Afterfeast of the Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
33rd SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST — Tone 8. Sunday After the
Theophany. Afterfeast of the Theophany. Martyr Polyeuctus of
Melitene in Armenia (259). Hieromartyr Philip, Metropolitan of
Moscow and All Russia (1570). Prophet Shemaiah (Samaia, Se-
meias—3[4] Kings 12:22—10th c. B.C.). St. Peter, Bishop of Se-
baste in Armenia (4th c.). St. Eustratius the Wonderworker (9th
c.).
January 9th, 2011 The Great Feast of
Theophany, the
Baptism of Christ
by St. John the
Forerunner has
come. When we
are baptized, we
are made clean,
forgiven and
given new life in
the waters of bap-
tism. However,
when the Divine,
pure and sinless
Son of God de-
scended into the
water, He purified
water and made
of it a vehicle of
grace. This is why
we bless holy wa-
ter on the feast of
Theophany. It is because of His baptism that it is possible
for us to be baptized and cleansed by the water. Please
bring containers to fill with holy water. Holy water is our
general all-purpose spiritual blessing tool! It is to your
benefit to use it! Small sprinkle bottles are available at the
back of the church at the candle desk for a cost of $2.00.
All year round we will have holy water available in the
church in our holy water tank which is usually kept on the
far right of the iconostasis behind the choir director. If you
are sick, you should drink holy water, if you feel spiritually
attacked, you should drink holy water or sprinkle yourself.
It can be used for a whole multitude of purposes, to bless
almost anything.
— Father Stacey
Tone 1 Troparion of the Feast
When You, O Lord, were baptized in the Jor-dan, the worship of the Trinity was made manifest. For the voice of the Father bore witness to You, calling You His Beloved Son; and the Spirit in the form of a dove
confirmed the truthfulness of His word. O Christ our God, You have revealed Your-self,//
and have enlightened the world, glory to You
Tone 4 Kontakion of the Feast
Today You have shone forth to the world, O Lord, and the light of Your countenance has been marked on us. Knowing You, we sing Your praises. You have come and revealed Yourself,//
O unapproachable Light.
Isaiah 35:1-10 (1st Hour, Prophecy)
1 The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad
for them, And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as
the rose;
2 It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, Even
with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be
given to it, The excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They
shall see the glory of the Lord, The excellency of our
God.
3 Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the
feeble knees.
4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be
strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with
vengeance, With the recompense of God; He will
come and save you.”
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And
the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, And the
tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth
in the wilderness, And streams in the desert.
7 The parched ground shall become a pool, And
the thirsty land springs of water; In the habitation of
jackals, where each lay, There shall be grass with
reeds and rushes.
8 A highway shall be there, and a road, And it
shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean
shall not pass over it, But it shall be for others. Who-
ever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go
astray.
9 No lion shall be there, Nor shall any ravenous
beast go up on it; It shall not be found there. But the
redeemed shall walk there,
10 And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, And
come to Zion with singing, With everlasting joy on
their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, And
sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Isaiah 55:1-13 (Great Blessing of Waters, 2nd Read-
ing)
1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters;
And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat.
Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and
without price.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen
carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your
soul delight itself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and
your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting
covenant with you— The sure mercies of David.
4 Indeed I have given him as a witness to the peo-
ple, A leader and commander for the people.
5 Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,
And nations who do not know you shall run to you,
Because of the Lord your God, And the Holy One of
Israel; For He has glorified you.”
6 Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon
Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, And the un-
righteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the
Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor
are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways, And My
thoughts than your thoughts.
10 “For as the rain comes down, and the snow
from heaven, And do not return there, But water the
earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may
give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,
11 So shall My word be that goes forth from My
mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall ac-
complish what I please, And it shall prosper in the
thing for which I sent it.
12 “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out
with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break
forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the
field shall clap their hands.
13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress
tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myr-
tle tree; And it shall be to the Lord for a name, For an
everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
Isaiah 12:3-6 (Great Blessing of Waters, 3rd Reading)
3 Therefore with joy you will draw water From
the wells of salvation.
4 And in that day you will say: “Praise the Lord,
call upon His name; Declare His deeds among the
peoples, Make mention that His name is exalted.
