November 2, 2025
Saturday, November 1 TWENTY FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
4:00 PM Bernie Kachinko- Kachinko Children
*********************** Daylight Savings Time*****************
Sunday, November 2 TWENTY FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
8:30 AM God’s Blessings & Good Health for All Parishioners
Saturday, November 8 TWENTY SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
4:00 PM Lawrence & Janice Lee- Deliverance from Demonic
Influence- Rita, Diane & Janice
Sunday, November 9 TWENTY SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
8:30 AM God’s Blessings & Good Health for All Parishioners
The Holy Eucharist
(an excerpt) By Fr. Alexander Schmemann
The Eucharist is Christ, himself. The Eucharist is his Eucharist, and he is the Eucharist. It is he who offers, and it is he who is offered. Christ is the perfect man, who stands before God. Christ, alone, is the perfect Eucharistic being. He is the Eucharist of the world. In and through this Eucharist, the whole creation becomes what always was to be, and yet, failed to be.
. . . .
The Eucharist is communion with the whole Church. It is the supreme revelation of the communion of the saints, of the unity and interdependence of all the members of the Body of Christ. It is judgment and condemnation to people who do not see Christ in the Church, but see in it merely human pride and arrogance, selfishness, and the spirit of this world. It is the breaking of the [body of Christ], the one source of life that brings all to it, and redeems the unity of all men under one head, Christ, the mystery of forgiveness, the mystery of reconciliation achieved by Christ, and eternally granted to those who believe in him. It is the essential food of the Christian, strengthening his spiritual life, healing his diseases, affirming his faith, making him capable of leading a truly Christian life in this world, the gift of eternal life, an anticipation of the joy, peace and fullness of the Kingdom, a foretaste of its light. It is both partaking of Christ’s suffering, the expression of our readiness to accept his way of life, and sharing in his victory and triumph—a sacrificial meal, and a joyful banquet. His body is broken, and his blood is shed, and partaking of them, we accept the cross. Yet, by the cross, joy has entered the world, and this joy is ours when we are at the Lord’s table. It is given to me, personally, in order to transform me into a member of Christ, to unite me with all those who receive him, to reveal the Church as a fellowship of love.
The Eucharist is the mystery of the Kingdom, the fullness and manifestation of the Church as the age to come.
The Eucharist is our secret joy and certitude, the source of inspiration and growth, the victory that overcomes evil, the presence that makes our whole life, life in Christ.
The Eucharist is the beginning, and things that were impossible are again revealed to us as possible. The time of the world has become the time of the Church, the time of salvation and redemption.
Ancient Faith Radio transcript, reprinted with permission; The Holy Eucharist, Fr. Alexander Schmemann.
Other Resources: THE EUCHARIST by Alexander Schmemann
Video: “The Holy Eucharist; God’s Lamb” (Souls & Liberty URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIuDay7t0wA)
ASK FATHER A QUESTION? I have a question about Phillip’s Fast which I see begins Saturday, November 15th. Father, didn’t the Church mitigate Phillips fast? Is it still obligatory? Let me begin with a question back to you. Suppose you are an athlete, a marathon runner, is it obligatory that you train? I could answer, no, it is not obligatory that you train. You could lie around eating, watching television, going to parties, reading or whatever else your heart desires and then on the day of the marathon show up and run. What do you think will happen on that day? You will very likely lose to someone else who did train. So now let us apply this to fasting. Why do we fast? We fast to grow stronger spiritually. Why do I need to be spiritually strong? It is because the devil, Lucifer, who was the highest ranking angel in heaven before his sin, is stronger than any man. Lucifer uses all his power to lead mankind, that is each of us, into sin so that we will fail to succeed to inherit heaven and as a result we would inherit hell and be forced to worship him (Lucifer), not God. If you desire heaven, and not hell, then you need to be strong enough to thwart the attacks of Lucifer when they come. If you are weak you will fail. How then do you grow in strength? You grow in strength by applying the gifts Jesus left us which do not make sense to a fallen world that does not believe in God. The primary gifts are prayer, fasting and almsgiving. The highest form of prayer is the Divine Liturgy every Sunday. Fasting is critical too so that we can learn to become stronger in controlling our human desires and not letting Lucifer lead us astray through bodily desires. Fasting from food is one of those ways, to learn to be in control of all your appetites. So yes, the fast is obligatory if you desire heaven.
