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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
FATHER THOMAS O’CONNELL, PASTOR
FATHER DEACON RON VOLEK, PASTORAL ASSISTANT
HOLY FAMILY CATHOLIC CHURCH
307 BLACK OAK RIDGE ROAD PO BOX 817
SEYMOUR, TN 37865
PHONE: 865-609-1081
www.hrbcc.org

Slava Isusu Christu! Slava Na Niky!
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever!

Divine Liturgy begins at 4 p.m. Every Sunday
Ninth Hour Prayer precedes Liturgy at 3:30 p.m.

Potluck supper follows Liturgy on the third Sunday of the month
Also at this time non-perishable foods and items for those in need

JUNE 3, 2007
SUNDAY OF ALL SAINTS
THE HOLY MARTYR LUCILLIAN AND HIS COMPANIONS

Our Offerings
May 27: $381 — Candles: $11

PLEASE NOTE: THE FAST OF STS. PETER AND PAUL BEGINS ON MONDAY, JUNE 4, AND GOES THROUGH SATURDAY, JUNE 28.

REJOICE, O VIRGIN THEOTOKOS!
Any Christian who has ever sought the intercessory aid of the Mother of God, or who has spoken of her as the “Theotokos,” owes a debt of gratitude to St. Cyril of Alexandria, a saint of the fifth century, who courageously defended the correct teachings regarding the Mother of God.
St. Cyril was born in the latter part of the fourth century and was a nephew to Archbishop Theophilos of Alexandria. As a youth, Cyril was raised in a Christian environment. His uncle took personal responsibility for Cyril’s upbringing and education. As an adult, Cyril dedicated his life to the service of God and eventually succeeded his uncle as Archbishop of Alexandria in 412 AD.
A serious confrontation faced Cyril soon after he became the Archbishop. The Patriarch of Constantinople, Nestor, together with the priest, Anastasius, began to teach that Mary—because of her humanity—could not have given birth to God and, therefore, was undeserving of the title, Mother of God or Theotokos. St. Cyril, however, refuted this false teaching at the Third Ecumenical Council at Ephesus in 431 AD, and eventually saw Nestor condemned and banished from the patriarchal throne.
St. Cyril’s feast day is Saturday, June 9.
May St. Cyril help us to defend the truths of our faith now and always!

Sunday of All Saints
The Sunday after Pentecost Sunday is dedicated to the memory of All Saints. The commemoration of All Saints Sunday is placed just after Pentecost Sunday in order to remind us of what the power of the Holy Spirit can do in our lives. The saints were—and continue to be—those individuals who allow the Holy Spirit to be active in their lives.
Saint Paul tells us that when the Holy Spirit is alive and active in our lives we will experience “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:21) On the other hand, if the Spirit is absent from our lives, there will be “hatred, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissension, occasions of envy, and the like.” (Galatians 5:21)
Interestingly, at one time the words “saint” and “Christian” were interchangeable. In the early Church, sainthood was not considered to be an exceptional way of life. Sainthood was expected of every Christian. Saints were not considered to be perfect humans, rather saints were simply considered to be forgiven sinners who tried their best to follow after Christ.

WHY DO WE LIGHT CANDLES BEFORE ICONS?
1. For the reason that our faith is light. Christ said, “I am the light of the world.” The light of a candle or vigil lamp reminds us of the light with which Christ illuminates our souls.
2. To remind us of the radiant character of the saint whose icon we light the candle in front of, for saints are called “sons of light.” (John 12:36, Luke 16:8)
3. To serve as a reproach for our deeds of darkness, for our evil thoughts and desires, to call us to the path of evangelical light, and so that we zealously try to fulfill the commandments of the Savior: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works.” (Matthew 5:16)
4. So that the candle will be a small sacrifice to God, who gave Himself completely as a sacrifice for us, and as a small sign of our great gratitude and radiant love for Him from whom we ask life, health, salvation, peace and everything that only boundless heavenly love can bestow.
5. So terror will strike the evil powers that assail us and lead our thoughts away from the Creator, even at the time of prayer. The evil powers love darkness and tremble at every light, especially light that belongs to God and to those who reflect Him.
6. To remind us that the Creator created light before anything else: “And God said, ‘Let there be light;’ and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3)
Light must be present at the beginning of our spiritual lives, so that the light of Christ’s truth will shine within us before anything else. From the light of Christ’s truth every good is created, springs up, and grows within us.

PASTORAL PONDERINGS
As I mentioned in last weeks Ponderings, we will spend the next several weeks reviewing our Catholic sacramental theology. Today I would like to concentrate on the Sacrament of Baptism. Basically, these are the doctrinal statements as found in the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults.
  1. The Sacraments of Initiation are Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist.
  2. Christ commissioned the Apostles to baptize. cf Matthew 28:19-20.
  3. Baptism gives a person birth into new life. It is necessary for salvation and for entry into the Church.
  4. The rite of Baptism consists in immersing the person in water three times or pouring water on his or her head three times while invoking the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
  5. The effects of Baptism are delivery from all sins, reception of the grace of divine adoption, being made a member of Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit, initiation into the Church, and being made a sharer in Christ’s mission as priest, prophet, and king.
  6. Baptism seals the person’s soul with a permanent spiritual mark. Because of this character, Baptism cannot be repeated.
  7. People who die for the faith, catechumens who died before being baptized, and those who do not know Christ or the Church through no fault of their own but who by the action of grace, seek God sincerely and do his will can be saved even without being baptized.
  8. Infants have been baptized since apostolic times, for this is a gift from God and does not presuppose human merit. Children are baptized in the faith of the Church.
  9. Trusting in God’s mercy, we confidently hope for the salvation of children who die without Baptism.
In time of necessity such as the danger of death, all persons can baptize. The person baptizing must intend to do what the Church does by pouring water three times on the candidate’s head while saying, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Take careful note of number eight. Many denominations do not practice infant baptism, but Catholics follow the apostolic tradition of baptizing infants. Number nine is also important, and represents what the church has always taught. The medieval concept of “Limbo” has been disregarded as not being theologically sound.
—Father Thomas O’Connell

Last updated: 8-Jul-2007