SHEPHERD SH RDsacserbchurch.org/sac/wp-content/uploads/file/Novemb… · · 2012-10-26SHEPHERD A monthly publication of the ... to the degree that a high school or college ... ja

SHEPHERDMonthly newsletter of the Serbian

Orthodox Church of the Assumption

P AS T I R

November 2012God be with you

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SHEPHERD

A monthly publicationof the

Serbian Orthodox ChurchAssumption of the Blessed

Virgin Mary

7777 Sunset AvenueFair Oaks, Ca 95628

Very Rev. Stavrophor Dane PopovicVery Rev. William Weir

Church: 916-966-5438Fax: 916-966-5235

Priest: 916-966-6276Cell: 916-606-8808

Shepherd Staff

Editor: V. Rev. Stavrophor Dane Popovic

Written contributions are welcome;Editorial discretion reserved. Please

Submit articles and ideas to:

V. Rev. Stavrophor Dane Popovic7777 Sunset Ave

Fair Oaks, Ca 95628

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Serbian Orthodox Church of the Assumption. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Church history is important for usto know so that we can attain a better un-derstanding of our Orthodox Christianfaith. There may be certain things we do orbelieve and still accept today but do nothave any idea where they came from orwhy we adhere to certain beliefs and prac-tices. We are not expected to know historyto the degree that a high school or collegestudent would but we should at least beconfident in the knowledge that there aregood reasons for all of our beliefs and prac-tices and they all have a specific etiology(source) from historical events, such as theEdict of Milan, or sound theologicalsources such as the Bible, the EcumenicalCouncils and the writings of the ChurchFathers.

In the previous issue of Shepherd Iexplained the historical events that led tothe unification of the Roman Empire, theascendency of Constantine as Emperor ofRome and the issuance of the Edict of Mi-lan. Recall that this Edict opened the doorto Christianity’s greater development,growth and freedom from persecution. De-spite this freedom and growth, there weremany influences that led to the promulga-tion and growth of heresies, even fromwithin the Church. The Church was alsobesieged with later periods of conflict and

persecution. These occurred both withinthe Church and from outside sources.This, however, is a different subject foranother day.

We should start with a reading ofthe main provisions of the Edict, it states:“Our purpose is to grant both to theChristians and to all others full authorityto follow whatever worship each personhas desired, whereby whatsoever Divin-ity dwells in heaven may be benevolentand propitious to us, and to all who areplaced under our authority. Therefore wethought it salutary and most proper toestablish our purpose that no personwhatever should be refused complete tol-eration, who has given up his mind eitherto the cult of the Christians or to the re-ligions which he personally feels bestsuited to himself. It is our pleasure toabolish all conditions whatever whichwere embodied in former orders directedto your office about the Christians, thatevery one of those who have a commonwish to follow the religion of the Chris-tians may from this moment freely andunconditionally proceed to observe thesame without any annoyance or dis-quiet.”

The Edict is strongly pro-Christian as it contained instructions torestore all property that had been appro-

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priated during the persecution. It ex-tended both individual property but toChurch property as well. This was with-out regard to who the current ownerswere. They could apply to the state forcompensation. Presumably, those whocame into possession fairly would betreated more equitable than those who didnot. The Edict goes out of its way to en-sure fair treatment for everyone: “Nodiminution must be made from the honorof any religion.” In implementing the rul-ings within the edict, the governors wereto give the Christians their “most effectiveintervention,” and to ensure that the termswere published to everyone.

Constintine and Licinius, the East-ern and Western Emperors, with Constan-tine as supreme, concluded that the actionscontemplated in the Edict would ensurethat “The Divine favor toward us, whichwe have already experienced in so manyaffairs, shall continue for all time to giveus prosperity and success, together withhappiness for the state.”

The property and other rights inthe Edict had already been in place in theWestern part of the Empire when it wasunder Constantine’s rule. They were nowthroughout the Empire. Recall from PartI, that Constantine moved the Capital toConstantinople a short time after the de-cree. It was after his victory at Milivanbridge that Constantine became the firstRoman emperor to side with the Chris-tians. Although the edict decreed onlystrict parity (equality) for Christians alongwith other religions, it is a hint of coming

changes. Before the end of the fourth cen-tury, Orthodox Christianity became thestate religion of the Roman Empire. Thisbroad scope contained the seeds for debateand dispute over theological content andpractices. Not everyone was sincere intheir beliefs as were the early Christians.

For Christianity, the changes weremomentous. Even today state churchescontinue to perpetuate the alignment re-solved between the Empire and the Church.Unfortunately, the unqualified tolerance foreveryone that was decreed at Milan did notendure for long. Likewise, it has not pre-vailed in later centuries. This is demon-strated, in part, by the heresies and con-flicts that arose over the centuries that ne-cessitated the convening of seven Ecu-menical Councils and other periods of per-secutions that accompanied the disputesover the heresies, such as the iconoclastcontroversy. Despite the unfortunate his-tory that followed the Edict, we must assur-edly give our attention to the decree’s no-ble sentiments and the fact that it openedthe door to a generous concept of freedomof religion and, in the country, the absenceof government intervention into matters ofinternal Church doctrine and governance.

Protopresbiter William Weir

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Crkvena istorija je veom va`naza nas da znamo, kako bi boljeimali razumevanje za na{u Pra-voslavnu veru. Postoje stvari u kojeverujemo ili prihvatamo nemaju}iideju odakle takv verovanje i za{to sepraktikuje. Od nas se ne o~ekuje daznamo istoriju kao osnovci ili stu-denti sa fakulteta, ali bi trebali daposedujemo znanje po kome bi tre-balo da znamo razloge na{eg vero-vanja kao i na~in ìvljenja, jer svioni imaju poseban izvor od is-toriskog doga|aja, kao {to je Milan-ski Ukaz, ili teolo{ki izvor kao {to jeSveto Pismo, Vaseljenski Sabori iliDela Svetih Otaca.

U predhodnom broju Pastiraja sam objasnio istorijski doga|ajkoji je doveo do ujedinjenja RimskeIperije, postanak Konstantina Im-peratorom Rimske Imperije i izda-vanje Milanskog Ukaza. Se}ate seda je ovaj Ukaz otvorijo vrata Hri{}anstvu bolji razvitak, {irenje i slo-boda od gonjenja. Bez obzira naslobodu i razvitak Pavoslavlja,postojali su i mnogi drugi uticaji kojisu se brzo {irili, i rast jeresi ~ak i usamoj crkvi.

Crkva je bila suo~ena u ovomvremenu sa nesuglasicama i stradan-jima. Ovo se dogodilo sa obe strane,kako u crkvi tako izvan nje. Bilokako, ovo je druga tema o kojoj }emo pri~ati drugi put.

Treba po~eti sa ~itanjem odglavne odredbe Milanskog Ukaza,koji glasi: “Na{a èlja da se da,kako Hri{}anima tako i drugima punuslobodu izbora i da sleduju veru kojubi oni èleli, kao i bilo kojojboànskoj ili nebeskoj stvari, da bimogli i mi i svi oni koji su pod na{om vla{}u dobar i miran ìvot vodit.

Milanski Ukaz je zaista za Hri{}ane i sadrì instrukcije kako pov-ratiti sve ono {to im je bilo oduzetoza vreme gonjenja. On obuhvata kakoli~nu imovinu tako i crkvenu. Ovo seodnosilo na sve, bez obzira ko su bilitada{nji vlasnici. Oni su mogli da seobrate dràvi za nadoknadu.

O~ekivalo se, da oni koji su do{li do imovine na po{ten na~in budutretirani druga~ije od onih koji nisu.Ukaz je zaista napravljen tako da sesvi podjednako tretiraju: “Nesme seumanjiti ~ast i po{tovanje bilo kojereligije.” Da bi se primenio ukaz svidràvnici su bili obavezni da Hri{}


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anima daju svoja prava i ista objavesvima.

