On September 24, on the Sunday before the Exaltation, our parish had a beautiful celebration. In addition we observed feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God transferred to Sunday. The Divine Liturgy in our temple was served by the Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov. After the readings from the Sacred Scripture he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! On a Sunday preceding the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross we are given a separate set of readings from the Sacred Scripture. The Church does so to make us aware of the special meaning of the Cross of Christ. And today we also observe feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God. So, we had two sets of Scripture lessons. Today’s first Epistle lesson from the Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians concerns with the issue the first Christians had, the issue whether they should keep the Jewish customs and retain circumcision or not. St. Paul says, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation” (Gal. 6, 15). It does not really matter whether we are circumcised or not, but we have to be the new people in Jesus Christ”.
“St. Paul is teaching that it is not something external on our bodies that distinguishes us as Christians. It is something internal, spiritual. Through Christ, through Baptism, through repentance and the Holy Spirit we have become new people, a new creation. Jesus Himself said, “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21, 5). In Christ we are a new creation. He established the New Testament, thus the followers of that New Covenant have to be the new people, people who put off the old Adam and put on the new. “Put off… the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts… and put on the new man which was created according to God”, says St. Paul in another Epistle (Eph. 4, 22-24). Thus, we have to be a new creation”.
“The Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos became the sign of the beginning of that new era of human history. Today we celebrate the birth of the One who became the Mother of Christ. She Herself was an example of a new person, a representative of that new creation in Christ”.
“But even for us, unfortunately the task of becoming the new people in Christ is still very difficult. Sometimes we do not see a difference between believers and unbelievers, between Christians and non-Christians. If we look at the human history, we see that man’s external environment has changed very much, especially recently, with the great achievements in science and technology. However, human nature did not change. Some wise man said, “Man has exalted change in everything but himself”. Man can change his appearance and the way he lives, but the most important change he does not make, a change inside of his soul. Unless man changes inside, unless he is born again, all the changes in science, technology or in our environment will be of no avail”.
“The wise man of the Old Testament said, “There is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl. 1, 9). At that time, centuries before Christ he could not see anything new. But today we know that the only new thing under the sun is the life in Christ. We know that the Most Holy Theotokos was the new creation, a Most-Pure Virgin, the New Eve, a perfect female person of the New Testament”.
“Sometimes people say that eternal life means our continuation in children. It is true to some extent. Our sons and daughters look like us, behave like us, have our traits. Holy parents of the Theotokos, Joachim and Anna thought that they did not have such a continuation. They were first deprived of the hope to have a future in their children. But even people blessed by the offspring could not have the true eternal life. Every generation before the coming of Christ lived under condemnation, lived in the fallen state. Children looked like their parents, behaved like their parents and repeated their parents’ sins and mistakes. Only with the coming of the Divine Savior into the world, only with the incarnation of the Son of God, the human race was given a future to become holy and to join God in the eternal life. Such life was granted, the ancestral curse was broken through Jesus Christ redeeming us. But in order to accomplish that Jesus had to be born as a Man. And His birth was given by the Most Holy Theotokos. She had to come to this world first. And She did, and today we celebrate Her wonderful Nativity”.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us really build our lives the way we may be seen as the new people, people distinguished from the unbelievers. Let us be that new creation. Not circumcision or other external sign should distinguish us, but the sign of the Cross. And not just a visible sign, a cross we make or a cross we wear on our chests. Let us imitate the Lord crucified in our way of life, so we may say as St. Paul said in today’s Epistle lesson, “I bear in my body the marks of Lord Jesus” (Gal. 6, 17). St. Paul had spiritual marks of the Holy Cross of Christ, because he crucified his flesh with its passions and desires (Gal. 5, 24). If we also crucify our flesh, our passions and sinful desires, then we may become the new people in Christ. These marks won’t be seen, but they will be in our hearts. These marks won’t be external, but internal. They would make us the true members of the Body of Christ, where “neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation” (Gal. 6, 15)”.

The choir director beautifully performed the hymns of the Nativity of the Theotokos during preparation for Holy Communion.

Following the Liturgy dismissal the Rector and the altar server performed the rite of glorification in front of the festal icon singing the troparion, kontakion and magnification of the feast. Then Fr. Igor made some announcements, especially regarding our celebration of the coming feast of the Exaltation. Our planned Liturgy on that day had to be canceled, so we are going to transfer the feast to the following Sunday.

After the services the Rector and parishioners enjoyed delicious meals and a nice company at the coffee hour.

