Weekend Mail

Dearly Beloved,
 
Greetings to you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
 
November 10, 2024 – Hudos Eetho, Dedication of Church
 
Epistle Readings: Acts 7:44-53, Hebrews 9:1-14
Holy Evangelion: St John 10:22-42
22 It was the feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem; 23 it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered round him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness to me; 26 but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; 28 and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me,[a] is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”
31 The Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of these do you stone me?” 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we stone you but for blasphemy; because you, being a man, make yourself God.” 34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods’? 35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God came (and scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? 37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” 39 Again they tried to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
40 He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John at first baptized, and there he remained. 41 And many came to him; and they said, “John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.” 42 And many believed in him there.
 
Reflections:
Jesus was the Christ who was anointed to be the sacrament for salvation and redemption of the whole creation. He was the Son of God, second person among the Holy Trinity and the Co-Creator. He was God and Man united without both persons getting distorted or overlapped by the other.
 
Miracles at Cana and elsewhere, many healings, raising up from death, driving out evil spirits, subduing of water by walking over it and stilling of storm, all of these revealed his unquestionable authority over the powers of nature. His words of wisdom revealed His command over language as spoken words (“Let there be”) created everything according to the creation account in the book of Genesis. Command over words means command over everything. “Lazarus, come out”, “Taleetha Koomi – Arise, Girl”, “Ephathah”, “Your sins are forgiven”, “Take thy bed and go”, “Fill up the jars and serve”, “Be still”, “You will be with me in Paradise”, “Come and see”, Follow me”, “On this rock will I build the church”, “Go and preach”…all these utterances were full of authority and power that transformed hearts and situations.
Jesus gave these words to his followers for them to use and transform lives and situations. They were able to do miracles with His words. When they doubted their authority given by Him or as being his elects, they failed in revealing the power of the word.
 
The religious authorities were unable to understand this potentiality and possibility of being the children of God. God created everything, everyone. For humans, he created them in His Image and Likeness, which means with the same authority and possibilities. By committing sin, they lost paradise, hope and the way to the Kingdom of God. For ages they were put under the darkness of ignorance and suffering thus distorting the divine image, and God had to send His only Begotten Son to save them. Jesus came to the world to reveal the lost identity of the Image and Likeness of the Creator God. He came to the world so that they would find themselves and thus unite with their Creator. To make this happen, He lived with them and moved among them to enable them to regain their lost image.
 
Everyday Jesus the Lord reveals to us our identity and purpose in life. Having the Image and Likeness of God means that we have the same authority and potentiality, the same revealed in Jesus. Our words are to use with power and authority, and it will change everything. As He did it, we hold on to faith, always being aware of our divinity that works together with our human frailty. We submit everything in prayer with absolute trust in God. We develop our inherent abilities and graces through using our talents, not for our own ambitions but for His Will, and thus we become transformers! There can be questions about our being and personality, suspicion about our Divinity by worrying about our failures and flaws. Every time situations or thoughts challenge our confidence and faith, we submit ourselves more to God and just act in faith.
 
On this feast of Dedication, what else can we achieve other than regaining our faith and realising ourselves as the sons and daughters of God the Father? As Christ said that He was the Son of God, we also declare that we are His sons and daughters, and we can change everything for the best. We change ourselves to change everyone, everything, transforming death to life, dark to light, despair to hope, sadness to joy, weakness to strength, division to unity, distortion to perfection, fall to victory, hatred to love, …so that we may have on earth – the experience of Paradise!
 
FEASTS AND REMEMBRANCES:

  1. November 05, HG Dr Stephanos Mar Theodosius Metropolitan, 17th anniversary, entombed at St Thomas Asram, Bhilai
  2. November 06, HG Gevarghese Mar Gregorios Metropolitan Valiyaparampil, 58th anniversary, entombed at Thrikkunnathu Seminary, Alwaye
  3. November 08, HH Baselios Marthoma Mathews I, 28th anniversary, entombed at Devalokam Aramana Chapel, Kottayam
  4. November 08, Konattu Mathen Malpan, 97th anniversary, Valiyapally Pampakuda
  5. November 10, Very Rev Philipose Ramban Kayamkulam, 212nd anniversary, entombed at St Thomas Cathedral, Kannamkodu, Adoor
  6. November 11, Remembrance Day, Poppies shall be available at church. Please pick a flower and wear it, and kindly remember to put your donations in the box.

