Christ is Risen!
The Fifth Sunday of Pascha
Sunday of the Samaritan Woman
The Samaritan Woman at the well is known to us as St. Photini, Equal-to-the-Apostles. After her life-altering meeting with Jesus Christ and His Death and Resurrection, she was baptized by the apostles with the name Photini (meaning “enlightened one”). She proceeded to evangelize many in Africa before being brought before Nero in Rome and receiving a crown of martyrdom along with her family.
Photini came to the well to fill her water pot to sustain physical life but left with something much more – living water that quenched her spiritual thirst. Jesus Christ’s interaction with the Samaritan Woman is notable for several reasons. It was considered inappropriate for Jesus, as a teacher, as a male, and as a Jew, to engage in conversation with such a person. Samaritans were considered “half-breeds” or heretics – former Jews who had apostatized from the true faith.
Jesus Christ, being the second Person of the Trinity, establishes that the Kingdom of God encompasses all people proclaiming His Word. Sometimes the unlikeliest people serve as His most convincing witnesses.The Gospel account also reveals to us how Jesus is able to see into the depths of all hearts and know who truly longs for Him and belongs to Him.
Read more on the Greek Orthodox website.
Looking for a Companion for a Senior
Many widowed and single Seniors look for live-in companions for friendship, help and more. This can be very helpful to both because expenses and chores are shared, less chance to be lonely, and more.
If you know of anyone looking for this kind of situation, please mention it to Fr. Hans.
Baptism of Andrew and Kyriaki Forgeron on June 4
The parish is invited to the baptism of Andrew Fegeron and his daughter Kyriaki on Saturday, June 4 at 1pm. Andrew is the fiance of Ashley Clark, the granddaughter of Pauline Poulos.
Anthea Tuefel is Godmother to both Andrew and Kyriaki, Dr. Zannos Grekos is Godfather to Andrew.
A reception follows in the Social Hall. Please RSVP to Anthea Teufel at 239-994-6975 (text or call), or on the website.
Choir Practice Continues Wednesday, June 1 at 6:00pm
Everyone welcome. Please be on time. Choir practice also held tomorrow (Wednesday) May 25, 2016.
Bible Study Cancelled Wednesday, May 25 at 7:00pm
Fr. Hans will be on the other coast. Bible Study will resume Wednesday, June 1, 2016.
A Gift from the Heart
The Food for Hungry People Chairman sent St. Peter’s this thank you note for our contribution:
On May 13, 2016 a gift of $500 was generously and lovingly donated to the Food for Hungry People Program by St. Peter Orthodox Church of Bonita Springs, Florida.
Gratefully acknowledged by Robin Lynn Nicholas, Food for Hungry People Chairman, Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese.
“A gift to Food for Hungry People is a gift to the giver, a gift to the receiver and a gift to God.”
Pentecost/Father’s Day Luncheon June 19
Mark you calendars for June 19 for a Pentecost/Father’s Day Luncheon following Divine Liturgy and the Pentecost Prayers.
More details are coming but tentative plans include hot dogs and hamburgers.
Please RSVP on the website.
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Orthodox Wisdom
Only with a superficial knowledge do there arise false contradictions between faith and knowledge, between religion and science.
—I.M. Andreyev
“…Oh how necessary it is for everyone not wishing to spend their old age in dreariness to become used to prayer early in life.”
—St. Theophyl Fool-for-Christ
Everyone who has fallen away from divine love is ruled through sensual pleasure by the carnal law. With such a law, he cannot keep a single divine commandment, nor does he wish to: preferring a life of pleasure to a life ruled by virtue and lived in the Spirit of God.
—St. Maximos the Confessor
A guilty conscience is so burdensome that it punishes itself without a judge, and wishes for covering, and yet is bare before God.
—St. Ambrose of Milan
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Remember in Your Prayers
Maria Karela
Anthony Mourgis
John Simon
John Hansen
Constandina James
Peter Wouralis
James Hord
Bob Smith
Tom and Jean, parents of Patty and Jerry.
How should we pray for the sick? Remember them daily. Say their names and ask God to bestow mercy and grace on them.
Sunday Readings
Epistle
How great are Thy works, O Lord! In wisdom hast Thou made them all.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
The Reading from the Acts of the Saintly and Pure Apostles. (11:19-30)
In those days, the Disciples, who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen, traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the Word to none except Jews. But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who, upon coming to Antioch, spoke to the Greeks also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number that believed turned to the Lord.
News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large company was added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church, and taught a large company of people; and in Antioch the Disciples were for the first time called Christians.
Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world; and this took place in the days of Claudius. And the Disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brethren who lived in Judea; and they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
Gospel
The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. John. (4:5-42)
At that time, Jesus came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and so Jesus, wearied as He was with his journey, sat down beside the well. It was about the sixth hour. There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” For His Disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman said to Him, “How is it that Thou, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and Who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, Thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you get that living water? Art Thou greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, and his sons, and his cattle?”
Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst forever; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”
Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” The woman answered Him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and he whom you now have is not your husband; this you said truly.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that Thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain; and Thou sayest that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”
Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming [He Who is called Christ]; when He comes, He will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I Who speak to you am He.”
Just then His Disciples came. They marveled that He was talking with a woman, but none said, “What dost Thou wish?” or, “Why art Thou talking with her?” So the woman left her water jar, and went away into the city, and said to the people, “Come, see a man Who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” They went out of the city and were coming to Him. Meanwhile the Disciples besought Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”
So the Disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him food?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him Who sent Me, and to accomplish His work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see how the fields are already white for harvest. He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor; others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”
Many Samaritans from that city believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony, “He said to me all that I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His words. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of your words that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.”