editor@elmanara.org.auPublished by the Diocese of Sydney & its Affi liated Regions

AN INITIATIVE OF THE MEDIA COMMITTEE - DIOCESE OF SYDNEY & AFFILIATED REGIONS

COPTS’ NEWS“I have been crucifi ed with Christ. It is no longer I who lives but Christ lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20).

Find this issue online at www.elmanara.org.auNEXT ISSUE:

10th August 2014

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E 6th Abib 173013th July 2014Volume 1, Issue 173Volume 2, Issue 85

His Grace Bishop Angaelos visit to Exodus Youth Worx.

Read on page 8

Relics of St. Habib Girgis arrives in Australia

Father shenouda Mansour as the neW General seCretary oF

nsW eCuMenICal CounCIl

L-MANARA

Read on page 6

Read on page 5

13th July 2014

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“He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”H.H. Pope Tawadros II

From the good remarking in theholy bible that there are some shortsentences which are repeated alot. One of the famous sentencesrepeated in the holy bible; “He whohas ears to hear, let him hear!”This sentence is repeated a lot in thefi nal book of the holy bible, which isthe book of Revelation and the churchchooses an important night betweenthe cross and the resurrection,Apocalypse night, when we read thebook of revelation with the hymns. Itcontains this sentence and we say itwith its melody.But one of the most astonishingthings in the holy bible is thissentence is repeated in the month ofHatour, in our Sunday prayers. “Hewho has ears to hear, let him hear!”The month of Hatour is characterizedwith the beginning of the Nativityfast in it’s second half. So betweenthe nativity fasting, which starts inthe 16th of Hatour, and the end ofthe Great Lent, the church startsand ends with that sentence andthis is an astonishing matter. Themore astounding matter is that thissentence is repeated in the fi rst,second and third Sunday from themonth of Hatour; and the forthSunday the church chooses the

storyof the sad rich man. The church putit before us in the 4th Sunday as ifthe church tells us that here is a manwho had ears but he went sad afterthen as he didn’t listen.The church puts before us this imageand sentence, as it’s an importantone in our lives. Ears are one of theprincipal organs in the human bodyand it’s one of the fi ve senses, andsometimes when we arrange thesenses, we say; eyes, ears… butsome of the auditors prefer to startwith ears, and when we ask themabout the reason, they come witha meaningful answer. The ears isdistinct from the eyes regarding twoimportant aspects; the eye doesn’twork except in the presence of light,there needs to be a degree of lightto see, but it doesn’t matter withthe ears, we hear in both light anddarkness; second point is that theeyes see straight forward and itcan’t see what is behind it, thusthey work in one direction, but theears hear in all directions.That’s why they say that man inmorning is an optical being; hedepends on his eyes, but in bothday and night, he is an acousticbeing, he listens. In night whileyou are sleeping, your ears mostlywork. Someone wakes up due toany sound, and other one doesn’teasily wake up.What is this precious sentencethat is put by the church at thestart of the nativity fasting, at theend of the great lent too and read

in the book of Revelation that isalso repeated 10 times in the NewTestament?What we hear is not as important asto whom we hear, as we hear a lot.To whom you hear is a principalpoint, it’s also important how welisten. A person can appear notto hear, and it’s not the truth. Forexample some teens like to listento what they only like, i.e. “selectivehearing”, for example the father mayspeak regarding a topic and the childselects one word from it, and saysto him; “you said.” As the Egyptianproverb goes, “some people listenwith only one ear”. That’s why theseears can control your destiny as ahuman being.First point I want you to know thatwe don’t mean here the substantiallistening, I mean the ear organ isgood, but we also mean here thespiritual listening, listening from theheart or the inner listening.It’s clear to you that listening isincluded to all man’s phases onearth, starting from Adam & Eve asthey didn’t listen to God’s voice. BothAdam & Eve heard God’s voice andthey had union with Him, but theydidn’t listen to Him with their hearts,and then came the violation and thedisobedience, and humanity enteredin sin, and so the rest of the story.Be attentive to 3 points: fi rst do notdeceive yourself into believing thatyou are a spiritual man. Many in theirspiritualties rely merely on ears,