This day is for giving thanks to war veterans who fought to keep their country and people safe. Every war veteran must be revered and respected for the commitment they had for their country and nation which they accomplished by giving their life and future. They fight not for their own interests but for the security and peace of their land. And they do it without hatred. Their failure can cause their country and people to fail. Hence, they keep themselves equipped, disciplined and vigilant.  They can inspire their generation and future generations to live in discipline by being well equipped to win over all kinds of evil forces. May we together respect them and pray for their souls. We also join the support projects for their families.
 
St Paul has asked to put on the Armor of God to fight against evil. Every faithful is expected to be a saint, well equipped to defeat evil and not carrying hatred or dislike against fellow beings.
 
FROM OUR LAST UPDATE:
Parish Perunnal: Big Thanks!
We thank God for the immense blessings and amazing graces we experienced through the Perunnal from the flag hoisting on the previous Sunday until the completion on the Perunnal day. In the perunnal flag, we could see ourselves soaring high and free, freed from our weakness and despair. Despite constraints and challenges, our participation in the evening prayer, Raza and in the perunnal liturgy was overwhelming. It was amazing to see all of us who turned up and came before the Holy Altar on the day of remembering a saint who lived a simple life of faith and prayer about 122 years ago. We proved what we value more in the current world of many options and choices. We prefer a life that is pleasing to God than to the world. We were enthused in becoming the procession that carries heavenly mysteries while walking on the street like the Lord and His saints walked. We felt the prayerful presence of the Saint who is always praying for us. It was our turn to return our thanks for ‘n’ number of blessings we have received through his intercession, and we did it well. We believe that the Lord and His saint are pleased by our response.
 
Sincere thanks to:
The parish Managing Committee for their leadership and thoughtfulness in organising everything for the perunnal of our Patron Saint.
Very Rev Joseph Thaliaparampil Cor Episcopa and Rev Fr Gevarghese Thampan for their leadership, devotional messages and offering the Holy Liturgy and for their blessed presence
The pilgrims who walked in prayer from Brampton to the shrine
All the spiritual organizations and leaders for their participation and support
All who volunteered to arrange everything for the Raza and Nerchavilampu.
Those who offered their vehicles decorated and lighted
Altar Servers and parish choir for their assistance
Families who brought nercha, unniyappam, neyyappam, pachoru
Families who served food on Saturday and Sunday
All who contributed towards the perunnal expenses
All our beloved members, friends and guests
Al our children for enthusiastically holding multi coloured umbrellas and flags
All our well wishers
May the continuing intercession of Parumala Thirumeni be a strong fortress for all of us.
 
Welcome, Newborn
We are delighted to announce the birth of Rachel Shalu, second baby girl to Shalu Skaria & Leena (Dir Ref S 35) on Friday 25th Oct 2024. Hearty congrats to the parent couple and to the elder sister Sarah. We praise God for His abundant graces. We welcome Rachel to our beautiful parish community. God bless the child and everyone in the family.
 
Congratulations, President Trump
We congratulate Donald Trump who won the elections to become the new President of USA. We wish President Trump all the best for the tenure ahead as he leads the country with an authority bestowed upon him. May his reign be a blessing to his country and to the whole world in accordance with the Will of God.
 
Canada Diocese
Headquartered in Toronto, a new diocese for Canada was announced on November 01, 2024. It will be headed by the Catholicos and assisted by HG Dr Zachariah Mar Nicholovos Metropolitan. While the details of the functioning and administration of the new diocese are yet to be confirmed, we uphold in prayer the diocese and the flock who would come under it.
 
FUTURE IMPORTANT DATES / EVENTS: Please note in your calendar.
MGOCSM, Holy Liturgy in English on Saturday November 09, at 08:30 am
The service will begin at 08:30 am and will finish by 09:45 am. Please make use of this opportunity. Note that the MGOCSM will be organising the Holy Liturgy in English on the second Saturday of every month. This will not replace the English liturgy on fourth Sundays.
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.
 
Area Prayer Meetings:
We have resumed the prayer meeting after a long break. Though we had prayer meetings conducted online during Covid lockdown, the in-person meetings have resumed only recently. We request all our area coordinators to reach out to families to look for a convenient time and date for weekend prayers. It can be on Friday, Saturday or Sunday based on the availability and convenience of hosts and participants.
It will be a graceful fellowship time for our families.
 
We will be studying the Acts of the Apostles for all area prayer meetings. Please go through chapters 1&2 when we meet for the area prayer. A compilation of the thoughts and discussions shall be shared in the respective groups for us to revisit.
 
