SS Peter & Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church

Saturday, February 21
4:00 PM All Deceased of Lotrick Family – Katherine Lotrick

Sunday, February 22 FIRST SUNDAY OF THE GREAT FAST
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
4:00 PM Deanery Stations of the Cross – SS Peter & Paul, Wilkes-Barre, PA

Friday, February 27 Lenten Services
6:00 PM Stations of the Cross & Sorokousty

Saturday, February 28
4:00 PM Gloria Suscavage – Mary & Wayne Thomas

Sunday, March 1 SECOND SUNDAY OF THE GREAT FAST
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
4:00 PM Deanery Stations of the Cross – SS Peter & Paul, Plymouth, PA

LENTEN SERVICES: Father Popyk asks that you PLEASE try to attend the services during Lent: Station of the Cross and Sorokusty on Friday evenings 6:00 PM. Lent is a time for prayer, penance and sacrifice.

DIVINE LITURGY SCHEDULE: Saturdays 4:00 PM; Sundays 8:30 AM
SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY
The first Sunday of Lent is called “Sunday of Orthodoxy,” it was instituted by the Eastern Church as a reminder of her victory over the Iconoclasts.
About 726 the Byzantine emperor Leo the Isaurian started a heresy known as “Iconoclasm” or image breaking. He published an edict whereby he forbade rendering honor to the icons (images) of our Lord, and the Blessed Mother of God and the Saints. He also began a ruthless persecution of their defenders. Countless precious icons were destroyed and many statues were demolished.
In 787 the Holy Fathers of the Church assembled at the second Council at Nicaea and defined, that the veneration of the holy icons (pictures) is by no means idolatry and that a relative honor should be paid them for the sake of their prototype.
On this Sunday the Church exhorts the faithful to purify the image of their souls by a true sorrow and penance. Thus on the first Sunday of Lent the Eastern Church commemorates the victory of the true Orthodox faith over the heresy of the Iconoclasts.
`On this day in some churches, the Sunday of Orthodoxy is observed with a procession with holy icons.

Lenten Penances and Prostrations:
Closely connected with our Lenten services are inclinations. These inclinations are made either by bowing from the waist or to the ground and they are performed at all Lenten services. The Prayer of St. Ephrem with accompanying prostrations merits special consideration. This prayer can be regarded the official Lenten penitential prayer of our Church, expressing as it does the whole content and purpose of the Great Fast as follows.
“O Lord and Master of my life, drive from me the spirit of discouragement, negligence, ambition and idle talk. (Prostration). “Grant me, your servant, the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and charity. (Prostration). “Yes, my Lord and King, grant me to see my own sins, and not judge my brother, for you are blessed forever, and ever. Amen.” (Prostration).

SANCTUARY LIGHT: No Request

FELLOWSHIP: NEXT Sunday, March 1, the Deanery Stations of the Cross will be held in our parish and we will be serving the fellowship after the stations. If you will be contributing to the dessert table, please either sign the paper in the vestibule or tell Ann Beshada or any member of the Women’s Society. This is necessary so that we can be sure to have enough desserts to serve.

DEANERY STATIONS OF THE CROSS 2015 at 4:00 PM each Sunday
Feb. 22 Wilkes-Barre, Ss. Peter & Paul
Mar. 1 Plymouth, Ss. Peter & Paul
Mar. 8 Glen Lyon, St. Nicholas
Mar. 15 Nanticoke, Transfiguration
Mar. 22 Edwardsville, St. Vladimir

Saturday, Feb. 14
4:00 PM Stanley Mytych & Irene Spock – Steve Spock & Rose Mytych
FORGIVENESS SUNDAY PRAYER

Sunday, Feb. 15 CHEESEFARE SUNDAY
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
FORGIVENESS SUNDAY PRAYER