On September 17, on the 15th Sunday after Pentecost, we had a beautiful celebration in our parish. Rector of St. George Church, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. After the Gospel lesson he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Reading the Epistles of St. Paul we always learn about Christian life. We discover what it means to be a Christian. In today’s Epistle reading we also learn something about it”.
“Today we heard that St. Paul says that through Jesus Christ God let His light shine in the hearts of men (2 Cor. 4, 6). This is a special ability, a special gift from God. His light may shine in our hearts, Jesus can live within us, the divine grace is given to us. But, as St. Paul goes further, “we have this treasure in earthen vessels” (2 Cor. 4, 7). “Earthen vessels” mean vessels of clay, clay jars. That means that we are earthly people, we have our material bodies which are subject to corruption and death. We cannot live this earthly life forever. Our bodies are like clay jars which may be easily broken. In addition, our souls are also corrupt by sin and attached to our bodies and our earthly desires. They are also vulnerable like those earthen vessels. The treasure of divine grace is held in us like in earthen vessels”.
“St. Paul tells us that entrusting such a gift to the earthen vessels is necessary. He says that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Cor. 4, 7). We should realize our infirmity and our imperfection, to be humble. We should not become too proud and should understand that our faith and the grace are coming from God, and not from our own merits”.
“Living like those earthen vessels make our life difficult. It is even more difficult to live a true Christian life. But if we think about it, we may realize that God never permits us to be annihilated, to be totally destroyed and to be tempted more than we can endure. Therefore St. Paul says, “We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed…” (2 Cor. 4, 8-9). The Apostle goes further and says that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh”. He says that although death is working in us, life also works (2 Cor. 4, 11-12). Commenting on those words St. John Chrysostom wrote that these trials mentioned by the Apostle show both the power of God and, more, disclose His grace. Christian life is a victorious one, but not trouble free. We need to endure all kinds of trials in order to become worthy of our Lord who also underwent sufferings but became the Conqueror of death”.
“Today we honor Holy Martyr Babylas who was the bishop of Antioch in the 3rd century, was one of the ancient Antiochian Patriarchs. His body was tortured in many ways to force him to renounce Christ. His earthen vessel was damaged but by the grace of God he persevered and became a martyr, a hero for Christ. Another Saint whom we commemorate today is Prophet Moses, a very famous Old Testament hero. If we recall the Bible, he was not very confident when he was beginning his special mission. He told God Himself with Whom he spoke, that he has certain physical shortcomings. But God gave Him an assurance of His help and continuous support, promised to be with him (Ex. 4, 1-11). With God’s help our earthen vessels can be very successful and efficient.”
“At the end, as St. Paul reminds us, “He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us” (2 Cor. 6, 14). Our earthly lives will end, our earthen vessels will be destroyed, but God will restore both our lives and our bodies at the end of time, so we can be presented at the second coming of His Son. Our trials and troubles, if we suffered them as true Christians, will not be in vain. We will be living eternal life. We will no longer have the treasure held in earthen vessels but in the vessels which will last forever”.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us be humble and appreciate that God entrusted His treasure, His divine gifts, to be held in our earthen vessels. Let us endure and persevere in our trials, tribulations and temptations of this life. Let us keep in mind that at the end God who raised Jesus from the dead will also raise us up, so we may be given life eternal”.

During preparation for Holy Communion the choir director nicely performed hymns dedicated to the Saints whose memory was celebrated: Holy Hieromartyr Babylas and Prophet Moses.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector made the announcement regarding the coming feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. Fr. Igor also greeted Phoebe Ching-Huei Li on her past name day proclaiming the Polychronion on her behalf and handing to her the Theotokian prosphora.

On September 10, on the 14th Sunday after Pentecost, St. George Parish held a nice celebration. In addition to the Sunday observance we celebrated feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist transferred to that day. Our Rector, Archpriest Igor Tarasov served the Divine Liturgy. After the readings from the Scripture he preached the following homily:

