Dearly Beloved,
Greetings to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
May 19th, Sunday, the Feast of Pentecost
Epistle Readings: Acts 2:1-11, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, 2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Holy Evangelion: St John 16:5-15, for Kneeling: St John 14:13-27, 14:25-27, 15:26-27, 16;1-15
5 But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convince[a] the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.
12 “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.
Reflections:
Jesus was a person of promises. He was the promise the world was waiting for and He came to this world as the fulfilment of promises given in the Old Testament scripture. Promises give hope and positive vibes. They give us an eagerness with which we can look forward to something bright. Here the promise was about the coming of the Holy Spirit, but it made them all sad because it was possible only with the Lord leaving. Appearance of someone so promising could happen only upon through the disappearance of the one who they loved and relied on the most.
Every generation leaves with the expectation that their spirit will guide the future generation. It may not be about them actually living, but it is about their living on and living within their children and communities. It is the ‘spirit print’- akin to carbon print wherein our inevitable absence yet perceivable presence lives with our family and community as their torch to their future. Elijah gave double the portion of his spirit to Elisha which enabled Elisha to do greater things. There was however a condition for Elisha to follow. He had to look unto the ascending of Elijah while he was taken to heaven on the chariot of fire. This is what the church does through sacraments and worship. We look unto the Lord to be rekindled by the spirit He has already given us. We need to be still while the outside noise and our inner turmoil subside. Only then we would be able to know God and His spirit working in us. Today we need to taste the Spirit as a presence more real than we taste our daily food. The disciples first tasted the Spirit on the day of Pentecost and they realized that that they needed Him unendingly.
On this feast of Pentecost, we pray that we may have an intense and deep experience of our own self while the spirit in us gets renewed and strengthened. We realize the purpose of our life by understanding and deciphering our genetic code with the Image and Likeness of God imprinted on it. We cannot be ignorant about our own self which is the mirror image of the Lord. Hence, He has commanded: “Love your God with all your heart and spirit and love each other by knowing and loving our self which is the self of the Lord.” Realising the Spirit’s abiding in us would be the most exciting and thrilling invention we can have about our life. It would be the mantra – the most mysterious and effective mantra of success in life. With the conviction of the Spirit’s dwelling in us, we would realize that we can overcome the world and its worries, conquer minds and souls while reaching out to nations and people in the same way God permeated into everyone and everything through His unconditional love. God loves us. We love Him. We love each other. When we become love, the awareness of His continual abiding becomes our religion, song and hologram. As Jesus said, we are going to fish the world for its best to save everyone for Him! Let us trust His promise that the Comforter and Counselor will indeed guide us and lift us out of any difficult situation in life.
“Dear Holy Spirit – Welcome! Dear Holy Spirit – Abide in Me! Dear Holy Spirit – Never Leave Me.”
FEASTS AND REMEMBRANCES:
- May 15, Feast of St Mary for the crops
- May 15, St Isaac of Nineveh
- May 16, HG Yuhanon Mar Severios Metropolitan, 34th anniversary, entombed at Zion Seminary, Koratty
- May 19, Mar Dionysius III of Punnathra, 189th anniversary, entombed at Cheriya Pally, Kottayam.
FUTURE IMPORTANT DATES / EVENTS: Please note in your calendar.
- May 19, Sunday- Feast of Pentecost, Morning Prayer at 08:30 am, Holy Qurbana at 09:30 followed by the Liturgy of Kneeling. Please join as we begin the morning prayer together.
- June 01, Saturday, MMVS Regional Conference at St Thomas OC, Main Speaker: HG Dr Gevarghese Mar Yulius Metropolitan of Kunnamkulam.
- June 16-June 30, Fast and Lent of the Holy Apostles.
- June 30, Sunday, Feast of the Apostles.
MMVS BAKESALE: Kudos to all
We are delighted to announce that we have fetched $ 3600/- from the bake sale. It was everyone’s cooperation and support which made it possible. We thank everyone who brought food and snacks, those who contributed financially, and those who volunteered at the counters. Highly appreciate Mrudula Mary and Elizabeth Abraham for their hard work and coordination. All the MMVS leaders and members deserve high appreciation. Sincere thanks to the parish Management Committee for all their support and guidance. Grateful to all our members who supported by picking up food boxes and contributing towards this noble cause. Together we can make wonders happen for the best of the whole world. Praises to the Lord for blessing us with His abundant grace in everything we serve.
MMVS Secretary would like to thank the following children who supported their moms in cooking and in admin tasks :-
Chris Thomas Vettiyil , Aaron Liju Thakadiyel, Aleena Liju Thakadiyel, Alisha Ann Vargese , Hannah Philips, Jewel Gijo , Binta Joshua , Catherine James, Rachael James , Johanna Rachel Binu, Ivanna Ann Binu and, Riya Jeebo Mathews.
FOR OUR ATTENTION & TO NOTE:
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:
Sunday School Classes Cancelled:
There will be no Sunday School classes on Sunday, May 19, 2024 due to Pentecost service.
Sunday School Exams:
Centralized Exams for grades 10 and 12 and Final exams for all other grades will be conducted on June 30 Sunday. Teachers will confirm if there are any changes in this date on the respective WhatsApp class groups.
MMVS:
MMVS 9th Regional Conference:
Date: Saturday, June 01, 2024
Venue: St Thomas Orthodox Church
Address: 23 Brownlea Avenue Toronto , ON , M9P 2R5
Time: 8.45 AM to 3.30 PM
Keynote Speaker: H G Gee Varghese Mar Yulios Metropolitan (Metropolitan of the Diocese of Kunnamkulam)
Theme: Power of Resurrection
MMVS 2nd Annual Regional meet:
Scheduled for Oct 19th – 2024. There will be a Talent show in addition to Bible Study. It will be hosted by our parish.
Talent Show Skit:
Our parish MMVS is planning to do a skit as part of the Talent show. Hence calling in MMVS talented Script writers. Theme will be discussed later. Please reach out to Mrudula Thakadiyel latest by April 20th -2024.
Art Exhibition:
Scheduled tentatively for Nov 17th, 2024. All interested in displaying their art skill are requested to start preparing for the same
OCYM:
Urava-Volume 6, Release Date: Jun 30, 2024 / Theme- Pillars of the Church
Based on the Apostles’ lives, the next volume of Urava is scheduled for release on Sunday, June 30, 2024. OCYM invites all to take part in this edition as in previous volumes of the journal. We anticipate two articles per organization. Requesting the secretaries to communicate the below sub-themes to their respective groups. Please post the subthemes associated with your organization only. Sub-themes chosen for each organization are:
- Sunday School – Apostle Etymology
- MGOCSM – My favourite apostle (100 words)
- OCYM – Significance of #12
- MMVS – Women and apostolic ministry
- Seniors Forum – Ministry in the current age
- Choir – Apostles by nature or nurture
- Acolytes – Sacraments and Ministry
The articles are expected to reflect the theme “Apostles”. Last date of submission will be May 20, 2024. The articles are to be emailed to ocymtoronto@yahoo.com with the subject line ‘URAVA Vol 6 article – Organization name’. There will be a contest for Choir members to design the cover page. OCYM invites drawings for the inner pages which is open to all members.
For any questions or clarifications, kindly contact OCYM Secretary, Liju: ocymtoronto@yahoo.com or (647-227-4667)
IN-PERSON MEETINGS:
Sunday May 19th, OCYM monthly meeting after the refreshment.
LIVE-STREAMING LINK:
Please see below the link for Sunday Holy Liturgy Live Streaming
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDT7tcyQw1yZ1_yCG9AWStA
HOLY LITURGICAL TEXT:
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