Friday, Feb. 20
6:00 PM STATIONS OF THE CROSS – SOROKOUSTY

Saturday, Feb. 21
4:00 PM All Deceased of Lotrick Family – Katherine Lotrick

Sunday, Feb. 22 FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT (ORTHODOXY)
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2015 IS ALSO CALLED FORGIVENESS SUNDAY
FORGIVENESS OF SINS
The forgiveness of sins can be viewed from many different aspects. The spirituality of the West tends to accentuate man’s activity in receiving the sacraments, performing
good works and believing in Christ. These are all part of the total response; but Byzantine spirituality has the peculiar emphasis of seeing the forgiveness of sins effected through praise of God.
Christ’s act of love in His passion and resurrection is a victory over the forces of evil and over sin itself. We share in this victory when we acknowledge it and praise the Victor. We actually enter into the Kingdom as we recognize Him, in praise, to be the source of our sanctification, and we participate in His glory and holiness when joyful praise cleanses our hearts while celebrating His victory:
We beg forgiveness for our stumbling, Christ God; because you chose, of your own free will, to ascend upon the cross in the flesh in order to deliver from the enemy’s yoke those you had created. For this reason we cry out to you in thanksgiving: ‘You our Savior have filled all things with joy when you came
to save the world.’ (Feast of the Ikon of Christ)
Sts. Basil and Chrysostom and many other Fathers of the Church often repeat that one of the effects of praising God is to “forgive sins” “purify the soul,” “bring down the grace of God.” St. Cyril of Jerusalem insists that “by our spiritual hymns our sins are forgiven, and we sanctify ourselves.” St. Basil says “when the day is breaking (his community) sings together with one mouth and one heart the psalm of confession (Ps. 51) to the Lord, each making his own the words of repentance and thus having his sins forgiven him.” St. John Chrysostom explains, “Psalm 141 has the effect of purifying a soul and forgiving sins. This evening psalm is a medicine that removes all defilement of sin. By stirring up the soul it enkindles a desire for God. Once the soul has burst into flame and overflows with joy and love, sins are removed and forgiven. Where there is love, every evil vanishes from the soul. When God is thus remembered, sins are forgiven and evil destroyed.”
Confession, therefore, is not only an acknowledgement of man’s misery and of his need for help, it is also (and perhaps more so) a joyful proclamation of God’s saving goodness; it is an act of worship:

THE GREAT FAST
Fast is one of the oldest and most venerable practices in the Church, which came to us through an interrupted tradition (St Basil, Horn on Fast I, S). The Great Fast can be described as a forty-day period of prayer, penance, and spiritual exercises in preparation for the proper celebration of Easter.
The Great Fast, as we know it today, is the result of a most complicated historical development, not all stages of which have been sufficiently explained. It seems that in the second century, the Church knew only a very short fast (a day or two) before the Pasch. During the third century the pre-paschal fast was extended to the entire week known to us as the Passion or Holy Week. The first mention of the Forty Days Fast is made in the fifth canon of the Council of Nicaea (325). From that time, the Forty Days Fast is discussed by many Church Fathers and St. Athanasius (d. 373) does not hesitate to say: “Anyone who neglects to observe the Forty Days Fast is not worthy to celebrate the Easter Festival’ (cf. Festal Letters XIX, 9)
The Synod of Laodicaea (about 360) imposed the strict obligation of fasting for forty days before Easter for the first time. By the end of the fourth century, the Great Fast, known to the Greeks as the “Tessaracoste” (forty Days) and the Romans as ‘Quadragesima”, was generally observed by the entire Church.
Originally, the forty-day period was computed from Good Friday, the day the Pasch of Crucifixion was celebrated, and then extended to six weeks. In Constantinople, when they transferred the solemn Baptism from Easter to the Saturday of Lazarus, the Lenten season of preparation also had to be anticipated by one week. Thus, according to the Byzantine practice, the Great Fast began seven weeks before Easter and ended on the Friday before the Saturday of Lazarus. At the Vespers of Lazarus we sing: “We have concluded the beneficial Forty Days (Lent) and we implore You, 0 Lover of Mankind, make us see the Holy Week of Your Passion and praise Your work (of redemption).” Liturgically, then, the Great Fast ends on the Friday before the Saturday of Lazarus and is exactly forty days long.
In the Roman Rite, Holy Week was included in the Lenten season and the Lenten season was of six-week duration. But later, when the Sundays in Lent were exempt from fasting in the West, Lent became only thirty-six days long. This situation was remedied in the seventh century by adding four more days of fasting at the beginning of the Lenten season with the first day of Lent on Ash Wednesday. This is the reason for the difference in the first day of Lent between the Byzantine Rite and the Roman Rite.

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested to burn this week February 14 – 21 by Mike Kane in memory of Joseph Kane.
Many weeks are available for requests for the weekly Sanctuary Light.

FIRST DAY OF LENT: Monday, February 16th is the First Day of Lent. Please remember ages 14 to 57 cannot eat Meat and Dairy products on this day and all Fridays during the Lenten season. No music and dancing also during this time.

LUC MEETING: For our next LUC meeting we need to depart somewhat from the more typical Sunday afternoon meeting time due to so many upcoming Sundays already filled with Pre-Lenten dinners and Lenten Stations of the Cross.
Therefore, our next meeting will be held at 6:00pm, Tuesday March 17th at Grotto Pizza Private Dining Room, 36 Gateway Shopping Center on South Wyoming Avenue, Edwardsville.