“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! Today along with our Sunday celebration we observe feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist. Both Sunday Gospel lesson and the reading of the story of the Beheading of the Forerunner may give us a sad and negative impression. In our Sunday Gospel assigned for today we hear a parable of the Wedding Feast. It shows that so many people neglected the invitation of their king, and even among those who came to the banquet there were people not dressed appropriately. Our Lord finishes that parable by saying, “Many are called, but few are chosen” (Mt. 22, 14). And in the Gospel story of the execution of St. John the Baptist we hear that this just man was killed by the unjust people and there was no one to defend him”.
“Listening to such sad stories we may recall the words of the Prophet Isaiah: “The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart” (Is. 57, 1). St. John was beheaded to honor the request of a loose dancing girl and because of the hatred of her adulterous mother, and no one took it to heart. The birthday banquet of king Herod was not stopped, no guest became indignant and no man became frustrated that such a righteous man was murdered. And in some time after that crime, another villainy had been done, another just Man was killed – our Lord Jesus Christ. Not to honor the request of some dancing girl, but to please the angry crowd an innocent Person of Christ was crucified. And no man took it to heart. We say “no man” because a small number of the Apostles and the Most Holy Mother of God were like a drop in the ocean of the enemies of Christ”.
“These two examples of the execution of St. John the Baptist and of Christ suggest that evil is very successful and reigning in this world while good is very often defeated and humiliated. It may also be observed through the whole history of mankind. It is seen right now in many places of the world. And today’s Gospel lesson about the Wedding Feast may lead us to a conclusion that our human nature is so corrupt and ungrateful that God won’t allow most of us to enter into His Kingdom. Thus today we may tend to think negative and become filled with pessimism”.
“But let us try to think positive. The whole idea of the Kingdom of God where all of us are invited should overcome all kinds of pessimism. Our Lord is describing His eternal Kingdom in an image so understood to the people – as a wedding feast. In the times of Christ and in East weddings were celebrations of human love, and the families that made them attempted to invite as many guests as they could. So the Lord compared His Kingdom to such a feast. Everyone is welcome. It is now our own choice whether to accept that generous invitation. If we accept and do our best to get there, to enter into God’s Kingdom, to participate in His everlasting celebration of Love – we will be there. And our garment will be appropriate if we will prepare and put such garment on. So, the Lord won’t throw us out of His banquet hall into the outer darkness. It is totally up to us. Even if we fail to do our preparation, even if it seems difficult for us to accept God’s invitation, the Lord is always willing to help us. He provides His divine grace, He assures us that if with men it is impossible, with God everything is possible (Mt. 19, 26). And despite that only few are chosen, the Lord keeps saying, “Come to me, allyouwho are wearyand burdened, and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11, 28). And the whole Scripture is full of very optimistic and positive assurances of God’s love and willingness to save everyone. But on the other hand, of course, God won’t save us without our desire to be just. The book of Revelation says, “He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteousstill; he who is holy, let him be holy still“ (Rev. 22, 11). God gives us a choice. If we are unjust or filthy, He will judge us; if we are righteous and holy He will bless us”.
“Sometimes God allows unjust to be punished even before His judgment, even in this life. The punishment of Herod was terrible. Firstly, his kingdom was invaded and taken away from him. Then Herod was exiled to Spain, it was here one terrible winter that Salome fell through a hole in the ice while crossing a frozen river. As she sank into the river, the ice froze around her neck. Struggling to free herself, she moved her legs, as though dancing. At that moment, however, the edges of ice cut through her neck and she was beheaded. Her sinful and unrepentant body disappeared forever beneath the ice. Eyewitnesses saw her decapitated head on the ice, picked it up and took it to Herod – on a platter. As regards Herod and Herodias, they too disappeared, for they fell into a crack in the ground opened up during an earthquake. Thus, they disappeared from history, without obeying St John’s call to repentance, swallowed by the fires beneath the earth. But as regards St John who called and still calls to repentance – his name lives on forever”.
“Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, despite the sadness of today’s Gospel lessons, let us remember that God’s justice will always prevail. Let us also remember that we are all invited to share in the joy of our Lord in His eternal Kingdom. An invitation is sent and the doors of the banquet hall are wide open. The Wedding Feast is waiting for us. It is now up to us whether we will accept that invitation, do our best to come and be dressed appropriately. If not, we will join king Herod, Herodias and her foolish daughter the dancer. We will join those who condemned Christ. But if we will do our best we will join the holy ones, we will be among the Saints such as John the Baptist, the Most Holy Mother of God and our Lord Jesus Christ!”

During preparation for Holy Communion the choir director piously performed the hymns of the feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist.

After the dismissal of the Liturgy the Rector and the altar server performed glorification in the middle of the church singing the troparion, kontakion and magnification of the feast before the icon stand.

Following that the Rector made some announcements. He then congratulated Moses Dunetz on his name day. Traditional Polychronion (“Mnogaia leta!”) was proclaimed and the Theotokian prosphora was handed to that parishioner.

Following that the Rector performed the blessing of the students who begin the school year.

After our services the Rector and parishioners enjoyed delicious food and nice conversation during the coffee hour.