whichis not enough. The ear may hear, butwhat does it lead to, what is the nextstep? What can the rich man dofrom what he heard? Nothing. Thatis why St. James the apostle saidin his epistle in chapter 1: “So then,my beloved brethren, let every manbe swift to hear, slow to speak, slowto wrath.” And he continues saying;“But be doers of the word, and nothearers only, deceiving yourselves.”Sometimes the church organizesbenefi cial spiritual days, and peoplecome to attend, but these spiritualdays is meant to establish a truechange in people’s hearts, yet someattend without any change at all. Sobe doers of the word and not hearersonly, deceiving yourselves. It meansthat someone may listen and deceivehimself in same time, which is a veryserious matter, that’s why do notdeceive yourself of being a spiritualperson, live the true faith and thecommandments. And your presencewith the commandments and yourlistening to them is life.Our Christianity stands on that,“Behold, I stand at the door andknock. If anyone hears My voice andopens the door, I will come in to himand dine with him.” It’s listening.In the month of Hatour the churchalso talks to us about the proverbof the sower in the fi rst and secondSunday. Such repetition does notreoccur again during the entire

Copts’ News6th Abib 1730

Published by the Diocese of Sydney & its Affi liated Regions 3

Feast of St Bishoy – The beloved of our Good Saviour

In few days we will celebrate the feast of the wonderful saint Abba Bishoy – who was given the title “The beloved of our Good Saviour”.

He was called “The beloved” because his life was a living example of the Bible, and there are many lessons that we can learn from his life, and apply them in our own life.

So we shall mention 5 virtues of the great St Bishoy…

1. The 1st virtue we can learn from the life of St Bishoy is how God can make us strong when we are weak…

· The angel chose St Bishoy, even though he was the smallest and the weakest of all his brothers.

· This is so God can give us the good lesson, that He can make even the weakest person, be the strongest person.

· God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty (1 Corinthians 1:27) and “For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10).

2. The 2nd virtue we learn from the life of St Bishoy is the virtue of PRAYER & FASTING… All his life, he was strong in the life of prayer and fasting, and many times, he would tie his hair to a rope to stop him from sleeping during prayer.

· prayer and fasting are 2 important virtues in the life of every christian. They are like the 2 wings of a bird.

· The Lord taught us in His holy Bible the many benefi ts of praying and fasting: it was used for service, it was used for casting out devils, and it was used as a means of acceptable repentance.

· Praying and fasting is not just something that the Church encourages you to do, but it is a biblical commandment.

· Everything we do in the Church – all of our traditions and rites, are based on biblical commandments!· When St Bishoy began his early life with praying and fasting, he was establishing his spiritual life on a strong foundation, not on the sand – just like the Lord tells us in Matthew 7:24-26…· "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock... But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand” (Matthew 7:24-26)

3. The 3rd virtue we can learn from the life of St Shenouda is OBEDIENCE…· When St Bishoy became a monk in the desert of Wadi Natroun, he was under the spiritual guidance of Abba John the Short.

· He was very obedient to Abba John, and followed all his instructions, until the time when Abba John recommended that he live by himself in a cave.

· St Bishoy is teaching us here the importance of obeying the spiritual elders of the church, as well as our traditions.

· He is also teaching us how we must walk in the footsteps of the saints, and honour their work and their lives.

· He is also teaching us the blessing we will receive, by respecting the heirarchy of the Church.

· St Bishoy is following the biblical commandment which says: “We urge you brethren to recognise those who labour among you and are over you

in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake” (1 Thessalonians 5:12).

4. The 4th virtue we can learn from the life of St Bishoy is the importance of having a spiritual father…· St Bishoy lived his life under the guidance of the great saint Abba John the Short, who gave him instruction in his spiritual life.

· No doubt, having a spiritual father had a great eff ect on the life of St Bishoy, and lead him to be very successful in his spiritual life.

5. The 5th virtue we can learn from the life of St Bishoy is

LOVE & HUMILITY…· St Bishoy was always full of love and humility, and that’s why the Lord visited him many times.· The Bible teaches us that “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6). And also: “Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God” (Matthew 5:8).

Glory be to God.