Konstantin i Likinije, Isto~ni iZapadni vladari mperije, sa Konstan-tinom kao predsedavaju}i, su se dogo-vorili da Milanski ukaz obezbedi“Boànsku naklonost prema nama,koju smo mi ve} doìveli kroz mnogedoga|aje i da se ovo nastavi u budu}eza na{ napredak i uspe{nost, zajednona radost dràve.”

Imovina i druga prava izUkaza su ve} bila na snazi u Zapad-nom delu Imperije koja je bila podKonstantinovom vladavinom. Sada seovo pro{irilo na celu Inperiju. Setimose prvog dela ovog ~lanka, da jeKonstantin premestio prestonicu uKonstantinopolj ubrzo posle izdavanjeMilanskog Ukaza. Ovo je bilo poslenjegove pobede kod Milvinskog mostakada je Konstantin postao prvi RimskiImperator koji je bio na strain Hri{}ana. I ako je Ukaz imao samo deoprava za Hri{}ane uporedo sa drugimreligijama, ovo je bio nagove{taj o do-lasku promena. Pre zavr{etka 4 vekaPravoslavno Hr{}anstvo postalo jedràvna vera Rimske Imperije. Ovasloboda je imalo semena (razloga) zanesuglasice i neslaganja po teolo{kojosnovi kao i obi~ajima. Nisu svi biliiskreni u njihovoj veri kao {to su biliprvi hri{}ani.

Za Hri{anstvo promene su bile

veoma zna~ajne. Jo{ i danas dràvnerelgije nastavljaju o~uvanje stabilnostiizme|u Dràve i crkve. Naàlost jed-naka tolerancija za sve izneta u Milan-skom Ukazu nije trajala za dugo i takonije opstala u kasnijim vekovima. Ovose pokazalo, u delovima, kroz pojavujeresi i sukoba koji su nastajali krozvekove {to je i dovelo do sazivanjasedmog Vaseljenskog Sabora koji seboprio protiv jeresi i Ikonoborstva.Uprkos nesre}noj istoriji koja je pratilaukaz, moramo obratiti pa`nju na Nje-govu plemenitu naklonost kao ~injenicukoja je otvorila vrata slobodi religije udràvi kao i neme{anje dràve u unutra{nje u~enje i poredak crkve.

Very Rev. Bill Weir

A Family Prayer ofThanksgiving

Lord, thank You for this sink ofdirty dishes, we have good food to eatThank you for this pile of dirty laundry,we have nice clothes to wear. I'd like tothank You for these unmade beds, theywere all comfortable last night awaitingme says that You have richly blessed thisfamily. I shall do them all cheerfully andgratefully. Amen.


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FIRST, because our faith isthe light. Christ said, "I am the lightof the world." The light of the vigillamp reminds us of the light bywhich Christ enlightens our souls.

SECOND, to remind us of theshining character of the saint forwhom we are lighting the vigillamp. Saints are called the sons ofthe light.

THIRD, to serve as a repri-mand for our dark deeds, badthoughts and wishes and to call us tothe way of the light of the Gospel.So that we endeavor with diligenceregarding Christ's commandment:So that your light may shine beforethe people that they may see yourgood works.

FOURTH, that it be our smallsacrificed God who sacrificed Him-self for us."It is one miniscule signof our great gratitude and enlight-ened love towards the One fromwhom in our prayers we beseechlife, health and salvation and all that

only boundless heavenly love cangrants.

FIFTH, that it be fearsome toevil forces who attack us at timesand during prayer take our thoughtsaway from our Creator. For evilforces like darkness and start atevery light, especially from that onededicated to God and His saints.

SIXTH, to incite us to fulldedication. As the oil and wick burnin the vigil lamp subject to our wish,so let our souls burn with the flameor love in all sufferings always sub-jected to the will of God.

SEVENTH, to teach us that asthe vigil lamp cannot be lit withoutour hand, so, too, our hearts, our in-ner vigil lamp, cannot be lit withoutthe holy fire of God ’s blessing eventhough they be filled with all virtues.For all our virtues are as fuel, andfrom God comes the fire that lightsit.

St. Nikolaj Velimirovic


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This glorious and wonderworking saint wasborn in Thessalonica of noble and devout parents.Implored of God by childless parents, Demetrius wastheir only son, and so was raised and educated withgreat care. Demetrius's father was a commander inThessalonica. When his father died,Emperor Maximian appointed De-metrius as commander in his place.As he appointed him, Maximian, anopponent of Christ, particularly rec-ommended that he persecute andexterminate the Christians in Thes-salonica. Demetrius not only dis-obeyed the emperor but openly con-fessed and preached the Lord JesusChrist in the city of Thessalonica. When the emperorheard of this he became furious with Demetrius.Then, when he was returning from battle against theSarmatians, Maximian stopped at Thessalonica toinvestigate the matter. The emperor summoned De-metrius and questioned him about his faith. De-metrius openly acknowledged his Christian Faith tothe emperor and also denounced the emperor'sidolatry. Maximian cast Demetrius into prison.Knowing what was awaiting him, Demetrius gave allhis goods to his faithful servant Lupus to distributeto the poor, and joyfully awaited his imminent suffer-ing for Christ the Lord. An angel of God appeared tohim in prison, saying: "Peace be to you, 0 sufferer ofChrist; be brave and be strong!" After severaldays, the emperor sent soldiers to the prison to killDemetrius. The soldiers found the saint of God atprayer and ran him through with lances. Christianssecretly took his body and honorably buried it. Heal-

ing myrrh flowed from the body of the martyr ofChrist, curing many of the sick. Soon, a smallchurch was built over his relics.

An Illyrian nobleman, Leonrius, was af-flicted with an incurable illness. He hastened, withprayer, to the relics of St. Demetrius and was com-pletely healed. In thanksgiving, Leonrius erected amuch larger church on the site of the old church.

The saint appeared to him on two occa-sions. When Emperor Justinian wanted totransfer the relics of the saint from Thes-salonica to Constantinople, flamingsparks sprang from the tomb and a voicewas heard:"Stop, and do not touch!"And thus, the relics of St. Demetrius haveremained for all rime in Thessalonica. Asthe protector of Thessalonica, St. De-metrius has appeared many times, and

on many occasions has saved Thessalonica fromgreat calamity. His miracles are without number.The Russians considered St. Demetrius to be theprotector of Siberia, which was conquered andannexed to Russia on October 26, 1581.

Two taxidermists stopped beforea window in which an owl was on dis-play. They immediately began to criti-cize the way it was mounted. Its eyeswere not natural; its wings were not inproportion with its head; its featherswere not neatly arranged; and its feetcould certainly be improvedWhen they had finished with theircriticism, the old owl turned his headand winked at them!


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Sin kralja Milutina i otac cara Du-sana. Po naredenju neobavestenogoca bio oslapljen a po naredenjulakomislenog sina bio u starostiudavljen. Pri oslepljenju javio mu sesv. Nikola u hramu na Ovcempolju, i pokazao mu njegove o~irekav{e: "Stefane, ne boj se, evotvojih o~iju na mome dlanu, u svojevreme je }u ti ih vratiti". Pet godinaproveo u Carigradu kao zato~enik u ma-nastiru Svedrìtelja (Pantokratora). Svojommudro{}u i podvigom, kroto{}u i blago~es}em, trpljivo{}u i blagodu{nji{}u prevashodioje Stefan ne samo sve monahe u manastirunego i sav Carigrad. Kada se navr{i 5 godinajavi mu se opet Sv. Nikola i re~e mu: "do{ao sam da ispunim svoje obe}anje". I osenislepoga kralja krsnim znamenjem, i kraljprogleda. Iz blagodarnosti Bogu sagradiohram De~anski, jedno od retko divnih delavizantiske umetnosti i jedan od najznameni-tijih spomenika negda{njeg srpskog blago~e{}a. Sv. Kralj Stefan sa sv. Savom i sv. Kne-zom Lazarom ~ini jednu prekrasnu triaduod svetosti, blagorodstva i samopo`rtvovanja,koje je narod srpski dao. Kao mu~enikproìveo svoj zemni vek, i kao mu~enikskon~ao 1336 god. Primiv{i venac besmrtneslave od Svedrìtelja, kome je verno pos-luzio.

