Saints Cyril
& Methodius
Bulgarian Orthodox
Mission
PENTECOST
Sunday,
May 23, 2010
2:00
PM
Held at:
St. Luke Orthodox Church
6801 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101
His Beatitude, Metropolitan JONAH
The Very Reverend Archpriest Timothy Perry
The Rev. Deacon Chterion Zaprionov
2010 PARISH
COUNCIL
Saints
Cyril and Methodius Bulgarian Orthodox Mission
Mr. Evgeniy Anguelov, President
Mr. George Kochev, Vice-President
Mrs. Elena Murphy, Treasurer
Mr. Larry Woods, Secretary
Ms. Nadiya Baltiyska
Ms. Lazarina Petrova
Mrs. Nadya Choparinoff
Upcoming Service
Schedule:
Services at
SS Cyril & Methodius Mission begin at 2:00
Services
at St. George Church begin at 12:00
May 30 – All Saints Sunday, TBA
June 6 – Second Sunday of Matthew, at SS Cyril & Methodius Mission
June 13 – TBA
Saints
Commemorated Today
8th SUNDAY OF PASCHA — Tone 7. HOLY PENTECOST. St. Michael the Confessor, Bishop of Synnada (831).
Uncovering of the Relics of St. Leontius, Bishop and Wonderworker of Rostov
(1164). Synaxis of the Saints of Rostov—Yaroslavl’. Ven. Euphrosyne, Abbess of
Pol&ocaute;tsk (1173). Ven. Paísii, Abbot of Gaelic (1460). Martyr Michael
“the Black-robed” of St. Sabbas’ Monastery (9th c.).
The
Next SS Cyril & Methodius Parish Council Meeting
The next Parish
Council Meeting will take place today, May 23 following the Divine Liturgy. Everyone is invited to attend and listen or
discuss the issues, however, only Parish Council members may cast a vote.
†
May Their Memory Be Eternal †
The
newly departed servants Georgi [Markov], Maria and Megan,
the
Priests Peter, Ishmael, Michael, Leo, Homer, Thomas, and Victor;
the
Matushki Mary, Platonida, Sophronia, and Barbara;
the
Readers Philemon, John, John, and Robert Michael; and
the
Servants of God Georgi, Bojanka, Magdalena, Alexander, Sophia, Shafik, Michael,
Steven, Christo, Julia, Rada, Radka, Anna, Dale, Mary, Carmel, Thomas, Vasili,
Mary Ellen, Andrew, Irene, Stamatia, Peter, Steven, Olivera, George, Marianthe,
Panaigioti, Christophor, George, Stephen, & Stefan.
Those
Who Are In Need of Prayer
The Priests Photius, Anthony, Milorad,
Vadim, and Joseph;
the Presbyteras Artemis, Marie, Miriam,
Juliana, Anne, & Alexandra;
the servants of God John, Alexandra, Victor,
Erin, Catherine, Mathew, Venko, Tanya, Vera, Kyriaki, Yekaterina, Sasha, John,
Carmeta, Charlie, Helen, and Patricia.
Those who are traveling or are sick and
suffering and those who have asked us to pray for them, unworthy though we may
be.
PENTECOST
In the Church's
annual liturgical cycle, Pentecost is "the last and great day." It is
the celebration by the Church of the coming of the Holy Spirit as the end - the
achievement and fulfillment - of the entire history of salvation. For the same
reason, however, it is also the celebration of the beginning: it is the
"birthday" of the Church as the presence among us of the Holy Spirit,
of the new life in Christ, of grace, knowledge, adoption to God and holiness.
This double meaning and double joy is revealed to us, first
of all, in the very name of the feast. Pentecost in Greek means fifty, and in
the sacred biblical symbolism of numbers, the number fifty symbolizes both the
fulness of time and that which is beyond time: the Kingdom of God itself. It
symbolizes the fulness of time by its first component: 49, which is the fulness
of seven (7 x 7): the number of time. And, it symbolizes that which is beyond
time by its second component: 49 + 1, this one being the new day, the "day
without evening" of God's eternal Kingdom. With the descent of the Holy
Spirit upon Christ's disciples, the time of salvation, the Divine work of
redemption has been completed, the fulness revealed, all gifts bestowed: it belongs
to us now to "appropriate" these gifts, to be that which we have
become in Christ: participants and citizens of His Kingdom.
