Holy Cross Mission Bulletin October 2, 2011

Posted on September 2, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.  Great Vespers  5:00 p.m. this Saturday.  Divine Liturgy this Sunday.  Confessions and the reading of the Hours is at 9:30 a.m.

2.  Holy Cross has its world famous perogies for sale again.  We are taking orders.  The dough mixer is ready to go.  The rolling pins have been tuned up.  Sylvia and Lyle have been out buying potatoes and flour.  Now they are just sitting by the phone, waiting for those orders to come.  Please call them.  They are really nice people.  They love to chat.  But don’t get them started on the wonders of Theodore and Sheho.  You will not get them off the phone.  They will be all, “Sheho is awesome.  No, Theodore is more awesome!”
Potato/cheddar – $4.00 a dozen
Sauerkraut – $4.50 a dozen
Orders are to be in by October 30, 2011.
3. Altar Servers Appreciation Banquet. October 10, 2011. Holy Trinity Cathedral. Moleben: 5:00 p.m. Banquet and presentation of certificates: 6:00 p.m. Cost: Altar servers free. $5.00 for guests. Please let Fr. Evan know if you and your family are planning to attend so that the cooks can prepare accordingly.
4. 12th Annual Halleluja Night. October 31, 2011. Location: All Saints Ukr. Orthodox Church. 15 Day Street. 6:00—8:30 p.m. Cost: Child are free. Adults and guests—$5.00. Please bring a donation of candy for the children.  Please let Fr. Evan know if you are planning to attend.
5.
Martyr Sophia and her three daughters at Rome
Commemorated on September 30
The Holy Martyrs Saint Sophia and her Daughters Faith, Hope and Love were born in Italy. Their mother was a pious Christian widow who named her daughters for the three Christian virtues. Faith was twelve, Hope was ten, and Love was nine. St Sophia raised them in the love of the Lord Jesus Christ. St Sophia and her daughters did not hide their faith in Christ, but openly confessed it before everyone.

An official named Antiochus denounced them to the emperor Hadrian (117-138), who ordered that they be brought to Rome. Realizing that they would be taken before the emperor, the holy virgins prayed fervently to the Lord Jesus Christ, asking that He give them the strength not to fear torture and death. When the holy virgins and their mother came before the emperor, everyone present was amazed at their composure. They looked as though they had been brought to some happy festival, rather than to torture. Summoning each of the sisters in turn, Hadrian urged them to offer sacrifice to the goddess Artemis. The young girls remained unyielding.

Then the emperor ordered them to be tortured. They burned the holy virgins over an iron grating, then threw them into a red-hot oven, and finally into a cauldron with boiling tar, but the Lord preserved them.

The youngest child, Love, was tied to a wheel and they beat her with rods until her body was covered all over with bloody welts. After undergoing unspeakable torments, the holy virgins glorified their Heavenly Bridegroom and remained steadfast in the Faith.

They subjected St Sophia to another grievous torture: the mother was forced to watch the suffering of her daughters. She displayed adamant courage, and urged her daughters to endure their torments for the sake of the Heavenly Bridegroom. All three maidens were beheaded, and joyfully bent their necks beneath the sword.

In order to intensify St Sophia’s inner suffering, the emperor permitted her to take the bodies of her daughters. She placed their remains in coffins and loaded them on a wagon. She drove beyond the city limits and reverently buried them on a high hill. St Sophia sat there by the graves of her daughters for three days, and finally she gave up her soul to the Lord. Even though she did not suffer for Christ in the flesh, she was not deprived of a martyr’s crown. Instead, she suffered in her heart. Believers buried her body there beside her daughters.

The relics of the holy martyrs have rested at El’zasa, in the church of Esho since the year 777.

This week’s question:

Just after Peter’s declaration, to whom did Jesus say, “Get behind me, Satan!”?

Answer to last week’s question:Fill in the missing words spoken by Jesus to Peter.  “I will give the keys of the _____ of ________.”  Kingdom of Heaven.

See you in church,

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin August 21, 2011

Posted on August 18, 2011 by bobk
Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.  Great Vespers are back!  5:00 p.m. this Saturday.  Divine Liturgy this Sunday.  Confessions and the reading of the Hours is at 9:30 a.m.

