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PEACE AND GRACE!
Commemoration of The Martyrdom of St. Barnabas, One of the Seventy Apostles, celebrated on 21 Kiahk / 30 December
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“If you have nothing to give people, give them a warm smile and a kind word, give them love, give them tenderness, give them a word of encouragement; give them your heart.”
+H.H. Pope Shenouda III
SERVICES & EVENTS THIS WEEK
Wednesday:
Morning Liturgy: 6:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.
FOCUS San Diego: 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Friday:
Nativity Speaker Series: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (Father Daniel Meleka)
Saturday:
Vespers: 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Sunday:
Divine Liturgy: 8:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
NATIVITY FAST
November 25th marked the beginning of the fast of the Nativity (the Advent) in our Coptic Church. Fasting is not just about changing ingredients; it should be a real spiritual discipline with goals. You are encouraged to take the discipline seriously and to consult with your spiritual father for an appropriate prescription for your fasting period, as well as what spiritual disciplines to partake of during this blessed time. For more information on how and why we fast before nativity, click here.
NATIVITY THEMED SPEAKER SERIES
Thank you, Ehab Maximous, for honoring us with your inspiring talk last Friday. We are excited to welcome our next Nativity speaker Father Daniel Meleka to St. Basil’s this coming Friday, December 28th from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Come and invite your friends - it will be open to all!
The following speaker will be:
January 4th: Father Joseph Ibrahim - The Incarnation and Soteriology
2019 NATIVITY EXCUSED ABSENCE
Our church celebrates the feast of Nativity on January 7th and we encourage all of you, young and old, to join us for liturgy on the eve of the 7th. Coptic Christmas falls on a Monday, so if parents wish to excuse their kids from school for this day, they can use this letter, which has been kindly provided by our Diocese.
HELP WITH AMAZON SMILE
If you are looking into other ways to support our church, the AmazonSmile Foundation offers an easy way to give while browsing the Amazon shop. It will donate 0.5% of the purchase price from your eligible AmazonSmile purchases, at no cost to you. To shop at AmazonSmile simply go to smile.amazon.com (you may want to add a bookmark to make it easier to return). You will see eligible products marked “Eligible for AmazonSmile donation” on the product detail pages. If you already own an Amazon account you can use the same account for AmazonSmile. On your first visit, please select “Saint Basil American Coptic Orthodox Church” as your charity of choice. Amazon will remember your selection, and then every eligible purchase you make will result in a donation for our church. Thank you so much for your love and support.
ANNOUNCEMENTS, VISITATIONS & CONFESSIONS
Please let us know if you have any upcoming important events for us to share with our fellow congregants. Special events are best shared amongst our family, and we encourage you to share your special news with us.
FOOD & CLEAN-UP
To sign up to bring food for the agape meal on Sundays, please fill in the weekly spreadsheet available HERE. We need as many volunteers as possible to keep the church clean on Sundays after the Divine Liturgy. Please consider this important expression of stewards