Saints Cyril & Methodius

Bulgarian Orthodox Mission

 

 

  Transfiguration

 

Holy Transfiguration

( Celebrated annually on August 6 )

 

Sunday, August 1, 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

 

 

Upcoming Service Schedule:

Services at SS Cyril & Methodius Mission begin at 2:00

 

August 1 – Holy Seven Martyrs, at SS Cyril & Methodius

August 8 – St. George Church on summer vacation: no services.

August 22 – Afterfeast of Dormition, at SS Cyril & Methodius

August 29 - St. George Church on summer vacation: no services.

September 5 – Birth of Theotokos, at SS Cyril & Methodius

September 12 - St. George Church on summer vacation: no services.

September 19 – Sunday after Elevation of the Cross, at SS Cyril & Methodius

September 26 – St. George Church on summer vacation: no services.

 

 

 

Saints Commemorated Today


10th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST — Tone 1. Procession of the Honorable Wood of the Lifegiving Cross of the Lord (First of the three “Feasts of the Savior” in August). Holy Seven Maccabean Martyrs: Abimus, Antoninus, Gurias, Eleazar, Eusabonus, Alimus, and Marcellus, their mother Solomonia, and their teacher, Eleazar (166 B.C.). The Holy Martyrs of Perge in Pamphylia: Leontius, Attius, Alexander, Cindeus, Minsitheus (Mnesitheus), Cyriacus, Mineon (Menæus), Catanus, and Eucleus (3rd c.).

 

 

 

Parish Council Meeting

 

  The August Parish Council Meeting will take place on Sunday, August 22 following the Divine Liturgy.  For a copy of the agenda please see Fr. Timothy.  Agendas are distributed by email prior to the meeting.

  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 servant of God, Timothy and the priest Milorad,

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 Maria, Megan, Bojanka, Magdalena, Alexander, Sophia, Shafik, Christo, Julia, Rada, Radka, Anna, Dale, Olivera, Marianthe, Panaigioti, & George.

 

 

 

Those Who Are In Need of Prayer

 

The Priests Photius, Anthony, Vadim, and Joseph;

the Presbyteras Artemis, Marie, Miriam, Juliana, & Anne;

 the servants of God, Alexandra, Victor, Erin, Catherine, Kyriaki, John, Carmeta, Jane, Oliver, Charlie, and Patricia.

the servants of God, Jane, Peter, David, and Lynne,

Those who are traveling or are sick and suffering and those who have asked us to pray for them, unworthy though we may be.

 

 

 

Joint Meeting of Bulgarian Orthodox Churches


  The first joint meeting of the three Bulgarian Orthodox Churches in our area was hosted by St. Mark Orthodox Church in Bethesda, MD.  The three Orthodox communities, St. John of Rila, St. George the Greatmartyr, and Saints Cyril and Methodius, gathered together Tuesday evening, July 27.  Fr. Greg Safchuk, Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Washington initiated the meeting with the intention of learning the needs and desires of the Bulgarian Orthodox members.

 

  The OCA’s Bulgarian Diocese was represented by His Grace, bishop Melchisedek and Fr. Don Freude, Chancellor.  Fr. Timothy Perry, Priest in Charge of Saints Cyril and Methodius Mission was present as was Deacon Chterion Zaprionov of St. George the Greatmartyr Church.  Representing the three parishes were their Parish Council Presidents, Ms. Slavka Spanta (St. John of Rila), Mr. George Georgiev (St. George the Greatmartyr), and Mr. Evgeniy Anguelov, (Saints Cyril and Methodius).  Mr. Assen Assenov, President of the Bulgarian Community Center, was also in attendance.  A total of 16 lay members of the community participated in the three hour discussion.

 

  The discussion revealed a desire to unite the Community.  The reunion of the two smaller parishes was generally identified as the first logical step.  The parishes of St. George and SS Cyril & Methodius will consider a strategy and take the first steps.

 

 

 

Joint Celebration to Commemorate

The Falling Asleep of the Mother of God

 

  The “Dormition”, or “Falling Asleep” of the Theotokos is commemorated annually in the Orthodox Church on August 15.  Because we celebrate the liturgy only every-other Sunday at our parish, this year we will remember the holiday after our Divine Liturgy on August 22.

 

 The feast is both joyous and sad: joyous as Jesus receives his mother’s soul directly, as shown on the icon - sad because death is a tragic reality of life such as it is after humanity’s departure from the Garden of Eden.

 

 To celebrate the holiday, Saints Cyril & Methodius have invited the Bulgarian parishes of St. George and St. John of Rila and all Bulgarians to enjoy a festal party following the Divine Liturgy.  All are welcome.

 

 

 

QUESTION # 1:
  What is the position of the Orthodox Church regarding the books that the Protestant churches refer to as the Apocrypha? Maccabees, Tobit, Ecclesiasticus, etc.

 

ANSWER # 1:
  The Old Testament books to which you refer -- know in the Orthodox Church as the "longer canon" rather than the "Apocrypha," as they are known among the Protestants -- are accepted by Orthodox Christianity as canonical scripture. These particular books are found only in the Septuagint version of the Old Testament, but not in the Hebrew texts of the rabbis.

  These books -- Tobit, Judah, more chapters of Esther and Daniel, the Books of Maccabees, the Book of the Wisdom of Solomon, the Book of Sirach, the Prophecy of Baruch, and the Prayer of Manasseh -- are considered by the Orthodox to be fully part of the Old testament because they are part of the longer canon that was accepted from the beginning by the early Church.

  The same Canon [rule] of Scripture is used by the Roman Catholic Church. In the Jerusalem Bible (RC) these books are intermingled within the Old Testament Books and not placed separately as often in Protestant translations (e.g., KJV).

 

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QUESTION # 2:
   How is the Orthodox Church organized and how is it held together as one worldwide Church?


ANSWER # 2:
  The Orthodox Church as a whole is the unity of what are called local autocephalous or autonomous churches. These words mean simply that these churches govern themselves, electing their own bishops and organizing their own lives.

  Each of these churches has exactly the same doctrine, discipline and spiritual practices. They use the same Bible, follow the same canon laws, confess the authority of the same Church Councils and worship by what is essentially the same liturgy.

  It is nothing other than this communion in faith and practice which unites all Orthodox Churches together into one world-wide body. In this sense, there is no one dominating authority in the Orthodox Church, no particular bishop or see or document which has over the churches.

  In practice, the Church of Constantinople has functioned for centuries as the church responsible for guiding and preserving the worldwide unity of the family of self-governing Orthodox Churches. But it must be noticed that this responsibility is merely a practical and pastoral one. It carries no sacramental or juridical power with it and it is possible that in the future this function may pass to some other church.