2.  Where is the Kingdom?  Fr. Anthony Conairis
Whever a person is baptized in the name of the Trinity and recieves the Holy Spirit through the sacrament of Chrismation (Confirmation), there the seed of the Kingdom is sown.
Whenever a sinner comes to himself and decides to return to his Father as did the prodigal son, there is the Kingdom of God.
Whenever you kneel in prayer to pour your heart out to God, there is the Kingdom.
Whenever you see someone caressing the deformed and caring for the sick in the name of Jesus, there is the Kingdom.
Wherever the Divine Liturgy is celebrated where Christ is present as the Word of God and the Bread of Life, there is the Kingdom.
Let me emphasize one thing at this point:  If the Kingdom of God is in you, no one will ever have to get you to the liturgy or to a Bible study group.  You will come!  You cannot even imagine not coming, because you are in the Kingdom and the Kingdom is in you.

This week’s question:

When Peter said to Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” what question had Jesus just asked His disciples?

Answer to last week’s question:After everyone had eaten, how many baskets full of leftovers were there?  12 baskets.

See you in church,

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin July 17, 2011

Posted on July 14, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.   This is to remind you that the Divine Liturgy this Sunday will be out at Camp Veselka in Gimli MB this Sunday.
Confessions and the reading of the Hours is at 9:30 a.m.

Now, for directions to Camp Veselka:

Drive north to Gimli, MB. You can go up either Hwy. 9 or Hwy. 8. Hwy 8 is a bit faster.

If coming up on Hwy 8 you will need to turn right onto 231 towards Gimli. You will drive until you come to the Hwy 9- 231 junction. There will be two gas stations. Turn left and head north until you see the Camp Veselka sign. You will then turn right and just follow the road. Be careful of the speed bumps.

It is supposed to be 36 degrees on Sunday. Just thought I would warn you.

2.  Some friends were hanging out one day, and the conversation grimly turned to the issue of death. One of the friends asked the others, “What would you like people to say about you at your funeral?”

One friend answered, “I would want people to say, ‘He was a great humanitarian who cared about his community.’”

A second replied, “I would want people to say, ‘He was a great husband and father, an example for many to follow.’”

The third friend gave it some thought and answered, “I would hope someone says, ‘Look, he’s moving!’”

At the U of M, in their religious studies program there is a professor who in one of his classes gives his students the assignment to prepare their own funeral according to their religious/cultural background and to also write up their own obituary.

Now the reason I bring this up is based upon the last two lines of this Sunday’s epistle reading from Romans 10:1-10.  9.  If you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  10.  For a person believes with his heart and is justified, and a person declares with his mouth and is saved.

Have you ever thought about what might be said at your funeral?  Now I know that is a morbid thought and that we really don’t want to dwell on something like that but it is a reality that we all face.  Someone will get up and talk about us.  Could be the priest.  Could be a family member.  Could be a friend.  What would you want them to say?  What do you want to be remembered for?  Did you love your spouse, your family?  Were you a good friend?  Kind?  Compassionate?  Caring?  Helpful?  Honourable?  Respected and respectful?  These are just some of the things we hope would be said about us.

But in the epistle lesson we find out what we hope will be the first thing said about us because it will be a true .  “He/she declared with his/her mouth that Jesus is Lord and believed it in his/her heart.” It is this declaration of belief that will inspire all of those other qualities.

The life we have is finite.  Even if we are blessed to live to an old age we will still die.  We don’t have a choice in the matter.  But we do have a choice in how we live our lives, by what principles our lives will be guided.  At the end of your journey in this life what will be said about you?

This week’s question:

Which group of people were furious with Jesus when he healed a man with a shriveled arm on the Sabbath?

Answer to last week’s question:When Jesus told the people not to worry, what did he tell people to look at?  “Look at the birds of the air.”

See you in church,

Fr. Evan

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin July 10, 2011

Posted on July 7, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.   Divine Liturgy:  Reading of the Hours and hearing of confessions – 9:30 a.m.  Divine Liturgy 10:00 a.m.

2.  Just a reminder that next Sunday we will celebrating the Divine Liturgy out at Camp Veselka out at Gimli.  Divine Liturgy is at 10:00 a.m.  Should be awesome.  Afterwards we can all go down to the beach.  Dave, Lyle and Subdeacon Dennis are going to do the slow motion Baywatch run on the beach.  Sanchira is going to go around and kick sand in people’s faces and try and pick fights.  Fr. Evan is bringing his sand pail and shovel and will make an Orthodox sandcastle.  I have no idea what an Orthodox sandcastle is.  Might just be me making a cross out of a few popsicle sticks and putting in on the sandcastle.  It is going to be fun.

