The Promise

October/November 2010
Words of Wisdom
“Neither do walls or rich furniture make a home.
Millionaires in magnificent mansions may never
know a home.
But where there are good relationships, where
love binds the family together and to God, there
happiness is always to be found. For good
relationships are heaven anywhere. Monotony
and misery cannot exist where there is love. But
the fire of love must be kept burning warmly
and brightly with the sweet wood of sacrifice.
In teaching us to cross out the “I” out of life, our
Lord tells us the secret of happiness; what the
Saints call the ecstasy of self-forgetfulness. For
divine love is always self-effacing, seeks to give
rather than to receive, to serve rather than to be
served, to love rather than to be loved, and will
sacrifice anything for the beloved.”
- St. Seraphim of Sarov

Dates To Remember Inside This Issue

Pastoral Message ..................................2
October 16
AR Race for the Cure Notices........................................................3
The Power of the Name.......................5
October 24
Parish Halloween Carnival News & Notes............................................7
6:00pm Summer Scene............................................8
Upcoming Events..................................12
October 31
Godparent Sunday Welcome....................................................15
More Summer Scenes...........................17
November 7
GOYA Volleyball Notes..........................................................20
Even More Summer Scenes...............28
November 21
Parish Thanksgiving Luncheon October Calendar...............................29
November Calendar.............................30
Page 1
THE PROMISE
Pastoral Message
O
n Sunday, September 26th the Holy
Orthodox Church invited us to solemnly
recall and honor Saint John the
Evangelist and for ages has directed that
his Gospel account (John 19: 25-27; 21: 24-25) at the
foot of the Cross to be proclaimed. At first, St. John
is quickly remembered for his contribution to the
dissemination and understanding of the Good News
with his writings. All in all, St. John is responsible
for composing five books in the New Testament: the
Gospel according to John; First, Second and Third
John as well as Revelation.
For his writings alone, St.
John would be revered for
his contribution to sharing
the light of Christ. But our
commemoration of him would
Be There
certainly be incomplete without
distinct acknowledgement of
for
his profound example. For St.
John helps make it abundantly
clear that a life filled with love
Jesus Christ
for others in word and in deed,
is the essence of life in Christ.
This perhaps will helps us appreciate why it is said
specifically that St. John is “the one whom Jesus
loved” and why as Christ was dying on the cross, He
entrusted the care of His precious mother, the Holy
Theotokos and Ever Virgin Mary, to Saint John.
Ultimately, one must conclude that with both words
and deeds, St. John brilliantly manifests the Christian
that moves people to “be there” for the Lord. We
must be in awe of St. John for not only revealing to us
Jesus Christ, but also the way he always tried to “be
there” for Christ.
St. John’s love for God (let alone his fellow man) is
evident in the fact that he did everything in his power
to make sure that thousands of years later, we would
completely understand what it is like to “be there”
for Christ. For when the times were hard, confusing
and even frightening; St. John was “there” for Christ.
Page 2
When other followers of the Lord scattered out of
fear, St. John stood watch at the foot of the Cross,
and embraced the responsibility of taking care of the
Theotokos. When it seemed he was destined to be a
part of the family business, he willingly changed his
plans and dedicated himself to sharing Christ with
the world (well beyond his lifetime). He said and did
these things, not because it was easy and not because
he hoped for fame or fortune; but because above and
beyond anything else, at all times and in all places, St.
John wanted to “be there” for Jesus Christ.
So when we think of all the
things we wish we could do for
the Lord, but anything short
of that exact vision causes us
to opt to do nothing at all, we
instead need to remember St.
John. And when we become
so consumed with finding the
right words to share the light of
Christ to others that we end up
saying nothing at all, we instead
need to remember St. John.
And then there are those times
that we become so focused on
our personal plans for growth that we close our eyes
to the opportunities to help other grow, we instead
need to remember St. John.
The words and actions of St. John make it perfectly
obvious that the most important way for us to give
glory to God, share His Good News, love Him and
serve Him is to always strive to “be there” for Christ.
We need to be there when HE wants us, where HE
wants us, how He wants us and no matter what He
wants from us.
Perhaps the Lord will ask us to speak out from Him,
we need not worry about what we will say, as long
as we make ourselves available to Him – His Truth
shall be made manifest. Maybe the Lord will ask us
(Continued on page 4)
 2010 October/November

2011 Festival News

Our Condolences
The Annunciation family notes with deep sadness In anticipation of next
the passing of our brother in Christ, Jack year’s Festival we are
Hawkins, the brother of John Hawkins who fell asking our Church family
asleep in the Lord. to help spread the word
that any local non-

denominational charity
The Annunciation family notes with deep sadness that would like to be
the passing of our sister in Christ, Misadeh considered for inclusion
Bateh, the sister of Naemeh Alley, who fell asleep in in the 2011 Festival must
the Lord. please submit a letter
to the Church Office
 as well as a description
or explanation of their
The Annunciation family notes with deep sadness work. Charity letters of
the passing of our sister in Christ, Baria Slonan, application will be collected through out the coming
the niece of Adam & Shoushan Khamis, who fell asleep month and must be received by November 1st, after
in the Lord. which we will be able to decide who our Festival
will sponsor 2011.

The Annunciation family notes with deep sadness Remember
the passing of our very own sister in Christ, Jean ALL Charity Application Letters for
Kumpuris, the mother of Jeanne Spencer & Charles the 2011 Festival
Kumpuris, who fell asleep in the Lord. must received by November 1st
in order to be considered!!!

The Annunciation family notes with deep sadness
the passing of our very own brother in Christ, Together, let uss continue to move our Festival to new
Edward Kutait, the husband of Phoebe Kutait, who heights to the glory of God and His Church at the
fell asleep in the Lord. Annunciation!

The Annunciation family notes with deep
sadness the passing of our brother in Christ, Reminder!
Paul Yokhana, the brother in law and brother of Adam
& Shoushan Khamis, who fell asleep in the Lord.
The Sunday School Open House will take

place on Sunday, November 14th!
Let us keep all of these families in our prayers and
beseech the Lord to offer them His comfort and strength.
“May Their Memory Be Eternal.”
Check us out!!!
Page 3
 THE PROMISE

Pastoral Message donations and

are becoming harder and
volunteers

(Continued from page 2) harder for many charities The

to find while the needs challenge
increase. The same should
to go and do some things that either seem impossible not ever be said of the
we face as
or unappealing. Again, we need not worry about the Church. And this is not Orthodox
strength required to meet the task or the scope of the because the Church is Christians, is
mission, as long as we make ourselves available to somehow immune to neither the content
Him – His Will shall be done. And it may come to economic storms or that of the message NOR
pass that the Lord will ask us to accept responsibilities somehow the Church the scope of the
that do not precisely fit into our plans or our comfort has somehow created a
zone. But with God’s Grace, nothing is impossible as reserve great enough to
mission It is whether
long as we consistently choose to “be there” for Him. endure the travails of or not Orthodox
its members. The truth Christians are ready
The challenge we face as Orthodox Christians, is of the matter is that and willing to “be
neither the content of the message NOR the scope of the Church will never there” for Christ to
the mission. It is whether or not Orthodox Christians be lacking in volunteers the same degree
are ready and willing to “be there” for Christ to the as long as Orthodox
same degree as St. John the Evangelist. Christians intend to “be
as St. John the
there” for Jesus Christ like Evangelist.
Often people of good intention will say that “if only” St. John. And the Church will
they had been alive at the time of Christ they would never lack the funds to do God’s
have surely stood with St. John at the foot of the work, as long as Christians honestly
cross. And then these same souls find it hard to “be intend to emulate St. John and “be there” for Christ.
there” for Christ at the Divine Liturgy; they find it Every time we hear of a Church that can’t seem to find
too difficult to “be there” for Christ by sharing His volunteers for its ministries and projects, we are talking
Word and His Church with others and they find it too about a crisis in faith whereby the people are unsure
taxing to “be there” for Him by serving His ministries. about their commitment to God. And anytime we
hear of a Church that is financially handicapped, it is
The fact of the matter is that if we honestly want to not because the message of the Lord is not resonating
lean our head upon Christ’s chest as St. John did at it is the result of a people who have lost sight of the
the last supper, then, just like St. John we really have to need to “be there” for Christ. There is no ministry, project
“be there” for Christ and follow Him along the dusty or expense that is impossible for the Church to meet as
and sometimes desolate paths of life. If we honestly long as there are faithful men and women committed to
want the privilege of being entrusted with all that “being there” for Christ like St. John.
is precious in the sight of God then we need to “be
there” for Him in tasks great and small throughout Like St. John the Evangelist, we must make the fateful
the week. If we honestly want to be considered among conclusion that without precondition or guarantee,
the Lord’s “beloved”, then we must honestly commit we are committed to “being there” for the Lord.
ourselves to “being there” for Him and doing His Will While we may envision our life with a level of security
day after day. and contentment that does not always include the
demands necessary to “be there” for Christ – let
In these troubled times we sadly hear more and there be no doubt, St. John himself initially never
more how charities of every shape, size and cause imagined leaving Bethsaida and abandoning the
are struggling to survive. During this bitter recession, (Continued on page 6)