DEANERY STATIONS OF THE CROSS 2015 4:00 PM on all Stations
Feb. 22 Wilkes-Barre, Ss. Peter & Paul
Mar. 1 Plymouth, Ss. Peter & Paul
Mar. 8 Glen Lyon, St. Nicholas
Mar. 15 Nanticoke, Transfiguration
Mar. 22 Edwardsville, St. Vladimir

Saturday, Feb. 7
4:00 PM  John & Anna Rudeski – Daughter Ann Marie &
husband Joseph Onderko

Sunday, Feb. 8 SUNDAY OF MEATFARE
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Thursday, Feb. 12
9:00 AM Gloria Suscavage – Paul & Betty Suscavage

Saturday, Feb. 14
4:00 PM Stanley Mytych & Irene Spock – Steve Spock & Rose Mytych
FORGIVENESS SUNDAY PRAYER

Sunday, Feb. 15 CHEESEFARE SUNDAY
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
FORGIVENESS SUNDAY PRAYER
DIVINE LITURGY REQUESTS: If you have a request for a Divine Liturgy, you will please call Father Popyk at the rectory in Nanticoke.  Father has his book for the listings and the Divine Liturgy can be entered as you call. Thank you.

Meatfare Sunday
What do we mean by “meatfare”?
The week following the Sunday of the Prodigal Son is called Meatfare week and it terminates on the Sunday called Meatfare Sunday . Meatfare Sunday is the last day on which it was still permissible to eat meat before the Great Fast. Meatfare means “farewell to meat.” Hence, the name “meatfare” Sunday. Of course, we are speaking here of the time when the Great Fast was observed in all strictness.

CHEESEFARE SUNDAY

What is meant by “cheesefare”?
Holy Church in gradually preparing us for the fast, permits us to eat meat for the last time on Meatfare Sunday. During Cheesefare week, however, she permits us to eat only dairy products. Just as we bid farewell to meat on Meatfare Sunday, so too we bid farewell to dairy products on Cheesefare Sunday. Hence, the name Cheesefare Sunday. Our people called this week cheese or butter week. This Sunday was the last day for pre-Lenten amusements.
The practice of Cheesefare week and Cheesefare Sunday is very ancient. It was mentioned by Theophilus, the patriarch of Alexandria. However, it is known that even before that time Meatfare week and Meatfare Sunday had already been established. The synaxary of Cheesefare Sunday states that in the opinion of some writers Cheesefare week received the force of law under the Greek Emperor Heraclius. For six years he had carried on war with the Persian King, Chosroes, without success. Finally, he made a promise that if he won the war, he would abstain from eating meat for a whole week before the Great Fast.
On the Saturday before Cheesefare Sunday, in order to provide us with an example and an incentive for fasting and penance, holy Church celebrates the memory of those men and women who from earliest times, devoted their lives to prayer, fasting and penance in monasteries or as hermits in the desert.
The liturgical service of Cheesefare week begins more and more to embody the theme of fasting, especially on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
February 14th

Let’s Put the Saint back in Valentine’s Day
Saint Valentine did “die of love”, to be sure — but not of the romantic sort! Strange also, considering its enormous popularity, that this saint’s feast no longer appears on the Church’s calendar.
How did the “Saint” disappear from Valentine’s Day? Can we “re-Christianize” the celebration of this popular holiday? Who is Saint Valentine, anyway?
There are at three different Saint Valentines, all of them martyrs, mentioned in the early metrologies for the date of February 14th.
One is described as a priest in Rome, another a bishop (of Interamna, the modern Terni). Both apparently were martyred in the second half of the third century and buried at different places on the Flaminian Way outside of Rome. The third St. Valentine was martyred in Africa with a number of companions. Almost nothing is known about any of these early Christian men — except that they died for the love of Christ!
“Christianizing” Valentine’s Day:
On Saint Valentine’s Day, we Christians have an opportunity for some real “enculturation” — that is, planting seeds of Christ’s truth into the culture in which we live.
When we remember that the heart of Saint Valentine was, like other Christian martyrs, “pierced” by the love of Our Lord, and he shed his blood for this, it seems appropriate that the red heart is a symbol for this powerful love. We think about the power of the deeds of extraordinary courage – even unto death – to bring the truth of faith to others. We are reminded; too, that suffering that often accompanies genuine love.
In our Catholic families, we can focus our thoughts, this day, not only in expressing our love for our friends and families (and yes, sweethearts) by gifts and loving greetings; but also in prayer and meditation on Scripture.
SANTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested for Feb. 7 -14 No Request.

LUC MEETING: The meeting for The League of Ukrainian Catholics, North Anthracite Council was cancelled last Sunday, February 1st because of the weather. The next meeting will be announced.

MYASOPUSNA 2015: Transfiguration of Our Lord Church Myasopusna (Meat-Fare Sunday) will be held in the church banquet hall (in Nanticoke) this Sunday, February 8th, dinner will be served from 12:30 to 1:30 PM.