The Administration Committee of the SYDNEY Diocese extends sincere congratulation to His Grace Bishop Daniel for the wonderful achievement obtaining the MASTER DEGREE, awarded to His Grace by the Coptic Studies Institute in June

2014. Meanwhile we wish His Grace further continuation of His solid progress towards the PhD, which is currently underway.The Diocese of Sydney and Affi liated Regions; The Secretary & Members of the Admin Committee..

hIs GraCe BIshop danIel CoMplete Master deGree

13th July 2014

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d I o C e s e n e W s

With God’s grace, tertiary students across Australia gathered for the fi rst ever FOCUS Spiritual Retreat (FOCUS is the Fellowship Of Coptic University Students). The retreat was themed; “KINDLE THE FLAME”

where HG Bishop Daniel, Father Joshua and Father Matthew gave talks about kindling the fl ame with God, with each other and kindling the fl ame in the world. The spiritual retreat was moulded to the lives of tertiary students

who face the challenges of time management, social impurities and other barriers that slowly quench the fl ame of Christ within them. These obstacles were discussed and practical means were established within

the workshop groups. We thank God for a nourishing two days, in which we bonded with others and learnt how to show Christ constantly through our words, actions and thoughts.

FoCus spIrItual retreat

hIs GraCe BIshop danIel 12th annIVersar

¬Congratulations to His Grace Bishop DanielOn The 12th Anniversary for his Ordination As Bishop of the Diocese of SydneyAnd Its Affi liated Regions

The Lord has sworn and will not repent, you aPriest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

The Lord is at your right hand ourBeloved Bishop Daniel Your Children in Christ, the Clergy, the Spiritual Committee, The Administration Committee, The Finance Department and all the Congregation of the Diocese of Sydney would like to extend to Your Grace their sincere Congratulations and warm

wishes on Your Grace’ 12th Anniversary for the Ordination as Bishop of Sydney Diocese and its Affi liated Regions. Congratulations Your Grace, we are so proud of you, we know how hard you work for our diocese and the Coptic Orthodox Church. May God bless you and preserve your for all our sake.

We ask Our Lord Jesus Christ through the intercession of, the blessed Virgin St. Mary, His Saints and the prayers of our beloved Father of Fathers H.H. Pope Tawadros II, to keep you safe, to continue to give you the grace and wisdom, and to guard and guide His Church for many years to come.

Copts’ News6th Abib 1730

Published by the Diocese of Sydney & its Affi liated Regions 5

General seCretary oF nsW eCuMenICal CounCIl

On the eve of Pentecost Sunday the members of the Ecumenical Council gathered at St Pauls Anglican Church, Burwood, to share in a celebration of the week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

In presenting V. Rev. Father Shenouda to the congregation, the Vice President of the Council, Ms Wies Schuiringa of the Society of Friends, declared that:

We believe that God in Christ acts and speaks through the church as it responds to the guidance of His Spirit, and to the truth made known in scripture. In response to that guidance, the member churches of the NSW Ecumenical Council have called you to this offi ce of General Secretary and we, as the representatives of those churches, commission you to be for us:Our encourager, to bear witness to the unity of the church as

both gift and calling, our leader, in promoting the ecumenical enterprise through the churches in NSW and the ACT, our guide, in joyfully fulfi lling the objectives of the NSW Ecumenical Council, our inspiration when we are discouraged, our memory when we forget who we are, our conscience when we forsake justice. Then the Revd Bruce McAteer of the Anglican Church, the other Vice President, commissioned Fr Shenouda with these words:

O God the most holy and blessed trinity, in your name we now Commission your servant Shenouda as General Secretary of the NSW Ecumenical Council. Empower him by your Spirit, to fulfi l his role with imagination, faithfulness, courage and love. May his leadership unite and inspire us and give us encouragement to seek your unity in the world.Be his refreshment in times of

dryness, his light in times of darkness, his comfort in times of loneliness. Give us grace, that we, who have called him to this task, might be faithful in our discipleship; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Members of a large congregation, including many from the Coptic Church and V. Rev. Fr. Tadros Simon, Rev. Fr. Youssef Fanous, and Rev. Fr. George Nakhla, shared in a celebratory supper after the Commissioning in St Paul’s Church. His Grace Bishop Daniel extends his sincere Congratulates to V Rev. Fr. Shenouda Mansour on obtaining this great honourable role. Our beloved fathers and the Coptic community of the Diocese of Sydney are so proud of this great honour for V Rev Fr. Shenouda and sending their heartfelt wishes, knowing that V Rev Fr. Shenouda is capable of carrying out this responsibility with great carriage.