UPCOMING AREA PRAYER MEETINGS List of meetings planned for Nov-Dec 2024

  1. November 9 @ 4:00 PM: St George’s Area Brampton: – Shibu Daniel & Sunu (Member ID S 08), 12-21 Eastview Gate, Brampton, ON L6P 1P6
  2. November 23 @ 04:30 PM: St Paul’s Area: – Jacob P George & Lila (Member ID J 02), 415-7428 Markham Rd, Markham, ON, L3S 4V6

(We have moved the date from third Saturday to fourth in November because of the KCEF Ecumenical Carol scheduled on Saturday Nov 16 in the afternoon)

  1. December 07 @ 04:00 PM: St Mary’s Area Mississauga:– Anand Joseph & Amy (Member ID A 15), 1040 Hemstreet Cres, Milton, ON, L9T 6S3

UPCOMING IMPORTANT DATES AND EVENTS:
November 10, Hudos Eetho, Feast of Dedication of the Temple
 
Remembrance service of Rev Fr Daniel Thomas to be held at St Mary’s Orthodox Church, Ajax on Sunday Nov 10, 2024
The vicar and the members of St Mary’s Ajax have invited us to take part in the remembrance service of Rev Fr Daniel Thomas, their former vicar, on Sunday Nov 10, 2024. We keep the service in prayer and whoever finds it convenient, please join the Holy Liturgy at Ajax.
 
November 16, KCEF Ecumenical Carol at Marthoma Church Stouffville at 04:30 PM.
 
MMVS Event- Nov 17th, 2024, Art Exhibition 
All interested in displaying their art skills are requested to start preparing for the same. Last year we had a few beautiful works of art presented and made available for buying. The same provision will be there this time too.
 
St Joseph’s Elders Forum – Luncheon Meeting on Thursday November 21 @ 12:00
St Joseph’s Elders Forum will have the luncheon meeting on Thursday November 21st at 12:00 noon at the Parish Hall. All our respected senior members are welcome.
 
Consecration of St Gregorios Indian Orthodox Church on 22 & 23 Nov 2024
The vicar and the parish members of St Gregorios Indian Orthodox Church have invited us to the consecration of the newly bought church at 499 Guelph Street, Georgetown, ON, L7G 4B6 on Friday 22 & Saturday 23 Nov 2024. We congratulate the community on moving to the new place. We praise God for His miraculous guidance. May we all keep the parish and the consecration in our daily prayer and assure our participation and support. The consecration service will be graciously led by HG Dr Zachariah Mar Nicholovos Metropolitan.

General Body Meeting: Sun Nov 24, 2024
The parish General Body Meeting will be held on Sunday, November 24 after the Holy Liturgy.
Agenda:

  • Prayer
  • Review of Previous General Body Meeting
  • Review of Articles of Amendment
  • Review of By-Law
  • Election of Office Bearers for 2025

Eligibility Criteria:

  • Subscription must be paid in full until December 31, 2023                     
  • Holy Confession must be done between November 17, 2023, and November 16, 2024

Preliminary eligibility list shall be posted on Sunday, November 10th and the final list will be posted on Sunday, November 17th. To avoid any last-minute confusion, please check with the parish office for any dues to be paid or Holy Confession to be administered at the earliest.
Please assure our participation and keep the meeting in our daily prayer.
 
Area Carols:

  • Dec 01 Sunday, St Mary’s Mississauga
  • Dec 08 Sunday, St Paul’s Scarborough
  • Dec 15 Sunday, St George Brampton

The House Carolling will be hosted by our families in respective areas. Families who wish to host the carols are requested to liaise with the area prayer coordinators to plan for the needful. Parish members and carol singers will leave the church after the Holy Liturgy by 01:00 pm to finish before 09:00 pm.
 
Carol Service and Christmas Celebration Eve:
Dec 21 Saturday at Church commencing with Evening Prayer at 05:30 pm followed by Carol Singing and presentations by Organizations.
 
Christmas Holy Liturgy: Timing shall be announced soon.
 
HH Baselios Paulose II Charity Food Drive
We thank all donors. The collected items shall be handed over to food bank this week.
 
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. Absolution shall be done during the morning prayer.
 
IN-PERSON MEETINGS: 
November 10, Sunday – after the Holy Liturgy and refreshment:

  • MMVS Monthly Meeting
  • Choir practice for Ecumenical Carol

Holy Liturgical Text for this Sunday
We will be using the Taksa of St Julius 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