PRAYERS: Please remember Anna Magill in your prayers for a speedy recovery of a hip operation. Remember all those in hospitals, nursing facilities and ill at home.

DEANERY STATIONS OF THE CROSS: The Deanery Stations of the Cross schedule will be posted as soon as we receive the schedule. I was told that our church will be scheduled for March 1st. We will be serving the fellowship after the Stations and will need help to prepare and serve and for our good bakers and dessert makers to contribute, if possible, to this cause.

Saturday, Jan. 31 BLESSING OF CANDLES
4:00 PM Helen Sawka – Michael Kane

Sunday, Feb. 1 SUNDAY OF THE PRODIGAL SON
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Monday, Feb. 2 ENCOUNTER OF OUR LORD WITH SIMEON ANOINTING OF HOLY OIL – MYROVANIA
4:00 PM Theodosia Rembish – Cramer Famiy

Saturday, Feb. 7
4:00 PM John & Anna Rudeski – Daughter Ann Marie &
husband Joseph Onderko

Sunday, Feb. 8 SUNDAY OF MEATFARE
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Sorokousty: Lent will begin on February 16th. The Stations of the Cross will be held on all Fridays of the Lenten Season. Your Sorokousty envelopes are available for the request to have your loved ones remembered in prayer at this time.
EXPENSE REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF JANUARY 2015

Archbishop’s Chancery – Monthly Remittance
For December paid in January $923.00
Health Insurance for Pastor $629.50
Priest Beneficial Fund Monthly 75.00
Metropolitan Stphan Soroka Birthday donation 150.00
Phllips Supply, Inc. drinking cups 3.15
PAWC – Water 39.90
UGI Energy – Gas 680.14
Verizon – Telephone & Internet 121.01
UGI – Electric 995.07
Rev. Volodymyr Popyk Salary & Expense 1,405.91
Church Budget Envelope Co. 517.73
Postmaster – PO Box Rental 140.00
Donation for Plymouth Holiday lighting 10.00
Transfiguration of Our Lord, U.C.C. for Rectory Utilities 300.00
Snow removal of parking lot 100.00
Outflow $6,090.41
Collection Inflow for January $4,247.00
– $1,843.41
SANCTUARY LIGHT: No request for this week.

ALTAR CANDLES: The Altar Candles will burn at all services in the month of February in memory of all deceased members of the Bosack Family requested by Anna Bosack, Carol & Bernard Kosek.

CANDLES: The blessing of candles was Friday, if you did not get candles, they are still available. Plain set of two candles donation is $6 and the decorated ones are $12. The candles are used in the home for many purposes and every home should have one.

MEETING: The LUC North Anthracite Council will meet on Sunday, February 1st, 2:00 PM at St. Vladimir’s Church, 430 North 7th Ave, Scranton, PA. A meeting and fellowship will follow at the Parish Center.

HOLUBTSI DINNER: Saints Peter & Paul Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Wilkes-Barre will hold a take-out Piggie / Holubtsi Dinner on Sunday, February 15th, 2015. Dinners may be picked up between 11:30 am and 2:00 pm at the Parish School Hall, corner of North River and West Chestnut Streets, Wilkes-Barre. Dinner includes Piggies (meat stuffed cabbage), mashed potatoes, vegetable, bread and butter and dessert. Dinners will be $10.00 for adults and $5.00 for children (12 and under). Walk-Ins Welcome but Reservations are encouraged.

Saturday, Jan. 24
4:00 PM Helen Harnen – Stanley & Mary Lou Grontkowski & Family

Sunday, Jan. 24 SUNDAY OF THE PUBLICAN & THE PHARISEE
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Friday, January 30 COMMEMORATION OF THE THREE HIERARCHS
9:00 AM David Trimmell – Wife Irene Qurion

Saturday, January 31 BLESSING OF CANDLES
4:00 PM Helen Sawka – Michael Kane

Sunday, February 1 SUNDAY OF THE PRODIGAL SON
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested to burn the week of
Jan. 24-31 by Ann Beshada – for God’s Blessings and good health on Mary, Verne and Walter Pinaha.

THANKS: Our most sincere thanks are extended to the faithful men and women who helped to dismantle the Nativity and the lovely tree. Your time and efforts are greatly appreciated to get the church back in order.

CONGRATULATIONS; We wish to Congratulate Donna Kachinko on her recent engagement to Nelson Warren. May God’s blessings and Best wishes be with you both for a very happy future.

CALENDARS: The 2015 Church calendars have finally arrived. Our Thanks to the S. J. Grontkowski Funeral Home for their generosity of having these calendar printed.

BLESSING OF HOMES: You may still have Father bless your home. If you would like to have your home blessed please call Father Popyk at 570-735-2262 or place your name and address and phone number in the collection .

