St Herman's Orthodox Church

2011 Pilgrims to Holy Dormition Monastery

Fr Paul with Fr Tim, Fr Rick and Fr Tom, Dr Harry Boosalis and Paul Karos on Mt Athos, May 2011

February 5, 2011

TODAY WE BEGIN The Lenten Triodion. This is the book that contains the liturgical prayers for the services of Great Lent, both pre-Lenten and Lenten services. Note that we will serve Matins at 730 am on Saturdays during the period of the Lenten Triodion.

A NEWLY FORMED FUND-RAISING team is led by Brent Heffron. Their charge is to organize means for raising revenues, following the principles outlined in the 2012 Pastor’s Report (available on-line, together with the President’s Report, under “Annual Parish Reports), to support the operating budget of our parish.

OTHER WAYS TO HELP. Perhaps you’d like to donate certain liturgical items, such as candles and sacramental wine. Such tax-deductible donations would be over and above our regular offerings and donations to St Herman’s, and would significantly help us toward our goal of a zero-balance budget at the end of 2012. Speak to Fr Paul if you’d like to help in this way.

TEAMS or “ministries”, in addition to the newly formed fund-raising team, abound at St Herman’s. If you’re not already, become a volunteer on one of these teams and join us in our common work to support the ministry and the needs of our parish. The teams are: the Librarian Team (Rachel Tkach, team-leader); Church Cleaning Team (Tony Dunlop); Greeters Team (Emily Johnson); Philanthropy Team (Nicole Heffron); Grounds Keeping Team (Gene Rebeck); Altar Cloths and Vestments Team (Presbytera); Prosphora Baking Team (Presbytera); sacristan team (Brad Kampf); Web-site Team (newly formed under Fr Paul). To volunteer, talk to the team leader or to Fr Paul.

WEBSITE TEAM. Those who’d like to be part of St Herman’s Website Team, meet with Fr Paul this morning following the coffee hour.

WE WELCOME HIS GRACE BISHOP MATTHIAS on Sunday, February 19. The bishop will arrive at 930 am and vest in the nave, while we sing the prayers for the vesting of the bishop. Please be here at 930 am that Sunday to welcome the bishop and to help in the prayers for his vesting. The Hierarchical Divine Liturgy itself will begin at 10 am.

FUND-RAISING DINNER FOR DIOCESAN SEMINARIANS. We are invited to be the special guests of His Grace Matthias at a fund-raising dinner for the seminarians of our Midwest Diocese. The dinner takes place at Jax Café in Northeast Minneapolis, on Sunday, Feb 19, 2012. Reception and cash bar are at 5 pm. The dinner, featuring a choice of entrée (sirloin or walleye or chicken), is at 6 pm. Tickets are $60 per person. With our tax-deductible donation, we contribute to the Midwest Diocesan Fund for our seminarians at St Tikhon’s and St Vlad’s, and we get a great meal – with ambience – to boot! The welfare of our diocesan seminarians is dear to the heart of our Archpastor, Bishop Matthias. Many seminarians and their families have sold their homes, left well-paying jobs, and moved across the country for the sake of the Gospel; however, due to little or no financial help upon their arrival at seminary, these devoted families start living hand-to-mouth, often using food stamps and WIC programs just to feed their children. Many cannot even afford to pay rent, heat, and other basic utilities without help from the faithful. Some family members even spend their entire time at seminary without medical benefits of any kind, bearing the brunt of any and all medical bills that come their way. To make reservations, please call Polly Walker at: (612) 384-6440. Make your checks payable to “Diocese of the Midwest” and post them to:

Polly Walker

8926 Pine Bluff Ct

Eden Prairie, MN 55347

THANK YOU to those who are pledging $10 a month to assist our seminarian, Rob Gauvain, and his family at St Tikhon’s Seminary. This last week, we sent $70 to Rob. We’ll keep a basket for our seminarians out at the coffee hour. We’ll send our next assistance the week of Feb 26. Our goal is ten pledgers pledging $10 a month so we can send our seminarian and his family $100 a month while he is a student at St Tikhon’s.

THANK YOU to the faithful of St Herman’s for the gift of Fr Paul’s jeweled cross. Ask Fr Paul to see it. He’ll be glad to show it to you! The Cross will be presented to Fr Paul on Feb 19, when His Grace, Bp Matthias will be with us.

ST HERMAN’S ANNUAL CHILI COOK-OFF FUNDRAISER is on Sunday, Feb 19. How good is the chili at St Herman’s? In the six plus years we’ve held the competition, we have yet to see a repeat champion!

HOLY DORMITION Monastery is nearing completion of its new church thanks to the generosity of the faithful. The goal is to prepare the new church for consecration by June 2012. During the months of February and March, those of you at St Herman’s who would like to be part of a parish donation of one of the items needed by the monastery, please bring your donations to the Church, and place it in a special basket downstairs. We’ll send our donation to the monastery at the end of March. (Fr Paul likes the idea of donating the Abbess’ Chair. It would be St Herman’s embracing Mother Gabriella whenever she sits in it.)

FROM OUR TREASURER. January Report.

Currently, we have in our checking account: $10,042.03

There were 5 weeks in January. Which means that we had one week extra of contributions.

Number we needed to make budget for the month : $6,278.95

Number we took in: $6,382.10

Difference: +$103.15

Without the extra week it would have been:

Number we needed to make budget for the month : $6,278.95

Number we took in: $5,843.10

Difference: $-$539.10

KEY NUMBERS Below is the weekly average based on 4 weeks in a month, this is what we need to cover our budget.

Average Weekly contribution required: $1,595.53

Average Weekly contribution received: $1,276.42

Difference: -$319.11

PASSIONS – SUBSTITUTES FOR GOD

[In the past, before we took up our cross], whenever we wanted comfort, confidence, consolation, or celebration, we turned to a substitute for God. Substitutes for God are actually idols. We need to reverse this process. We must place God as our source of comfort, confidence, consolation, and celebration. We must ask Him for comfort and consolation. We must be confident in Him and not in ourselves. We must celebrate by thanking and praising God.

The main reason people are compelled to return to their passion after successfully quitting for a spell is because of the big hole left behind which was once filled with the passion. Everything the passion meant to them physically, psychologically, emotionally, and spiritually must be replaced or, more precisely, displaced by God and His virtues. This is more natural than we realize because the passion is only an illegitimate substitute that is trespassing in what is rightfully God’s domain.

Through our own free will we have made some uninformed wrong choices and bad decisions that allowed the passion to take hold of us and become part of our “new defective self.” Now, through right choices and right decisions we can embrace the will of God. We can now allow God to become a part of us and He will lovingly allow us to become a part of His Holy body. The body of Christ! We can have a second chance, a fresh start, to become clean and have God’s strength within us.

“If you wish, you can be a slave to passions; and, if you wish, you can remain free and not submit to their yoke; for, God has created you with that power. A man who overcomes passions of the flesh is crowned with incorruptibility. If there were no passions there would be no virtues, and no crowns given by God to those who are worthy.” (Early Fathers from the Philokalia)

Breaking the Chains of Addiction, Victor Mihailoff, p. 17