May Our Lord support and guide him in his new responsibility.

 

13th July 2014

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The holy relics of Archdeacon St. Habib Girgis of the Coptic Orthodox Church has arrived in Australia. The Primate of the Melbourne Diocese of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Bishop Anba Suriel received the relics at the port. Special vespers will be held at St. Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Parish in Donvale,

with the procession of the relics.

The relics will be anointed with spices and a commemorative medallion and will be put for public display. Bishop Anba Suriel has stated that, the arrival of the relics of the archdeacon Habib will be remembered as a historic event in the history

of the the Coptic Melbourne Diocese of Australia.

St. Habib Girgis was a modern day deacon of the Coptic Orthodox Church who was made outstanding contributions in preserving the Orthodox faith. He is considered to be one of the great human pillar who made

remarkable changes in the history of the modern day Coptic Church. St Habib was a great companion of Pope Cyril VI of Alexandria. He was canonized on 20th June 2013, as a saint by Coptic Orthodox Church.

relICs oF st. haBIB GIrGIs arrIVes In australIa

Copts’ News6th Abib 1730

Published by the Diocese of Sydney & its Affi liated Regions 7

On Wednesday 11th of June 2014, Mr. John Marcus, Secretary of the Diocese Public Aff airs Council, attended an Arabic Friends of Labor Dinner on behalf of the Diocese. He met with Federal Leader of the Opposition The Hon Mr. Bill Shorten MP and passed on His Grace Bishop Daniel's best wishes to him. He also met with a number of other federal

and state politicians from the Australian Labor Party. The Hon Mr. Bill Shorten expressed a great interest in the Coptic Community and was concerned with the diffi cult situation for Copts in Egypt. He was happy with the idea of visiting the Coptic Community in Sydney soon.

Photo of Mr. John Marcus Secretary of the Diocese Public Aff airs Council with the Hon Mr. Bill Shorten MP along with Federal MPs The Hon Mr. Jason Clare and The Hon Mr. Tony Burke.

LABOR DINNER

13th July 2014

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On Thursday 3rd of July 2014 HG Bishop Daniel, Bishop of the Diocese of Sydney and its Affi liated Regions, giving the

fi rst lecture on Coptic Church Studies, at St. Anthony & St. Paul Center in the presence of V. Rev. Fr. Tadros Simon.

FIrst leCture on CoptIC ChurCh studIes

hG BIshop danIel’s VIsIt to Qldsaturday 14th oF June – saturday 21st oF June 2014

On the blessed week starting Saturday 14th of June to Saturday 21st of June 2014, HG Bishop Daniel Bishop of the Diocese of Sydney & Affi liated Region visited our Coptic Community in QLD, which consists of 6 Churches and a Monastery. On the evening of Saturday 14th of June HG Bishop Daniel prayed the Vespers, at St Mina & St Anthony Church in Gold

Coast, followed by a meeting with the congregations and various committees regarding the progress of the service at the church then all attended the midnight praises. On Sunday 15th of June HG held out the Holy liturgy, together with the very Rev Fr Moussa El Antony followed by a meeting with the congregation of the church to inform them about

the decisions of Holy Synod Committee meetings that were held in Cairo and lead by His Holiness Pope Tawadros II on 5th of June 2014. HG also attended Sunday School Service with the children, youth and servants. On Monday 16th of June, His Grace visited St. Mary & St. Anthony’s Monastery and held a Holy liturgy there together with Rev. Fr. Moussa El Antony.

The Church has progressed beautifully and crowned with some incredible icons. It was pointed out that the congregations of QLD love their Monastery so much and they wanted to see it progressed as they cannot travel to Sydney or Melbourne to visit the Monasteries and get blessing there.

It was agreed that HG Bishop Daniel would travel to the state of QLD every 4th Saturday of every month, to hold a Holy Liturgy at the church Monastery to keep in touch with the youth and congregations and their needs and to encourage the youth to progress in their spiritual and monastic life. HG found that it’s very important to groom and teach the youth so they would be able to serve the state and

their own congregations. HG Bishop Daniel blessed with his visit to the state of QLD: - St. Mary & St. Anthony’s Monastery - St. Mina & St. Anthony Church - Gold Coast - St. Mary & St. Joseph Church – Cooper Plains - Virgin Mary Church – Calamvale - St. Mark & St. George Church - Strathpine

He held Vespers services, Holy Liturgy, Midnight Praises, attended Sunday school with Children, and held various meetings with the congregations and various committees of the Churches including Deacons Committee among others. He also made time to take a holy communion to home and hospital visitation to the sick with the presence of V. Rev. Fr. Moussa El Antony, Rev. Fr.

