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PEACE AND GRACE!
Commemoration of The Departure of Saint Gregory, the Wonder Worker, celebrated on 21 Hator / 30 November
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Do not neglect the fast. It constitutes an imitation of Christ’s way of life.”
+St. Anthony the Great
SERVICES & EVENTS THIS WEEK
Tuesday:
Giving Tuesday - please consider to donate for our church!
Wednesday:
Morning Liturgy: 6:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m. (Father George Awad)
FOCUS San Diego: 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. (Contact: Mary Jensen)
Vespers: 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. (His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion)
Spiritual Talk: 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. (His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion)
Friday:
Nativity Speaker Series - Comparison between two women: Eve and Mary: 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (Father Gregory Bishay)
Saturday:
Adults' Hymns Class: 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. (Contact: Peter Abadeer)
Children's Hymns Class: 5:15 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Vespers: 6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
Sunday:
Divine Liturgy: 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
NATIVITY FAST BEGAN SUNDAY
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.
GIVING TUESDAY
As the whole world chooses only tomorrow as a day of giving money, we know you give so much more, all the time. We want to thank you for your generosity, love, and support of St. Basil's Coptic Orthodox Church in San Diego. As we pursue our ultimate goal of purchasing a true home, know that we are only $250k away from securing a down payment to purchase our current building and earning the equity towards a church we can build from the ground up. If you find it in your hearts to give tomorrow, please follow the desired link:
One Time Donation
Recurring Donation (requires registering an account)
Also use our Amazon Smile for your holiday shopping (see further below).
VISIT OF HIS EMINENCE METROPOLITAN SERAPION
On Wednesday, November 28th, we have the honor to welcome His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion to our church where he will be praying Vespers at 6:00 p.m. followed by a spiritual talk at 7:30 p.m. We hope that many of you will have the chance to join and benefit from the blessing of having him.
NATIVITY THEMED SPEAKER SERIES
We are excited to welcome our first Nativity speaker Father Gregory Bishay to St. Basil’s to educate and inspire us with his talk “Comparison between two women: Eve and Mary” this coming Friday, November 30th from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Come and invite your friends - it will be open to all!
Upcoming speakers include:
December 7th: His Grace Bishop Kyrillos
December 14th: Robert Bishay - Joseph: A Man Above the Law
December 21st: Ehab Maximous - He Took What is Ours, and Gave Us What is His
December 28th: Father Daniel Meleka - Being Made in His Image
January 4th: Father Joseph Ibrahim - The Incarnation and Soteriology
SAVE THE DATE: DEC 9TH - CHURCH FINANCES
Please join us in welcoming Abouna Kyrillos who will be with us on December 9th as we present the church finances and the incredible opportunity to purchase a church property. We encourage you to attend this important meeting regarding the future of our beloved church.
2018 CHRISTMAS SYMPHONY
Join us for this year’s Noel Noel Christmas Symphony! Tickets are available for two dates:
December 15th at 8:00 pm - for those in Junior High and older Adults (approx. 2 hours)
December 16th at 2:00 pm - for families with small children (approx. 1 hour) with time for the kids to interact with instruments and sing along
We were provided a unique opportunity to purchase a group rate and able to get these tickets for $25/adult and $12/child. Make sure to purchase your tickets soon, since signup will close next weekend!
DONATE YOUR SHOES
SHOP & 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 stewardship.