3.  Father’s Day Building Fund Collection.  Holy Cross raised $850.00 towards our building fund.  Thank you to all that donated.  God bless you for your kind generosity.

4.  My niece graduated a few weeks ago.  I am very proud of her.  I don’t know if I got the chance to say that to her at her graduation party, but I hope she knows it.  So now she begins the next step in her life.  Adulthood.  I am the last person to give advice on adulthood because I am the guy who squealed with joy when he got his classic Atari 2600 with the original Donkey Kong.  (Have I mentioned how cool it is enough times yet?)
My niece and her fellow graduates are now going to be spending quite a bit of time figuring out what to do with their lives, where they fit in the grand scheme of things, what they want to be when they “grow up”.  So in doing a little bit of research I came across this that might be of a bit of interest not just for my niece, but for all of us when we ask ourselves, “What is the meaning of life”?

Four psychologists did a study of notable quotations from famous people around the world about the meaning of life. The study analyzed the quotes of 195 men and women who lived within the past few hundred years. Here’s a summary of the major themes and some of the people representing each theme:

  1. Life is primarily to be enjoyed and experienced. Enjoy the moment and the journey.
    17 percent of the famous people in the study endorsed this theme (Ralph Waldo Emerson, Cary Grant, Janis Joplin, and Sinclair Lewis). Janis Joplin is best known for her lyric: “You got to get it while you can.”

  1. We live to express compassion to others, to love, to serve.
    13 percent endorsed this theme (Albert Einstein, Mohandas Gandhi, and the Dalai Lama). Albert Einstein stated: “Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.”

  1. Life is unknowable, a mystery.
    13 percent endorsed this theme (Albert Camus, Bob Dylan, and Stephen Hawking). Hawking wrote, “If we find an answer to that (why we and the universe exist), it would be the ultimate triumph of human reason—for then we would know the mind of God.”

  1. Life has no meaning.
    11 percent endorsed this theme (novelist Joseph Conrad, Sigmund Freud, Franz Kafka, Bertrand Russell, Jean Paul Sartre, and Clarence Darrow). Darrow compared life to a ship that is “tossed by every wave and by every wind; a ship headed to no port and no harbor, with no rudder, no compass, no pilot, simply floating for a time, then lost in the waves.”

  1. We are to worship God and prepare for the afterlife.
    11 percent endorsed this theme (Desmond Tutu, Billy Graham, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mother Teresa). Desmond Tutu said, “[We should] give God glory by reflecting his beauty and his love. That is why we are here, and that is the purpose of our lives.”

  1. Life is a struggle.
    8 percent endorsed this theme (Charles Dickens, Benjamin Disraeli, and Jonathan Swift). Swift wrote that life is a “tragedy wherein we sit as spectators for awhile and then act our part in it.”

  1. We are to create our own meaning of life.
    5 percent endorsed this theme (Carl Sagan, Simone DeBeauvoir, and Carl Jung). Carl Sagan wrote: “We live in a vast and awesome universe in which, daily, suns are made and worlds destroyed, where humanity clings to an obscure clod of rock. The significance of our lives and our fragile realm derives from our own wisdom and courage. We are the custodians of life’s meaning.”

  1. Life is a joke.
    4 percent endorsed this theme (Albert Camus, Charlie Chaplin, Lou Reed, and Oscar Wilde). Charlie Chaplin described life as “a tragedy when seen in close-up but a comedy in the long shot.” The rock star Lou Reed said “Life is like Sanskrit read to a pony.”
Eight different understandings of the meaning of life.  And yet not one of them really captures what I think is the meaning of life.  So to my niece and to anyone out there that might be wondering what my opinion is on the meaning of life, it is this, “To know God”.
To know God, even in our limited capacity is know love, to compassion, to know patience, to know justice, to know integrity, to know joy, to know sacrifice, and the list goes on.
That, at least for me, is the meaning of life and if my niece ever asks me that is what I will tell her.  “If you have questions, if you are searching, if you wonder what it is all about, do you matter, are you important, get to know God and you will find out just how much you matter.”
To my niece Alexis, congratulations on your graduation.  I am proud of you.

