Our parish is pleased to host the inaugural meeting of the Michigan Prince Vladimir Youth Association January 14-15, 2023. Young people aged 18-25 from throughout our state and the upper Midwest will join us, but they will need a place to stay January 14. A few may come for the ball on January 13, in which case they will need a place to stay for two days. The young people will be fully engaged throughout the day on January 14 and 15. They will not be hanging out at your house. :) But they do need a place to sleep. If you can host young people, please contact Fr. Gregory. If you cannot host young people, please contact Fr. Gregory to volunteer to help otherwise for this important event. We need all hands on deck to make this important event a success!

All hands on deck = EVERY STV FAMILY MEMBER!

At STV we collect non-perishable food items. Always. We don't have food drives - we do this every single day. There are many people in our local community who are food insecure. We ask our parishioners to bring a can or box of non-perishable food every time they come to church. Make this a part of your family worship! The little you give means a lot to a family who is food insecure. Remember our Lord's admonition to us in this regard: "For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:35-40)

We present here a short educational offering for both children and adults on the upcoming Sunday's principle Gospel reading so that all can better prepare for the Divine Services. Parents are asked to review the children’s portion with their children. It is very important for us to attend the Divine Services on Sundays and whenever else we are able, but in addition it is our spiritual responsibility to educate ourselves and our families in the faith. It is our hope that this mid-week offering will be an aid in this regard. Please contact Fr. Gregory with questions or suggestions.

For Various Ages: from the Antiochian Archdiocese

One of the many benefits of following the traditional Church calendar is that we are “free” around the western holidays. This allows us to visit those who are home bound. This is very important because, although we seem to have concluded our Covid pandemic, the pandemic of loneliness continues to claim many victims every day. Please consider visiting those who will spend the holidays at home. Do it yourself – visit a neighbor or friend. Or if you don’t have someone to visit – ask Fr. Gregory. There are parishioners who are alone and cannot go out to engage with others. This means we need to go to them. Your efforts in this regard will be greatly appreciated in this life, and no doubt greatly rewarded in the next.

Thank you to our dedicated bakers, those who came to work at the bake sale, and especially those that came to support us! The Sisterhood Bake Sale made more than $4,500! How great is that? It is VERY GREAT! May the Lord reward you all for your work for His Church!

Thank God, we are able to serve quite often at our parish, which means we need a lot of prosphora. Having one or two more people undertaking this blessed task would make this easier on everyone already baking. If you would like to learn how to fulfill this blessed duty please contact Fr. Gregory. It isn’t even important if you are a good baker – just that you have a desire to help and are willing to follow the recipe to the letter. :) Your efforts will directly and positively effect our ability to serve the Divine Liturgy more often, which benefits our entire parish family!

Today, the feast of St. Nicholas, is Fr. Colin’s name’s day. Fr. Colin does A LOT for our parish, and he is the only good priest we have, so please take the time to remember him in your prayers today (you should pray for him EVERY day, but especially today), and when you see him please thank him for all he does for our community. I am VERY thankful for his ministry to us and I hope you are too!

Fr. Gregory

“Since man was created rational and gentle, he is corrected far better with love and gentleness than with anger and harshness. After much and thorough testing, I have also found that with goodness and love you can pacify many. And if someone is of good intentions, you can quickly make him comply and become an angel of God.”

Monastic Wisdom: The Letters of Venerable Joseph the Hesychast

"This is the cause of all evils: the ignorance of the Scriptures. We go into battle without arms, and how ought we to come off safe?" -St. John Chrysostom, Homily IX on Colossians.

In order to help increase the general knowledge of scripture in our parish family we present here for your edification the scripture readings for the coming week. At least one Gospel Reading and one Epistle reading are assigned for each day of the year (although during Great Lent the readings are from the Old Testament). Hearing or reading only those readings appointed for Sunday merely scratches the surface of the great spiritual wealth that the scriptures provide us. Some of the readings are easily understandable – others are less so. As Orthodox Christians we do not make private interpretation of scripture, but rather consult the fathers of the Church for their explanations to aid us in our understanding. Those wishing to have access to such explanations are asked to contact Fr. Gregory or inquire in the kiosk for further reading in this regard. Bibles may also be acquired in the kiosk.

Monday: II Timothy 2:20-26 & Luke 20:27-44
Tuesday: II Timothy 3:16-4:4 & Luke 21:12-19
Wednesday: II Timothy 4:9-22 & Luke 21:5-7, 10-11, 20-24
Thursday: Titus 1:5-2:1 & Luke 21:28-33
Friday: Titus 1:15-2:10 & Luke 21:27-22:8
Saturday: Ephesians 1:16-23 & Luke 13:18-29

Понедельник: II Тим. 2:20-26 и от Луки 20:27-44
Вторник: II Тим. 3:16-4:4 и от Луки 3:16-4:4
Среда: II Тим. 4:9-22 и от Луки 21:5-7, 10-11, 20-24
Четверг: Тит. 1:5-2:1 и от Луки 21:28-33
Пятница: Тит. 1:15-2:10 и от Луки 21:27-22:8
Суббота: Еф. 1:16-23 и от Луки 13:18-29

Please find below several very nice articles on how to read the scripture from an Orthodox point of view.

By St. Justin (Popovich):

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/phronema/bible_how.aspx

By Bishop Kalistos (Ware):

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/phronema/ware_howto.aspx

Please join us for a live broadcast of today's Divine Liturgy beginning at 10:00 a.m. at the following link:

ST. VLADIMIR AUDIO LIVE STREAM
VIDEO LIVE STREAM
Please remember - the stream only broadcasts live services. If you would like to listen to previously recorded and edited services please visit our sound blog:

SOUND OF THE PARISH BLOG
If you would like to view past services please visit our YouTube page:

ST. VLADIMIR YOUTUBE CHANNEL