Wait for the promise of the Father 1

Pentecost is one of the most celebrated and important feasts of the Church. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other fol-lowers of Jesus as described in the Book of Acts, Chapter 2 in the New Testament. This feast fulfills the prophecy of Joel; “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh.” [3:1-5]

Prior to Holy Pentecost, the Spirit was given to only a select few. As Blessed The-

ophylact states: Indeed before Pentecost the Apostles did not perform miracles by the Spirit, but by the power of the Lord. Note that the Evangelists state that the Lord gave His disciples authority and power [exousia] before sending them out. But the Evangelists make no mention of the Spirit. Only after rising from the tomb did Christ say to them, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit;” and on Pentecost the Holy Spirit came upon them.

The icon of Pen-tecost is k nown as the Descent of the Holy Spirit . Since this is a joy-ous event, the icon is painted in bold colors.

At the top: there is a semi-circle with

rays coming down from it. The rays represent the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit – directed from God. The tongues of fire, above the heads of each disciple rep-resent their own Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is coming to each disciple empowering them to preach the Gospel.

HOLY PENTECOST

A movable feast based on the Feast of Pascha.

9

Prayer of the Holy SpiritHeavenly King, Comforter, the Spirit of Truth,

everywhere present and filling all things,

Treasury of blessings and Giver of life:

come and abide in us, cleanse us from every stain

and save our souls, O Good One.

continued pg. 3

n BY REV. FR. PETER DELVIZIS

v

May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 htgoc@westfieldnj.com 908-233-8533 holytrinitywestfield.org

PromiseThePromiseThe

May–June 2015Dates in the Life of Our Church

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church ^ Westfield, New Jersey2

MAY16 12:00 Baptism17 8:15 AM Orthros 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy 11:45 AM Parish Assembly19 11:00 AM Trinity Circle 4:00 PM Greek School20 7:00 PM Great Vespers @ Roseland, Fairview 7:00 PM Philoptochos General Meeting/Elections21 Holy Ascension & Sts. Constantine and Helen

8:30 AM Orthros 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy 4:00 PM Greek School 7:30 PM Choir23-24 Metropolis Olympics

24 8:15 AM Orthros 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy25 Memorial Day - Office closed

26 4:00 PM Greek School28-31 Greek Fest

30 Saturday of Souls

9:00 AM Divine Liturgy31 HOLY PENTECOST

8:15 AM Orthros 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy

JUNE1 HOLY TRINITY

9:15 AM Orthros 10:00 AM Divine Liturgy2 4:00 PM Greek School4 4:00 PM Greek School 7:30 PM Choir6 3:00 PM Baptism7 All Saints

8:15 AM Orthros 9:30 AM Divine Liturgy8 Apostles Fast Begins

7:30 PM GOYA State Meeting9 4:00 PM Greek School 7:00 PM Philoptochos Board Meeting/Dinner 7:30 PM Parish Council11 10:00 AM TOTS 4:00 PM Greek School Graduation 7:30 PM Choir

All Saints SundayJune 7

On Sunday, June 7, which follows immediately Holy Pen-tecost, the Divine Fathers or-dained that we should celebrate the memory of all the Saints who have existed throughout the world. One reason for the feast is that many, and innu-merable persons, have become sanctified in different places and regions, whom, on account of their multitude and anonym-ity, it was not possible for us to honor individually. Therefore, in order to honor them ap-propriately and to gain their help and succor, our Mother, the Church, decreed that we should observe a common Feast of all the Saints in general, and that at the same time the Feast should be celebrated also for those who would hereafter either suffer martyrdom or in general be sanctified.

The most important reason for this Feast, as for any Saint that we celebrate, is the exhortation of ourselves, the living, to emulate those being celebrated. That is, we should compel ourselves to attain to the praiseworthy life of those blessed and renowned servants of our true God. The Prophet-King David says, with reference to this: Thy friends, O God, are exceedingly honored by me.” Psalm 138:17. The Divine Apostle, enumerating the exploits of the Saints, and putting forward their memory to us as an example of turning aside from earthly affairs and sin, and of imitating their patience and courage in the contests of virtue, says: Therefor we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…” Hebrews 12:1

Guided by the teaching of the Divine Scriptures and the Apostolic Tradition, we, the Faithful, honor all the friends of God, the Saints, as keepers of God’s commandments, as shining examples of virtue, and as benefactors of the human race. We honor each of the known Saints specially on one particular day of the year, as is evident from the Menologion; but since many are unknown, as was said previously, and since their number has multiplied from time to time, is still multiplying, and will not cease increasing until the end of the world, for this reason our Mother, the Church, has ordained that we should hold, once a year, a general commemoration of all the Saints, which is the present Feast.