The four Sundays (Sunday of the Pharisee and Publican,
Sunday of the Prodigal Son, Sunday of Meat-Fare and Sunday of Cheese-Fare) form a pre-Lenten period, preparing us for the Lenten season.

Saturday, Jan. 17
4:00 PM Good Health and God’s Blessings for
Dorothy Wujcik – Sons Les & Len Wujcik

Sunday, Jan. 18 SUNDAY OF ZACCAHEUS
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioner

Thursday, Jan. 22
9:00 AM Gloria Suscavage – Paul & Susan Suscavage

Saturday, Jan. 24
4:00 PM Helen Harnen – Stanly & Mary Lou Grontkowski & Family

Sunday, Jan. 25 SUNDAY OF PUBLICAN AND THE PHARISEE
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

DIVINE LITURGY REQUESTS: If you have a request for a Divine Liturgy, you will please call Father Popyk at the rectory in Nanticoke. The number is – 570-735-2262. Father has his book for the listings and the Divine Liturgy can be entered as you call. Thank you.

Easter is upon us in the coming weeks. Easter Sunday is April 5, 2015

THE EASTER CYCLE
The Easter Cycle begins with the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee (next week, Sunday the 25th), ten weeks before Easter, and terminates eight weeks after Easter with the Sunday of All Saints. The Easter cycle is divided into pre-paschal, the season or period before Easter, and the Easter season.
The pre-paschal season consists of four Sundays preceding Lent. These are: The Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee, Sunday of the Prodigal Son, Meatfare and Cheesefare Sundays, and also the Great Fast of the Forty days Fast – which extends from Cheesefare Sunday to Palm Sunday, and finally, Passion Week – which is usually included in the Great Fast.
The Easter cycle lasts from the Sunday of St. Thomas (the Sunday after Easter) to the Sunday of All Saints. The period from Easter to Pentecost embraces fifty days and is called by the common name of Pentecost. The Sundays in the Easter season are each named for the event recounted in the gospel of that day. These occur in the following order: the Sunday of St. Thomas, the Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women, the Sunday of the Paralytic, the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, the Sunday of the Blind Man, the Sunday of the Fathers of the Church, the Sunday of the Descent of the Holy Spirit (Pentecost) and the Sunday of All Saints. The Easter season, i.e., the post feast of the Resurrection, lasts forty days, that is, to the feast of the Ascension of our Lord.
The principal aim of the Paschal cycle, first of all, is to prepare our hearts and souls for a worthy encounter with the Risen Christ. We prepare ourselves for this joyful meeting by humble prayer, fasting, penance and meditation on the Passion and sufferings of Christ. This preparation culminates in Easter Confession and Holy Communion. And so, with a pure heart, we go forth to meet the Risen Christ, singing the hymn of victory: “Christ is risen from the dead, by death He conquered death, and to those in the graves, He granted l

BLESSING OF HOMES
Among the various petitions mentioned in the ceremony during the blessing of the water is the sanctification of homes. With this the Church imposes a duty and obligation upon the priests to bless the homes of the faithful entrusted to their pastoral care at the beginning of the New Year. Theologically speaking, the blessing of homes constitutes an invocative blessing, meaning that by his prayer and by the sprinkling of the Holy Water the priest invokes God’s protection upon the home and those living in it.
As our souls, so also our homes become tainted by the sins of those living in them and, consequently, lose God’s protective power. Every year, then, at the Feast of the Epiphany, they should be blessed again to secure for them God’s blessings and protection. Just as the faithful cleanse their soul of sin at least ONCE A YEAR, and the church is blessed with the newly blessed water every year, so should the homes of the faithful be yearly blessed to invoke God’s blessings and protection on it and its inhabitants.
As we renew the insurance on our home every year, so we should renew our insurance of God’s protection and his blessing which is of greater importance and more effective. As we welcome our priest during the holy season of Epiphany to bless our home, let us be mindful that he is bringing to us the “blessing of Jordan,” and that unless God protects and blesses our home, we “labor in vain.” (Ps. 127:1)

BLESSINGS OF HOMES: Anyone interested in having their home blessed, please submit your name, address and phone number in the collection basket, the list in the vestibule or contact Father Popyk

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested to burn the week of Jan. 17 – 24 by Albert Ferkel in memory of Parents Albert & Catherine Ferkel.

Dates for the Sanctuary Light is available for the weeks of Jan. 31-Feb. 7 and
Feb. 14-21

HELP NEEDED: We will be dismantling the Nativity Scene this Sunday, January 18 about 10:30 AM. Help is needed to do this job. Please anyone who can come to help in this project will be greatly appreciated. If we have enough workers it can be accomplished in a few hours.