Page 4

The Power of the Name
by Fr. George Morelli
Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around
like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pt 5:8).
The names we use for ourselves, for others, and for God
shape our thought and influence our understanding
of God’s revelation to us. A fundamental link between
God and mankind “is concentrated in the use of the
Name, in the ‘invocation of the Name.’ The Name is
the preeminent word, the proper, exclusive word which
is much more than a concept: it carries something of
the presence, of the person”. Paul Evdokimov makes
this meaning even clearer. In recounting Jesus’ visit
to the country of the Gerasenes where He met a
man with an unclean spirit, St. Mark records Jesus’
words: “What is your name?” (Mk 5:9). Evdokimov
goes on to explain: “To the Jewish mind the name
of an object or a being expresses its essence, and the
old adage nomen est omen sees in the name both the
expression and destiny of a person. Christ’s question
meant therefore: “Who are you; what is your destiny,
your secret being?”
God’s Revelation of Himself
Let us recall the words of Moses: “Hear, O Israel:
The Lord our God is one God...” (Dt 6:4). Bobrinskoy
remarks about what is known about Yahweh in the
Old Testament: “Even before God is called Father,
the fact He is called ‘God of the Fathers’ links Him to
paternity...” The same principle can be seen in Moses’
account of the Covenant of God with His people: “I
am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and
the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give
to you and to your descendants; and your descendants
shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread
abroad to the west and to the east and to the north
and to the south; and by you and your descendants
shall all the families of the earth bless themselves”
(Gen 28: 13–14). While in flight from the Egyptians,
we read Moses words: “And he said, ‘I am the God of
2010 October/November
your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he
was afraid to look at God” (Ex 3:6).
However, it is only in the New Testament that
a personalized name, “Father” will be given to
Yahweh. As Bobrinskoy notes: “When the Bible [Old
Testament] speaks of the word of Yahweh, this word
does not have the quality, the resonance of a proper
name ...”
Sex and Gender in God and the Church
God and His Triune Life
God reveals Himself to us as Father. No matter
how strongly the tenets of post-modern secularism
are promoted, unless we dare to rewrite Tradition
and Scripture in a totally radical way, the teaching
regarding God as Father cannot be denied without
compromising the essence of the Christian faith.” It
is prima facie, evident both humanly and by divine
revelation.
Consequently, attempts to rewrite history by
downgrading, denying or ignoring the truth that Our
Lord Jesus Christ Himself is “Son,” and His Father
is “Father” historically negate God’s Self-revelation.
As is pointed out in a recent article, “Perpetrators of
such attempts to distort the historical record often
use the term [historical revisionism] because it allows
them to cloak their illegitimate activities with a phrase
which has a legitimate meaning”.
The term negationism, as used in this article, describes
the process that attempts to rewrite history, including
Scripture, by minimizing, denying or simply ignoring
recorded facts. This wrongdoing of distorting the
historical record often uses anachronisms based on
the biases or values of the contemporary culture.
Only the Church, inspired by the Holy Spirit and one
with the Apostles, can interpret Holy Scripture.
(Continued on page 9)
Page 5
THE PROMISE
Pastoral Message
(Continued from page 4)
family business in order to serve the Lord. But that
was what was asked of him and he concluded that he
wanted to “be there” for Christ more than anything
else. And it is certainly not always easy to take the
straight and narrow path of the Christian way of life
when so many people around us are reveling on the
highway of sin. But it was no more comfortable for
St. John to have to stand up and tell his people that
they needed to open their eyes to the light of Christ.
Nevertheless, in order to truly “be there” for Christ,
that is exactly what he did, and exactly what is expected
of us. Furthermore, there is no doubt that it is not
always comfortable exposing ourselves as Orthodox
Christians before our friends and neighbors in order to
stand by the Cross like St. John. Enemies will threaten
or mock us, but just as with St. John, the Lord our
God will see our commitment to “be there for Him”
and He will entrust us with all that is precious to Him.
As followers of Christ our God, the assignments are
not always easy and the burden is not always light.
But as long as we make ourselves available to Him by
prepare ourselves with prayer, fasting and the exercise
our Christian faith week after week, we will always find
the way to “be there for the Lord”.
In the final analysis, none of us will be remembered
for what we owned, or for every word we ever said.
But we will be known in heaven and on earth for the
extent to which committed ourselves to “be there” for
Christ. Our dedication to Christ, at all times and in all
places, will not only shape our legacy but it will impact
our eternal destiny. So according to the example of St.
John the Evangelist, let us love the only Begotten Son
of God with our whole heart and our whole life. Like
St. John, let us regularly embrace the opportunities to
commune with Christ in the Eucharist. Then in the
shadow of St. John, let us renew our promise to the
Lord, that no matter the time, the place, the price or
the risk we will follow Christ, we will serve Christ, we
will “be there” for Christ our Lord and Savior.
Rev. Dr. Nicholas J. Verdaris
Page 6
The Promise is Back!
After a season of
dramatic technological
and software changes at
the Annunciation, The
Promise is coming back.
However, we are in still in
the process of transition
as we continue to
explore ways to enhance
the delivery, appearance,
efficiency and format of
our parish newsletter - so
we welcome your ideas in this on going process.
Also please keep in mind that The Promise remains
a vital instrument in disseminating information
affecting our Church family. So, if Church
family members and organizations have news or
announcements applicable to the entire Church
family, please submit items via e-mail to the
Church Office as soon as possible. Above all, keep
careful eye on the calendar now that the Promise is
moving to a bimonthly publication, we need to think
ahead, now more than ever in order to ensure critical
announcements are made in a timely fashion.
Remember the goal of this publication is to communicate
the Good News, explore the Good News, highlight the
Good News and keep us connected as a Church family
through The Promise of the Good News!
Save the Date!
Parish General Assembly
Sunday, December 5th
Together looking forward to 2011 to the
Glory of God!
 2010 October/November

A Note of Thanks Annunciation

To My Annunciation Parish Family: Godparent Sunday -
Thank you for providing me with a seminarian’s robe as October 31st
I prepare to go to Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School
of Theology. The love and support I have received from Our Church family is going
my parish family, exemplified by this very generous to pause to remember our
gift, has been a source of great joy and comfort. Baptismal/Chrismation vows
I look forward to wearing this robe at the divine as well as honor our Godparents
services at the seminary and being constantly who sponsored our entrance
reminded of my beloved Parish Family. into the Church on Sunday,
October 31st. On this special
Again, thank you. day we will have the blessed
opportunity to renew our
In Christ, dedication to Christ as well as celebrate our sacred
Jarrod Russell relationship with our Godparents.

If possible, Godparents and Godchildren should

attend the Divine Liturgy together,
sit near each other
What Happens and then receive Holy Communion together.
when You Add
Even if our Godparents are far way or have fallen
Homemade asleep in the Lord, in the Risen Christ they will
Cookies be with us! So let us all rededicate ourselves to the
+ Lord and share in His Heavenly Banquet together.

The
Mount St. Mary’s Explore The
Choir o d o x C h r is t ia n Faith
Ort h and
+ d of the Lord
into the Wor
Let’s go deeper
the Church!
Christmas Cheer the teachings of ox
in g to ex p lo re our Orthod
We are go f
+ h ri st ia n F a it h in the light o
C ns.
r to the Roma
Our Church St. Paul’s Lette
- n o p revi ou s experience or
Family? All are invited st a d es ire to grow in C
hrist!
u ir ed , ju
expertise req
Keep the evening of Sunday, December 5th ober 6th at 6:30pm
Wednesday, Oct 30pm
clear and discover a special Annunciation Church October 20th at 6:
6:30pm
family event!! November 3rd at
November 17th at 6:30pm
More details will be announced soon.