This week’s question:

When Jesus told the people not to worry, what did he tell people to look at?

Answer to last week’s question:Are there 6, 8, or 12 beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount?  8

See you in church,

Fr. Evan

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin May 15, 2011

Posted on May 12, 2011 by bobk

Christ is Risen!

Just a few things:

1.   Great Vespers this Saturday 5:00 p.m.  Divine Liturgy:  Reading of the Hours and hearing of confessions – 9:30 a.m.  Divine Liturgy 10:00 a.m.

2. Get your valuables ready and priced for a Garage Sale this spring.  May 19th;  20th;  21st;   9a.m. – 5 p.m. (all 3 days)    198 Hazelwood Crescent.  Treasures for the garage sale, could be dropped here starting Monday May 16th.  Just give Lyle and Sylvia a phone call in advance.

3. In honor Mother’s day we will be collecting Baby items to take to Winnipeg Harvest.  Items needed are formula, baby food, diapers and wipes. The items may be brought  this Sunday, May 8 and next Sunday, May 15. Cash donations will also be accepted and used to purchase items.

4.  Came across this and I thought it was kinda neat.  Thought I would share it with you.
As humans we all share the image of God planted in us from our creation. We all share in fact this divine identity but, under sin, God’s face is covered in us and we become, at least outwardly, someone else. Through sin we lose our resemblance with God and we take the appearance that the godless world around has painted on us.

The world itself has long lost its identity. It ceased to be a vehicle for man’s edification in God and was transformed in a purpose to itself, an apple of discord and enmity between people. The devil, the greatest identity thief, diabolos, the deceiver, has succeeded to sell us, starting with Adam and Eve a reality that has nothing to do with the true reality of God, but it pleases the senses and promises everything and beyond. We got hooked by his promises and now we live in this world with the illusion that it can fulfill us, we struggle everyday to achieve meaningless goals, missing completely our true purpose and destiny.

A saint on the other hand is a person that has uncovered the image of God in him and has found his place in the world by acting according to His likeness. A saint shows to the world his true identity, imitating Christ almost to the point of confusion. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me”. (Gal 2:20). A saint is a person that has renounced to himself and yet his identity and alterity have been fulfilled above any imagination.

This is not, however, limited only to the saints. After all we are “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation” (1 Pet. 2:5-9). But, paradoxically, in order for us to become who we really are, we should let Christ take over. “He must increase, but [we] must decrease.” (John 3:30) until we reach the “measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph 4:13). We might seem to live plentifully in this world, but it is only an illusion “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.” (Col 3:3)

We are not ourselves and we are not truly living until we are with Christ. Don’t let the world tell you otherwise; our true identity is fulfilled only by being Christians. Christians don’t just believe differently than others, they exist in a different reality; a genuine reality in which God becomes man and man becomes god. This is God’s edition of reality, the only one true and original.

I am Christian therefore I exist!  (Fr. Vasile Tudora)
Answer to last week’s question:
Who was the high priest who condemned Jesus?  Caiaphas

This week’s question:

The Sanhedrin found Jesus guilty of what crime?

See you in church,

Fr. Evan

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin May 1, 2011

Posted on May 1, 2011 by bobk

Christ is Risen!
Just a few things:

1.  Great Vespers: Saturday 5:00 p.m.  Divine Liturgy:  Reading of the Hours and hearing of confessions – 9:30 a.m.  Divine Liturgy 10:00 a.m.

2. Get your valuables ready and priced for a Garage Sale this spring.  May 19th;  20th;  21st;   9a.m. – 5 p.m. (all 3 days)    198 Hazelwood Crescent.  Treasures for the garage sale, could be dropped here starting Monday May 16th.  Just give Lyle and Sylvia a phone call in advance.

I believe there will be an opportunity for the husbands to go through the treasures “donated” by their wives to the garage sale.  Hey, just because we haven’t used that tennis racquet in 10 years doesn’t mean we are ready to part with it.  Who knows?  Maybe Dave and Fr. Evan and Lyle and Sub-deacon Dennis will enter some doubles tournaments and if we don’t have racquets, well, how will we play?  Hmmm?  However, Fr. Evan has dibs on the Atari that will be in the garage sale.