Stefan was the son ofKing Milutin and father of TsarDusan. By the command of his ill-informed father, Stefan wasblinded, and at the command ofhis capricious son (Dusan), wasstrangled in his old age. When hewas blinded, St. Nicholas ap-peared to him in the church atOvce Polje (Field of the Sheep)and showed him his eyes saying:"Stefan, be not afraid: behold your

eyes in my palm. In due time, I will returnthem to you." Stefan spent five years in Con-stantinople as a prisoner in the Monastery ofthe Pamocrator. By his wisdom and asceticism,his meekness and piety, his patience and be-nevolence, Stefan not only surpassed all themonks in his monastery, but all monks in Con-stantinople. When five years had passed, St.Nicholas again appeared to him and said: "Icame to fulfill my promise." He then traced thesign of the Cross on the blind king, and Stefanreceived his sight. In thanksgiving to God,Stefan built the Church of Decani, one of themost marvelous works of Byzantine artisticbeauty, and one of the most famous monu-ments of Serbian piety. The holy King Stefan,with St. Sava and the holy Prince Lazar, consti-tute a most glorious trinity of holiness, nobilityand self-sacrifice - the gift of the Serbian peo-ple. St. Stefan lived his earthly life as a martyr,and died as a martyr in the year 1336, receivingthe wreath of immortal glory from the Al-mighty God Whom he had faithfully served


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Св. АрхистратигМихаил и остале Силе небеснебезтелесне. Ангели Божји билису празновани од људи још издубоке старине. Но топразновање често се изметало уобожавање ангела (IV Цар. 23,5). Јеретици су сваштабаснословили о ангелима. Некису од тих гледали у ангелимабогове; други и ако их несматраху боговима називахустворитељима васцелогвидљивог света. Лаодикајскипомесни сабор који беше на 4 или 5 годинапре I Васељ. Сабора, својим 35. правиломодбаци поклоњење ангелима као боговимаи установи правилно поштовање ангела. Увреме пак Силвестра папе римског иАлександра патријарха александријског (изIV в.) би установљен овај празникАрхистратига Михаила и прочих Силанебесних у месецу Новембру. Зашто баш уНовембру? зато што Новембар представљадевети месец после месеца Марта. Умесецу Марту сматра се да је билостворење света. А девети месец послеМарта узет је због 9 чинова ангелских, којису најпре створени. Св. ДионисијеАреопагит, ученик апостола Павла, оногаапостола, који се уздигао до у треће небо,описао је ових 9 чинова у књизи „Онебесној Јерархији”. Ти чинови су следећи:шестокрили Серафими, многоочитиХерувими и богоносни Престоли,Господства, Силе и Власти, Начала,Архангели и Ангели. Војвода целе војске

ангелске јесте архистратиг Михаил.Када је сатана, Луцифер, отпао одБога, и повукао собом у пропаст једандео ангела, тада је Михаил устао иузвикнуо пред неотпалим ангелима:вонмемъ! станемъ добрэ, станемъ сострахомъ! И све небесне војскеверних ангела громовито су запојале:свјат, свјат, свјат Господ Саваотъисполнъ небо и земля славы твојеја!!(Види о архангелу Михаилу Ис.Навина 5, 13–15; св. Јуде 9.) Међуангелима влада савршеноједномислије, једнодушност и љубав,а уз то још и потпуна послушност

нижих чинова вишим чиновима, и свихукупно светој вољи Божјој. Сваки народ имасвога ангела хранитеља, а осим тога и свакихришћанин има свога ангела хранитеља.Треба се увек сећати да ма шта ми чинили,јавно или тајно, чинимо у присуству свогаангела хранитеља. А на дан Страшнога Судасабраће се све огромно мноштво ангеланебесних светих око престола Христова, ипред свима њима објавиће се дела, речи ипомисли свакога човека. Нека би нас Богпомиловао и спасао молитвама св.архистратига Михаила и прочих небеснихсила безтелесних. Амин.


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CHURCH CIRCLE OF SERBIAN SISTERSCRKVENO KOLO SRPSKIH SESTARA

“Kosovka Devojka”

CORDIALLY INVITES ALL TO THEIR

KRSNA SLAVASt. Archangel Michael

SUNDAY – NEDELJANov. 25th

DIVINE LITURGY AT 10:00 A.MFollowed by Pomen for our DECEASED SISTERS

and CUTTING OF SLAVSKI KOLAC

BANQET 12:30 P.M.


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Every year at the end of November wein the United States celebrate a day of"thanksgiving", replete with images of Pil-grims and Indians feasting together andgiving thanks to God for their deliverancefrom the rigors of the first months in thehostile climate of the New World. The tra-dition of a day of national thanksgiving hasbecome firmly rooted in our American cul-ture, as a way of saying "Thank You" toGod for all of the blessings that we enjoy.

Yet, as Orthodox Christians, theidea of "thanksgiving" must have a fargreater meaning in our life than a simple"thank you" to God. We say "thank you"perhaps many times in the course of theday and to many different people; to somewe wish to show genuine gratitude, to oth-ers we are simply being polite. The thanks-giving that we offer to the Lord must tran-scend simple gratitude or polite manners. Astudy of thanksgiving in the Bible, the cor-nerstone of our Orthodox Tradition, makesthis abundantly clear to us.

We assume that the Scriptures teachus to give thanks to the Lord and rightly so;however, we must recognize that neitherthe Hebrew.of the Old Testament nor itssister, the Aramaic language spoken by Je-sus and the Apostles, have any word at allfor thanksgiving! Does this mean that theHebrew people and the followers of theLord never gave thanks? Of course not, but

their idea of thanksgiving was one that wasexpressed not in polite words to God butrather in actions; thanksgiving was to befound in responding to the love and mercyof God revealed to His people. In the He-brew of the Old Testament and in the Ara-maic of Jesus' time and the early Church,there are several words that are used to ex-press "thanks".

Confessing ChristFor example, Psalm 136 verse 1

reads in our English Revised Standard Ver-sion, "0 give thanks to the Lord for He isgood..." But in the original Hebrew, theverse reads literally "Confess or acknowl-edge the Lord, for He is good..." (This isreflected in the Slavonic text of the Psalm,which was translated from the Greek trans-lation and which itself literally rendered theverse, "Ispovidajtesja Hospodevi jakoblah...") One of the ways then of express-ing thanksgiving to God among the He-brew people and the first Christians was inconfessing Him, in acknowledging com-pletely that He is the source of our bless-ings and salvation. How little do we dothis! We prefer to give ourselves the creditfor our blessing, ascribe it to our own "hardwork", without acknowledging to the Lordor to others that He made it possible."Confessing the Lord" also means being awitness to Him, being ready and able toshare our Orthodox faith with others whenopportunity presents itself– for through thiswe show our thanksgiving to the Saviour..

Loving the LordAnother word that is often used to


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express the idea of thanksgiving is"love". For instance, recall the narrativein the Gospel of St. Luke of Jesus at thehome of Simon the Pharisee (Luke 7:36-50). In this event a sinful woman comesand anoints the feet of Jesus, washingthem with her tears and drying them withher hair as a sign of repentance. Simonthe Pharisee thought to himself that Jesuswas no prophet, for if He were He wouldhave known what kind of woman thiswas and would have stopped her. Jesusasks Simon which of two debtors willlove their creditor more for forgiving adebt, the one who owed fifty denarii orthe one who owed five hundred. Simonanswered the one who owed more. Jesusthen points out that because this sinfulwoman loved much and showed it in heractions towards Him, that "her sins whichare many are forgiven, for she lovedmuch, but he who is forgiven little loveslittle" (Luke 7:47). In other words, "Godmust have forgiven her much, otherwiseshe could not show such great thanksgiv-ing (love) in anointing Me, in washingMy feet with her tears and drying themwith her hair." The woman's repentantactions are motivated by thanksgiving forthe forgiveness of her sins, which Jesusconfirms in verse 48.