Page 7
THE PROMISE

Branson 2010!

Page 8

The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 5)
Evidence:
Scripture and the Writings of the Early
Church Fathers
St. John (1:14) tells us: “And the Word became flesh
and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have
beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the
Father.” Jesus Himself tells us how to pray: “Pray then
like this: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be
thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, On
earth as it is in heaven” (Mt 6:9–10).
St. Irenaeus of Lyons, the second-century Christian
apologist, tells us: “No man has seen God at any time
except the Only-Begotten Son of God, who is in the
bosom of the Father. He has declared [Him]...For He,
the Son who is in His bosom, declares to everyone the
Father who is invisible. For that reason they know Him
to whom the Son reveals Him.” In another place St.
Irenaeus also writes: “He whom the law proclaimed
as God, the same did Christ point out as the Father” .
The teachings of Origen of Alexandria (third-
century) fell afoul of Orthodoxy in some areas. Yet
his understanding of God as Father is Orthodox:
“Although no one is able to speak with certainty
about God the Father, it is nevertheless possible for
some knowledge of Him to be gained by means of the
visible creation and the natural feelings of the human
mind. Moreover, it is possible for such knowledge to be
confirmed from the Sacred Scriptures”. An important
champion of God’s revelation of God as Father is the
fourth-century St. Gregory of Nyssa. In his book,
Against Eunomius, St. Gregory of Nyssa states:
“I say, we have learned to what we ought to look with the eyes
of our understanding, that is, the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. We say that it is a terrible and soul-destroying thing to
misinterpret these Divine utterances and to devise in their stead
assertions to subvert them, assertions pretending to correct God
2010 October/November
the Word...For each of these titles understood in its natural sense
becomes for Christians a rule of truth and a law of piety.
For while there are many other names by which Deity is
indicated in the Historical Books, in the Prophets and in the
Law, our Master Christ passes by all these and commits to us
these titles as better able to bring us to the faith about the Self-
Existent, declaring that it suffices us to cling to the title, ‘Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost,’ in order to attain to the apprehension of
Him Who is absolutely Existent...
For when we hear the title ‘Father’ we apprehend the meaning
to be this, that the name is not understood with reference to itself
alone, but also by its special signification indicates the relation
to the Son. For the term ‘Father’ would have no meaning apart
by itself, if ‘Son’ were not connoted by the utterance of the word
‘Father.’ When, then, we learnt the name ‘Father’ we were
taught at the same time, by the selfsame title, faith also in the Son.
Now since Deity by its very nature is permanently and
immutably the same in all that pertains to its essence...Since
then He is named Father by the very Word, He assuredly always
was Father, and is and will be even as He was. For surely it is
not lawful in speaking of the Divine and unimpaired Essence to
deny that what is excellent always belonged to lt. For if He was
not always what He now is, He certainly changed either from
the better to the worse or from the worse to the better, and of these
assertions the impiety is equal either way, whichever statement is
made concerning the Divine nature.”
The essential revelation of God to us is that He is
called “Father,” “Son,” and “Holy Spirit.” He uses
the language of sex and gender to communicate to us
the name of His persons.
Trinitarian Ontology
Belonick, in commenting on the importance of
the name of Father and Son in the teaching of St.
Gregory of Nyssa, explains:
“The name “Father,” said Gregory, leads us to
contemplate (1) a Being who is the source and cause
of all and (2) the fact that this Being has a relationship
with another person—one can only be “Father” if
(Continued on page 10)
Page 9
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 9)
there is a son involved. Thus, the human term “Father”
leads one naturally to think of another member of
the Trinity, to contemplate more than is suggested
by a term such as “Creator” or “Maker.” By calling
God “Father,” Gregory notes, one understands that
there exists with God a Son from all eternity, a second
Person who rules with him, is equal and eternal with
Him.
“Father” also connotes the initiator of a generation,
the one who begets life rather than conceiving it, and
bringing it to fruition in birth. This is the mode of
existence, the way of origin and being, of the First
Person of the Trinity. He acts in Trinitarian life in
a mode of existence akin to that of a father in the
earthly realm. Before time, within the mystery of the
Holy Trinity, God generated another Person, the Son,
as human fathers generate seed.”
As Father of the created world, God creates from
without. In other words, creation exists apart from
Him. Creation is not equivalent to Him. God as
Father is transcendent to what He creates. There is no
room for pantheism. As Joseph Campbell has noted,
by giving God a feminine definition and name, God,
as mother, creates from within. God’s transcendence
is lost. The cosmos becomes one with God. Pantheism
abounds.
Ontological-Existential Understanding
The Eastern Church prefers not to use philosophy in
understanding the revelation God has given to His
Church. The Church takes what it are God’s words to
us as reflecting the essential or genuine character of
what they refer too.
The Reality of the Eucharist
For example, the Eucharist is the real presence of
Page 10
Christ; it is His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity.
The terms of scholastic philosophy such as ‘substance’
and ‘accident’ are not found in Eastern theology.
The Eastern Church simply accepts the ontological-
existential reality of Jesus’ words. St. Matthew (26:26–
28) tells us:
Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to the
disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a
cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying,
“Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant,
which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”
The Reality of the Holy Trinity
The meaning of the words of St. Paul are to be
understood as ontological-existential reality. St. Paul
connects the Son-ship of Jesus with the Fatherhood
of God, telling us: “Have this mind among yourselves,
which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in
the form of God, did not count equality with God
a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking
the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of
men. And being found in human form he humbled
himself and became obedient unto death, even death
on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name which is above every
name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and
every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the
glory of God the Father” (Phil 2:5–11).
St. Paul tells the Ephesians (3:15); “I kneel before the
Father, from whom every fatherhood in heaven and on
earth takes its name.” Bobrinskoy has an interesting
way of expressing the basic understanding of the
teachings of Christ regarding the “Holy Trinity” It
is summed up in his chapter titled “The theology of
language and the language of theology.” He states:
“Thus, the incarnation of the eternal Word means
that the eternal mystery of God can express itself
forever in human words...”
Later Bobrinskoy cites the view of St. Hilary of
Poitiers who radically opposed any speculation,

even theological, regarding the holy mysteries of the
Trinity. “The guilt of the heretics and blasphemers
compels us to undertake what is unlawful, to scale
arduous heights, to speak of the ineffable, and to
trespass upon forbidden places. And by faith alone we
should fulfill what is commanded, namely, to adore
the Father, to venerate the Son with Him and to
abound in the Holy Spirit ...”
The Deconstruction of the Christian
Vocabulary
Stealth: The Weapon of Choice of the
Evil One in the Modern Age
In a recent article I noted C. S. Lewis as a modern
philosopher-theologian, who alerts us to the secularist
-postmodernist threat. Secularists attempt to change
the world and the church to conform to their world
view. Lewis, like the Church Fathers of old, identifies
heresy not in ideological terms, but within the classical
framework of spiritual warfare. Ideas matter to Lewis
because they have consequences that affect the souls
of men. How man’s mind is shaped has bearing on
the light the soul receives. Indeed, we can heed the
pre-eminent teaching of St. Paul who exhorted us
to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind”
(Romans 12:2).
C. S. Lewis, recognizing that heretical challenges
ultimately seek to undermine and eventually vanquish
the Christian faith, argued that secularism is more
pernicious than many of the transparent ancient errors.
(see for example: The Abolition of Man). Secularism
conceals itself in the concepts and terminology of
Tradition while seeking to undermine and eventually
supplant it. Lewis wrote in 1959: “He (the evil one)
pours out self-knowledge in a quite shameless fashion.
But even if He (God) defeats your (the demons) first
attempt at misdirection, we have a much subtler
weapon...Our policy, for the moment, is to conceal
ourselves. Of course this has not always been so.”
For Lewis, the Evil One is cunning and often comes in
disguise. In his famous work The Screwtape Letters,
2010 October/November
the senior supervising devil tells the novice devil:
“Jargon, not argument, is your best ally in keeping
him from the Church. Don’t waste time trying to
make him think that materialism is true! Make him
think it is strong, or stark, or courageous—that it is the
philosophy of the future. That’s the sort of thing he
cares about.” Call the novice devil in this passage the
demon of correctness.
Repeating this “strong, or stark, or courageous”
message eventually moves correctness from suggestion
to fact. In psychological terms this means the listener
gives up his cognitive skills. Instead of applying a reality
test to the content of the message that is conveyed, the
listener allows the deliverer of the message to usurp
his cognitive potential.
The Secularist Appeal:
Human Justice and Sentiment
In this case, the jargon of the secular post-modernists
includes the following appeals: human justice and
fairness, equality in all things, liberty, and non-
discrimination. To these I might add doing things the
‘American way’: overcome insensitivity by making
judgments based on emotion and sentiment. In
human society these characteristics have value. In
the Kingdom of God, these values are ultimately
evaluated in terms of Divine Justice.
The Kingdom of God has a value system based on
Divine Justice, not human justice. Insofar as human
and Divine Justice are opposed to each other, a clash
is inevitable. In Scripture, the parable of the workers
in the Vineyard (Mt 20:1–16) is an example of Divine
Justice over what is considered human justice, as the
same wage or reward is given to workers regardless of
how long they worked.
In another example, we learn that claiming rights
and equality in strictly human terms does not work
in God’s Kingdom. In St. Mark’s Gospel (10:36, 37,
40), Jesus exhorts the apostles: “And he said to them
(Continued on page 14)
Page 11
THE PROMISE

