Content
| A message from Fr. Ben | Pg. 2 |
| Outreach | Pg. 3 |
| Stewardship Envelope System | Pg. 3 |
| Holy Week 2020 | Pg. 4 |
| From the Parish Council | Pg. 6 |
| Reading the Psalms | Pg. 6 |
| Recipe Box | Pg. 7 |
| Getting to know you… Alyssa Kjendal | Pg. 8 |
| From Women’s Group | Cover |
Category: News
Cookbook Committee is Looking for Testers
The cookbook committee is still collecting recipes throughout the summer! Thank you for all that have already sent in their recipes and memories.
We are now looking for recipe testers. Please contact Soraya if you are able to test the recipes for us. This is a very important part of the process and your time and efforts are greatly appreciated.
Click here for the Recipe form.
With much love and thanks to you all,
Your Cookbook committee:
Linda Davis spiker383@gmail.com
Elaine Burke emacburke@gmail.com
Soraya Bandeli sbandeli@comcast.net
St. Michael International Cookbook Project
We hope everyone is doing well through this pandemic and finding comfort in Faith, Family, Friends and Food!! Speaking of food… the Women of the Church started thinking about its next project. We are very excited about this and hope you will be, too…
Our parish is very fortunate to have the BEST cooks, bakers and chefs around and we would like them to share their recipes and memories about them in a St. Michael International Cookbook. Everyone can contribute, young and old, men/women/children, amateur cooks and kitchen veterans! Our plan is to have our cookbook ready this fall, preceding the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays.
There are lots of categories to which you can contribute, with some dishes falling into more than one category. Feel free to submit as many recipes as you like. Remember that variety is the spice of life! Please also let us know if there is a dish you would like included, but do not make yourself.
Perhaps consider including a memory about your recipe(s) if you have any (for example, making it with your grandmother or your children). Sharing artwork or photos would also be welcome. Consider this a love letter to our heritage, our families, and our experiences. Your memories and comments will make that possible. We can help you with the process if you need it.
Categories for your submissions are:
- Religious – example: Holy Bread; Memorial Wheat (Koliva)
- Appetizers
- Soups/Salads
- Main Dishes
- Side Dishes
- Lenten Dishes
- Kids’ Corner
- Pastries/Desserts
- Breakfast
Please, download the Recipe form, complete the form on your computer (without printing) and sent back to us with your recipe and information. This will minimize having to re-type and will help with editing formats. You can just email your recipe as well. If you have any questions or need some assistance, please contact us.
The deadline to submit the completed form is the end of summer.
With much love and thanks to you all,
Your Cookbook committee:
Linda Davis mailto:spiker383@gmail.com, Elaine Burke emacburke@gmail.com, Soraya Bandeli sbandeli@comcast.net
Updated COVID-19 policy from the Archdiocese
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Christ is in our midst!
Our Lenten season is a time of renewed focus on prayer and repentance, as well as acts of love towards God and each other. We are normally sustained in this by a more active participation in the services and life of the Church.
Attached, find (and please read) the directive from our Metropolitan Joseph regarding actions each of our parishes will be taking during this time to help slow down the spread of COVID-19 (flatten the curve). Our service schedule on Fridays for Little Compline with the Akathist hymn and on Sundays for Orthros and Liturgy will remain the same, though we are asked to not have more than 10 people in the church at a time. I will be there on March 18 at 6:30, as well.
As our time together becomes limited due to the request to limit gatherings to 10 or fewer people, I encourage each of you to increase your time in prayer at home. Do not let this be a time where you take consolation in binge watching episodes of your favorite TV program or movie series! Rather spend more time reading the Scriptures, spiritual books (if you need suggestions, please send me an email), and praying (as a family if God has put you in such a situation). There are additional resources for the services appropriate for you to pray at home on the archdiocesan website. In addition to this, please consider how you can help your neighbors. There are many on Cape Cod and in our parish who can not or should not be spending much time outside of their homes due to the virus. Call them. Bring them food. Send them letters. Pray for them.