3. Vydubychi Choir, Liturgical Church Choir from Ukraine.  There will be no vespers on Saturday May 7 at Holy Cross.  This will be an amazing opportunity to hear an amazing choir.  Please make every effort to come out to hear them.
Vespers – 6:00 Saturday, May 7, Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Mary the Protectress 820 Burrows Avenue.
Concert – 7:00 p.m. Westminster United Church, Tickets $35.00 – tickets available at the Consistory.
4. This past Sunday, on Holy Pascha, the television news show did a report on Mt. Athos, the Holy Mountain.  For Orthodox Christians this peninsula, with its collection of monasteries, is considered one of the, if not the most holiest of places.  It is considered the heart of Orthodox spirituality.  Pilgrims from all over the world go to visit these monasteries.  In the report on 60 Minutes, one of the major themes that comes across is how this place exists in the world and yet at the same time, removes itself from the distractions of the world so that the only focus is on God.
In 1999, I had the opportunity to visit Mt. Athos.  I was in Greece for two months and arranged to go to Mt. Athos.  I was in my third year of studies at St. Andrew’s College and I believe that for any theology student, going to Mt. Athos is on the Bucket List.  I remember being on the ferry and sailing past these awesome structures that I had read about, heard about.  And now I was going to visit them.  I will be honest with you, I was so scared.  I felt totally unworthy.  This was Mt. Athos.  Who was I to intrude upon this holy place?  And yet, when I walked through the gate of St. Paul Monastery, there was such kindness from the monastics there, such hospitality, it was amazing.  And it was humbling.  These men have dedicated their lives to God by removing themselves from the world so that they can focus on praying and yet they show hospitality to thousands of pilgrims every year.
I am not going to bore you with more stories of my visit, just go online and watch the 60 minutes episode.  It is worth it and they do a much better job than I.  I will mention one quick story though.  In the report they talk about the donkeys used to build the monasteries.  They are still used to this day.  During the matins I was in the church in St. Grigoriou.  The sun had risen and the light was streaming through the windows of the church.  I looked out the window and a monk was leading a donkey with a load of lumber past the church.  I thought nothing of it…until I looked out the window again and say these two ears go quickly past the window and this same monk now chasing the donkey.
Our Holy Ukrainian Orthodox Church here in Canada does not have her own monastery.  There are plenty of monasteries in North America.  Our Holy Church lacks her own monastery.  If you watched the 60 Minutes episode, you will understand that this is something our Holy Church desperately needs.  We need a spiritual centre, a place for our faithful to come to pray, to receive guidance, to escape, if only for a little while, the world around us.
In your prayers ask God to bless us with a monastery, a monastic community of monks and of nuns.
Answer to last week’s question:
According to Matthew’s Gospel, who rolled a big stone in front of the tomb after Jesus had been laid inside?  Joseph of Arimathea.

This week’s question:

To whom did Jesus say, “Today you will be with me in Paradise?

Fr. Evan

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin April 17, 2011

Posted on April 22, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.  Schedule of Services for Holy Week:

Holy Monday – Liturgy of Pre-sanctified Gifts, 6:00 p.m. at Holy Trinity Cathedral (If you can fast the whole day, please do so or at the very least, from 12:00 noon on)

Holy Wednesday – Holy Unction Service (Healing Service), 7:00 p.m. at All Saints in Transcona.  If you plan to come, you have to have gone to the Holy Sacrament of Confession and come to the Holy Chalice either on Palm Sunday or on Holy Monday at the Liturgy of Pre-Sanctified Gifts at Holy Trinity Cathedral.

Holy Thursday - Reading of the 12 Gospels, 6:30 p.m., St. Andrew’s College

Holy Friday - Shroud Service, 3:00 p.m., St. Andrew’s College

Holy Saturday - Vesperal Liturgy of St. Basil, 10:00 a.m.  St. Andrew’s College

Holy Pascha - We will start at 6:00 a.m.  Following the Divine Liturgy we will be blessing baskets at the College and then there will be a communal Paschal Breakfast.  Please contact Sylvia Kitzul in regards to what you can bring for the breakfast.