Metaos Wahba and Fr. David Mahrous. HG Bishop Daniel paid a great deal of spiritual interest to the youth of the State of QLD during his visit. He lead the youth meeting and got them all involve into the spiritual topic of the night. HG also attended Sunday school with the Eritrean Children in the church.

on sunday 29th oF June 2014 hG BIshop danIel attended the youth MeetInG at st. BarBara ChurCh at CaMpBelltoWn.

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It is not always so often that we, in our comfortable western way of living, reflect upon the kind of life that the Apostles lived. We really don’t have the consciousness of what life was like for the Apostles. It is true that both the Apostles Peter and Paul sometimes lived in decent quarters, especially in their earlier years. But when it came to the time of the preaching of the Gospel, their witnessing for Christ, they were always living in other peoples’ houses as they travelled from place to place. That was especially the case with the Apostle Paul. He travelled almost everywhere in the Roman Empire for the sake of speaking about his love for the Lord Jesus Christ, trying to introduce people to Jesus Christ, trying to win them for the Kingdom of God. Both the Apostles, Peter and Paul, suffered misunderstanding and rejection, very often rejection, because people did not want to hear about this love of Jesus Christ. Often enough it was because Jesus Christ did not fit their expectations of the Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One. And so, they rejected Him. With this rejection, they rejected the Apostles as well. Both of the Apostles suffered a great deal because, as we hear Paul admit, he was shipwrecked many times. This means he was floating around in water, holding on to pieces of wood.

Ships in those days were not like the ships these days, with fancy lifeboats. Just broken up pieces of wood was what kept the Apostle Paul from sinking into the Mediterranean. Many times the Apostle Paul was put in prison for the sake of his love of Jesus Christ. And as we hear time and again in the readings of the Epistles, he was beaten, sometimes very severely. Prison life in the Roman Empire days was not like it is now. There were no such things as carpets, beds and televisions. In the days of the Roman Empire there was straw, mess everywhere and often enough, chains holding the prisoner to the wall. And in

the course of all of this, beatings and beatings and more beatings.

These are the kinds of things that the Apostle Paul suffered for the sake of his love for Jesus Christ. You and I are not likely in Canada to face that kind of suffering, physical suffering for the sake of Jesus Christ, although once in a while it does happen. But we very much will experience with the Apostle Paul, rejection by people who are afraid of the love of Jesus Christ.

We can be rejected because we are Orthodox Christians, because we carry the love of Jesus Christ in us and with us everywhere. Because we live and act out of love of Jesus Christ, people who do not understand it can reject us because of their fear of this love. It’s funny that people are afraid of love, but that is the case. People become very much afraid of this kind of selfless, serving love which is so characteristic of Christians, especially Orthodox Christians. It is that which people run away from.

That does not stop you or me from loving the Lord Jesus Christ and it does not stop you or me from serving other people in the way of Jesus Christ. But we have to understand that the Lord said in more than one way and more than one time in the Gospel that if the world is rejecting Him Himself, it will reject you and me. So we have to expect this kind of rejection and carry on loving and praying for and serving people anyway.

What happens is that in due course the Lord overcomes the fear of other people and the rejections of other people. When we persist and persevere in loving and serving them, the Lord breaks down the barriers of fear that imprison other people and in due course they are able to come with us to love and

serve the Saviour. But it takes our remembering first of all that none of us is here on this earth to be served. Every one of us is here on this earth to serve.

Jesus Christ washed the feet of the Apostles. The King of the Universe, Himself, is taking care of you and me down to the numbering of the hairs of our heads. If He is serving you and me in this way, who are we not to serve in the same way always? We are not greater than our Master. That is why it is very characteristic especially of Orthodox Christians that we are hospitable people. We welcome people as guests. We treat people who come to our home as Christ Himself. We are serving people: if they have needs, it is characteristic to look after them.

Russian and Ukrainian literature is full of stories about people who are doing exactly this thing, serving other people, caring for our people. We are being true to the path of our Saviour Jesus Christ when we are behaving like this.