MYASOPUSNA – MEATFARE SUNDAY:Dinner tickets are now available for the Myasopusna Festival to be held at the Transfiguration of Our Lord Church Hall in Nanticoke, PA on Sunday, February 8, 2015 from noon to 3:30 PM. The Myasopusna (Meatfare) festival is the parish’s annual prelenten celebration, preceding the Lenten Great Fast. Dinner includes a platter of kobasi, haluptsi (stuffed cabbage), varenyky (pierogis), black bread and butter, and a homemade dessert, and will be served from 12:30 to 1:30 PM. Borscht and beverages will be available for purchase. A variety of Ukrainian crafts, including pysanky, embroidery, woodcrafts, beadwork, and ceramics, will be on display and available for sale or by raffle. Following dinner, live entertainment will include the Holy Year Choir, Kazka Ukrainian Folk Ensemble, and the Saint Mary’s Ukrainian Dancers. Dinner tickets are $15, with an advanced ticket price of $12, if purchased by February 1. The church hall is located at the corners of Bliss Street and Center Street, in the Hanover Section of Nanticok

ST. MARY’S BYZANTINE CATHOLIC CHURCH INTERNATIONAL DINNER CLUB, 320 Mifflin Ave. Scranton, Pa. 18503 presents “A Taste of Greece” prepared exclusively for you by Chef Robert Olecki on Thursday, February 12, 2015 with seatings at 5:30 and 6:30pm. The menu will start with a Greek Salad followed by the Entrée of Braised Lamb Shank served with cous cous with golden raisins, peppers and onions, along with Eggplant Caponata. The dessert will be Galaktoboureko (Greek Custard pie). Coffee, tea, water or soda is included for $20.00 per person and a Cash bar is available. before February 9th with your reservatione..

Saturday, Jan. 10
4:00 PM Frank Dempsey – Wife Sonya Dempsey & Family

Sunday, Jan. 11 SUNDAY AFTER THE THEOPHANY
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Thursday, Jan. 15
9:00 AM All deceased members of the Lotrick Family –
Wife Katherine Lotrick
Saturday, Jan. 17
4:00 PM Good Health and God’s Blessings for
Dorothy Wujcik – Sons Les & Len Wujcik

Sunday, Jan. 18 THIRTY SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested to burn this week January 10 – 17 by Mary Oshirak & Family in memory of Theodore Oshirak.

OUR PARISH FAMILY SUPPER: Many thanks to all who participated in the Holy Supper celebrated for the Ukrainian Christmas. The food was good and thanks to those who made all the delicious dishes, the singing of Carols was wonderful and filled everyone with the spirit. The donations given to help with the cost was also greatly appreciated. Thanks again for all the faithful who attended and enjoyed the day.

DONATION: SS Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church was bequeathed the amount of $11,417.81 for the purpose of capital improvements to the Church. This bequest was from the Estate of Elaine M. Makowski.

BLESSINGS OF HOMES: Anyone interested in having their home blessed, please submit your name, address and phone number in the collection basket or contact Father Popyk at 735-2262 or his cell phone.

Saturday, Jan. 3 BLESSING OF WATER
Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania
4:00 PM Andrew Beshada – Wife Ann Beshada

Sunday, Jan. 4 SUNDAY BEFORE THE THEOPHANY
Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Tuesday, Jan. 6 THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD – OBLIGATION
8:30 AM Anna Soppeck – Dolores & Paul Hoover
Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania
Saturday, Jan. 10
4:00 PM Frank Dempsey – Wife Sonya Dempsey & Family

Sunday, Jan. 11 SUNDAY AFTER THE THEOPHANY
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Congratulations TO
FATHER VOLODYMYR POPYK
ON HIS 18TH
Anniversary of Priesthood!

MAY GOD GRANT YOU MANY
MORE HAPPY AND BLESSED
YEARS OF SERVICE IN THE MNOHYA LITA!
VINEYARD OF OUR LORD.

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary Light is requested to burn this week January 3 – 10 by Mike &Dolores Sinko in memory of John & Helen Kurkoski

ALTAR CANDLES: The Altar Candles are requested to burn for the month of January by Ann Beshada in memory of the Conniff and Beshada Families.
The request for the monthly Altar Candles is available for the months of: February, March, July, August and October. The candles burn for the month at all services for your requests. The donation is $40.

HOLY BLESSING OF WATER: The blessing of Holy water will be held this Saturday so that all can participate in the service.

BLESSINGS OF HOMES: Anyone interested in having their home blessed after the Blessing of Water please submit your name, address and phone number in the collection basket or contact Father Popyk at 735-2262 or his cell phone 609-372-7161

CHUCH ENVELOPES: Please sign your envelopes and the amount enclosed. The Initial Envelope is the help defray the cost of the printing and shipping of the envelopes. Your contributions will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for the past years contributions you made to your church.