2. Get your valuables ready and priced for a Garage Sale this spring.  We now have a date.  May 19 – 21.

3. I don’t have any words of wisdom for you in this week’s bulletin.  Every service during Holy Week speaks for itself and if you have had the opportunity to participate in them, you will know what I mean.  This week of services should leave a mark upon your heart.  Each service reflects God’s love for humanity, that never ending love.  So I am not going to talk about the services.  Go to the services, listen to the prayers, the hymns, the readings and you will know what I mean.
On behalf of Matushka Lisa and Sanchira, I would like to wish the members of Holy Cross Mission, all those who have supported our mission, visited our mission, prayed for our mission, or just happen to be on our email list a most blessed and joyous Pascha.  Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling down Death by death, and upon those in the tombs, bestowing life.
Answer to last week’s question:
What is the first word of each of the Beatitudes?  Blessed.

This week’s question:

According to Matthew’s Gospel, who rolled a big stone in front of the tomb after Jesus had been laid inside?

See you in church,

Fr. Evan

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin March 6, 2011

Posted on March 4, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.  Great Vespers at 5:00 p.m.

2. Divine Liturgy this Sunday:  9:30 a.m. hearing of Confessions and the reading of the Hours.  Divine Liturgy: 10: a.m.  Following the Divine Liturgy, we will be celebrating the Holy Baptism and Chrismation of the servant of God, Mason Lowing.  You are invited to stay, share your prayers, and celebrate this joyous and happy day for Mason and his family.

3.  Forgiveness Vespers – 6:00 p.m., Holy Trinity Metropolitan Cathedral. This year all the parishes of the Winnipeg Deanery are invited to celebrate this beautiful and humbling service together.

4. Sunday of Orthodoxy, March 13, 6:00 p.m. Holy Trinity Metropolitan Cathedral. All children are to bring an icon to participate in the procession of the holy icons.

5. Fundraising: Mom’s pantry products.  Order deadline date is March 13th.  Holy Cross makes about 40% commission off of the sales.  So talk to your friends, your families, your neighbors.

Get your valuables ready and priced for a Garage Sale this spring.  We now have a date.  May 19 – 21.
March and April are perogy months.  Those wishing to get some of Holy Cross’s world famous perogies, get your orders in.  Please contact a member of the parish and we will hook you up with some awesome perogies.
6.  2011 Cerebral Palsy Stationary Bike Race. Our very own Alexander Ptashnik will be one of the cyclist at this year’s bike race. Anyone wishing to sponsor him please let Sylvia and Dennis Ptashnik know at church or e-mail them with the amount and a tax receipt will be issued.  Alex is scheduled for 3 pm. on March 12, 2011 at the CP Bike Race at the Wellness Centre at Seven Oaks Hospital.  Admission and Parking is FREE and if anyone wishes to drop by and cheer him on for the 25 minutes, feel free. Go Alex Go!  Go Alex Go!  Go Alex Go!
7.  One priest got tired of listening to exuses why people skip the Church, and he has written this:

18 reasons why I do not wash myself:

1. Because they made me wash myself when I was a kid.
2. Because they didn’t teach me to wash myself when I was a kid.
3. Those who wash themselves are hypocrites – they think they are cleaner than others.
4. Can not decide which soap is better.
5. I used to wash myself before, but then I got bored.
6. I wash myself only on the great feasts – on Nativity and on Easter.
7. None of my friends washes himself.
8. Will start to wash myself when I become old and dirty.
9. I have no time for washing myself.
10. Water is too cold in winter, and too hot in summer.
11. I do not want soap producers to make money on me.
12. I wash myself in soul. (In Russian words shower and soul sound almost the same. Some people ground their skipping the Church that God must be in soul not in the Church.)
13. All soaps are the same. Different soaps were invented by swindlers.
14. All wars in the world are because of the soap.
15. Every soap has it’s flaws. I wash myself with 3 different soaps at once. Only this combination of soaps is correct.
16. Science has proved it already since the 19th century, no soap, even the ideal, can wash down all molecules and atoms of dirt. That is why washing yourself is a hoax and “opium for homeless”.
17. Every soap contains top hazardous chemical ingredients affecting your skin.
18. You shouldn’t teach your kid to wash himself. When he will grow up he will understand whether he shall wash himself or not, and which soap to use.