It should be known that we celebrate today all whom the Holy Spirit has munificently sanctified: that is, the most sublime and sanctifying Intelligences – namely, the Nine Order of Angels -, the Forefathers and Patriarchs, the Prophets and the Holy Apostles; the Martyrs and the Hierarchs; the Hieromartyrs and monastic martyrs, the Ascetics and the Righteous, and all the choirs of holy women, and all of the other anonymous Saints, including those to come. Above all and in all and with all, we celebrate the Saint of Saints, her who is Most Holy and beyond compare superior to the Angelic Orders, our Sovereign Lady the Theotokos, Mary the Ever-Virgin.

By the intercessions of Thine Immaculate Mother, O Christ God, and of all Thy Saints from all ages, have mercy on us and save us, as Thou alone art good and lovest mankind. Amen. ^

The Promise ^ May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 3

Continued from pg. 1 (Holy Pentecost)

Holy Pentecost commemorates the su-perabundant outpouring of the Spirit upon the Church. It is a spiritual anointing of the Church’s members making all new in Christ Jesus. I shall sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be cleansed from all your uncleanness… I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. I shall take the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I shall put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My requirements and you will keep My judgments and do them. – Ezekiel 36:25. This quote speaks of both Holy Baptism, with its reference to water, and Chrismation with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Christ repeatedly promised the gift of the Holy Spirit to His disciples. He instructed that the Holy Spirit would reveal truth to the Church. When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. – John 16:13

Jesus says the Holy Spirit will bring Him glory. The last words of Christ before His Ascension included a promise: John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. – John 1:5 His words were fulfilled ten days later when the Apostles had gathered in the upper room.

Liturgically, at the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy on Pentecost, we immediately begin the Vespers of that day. There is placed within this service three beautiful prayers known as the Kneeling Prayers. These prayers invoke the Holy Spirit to descend upon the faithful. The calling upon the Holy Spirit is a reminder of what happened on that blessed day with the Apostles. It marks the beginning of Ap-ostolic preaching. Pentecost is noted as being the “birthday” of Apostolic preaching since, from this day, the preaching of the Gospel to all nations commenced. This evangelization is commonly referred to as the Great Commis-sion. Even to this day, the Church faithfully adheres to the Lord’s command to preach the Gospel and to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. –Matt. 28:19

The celebration of Holy Pentecost has a twin feature. When the Church calls upon the Holy Spirit, the faithful are not only to remember the event recorded in Scripture but are to make that holy event alive in the present day. There-fore, we are given the chance to participate in an awakening with a personal Pentecost. As a community of believers, we belong to the Risen Lord, Who is alive and active in our time. We are encouraged, again and again, to rekindle the fire of God within our souls.

Indeed, God is alive and active within the Church. The Lord Jesus said, I am the God of

Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, God is not the God of the dead, but of the living!” –Matthew 22:32. Jesus is the Living God Who is still pres-ent in the Church, purifying and sanctifying its faithful through the sacraments. He still produces saints who, in turn, edify the believ-ers by rendering glory to God. His charge, to love our neighbor as ourselves, and to leave the darkness of this world behind to follow Him into the splendor of His kingdom, still comes to us day after day.

God’s offer to experience a personal Pen-tecost, however, is not only presented during this Vespers service but takes place whenever or wherever a Divine Liturgy is celebrated. For it is through the Eucharist that God comes to us and lives within us. The Holy Spirit is present and active at the Divine Liturgy. It is interesting to note that the construction of the Divine Liturgy is very similar to the events sur-rounding the disciples during Pentecost. Just as the disciples and followers of Jesus came to-gether in unity, likewise, the faithful also come together at the Divine Liturgy to await God’s Promise. We, just like them, act as one body. We move through the course of the liturgy being of one mind and one heart continuing to acheive a common goal. We pray for the ar-rival of God with the expectation that a great mystery will unfold before us. Being of one accord, we continue in fervent pray waiting and knowing that our beloved Lord will fulfill our request. God the Father hears the supplications of the Church and acts by sending down His Holy Spirit upon the offered gifts. The bread and the wine are mystically changed to become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. This great mystery is accomplished through the Holy Spirit’s divine energy offering us the greatest experience of a lifetime – TO COMMUNE WITH GOD! The priest’s petition asking for the Holy Spirit is very informative, for there is a dual purpose for the Holy Spirit’s descent. We ask, pray and supplicate; send down Your Holy Spirit UPON US and UPON THESE GIFTS we offer to You. The Holy Spirit, being God, sanctifies those who pray together and simultaneously makes us worthy to receive the gifts that also have become the Body and Blood of Christ through His descent. We wait for Jesus’ promise to send down the Comforter upon us and upon the gifts that are set forth in preparation for Holy Communion. The Holy Spirit performs a small Pentecost at every Divine Liturgy.