UKRAINIAN HOLY SUPPER: Many thanks to all who signed up to come to this event this Sunday. Let us all be a Happy Parish Family to enjoy each other in harmony. May this New Year bring us all the Health and Happiness God can provide.

Saturday, Dec. 27 ST. STEPHEN, PROTOMARTYR
4:00 PM Good Health for Helen Youells – Dempsey Family

Sunday, Dec. 28 SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMAS
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

THURSDAY, JAN. 1 THE CIRCUMCISION OF OUR LORD
HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION
4:00 PM Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great
God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania

Saturday, Jan. 3 BLESSING OF HOLY WATER – Myrovania
4:00 PM Andrew Beshada – Wife Ann Beshada

Sunday, Jan. 4 SUNDAY BEFORE THE THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD
8:30 AM Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great
God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners
2:00 PM Ukrainian Holy Supper at Church Hall

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary light is requested to burn this week Dec.27 –Jan. 3 by Ann Beshada in memory of husband Andrew Beshada.

CHRISTMAS EVE: We would like to thank Ala Schappert for presenting the Baby Jesus to the Manger. May God’s blessings be upon her always.

THE NATIVITY: Many thanks to all the men and women who so diligently came to put the Beautiful Nativity together. It is a shame that the attendance on Christmas Eve was so sparse. We have such a beautiful Nativity, tree and Divine Liturgy and empty pews. WHY??? If there are any suggestions as to what changes can be made to accommodate your schedule please acknowledge them to Father Popyk.

CEMETERY: Work is being accomplished at our parish cemetery. The outer road on the left side going down – the trees are down and the debris is being removed. In the future the middle road will be sealed and repaired. This project is a little expensive and any donations would be appreciated if you have relatives and family buried in our cemetery. The tree job cost $800 and the debris removal is $85 and hour. The sealing of the road will be approximately $4000.

THANKS: Through the year, many of the parishioners have volunteered for various projects. The services that you so willingly provide is greatly appreciated – whether it be the cleaning of the Church, snow removal on the sidewalks, being there for funerals to open and arrange the necessary bells etc., working at our fund-raising projects, choir singing and any other service that is connected to the Church duties. Your volunteer hours keep us in good running – Keep up the good work with God’s Blessings. We cannot forget to also thank the few non-parishioners who come in to help with our Pyrohy Projects. Thanks to all for all you do. May God grant you a wonderful year 2015.

HOLY SUPPER: Next Sunday is the Ukrainian Holy Supper at the church Hall at 2:00 PM. Come and join in with your Parish Family for a delightful afternoon.

THANKS: Father Popyk and his family wish to thank all who presented them with Christmas gifts. God Bless you!

Saturday, Dec. 20
4:00 PM Peter Phillips, Sr. – Son Peter & Vivian Phillips

Sunday, Dec. 21 SUNDAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS – HOLY FATHERS
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Wednesday, December 24 ~ CHRISTMAS EVE – VIGIL OF CHRISTMAS – 5:00 PM
Great Compline Litia Service – Z Namy Boh – Divine Liturgy –
Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania
God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Thursday, December 25 ~ Christmas Day – NATIVITY OF OUR LORD – 8:30 AM
Divine Liturgy – Anointing of Holy Oil and Myrovania
God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Friday, Dec. 26 SYNOXIS OF THE MOTHER OF GOD
4:00 PM Leonard Wujcik and Son Larry – Dorothy Wujcik

Saturday, Dec. 27 ST. STEPHEN, PROTOMARTYR
4:00 PM Good Health for Helen Youells – Dempsey Family

Sunday, Dec. 28 SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMAS
8:30 AM God’s Blessings and Good Health for all Parishioners

Transfiguration of Our Lord Schedule
Saturday Liturgy is 6:00 PM ~ Sunday Liturgy is 10:30 AM
Wednesday, Dec. 24 ~ Christmas Eve ~ 8:00 PM
Thursday, Dec. 25 Christmas Day ~ 10:30 AM

THE LEDGEND OF THE HOLLY
The news of Christ’s birth soon spread throughout the land. King Herod had heard of the glorious event and, feeling threatened by this new King of Kings, had sent his soldiers in pursuit of Him. Joseph gathered together his little family and fled from Bethlehem.
As they were traveling down an old dirt road, Mary heard the sound of the soldiers behind them. Knowing that they would be searching for a man and woman with a baby, she decided to hide her child until the soldiers had passed.
Looking quickly around, Mary felt her heart sink within her. There was nothing nearby but a bare little holly bush. Every second, the hooves of the soldier’s horses thundered nearer and nearer. In desperation, she placed her precious child beneath the bush and prayed.
But then, a wondrous thing happened. The scraggly little plant burst forth with a crown of glistening, thorny leaves. The spiky leaved bush formed a roof over the baby, hiding him completely. When the soldiers rode by, they saw only the couple who appeared to be childless and continued on their way, leaving the Christ Child in safety and peace.
It was then that the Babe blessed the holly so that it would always remain green … a symbol of hope and immortality to all. And the berries the holly bore would always be blood red. For of all the plants that grow, the holly alone, for one brief moment, had held the Christ Child in its heart.