May we respond to this pandemic not with fear or outrage (at those around us or at God), but rather may we respond in repentance to God, reflecting on our sinfulness and knowing God’s mercy and love for each of us. May we turn our hearts and our minds to Christ, that we might be united to Him in our thoughts, words, and actions. I will continue to pray for each of you, and ask that you keep me in your prayers, as well.
Peace and joy in Christ.
Fr. Ben
UPD
To clarify some points from the letter:
I will be having Akathist on Friday evenings at 6:30 PM and Orthros and Liturgy on Sunday mornings beginning at 9:00 AM. The only people who will be in attendance at these services will be 2-3 choir members/chanters and 2-3 servers, all who are in good health and are not classified as high risk for the corona virus. We are working on having these live-streamed, most likely through our facebook page. If we are not able to do so, the resources for praying the Typika are on our archdiocesan webpage under the liturgics section for the day. I will also send out other options for watching the Liturgy with one of our sister parishes if we can’t. Holy Cross Monastery in WV is live-streaming their Lenten services, which can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ-sqeQbmgzrL0t8uFJm4Ew
We will not be having the Pre-Sanctified Liturgy on Wednesdays at this time.
If there are other times that I will be able to be at the church to have the doors open for people to come in and pray (with appropriate social distancing), such as this evening (Wednesday the 18th) between 6 and 7, we will post this on the website or send out an email.
God be with you.
St. Michael Pascha Card 2020
The proceeds of this year’s Pascha card will be going to St. Michael’s Narthex Project.
We thank you for your continued generosity.
Please fill out the form below and return by April 5, 2020. Please include your name on the St. Michael the Archangel Pascha Card.
St.Michael Newsletter, March 2020
Content
| A message from Fr. Ben | Pg. 2 |
| Are We Well? | Pg. 3 |
| Narthex Update | Pg. 3 |
| Camp St. Herman | Pg. 3 |
| Women’s Group | Pg. 4 |
| My Journey | Pg. 5 |
| Paying It Forward | Pg. 6 |
| Recipe Box | Pg. 6 |
| Gratitude | Pg. 7 |
| Diocesan Choir Workshop | Pg. 7 |
| Reading | Pg. 8 |
Narthex Update
Last year we decided to add a narthex to our church. We set a goal to raise $325,000 in order to accomplish this and began the Narthex Fund Drive. To date we have received pledges totaling $190,695. This is $154,170 short of our goal. To date, we have collected $170,830 in donations which includes the anonymous matching donation of $10,000.
Thank you to all for your loving and generous response to this important endeavor of St. Michael the Archangel Church. If you have not yet made your pledge, please consider doing so now. Pledge forms are available at the side entrance to our church or in the church office. Your pledge in any amount will help. Our church family must stay united to see our narthex project to fruition.
| GOAL: | $325,000 |
| PLEDGES: | $190,695 |
| DONATIONS TO DATE: | $170,830 |
| STILL NEEDED: | $154,170 |
2020 Ecclesiastical Calendar
There is a new ecclesiastical calendar for 2020 at the back of the church. All proceeds will benefit the Narthex Fund.
Christmas Service Schedule
Dear parishioners and friends of St. Michael the Archangel Orthodox Church,
The Feast of the Nativity is almost upon us! I pray that you have used this fast as a time of preparation, preparing your hearts and lives to receive our incarnate God, Jesus Christ, who comes to us not only as an infant over 2,000 years ago, but comes to us even now in His Body and Blood. May He who is the Light of the World shine brightly in and through your lives.
Please join us for the rest of the services we have during the fast and as we begin the feast. The schedule is as follows:
- Saturday, December 21
- 5:00 PM: Vespers
- Sunday, December 22
- 9:00 AM: Orthros
- 10:00 AM: Divine Liturgy
- Tuesday, December 24
- 9:00 AM: Royal Hours of the Eve of Nativity
- 5:00 PM: Festal Orthros
- 6:00 PM: Divine Liturgy for the Feast of the Nativity
- Potluck dinner to follow!
Please speak with Jasmine Andrews to coordinate what you can bring to the meal following Liturgy on the 24th.
Peace and joy in Christ.
Fr. Ben