Sunday January 31, 2021

Bulletin Highlights

 

Note: In order to keep zoom meetings and passwords secure, please contact us to receive the full Sunday Parish Bulletin. To receive the bulletin, please contact Fr. Panayiotis at fr_panayiotis@fastmail.com or AssumptionEM@gmail.com. You can also request to be added using our contact form here. Once you are added to the list, you will be sent the Bulletin Weekly.

 

Message from Fr. Panayiotis

Thank you to those of you who popped in for our virtual coffee hours over the past two weeks. We will not be having one this week but hope to offer some more in the future.

Let us all say a prayer this week (especially today!) for those who are traveling during the winter storms, that the Lord will bring them to their destinations safely. Of course we pray during the Divine Liturgy for those who travel, but it is also important for us to also offer our own prayers throughout the week for everyone who needs them for so many different situations. The small prayer you say makes a difference, even if you cannot see it.

Also, a small note: if you know parishioners who do not use email and would benefit from
having a hard copy of our bulletin, please let us know!

 

Schedule of Upcoming Services and Events

Sun 1/31
8:30am Orthros (Matins); ~9:30am Divine Liturgy
1:00pm - Church School (Zoom); (No Virtual Coffee Hour this week)

Tues 2/2
8:30am Orthros (Matins); ~9:30am Divine Liturgy (Presentation of the Lord)

Sun 2/7
8:30am Orthros (Matins); ~9:30am Divine Liturgy

 

Bible Study resumes this month!

Beginning next week, Fr. Panayiotis will offer 5 sessions of Bible Study/Discussion (via Zoom), entitled “Selections from the Book of Psalms.” The Book of Psalms (referred to as the “Psalter”) is the most highly used book of Scripture in Orthodox worship. It is also the foundation of personal prayer, and a constant reference point used by the saints when speaking about the Christian path and way of life. In these sessions, we will begin learning how to read the Psalms not only as a Biblical text but as personal prayers that bring us closer to God in our daily life.

There will be both morning and evening options. If you miss a class, you are welcome to attend the alternate time:
-Morning sessions, Thursdays @10am on the following dates: 2/11, 2/18, 2/25, 3/4, 3/11
-Evening sessions, Mondays @7pm on the following dates: 2/15, 2/22, 3/1, 3/8, (final evening session TBD due to beginning of Great Lent)

To register or with any questions, please email fr_panayiotis@fastmail.com.

 

Stewardship Pledges

Please make your stewardship pledge online for 2021 today! Visit our online portal at: http://fnbiz.assumptionem.org/core/portal/authenticate.php. With any questions, please contact Celia Lubbers 309-236-2301 or celia.lubbers@gmail.com. You may also mail your pledges to the church.

 

Bring or Send us Names for Prayer!

We all are in need of prayers. Please remember to bring names of your friends and loved ones for prayer in the Divine Liturgy. Please write the baptismal names (first name only). It is best to write the names in two lists, one for the living, and one for the reposed. You are also welcome to include names of loved ones who are not Orthodox; it is customary to write them in a separate section or on a separate sheet. Names can be delivered in person to one of the ushers (in an envelope) or may sent by directly to Fr. Panayiotis at fr_panayiotis@fastmail.com.

 

Spiritual Words for the Week

“Children, being the images of their faither and mother, are near to their hearts; but still nearer are men—and especially Christians—the images of God, to the heart of God. The outward and often inward resemblance of children to their parents reminds us of our inward resemblance to God.”

-St. John of Kronstadt
My Life in Christ (Jordanville, 1994), 499