; Betsy; Josh; Allison; Andrew (Texas/military); Isaac (Germany/military); Leanne; Heather; Nancy; Sharon Catherine; Lexi, Ross and Vivian; Theo; Doug; Jeremy; Dn. Lawrence, Marcia; Elias; Waded; Seraphima; Lilly’s family; Jennifer; Christy; Megan; John; Stanley; Anna and child; Macrina and child Elizabeth born of her; Emilia with child; Amanda with child; Anne; Allen; Linda; Marilyn; Mary Barger; Allison and children; Nino with child.
Coffee Hour Host: Wendy Carter with Parishioners C-G.
Next week Host: Nina Rogers with Parishioners H-R.
Giving Opportunities:
Mission Donations: We send monthly support to two missionary units in Albania, the Hoppe family and Hannah Valentine. We welcome and encourage you to contribute to their ongoing support.
Benevolence Fund: Donations may be made to this fund throughout the year, and are mainly used to support families in need of help with rent and utilities payments
In-House Food Pantry: Non-perishable food items are always welcome! The Food Pantry is available to parish members as well as families and individuals in the greater Bloomington community. Thank you for your continued support.
Donations to the church are being made online at www.allsaintsbloomington.org and by U.S mail. Many thanks to all who continue supporting All Saints.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 10, 2023
Memory Eternal! Mother Nektaria
From V. Rev. John Troy Mashburn, pastor emeritus, St. John Church of Memphis, Tenn.
With sadness, but also with thanks to God for a life well lived, we note the falling asleep in the Lord of Mother Nektaria, 72, on Aug. 9, 2023. Mother lived the last 27 years of her monastic life at St. Paul Skete, an Antiochian monastic community in Grand Junction, Tenn.
Mother Nektaria entered the monastic life at age 36 in 1987 at Orthodox Monastery of the Transfiguration in Elwood City, Penn. after 10 years of teaching high school English. She was tonsured as a nun in 1993 at Dormition of the Mother of God Orthodox Monastery in Rives Junction, Mich.
Mother Nektaria’s life at the Skete began in 1996 at a residence in Memphis, Tenn., a block away from St. John Church. She created a small chapel there where she faithfully prayed with the many who came to pray with her. In 2001, she relocated the Skete property to Grand Junction, about 75 minutes east of St. John Church. She hosted visitors for years and was regularly invited to speak and lead retreats at parishes all over the Eastern U.S.
The majority of Mother Nektaria’s years at the skete were spent in solitude. Nevertheless, she endeared herself to many, not only in our Archdiocese, but also to individuals and parishes in all the Orthodox Christian jurisdictions in the U.S. She was especially loved by the faithful of all the parishes in the Mid-South. Her prayers have been a great consolation to many, and she is already missed.
Services will be held at Dormition of the Mother of God Orthodox Monastery in Rives Junction, Mich. on Friday, Aug. 11. Orthros will begin at 5:00 a.m. followed by the Divine Liturgy. The funeral will likely commence at 9:00 a.m.
His Eminence Metropolitan Saba and the hierarchs, clergy and laity of the Antiochian Archdiocese extend their love and sympathies to the friends of Mother Nektaria. May her memory be eternal!