{"id":6791,"date":"2018-04-24T04:00:26","date_gmt":"2018-04-24T08:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/?p=6791"},"modified":"2018-04-24T04:00:26","modified_gmt":"2018-04-24T08:00:26","slug":"st-peter-newsletter-april-24-2018-sunday-of-the-paralytic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stpeterorthodoxchurch.com\/st-peter-newsletter-april-24-2018-sunday-of-the-paralytic\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Peter Newsletter April 24, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

Christ is Risen!<\/h2>\n

The Fourth Sunday After Pascha<\/h2>\n

The Sunday of the Paralytic<\/h2>\n
\"Jesus
Jesus Heals the Paralytic<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Introduction<\/h4>\n

The fourth Sunday of Holy Pascha is observed by the Orthodox Church as the Sunday of the Paralytic. The day commemorates the miracle of Christ healing a man who had been paralyzed for thirty-eight years. The biblical story of the event is found in the Gospel of John 5:1-15.<\/p>\n

Background<\/h4>\n

Close to the Sheep’s Gate in Jerusalem, there was a pool, which was called the Sheep’s Pool. It had five porches, that is, five sets of pillars supporting a domed roof. Under this roof there lay very many sick people with various maladies awaiting the moving of the water. The first person to step in after the troubling of the water was healed immediately of whatever malady he had.<\/p>\n

It was there that the paralytic of today’s Gospel was lying, tormented by his infirmity of thirty-eight years. When Christ beheld him, He asked him, “Will you be made whole?” And he answered with a quiet and meek voice, “Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool.” The Lord said unto him, “Rise, take up your bed, and walk.” And straightaway the man was made whole and took up his bed. Walking in the presence of all, he departed rejoicing to his own house. According to the expounders of the Gospels, the Lord Jesus healed this paralytic during the days of the Passover, when He had gone to Jerusalem for the Feast, and dwelt there teaching and working miracles. According to Saint John the Evangelist, this miracle took place on the Sabbath.<\/p>\n

Read the entire story on the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese website<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Thank you to Everyone who Worked so Hard During Pascha!<\/h2>\n

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Dozens of people helped, so much so that listing them all is impossible. Be assured of one thing (it’s from the Bible so take is seriously!):<\/p>\n

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For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do (Hebrews 6:10).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This means that our Lord sees our work, and of special importance to Him is the work that we do for each other<\/em>. Our work in the Church — cooking, chanting, taking care of the kids, vacuuming the floor, decorating the Kovouklion, fixing the air conditioning, organizing an easter egg hunt, wiping the tables, making visitors feel at home, cooking Lenten meals and a pancake breakfast, sponsoring Palm Sunday Brunch — everything the contributes to the life of St. Peter’s is a labor of love honored by God.<\/p>\n

Think about that and then think how important the generous hearts and helping hands is for the welfare and life of our our parish. If we can grasp that it is important to our Lord, then we can be grateful for the opportunity to serve.<\/p>\n

In return St. Paul teaches, you will be blessed for all you have done.<\/p>\n

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Interfaith Charites Needs More Help<\/h2>\n
\n\"We\n<\/div>\n

The shelves are bare. They need rice, canned vegetables, beans, and cereal. Please consider picking up a few extra items the next time you are shopping and bring them to Church. We will get to Interfaith Charities.<\/p>\n

Interfaith Charities is a coalition of churches and business that help the poor in the San Carlos and south Fort Myers area (view their website<\/a>). We partner with them to help the working poor in our area as part of our mission to serve the poor around us.<\/p>\n

Calendar At A Glance<\/h2>\n