BOOK(S) OF THE MONTH FOR NOVEMBER:
Achieving Your Potential in Christ: THEOSIS
Anthony M. Conaris
ISBN: 0-937032-93-X
Remembrance Day for the Victims of Holodomor (Stalin imposed Genocide) in Ukraine this year is NOVEMBER 22, 2025.
In 1932–1933, a man-made famine, known as the Holodomor, killed 3.3–6 million people in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (as part of the Soviet Union), included in a total of 5.5–8.7 million killed by the broader Soviet famine of 1930–1933. At least 3.3 million ethnic Ukrainians died as a result of the famine in the USSR.
The Sanctuary Light for the week of November 2nd to 9th is requested by Rosemarie Kachinko in loving memory of Ronald Kachinko, Rita Renyko, and Sandra Elko.
The Altar Candles for the month of November are requested by Geri Kolotelo in loving memory of Ann Kolotelo.
PRAYERS: Please keep in you prayers Jewel Johnstone, for her health, who is presently in the hospital. Keep in your prayers John Ostrum
VETERAN’S DAY: On Tuesday, November 11, we celebrate Veteran’s Day, please keep all THE veterans who served the United States in your thoughts and prayers. Remember, freedom is not free. Thank a Veteran!!
STANDARD TIME: Don’t forget Daylight Savings Time Ends Sunday, November 2nd. Set your clocks back one hour Saturday night before you go to bed on November 1st.
PRAYER LIST: We would like to start a prayer list for the church. If you would like to be included, or know of someone who should be included, on the prayer list, please email the church or drop a note in the Sunday Basket.
PRAYER TO ST. MICHAEL FEAST DAY : Saturday, November 8th.
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle; be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do you, O prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and the other evil spirits who prowl about the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.
Every Evil Screams Only One Message: I am good. – Alexander Schmemann
HALLOWEEN MOVIE DATE CHANGE: As fall looms ahead and the days get shorter & cooler…… It’s Movie Time on next Sunday, November 9th! The movie is, “The Inspector General, a funny, light hearted and touching story. You do not have to stay for the movie, everyone is welcome to come for a light lunch and fellowship. Come for the lunch – don’t stay for the movie- come for the movie, have no lunch – that’s okay! IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO DONATE POTATO CHIPS, POPCORN OR PRETZELS, or anything else, just give Lisa a call. Also, any potluck dish or volunteers are welcome! Everyone is welcome! Lisa 570-574-1016. Please sign the list if you think you might come.
CHRISTMAS FLEA MARKET: Transfiguration of Our Lord Church will hold their Christmas Flea Market on Saturday, December 6 and Saturday, December 13th from 9am to 2pm. There will be a variety of ethnic foods to eat-in and potato pyrohy for sale.
Prayer For the Departed
We should not only pray for our neighbors who are alive, but also for those who have departed into the other world. Prayer for the departed is necessary first of all because, when someone who is close to us departs, we have a natural feeling of loss, from which we suffer deeply. But that person continues to live: only he lives in another dimension, because he has left for the other world. So that our connection with him who has departed might not be broken, we should pray for him. Then we will feel his presence, feel that he has not left us, and that our living connection with him has been preserved. But the other person, of course, also needs prayer for the departed, because when someone dies they pass into another world, where they meet God to answer for everything they did in their earthly life, good and bad. It is very important that such a person be accompanied on his way by the prayers of his loved ones, of those who have remained here on earth, who keep his memory. We, who remain on earth, can ask God that He lighten this person’s lot. And the Church believes that the departed’s posthumous lot is lightened by the prayers of those who pray for him here on earth. The hero of Dostoevsky’s novel The Brothers Karamazov, the Elder Zosima (whose prototype was St. Tikhon of Zadonsk) says this about prayer for the departed: “Remember also: every day and whenever you can, repeat within yourself: ‘Lord, have mercy upon all who come before you today.’ For every hour and every moment thousands of people leave their life on this earth, and their souls come before the Lord – and so many of them part with the earth in isolation, unknown to anyone, in sadness and sorrow that no one will mourn for them, or even know whether they had lived or not. And so, perhaps from the other end of the earth, your prayer for his repose will rise to the Lord, though you did not known him at all, nor he you. How moving it is for his soul, coming in fear before the Lord, to feel at that moment that someone is praying for him, too, that there is still a human being on earth who loves him. And God, too, will look upon you both with more mercy, for if even you so pitied him, how much more will he who is infinitely more merciful and loving than you are. And he will forgive him for your sake.” . (Excerpt from https://www.pravmir.com/prayer/)
SS Peter & Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church 