If we are to show thanks to theLord, then like this woman we must"love much" because each of us has beenforgiven much through the Cross ofChrist We must be concerned, if we areto show true thanks to the Lord, withshowing charity to the Lord's people, acharity of the soul and of the body as

well. Our thankfulness must be a thankful-ness that motivates us to action whenever wesee someone hurting, either physically orspiritually, to do what we can. In this doesour thanksgiving to the Lord consist.

Praising God

Another term that is used to describethe concept of thanksgiving in the HebrewOld Testament and in Aramaic is "praise".Chapter 11, verse 25 of the Gospel of St.Matthew reads in the Revised Standard Ver-sion, "I thank Thee, Father, Lord of heavenand earth, that Thou hast hidden these thingsfrom the wise and understanding and re-vealed them to babes." The Greek of the NewTestament here does not use the Greek wordfor thanksgiving but translates the originalAramiac of Jesus, "I praise (or confess) Thee,Father..." (The Slavonic, again translatedfrom the Greek, does the same"Ispovidajutisja, Otce...") In praising God weare offering Him thanks for the blessings offorgiveness and salvation. Yet this praisemust not simply be an empty lip service, buta praise that stems from the heart. How eagerare we to praise God? Do we attend the ser-vices of the Church as often as we can? Notonly the Divine Liturgy but also the Vespersbefore feast days, the services celebrated dur-ing Lent and at other times in the year. Dowe receive the Holy Eucharist as often as wecan? The term "Eucharist" itself means"thanksgiving" — a thanksgiving for the giftof salvation offered to us in the Cross andResurrection of the Lord.

Fr. Lawrence


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We want you to know, brethren, aboutthe grace of God which has been shown in thechurches of Macedonia, for in a severe test ofaffliction, their abundance of joy and their ex-treme poverty have overflowed in a wealth ofliberality on their part. For they gave accordingto their means, as I can testify, and beyondtheir means, of their own free will.,, (2 Cor, 8: 1-4).

St. Paul addressed the Church in Cor-nith to complete their collection for the needyChristians in Jerusalem. As he appeals to themanother Church is cited as the example. Thechurches in Macedonia came through a severetest of affliction. They suffered persecution fortheir faith and their country had been impover-ished. Nevertheless, the Macedonians sufferinghad set forth flowing in them a fountain of joy.They discovered through their suffering thereality of God's love and power. It is whenfaith exacts hardship and sacrifice that it re-veals itself. Their joy in God's fellowship hadexpressed itself and lifted the Macedonians to alevel where they were released from the love ofmoney. Their extreme poverty had played itspart.

Many times Orthodox Christians, re-veal in their own lives and by their own indi-vidual circumstances their ability to give. It hasbeen proven in the past and will prevail in thefuture that those who have little to give, makestruggles for ends to meet, and hardships toendure continue to give freely and withoutgrudging. Their generosity is compatible withChrist and the Church. St. Paul wanted the Co-rinthians to understand the right way to givethat is fully Christian.

Today, we have the Welfare Pro-gram whereas the early Church took care ofthe needy through their offerings. Generosityand the grace of God has a definite place inour lives if we do not hide or shelter ourselvesfrom it. The grace of God always carries withitself the act of generosity because it is in-spired by love. Giving without the thought ofreward is totally Christian, It was this grace ofGod within St. Paul that he desired the Corin-thians to abound. The primary requisite of allOrthodox Christians is first to give ourselves.As long as we are generous, the grace of Godwill reign in our lives. This reign of grace isthe inspiration of all our spiritual activities,motivations, and this includes, our giving.

If we love God we will give. If we arepossessed of the compassion of Our SaviourJesus Christ, we will give. Our giving will bea grace, a benevolent act inspired by the graceof God within us. God always looks in theheart and to the willingness of the mind. "Forif the readiness is there, it is acceptable ac-cording to what a man has, not according towhat he has not." (II Cor. —:12) God looksupon the ability of the person to give. Gener-osity is guided by the purpose of the heart andit is the obligation of every Orthodox Chris-tian to purpose in his heart just what and howthis generosity and grace of God will find ex-pression in his or her life. Let generosity finditself in your life and let the grace of God beemployed in your life.


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Sv. NikolajПитају ме људи, мали мрави: Кажи

нам, ради кога нас је Бог створио: ради насили ради других? Ако нас је створио ради нас,врлина нам је штетна, ако нас је створио радидругих, врлина нам је мрска. У оба случајадакле, ми нисмо у стању пригрлити врлину,коју су нам пророци проповедали. Јер како бипригрлили без лицемерства нешто, што нам јештетно или мрско? - питају ме људи.

А ја им велим. Погледајте Сунце кадјутром излази и кад вечером залази ипомислите, рад кога оно показује толику својулепоту, ако не рад вас? Погледајте ову нашунеуморну Пепељугу, како се сваки дан труди,да у одређено време окрене Сунцу ону страну,на којој су ваше њиве и ваш дом, ваша деца иви сами, и помислите, рад кога се она свакидан тако ревносно труди, ако не рад вас.Погледајте море и горе и ливаде, у којимаживе безбројна јата, безбројне поворке, ибезбројна стада, и помислите, рад кога суњихови животи, ако не рад вашег. Ваздух исветлост и вода и минерали - рад кога су аконе рад вас? Сама земља са свим својимплодовима, рад кога је, ако не рад вас? И кадто видите и о томе промислите, тадпромислите још и о овоме. Рад кога сте ви, аконе рад достојанства планете, на којој сте? Радкога су очи ваше, ако не рад лепоте Сунца, иуши ваше ако не рад музике неба и земље? Радчега су руке и ноге ваше, ако не рад драме,коју нисте ви устројили? Рад чега је вашеживо тело, ако не рад поезије природе, имртво, ако не рад пира оних, за које сте вивелики као земља за вас? И кад и о једном и одругом будете промислили, тад ћете меразумети, кад вам будем рекао, да је Богстворио и вас ради других и друге ради вас.Разумећете ме, драга браћо, да све постоји радсвега.

Онда, кад ово будете разумели,

врлина вам неће бити ни штетна ни мрска.Јер како да буде ваша врлина

штетна вама, кад је она корисна свима? И како давам она буде мрска, кад је лепа?

Чујте и реците, како вам седопада ово, што сам ја чуо једнога дана подједним орахом. Седећи једнога дана под орахом,омиљеним ми од детињства, ја чух, где лишће наораху љутито рече: Зашто ми, овако мали ислаби, да се печемо на овом Сунцу ради великоги моћног ораха? Зашто да ми чувамо његовегране у хладу и да удишемо ваздух, који јењеговим гранама, тако дугим, и стаблу, такодебелом, за живот потребан? Није ли Бог насстворио ради нас самих, а не ради њих? - Неморамо се један на другог љутити, одговоришеим гране и стабло. Ваша мисао закључује у себисмрт и вашу и нашу. Задржите своје за себе, а мићемо опет своје за себе.

И би тако. Лишће преста да дајегранама и стаблу ваздух и светлост, а гране истабло престаше, да лишћу спроводе храну.

Доцније сам ја морао тражити хлада поддругим орахом, јер на овом старом лишће је брзоужутело и одлетело тамо куда је ветар хтео, агранати и дебели орах је усахнуо.

O браћо, ви не желите судбину свету,какву је имао овај орах? Не, ви то не желите, јапознајем срце ваше. Још мање ви можете желетитакву судбину најближој грани, која вас држи. Анајближа грана, која вас држи, и која вамспроводи из дубине храну у замену за оно малосветлости и ваздуха, што јој ви сада дајете, - таграна јесте човечанство. -- Од двога имате дабирате једно: или судбину ораха или врлину.Изaберите врлину, браћо моја, ја вас заклињем:изaберите врлину, да би сте живели! -

Тако ја одговорих на питање своје браће,мали мрави. И обазрех се на васиону, да чујемњен суд о моме одговору. Но васиона бешеравнодушна, као да ме није ни чула. И ја неосетих увреду, али бол осетих од њенеравнодушности. И почех да се разговарам убезмесечној безвезданој ноћи са својим болом. Ирекох му: Зар не можеш и ти бити равнодушан?Не могу, вели.


