WE WELCOME TODAY

HIS GRACE, BISHOP +DEMETRIOS OF MOKISSOS

CHANCELLOR OF the METROPOLIS OF CHICAGO




SS. kosmas & damianos Orthodox Church (goa)
703 W. Center Street, Rochester, MN (507) 282-1529 http://www.rochesterorthodoxchurch.org
office@rochesterorthodoxchurch.org Rev. Fr. Mark Muoz, Proistamenos
/APOLYTIKIA FOR TODAY

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Through your cross you destroyed death and opened paradise
to the thief. You transformed the sorrow of the
Myrrh-bearers, Christ our God. You commanded the apostles
to proclaim that you have risen from the dead, and granted
great mercy to the world.
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O God of our Fathers, ever dealing with us according to Thy
gentleness: take not Thy mercy from us, but by their
entreaties guide our life in peace.

/KONTAKION FOR TODAY

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Upon the mountain were You transfigured, and Your disciples beheld Your glory as far as
they were able, O Christ our God; so that when they would see You crucified they might
understand that Your Passion was deliberate, and declare to the world that in truth You are
the Father's radiance.


8
th
Sunday of matthew
Isaacius, Dalmatus, & Faustus, Ascetics of the Dalmation Monastery, Salome the Holy
Myrrhbearer, Theoctistus the Wonderworker
August 3
rd
, 2014

Todays scripture readings

Epistle reading
St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians 1:10-17

Prokeimenon. Grave Mode.
Psalm 28.11,1
The Lord will give strength to his people.
Verse: Bring to the Lord, O sons of God, bring to the Lord honor and glory.

BRETHREN, I appeal to you by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that
there be no dissensions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same
judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you,
my brethren. What I mean is that each one of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to
Apollos," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified
for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you
except Crispos and Gaius; lest anyone should say that you were baptized in my name. (I did
baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone
else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with eloquent
wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Gospel pericope
Gospel of Matthew 14:14-22

At that time, Jesus saw a great throng; and he had compassion on them, and healed
their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a lonely
place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy
food for themselves." Jesus said, "They need not go away; you give them something to
eat." They said to him, "We have only five loaves here and two fish." And he said,
"Bring them here to me." Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass; and
taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke
and gave the loaves to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took
up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about five
thousand men, besides women and children. Then he made the disciples get into the
boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.
Announcements
Liturgical/Program Schedule:
Today: Please join us in welcoming His Grace during the Fellowship Hour after Liturgy!
Mon. Aug. 4
th
: Paraklesis to the Holy Theotokos, 6pm
Tues. Aug. 5
th
: Great Vespers, Feast of the Transfiguration, 6pm
Wed. Aug. 6
th
: Feast of the Transfiguration, Orthros/Divine Liturgy 8:30am
Thurs. Aug. 7
th
: Paraklesis to the Holy Theotokos, 6pm
Fri. Aug. 8
th
: Paraklesis to the Holy Theotokos, 6pm

Todays Memorial Service: Timothy Woroncow, 22 yrs

Greek Festival Volunteers: Our Greek Festival is August 22
nd
23
rd
and 24
th
and we need all
parishioners involved in working towards a successful Festival. There will be an online sign up
this year as well as a board in the Narthex. Also new this year, out of our gratitude to the
parishioners from St George Greek Orthodox Church in St. Paul who came and worked our
festival last year; we will have two groups of Holy Anargyroi parishioners carpooling to help
St. George with their Greek Festival on August 16
th
and 17
th
. Please talk to Calli in regards to
volunteering at either our Greek Festival and/or St Georges. Thank you!

Greek Festival Volunteers: Please join us all in working together for the benefit of our parish
by being a volunteer for our Greek Festival: August 22, 23, and 24. Sign up your times by going
to this website: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0945A4AB29A6F49-holy

HOW TO RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNIONOnly Orthodox Christians (the Orthodox church does NOT
practice open communion) in good standing are encouraged to receive Holy Communion frequently,
provided they have prepared themselves spiritually, mentally and physically. They must be on time for the
Divine Liturgy, and be in a Christ-like, humble state of mind. They should be in a confession relationship
with their priest or spiritual father, have observed the fasts of the Church, and they should have self-
examined their conscience. On the day of receiving Holy Communion, it is not proper to eat or drink
anything before coming to church. When you approach to receive Holy Communion, state your Christian
(baptismal) name clearly, and hold the red communion cloth to your chin. After receiving, wipe your lips on
the cloth, step back carefully, hand the cloth to the next person and make the sign of the Cross as you step
away. Please do not be in a rush while communing! Please take special care not to bump the Holy
Chalice.