St. Nicholas Cavasilas says, Let us pay close attention: the change is effected by the Holy Spirit. The third Person of the Holy Trinity becomes an active player in the continuous and extended act of redemption, accomplished by all three Persons of the Holy Trinity. The “Promise of the Father” empowers the disciples and their disciples down to us, to make the sacrifice of Christ on Golgotha efficacious for the believers in the present. ̂

The apostles are seated in a semi-circle denoting their equality and therefore unity in the Church.

The first two figures seat-ed at the head denote the chief apostles, Sts. Peter and Paul. What is of significance is that historically, St. Paul was not part of this actual event. His presence in the icon teaches us that Pente-cost is not merely a historic event that is static and lost in time. But rather, it is a dynamic one that is still hap-pening in the Church. The Holy Spirit still conveys the message of God and is still present in the Church.

In the center of the icon below the Apostles, a royal figure is seen against a dark background. This symbolic figure represents the Cosmos or the people of the world living in darkness and sin, and involved in pagan wor-ship. The figure carries in his hands a cloth containing scrolls which represent the teaching of the Apostles. The tradition of the Church holds that the Apostles carried the message of the Gospel to all parts of the world. Through the Holy day of Pentecost the world was enlighten through the preaching of the Gospel. It is our com-mission to spread the Gospel to all people and to baptize in the name of the Holy Trinity. Here we see that the Church is brought to-gether and sustained in unity through the presence and work of the Holy Spirit, that the Spirit guides the Church in the missionary endeavor throughout the world, and that the Spirit nurtures the Body of Christ, the Church, in truth and love. ^

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church ^ Westfield, New Jersey4

Philoptochos ReportThe JOY of Spring

n BY PENNY PEFANIS

Christos Anesti!We celebrate the joy of the Paschal

season, proclaiming Christ’s glorious Resurrection through May 21.

Jesus Christ loved celebrations. In the miracles that He performed, all those present experienced a celebratory joy. At the Wedding of Cana, His first miracle, our Lord turned water into wine. In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, He spoke of a father throwing a lavish party to celebrate a wayward son’s return. As His popularity grew, He was constantly invited to dinner at young people’s houses. When crowds developed, He made sure no one left hungry. Christ fed the multitude of five thousand by the miraculous multi-plication of food from one boy’s lunch. When Jesus returned from the dead, He

prepared a fish barbecue on the shore, a kind of “team picnic” for His disciples. Jesus was all about taking care of the poor and the marginalized and then having a party.

We can add our acts of kindness and celebration of life by following Christ’s golden example of helping others. To aid those in need in any significant way is more than just a moral imperative. It is believing that your best self will always be in solidarity with those who are having a hard time.

Everyone usually thinks that service is burdensome or laborious, duty or guilt. Service is not lucrative, but it is joyful, fun and fulfilling. We have an obligation to make the world a better place than when we got here. After all, Jesus did.

Joy in Greek is translated as Life. We celebrate life with joy, and vice versa.

Both are one in the same.

JOY as an acronym can also be the call letters of priority for us to make that life better for those who need our help. Let’s give first to J = Jesus Christ, secondly to O = Others, and lastly to Y = Yourself.

Spread your joy, and join the Ladies Philoptochos Society in celebration at The Joy of Spring Annual Fashion Show at Brooklake Country Club on May 6, 2015. All proceeds directly benefit numerous charitable causes and specific struggling families locally, nationally and globally who are in need of aid. ^

VACATION CHURCH SCHOOLHoly Trinity Greek Orthodox Church

July 27 - July 31

Artists of the Philoptochos Annual Art Show

Register now or stop by the table during Fellowship hour Contact Alexandra Maglaras: greekcookie7@aol.com

Lauren Karinikolas: lkarinikolas@msn.com Come Sail with us!