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In the Gospel we readthat Jesus told a rich young man thatthough he has kept the commandments, theone thing he must do to inherit eternal lifeis to sell all that he owns, dis-tribute the money to the poor,and then come, and followHim. Luke writes, "But whenhe heard this, he became sad;for he was very rich. Jesuslooked at him and said, 'Howhard it is for those who havewealth to enter the kingdomof God! Indeed, it is easier fora camel to go through the eye of a needlethan for someone who is rich to enter thekingdom of God.'"

It would be easy to misunderstandJesus here and to assume that it's impossi-ble for a rich person to get into heaven. ButJesus was most likely making an example ofthis self-righteous young ruler. He is a sadexample of a person who is convinced he isreligious, but misses the whole point. Hefollowed the letter of the law, yet he did notcarry love in his heart.

St. Clement warns us not to inter-pret this passage to mean that wealth will

keep us from the kingdom of heaven. Hewrites that it is the attitude ofthe soul that is important. It is

the passion for wealth, notthe wealth itself that con-

demns a man.Our attitude toward possessions re-

veals our true god and master. This may betroubling to us when we feel thatwe have made God our master andhave kept all the commandments -as did the rich young ruler. Chris-tian stewardship of our souls andbodies is the offering of our entireself to God, attaching our desire toHim rather than to the world.

And Jesus' reference to"the eye of the needle" seems to

imply that it is impossible for a rich man toenter the kingdom of heaven. One interpre-tation of this troubling verse is that a well-known gate to the city of Jerusalem was re-ferred to as the "eye of the needle." Thisgate was very low and difficult to enter, and,according to legend, a camel was required tounload all of its pack and enter on its knees.One could conclude from this that it is ex-tremely difficult - though not impossible -for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesusshows us that the only lasting wealth isspiritual wealth, which comes from God.


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When we were baptized, we weregiven the light of Christ, symbolized bythe baptismal candle. God lit His flame mour souls. The purpose of baptism is tomake us lights to the world for Jesus.

Jesus instructs us to ..."let our lightshine before others, so that they may seeour good works and give glory to our Fa-ther who is in heaven."

As baptized Orthodox Christians,we are all called to witness "through thequality of our lives the experience of therisen Christ."

We witness to Christ by the waywe set our priorities in life. This is a timeto re-examine those priorities — the wayin which we share our time, our talentsand our possessions.

I challenge you to take a look atyour checkbook and see exactly whatyour true priorities are. Do you commitmore to the cable television service thanyou do to your Church? Do you pay morefor your daily newspaper or to the cablecompany than you do to support thespreading of the Good News of Christ?

As Jesus told us, "Where your treasureis, there will your heart be also."

Last night you may have seen themoon as it rose in the east. It was hugeand it lit up the night. But if you think

about it, the moon has no light of its own, butonly the light which it receives from the sun. Thelight we see when the moon lights up the night isthe reflected light of the sun. Just like the moon,we have no light of our own, only the light ofChrist, who told us that He is the "light of theworld." We received His light at our baptism, andwe are called to reflect that light to all theworld. What better way to begin to do that thanby returning to Him - through the work of theChurch - some portion of that with which He hasblessed us.

We are responsible - and are held re-sponsible by God - for the light - His light -thatwe are reflecting in the world.Psalm 116 asks:"What shall I give to the Lord in return for all Hisbenefits toward me?" The answer comes in theDivine Liturgy when we are invited to "offer our-selves and our whole life to Christ our God."

I conclude with the following story: A pigand a chicken were walking through the barn-yard one day, planning a birthday party forFarmer Brown. "And what do you suggest thatwe do for Farmer Brown?" asked the pig. Thechicken replied, "I was thinking of making him aham & egg breakfast."

The pig, troubled by this idea, quietly saidto the chicken, "For you this is a contribution,but for me it's a total commitment."

God does not ask us for a contribution,because his Church is not a club to which we paydues. He is asking for a total commitment — our


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life! We are all familiar with the mes-sage: “Under new management" which typi-cally implies improved, better than beforeway of doing things. Well, we must bring ourlives under “new management”, the man-agement of God. “New management” meansa new way of doing things -God’s way. “Newmanagement” means a new attitude, God’sattitude. You might ask what areas of ourlives should be given back and come under"new management"? There are three areas:Time, Talents and Treasures.Time: How much time should we give to

God? The answer is very simple. All time belongs toGod. We must always see ourselves as God's rep-resentatives. This includes all of life's activities,whether we are shopping, playing, working, drivingor walking. Our Christian life must be more thana attending weekly Liturgy or an occa-sional church meeting. We must strive to cultivatea Christ-like consciousness that permeates ourentire life. Our time must be "given back" to Godand come under "new management".Talents: Each of us has been endowed with

natural abilities. These abilities can be physical,social or intellectual. Besides these natural abili-ties, we have also been endowed with spiritual giftswhich we received from the Holy Spirit at our Bap-tism. All of our natural abilities and spiritual giftsmust be given back to God and brought under "newmanagement."Treasures: In addition to our resources of

time and talent, we have been entrusted with thestewardship of various treasures including ourbodies (Rom. 12:1; 1 Cor. 6:19-20), our minds (Rom.12:2; 1 Pet. 1:13), and our opportunities (Col. 4:5).

Money is a good servant but a bad master-if wefollow the world's wisdom, money will dominate us,but if we submit to the wisdom from above (Jas.3:17), money will serve us as we use it to serve Godand others. There are over 2,300 biblical versesthat deal with money and possessions. God knewwe would have trouble managing our money, andthat we would spend a great amount of time earn-ing, spending, and investing it. We must, and dohave many things, but we must realize that we areonly guardians of these possessions. Our financesmust be given back to God and come under "newmanagement”. Bringing our finances under "newmanagement includes the privilege of giving to ourChurch.

In summary:-Receiving baptism we become

members of the One Holy, Catholic and Ap-ostolic church.

-By living on church designated ter-ritory we become parishioners.

-By attending liturgy, partakingof Holy Communion, and supporting ourchurch with our time, talents and treasuresonly then we become parishioner in goodstanding who ultimately exhibit the virtuesof stewards who by definition are returningwhat they posses BACK TO CHURCH, theirtime, talents and treasures. I askthat you give prayerful consideration tomaking the most generous gift you can tothe 2010 Stewardship Appeal. Giving isitself a demonstration of leadership, a ca-pability that we all have within us.

May He continue to bless us all.

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Sveti Grigorije Bogoslov kaè: “Bo{tanesve}e predstavljaju nebesko no{enje svetlosti”.

Arhiepiskop Simeon solunski, poznaticrkveni pisac I poznavalac crkvenog bo-gosluènja I simbolike svga {to se upotrebljavau bogosluènju u pravoslavnim hramovima veli:“Vosak {to ga mi prinosimo I palimo jestenaj~istije ve{tastvo I ozna~ava ~isto}u iskrenogprinosa na{eg. Vosak sabran sa miri{ljavih cve-tova, ozna~ava blagodat Svetoga Duha. Vosakod mno{tva cvetova jeste dar koji prinose sviHri{}ani. Na{I preci podiù}I zadu`bine posvim predelima na{e otadzbine odre|ivali su imuljare, trm~are ili p~elare kao povla{}en redljudi. Njihov je zadatak bio da gaje p~ele Inastoje da se od voska prave sve}e za hri{}anske hramove.

