Dearly Beloved,
Greetings to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
July 14, 8th Sunday after the Feast of Pentecost
Epistle Readings: 1 Peter2:6-10, Hebrews 4:14-5:5
Holy Evangelion: St Mark 4:1-20
4 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2 And he taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching, he said to them: 3 “Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it had not much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil; 6 and when the sun rose it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 And other seeds fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” 9 And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
10 And when he was alone, those who were about him with the twelve asked him concerning the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables; 12 so that they may indeed see but not perceive and may indeed hear but not understand; lest they should turn again and be forgiven.” 13 And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them. 16 And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; 17 and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.[a] 18 And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word, 19 but the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 20 But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
Reflections:
The parable of the sower has a few elements for us to look at closely: the sower, the seeds, different land terrains, various situations such as birds, moisture, the sun, thorns and then – the output from each land. Initially each land type accepts the seeds that fall onto them but later the quality of the fruit was not as expected. On some soil types, the seeds gelled well with the soil and the environment. It is a pointer to how we need to protect things or guard life. The sprouting of the seed would depend on different factors such as: environment and situations.
Jesus was a person of a holistic approach, and thus He looked at life quite differently from how we perceive it. Instead of looking at situations in exclusion He was keen on different factors that came together. The rocky land mattered to Him just as the birds hunger. Dry land was as necessary as moistened soil. Thorns were needed to protect plants and without the sun everything would nearly cease to exist.
In our daily life with varied situations and jobs different relationships and umpteen situations, we often attempt to take the path that would most suit the interests of all involved while bearing in mind the common good of all. Knowing how difficult life can be for some of us and knowing that no two individuals’ lives can be compared, we could then ponder as to: how we can have a land of freshness among us, how can we provide for each other various factors that are necessary for our growth..
It is necessary to strike a balance among different preferences and priorities while adjusting to all kinds of situations and through guarding what is precious and essential without compromising on our authenticity. In a social setting or workplace we would often come across people who are different from us. While some of them mean well for us, others may not wish the best for us. The vibes of the former can propel us to achieve more whereas the actions of the latter could cause us to lose faith in ourselves and in those around. The 2018 floods of Kerala taught us how we could work together if we looked out for the best for each other. No element in life is unnecessary. The thorn and the thunder are as necessary as the wind and the wave. Each has a purpose and in developing an understanding of our roles and relevance we can help each other to be productive and successful.
The picture of the Last Supper would not have been complete without the twelve disciples and their Lord. Each disciple’s background, calling and attitude was unique but in Jesus they found a common ministry. In Him through the Holy Spirit they found their purpose being aligned to the mission of the kingdom of God – a kingdom where all were accepted, none rejected; all were included as they are and none excluded. Let us look to Christ for grace to thrive in any situation because only He is above all.
FEASTS AND REMEMBRANCES:
- July 10, Yuhanon Mar Gregorios Metropolitan, 251st anniversary, entombed at Mulanthuruthy Church
- July 11, Pulikottil Joseph Mar Dionysius Metropolitan, ‘Sabha Jyotis’, 115th anniversary, entombed at Old Seminary Chapel Kottayam
- July 12, Commemoration of HH Baselios Marthoma Paulose II, 3rd anniversary, entombed at Catholicate Aramana Kottayam
Church Picnic was a wonderful event. Sincere thanks to all!
We had around 300 members joined the picnic. It was well organised and well attended. Sincere thanks to:
- Parish Management Committee for the leadership, arrangements and all support given to St Joseph’s Elders Forum, MMVS, OCYM, MGOCSM, SS for their participation and assistance.
- All volunteers for setting up tents and BBQ utensils, moving things to the picnic spot, preparing, cooking food, selling coupons (Babu John, G George, Omana John), organising games.
- For prize winners who donated back the price money to church
- All the participants
Sunday School Graduation Day, Congrats
Congrats to the new graduates from SS: Ann Maria Philip, Eva Ann Mathew, Johann Sonny Thomas, Shone Mathew, Jonathan Philip Philips! We pray that the Spirit of the Lord be with them as they progress in their path to future. May they be able to witness the Lord as their world would requires. Thanks to the SS teachers, students and parents for joining the convocation ceremony.