Todays liturgical commemorations
The Venerable Isaac (Isaacius), Dalmatus (Dalmatius), and Faust (Faustus):
Venerable Isaac is celebrated again separately on May 30. At first, St. Dalmatus was an officer during the
reign of Emperor Theodosius the Great whom the emperor held in great esteem. When the spirit
awakened in him, he despised all earthly things, resigned his rank and took his only son Faust and, with
him, went to the community of St. Isaac in the outskirts of Constantinople where they both were tonsured
as monks. Dalmatus was completely devoted to a god-pleasing life for which the elder Isaac rejoiced.
When Isaac approached the hour of death, he appointed Dalmatus as abbot in his place. Later, this
community was named after him - the so-called Dalmatus. Dalmatus devoted himself to fasting, at times
for forty days. By fasting he conquered the invisible demonic power. He participated in the Third
Ecumenical Council (Ephesus 431 A.D.) and fought against the Nestorian heresy. Pleasing God, he died
peacefully in the fifth century. His son Faust supported his father in everything and, after a God-pleasing
life, died peacefully in this Dalmatus community.
Venerable Anthony, the Roman
Anthony was born in Rome in 1086 A.D. of devout and wealthy parents. At that
time, the Roman Church separated from the Eastern Church and all who
remained faithful to the Eastern Church were persecuted by the Roman clergy.
Among the persecuted was Anthony. He distributed all of his inherited wealth
and was tonsured a monk. Anthony lived a life of mortification by standing on a
rock in the sea for fourteen months. Meanwhile, the rock separated from its base
and by miraculous providence sailed the waters to Novgorod. In Novgorod,
Archbishop Nicetas received him kindly and helped him build a church to the
Holy Birth-giver of God, later to become a monastery. Anthony lived a long
time as the abbot of this monastery and manifested the great power of grace
through many miracles. He died peacefully in the year 1146 A.D. and took up
habitation in the mansions of the Lord.
Saint Salome, the Myrrh-Bearer
Salome was the mother of the Apostles James and John, the wife of Zebedee and the daughter of Joseph,
the betrothed of the All-Holy Birth-giver of God. She served the Lord during His earthly life and was
deemed worthy to be among the first to proclaim His resurrection.

Pearls from the desert
Someone asked Abba Anthony, 'What must one do in order to please God?' The old man replied,
'Pay attention to what I tell you: whoever you may be, always have God before your eyes;
whatever you do, do it according to the testimony of the holy Scriptures; in whatever place you
live, do not easily leave it. Keep these three precepts and you will be saved.'

A brother said to Abba Anthony, 'Pray for me.' The old man said to him, 'I will have no mercy
upon you, nor will God have any, if you yourself do not make an effort and if you do not pray to
God.'
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SAVE THE DATE: SUNDAY, SEPT. 7
TH
!

A parish-wide BBQ is planned for after
Liturgy on Sunday, Sept. 7
th
@ Slatterly
Park (10
th
ST & 11
th
Ave SE). Come enjoy
Johnnys Chicken, Fr. Marks BBQ Ribs,
Hamburgers, Hotdogs! Please bring a side
dish or dessert to share; beverages will be provided! Lets
celebrate Back-to-School and the end of summer together!
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Sunday School Registration

The purpose of the registration is to ascertain the number of children
in each class to ensure that the proper materials are ordered.
Presbytera Michelle is in charge of the registration and would like
everyone to know that if you have children between the ages of 3-18 she will be
contacting you. If you have any questions regarding registration please email
Presbytera at gabrielnina@hotmail.com First day of Sunday School is scheduled for
Sunday, Sept. 14
th
.
STEWARDSHIP CORNER

This is just how Jesus Christ speaks of suffering in His famous
Parable of the Vine in John 15. I am the vine, and my Father is the
gardener. He cuts off every branch that bears no fruit, while every
branch that does bear fruit He prunes, so that it will be more
fruitful. Maybe this passage resonates with you as you work on
your garden: trimming down raspberry canes and pinching back
tomato plants. If plants have feelings, then pruning must hurt! But
pruning makes the plant put its energy into bearing fruit. In the
end, it is the pruned plant which accomplishes the gardeners plans.