Paljenje sve}a u crkvi I proi verskimobredima ima duboko I tajanstven smisao. Sve}a je dar na{e usrdnosti Bogu I njegovom ugod-niku-svetitelju. Svetlost njezina dokaz je sjaja I~isto}e na{e vere; njezin plamen symbol je top-lote na{e molitve upu}ene Bogu; gorenje sve}enapominje gorenje srca na{eg I èlje na{e da sesrce na{e o~isti od grehova u tajni na{eg I èljena{e da se srce na{e o~isti od grehova u tajnina{eg pokajanja. Sjaj zapaljenih sve}a predstav-lja nam Gospoda Isusa Hristosa koji je svetlostsvetu, put na{ I istina, kao I da je vera na{a,vera svetlosti, a ne mraka. Potom ona nam go-vori o svetlosti u kojoj je Bog. Sve ono {to sepali mora biti ~isto da bi I na{a molitva bila~ista I od srca. Svojstva voska su od mirisa

cve}asa koga

vredne p~ele proizvode med I vosak.P~elarenje oblagoro|ava I moralno

prepora|a p~elare, pa I sve one koji pos-matraju rad p~ela. One su neumorne uradu; ~iste su, dele du`nosti I prava Iobaveze; poredak I disciplina su mudrosprovedeni. U njihovoj zajednici sprove-deno je milosr|e I briga za nejake, slabe Inevoljne. One nam primerom dokazujukako treba I mi da se odnosimo premabli`njima I kako me}usobno da sepomaèmo.

Po apostolskom 72 pravilu vosak Ijelej uvr{}uju se u sve{tene predmete. Kose o njih ogre{I smatra se svetotastvom Ikra|om. Car Justnijan Veliki zapoveda dase hram ne podiè dokle se ne obezbedidohotkom za sve}e I jelej.

Thanking GodFor What We HaveA gentleman who owned a small estate wished tosell it. He sent for an agent and asked him towrite an advertisement telling about the estate.When the advertisement was ready the agent tookit to the gentleman and read it to him.11 Read thatagain," said the owner. The agent read the description of the estate once more. don't think 1 willsell after all," said the gentleman. 4i have beenlooking for an estate like that all my life, and Idid not know that I owned it." Have you praisedthe Lord for what you possess in Christ?

—The Free Churchman

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be made and placed upon the mercy seatof the Ark of the Covenant (cf. Exod.25:18). What the Scripture condemns ismaking an image of a false god and bow-ing down to worship it. God was forbid-ding idolatry, not the making ofimages themselves.

The Scripture seems to forbid themaking of any image at all: "Thou shallnot make unto thyself any graven image,or any likeness of anything that is inheaven above, or that is in the earth be-neath, or that is in the water under theearth.. (Exod. 20:4). In the next verse,however, it is clear that it is idolatry that isthe issue (cf. Exod. 20:5). Otherwise Godwould not have commanded images to bemade.

There is deeper principle involvedhere, though. We are "No longer under thelaw, but under grace" (Rom. 6:14). "Andif we seek to be justified by the law, weare fallen from grace" (Gal. 5:4). The factthat God has become man in Jesus Christhas revolutionized the principles of God'srelationship with man. The laws of theOld Covenant do not, of course, take thisinto account. St. John of Damascus, one ofthe great Church Fathers, expressed thecorrect teaching that God, being invisible,inconceivable, and limitless, could not berepresented. At the same time, St. Johncontended that because God has in Christtaken on human nature, Jesus Christ theGod-man could legitimately be depicted inHis human form. This teaching was ac-cepted by the whole Church at the 7thEcumenical Council in 787.

Obviously, if Exodus 20:4 is taken

The Bible and Tradition11. But Orthodoxy de-emphasizes the Bibleand stresses the importance of tradition.

Orthodoxy does not de-emphasize theBible. The Orthodox Church accepts the Bi-ble as the divinely-inspired, infallible Wordof God. The Bible has unparalleled authorityin the Church of God when it comes to faithand practice. But the Orthodox Church in-sists that the Scriptures must be interpretedaccording to the catholic tradition of theChurch. This "catholic tradition" is based onthe oral teaching of the Apostles as it hasbeen handed down in the Church (cf. 2Thess. 2:15). It is the result of the fact thatthe Holy Spirit lives in the Church (cf. John14:26). It is enshrined in the teachings ofEcumenical Councils of the Church and theteachings of the saints and Church Fathers.Those who live in the fullness of the HolySpirit are our best guides to the Scriptures; itis they who testify to the deep union betweenHoly Scripture and Holy Tradition in theChurch.

Images in the Church12. Scripture forbids the making of images.Yet this is practiced in the Orthodox tradi-tion.

Under the Old Testament Law, themaking of images was forbidden. Yet thisprohibition was not absolute. God himselfcommanded that two images of the cherubim

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out of context and interpreted literally, itwould be impossible to paint a picture ofanything, or even to take a photograph! Thisis not forbidden by God. Only idolatry iscondemned, the worship of false gods. Tocall images of Christ and his saints "idols"can only be described as blasphemous.

Praying Before Icons13. I once saw an Orthodox praying to anicon. Such a practice directly contradictsthe Scriptures.

Orthodox Christians do not pray toicons. You may have seen an Orthodoxpraying before an icon, but not praying to anicon. The prayer is offered to Christ, or theintercessions of the saint depicted are im-plored. Praying to an icon would be a gravesin of superstition, and as such is con-demned by the Orthodox Church.

Veneration of Icons14. Orthodox also bow to and kiss icons.

This is blatant idolatry and an abominationto God.

If a person kisses a picture of hismother, is he honoring a piece of paper? Oris it an expression of love for his mother?Idolatry occurs when an object is worshipedas a god in itself. It was practiced as such byancient peoples, and by primitive peoplesand some Hindus today.

Christians make an act of reverencebefore an icon in so far as it is a symbol ofthe person represented. The love and devo-tion expressed are for Christ or a saint, notfor wood, or paper, or paint. St. John of Da-mascus wrote: "I do not worship matter,but Him who took on matter for the sake ofmy salvation." Thus the Orthodox Church

understands that the reverence paid toan icon is referred to the person de-picted therein.

The Protestant objection to theproper use of icons in the Church cameeight centuries too late. In the year 787,the Christian Church defined the correctdoctrine concerning the use of icons inthe Church against the heresy of theiconoclasts. The Church that defined thecanon of the New Testament, the doc-trine of the Trinity, and the doctrine ofthe Person of Christ, also established thedoctrine concerning the proper venera-tion of icons. The doctrine was acceptedby the entire Christian world, both Eastand West. In rejecting this, the Protes-tants have deviated from Christian truth.

Scripture and the Church15. On the basis of the Scripture, I can-not accept such a decision of theChurch.

If you do not accept the author-ity and infallibility of the Church, howcan you accept the authority and infalli-bility of the Scriptures? It was the Orthodox Church that decided what booksconstitute Holy Scripture. At the timethat the New Testament was compiled,there were many "Gospels" and otherbooks that claimed to be apostolic scrip-ture. The Church rejected some as spuri-ous and accepted others as being genu-inely apostolic and divinely inspired. Ifthe Church erred regarding icons, then itis possible that she erred regardingScripture. Thus you are left without theScripture as well as the Church.

Will Continue……..

22

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Serbian Orthodox Church of the Assumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Once upon a time, there were seven brotherswho lived together in a large house. Six wentout to work, but the seventh stayed home andcared for the house. When his brothers re-turned in the evening, the house was warmand bright, and the meal was always ready.But one day the six brothers insisted that theseventh brother must also go out and work. Sothey all worked, and all returned in the eve-ning — to find the house cold and dark and nomeal prepared Realizing how foolish they hadbeen, they quickly returned to the old way.Sunday has been set aside by Christians as theone day among the seven which provides op-portunity for us to receive spiritual light,warmth and food for the soul through unitedworship. If it is driven out to work, the othersix days will all miss its blessings and sufferirreparable loss!