The Apostles Peter and Paul also are setting another very good example for us: they gave their lives completely to the Saviour. And so we should do the same. But also note, the Apostles Peter and Paul had some strong differences of opinion as to how to go about preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We can see in the writings of the Apostle Paul how strongly he disagreed with the Apostle Peter on some occasions.

The fact of this disagreement does not mean that they were enemies because they disagreed. They had different opinions. The Lord prospered the multiplication and spread of the Gospel just because of these different opinions. These two very different men preached the Gospel in two different ways to different groups of people.

They were suited to different evangelical tasks, and as a result of this, many more people were converted to the love of Jesus Christ than if they had gone about doing their preaching and serving in exactly the same way.

They had disagreements, yes. The Apostle Paul had disagreements about how to go about things with the Apostle Barnabas and Mark, too. Still, that did not mean division. Even if there was disagreement, there was always among the Apostles, reconciliation and harmony.

Differences, yes, but co-operative differences. To illustrate this, we have the death of the two Apostles Peter and Paul expressing their unity and their harmony in Jesus Christ…in the same city, the Apostle Peter was crucified upside down as he wished, and the Apostle Paul was beheaded. This characterises in a very visible way how the Lord Who is the giver of life gives so many gifts to His children, you and me; how He creates all of us uniquely and differently; and how He uses all these uniqueness, these differences, this variety of gifts to give life to this world, to heal the broken-hearted, to heal the sick, to re-unite the separated, to bring home the lost, to give life and light where there is darkness. The Lord uses all of these gifts in us for good, to His glory and for giving life.

Let us ask the holy Apostles Peter and Paul to pray for us today that the Lord will give us strength to be faithful to Him until the end as they are, and to serve Him with all of our hearts that we may glorify our Saviour, enter with these Apostles into the Kingdom, and glorify with them this same Saviour Jesus Christ together with the Father, Who is everlasting, and His all-holy good and life-giving Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.

Feast oF the holy apostles, ss. peter and paul

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the holy apostles peter and paulThe divinely-blessed Peter was from Bethsaida of Galilee. He was the son of Jonas andthe brother of Andrew the First-called. He was a fi sherman by trade, unlearned and poor, and was called Simon; later he was renamed Peter by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Who looked at him and said, "Thou art Simon the son of Jonas; thou shalt be called Cephas (which is by interpretation, Peter)" (John 1:42).On being raised by the Lord to the dignity of an Apostle and becoming inseparable from Him as His zealous disciple, he followed Him from the beginning of His preaching of salvation up until the very Passion, when, in the court of Caiaphas the high priest, he denied Him thrice because of his fear of the Jews and of the danger at hand. But again, after many bitter tears, he received complete forgiveness of his transgression.After the Resurrection of Christ and the descent of the Holy Spirit, he preached in Judea, Antioch, and certain parts of Asia, and fi nally came to Rome, where he was crucifi ed upside down by Nero, andthus he ascended to the eternal habitations about the year 66 or 68, leaving two Catholic (General) Epistles to the Church of Christ.Paul, the chosen vessel of Christ, the glory of the Church, the Apostle of the Nations and teacher of the whole world, was a Jew by race, of the tribe of Benjamin, having Tarsus as his homeland. He was a Roman citizen, fl uent in the Greek language, an expert

in knowledge of the Law, a Pharisee, born of a Pharisee, and a disciple of Gamaliel, a Pharisee and notable teacher of the Law in Jerusalem. For this cause, from the beginning, Paul was a most fervent zealot for the traditions of the Jews and a great persecutor of the Church of Christ; at that time, his name was Saul (Acts 22:3-4).In his great passion of rage and fury against the disciples of the Lord, he went to Damascus bearing letters of introduction from the high priest. His intention was to bring the disciples of Christ back to Jerusalem in bonds. As he was approaching Damascus, about midday there suddenly shone upon him a light from Heaven. Falling on the earth, he heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?" And he asked, "Who art Thou, Lord?" And the Lord said, "I am Jesus Whom thou persecutest; it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." And that heavenly voice and brilliance made him tremble, and he was blinded for a time. He was led by the handinto the city, and on account of a divine revelation to the Apostle Ananias (see Oct. 1), he was baptized by him, and both his bodily and spiritual eyes were opened to the knowledge of the Sun of Righteousness.And straightway- O wondrous transformation! - beyond all expectation, he spoke with boldness in the synagogues, proclaiming that "Christ is the Son of God" (Acts 9:1-21). As for his zeal in preaching the Gospel after these things had come