FUTURE IMPORTANT DATES / EVENTS: Please note in your calendar.
- July 13 (Second Saturday), MGOCSM-Holy Liturgy in English at 08:30 am
- July 14, Sunday School BBQ Day
- July 18-19, KCEF Annual Retreat, virtual
- July 20, KCEF St Thomas Day Celebration, virtual
- July 25, St Joseph Elders Forum trip to 1000 Islands
- August 01-15, Shunoyo Fast – Feast of Assumption
- August 22-25, MGOCSM Toronto Kanesh at Valley of the Mother of God Retreat Centre
Kanesh 2024: Please find the invitation sent by MGOCSM Toronto
This year’s annual KANESH (2024) will be in the summer from August 22nd to August 25th! We are so excited to have you all at The Valley of the Mother of God retreat center. We are very pleased to welcome His Grace Abraham Mar Stephanos as our main keynote speaker. Follow our social media pages for more information coming soon! We can’t wait to have you all!
FOR OUR ATTENTION & TO NOTE:
Children, please occupy front benches during our Liturgical Services
We request our parents to send their children to the front rows as they enter the church for Liturgical services. We have our respected Sunday School teachers taking turns to be with the children during the service. We also request our adult members to leave the front rows free for the children and to occupy row 4 onwards from front.
Kindly avoid crowding at the back of the church. A few concerns.
- Due to safety concerns and for assuring an undistracted worship space, we request all our members to proceed to the front rows except those that are reserved for children when we enter the temple. It would be a bit difficult for our volunteers to suggest moving to the front during the service as it would cause distraction and noise. We need to avoid crowding at the entrance and stair areas as this has raised safety concerns.
- Please be considerate to our senior members to help them find seats or while they try to access the washroom. A slip or a hit should be avoided in any circumstance.
- Please be watchful at the shoe rack area which is also the entrance to both washrooms.
- We request our parents to attend our children not to pull the alarm lever at the back wall.
Hand Waving Machine & Common Absolution Prayer for all communicants
The hand waving machine has been installed at the church entrance for taking count of the communicants. Whoever wishes to take Holy Communion, upon entering the temple, please wave your hand once at the machine. Please be aware that after the Nicene Creed, the machine shall be disabled.
SPIRITUAL ORGANISATIONS’ UPDATES & UPCOMING EVENTS:
Sunday School BBQ
Sunday School BBQ will be held in our parish on Sunday, July 14, 2024, at 12 PM. There are a variety of games planned for children. All families are invited to join the fun filled BBQ event.
Please click the below link to download the flyer:
https://mcusercontent.com/4b0245a10b23c3826466d9a97/files/81451be3-3fdb-b411-7187-22171f186a7b/Sunday_School_BBQ_Flyer.pdf
MGOCSM, Holy Liturgy in English on second Saturdays. Next service will be on Saturday July 13 at 08:30 am.
For those who find it inconvenient to attend worship on Sundays or on other days, MGOCSM will be organising the Holy Liturgy in English on the second Saturday of every month. This is open to all. We would also like this to be a space for our young generation to attend the service with minimum time and to engage in a creative fellowship on weekends. This will not replace the English liturgy on fourth Sundays. The service will begin at 08:30 am and will finish by 09:45 am. Please make use of this opportunity.
MMVS:
MMVS 2nd Annual Regional meet- Scheduled for Oct 19, 2024. There will be a Talent show in addition to Bible Study. It will be hosted by our parish.
Art Exhibition – Scheduled tentatively for Nov 17th, 2024. All interested in displaying their art skill are requested to start preparing for the same.
IN-PERSON MEETINGS:
July 14, MMVS monthly meeting after refreshment
Live streaming has ceased
We gently remind our members, if anyone is not able to attend due to severe illness and wish to join online, please send your email contact to the parish office. The private link shall be sent to them. We are sorry to inform that the services will not be available or accessible for public viewing hence forth. We encourage all our members to join in person.
Holy Liturgical Text for this Sunday
We will be using the Taksa of Mar Osthathios this Sunday.
May the Gracious Lord keep us from all harm and heal the entire world.
Yours in Christ
Thomas John Achen
Email ID: fr.thomaspjohn@gmail.com
Mobile: (416) 570 5610