THE NATIVITY OF OUR LORD AN UNFATHOMABLE MYSTERY
The greatest and most profound mystery of the Christian faith is the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. The eternal God becomes a little infant and does not cease to be God. “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us” – says St. John the Evangelist. Christ’s nativity is the cradle of our faith. Only faith is able to accept this unfathomable mystery, understand it and adore it.
In the first centuries, the holy Fathers of the Eastern Church accepted the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word of God with profound faith and great piety. Enraptured by this mystery, they have nothing but words of wonder for the most wonderful love of God, the sacrifice, humility, and poverty of the newly born Messiah and Savior. Like the holy Fathers, in her Christmas celebrations our Church also joyfully praises and glorifies the mystery of the birth of the divine Infant. Today, he who is invisible by nature became visible in the flesh for man’s sake; hence, glorifying him, we cry: “Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to men of good will…”

Picture yourself perched excitedly at the top of the stairs on Christmas morning, like a little child who is waiting to come down and look at his presents. When the moment finally arrives, you rush down the stairs to find a whole stack of gifts with your name on them. Some are in a neat little pile, while others are hidden, waiting for you to find them.
Even though all the gifts are beautifully wrapped, the contents of each package are clearly labeled on the front: Patience. Wisdom. Fortitude. Humility. Peace. And then there is the biggest box of all: JOY. You immediately understand where these gifts came from—your heavenly Father. He knows just what you need and has given it all to you.
Which gift will you open first? Why not start with the biggest gift? So you go to the package that has “JOY” written on the side and open it excitedly.
Immediately you are filled with a beautiful warmth, a heartfelt, sincere delight that emanates from the center of your soul. This is more than just happiness, for that is a more fleeting and superficial feeling. This joy is deep-rooted, life affirming, and wholesome. It’s like having an eternal flame of contentment inside that can’t be extinguished. What a marvelous gift!
Joy is the perfect gift to open first. From the Annunciation to Mary to the birth of Jesus, we have heard the angels reminding us of the joy that God wants us to have. “Joy to the World!” is not just a popular Christmas carol but God’s promise to us. He is offering us the joy that comes because Jesus has not only entered the world; He has entered our hearts! In a sense, joy is also the basis for all the other gifts. With joy come peace, patience, courage, and so much more.
This Christmas, rejoice in God’s goodness. Then take that gift of joy with you as you enter the New Year so that you can share it with all the people God puts in your path.
‘LORD, THANK YOU FOR YOUR GIFT OF JOY! HELP ME CARRY THIS GIFT WITH ME AND PASS IT ON TO ALL MY FRIENDS—EVEN MY EMEMIES.

SANCTUARY LIGHT: The Sanctuary light is requested to burn this week Dec. 20-27 by Ann Beshada in memory of parents John & Mary Conniff.

CHURCH HELP: This Sunday the Nativity will be set up for our parish. Please, if you can possibly help in this project, come and share in the beauty of Christmas. The time will be about 1:00 PM and if we get the help it will not take very long.

CHRISTMAS SERVICES: Please try to attend your church for the Christmas services. Christmas Eve is 5:00 PM and Christmas Day 8:30 AM.
It makes it so much more spiritual with a full church for the services.

BIRTHDAY GREETINGS: Our sincere Birthday Greetings are extended to Julia Wido who will celebrate her 90th Birthday on December 21st. May God grant her many more happy, healthy years. Mnohya Lita!

ST. MARY’S BYZANTINE CATHOLIC CENTER International Dinner Club, 320 Mifflin Ave. Scranton, Pa. will be featuring the PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH Cuisine on January 8, 2015. Seating will be 5:30 and 6:30pm. The menu will start with a Potato and Leek Soup and Roasted Red Beet Salad with goat cheese and champagne vinaigrette. The entrée will be Pork Snitzel served over warm apple & cabbage slaw with spatzle. The dessert will be an Apple Dumpling served warm with a salted caramel sauce. Coffee, tea, water and soda are included. Cash bar is available. The drink special is Pennsylvania Dutch Egg Nog (Alcoholic). Reservations can be made before January 5, 2015 and the price is only $20.00 per person.

JANUARY HOLY SUPPER: Our Ukrainian Holy supper will be held on Sunday, Jan. 4th in the Church Hall. If you signed in to attend please enter your cover dish you wish to contribute. The Fish and Pyrohys will be provided. The dish is to be meatless and whatever you desire to bring.