Bulletin -- Sunday After the Nativity of Christ (Ancestors and St. Stephen the Proto-Martyr)12/26/2020
St. Stephen was a Jew living in the Hellenic provinces, related to the Apostle Paul and one of the first seven deacons ordained by the Apostles to serve the Church in Jerusalem (thus making him an archdeacon). In the words of Asterias, St Stephen was "the starting point of the martyrs, the instructor of suffering for Christ, the foundation of righteous confession, since Stephen was the first to shed his blood for the Gospel."
On this day, we also commemorate the Holy Ancestors of God David the King and Joseph the Betrothed spouse of the Theotokos Mary, as well as St. James the Brother of the Lord
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 Bulletin -- sunday_before_nativity_--_12_20_20.docx
This Sunday, we begin the Forefeast of the NAtivity. We also commemorate all the righteous people under God who were well-pleasing to the Lord, beginning with Adam all the way up through Joseph, the earthly adopted father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We read the genealogy from St. Matthew's Gospel, which traces the lineage of Christ back through the line of David. We hope you will join us for this special occasion, and stay tuned for more information on our Christmas services! Link to join the Zoom session (9 AM PT Orthros, 10 AM PT Typika) can be found here: https://spu.zoom.us/j/94057595629?pwd=aS9SanR5M2ovQ0lDV1FBQ2doaVNqdz09  st_nicholas_12_5_20.docx
By tradition, Nicholas born in the province of Lycia in the southern part of Asia Minor in the city of Patara to well-to-do parents. The date of his birth is not known. Having inherited his parents' estate, he became known for his generous gifts to those in need. As a youth, he made pilgrimages to Palestine and Egypt. He was subsequently consecrated Archbishop of Myra as the fourth century began. He was imprisoned during the persecutions of Diocletian and released by Constantine after his ascension to emperor. Nicholas was noted for his defense of Orthodoxy against the Arians. He is reputed to have been present at the Council of Nicea, but his name does not appear among any documents from that era. He died in Myra on December 6 in a year uncertain, but between 342 and 352. St Nicholas the WonderworkerMany of the details of his life that we have appeared during medieval times. St. Methodius, Patriarch of Constantinople, in the middle of the ninth century produced a life of Nicholas in which he noted that the life of Nicholas was unknown to most of the Christians of the time, thus indicating his composition was probably based mainly on legend. Methodius noted that Nicholas was raised well by pious and well-to-do parents and related how Nicholas contributed from his inheritance the dowry for three daughters of a citizen of Patara who had lost all his money. His feast was being celebrated by the time of St. Justinian two centuries after his death. After Methodius' life of Nicholas became available, Nicholas was acclaimed and honored throughout Europe and especially in Italy. When Myra was captured by the Saracens in 1034, many Italian cities planned to "rescue" his relics. In 1087, forces from Bari, Italy, attacked Myra and carried away his relics from the lawful Greek guardians in Myra to Bari where they were enshrined in a new church. His fame increased. The story of his rescue of sailors in the Aegean Sea during his lifetime established him as the patron of mariners. His popularity in Russia rose to the point that almost all churches had some sort of shrine honoring St. Nicholas. |
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