Just a reminder about this weekend’s services:

January 6th – Great Compline with Litiya – 9:00 p.m.

January 7th – Nativity of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ – 10:00 a.m.

January 8th – No Divine Liturgy as Fr. Evan is in Fort Frances

On behalf of Matushka Lisa and Sanchira, I would like to wish all of you a happy and blessed Nativity.  To the parish of Holy Cross, I thank you for the continued love, support, patience (lots and lots of patience) that you continue to show me.  Serving this parish has been and continues to be a true blessing.

To all of you that read this email bulletin, visit Holy Cross, support us, pray for us, I thank you and pray that our loving God will continue to bless each and every one of you.

Thy Nativity, O Christ our God,  hath shined upon the world the light of knowledge;for thereby, they that worshipped the stars were taught by a star to worship Thee, the Sun of Righteousness, and to know Thee, the Dayspring from on high.

O Lord, glory be to Thee.

Christ is born!!!!

Fr. Evan

Just a few announcements:

1.  Great Vespers, Sat. at 5:00 p.m.  Divine Liturgy, Sunday at 10:00 a.m., reading of hours at 9:30 a.m., hearing of confessions, 9:30 a.m.

2.  Great Blessing of Water/Holy Theophany – Monday, January 18 at 6:00 p.m., at St. Andrew’s College.

3.  Holy Cross Clothing Drive – over the next few Sundays Holy Cross will be collecting gently used mens winter clothing, winter hats, gloves, mittens, scarves as well as NEW mens long underwear and winter socks.  Those of you that live in this city or have visited this city know what the winters here can be like.  Holy Cross would like to help out those that could really use some winter clothing.  I still remember a gentleman that I met about 5 years ago and he was from Barbados.  He told me that he had moved to Winnipeg in the middle of winter, when it was about -40 outside.  I asked him what it was like when he first stepped outside of the airport.  He told me, “What could the people of this city have done to have been cursed by God that they would have to endure this?”  He moved here in 1978 and still lives here.

So please, when you are stopping off at Walmart, Giant Tiger, Zellers, make a side trip done the men’s wear aisle and make a purchase of some socks, scarves, or whatever.  Thank you in advance for your generosity.

4.  Pan Orthodox Youth Sports Tournaments – The Winnipeg Orthodox Clergy Association has set up a series of sports tournaments for our Orthodox Youth here in the city.  The goal of these events is to foster some new relationships and interactions between the various Orthodox parishes.

Basketball Tournament (hosted by St. George’s OCA)  Saturday, Jan 23 at 6:00 p.m. at Calvin Christian Collegiate (706 Day St.)  Ages 12-20.  There is no cost to those participating.  Family and friends are invited to come out and participate, spectate, whatever.  Following the event, we are all invited to St. George’s for refreshments.

Soccer Tournament (hosted by St. Demetrios G.O. Church)  Saturday, Feb. 13 at 6:00 p.m.  Canadian Mennonite University.  Meet at St. Demetrios Church at 5:30 p.m., 2255 Grant Ave.  Family and friends are invited to come out and participate, spectate, whatever.  Following the event, we are all invited to St. Demetrios’ for refreshments.

Bowling Tournament (hosted by St. Ivan Suchavsky UOCC)  Saturday April 17, at 2:00 p.m.  Roxy Lanes, 385 Henderson Hwy.  Meet at Roxy Lanes at 1:30 p.m.

Sign up by email at wocaweb@gmail.com OR contact your parish priest.

5.  Holy Cross needs a new recording secretary.  Please see Sylvia Ptashnik if you are interested in the position.

6.  Sometimes I wonder if we truly appreciate our faith.  I know that we will say that we do, that we love being an Orthodox Christian, that our faith means everything to us and yet, I wonder if that is true.  Would you suffer for your faith?  What would losing your church mean to you?  Would you be willing to die for your faith?

Reason I bring this up, and please let me state, I am in no way criticizing anyone’s commitment to the church.  I am, sadly, a very poor example of a Christian, a weak, foolish and sinful man, and even worse priest, I bring this up because of what I encountered this past Wednesday.

This past Wednesday was the meeting of the Winnipeg Orthodox Clergy Asspciation.  You can check us out on the web.  Please don’t laugh too much at my picture.

We had a presentation from St. Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Church.  They came to tell us of events that happened in Egypt this past January 6, 2010.

On January 6 2010, seven Egyptian Coptic Christians were executed in cold blood, and fifteen more were wounded. Two of the wounded died from their grave injuries on the second day after the massacre. This crime took place when three Egyptian terrorists criminals opened fire towards the Coptic worshippers in southern Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi, as they came out of their Church after the celebration of the Coptic Christmas Eve midnight mass at 11.15 PM. According to several eyewitnesses, the intention of the perpetrators had originally been to assassinate Bishop Kirollos, but when the terrorists failed in their mission to hunt down the Bishop, they turned round and started shooting at the Christian congregation instead.

Since the massacre of a Christian Priest together with his wife and daughter and another 13 others during the “Al-Zawye Al-Hammra’a” (english “Red Corner”) massacre back in 1981, 160 crime against Christians, among them assault, theft, setting fire to houses and shops, kidnapping and raping of Christian girls, have been recorded at the police and with the justice authorities, but in none of these cases the court has ruled against a single perpetrator. In Egypt the Coptic girls are kidnapped and declared their loyalty to Islam after marrying Muslims. The Christian are not allowed to build Churches. There is a clear incitement against Christians and their culture at the Islamic mosques.