The Source of AllGood

"Forget not all His benefits." A boy wasbringing home a loaf of bread, and onesaid: "What have you there?" "A loaf.""Where did you get it?" "From the baker.""Where did the baker get it?" "He madeit." "Of what did he make it?" "Flour.""Where did he get the flour?" "From themiller." "Where did he get it?" "From thefarmer." "Where did the farmer get it?"Then the truth dawned upon the boy'smind, and he replied, "From God." "Well,then, from whom did you get that loaf?""Oh! from God." Here is a boy who, in thelast resort, acknowledges God to be thegiver of good. In this materialistic age, aman says: "My business supports meand my family." It is a lie; God supportsyou and your family. Men deal with Godonly as a last resource, and yet go onhoping to sneak into God's heaven whenthey have done with His world; but theGod of Sinai is thundering out to this age:"Thou shalt put me first, and the bakersecond.”

Campbell Morgan

I Never Thanked You"My God, I have never thanked thee

for my thorn. I have thanked thee one thou-sand times for my roses, but never once formy thorn. I have been looking forward to aworld where I shall get compensation formy cross, but never thought of my cross as apresent glory. Teach me the glory of mycross. Teach me the value of my thorn.Show me that I have climbed to Thee by thepath of pain. Show me that my tears havebeen my rainbow."

Paul was a better Christian becauseof his suffering.

—From Understanding Suffering, by B.W.Woods, Baker Book House.


23. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

ThanksgivingMatthew Henry, the famous Bible

scholar, was once accosted by thieves and robbedof his wallet. He wrote these words in his diary:"Let me be thankful first because I was neverrobbed before; second, although they took my wal-let, they did not take my life; third, because, al-though they took my all, it was not much; andfourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I whorobbed" What a beautiful attitude of thanksgiving!There is no room in a grateful heart for bitternessor hate. One who is grateful for God's blessingswill not have to be prodded into serving God! Onewho is thankful for God's salvation will not have tobe begged to gather to worship Him! He who isgrateful to God for His provision for all our needswill not have to be shamed into giving of his mate-rial means unto God! Thanksgiving is best ex-pressed through thanksliving!

—Christview Christian Church St. Charles, MO

Nothing could be more appro-priate on Thanksgiving day than for us to thankGod, above all other blessings, for the gift ofHis Word

All other blessings flow from it Without the Holy Bible, life long ago would haveproved intolerable. It was barely short of thatwhen our Lord came to us.

The Bible is awesome in its sweep,covering that total range of human experience.From language that is earthy, direct, it soars tothe sublimest heights of poetry. In fact, many ofour greatest writers achieved their greatest suc-cess by doing little more than rewriting Scripture.

Yet the prophets were oblivious to lit-erature as such. They were completely absorbedin God's message — a message directed toevery kind of person in every condition. It is theilluminating history of a people called by Godto do exactly what they did: receive His Word,keep it intact through centuries of triumph andcatastrophe, and give the world its Saviour.

No one could have invented a hundredth part of it No man has ever completelysounded its depths. We sometimes, in fact, evenhave trouble with its surface meaning until weaccept the fact that the Bible speaks from God'spoint of view, not man's. It is astonishing howmuch "difficulty" that simple truth disposes of.

As we read in I Corinthians 2:9 ButGod hath revealed them unto us by hisSpirit: for the spirit seaxcheth all things,yea, the deep things of God

There was once a tenant who was tobring his landlord a part of the productsof the fields. But he was neglectful ofhis tillage, and when the year ended hecame, bringing a sack of thistles andburrs, instead of a load of golden grain.How like that we are! When we havecares and worries and sorrows, weunload them on the Lord, but when wehave joys and satisfaction we do notshare them with Him. We are too muchlike the member of a certain church ofwhom the new minister was forewarned:"If he likes you, you will never know it;but if he doesn't like you, you will knowit quickly enough."

—The Christian Endeavour World.


24. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

In Memory of Nikolas CvetichMilan & Betty Tica…………………….$ 50.00Anonymous ……………………...$ 40.00Ilija & Anna Bradaric …………….$ 30.00John & Nevenka Kordic …………….$ 25.00Robert Miller ……………………...$ 25.00

In Memory of Borivoje IlichProto & Protinica Weir …………….$ 50.00

In Memory of Stevo MileusnicAna Mileusnic ……………………..$ 100.00

Easter Flowers for the Blessing of JelkaSaponjic and In Memory of Milka Prijic &Milan PrijicAngelia Jovanovic …………………….$ 20.00Savka Mileusnic……………………….$ 20.00

For the good health of Fuad and SalwaHauhan, Isam Sue Somar and DinaSalwa Hauhan ……………………...$ 100.00

ShepherdBill & Martha Mamika………………...$ 30.00

In Memory of Nikola CvetichRobert & Zorka Gojkovich …………..$ 50.00

Danica Gojkovich Ryder …………….$ 30.00

In memory of Boris PetrovichDraginja Petrovich…………………….$ 100.00

ShepherdKK & BM Lobodovsky …………...$ 20.00

Shepherd— In Loving Memory of UncleIvan KadicJoseph Kadic ……………………..$ 100.00

Shepherd - In Honor of my parents Anna &

Steve VucinichVera Richardson ……………………..$ 25.00

Shepherd—Na Secanje na naseg DragogBorisaMilica Domanovich Family ………….$ 50.00

For ChurchIrene Aiello……………………………..$ 50.00

In Memory of Zika DobrodolacNada Kosanovich ……………..$ 100.00Proto & Protinica Weir ……………..$ 50.00Draginja Petrovich …………….. $ 25.00John & Nevenka Kordic ……………..$ 25.00Friends of Nada Kosanovich………….$ 31.00

In Memory of Boro IlichRay Radulovich ……………………….$ 60.00

In Memory of Vladimir KorbeGeorge & Maria Cheremeteff…………$ 100.00

In Memory of Valerie MelinkovCircle Of Serbian Sisters …………….$ 100.00Mary McConnell …………….$ 50.00Michael Lorton ………………………$ 50.00Britton McConnell …………….$ 50.00

In Memory of George & Valeria MelnikovIlija & Anna Bradaric ……………..$ 40.00

In Memory of Jovan RadulovichAdriana Radulovich…………………….$ 30.00

Za nasu djecu I njihovo zdravljeTodor & Milena Rajak ……………...$ 30.00

Easter flower donationProto & Protinica Weir ……………..$ 114.25

May 2012 Donations

June 2012 Donations

July & August 2012 Donations


25. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Children's BiblesMilanka Radosavljevic …………….$ 250.00

In Memory of Marko & Boya PiljaDaniel & Maria Damjanovic…………..$ 50.00

In Memory of Dragan MirjanovicBrian & Sonja Gonzales ……………..$ 50.00

In Memory of Anthony MasoneAdriana Radulovich ……………..$ 50.00

U spomen Vitomir SaponjaWL & Rosanda Amerine …………….$ 100.00

ShepherdAnonymous …………………..$ 1,000.00Proto & Protinica Bunjevic ………….. $ 50.00

In Memory of Nikola CvetichDaisy Freeman ……………………….$ 10.00

In Memory of Don GlazzardDaisy Freeman ……………………….$ 10.00

In Memory of Vera MatovichJovana Marinkovich ……………..$ 100.00

In Memory of George MelnikovDaisy Freeman ………………………$ 10.00

In Memory of Boris PetrovichProto & Protinica Weir …………..$ 100.00Daisy Freeman …………………….$ 10.00

Strength

God, grant me the strength of heart, Of motive,and of will, To do my part and falter not Yourpurpose to fulfill.

God does not love you because you are important,you are important because God loves you.

Without faith, we are as stained glass windows inthe dark.

It is not the work of life, but the worry of lifethat robs us of strength and breaks down ourfaith.

If your day is hemmed with prayer, it is lesslikely to unravel.

The good man, like a bouncing ball, springs everupward from a fall.

Knowing the Scripture is one thing; knowing theAuthor is another.

When a pessimist thinks he is taking a chance,the optimist feels he is grasping a great opportu-nity.