THE VIGIL OF PENTECOST
The all-night Vigil service begins with a solemn invitation:
"Let us celebrate
Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, The appointed day of promise, and the
fulfillment of hope, The mystery which is as great as it is precious."
In the coming of the Spirit, the very essence of the Church
is revealed:
"The Holy Spirit provides all, Overflows with prophecy,
fulfills the priesthood, Has taught wisdom to illiterates, has revealed
fishermen as theologians, He brings together the whole council of the
Church."
In the three readings of the Old Testament (Numbers 11:16-17,
24-29; Joel 2:23-32; Ezekiel 36:24-28) we hear the prophecies concerning the
Holy Spirit. We are taught that the entire history of mankind was directed
towards the day on which God "would pour out His Spirit upon all
flesh." This day has come! All hope, all promises, all expectations have
been fulfilled. At the end of the Aposticha hymns, for the first time since
Easter, we sing the hymn: "O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of
Truth…," the one with which we inaugurate all our services, all prayers,
which is, as it were, the life-breath of the Church, and whose coming to us,
whose "descent" upon us in this festal Vigil, is indeed the very
experience of the Holy Spirit "coming and abiding in us."
Having reached its climax, the Vigil continues as an
explosion of joy and light for "verily the light of the Comforter has come
and illumined the world." In the Gospel reading (John 20:19-23) the feast
is interpreted to us as the feast of the Church, of her divine nature, power
and authority. The Lord sends His disciples into the world, as He Himself was
sent by His Father. Later, in the antiphons of the Liturgy, we proclaim the
universality of the apostles' preaching, the cosmical significance of the
feast, the sanctification of the whole world, the true manifestation of God's
Kingdom.
THE VESPERS OF PENTECOST
The liturgical peculiarity of Pentecost is a very special
Vespers of the day itself. Usually this service follows immediately the Divine
Liturgy, is "added" to it as its own fulfillment. The service begins
as a solemn "summing up" of the entire celebration, as its liturgical
synthesis. We hold flowers in our hands symbolizing the joy of the eternal
spring, inaugurated by the coming of the Holy Spirit. After the festal
Entrance, this joy reaches its climax in the singing of the Great Prokeimenon:
"Who is so great a God as our God?"
Then, having reached this climax, we are invited to kneel. This is our first
kneeling since Easter. It signifies that after these fifty days of Paschal joy
and fulness, of experiencing the Kingdom of God, the Church now is about to
begin her pilgrimage through time and history. It is evening again, and the
night approaches, during which temptations and failures await us, when, more
than anything else, we need Divine help, that presence and power of the Holy
Spirit, who has already revealed to us the joyful End, who now will help us in
our effort towards fulfillment and salvation.
All this is revealed in
the three prayers which the celebrant reads now as we all kneel and listen to
him. In the first prayer, we bring to God our repentance, our increased appeal
for forgiveness of sins, the first condition for entering into the Kingdom of
God.
In the second prayer, we
ask the Holy Spirit to help us, to teach us to pray and to follow the true path
in the dark and difficult night of our earthly existence. Finally, in the third
prayer, we remember all those who have achieved their earthly journey, but who
are united with us in the eternal God of Love.
The joy of Easter has
been completed and we again have to wait for the dawn of the Eternal Day. Yet,
knowing our weakness, humbling ourselves by kneeling, we also know the joy and
the power of the Holy Spirit who has come. We know that God is with us, that in
Him is our victory.
Thus is completed the feast
of Pentecost and we enter "the ordinary time" of the year. Yet, every
Sunday now will be called "after Pentecost" - and this means that it
is from the power and light of these fifty days that we shall receive our own
power, the Divine help in our daily struggle. At Pentecost we decorate our
churches with flowers and green branches - for the Church "never grows
old, but is always young." It is an evergreen, ever-living Tree of grace
and life, of joy and comfort. For the Holy Spirit - "the Treasury of Blessings
and Giver of Life - comes and abides in us, and cleanses us from all
impurity," and fills our life with meaning, love, faith and hope.
Father Alexander Schmemann (1974)