We as Orthodox Christians are branches on the grapevine that is
Jesus Christ. Which branches have it the easiest? The ones that bear lots of grapes? Or the ones that just do their
own thing, soaking up sun and rain, but yielding only leaves? Jesus tells us that pruningthe painful, repeated,
unwelcome pruninghappens to the good branches, to the best branches. These get the knife so that they bring
forth all the more fruit for the joy of the vineyards Master. The lazy, unfruitful branches? They get lopped off, cast
into brush pile, and burned. Why do bad things happen to nice Christian people? Sometimes it is so that through a
reassessment of their values, their purpose their very selves they can become even more fruitful for God.
Werent they fruitful already? Yes, but the Heavenly Horticulturist sees in them the potential for even greater
fruitfulness. So it was for the prophet Job in ancient times, and so may it be for us today.

What kind of fruit is God looking for in the well-pruned soul? Saint Paul tells us (Galatians 5:22-23): love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control. Its a paradox, really. It is in undergoing evil, hateful
things that some people grow to be more loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, forgiving, and so on. Others, of course,
respond to suffering by growing more bitter, spiteful, and mean. What makes the difference? Jesus Christ His
life, His teachings, His Church. Grafted into Him, we learn to respond constructively to suffering. And so one more
fruit of a well-pruned soul is gratitude towards God, leading to thoughtful, proportionate, meaningful gifts to the
Churchgifts that reflect our transformed sense of values. We call this stewardship, and in a world of givers and
takers, it is the ones who suffer most who tend to be the most grateful and generous givers.
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THE BLESSING OF BREAD ARTOKLASIA

The Blessing of Five Loaves of Bread is a brief service of thanksgiving through which we
express our gratitude for all the blessings of life. Oil, wine, wheat, and the loaves of bread which
are used in the service, are viewed as the most basic elements necessary for life. The Blessing
reminds us of the miracle of the multiplication of the bread and fish by which Christ fed the
multitude. This Blessing is usually offered during Vespers or after the Divine Liturgy on Feast
days and other special occasions. After the Service, the bread is cut and distributed to the
congregation.


About How our Salvation is in
the Hands of God
-St. Nikolai Velimirovitch
The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but salvation is in
the Lord (Proverbs 21:31 ).
We are obligated to prepare ourselves but our success depends on
God. All of our preparation is only a proposal to God but the proposal
does not decide, but God decides. That is why people wisely say
according to their experience: man proposes and God disposes. O
Soldier of Christ, prepare your mind as a good horse, arm your heart
with virtues, temper your will with mortifications, but know that
salvation is in the Lord.
O Merchant of Christ, practice good trade every day, exchanging the material for the spiritual, the earthly
for the heavenly and mortality for immortality, but know that salvation is in the Lord.
O Plowman of Christ, plow and re-plow your soul, sow the good evangelical seed on it every day, weed
out the field of your soul from weeds, watch over it, but know that salvation is in the Lord. A horse did
not help the pharaoh in the Red Sea. Neither did the riches of Babylon help in the day of reckoning with
God. A person can prepare all but, nevertheless, in that decisive moment can lose everything. For
salvation is not in preparation, but in the Lord.
That is why the saints, even though most prepared for the Kingdom of God and, in their hour of death,
sighed not knowing whether they will be received into the Kingdom. O how well they remember the
words of the Lord:
When you have done everything that was commanded you, say: We are unprofitable servants! (St.
Luke 17:10 ).
Brethren, let us be prepared for the day of temptation, well girded and armed but let us not hope in our
own preparation, but in the Lord.
O Lord our Savior, help us and save us.