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PEACE AND GRACE!
Commemoration of The Martyrdom of the Forty Martyrs of Sebastia, celebrated on Baramhat 13 (Mar 22)
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"If you wish, you can be a slave of passions, and if you wish, you can remain free and not submit to their yoke; for God has created you with that power."
+St. Antony the Great
SERVICES & EVENTS THIS WEEK
Wednesday:
Lenten Liturgy: 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
FOCUS: 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Friday:
Lenten Liturgy: 4:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Lenten Speaker Series: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (Father Andrew Iskander)
Saturday:
Children’s Hymns Class: 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Vespers: 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Sunday:
Divine Liturgy: 8:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
GREAT LENT STARTED MARCH 4TH
As we began the Holy and Great Fast, it is important that each of us receives spiritual guidance with regards to how to fast - please ensure you receive guidance from your spiritual father. Lent is a time of asceticism and self-control; a time for modesty in all that we do. We prepare for the most holy time of the year, where we remember our Lord's agony, death, and far more importantly: resurrection.
FRIDAY LENTEN SPEAKER SERIES
After the great success of our Nativity Speaker Series last year, we are excited to announce a new speaker series during Lenten. Please join us each Friday from March 15th through April 19th. His Grace Bishop Abraham will honor us with his presence on March 15th, starting at 7:00 p.m.
TRUE PHYSICIAN MINISTRY TRAINING
Under the auspices of His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion and His Grace Bishop Abraham, the Department of Diakonia is offering a one day training for those who desire to serve the sick. Attendees will earn a certificate of completion at the end of the training.
April 6th at St. Mary and St. Athanasius Coptic Orthodox Church in Northridge, CA
April 13th at St. Maurice Coptic Orthodox Church in Pomona, CA
Each training day will begin with the celebration of the Divine Liturgy at 8:00 a.m. and will end at 6:00 p.m. For more information and registration, click here.
NEW SIGN UP TOOL FOR AGAPE MEAL
As we’ve experienced challenges with the physical sign-up sheets for our weekly agape meal, we are trying a new way of signing up. Starting March 31st, we will be using an electronic tool called VolunteerSignup. It requires NO account creation, NO app downloads, and is mobile user friendly. You don’t even have to think about what to bring, since suggestions are being made for each Sunday.
All you have to do is click the link for the week you want to sign up for and enter your name and contact info next to the item you'd like to bring. If you want to bring something else, please contact Erene Hanna via the "contact manager" button and let her know.
Here are the links to the sheets for the next few weeks:
March 31: https://volunteersignup.org/FJEC3
April 7: https://volunteersignup.org/D7RXA
April 14: https://volunteersignup.org/XJRX3
Thank you for your continued support and help!
Under the auspices of His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion, the Graduates and Young Professionals (GYP) committee cordially invites you to the 10th Annual Lenten Retreat on April 5-7, 2019. This year we are blessed to have Fr. Antony Paul, of the Saint Paul Brotherhood to lead us in a spiritual discussion on “Discipleship”
Don’t miss out on the opportunity for spiritual contemplation, growth, and fellowship.
Register TODAY to reserve your spot HERE
Registration Deadlines are:
Late $220 – March 24, 2019
We are looking forward to benefiting spiritually together and enjoying Christ in fellowship with one another.
3RD ANNUAL ST. BASIL RETREAT
Mark your calendars for our 3rd annual St. Basil Retreat from May 10-12, 2019 at the Palomar Christian Conference Center (approx 1hr 20min away) tucked just south of Julian. We have an incredible committee preparing the best retreat we’ve had yet and our speakers will be Father George, Father Michael and, pending a flight, Father Antony. Please look out for a text message with a sign-up link, that will be sent out later this week.
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
Since we’ve experienced low sign-up rates for our weekly agape meal, we are trying a new approach. A sign-up sheet will be hung on the fridge in the food hall every Sunday. We ask all families, if you can, to stop by the fridge and sign up to bring an item for the following week. Thank you to all who have contributed and helped make the agape meal a special time for everyone. 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