How to Please the Lord Thanksgiving Service

Of the many ways we can show the Lord just how
important He is to us and our life, perhaps nothing is
as meaningful as when we come to worship Him at
His House at the appointed time. To do this as an ex-
pression of love. It speaks volumes about the con-
tent of our heart, the fervor of our faith and the im-
portance of Christ in our life. Just as when our own
children do something we ask of them, not because
they “have to” but because it will please us, so too
will the Lord be moved by an ongoing commitment
to attend the services at the Annunciation punctually
with ready hearts, minds and souls.
SUNDAY
Matins, 9:00am / Divine Liturgy, 10:00am
There is no better way for Orthodox Christians to
celebrate and honor one of the most noble of national
holidays than to gather as a Church family and
praise God for all the blessings He has given us - in
His Holy Church. This year before you finish or start
to cook the turkey, mash the potatoes, and prepare
the table for family and friends, let us gather at
the Annunciation on W ednesday evening ,
November 24th and together as a faithful Church
family us offer the Lord
our God true thanks.
The Divine Liturgy will
begin at 6:00pm. Let us
all make some time
to thank the Lord this
Thanksgiving.

2011
Halloween
ANNUNCIATION 
Thanksgiving Luncheon Carnival!!!!
Sunday, November 21st This year, the GOYAns are looking create a
You are invited new & improved event that will be fun for all
& we have A LOT to celebrate! ages so make sure to find something fun to
wear and keep
ANNUNCIATION
Thanksgiving Eve Liturgy Sunday, October 24th
Wednesday, November 24th at 6:00pm ...clear!
Let’s Come Together and Give
Thanks to the Lord! See you there!
Page 12
 2010 October/November

Celebrating All Those JOY News

Who Offer Our Parish Attention JOY youth and
the Gift of Song parents, we are planning
an afternoon of fun
Sunday, October 3rd and horseback riding on
has been designated by October 17th. Details are
our Archdiocese as being finalized so make
National Church Music sure to check upcoming
Sunday. On that day, Sunday Bulletins. But
our entire Church family immediately following
will join Orthodox the Divine Liturgy, we are
Christians throughout planning an afternoon of
the nation in offering “good ole fun!” Stay tuned!
prayers and thanks
for all those men and
women who share their
Volleyball Fun
gifts and serve as choir
director, organists, choir Parents
members and chanters. vs
On this upcoming day,
let us all make a special effort to thank all those GOYAns
in our Annunciation Church family who devotedly
serve Christ and help to uplift our spirits with their
ministry of Music. Without people willing to raise Sunday, Nov. 7th
their voices and committed to sharing their gifts, (this time it’s serious)
our worship would be lacking.
Attention Parents & GOYAns, we are planning
Thank God for all of the faithful members of the a grand match between parents and GOYAns on
Annunciation who so contribute to the joyful music Sunday, November 7th after the Divine Liturgy. No
of this Holy Church. expertise is necessary - but it is a time for parents
and youth to square off on the court and have a
blast. While it seems quite obvious that the parents
will easily defeat the kids, the youth have hopes and
Attention we need to teach them a volleyball lesson or two.
(hahaha) So bring a change of clothes, and lets have
GOYAns some fun together on Sunday, November 7th!!!!
We need to decorate the Hall for
Christmas
on Sunday, November 28th
so that everything will be ready
Happiness is a path,
for our Christmas Cookie Bash on not a destination.
Sunday, December 5th

Page 13
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 11)
[James and John], ‘What do you want me to do for
you?’ And they said to him, ‘Grant us to sit, one at
your right hand and one at your left, in your glory...’”
Jesus replies “‘… to sit at my right hand or at my left
is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has
been prepared.’” The kingdom of heaven and His
Church are based on God’s standards, and not human
standards. Negationists, secularists, post-modernists
and feminists, beware.
Affirmation of God as Father
The straightforward, ontological-existential understanding
of words and names in Scripture is thoroughly
Orthodox. Meyendorff, in his study of St. Gregory of
Palamas and the filioque controversy, writes: “So when
Photius was faced by the Latins who, on the basis of
their own theology, arbitrarily modified the wording
of the common Creed, the reproach of heresy came
readily to his pen. He clearly saw the weak point of his
adversary; if one admits the doctrine of Procession ab
utroque, he wrote, ‘the name of the Father is deprived
of its meaning and sense.’”
Affirmation of the Uniqueness of the
Feminine Charism
In a similar straightforward, existential context,
Orthodox theologians discern the essential revelation
and Tradition of the Church. Paul Evdokimov beautifully
describes the feminine vocation and charism: “The
ontological relationship of mother and child makes
woman like Eve, ‘the source of life.’ She watches over
every being, protects life and the world. Her interiorized
and universalized charism of ‘motherhood’ bears every
woman toward the famished and the needy and makes
admirably precise her feminine essence: married or
not, every woman is mother in aeternum. This is the
sacramental character inscribed in her very being.”
Page 14
Affirmation ofChrist Incarnate as Male
and Son of God
Evdokimov also captures the essential Church
teaching and Tradition regarding the male character
of the priesthood: “The ordained ministry, that of the
priesthood and episcopacy, is a masculine function of
witness. The bishop attests to the saving validity of the
sacraments and has the power of celebrating them.
He has the charism of watching over the purity of the
deposit of faith and exercising the pastoral authority.
The ministry of woman belongs to that of the royal
priesthood, and not that of attributed functions, as
with the ordained episcopacy and priesthood, but
that of her very nature. The ordained ministry is not
to be found in such charisms.” For Evdokimov an
authentic Orthodox Christian anthropology demands
a rediscovery of male and female are equal with but
with distinct vocations.
Affirmation by St. John of Damascus
St. John of Damascus, writing in the eighth century,
teaches the importance of icons in the Church as
representative of what they image. He writes: “An
image is of like character with its prototype...” St.
John’s description of the relationship of the persons
of the Godhead is also telling: “The Son is the living,
essential, and precisely similar Image of the invisible
God, bearing the entire Father within Himself, equal
to Him in all things, except that He is the Begetter.
It is the nature of the Father to cause; the Son is the
effect. The Father does not proceed from the Son, but
the Son from the Father. The Father who begets is
what He is because of His Son, though not in second
place after Him.”
St. John describes the icon of the Theotokos, the
God-bearer, the carrier and nurturer of her Son, as
an image appropriate for the container and bearer of
‘The Word:’
(Continued on page 16)
 2010 October/November

Welcome Welcome
The Orthodox Church in the Name of the Lord
and the Annunciation
in particular, had the The Annunciation family
privilege to warmly congratulates Claudiu &
welcome into its warm Anca Bene on the baptism of
and loving embrace their sons, Andrew & George,
the beloved servant of who were baptized at the
God: Keith Freeman Annunciation on June 26th.
through Chrismation. His entrance into the Holy Musat & Cinnon Chrihalmeanu are
the boys proud godparents. May
Church was sponsored by John Hawkins. Having
God bless our newest servants
been formally received into the Orthodox Church of the Lord, together with all
and become another beloved member of our of his family and friends!
Church family on August 29th, we look forward
to walking together on the path of life and faith. 
With our newly enlisted Orthodox Christian, let
us ask our Lord and Savior to continue to show The Annunciation family congratulates Mark
us the way of the Christ centered life. & Jana Hunter on the baptism of their son,
Daniel, who was baptized at the Annunciation on
July 24th. Stephanie Leake is the proud godmother.
2011 Parish Council May God bless our newest servant of the Lord,
Election Notice together with all of his family and friends!