5 Sing to the Lord, For He has done excellent
things; This is known in all the earth.
6 Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion, For
great is the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”
1 Corinthians 10:1-4 (Great Blessing of Waters, Epis-
tle)
1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be
unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all
passed through the sea,
2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in
the sea,
3 all ate the same spiritual food,
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they
drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and
that Rock was Christ.
Ephesians 4:7-13 (Epistle, Sunday After)
7 But to each one of us grace was given according
to the measure of Christ's gift.
8 Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men."
9 (Now this, "He ascended"-what does it mean
but that He also first descended into the lower parts
of the earth?
10 He who descended is also the One who as-
cended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all
things.)
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some
prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and
teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of
the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to
the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
Mark 1:9-11 (Matins Gospel)
9 It came to pass in those days that Jesus came
from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in
the Jordan.
10 And immediately, coming up from the water, He
saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending
upon Him like a dove.
11 Then a voice came from heaven, "You are My
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
Matthew 4:12-17 (Gospel, Sunday After)
12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put
in prison, He departed to Galilee.
13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in
Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of
Zebulun and Naphtali,
14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by
Isaiah the prophet, saying:
15 The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By
the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the
Gentiles:
16 The people who sat in darkness have seen a
great light, And upon those who sat in the region and
shadow of death Light has dawned."
17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to
say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Parish Council Meeting – This Wednesday January 12, fol-
lowing vespers.
There will be a meeting of the Strategic Planning and Out-
reach Committee on Wednesday, January 19 following
vespers. If you are concerned about our parish's future
and growth and outreach activities, and are willing to work
toward that end, plan to come and join this group! All are
welcome.
There will be a general memorial service for the departed
following liturgy on Sunday January 23. This is for all of us
to add the names of our departed loved ones, and have
them remembered before God.
HOUSE BLESSINGS It is the season for house blessing
again! If you would like your house blessed please sign up
on the sign-up sheet located on the candle desk. Thanks!
Fr S
Support an Orphan: We have begun to support the Hogar
Raphael Ayau Orphanage in Guatemala. Please prayerfully
consider placing your spare change in the money box at
the candle desk. Our goal is to collect and send out $50
per month.
The Cleveland Museum of Art has a special exhibit running
through Jan 17, 2011. It is titled "Treasures of Heaven:
Saints, Relics & Devotion in Medieval Europe." For infor-
mation check out www.clevelandart.org.
YOUTHDAY—Putting your faith in to action—Living the
life in Christ. January 17th , 2011 from 9:30AM to 4:00PM
at Archangel Michael Orthodox Church in Broadview
Heights, Ohio. Explore how we can apply our Faith to our
lives! Games—Pizza—Crafts—”The Blind Side” Movie—
Fellowship. For ages 7—18. For more information talk to
Father Stacey.
Holy Assumption
Orthodox Church
Schedule:
Wednesday
Daily Vespers 6:00 PM
Friday
Father Stacey Office Hours 10:30 AM—1:30 PM
Saturday
Great Vespers 5 PM
Sunday
Hours 9:10 AM
Divine Liturgy 9:30 AM
WELCOME VISITORS!
We are delighted to have visitors worship with us, and we
pray that you will be blessed through your participation in
our services. While Holy Communion may only be received
by prepared Orthodox Christians, our non-Orthodox guests
are welcome to join us in venerating the Cross and receiving
blessed bread at the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy
Please Join us for Coffee Hour after
Divine Liturgy in the Social Hall
If this is your first visit to our parish, we welcome you and invite
you to return as often as you are able. For those interested in
learning more about Orthodox Christianity please ask any of our
church community – or feel free to contact Fr Stacey. Our parish
library is available for your reading interests. Children are wel-
come to join church school classes after liturgy.
CONFESSIONS
Fr Stacey can usually hear confessions after Wednesday or Satur-
day vespers. He is also available by appointment, or during
his regular office hours.
Announcements:
Listen online to our Divine Liturgy and other Orthodox
Christian Teachings INBN.net
January Birthdays
11 Mary-Ann Frishkorn +
11 Katia Gresh
16 Pete Mudrak +
19 Peter Tapyrik +
30 Erin Haywood+
31 Megan Lint +
31 Ed Romano +