to pass, as for his unabating labors and affl ictions of diverse kinds, the wounds, the prisons, the bonds, the beatings, the stonings, the shipwrecks, the journeys, the perils on land, on sea, in cities, in wildernesses, the continual vigils, the daily fasting, the hunger, the thirst, the nakedness, and all those other things that he endured for the Name of Christ, and which he underwent before nations and kings and the Israelites, and above all, his care for all the churches, his fi ery longing for the salvation of all, whereby he became all things to all men, that he might save them all if possible, and because of which, with his heart afl ame, he continuously traveled throughout all parts, visiting them all, and like a bird of heaven fl ying from Asia andEurope, the West and East, neither staying nor abiding in any one place - all these things are related incident by incident in the Book of the Acts, and as he himself tells them in his Epistles.His Epistles, being fourteen in number, are explained in 250 homilies by Saint John Chrysostom and make manifest the loftiness of his thoughts, the abundance of the revelations made to him, the wisdom given to him from God, wherewith he brings together in a wondrous manner the Old with the New Testaments, and expounds the mysteries thereof which had been concealed under types; he confi rms the doctrines of the Faith, expounds the ethical teaching of the Gospel, and demonstrates with exactness the duties incumbent

upon every rank, age, and order of man. In all these things his teaching proved to be a spiritual trumpet, and his speech was seen to be more radiant than the sun, and by these means he clearly sounded forth the word of truth and illumined the ends of the world. Having completed the work of his ministry, he likewise ended his life in martyrdom when he was beheaded in Rome during the reign of Nero, at the same time, some say, when Peter was crucifi ed.THE ICON OF THE HOLY APOSTLES PETER AND PAULThe Orthodox Church has a beautiful presentation of the importance and prominence of the Apostles Peter and Paul with the icon that shows both Apostles standing together holding an image of the Church.

Both Apostles, being chosen by our Lord, were instrumental in the establishment and growth of the early Church through their boldness, spiritual strength, and wisdom. Thus they are recognized as "pillars" of the Church, having off ered all even unto death for the sake of the Gospel of Christ.In the icon, the Apostle Paul, the great missionary of the early Church, is holding a Gospel book, while the Apostle Peter off ers a blessing with his right hand. At the top of the icon is the is a semicircle, representing the divine realm. Rays extend in the semicircle representing the blessings and presence of God upon His two chosen heralds of the True Faith.

the eaGle and the CoCK _ sIlouan the athonIteAn eagle was fl ying high in the heavens, delighting in the beauty of the world; and he thought, ' I fl y across wide expanses, and see valleys and mountains, seas and rivers, meadows and forests. I behold a multitude of wild beasts and birds. I look down upon cities and hamlets, and see how men live. But the country cock knows of nothing save his barnyard, where he sets eyes on only a handful of people and a few cattle. I will fl y down and tell him of the life of the world.' The eagle fl ew down on

to a cottage roof, and watched the cock strutting about among his hens, and thought to himself: 'So he is content with his lot, then. But all the same, I will tell him of the things I know,'And the eagle began telling the cock of the beauty and riches of the world. At fi rst, the cock listened attentively but he did not understand anything, so the eagle was vexed and it became an eff ort to talk to the cock; while the cock, not understanding what the eagle was saying, began to weary, and found it

hard to listen to the eagle. But each of them remained content with his lot. Thus is it when an educated man talks to one who is not educated; and even more so when a spiritual man discourses with the man who is not spiritually inclined. The spiritual man is like the eagle, the other resembles the cock. The spiritual man meditates day and night on the law of the Lord, and in prayer rises towards God, whereas the mind of the indiff erent man is tied to the earth, or engaged in idle thoughts. The soul of

the spiritual man delights in peace, whereas the other's soul remains empty and distracted. Like the eagle, the spiritual man soars in the heights, and with his soul feels God, and beholds the whole world, though he be praying in the darkness of the night; whereas the soul of the man who is not spiritual delights in vainglory or in riches, or seeks the pleasures of the fl esh. And when the spiritual man meets with his opposite, their discourse is tedious and burdensome for both of them.

