Afterfeast of the Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

33rd SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST — Tone 8. Sunday After the

Theophany. Afterfeast of the Theophany. Martyr Polyeuctus of

Melitene in Armenia (259). Hieromartyr Philip, Metropolitan of

Moscow and All Russia (1570). Prophet Shemaiah (Samaia, Se-

meias—3[4] Kings 12:22—10th c. B.C.). St. Peter, Bishop of Se-

baste in Armenia (4th c.). St. Eustratius the Wonderworker (9th

c.).

January 9th, 2011 The Great Feast of

Theophany, the

Baptism of Christ

by St. John the

Forerunner has

come. When we

are baptized, we

are made clean,

forgiven and

given new life in

the waters of bap-

tism. However,

when the Divine,

pure and sinless

Son of God de-

scended into the

water, He purified

water and made

of it a vehicle of

grace. This is why

we bless holy wa-

ter on the feast of

Theophany. It is because of His baptism that it is possible

for us to be baptized and cleansed by the water. Please

bring containers to fill with holy water. Holy water is our

general all-purpose spiritual blessing tool! It is to your

benefit to use it! Small sprinkle bottles are available at the

back of the church at the candle desk for a cost of $2.00.

All year round we will have holy water available in the

church in our holy water tank which is usually kept on the

far right of the iconostasis behind the choir director. If you

are sick, you should drink holy water, if you feel spiritually

attacked, you should drink holy water or sprinkle yourself.

It can be used for a whole multitude of purposes, to bless

almost anything.

— Father Stacey

Tone 1 Troparion of the Feast

When You, O Lord, were baptized in the Jor-dan, the worship of the Trinity was made manifest. For the voice of the Father bore witness to You, calling You His Beloved Son; and the Spirit in the form of a dove

confirmed the truthfulness of His word. O Christ our God, You have revealed Your-self,//

and have enlightened the world, glory to You

Tone 4 Kontakion of the Feast

Today You have shone forth to the world, O Lord, and the light of Your countenance has been marked on us. Knowing You, we sing Your praises. You have come and revealed Yourself,//

O unapproachable Light.

Isaiah 35:1-10 (1st Hour, Prophecy)

1 The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad

for them, And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as

the rose;

2 It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, Even

with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be

given to it, The excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They

shall see the glory of the Lord, The excellency of our

God.

3 Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the

feeble knees.

4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be

strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with

vengeance, With the recompense of God; He will

come and save you.”

5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And

the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, And the

tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth

in the wilderness, And streams in the desert.

7 The parched ground shall become a pool, And

the thirsty land springs of water; In the habitation of

jackals, where each lay, There shall be grass with

reeds and rushes.

8 A highway shall be there, and a road, And it

shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean

shall not pass over it, But it shall be for others. Who-

ever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go

astray.

9 No lion shall be there, Nor shall any ravenous

beast go up on it; It shall not be found there. But the

redeemed shall walk there,

10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, And

come to Zion with singing, With everlasting joy on

their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, And

sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Isaiah 55:1-13 (Great Blessing of Waters, 2nd Read-

ing)

1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters;

And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat.

Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and

without price.

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,

And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen

carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your

soul delight itself in abundance.

3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and

your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting

covenant with you— The sure mercies of David.

4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to the peo-

ple, A leader and commander for the people.

5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,

And nations who do not know you shall run to you,

Because of the Lord your God, And the Holy One of

Israel; For He has glorified you.”

6 Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon

Him while He is near.

7 Let the wicked forsake his way, And the un-

righteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the

Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God,

For He will abundantly pardon.

8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor

are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways, And My

thoughts than your thoughts.

10 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow

from heaven, And do not return there, But water the

earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may

give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,

11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My

mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall ac-

complish what I please, And it shall prosper in the

thing for which I sent it.

12 “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out

with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break

forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the

field shall clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress

tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myr-

tle tree; And it shall be to the Lord for a name, For an

everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

Isaiah 12:3-6 (Great Blessing of Waters, 3rd Reading)

3 Therefore with joy you will draw water From

the wells of salvation.

4 And in that day you will say: “Praise the Lord,

call upon His name; Declare His deeds among the

peoples, Make mention that His name is exalted.