The Promise ^ May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 5

Sacraments & RitesFebruary–April 2015

FUNERALS2/5/15 +Helen Polites2/12/15 +George Zazanis2/21/15 +Sotirios Koultukis3/14/15 +Lillian Nikas4/7/15 +Damasko Lempotesis4/9/15 +Giannoulis Garyfallos

CHURCHINGS02/22/15 Giovanni Anthony, son of Nicole and

Christopher Boscia

BAPTISMS2/21/15 Daphne, daughter of Katherine and

Chris Mitrotasios 03/28/15 Kleopatra Josephine, daughter of

Christina and Michael Notaro 04/19/15 Alexa Kristie, daughter of Marie and

Richard Reffler

NEW MEMBERS OF OUR CHURCHSteve & Androulla Constantinou40 Old Stirling Rd.Warren, NJ 07059

Evan Repousis and Ni-cole Michalitsianos88 Irwin St. Springfield, NJ 07081

Chris and Katherine Mitrotasios170 Pearl St.Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922

Nikos Nicholas50 Harrison St.Clark, NJ 07066

Michael and Christina Notaro31 Lawrence Rd.Madison, NJ 07990

Gregory Panagos28 Berkley Sq.Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922

Gerri Repousis390 Rensen Ave.Avenel, NJ 07001

Vineel Shah and Stephanie Sokaris20 Village Green CourtSouth Orange, NJ 07079

Peter Williams32 Westminster Dr. Parsippany, NJ 07054

Elena Zazanis167 Wayne St. #4095Jersey City, Nj 07302

SATURDAY OF THE SOULSΨΥΧΟΣΑΒΒΑΤΟΝ

May 30For the Repose of the Servants of God:

Υπερ Αναπαυσεως των Δουλων του Θεου:

Please enter the full baptismal namesof your deceased loved ones.

(For example: "Nicholas" instead of "Nick" or "Nicko")

PLEASE RETURN FORM TO FR. PETER.

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church ^ Westfield, New Jersey6

n BY CHRIS ECONOMIDES

Christos Anesti!!The Religious Education staff

hopes that everyone had a joyous Pascha. A good portion of our Religious Education Program is centered on the Triodion, Lenten and Pentecostarian periods of our church calendar. In addition to our scheduled classroom activities there are several other events that help educate our children and put our faith into practice. Students in Grades K-6 participated in the Pro-cession of Icons on the Sunday of Or-thodoxy and learned about the impor-tance of Icons to our faith. The Parish then held its Oratorical Festival held on March 22. Great orations were de-livered by all participants. Christina Karsos (Senior Division, Grades 10-12) and Andrew Economides (Junior Division, Grades 7-9) were selected by the judges to represent Holy Trinity at the Northern Metropolis District Festival to be held on April 24 at Saint Nicholas, Wyckoff, NJ. From there, representatives will be chosen

to speak at the Metropolis Festi-val and then on to the Archdiocese Festival. Next year, please be on the alert as we introduce the Oratorical Festival to Grades 5-6 on a less formal level

On Holy Friday, we also held our 2nd Annual Retreat for Students in

Grades 1-6 which was organized by Lauren Karanikolas, Kathy Maglaras and Mary Ann Meihe. This year we had over 50 students in attendance! The retreat began with the students attending the last part of the Imperial Hours Service. Students then met with Father Peter in the church and

Religious Education

The Promise ^ May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 7

Oratorical FestivalThe Holy Trinity Oratorical participants with Fr. Peter and Chris Economides, Director of Religious Educa-tion, and Tony Bosco, Oratorical Chair

A few of our speakers...

then had a lesson about the Kouvouk-lion in the Bouras Center. Afterwards, a Lenten Lunch was held. From there, students were led by Father Peter in the procession of the Epitaphion from the Bouras Center to the Church. Each student held a candle and all chanted Agios O Theos (Holy God). From there, the students visited 8 stations (led by parent and YHT volunteers) in Search of the Paschal Treasure. Some themes included: Priest’s Vestments, the Censor, The Resurrection Icon,

Christ on the Cross and the Paschal Candle. Students were given a me-mento from each station. From there, we went back to the Bouras Center for some afternoon snacks and then Ryan Kiel taught the students (and many only needed a quick refresher) to sing Christos Anesti in both Greek and English. The retreat concluded with students and their parents return-ing to church for the Apokathelosis Service. If your child hasn’t had the opportunity to attend this spiritual

event yet, please mark your calendar for next year’s retreat which will be held on Holy Friday, April 29, 2016.