Copts’ News6th Abib 1730

Published by the Diocese of Sydney & its Affi liated Regions 11

On Tuesday the 8th of July His Grace Bishop Daniel & His Grace Bishop Angaelos visited the offi ce and drop in centre of Exodus Youth Worx in Ramsgate.His Grace Bishop Angaelos emphasized the importance of seeing Christ in everyone you encounter as well as our role of being the salt and light of the world. Our Lord served people from many diff erent backgrounds and did not have a stereotype of whom we should deal with. The one things we should always look for is the image of God within every person we meet.

A discussion followed on the many issues that young people are facing and the services that are now needed to support young people. His Grace highlighted that Exodus does pioneering work in the area of youth services and encouraged the servants not to loose heart nor judge success by results, but to plant a seed and allow God to do the rest. He also said that we may never see the fruit of our labour but encouraged the service of Exodus to continue and to persevere in working at the coal face of youth work. He also reminded us the importance

of organising a regular retreat as a group to rejuvenate spiritually and even off ered to run a workshop (via Skype).At the end of the discussion and talk the youth summed up the following points from His Grace's talk.1. See things from the outside in, not always form the inside out.2. Don’t judge success by results.3. You are the light of the world.4. We have already received the Gift.5. Look for the light of Christ in others.6. To give more and more.

His Grace looked around the room and said, “I can see light in all of you” and “you can be a challenge and be demanding but that’s what God loves, - a challenge”Debbie ArmaniousDirectorExodus Youth Worx

www.exodusyouthworx.org.au

P.O. Box 3509 Ramsgate 2217Offi ce: 9529 3929mobile 0402 304 762

InauGural VIsIt to eXodus youth WorX By hIs GraCe BIshop danIel & hIs GraCe BIshop anGaelos.

St Mary & Sts Cosman & Demian Coptic Orthodox Church – CASTLE HILL Church Land Project “Many, O Lord my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered.” Psalm 40:5

With the Grace of God & Through the Intercession of the Mother of God St Mary & Our Patron Saints St's Cosman & Demian and the prayers and Blessings of HH Pope Tawadros II and HG Bishop Daniel, St Mary & Sts Cosman & Demian Church has acquired its new parcel of Land to establish a permanent church on.

The property at 15 Arnold Ave, Kellyville NSW 2155, now officially belongs to the Church for us to establish our church on.

We Thank God for everything, and we thank everyone for their prayers and support.

To start the building of the church we are in need of your financial support “Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord.” Haggai 1:8 “… I am with you, says the Lord…”Haggai 1:8 “… be strong, all you people of the land,’ says the Lord, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ says the Lord of hosts.” Haggai 2:4 May the Lord reward you with heavenly rewards, for your donations. The church’s tax deductible account is – Diocese of Sydney St Mary St Kosman & Demian Church Building Fund BSB: 062199 Account: 10611253

www.stcosman.com

“Many, O Lord my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be

recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered.” Psalm 40:5

With the Grace of God & Through the Interces-sions of the Mother of God St Mary & Our Patron Saints St's Cosman & Demian and the prayers and Blessings of HH Pope Tawadros II and HG Bishop Daniel, we have acquired a new parcel of Land to establish our church on at 15 Arnold Ave, Kellyville.

This parcel will be subdivided, some lots will be sold and a site will be establised for the church. This process will involve some costs, accordingly your prayers, help and support isneeded:

The church’s tax deductible account is –Diocese of Sydney St Mary St Kosman &Demian Church Building Fund.BSB: 062199 - Account: 10611253The church’s General account is –BSB 062-199 - Account: 010461312

For truly such is God's delight in giving. (St. Clement of Alexandria)May the Lord reward you with heavenly rewards

13th July 2014

editor@elmanara.org.au12

 

tWo years MeMorIal

FOR OUR BELOVED WIFE, MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHER

DR. SAMIA GUIRGUISThe one we held most dear will never truly leave us, she will live on the kindness she showed, the comfort she shared and the love she brought into

the lives of others.

Samia’s second year memorial will be celebrated during the mass on Sunday 10th of August 14, at Saint Paul and Saint Reweis Church, 38a Stella

St., Collaroy, NSW.

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