5 Sing to the Lord, For He has done excellent

things; This is known in all the earth.

6 Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion, For

great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”

1 Corinthians 10:1-4 (Great Blessing of Waters, Epis-

tle)

1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be

unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all

passed through the sea,

2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in

the sea,

3 all ate the same spiritual food,

4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they

drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and

that Rock was Christ.

Ephesians 4:7-13 (Epistle, Sunday After)

7 But to each one of us grace was given according

to the measure of Christ's gift.

8 Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high,

He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men."

9 (Now this, "He ascended"-what does it mean

but that He also first descended into the lower parts

of the earth?

10 He who descended is also the One who as-

cended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all

things.)

11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some

prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and

teachers,

12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of

ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,

13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of

the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to

the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;

Mark 1:9-11 (Matins Gospel)

9 It came to pass in those days that Jesus came

from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in

the Jordan.

10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He

saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending

upon Him like a dove.

11 Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My

beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

Matthew 4:12-17 (Gospel, Sunday After)

12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put

in prison, He departed to Galilee.

13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in

Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of

Zebulun and Naphtali,

14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by

Isaiah the prophet, saying:

15 The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By

the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the

Gentiles:

16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a

great light, And upon those who sat in the region and

shadow of death Light has dawned."

17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to

say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

Parish Council Meeting – This Wednesday January 12, fol-

lowing vespers.

There will be a meeting of the Strategic Planning and Out-

reach Committee on Wednesday, January 19 following

vespers. If you are concerned about our parish's future

and growth and outreach activities, and are willing to work

toward that end, plan to come and join this group! All are

welcome.

There will be a general memorial service for the departed

following liturgy on Sunday January 23. This is for all of us

to add the names of our departed loved ones, and have

them remembered before God.

HOUSE BLESSINGS It is the season for house blessing

again! If you would like your house blessed please sign up

on the sign-up sheet located on the candle desk. Thanks!

Fr S

Support an Orphan: We have begun to support the Hogar

Raphael Ayau Orphanage in Guatemala. Please prayerfully

consider placing your spare change in the money box at

the candle desk. Our goal is to collect and send out $50

per month.

The Cleveland Museum of Art has a special exhibit running

through Jan 17, 2011. It is titled "Treasures of Heaven:

Saints, Relics & Devotion in Medieval Europe." For infor-

mation check out www.clevelandart.org.

YOUTHDAY—Putting your faith in to action—Living the

life in Christ. January 17th , 2011 from 9:30AM to 4:00PM

at Archangel Michael Orthodox Church in Broadview

Heights, Ohio. Explore how we can apply our Faith to our

lives! Games—Pizza—Crafts—”The Blind Side” Movie—

Fellowship. For ages 7—18. For more information talk to

Father Stacey.

Holy Assumption

Orthodox Church

Schedule:

Wednesday

Daily Vespers 6:00 PM

Friday

Father Stacey Office Hours 10:30 AM—1:30 PM

Saturday

Great Vespers 5 PM

Sunday

Hours 9:10 AM

Divine Liturgy 9:30 AM

WELCOME VISITORS!

We are delighted to have visitors worship with us, and we

pray that you will be blessed through your participation in

our services. While Holy Communion may only be received

by prepared Orthodox Christians, our non-Orthodox guests

are welcome to join us in venerating the Cross and receiving

blessed bread at the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy

Please Join us for Coffee Hour after

Divine Liturgy in the Social Hall

If this is your first visit to our parish, we welcome you and invite

you to return as often as you are able. For those interested in

learning more about Orthodox Christianity please ask any of our

church community – or feel free to contact Fr Stacey. Our parish

library is available for your reading interests. Children are wel-

come to join church school classes after liturgy.

CONFESSIONS

Fr Stacey can usually hear confessions after Wednesday or Satur-

day vespers. He is also available by appointment, or during

his regular office hours.

Announcements:

Listen online to our Divine Liturgy and other Orthodox

Christian Teachings INBN.net

January Birthdays

11 Mary-Ann Frishkorn +

11 Katia Gresh

16 Pete Mudrak +

19 Peter Tapyrik +

30 Erin Haywood+

31 Megan Lint +

31 Ed Romano +