One of member’s St. Mark’s congregation held up her cross and said the stronger the persecutions against our people, the larger the crosses they wear.

Hopefully, most of you saw the report about the Ecumenical Patriarch, His All-Holiness Bartholemew.  He lives in Turkey under a constant threat of violence, animosity, threats to his life.  If you have not seen it, there is a link on uocc.ca

So, I ask you again, what does this Orthodox faith mean to you?  What does your relationship to God mean to you?  How important is your salvation to you?  This past Wednesday, I was reminded that there are martyrs for the faith, martyrs for God today.

Our brothers and sisters in Christ are still being persecuted and sadly, we here in Canada, argue amongst ourselves, criticize the priest, the priest criticizes the laity, priests and laity run to lawyers and threaten to sue each other stupid and petty disagreements, we attack the reputations of priests, of bishops, of laity.  We level accusations over who might be a “secret agent” for the Moscow Patriarchate, the Kievan Patriarchate.  We refuse to be obedient to our hierarchy, to our clergy, to each other.  And just to be clear, obedience goes for everyone.  Hierarchy need to be obedient to their flock, clergy to their flock.  Obedience goes both ways.

This, sadly, is what we occupy our time with, and on one of the holiest days of the year, the day when we celebrate the Incarnation of the Son of God as man, we celebrate salvation, joy, peace and love, there are still those that would seek to hurt and harm those that share and profess the same belief as us.  These poor souls would love to have the freedom to worship that we have and we are doing everything in our power to waste this blessing we have been granted by God.

We have, sadly, lost sight of the big picture.  We have, sadly, lost sight of what our mission as disciples of Christ is.  We take for granted that which is systematically being attacked in other lands.  We argue and squabble, attack and destroy and say, “I do this for the good of the Church”.  And tragically, all that our Coptic brothers and sisters in Christ wanted to do was celebrate Christ’s birth, and that was taken away from them.

So, I will now step off my soapbox (I don’t like heights and the problem with soapboxes is that you are easily knocked off).  But I ask you to research and look up this tragic event that took place.  I ask you to pray for those innocent souls taken away.  I ask you to pray for the men that perpetrated this event and ask God to have mercy on them.

Give glory to God that you are not faced with what our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Coptic Church are faced with.  Give glory that you are not faced with the choices and decisions they have to make to stand up for their faith.  If faced with the choice, life or death, what would you choose?

Answer to last week’s question:

What did Jesus say about a city on a hill?  It cannot be hidden.

This week’s question:

True or false?  Jesus spoke more about heaven and hell than anyone else in the Bible.

See in you church.

In Christ,

Fr. Evan

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

2.  Holy Theophany/Great Blessing of Water – January 18, at St. Andrew’s College.  6:00 p.m.  Please bring a container to take the blessed water home with you.

3.  Holy Cross is looking for a new secretary.  Sigh, in my short time serving Holy Cross I have now had to post this request twice.  And for the record, I don’t believe you when you say, “It isn’t you Father, it is me.”  I heard that way too many times in high school and university to know it is me.  Except for Chantel.  It was totally all her.

Anyway, Holy Cross needs a new secretary.  As your signing bonus, you will get a jar of jelly, a container of honey, life time supply of Holy Cross perogies and the secret to Fr. Evan’s more meat chili.

Please contact our parish president Sylvia Ptashnik if you are interested in the position.

4.  One of the parishes I used to serve is located in the Rossburn/Oakburn area.  Nice little parish located at Seech.  Sts. Peter and Paul.  On their altar, they have the words, “God is with us” carved in Ukrainian.  I always liked standing at that altar and seeing those words because they always reminded me that what we do each and everytime we come together to give worship and glory to God, to partake of the divine Body and Blood of the Son, it is not empty, it is not hollow gestures.  “God is with us”.

Take a look at the verses used during the Great Compline service served on the eve of the Nativity.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

And of your fear we shall be neither afraid nor in dread.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

But the Lord our God, Him will we hallow, and he shall be fear unto us.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

And if I be trusting in Him, He shall be unto me sanctification.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

And I will be hoping in Him, and shall be saved by Him.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Behold I and the children which God hath given me.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

The people that walk in darkness have seen a great light.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Ye that dwell in the region and shadow of death, a light shall shine upon you.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Whose government is upon His shoulder.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

And of His peace there is no end.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

And His name shall be called Angel of Great Counsel.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Wonderful Counselor.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Mighty God, Ruler, Prince of Peace.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

Father of the age to come.

FOR GOD IS WITH US.

God is with us.  That is the message of the Incarnation.  That we have not been abandoned.  That God has not turned His back to us.  He has given us that which is most precious to Him.  His divine Son.  God is with us.

That message is the true joy of this feast we have celebrated.

I think about that altar in Seech.  I still remember that first service I served there and I looked down and saw the wood carving that had the words “God is with us” attached to the altar.  God has blessed me with the opportunity to stand at that altar, to stand with those wonderful people, to share with them the joy that “God is with us”.

As each of us embark on this new year of 2010, it is my hope and prayer that you carry the joy, hope and peace that come from the knowledge that “God is with us”.

Answer to last week’s question:

Who as Jesus for a drink at the well?  A samaritan woman.

This week’s question:

What did Jesus say about a city on a hill?

See you in church!

In Christ,

Fr. Evan