{"id":6079,"date":"2017-08-22T03:57:07","date_gmt":"2017-08-22T07:57:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/?p=6079"},"modified":"2017-08-22T03:57:07","modified_gmt":"2017-08-22T07:57:07","slug":"st-peter-newsletter-august-21-2017-two-liturgies-next-week-sunday-school-registration-starts-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/st-peter-newsletter-august-21-2017-two-liturgies-next-week-sunday-school-registration-starts-more\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Peter Newsletter August 21, 2017 – Two Liturgies Next Week, Sunday School Registration Starts, more…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
\nTwelfth Sunday of Matthew<\/h2>\n
 <\/div>\n
\n\"The<\/p>\n

St. Matthew<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Two Liturgies Next Week Starting at 6:30pm<\/h2>\n

Monday, August 28 – Eve of Beheading of John the Baptist<\/h3>\n
\n\"Beheading\n<\/div>\n

The divine Baptist, the Prophet born of a Prophet, the seal of all the Prophets and beginning of the Apostles, the mediator between the Old and New Covenants, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, the God-sent Messenger of the incarnate Messiah, the forerunner of Christ’s coming 29 into the world (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3: 1); who by many miracles was both conceived and born; who was filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb; who came forth like another Elias the Zealot, whose life in the wilderness and divine zeal for God’s Law he imitated: this divine Prophet, after he had preached the baptism of repentance according to God’s command; had taught men of low rank and high how they must order their lives; had admonished those whom he baptized and had filled them with the fear of God, teaching them that no one is able to escape the wrath to come if he do not works worthy of repentance.<\/p>\n

Read more on the Patriach of Antioch<\/a> website.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Thursday, August 31 — Eve of Beginning of the Ecclesiastical Year Liturgy<\/h3>\n
\n\"The\n<\/div>\n

The First Ecumenical Council (Nicaea, 325) decreed that the Church year should begin on September 1. The month of September was, for the Hebrews, the beginning of the civil year (Exodus 23:16), the month of gathering the harvest and of the offering of thanks to God. It was on this feast that the Lord Jesus entered the synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4:16-21), opened the book of the Prophet Isaiah and read the words: The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn (Isaiah 61:1-2).<\/p>\n

The month of September is also important in the history of Christianity, because Emperor Constantine the Great was victorious over Maxentius, the enemy of the Christian Faith, in September. Following this victory, Constantine granted freedom of confession to the Christian Faith throughout the Roman Empire. For a long time, the civil year in the Christian world followed the Church year, with its beginning on September 1. The civil year was later changed, and its beginning transferred to January 1. This occurred first in Western Europe, and later in Russia, under Peter the Great.<\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Sunday School Registration Begins (Sunday School starts September 10)<\/h2>\n
\n\"Allow\n<\/div>\n

Parents: Sunday School registrations begins this Sunday. Please register your children! Forms are available in the Social Hall following Divine Liturgy.<\/p>\n

Sunday School starts on Sunday, September 10.<\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Metropolitan Joseph Appoints Bishop Nicholas to Lead the Diocese of Miami and the Southeast<\/h2>\n

August 3, 2017<\/p>\n

The Reverend Clergy of the Diocese of Miami and the Southeast:<\/p>\n

\n\"Bishop\n<\/div>\n

Blessings and greetings to you and your families in the name of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ, as we embark on the blessed Dormition Fast.<\/p>\n

I would like to start this letter by thanking my dear brother His Grace Bishop Antoun for all the years of hard work in the Diocese of Miami and the Southeast. He touched all of our hearts with his dedication and support as he earned his gray hair: “Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.” (Proverbs 16:31)<\/p>\n

As you all know, His Grace has decided to retire this year. I have spent months thinking about the right person to guide the clergy and laity of the Diocese of Miami and the Southeast. After much contemplation and prayer, I have decided that His Grace Bishop Nicholas will be your bishop<\/p>\n

Read the Metropolitan’s entire encyclical on the Antiochian Archdiocese website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Coming in September: Through the Bible in One Year<\/h2>\n
\n\"Read\n<\/div>\n

Would you like to read the entire bible? Would you like to take on this challenge with friends for encouragement and support?<\/p>\n

On September 1, the start of the new Church Year, St. Peter’s will start a program to read the bible in one year. Information will be posted on the website in August.<\/p>\n

Start thinking about it now.<\/p>\n

 <\/div>\n

Calendar At A Glance<\/h2>\n