We are grateful to the parents for bringing their children to the Liturgy, classes and special events! Since our program relies heavily on our volun-teers and their love for our church and faith, please reach out to Father Peter, Iris Love or Chris Economides if you would like to get involved. ^

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church ^ Westfield, New Jersey8

Spirit of Lent Concert

Rehearsal with the Youth Choir

Holy Friday Night Procession

The Myrrh-Bearers for Holy Friday Night

The Ladies who Decorated the Sepulchre

From within the ChurchThe Voices of the Spirit of Lent

Men's Choir Intro.

Holy Friday

The Promise ^ May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 9

Quilt-A-Thon Fr. Themis Con-celebrates at Holy Trinity

Sunday, March 8

Fr. Themi, as he is commonly called, was born in A l e x a n d r i a E g y p t , a n d m i g r a t e d w i t h h i s family to Melbourne, Australia, at an early age. In his late teens, he was bass guitarist for the Mod band The Flies, tour-ing Australia with bands such as the Rolling Stones achieving a high level of stardom on the Australian rock ‘n’ roll scene. In his early 20s, he was the youngest lecturer at the Melbourne University, and by his late 20s he had become a Greek Or-thodox monk, studying at distinguished Universities such as Harvard, Princeton and Brown.

After his studies, he returned to Australia and became one of the founding Lecturers in Sydney’s St. Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College. Some 25 years ago, he gave up all he had accomplished and headed off to Africa to serve the poorest of the poor. He chose the then poorest country in the world, Sierra Leone, because as he put it, he would start from the bottom and work his way up.

In Sierra Leone (subject of the movie “Blood Diamond”), in just a several year period, he had established two schools with over 2000 children where he feeds them faith, food and education on a daily basis. He has established and built a whole village with houses, schools, medical clinics for the destitute and disabled, as well as places of worship, a teachers’ college, a women’s jail tailoring school, a disabled tailoring school, a child care centevr, a health center and secondary schools. And the list continues to grow. For more info, please visit:

paradise4kids.org

Members of Holy Trinity Attending Special Banquet for Fr. Themis

Themi Ganifas, Chair of Quilt-a-thon.

5FINGERS FITTING5KEYSPHYLLIS A. VERENES

PIANO INSTRUCTOR & WEDDING ORGANIST

9 SAND HILL ROAD, MORRISTOWN, NJ 07960TEL: 973.538.2236 • CELL: 973.214.9222

Contact the Church Office if you would like to advertise in the next issue of The Promise!

Holy TriniTy Greek orTHodox CHurCH

ClASSiFiedS

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church ^ Westfield, New Jersey10

The Promise ^ May-June 2015 ^ Volume 39, Issue 4 11

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church

Non Profit Org.US postage

PAIDRahway, NJ

Permit No. 654

12

Metropolis ofNew Jersey

The Promise: Volume 39, Issue 4

10 issues published annually. No subscription fee.Article deadline - 10th of the preceding month

Schedule of Services

Sundays Weekdays

Orthros 8:15 AM 8:30 AM

Divine Liturgy 9:30 AM 9:30 AM

Ministries

Parish Council Peter TarhanidisPhiloptochos Penny Pefanis

Religious Education Chris EconomidesGreek School Rita Fitanidis

Youth (GOYA) Alexandra MaglarasJOY / HOPE Iris Love

TOTS Joanne Paras & Jenny Stellakis

Bookstore Sandy MouratoglouCultural Barbara Manos

Greek School PTO Jenny StellakisTrinity Circle Antoinette Genakos

Worship

Psaltis Pascalis KuvalakisChoir Director Kathryn Athanasoulas

Organist Phyllis VerenesHead Acolyte Andreas Vlahakis

Office Staff

Office Manager Diana R. WaltsakCaretaker Ocione Nunes

Admin. Assistant E. Joy Daniledes

Contact Information

Mailing Address 250 Gallows Hill Rd.Westfield, NJ 07090-1109

Phone 908-233-8533

Fax 908-233-0623

E-mail htgoc@westfieldnj.com

Web site holytrinitywestfield.org

Presiding Priest Rev. Peter Delvizis

E-mail FrPeter@htgocnj.org