Elections for a position on the

Annunciation Parish Council will
be held on Sunday, December
5, 2009. Please note that candidates and nominating Congratulations!
witnesses must be members in good standing with the
Parish for at least one year immediately preceding The Annunciation
the date of the election and register as candidates in family joyously
person. congratulates
Those men and women who love the Lord are active Konstantinos
in the life of the parish and have a sincere desire to Arnaoutakis
& Marie Mesidor
serve Christ and His Church at the Annunciation and
would like to be a candidate for a seat on the Parish who were joined in
Council must register as a candidate in person and blessed matrimony over
have a witness sign the form on the Fellowship Hall the summer.
bulletin board by Sunday, November 21st, 2010.
Then, in accordance with the Archdiocesan Uniform 
Parish Regulations, all candidates are required to May God grant you many years
meet with Father Nicholas on Sunday, November 21st of love & happiness!
in order to be eligible to serve and be placed on the
official ballot.
Page 15
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 14)
The ark of the covenant is an image of the Holy Virgin and
Theotokos.” For St. John, as “words edify the ear, so also the
image stimulates the eye... as words speak to the ear, so the image
speaks to the sight; it brings understanding.” For St. John, an
apologist for icons during the influence of iconoclastic Islam, it
would be inappropriate for Christ to be depicted as a female,
or the Theotokos to be depicted as a male. He writes: “Let us
receive the tradition of the Church in simplicity of heart, without
vain questioning, since God created man to be straightforward,
but he has entangled himself with an infinity of questions. Let
us not allow ourselves to learn a new faith, in opposition to the
tradition of the fathers.
Theotokos with Christ child
St. John calls the icon “a more distinct portrayal of
the prototype.” The Saint reminds us that in the Old
Testament, God appeared to Jacob as “a man” (Gen
32:24–32); Moses saw the “back of a man” (Ex 32:23);
“Isaiah saw Him as a man sitting upon a throne” (Is
6:1); Daniel saw the likeness of a man and one like
a son of man coming before the Ancient of Days.”
(Dan. 7:9, 13) St. John warns us not to learn a new faith
in opposition to the tradition of the fathers. Quoting
St. Paul (Gal 1:9) he tells us: “If anyone is preaching
to you a gospel contrary to that which you received,
let him be anathema.” Christ became incarnate as a
male, as His Father appeared to the ancient prophets
as a man. The appropriate icon of the one true priest,
Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, is the male
form of our human nature, as He Himself was. Only
this male form ‘icon’ can be ordained priest-bishop.
The complementary nature of male-female, father-
mother, husband-wife, father as begetter of children
and mother as bearer of children is essential to
Orthodoxy. Evdokimov interprets the biblical account
of the creation of Eve from Adam as the foundation
of the “consubstantiality of the complementary
Page 16
principle.” After the fall, brokenness occurs and
distorted masculinity and femininity ensues. Two
possible outcomes can take place: 1) without God’s
grace “discord and fruitless contention” occur; and 2)
with Christ at the center, masculinity and femininity
are the “prophetic figure of the Kingdom of God, the
ultimate unity, the communion of the Masculine and
Feminine in their totality in God.”
Paul Evdokimov echoes the teaching of the Church
Fathers. He writes: “St. Clement of Alexandria states
very clearly that ‘the Son only confirms what the
Father has instituted...God created man male and
female. The male is Christ, the female is the Church
...’” The complementarity of the sexes is an icon of
the love of the Holy Trinity, the way the Father, Son
and Holy Spirit relate to each another. The male and
female sexes making up mankind reflects the essence
of God Himself. St. John the Evangelist tells us “...
for love is of God...God is love” (1 Jn 4:7–8). The love
of Christ for the Church becomes the archetype of
marriage, the union of male and female who become
one flesh and create offspring, flesh of their flesh, in
imitation of God, who created us.
In the Orthodox Church, sacred Scripture is rooted
in Tradition. No individual on their own can interpret
scripture. Any passage has to be viewed in terms of
the “mind of the Church.” For example, attempts
to interpret St. Paul’s saying in Galatians (3:28) that
there are no differences before God between male
and female, are not viewed by the Church Fathers
as grounds for the female priesthood. Rather, as St.
John Chrysostom interpreted, the phrase is meant
to underscore the equality of spirituality or divine
illumination that can be attained by both male and
female. In Eastern spirituality, only in following God’s
do we attain this illumination. For example, a bishop
is of a higher ecclesial rank, endowed with the fullness
and completeness of the ordained priesthood given
to the apostles and their successors by Christ. If a
male desires to be a bishop and God’s will is for him
to serve only as a priest, his desire is to his personal
damnation. As Our Lord told the apostles:
(Continued on page 18)
 2010 October/November

BEFORE the Trip

After the Trip

Page 17
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 16)
“Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall
enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the
will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Mt. 7:21)
The Fullness of Time
St. Paul told the Ephesians: “For he has made known
to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ
as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in
him, things in heaven and things on earth” (1:9–10).
St. Paul’s teaching on the fullness of time is also found
in his words to the Galatians: “So with us; when we
were children, we were slaves to the elemental spirits
of the universe. But when the time had fully come,
God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under
the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so
that we might receive adoption as sons”(4:3–5).
The fullness of time encompasses the coming of the
Messiah, Jesus, who would be born of the people of
the Covenant, God’s chosen people. He would be
born of the house of David. As Isaiah prophesized:
“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign.
Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a
son, and shall call his name Immanu-el. He shall eat
curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil
and choose the good” (Is 7:14–15):
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light
shined. Thou hast multiplied the nation, thou hast increased its
joy; they rejoice before thee as with joy at the harvest, as men
rejoice when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the
rod of his oppressor, thou hast broken as on the day of Midian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every
garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire. For to
us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will
be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called ‘Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’
Page 18
Of the increase of his government and of peace there will
be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to
establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and for evermore (Is 9:2–7).
There is no coincidence in God’s providential care
for the world. The era in which the ultimate Divine
Intervention among mankind took place, with its
distinctive character, is part of the fullness of time in
which the birth and lifetime of Our Lord God and
Savior Jesus Christ was Divinely ordained to happen.
This includes the place, people, culture and state of
the world in which this momentous event occurred.
Historical negationists would like us to believe that
the patriarchal Judaism of the people of the first
Covenant was accidental and overthrown by Jesus in
His establishment of the people of the New Covenant.
However, this conclusion is not consistent the mind of
Christ or His Church.
A Protestant Church Sees Through the
Negationists’ Argument
In a significant rebuttal to negationist theory that echoes
the “mind of the Church,” the Lutheran Protestant
denomination issued the following statement:
Today the claim is frequently advanced that this masculine
rendering of God in the Bible is a function of the patriarchal
culture in which the Scriptures were written. Biblical language,
it is said, reflects cultural realities and biases which we, given
the new realities of our own cultural egalitarianism, are free to
replace through the use of ‘gender neutral’ language.
Such an analysis of the biblical language,
however, does not take with adequate seriousness the
uniqueness of Israel in the midst of the nations. The
peoples surrounding ancient Israel and the believers
of the New Testament commonly possessed female as
well as male deities. Rather than reflect the religious
language of the broader culture, the language of the
Bible was in considerable contrast to the language
and understanding of surrounding peoples. Had the
biblical authors thought of God in feminine terms (as