The reason I wanted to share this with you is because on March 6th we will celebrate Forgiveness Vespers and then on March 7th, Great Lent begins.  We are asked to do a lot of things: fast, pray, give to the poor, read scripture, and yes, attend the many extra services during this time.  I shared these 18 excuses because the reality is that we can come up with dozens more as to why we will not do any of these lenten exercises, let alone come to more services.  Great Lent, in my humble opinion, serves many purposes, but if I had to pick just one it would be this:  This is the time that we reclaim and take responsibility of our lives.  Plain and simple.  On Holy Pascha the gift of salvation, of true life is given back to humanity.  Great Lent is the time given to us to realize just how far we have drifted away from our loving God, accept our responsibility, and do something about it.

There are no excuses.
8.  You will notice there are a few more attachements than usual.  One is the schedule of Lenten Services from the Winnipeg Deanery.  Also attached is the schedule of Great Vespers on the Saturdays of Great Lent.  And finally is attached the poster for the spiritual retreat being held at St. George’s Orthodox Church in April.  Please make every effort to participate in what has been organized.
Answer to last week’s question:
In what book of the Bible are King David’s last words recorded?  2 Samuel.
This week’s question:

What is the last book of the Old Testament?

See you in church,
Fr. Evan
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Archpastoral Letter: Great Lent 2011!

Posted on February 28, 2011 by bobk

Dear Brothers in Christ,

Greetings in our Lord as we about to enter into the Holy season of Great Lent!

Attached is Great Lenten Pastoral Letter of the Permanent Conference of the Ukrainian Orthodox Hierarchs Beyond the Borders of Ukraine in Ukrainian and English languages!

We are sending it to you ahead of time, for your use.

With prayers,

Lenten_Archpastoral-2011
_________________________________________

Fr. Gene Maximiuk

Lenten_Archpastoral-2011

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Holy Cross Mission Bulletin February 27, 2011

Posted on February 25, 2011 by bobk

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

Just a few things:

1.  Great Vespers at 5:00 p.m.

2. Divine Liturgy this Sunday:  9:30 a.m. hearing of Confessions and the reading of the Hours.  Divine Liturgy: 10: a.m.

3. Fundraising: Mom’s pantry products.  Order deadline date is March 13th.  Holy Cross makes about 40% commission off of the sales.  So talk to your friends, your families, your neighbors.

Get your valuables ready and priced for a Garage Sale this spring.  We now have a date.  May 19 – 21.
March and April are perogy months.  Those wishing to get some of Holy Cross’s world famous perogies, get your orders in.  Please contact a member of the parish and we will hook you up with some awesome perogies.
4.  2011 Cerebral Palsy Stationary Bike Race. Our very own Alexander Ptashnik will be one of the cyclist at this year’s bike race. Anyone wishing to sponsor him please let Sylvia and Dennis Ptashnik know at church or e-mail them with the amount and a tax receipt will be issued.  Go Alex Go!  Go Alex Go!  Go Alex Go!
5.  This Sunday is Meatfare Sunday.  Starting on the Monday, we are called to begin our fasting by eliminating meat from our diet.  The Holy Orthodox Church eases us into the fasting process first by cutting out the meat and then a week later eliminating the dairy.  So, in preparation for this, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite quotes about true fasting.  You see, if we only focus on the meat, dairy and eggs and think nothing of the other things that we need to do to properly fast, we might as well have a steak every day during Great Lent.  St. John Chrysostom explains the true nature of fasting, what we need to do, what we are called to do.  It is my hope and prayer that we will all take his words to heart.

Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works. If you see a poor man, take pity on him. If you see a friend being honored, do not envy him. Do not let only your mouth fast, but also the eye, and the feet, and the hands and all the members of our bodies. Let the hands fast, by being free of avarice. Let the feet fast, by ceasing to run after sin. Let the eyes fast, by disciplining them not to glare at that which is sinful. Let the ears by not listening to evil talk and gossip. Let the mouth fast from foul words and unjust criticism. For what good is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers?
- Homily III:8 On the Statutes

Answer to last week’s question:

Which Old Testament character refused to curse God and turn away from him even though Satan brought all manner of evil and disaster upon him?  Job.  Shout outs to Alexis and Georgina for answering the question.


This week’s question:

In what book of the Bible are King David’s last words recorded?
See you in church,
Fr. Evan

The Way of the Cross – Feb 27, 2011

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