Icon of the Archangel Gabriel

O ye incorporeal angels who stand before the throne of God, luminous with the brilliance thereof and everlastingly shining with radiance. As secondary luminaries, entreat Christ, that He grant unto our souls peace and great mercy.

O immortal messengers of the truly incorruptible Life, ye most blessed ones who received life from the first Life, ye have become holy beholders of the eternal Wisdom, full of light, and reflecting lamps shown forth as is meet.

O ye archangels and angels, principalities, thrones, dominions, six-winged seraphim, and divine, many-eyed cherubim, instruments of wisdom, virtues and powers most divine. Pray ye to Christ, that He grant our souls peace and great mercy.

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HOLY RESURRECTION BYZANTINE CATHOLIC MISSION
PASTOR REV. THOMAS O'CONNELL
HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC CHURCH
307 BLACK OAK RIDGE ROAD
P.O. BOX 817
SEYMOUR TN 37865
PHONE: 609-1081

GLORY TO JESUS CHRIST! GLORY FOREVER!
SLAVA ISUZU CHRISTU! SLAVA NA VIKY!

MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL PEOPLES...

We welcome all visitors among us always! We hope you find our worship true and reverent and our people here friendly and cordial. If you are seeking a spiritual home, we would be honored.

JULY 21, 2002 - 9TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST - OUR VENERABLE FATHERS SIMEON AND JOHN, HERMITS, ST. EZECHIEL - THE THIRD OF THE FOUR GREATER PROPHETS AND WRITER OF THE CANONICAL BOOK OF SCRIPTURE.

NEXT DIVINE LITURGY: AUGUST 3 (SATURDAY EVENING)
5:00 - PRAYER RULE OF THE MOTHER OF GOD; 5:30 DIVINE LITURGY

TODAY'S DIVINE LITURGY IS OFFERED FOR: FATHER MARK SCHOLZ, WHO WAS ORDAINED A PRIEST ON SATURDAY, JULY 20.

PLEASE REMEMBER IN YOUR PRAYERS THE SICK MEMBERS OF OUR MISSION: JOANN CUTTY, DOLORES ANTCLIFF.

OFFERING FOR JULY 7 - $424.00

CURRENT BALANCE AS OF JULY 7 - $14,113.72

If you would like the Divine Liturgy offered for a loved one who is deceased or living, please give your offering to Father O'Connell and obtain a Liturgy intention card from William Gogar. Please write down the intention so it can be put in the bulletin.

On Saturday evenings at 6:30 PM, Byzantine vespers are prayed here at Holy Family, when there is no Divine Liturgy that weekend. Everyone is welcome to attend.

SAINTS BORIS AND HLIB (July 24)
     Two princes of 'Rus Ukraine who lived their Christianity to a heroic degree by refusing to rise up against their brother who wanted to destroy them. At his death, Volodymyr left his realm to his twelve sons. No doubt he had hoped that they would live together in harmony, but that was not the case. Immediately after his death, a struggle for power erupted among his sons. Sviatopolk took control of Kiev and decided to destroy all opposition even if that meant murdering his brothers. He decided to kill his half-brother Boris whom he conisdered to be his father's favorite. Boris was away when his father died. On hearing of his father's death, he quickly returned to Kiev. On the way, he was met by some of his father's advisors who urged him to take over Kiev, but Boris refused: "I will not fight my older brother. He can have Kiev." But Sviatopolk was very jealous of Boris and knew that the people of Kiev loved Boris more than him. So he decided to send men to kill Boris. Boris found out that his brother wanted to kill him, but he did not run away. When the murderers came to Boris, they heard him singing morning prayers. When he had finished praying, they came into his tent and killed him.
     But Sviatopolk was not content with Boris' death. He decided to kill his brother Hlib, also. He sent a message to Hlib that their father was very ill and desired to see him. Hlib left for Kiev immediately. As he was traveling, he received word from his sister, Predslava, that their father was already dead, that Boris had been killed, and that Sviatopolk was going to kill him also. Hlib wept: "I loved my father very much and I am sorry that he has died. But my beloved brother, Boris! What shall I do without him? I do not want to live without him." While he was grieving for his father and brother, the murderers sent by Sviatopolk found Hlib and killed him also. At the insistence of the people, Boris and Hlib have been proclaimed martyrs.

FEAST OF THE DORMITION OF THE HOLY ANNE
the Mother of the Mother of God (July 25)

Anne, the wife of Joachim and the mother of Mary, is the grandmother according to the flesh of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ. Her name means "grace" or "the gracious one," "the loving one."
(Kondak: "Let us celebrate the memory of the grandparents of Christ and fervently ask for their help, so that salvation may be assured for all those who cry out: "Oh God who glorified them according to your will, remain always with us!")

ST PANTELEIMON, the Physician (July 27)
Pantaleimon was born in Nicodemia of a pagan father and Christian mother. He was instructed by Hermolaus whose feast was celebrated on July 26. He was decapitated in 305 for having practiced the Christian faith while healing the sick. (Kondak: "You emulated God's mercy, and He granted you the power of healing, O Panteleimon, victorious martyr of Christ! Heal our spiritual diseases through your intercession, and as we constantly cry out to the Lord, 'Save us!' take away the temptations which the enemy always places before our steps.")

AUGUST: THE MONTH OF THE THEOTOKOS
To the Byzantine Catholic, August is a sacred month - a month that brings with it a feeling of intensified reverence. It is the month of the Blessed Theotokos (Mother of God). For on the fifteenth of August, the Church celebrates the most solemn of feasts related to the Mother of God, namely her Dormition or falling asleep. Special prayers are prayed (known as the Paraclisis or office of Consolation) from August first to August fourteenth. There is also a strict fast from August first to the fourteenth, with the usual mitigations for Saturday, Sunday, and the feast of the Transfiguration (August sixth). The observance of this fast is voluntary. Feast of the Dormition marks the entry of the Mother of God body and soul into heaven. We observe this feast joyfully because our Lord's Resurrection has shown us that death is not the end but the beginning of life.

SAYINGS FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS
Whoever honors the Lord also honors the holy [vessel]; who instead dishonors the holy vessel also dishonors his Master. Mary herself is that holy virgin, that is, the holy vessel.
St. Epiphanius of Salamis

Last updated: 21-Jan-2003