You lose a lot of battles in the process of winningthe war.

God tends to use the one nearest Him.Christians should give so much time to the im-provement of self that they have no time left tocriticize others.

Men occasionally stumble over the truth, butmost of them pick themselves up and hurry offas if nothing happened.

September 2012 Donations

Endowment Fund Donations2012


26. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

If a friend is elected to public office,we can't wait to telephone or wire our con-gratulations. If a doctor pulls us through aserious illness, we can't thank him enough Ifa motorist helps us change a tire on a rainynight, we might even write a letter of thanksto be printed as a letter to the editor of ourlocal paper.

But what about the so-called " little"people. Do we bother to thank them? Takegarbage haulers, for example. In many com-munities, they collect trash early in themorning, out of sight of most people. Haveyou ever said, "Thank you" to the men whopick up the garbage? Do you even knowtheir names? Don't feel badly — most of usdon't

Richard M. DeVos, one of the co-founders of the Amway Corporation, tellshow he purposefully rose early one morningto thank his garbage man. Mr. DeVos did sobecause the man was always punctual andcareful, quietly replacing the lids. But thefellow was so shocked that he drove off with-out saying anything! Mr. DeVos rose earlyto meet the same garbage hauler for threemornings before he got a response. Finallythe man answered, "In 12 years, nobodyever told me they appreciated what I do. Myboss has never said J do a good job. You'rethe first person to thank me." Smiling, thegarbage man shook his head in disbelief.

Inflation hasn't upped the cost of asmile or a friendly64 thank you." Try onetoday. It won't hurt your pocketbook.It's in the spirit of Christ

—Robert J. Hastings

For whatever reasons,some come to Assumptionand choose not make a pledgein support of the ministries.Our prayer is that you willjoin us this year and next, bymaking a pledge to do what-ever you can. More impor-tantly, hopefully the Churchwill become a place of greaterimportance in your life andyou will find refreshment inGod's grace as He pours Hisblessings upon your life. If youare struggling in your faith,we pray that Christ maystrengthen and enliven it.Everyone is invited to share inthe blessings that come fromgiving and sharing that whichGod has given us all. I handthis "pole" to you and say,"there is work that needs to bedone, please join us!"


27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

We are planning to use the January Issue of the Shepherdas a means of extending Christmas greetings to each other. If you are planning to send greet-

ings for Christmas, do so in the Shepherd

1/4page=$15.00; 1/2page=$30:00; Full page = $50:00;You may design your own message or we can help you. Some examples and ideas are

shown below. Please pick your card by number.BO@I]NE ÊSTITKE

Planiramo da i ove godine u JanuarskomPastiru objavimo va{e Boì}ne ~estitke upu}ene vama i va{im dragim prijateljima i rodbinipreko crkvenih novena. Ako èlite da po{aljete~estitku u~inite to preko PASTIRA.

1/4 Strane=$15:00; 1/2 Strane=$30:00; Cela Strane = $50:00;

Svojoj rodbini,kumovima iprijateljima

~estita nastu-paju}e

praznike uzradosni poz-

drav,

MIR BO@JI–HRISTOS SE

RODI!

May you have ajoyous Christmas

and may our Fatherabove grant manyNew Year’s bless-ings to you andthose you love

MERRY CHRISTMASAND A

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Wishing youabeautifulChristmas andNew Year ofpeace andhappiness

MERRYCHRISTMASAND A

HAPPY NEW YEAR

MerryChristmas &Happy New

Yearto all—

SRETANBO@I]INOWAGODINA

If you want to have your greeting in the Janu-ary edition, you must deliver your greeting andpayment to Fr. Dane before Dec. 18th

# 1

# 4

# 2# 3


28

CHARGES FOR RELIGIOUS RITES - TREBESteward Non-Steward

Wedding $50 $500Baptism Donation DonationChurch Funeral Donation $300Chapel $50 $300Parastos—Panihida $25 $100Pomen $15 $ 50Certificates $10 $ 20

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Parish StatisticsBAPTISM: No

WEDDING: September 22, Nikola Kordic & Kaya Gurgic

FUNERAL: No

PARASTOS: No

KRSNA SLAVA;— October 6 – John Baptist– Za~e}e Sv. JovanaZeljko Mijovic family,

Happy Krsna Slava– Sretna Slava!Vjecnaja Pamjat – Memory eternal !

BECOME A SHEPHERDSPONSOR FOR 2013

Please consider becoming a Shepherd Sponsor. For $ 25 you will become a bronze Sponsor, for $ 50 a SilverSponsor and for $ 100.00 a gold Sponsor. Your name or the name of a loved one will be listed.

You could advertise your business thru our SHEPHERD

SHEPHERD SPONSOR for2012

BRONZE SPONSORSHIPIn Loving memory of my parents

Anna & Steve Vucinichby

Vera Richardson

SHEPHERD SPONSOR for2012

GOLD SPONSORSHIPIn Loving memory of my Uncle

Ivan KadichBy

Joseph Kadich


29. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Calendar of EventsWe are publishing a calendar of events so that

you and your familycan join us for these events. All are welcome

and we hope to see you at Church,as well as these events.

More details will follow.

November 11, Stewardship SundayNovember 18, Slavic EventNovember 22, THANKSGIVINGNovember 24, Kids dancing –ZabavaNovember 25 KSS SlavaNovember 28 Christmas fast beginsDecember 19. St Nicolas DayDecember 30 Serbian Mothers’ DayJanuary 7, Christmas– BozicYour Church Board Welcomes you.


30. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Parishioners hospitalized, sick at home or in nursing homes…Proto Miladin Garic Greta Ljubisavljevic Alexandra FitzpatrickNikola Dragovic Ana Bozinovic Milli MatacicDusko Pesevic Marta Mamika Persa Dragovic

Sandy Tobe Michael Melnikov Deacon Michael PlefkaMike Mraovic Nada Kosanovic Milos KovacAna Mileusnich Daisy Freeman Michael SadownikovOleg & Irina Butin Ana Lisnich Francis SokitchMichael MelnikovDear Brothers and Sisters, please remember these people in your daily prayers. If you know anyone who is sickplease let Father Dane know. He would like to visit them and pray for them. His telephone number is 966-6276

or 606-8808.We pray for your return to health and well-being.

When your are making a donation to ourChurch, please note on the check (under thememo field) what it is for. This is because wehave no way of knowing your intent for the do-nation. Otherwise, if there is no such notation,and if you are already a steward, the donationwill automatically apply towards your steward-ship. If you are not a steward, it will be appliedas a church donation.


33. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34Serbian Orthodox Church of the As- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Our Church picnic was held on Septem-ber 30, 2012 at Fair Oaks Park featuring ourannual Cevap Cook Off. The competitors puttingtheir barbequing skills to the test were: Stan Mo-jsich, Zlatko Theodorovic, Milan Delich, Mirko Petrovich and John Kordic.While the competitors used their distinc- tive techniques for grilling theirmasterly crafted cevaps, members of our congregation enjoyed music, con-versation and the beautifully shaded picnic areas at the park. For ouryoung attendees, there was a jump house to keep them entertained and vol-leyball for whoever felt like a game before the judging commenced.Once the cevaps were ready and the food was blessed, it was time for ourjudges, Aco Smiljic, Draginja Petrovich and Milica Turjacanin, to select the best cevap. After a lot oftasting and a little deliberating a winner was announced.

Congratulations to this year’s winner, Mirko Petrovich.

35Serbian Orthodox Church of the Assumption. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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36Serbian O

rthodox Church of the A

ssumption

7777 Sunset Avenue

Fair Oaks, C

alifornia 95628

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Subscriptions forShepherd

Year $20:00

Monthly $ 2:00

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be the sponsor ofthe next issue of the

ShepherdPlease let us know

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SHEPHERD SH RDsacserbchurch.org/sac/wp-content/uploads/file/Novemb… · · 2012-10-26SHEPHERD A monthly publication of the ... to the degree that a high school or college ... ja