in surrounding cultures), we would expect that there
would be some equilibrium of use between masculine
and feminine language concerning God. In fact,
however, that is not the case.
Jesus Distinguished the Essential from
Non-essential: Unseating Culture
Many of Jesus’ words and actions, as understood by
the ancient Church and recorded in the Gospels,
taught those around Him what was essential versus
unessential in the Jewish way of life at the fullness
of time. Jesus was no stranger to challenging the
‘establishment’ and customs of the culture of his day.
A few examples follow.
> Our Lord’s first miracle was performed at the
direction of a woman, his mother, the Theotokos. The
gospel account of changing water into wine at the
Cana wedding feast reads: “When the wine gave out,
the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’
And Jesus said to her, ‘O woman, what have you to do
with me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said
to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you’” (Jn 2:3–5).
> To the Jewish leaders, Jesus said: “Woe to you,
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you tithe
mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the
weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and
faith” (Mt. 23:23).
> In St. John’s Gospel Jesus was found talking alone
with a woman, and what’s more, a Samaritan woman.
The Samaritans were a community of mixed ancestry
not worshipping at the Jerusalem temple and thus
eschewed by the Jews. In St. John’s account: “The
Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you,
a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?’ For
Jews have no dealings with Samaritans... Just then his
disciples came. They marveled that he was talking
with a woman.” (Jn 4:9, 27)
> In the parable of the Good Samaritan, it is an
outcast Samaritan who shows the mercy of God,
rather than a Levite or priest, that is, the elite of the
chosen people. St. Luke (10:33–37) tells us:
2010 October/November
But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he [the
beaten man]; was and when he saw him, he had compassion,
and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and
wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an
inn, and took care of him.
And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to
the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more
you spend, I will repay you when I come back. ‘Which of these
three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among
the robbers?’ He said, ‘The one who showed mercy on him.’
And Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’”
There is no hesitation on the part of Jesus to break
with tradition and point out that Godliness (mercy)
is not inherent in title or bloodline, but is shown by
the deeds and actions which come from the heart.
Godliness is open to any one.
> The Romans were the pagan occupiers of the
Holy Land in Jesus’ time. They were hated by the Jews
for their denial of God, worship of idols, oppressive
taxes and brutal occupation. But this did not influence
Jesus who read the heart and humility of the Roman
Centurion who came to Him.
As he entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to
him, beseeching him and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying
paralyzed at home, in terrible distress.” And he said to him, “I
will come and heal him.”
But the centurion answered him, “Lord, I am not worthy to
have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my
servant will be healed. For I am a man under authority, with
soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to
another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and
he does it.”
When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who
followed him, “Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I
found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west
and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom
of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into
the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth”
(Mt 8:5–12).
(Continued on page 22)
Page 19
 THE PROMISE

Happy Birthday Thank You!

to our parishioners celebrating Amber Alley would like to extend her appreciation to
during the upcoming months! our Church Family for their enthusiastic participation
in the donations for the PROM Project (whereby items
October were collected so that underprivileged young people
October 3rd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joaquin Tsoukatos could happily participate in the high school tradition
October 5th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex Paslidis of the prom).
October 10th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fofe Vasquez
“Thank you to all the church family who took part
John Henry
in the donations for the PROM Project.
Athena Pappas
You donated 42 dresses in all.
October 11th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Laura Miron With those donations, the program
October 15th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fuad Farah was able to collect more than 350 dresses
October 18th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robin Jones and gave away 72 dresses
October 21st. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jack Weatherly to girls who needed a prom dress this year.
October 24th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jill Weatherly Thank you for your generosity!”
October 28th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daniel Hunter
Maria Moutos
October 30th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nicholas Cobb Outreach Committee
Samuel Moutos Meet & Greet Schedule
November October 3rd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sharon Johnson
November 1st . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lynn McDowell October 10th. . . . . . . . . . . Christopher Huckabay
November 3rd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cherine Matta October 17th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carole Hawkins
November 4th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mary Henry October 24th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jack Weatherly
November 5th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stephanie Wilcox October 31st . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mark Hunter
November 7th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Masching
November 7th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robin Jones
Irene Vratsinas
November 14th. . . . . . . . . . . . . Susan McDowell
November 12th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Morgan Bailey November 21st . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sharon Johnson
Andrew Bene November 28th. . . . . . . . . Christopher Huckabay
Paul Bene
November 13th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lyle Glass
Fran Hyde
Gabrielle Turjman c Fellowship Hour d
November 14th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Helaina Harb
November 15th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Isabel Wilcox If you or your family would like to commemorate a
November 16th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jonathan Alley special event, honor the memory of a loved one or
Jamie Fotioo would simply like to after a gift to the Annunciation
family... you too can sponsor a Fellowship
November 20th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carole Hawkins
Hour!
November 26th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joyce Harb
November 28th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hallie Ramser Please check the Bulletin Board
Kyro Sadaka and sign up today!

Page 20

June 17, 2010
Dear Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church:
Thank you so much for your donation of Hygiene Kits
to Church Word Service/IOCC. Because of your
support, our programs in emergency response are able
to quickly respond to disaster, whether overseas or here
at home.
Since the earthquake in Haiti, CWS has provided
more than 31,000 Hygiene Kits, some 5,400 Baby
Care Kits and more than 4,000 Blankets. For medical
support, CWS has provided 60 boxes of medical
supplies from IMA World Health. Each Box contains
enough medicine and supplies to treat the routine
illnesses of approximately 1,000 adults and children
for approximately two months when placed in a rural
clinic.
Together, we help people rebuild a life of hope. Your
donation of CWS Kits helps meet needs in the wake
of catastrophe and conveys the consoling message that
they are not alone in their struggle to recover. Kits are
a gift of hope in a time of need. Thank you.
With deepest gratitude,
Rev. John L. McCullough
Executive Director and CEO
2010 October/November
July 9, 2010
Dear Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church:
Thank you so much for your incredibly generous
donation of $6,000 to the Hogar Rafael Ayau
Orphanage in Guatemala. Gifts like yours help to
fund adequate shelter, food, health care, educational
and spiritual opportunities for the many children who
call the Hogar their home. Your contribution is vital
to the Hogar’s ability to provide a safe haven for these
children as they grow into adulthood and set out to live
meaningful lives on their own.
On behalf of the nuns and the children, we thank you
for joining us with your support.
Yours in Christ,
Georgia Lipane, President
Harriet Stratis, Treasurer
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THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 19)
> Jesus, the Son of God, became incarnate in the
male sex. Jesus, who was not afraid to go against
the establishment and cultural tradition, appointed
apostles—the twelve and the seventy—who were of
the male sex. The apostles, at the last supper in which
he took bread and wine and made it into His Body
and Blood, and ordained those around Him to “do
this in Remembrance of me,” were of the male sex.
As St. Luke (22:13–19) records:
And they went, and found it as he had told them; and they
prepared the Passover. And when the hour came, he sat at table,
and the apostles with him. And he said to them, “I have earnestly
desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I tell you I
shall not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said,
“Take this, and divide it among yourselves; for I tell you that from
now on I shall not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom
of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks
he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body which is
given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
So, Jesus, the Son of God, who was not afraid of
depart from the conventions of His day, was not only
of the male sex, but appointed male apostles to carry
out His priestly ministry.
> Another example of the distinct priestly ministry,
given by Jesus to the apostles who were male, is the
holy ministry of confession:
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father
has sent me, even so I send you.” And when he had said this, he
breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the
sins of any, they are retained” (Jn 20:21–23).
The Regard Jesus Gave Women
> Jesus’ choice of male apostles was not a sign
the He disparaged women. As previously mentioned
Page 22
Jesus began His public life at the marriage feast at
Cana doing what His mother, Mary, the Theotokos
asked of Him. As told by St. John (2:1–11):
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee,
and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus and His
disciples were invited to the wedding. When the wine ran out,
the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” And
Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with us?
My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants,
“Whatever He says to you, do it.”
Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish
custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each.
Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” So they
filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some
out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it to him.
When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become
wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants
who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the
bridegroom, and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine
first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the
poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.” This
beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and
manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
> The holy women of the Gospels were those who
loved Him and served Jesus in His ministry. Jesus
had great love for Martha, Mary and Lazarus their
brother. It was Martha who served Jesus, and Mary
who sat, listening to His every word and anointing
His feet (cf. Lk 10:38–42; Jn 11:1). Who cannot recall
the action of Jesus upon hearing Lazarus had “fallen
asleep” (Jn 11:12)? The response of the Master was:
“Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead...’” (Jn
11:14). The gospel narrative continues:
…and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary
to console them concerning their brother. When Martha heard
that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary sat
in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here,
my brother would not have died. And even now I know that
whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to
her, “Your brother will rise again.”
Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in
the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the
resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die,

yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never
die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe
that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into
the world.”
When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary,
saying quietly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’
And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him” (Jn
11:19–29).
> St. Matthew (27:55–56) records that at the
crucifixion of Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ:
“There were also many women there, looking on from
afar, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering
to him; among whom were Mary Magdalene, and
Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the
mother of the sons of Zebedee.”
The holy evangelist Mark (15:41) describes these
women as follows: “… who, when he was in Galilee,
followed him, and ministered to him; and also many
other women who came up with him to Jerusalem.”
The women, including the Theotokos, the Mother
of God, now steadfast and faithful even unto Christ’s
death at the foot of the cross, are described by
the beloved disciple and apostle John with words
impossible to emulate: “But standing by the cross of
Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary
the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When
Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved
standing near, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold,
your son!’ Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your
mother!’ And from that hour the disciple took her to
his own home” (Jn 19:25–27).
> After the death and burial of Jesus, the
Myrrhbearing women tended to His Body. Recall St.
Luke’s account of the holy women’s actions. “And
the women that were come with him from Galilee,
following after, saw the sepulcher and how his body
was laid. And returning, they prepared spices and
ointments: and on the sabbath day they rested,
according to the commandment. And on the first day
of the week, very early in the morning, they came
to the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had
prepared” (Lk 23:55–56, 24:1)
2010 October/November
First Covenant Justice
Jesus not only freely went beyond the conventions of
the era; he also surpassed the economy of justice of
the first covenant. Regarding the economy of justice
in the Old Testament, Moses in Exodus (21:23–25)
tells us: “If any harm follows, then you shall give life
for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand,
foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe
for stripe.”
In the book of Leviticus (24:19–20) he tells us: “When
a man causes a disfigurement in his neighbor, as he
has done it shall be done to him, fracture for fracture,
eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has disfigured a man,
he shall be disfigured.” And again in Deuteronomy
(21:21) Moses teaches: “Your eye shall not pity; it shall
be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for
hand, foot for foot.”
In the prayers of the Psalms (92; 9) King David utters:
For, lo, thy enemies, O Lord, for, lo, thy enemies shall perish;
all evildoers shall be scattered.” And then the harsh call for
vengeance accompanying the lamentation of the Jewish people
during the Babylonian exile: “O daughter of Babylon, you
devastator! Happy shall he be who requites you with what you
have done to us! Happy shall he be who takes your little ones
and dashes them against the rock” (Ps 136:8–9)!
Contravening the Culture of Vengeance
Consider St. Matthew’s (5:38–44) account of some of
the most radical words Jesus said:
You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a
tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you, Do not resist one who is
evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him
the other also; and if any one would sue you and take your coat,
let him have your cloak as well; and if any one forces you to go
one mile, go with him two miles. Give to him who begs from you,
and do not refuse him who would borrow from you. You have
heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate
your enemy.” But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for
those who persecute you...”
(Continued on page 24)
Page 23
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 23)
The Early Church Distinguished
Essential from Non-essential Culture
The Church did not hesitate to discern and discard
what was not of Christ and to retain what was of
Christ. St. Matthew (28:18–20) records the last
instruction Jesus gave to His apostles: “All authority
in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go
therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of the Son and
of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
to the close of the age.” It is the Church’s mission
given to her by Christ to “teach all I have commanded
you.” The Church is commanded by Christ to teach
the essentials of His message.
The Judaising Controversy
Some did not adhere to Jesus’ words, as told to us
by St. Luke: “But some men came down from Judea
and were teaching the brethren, ‘Unless you are
circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you
cannot be saved’” (Acts 15:1). There was a controversy
among the Apostles on circumcision of the Gentiles.
St. Paul wrote about this to the Galatians (cf. Gal
2:1–21) and even confronted St. Peter whom he called
wrong on this matter:
But when Cephas came to Antioch I opposed him to his
face, because he stood condemned... he ate with the Gentiles; but
when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing
the circumcision party. And with him the rest of the Jews acted
insincerely, so that even Barnabas was carried away by their
insincerity. But when I saw that they were not straightforward
about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all,
‘If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how
can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews (Gal 2:11–14)?
This issue was settled by the first council of the
Church, the Council of Jerusalem. St. James, the
Page 24
Bishop of Jerusalem, addressed this first Church
Council and said:
Therefore my judgment is that we should not trouble those of
the Gentiles who turn to God, but should write to them to abstain
from the pollutions of idols and from unchastity and from what is
strangled and from blood. Then it seemed good to the apostles and
the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them
and send them to [the Gentiles]” (Acts 15:19–20, 22).
Early Church Authority:
Counciliar, not Individual
Interestingly, the apostles considered their decision
to be a synodal act, not one promulgated by one
individual, either St. James, the president of the
Council, or St. Peter, later considered (by the Western
Church) that he and his successors, would have
personal infallibility in matters of faith or morals.
This is shown in the attribution of the spiritual act of
this Apostolic Council: “For it has seemed good to the
Holy Spirit and to us...” (Acts 15: 28).
Although a general church council did not occur until
the fourth century, this Conciliar consensus, guided
by the Holy Spirit, was considered by the Eastern
Church to be the model of authority in Christ’s Body,
the Church. As noted by McGuckin, “The council
was always given precedence in authority over the
bishop or patriarch.” And, may I add, the Pope of
Rome. From the beginning, the synod of bishops
were expected to manifest a “common mind.”
Implications for Psychology and the
Church
In the present secular culture the distinction between
the essential and non-essential are blurred and
confused by political correctness. Political correctness
has no place in science or in the Church. The use
of the term gender for sex among those who
consider themselves scientists but are not , such as
psychoanalysts or those who write in the media is one
such confusion. As I stated elsewhere:

* Sex: What a person is biologically.
* Gender Identity: The sexual characteristics a
person perceives himself as having that are socially
defined, irrespective of his biological sex.
The political correctness agenda has implications for
how we understand God’s revelation of Himself to
us, Christ’s teachings, and the Holy Spirit guiding the
understanding of the Church, and shapes our own
attitudes and behavior. If sex is now called gender,
then it is merely a social definition which can be
modified, changed and re-defined by social consensus.
Thus, this has implications for how we understand
ourselves, that is to say: how we name ourselves.
Androgeny Research
Sandra Bem’s research on androgyny initiated the
popular use of the term gender to replace sex. On the
basis of her research, the ideal personality, the one most
fully mentally healthy, would be considered to be one
that has a mixture of androgynous traits which could
be applied to social and occupational functioning.
In actuality, however, behavioral research found that
masculine traits of independence and competence
were actually related to the psychologically functional
characteristics.
Androgyny in Popular Culture
Bem’s redefinition of the ideal self spilled over into
popular culture. In the 1970’s and 1980’s ‘fashionable
androgyny’ became a widespread medium and model for
youth. This redefinition was led by the entertainment
industry. Dress fashions and other life style imitations
followed. A music album, interestingly called “Sinner”
(Joan Jett), is but one example. New names for how such
individuals perceived themselves entered into popular
vocabulary, such as androgynes and ambigender. Using
such words defines the self as being genderless or in-
between male and female.
Other movements, often started in the entertainment
2010 October/November
industry, to rename male and female became popular.
‘Heavy metal’ musicians often use satanic lyrics and
imagery in their material. An example would be the
upside down pentagram (a symbol of Satan). Those
representing this so-called ‘left hand path’ have names
such as Black Sabbath, Venom and Slayer. ‘Glam’
or ‘glitter rock’ had performers and their followers
wearing ostentatious blended unisex apparel, jewelry,
hairstyles and makeup.
‘Punk rock’ and ‘new wave’ glamorized a sex-drug
lifestyle. Groups such as Sex Pistols and Sniff ’n Glue not
only made a sex-drug lifestyle normative, but projected
an image of who they were as persons. ‘Gothic rock’
glamorized not only ‘the dark side’—death, evil, sex,
suicide and the occult—, but also produced a subculture
in society celebrating these ideas.
Lyrics contain crude, rude overt references to
these themes. Furthermore, bodily gestures during
performances depict these motifs and leave little to
the imagination. “Language is in part a broadcast
of our psychosocial definition. It shapes how other
people see us and how they think we see ourselves.”
Modeling Influences Learning and
Performance
There is copious child development research pointing
to the crucial role of modeling in influencing child
behavior. In another article I point out the efficacy
of the various models children are exposed to which
significantly influence their behavior: “If a parent
capitulates to the culture, then the culture will assume
the teaching authority of the parent. Several decades
ago research psychologists demonstrated that there
was no real difference between real life and mediated
models (cartoons, movies, books) in terms of their
effect on a child’s perceptions about sexuality and
other important moral issues”.
As indicated above, “the name of an object or a being
expresses its essence.” In asking the name of the demon
(Continued on page 26)
Page 25
THE PROMISE
The Power of the Name
(Continued from page 25)
(Mk 5:9; Lk 8:31), Christ was asking: “Who are you;
what is you destiny, your secret being?” This sheds
a completely different light on the names we are
describing, male and female (the modes of mankind)
in this post-modern secular and negationist world.
The sexes created by God are ‘out,’ the genders
created by those committed to Satanism, secularism,
or just plain misguided Christianity are ‘in.’
Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi:
Prayer as a Spiritual Model
A common rendition of this Latin phrase is: the
law of prayer is the law of belief. Under the guise
of emotion-based “human justice and fairness,” the
rule of prayer, that is to say, what God has revealed
to us about Himself and our relationship with Him, is
under attack. As usual, the movement is subtle. C. S.
Lewis paved the way for understanding how the evil
one, Satan, (the divider, separator, adversary, tempter)
does his work.
As St. John tells us: “Who is the liar but he who denies
that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who
denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the
Son has the Father. He who confesses the Son has the
Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning
abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning
abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and in
the Father” (1 Jn 2:22–24).
Looking back at Church history, we see that
secularists, post-modernists and those who espouse
political correctness, and those who promote inclusive
language in Scripture and prayer affect the Church in
the same way that the heresies of old did. Secularism,
while not formally recognized as a heresy, functions
in many of the same ways the ancient heresies did in
that it overthrows the understanding of man and God
(Christian anthropology) received through Tradition.
Page 26
Inclusive Language and the
Deconstruction of Orthodox Tradition
Some Translations of Scripture: The
Work of the Evil One
A confession: I am not a Scripture or language scholar. I
read sacred Scripture in English. It has always been the
tradition of the Orthodox Church to translate scripture
and prayer into the “language of the people.” Thus,
the importance of the ‘correct’ translation and the
danger of using standards of secularism (negationist,
post-modernist, promotion of inclusive language
and political correctness). Why? Because language
communicates what we assert or confirm about our
understanding of God’s revelation to us.
Inclusive language, with its blurring and confusion of
names and meanings, can change theology if it differs
from the word of God given to us in the fullness of
time. Consider the link between Christ, the New
Adam, and the first Adam, as told to us by St. Paul:
Since, therefore, we are now justified by his blood, much more
shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while
we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his
Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved
by his life. Not only so, but we also rejoice in God through our
Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received our
reconciliation.
Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and
death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all
men sinned—sin indeed was in the world before the law was
given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death
reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were
not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one
who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For
if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the
grace of God and the free gift in the grace of that one man Jesus
Christ abounded for many” (Rom 5:9–15).
Examples of Heresy (change in Orthodox
Theology) by Inclusive Language
As mentioned at the start of this essay: “ The names
we use for ourselves, for others, and for God shape

our thought, and influence our understanding of
God’s revelation to us. A fundamental link between
God and mankind “is concentrated in the use of
the Name, in the ‘invocation of the Name.’ Take for
example what we know about God, by His revelation
of Himself to us: He is Father-He begets the Son. An
“Orthodox” scripture English translation, true to the
original words of the ancient scriptures would keep
the exact meaning given to us His creatures on earth
at the fullness of time, and held by the Church under
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit from its conception
at Pentecost to the current day. For example consider
St. Matthews words (3: 17) : “This is my beloved
Son, with whom I am well pleased. Now consider the
inclusive language text: “This is my beloved Child
[emphasis mine], with whom I am well pleased.” (An
Inclusive Language Lectionary, 1986).
Now consider one other “Orthodox scripture English
translation of a passage from St. John’s Gospel (3: 16-
17) “For God so loved the world, that He gave His
only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
shall not perish, but have eternal life. “For God did
not send the Son into the world to judge the world,
but that the world might be saved through Him.”
The feminist, secularist influenced inclusive language
text reads: “For God so loved the world that God
gave God’s only Child, that whoever believes in that
Child should not perish but have eternal life. For
God sent that Child into the world, not to condemn
the world, but that through that Child the world
might be saved.” [Bold text emphasis mine] (An Inclusive
Language Lectionary, 1986).
Recall the key points of God’s revelation to us as
understood by the Church in the words of St. Gregory
of Nyssa as quoted above:
… the title “Father” [is understood] also by its special
signification indicates the relation to the Son. For the term
“Father” would have no meaning apart by itself, if “Son” were
not connoted by the utterance of the word “Father.” … [the]
Deity by its very nature is permanently and immutably the same
in all that pertains to its essence ... it is not lawful in speaking
of the Divine and unimpaired Essence to deny that what is
excellent always belonged to lt. For if He was not always what
2010 October/November
He now is, He certainly changed either from the better to the
worse or from the worse to the better, and of these assertions
the impiety is equal either way, whichever statement is made
concerning the Divine nature.
St. Gregory describes any change in scripture
wording as impious. Heresy is defined as a rejection
of “orthodox understanding.”
The Lesson for Christians
The purpose of this essay has been to show the hidden
danger of the values inherent in a Godless society
and of human values detached from God and His
apostolic Church, both of which can inwardly destroy
both society itself and surreptitiously undermine His
Church. Who should take note of this? All individuals
who are committed to Christ. It should be noted by
husbands and wives who also are parents, the leaders
of their domestic churches, whose divine vocation is
to lead each other and their offspring to the kingdom
of Heaven. It should be noted by priests, the pastors
of their local Churches in leading their flock to Christ.
It should be noted by our hierarchs, the arch-pastors,
who have the ultimate responsibility before God to
account for the flock they shepherd. It is easy to look
the other way and take what is going on in society for
granted. It is also dangerous for each soul and for the
Church, the Body of Christ given to us, not to discern
the evil-inspired values of the world that are craftily
disguised as virtue in today’s world.
Beware of false prophets,
who come to you in sheep’s clothing but
inwardly are ravenous wolves.
(Mt 7:15)
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THE PROMISE

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 2010 October/November

October 2010
Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat
1 2
GOYA Retreat
9:30am

JOY Retreat
6:00pm

3 4 5 6 7 8 9
2nd Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

Church Musician Sunday Scholarship Foundation Orthodox Study Class

Meeting 6:00pm 6:30pm

10 11 12 13 14 15 16
3rd Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am Arkansas
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Race for the Cure
Parish Council Meeting
GO Team Annunciation!
6:00pm

17 18 19 20 21 22 23
Sunday of 7th Council
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

JOY Horseback Event Orthodox Study Class

6:30pm

24 25 26 27 28 29 30
6th Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am Feast of St. Demetrios
Divine Liturgy 10:00am Liturgy 9:30am

Community Halloween
Carnival 6:00pm

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 THE PROMISE

November 2010
Sun Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat
31 1 2 3 4 5 6
5th Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am Election Day
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

Godparent Sunday
Orthodox Study Class
6:30pm

7 8 9 10 11 12 13
7th Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

GOYA Volleyball Parish Council Meeting

Showdown 6:00pm

14 15 16 17 18 19 20
8th Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

Sunday School Open House

Orthodox Study Class
6:30pm

21 22 23 24 25 26 27
Entrance of the
Theotokos Thanksgiving Day
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am
Thanksgiving Eve
Thanksgiving Luncheon Liturgy
PC Candidates Meeting 6:00pm

28 29 30 31
13th Sunday of Luke
Matins 9:00am
Divine Liturgy 10:00am

GOYA Decorate for

Christmas

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