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PARISH PRIEST:
Fr. Dionysios Listermann-Vierling
Church: 292-8013
Fax: 851-2800
Home: 638-4105
In case of emergency: Cell 312-3642
COUNCIL OFFICERS:
Scott Graham
President 643-7099
Hampton Culler
Vice-President 854-8235
Carl Colozzi
Treasurer 644-0615
Theodora Vaporis
Secretary 584-6020
Board Members:
Maher Hanna
Eleni Harrison
Matthew Pappas
Kiki Tarasidis
Zack Touloupas
Kimmon Varsamis
COMMITTEES:
Stewardship
Hamp Culler
Greek Festival
Mike Dolianitis
Finance
Carl Colozzi
Maintenance
Kimmon Varsamis
Religious Education
Kiki Tarasidis
Sick and Visitation
Brenda Miller
Bessie Sipsis
Foundation
Theodora Vaporis
Youth
Kiki Tarasidis
Rental property
Minas Dascalakis
Nomination Committee
Stephen Anton
Philoptochos Liaison
Eleni Harrison
Welcoming Committee
Zack Touloupas
Theodora Vaporis THE SACRAMENT OF THE HOLY EUCHARIST
Preparation
To prepare for Communion we must keep our minds and hearts on spiritual things.
Prayer
When we come forward to receive, we should repeat the Communion prayer, which every Orthodox Christian should try to memorize.
Reverence
We approach the Holy Communion 'with fear of God, faith and love', knowing that our bodies and souls will become one with Christ.
Acceptance
We hold the red Communion cloth beneath our chin, using it to wipe our lips if necessary. We should open our mouth wide to receive the Holy Communion and not be afraid to close our lips upon the spoon. If there are acolytes holding the cloth, release the cloth and do not try to hand it to the next communicant. Turn toward the Consecrated
Bread (Antidoron), make your cross and take a piece of it.
Return
Return to your seat, remain standing and say a prayer of thanksgiving for this greatest gift of all on earth and in Heaven.
A Special Note from Father Dionysios about Receiving Communion
Please step up close to receive Communion, take the Cloth and place it under your chin. When receiving the Communion, please open your mouth wide. Deadline: The Dormition of the Theotokos Monthly Newsletter deadline is the 20th of the previous month. Please submit your materials on time.
Content: Articles, notes and other information of interest for our parish can be sent by mail.
Church Attendance: A regular attendance of the church's services reflects how seriously you approach your salvation.
Parents with Sunday School children: Children must sit with their families in the front pews, so they will be served Communion first. During the school year, after Communion, children will proceed directly to their classrooms. Please remember that coming to the church late teaches our children bad habits. Make it a point to bring them on time.
SICK AND VISITATION
Nonda Zaharias would appreciate your prayers for his speedy recovery.
The following parishioners would welcome your calls and/or visits. Please be sure to call before visiting.
Calliope Hatgelis
(currently staying with granddaughter)
James Toompas
(Arbor Acres UM Retirement Comm.)
Vonnie Kleanos (Evergreen's) Maria Vurnakes (Evergreen's)
Margaret Spence
(Wesley Long Nursing Center)
We would appreciate your sharing
with us the names of any parishioners you know of who are ill, hospitalized,
or home-bound sick so that we may
pray for them, visit, phone or send a card. Donna at church office (292-8013), Brenda Miller (851-1415) or Joanne Macropoulos (288-6991
THANK YOU
Dear Parish Council members,
It recently came to my attention that I have you as a group to thank for the financial gift I received from Dormition last month. For your care and support I am very grateful, and I look forward to seeing you all soon. Wishing you a blessed journey to Pentecost,
In the risen Christ,
Paul Lundberg Bone Marrow Donor Request
Dimitrios Vastakis, a 21 one year old student from Hamden, Connecticut has asked for our help. He is desperately seeking a bone marrow transplant and time is of the essence (the end of June). He is from the Evrytania region of Greece. His doctors have suggested that anyone willing be tested to see if they are a possible donor, but particularly people
from this region. I have put his letter on the wall in the Fellowship Hall if you would like more information or are interested in being tested. ALTAR FLOWERS
It is a wonderful gesture to remember loved ones by donating flowers in honor or memory of family or friends. Flowers donated should be dropped off by noon Saturday. They should be in a vase or bucket of water and can be placed either outside the door of the office or outside the entrance to the community hall. If you would like to arrange the
flowers in the vases yourself, please stop by and pick up the vases no later than Friday morning. Thank you for your cooperation. SCHEDULING SERVICES
If you are planning on having a service celebrated (a 40 day churching, baptism, trisagion, memorial, etc…), please contact Fr. Dionysios regarding the date and time before confirming the event with family or friends. The calendar can become crowded at times and we wish to ensure that there are no scheduling conflicts. Thank You from Right To Play Dear Fr. Dionysios Listermann-Vierling, We would like to thank you and the Dormition of the Theotokos Greek
Orthodox Church for your generous contribution of $1,000.00 to Right To Play in honor
of Joey Cheek. We are enclosing a tax receipt and would like to acknowledge your church's generous gift on our website as well as in our 2006 annual report. Please let us know if you would prefer to be listed in any other way other than "Dormition of the Theotokos Greek Orthodox Church".
As you know, Right To Play is an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play as a tool for the development of children and youth in
the most disadvantaged areas of the world. Right To Play is committed to improving the lives of these children and strengthening their communities by translating the best practices of sport and play into opportunities to promote development, health and peace.
Thank you again for your support. Your generosity goes a long way toward ensuring every child's right to play. We hope that you will continue to follow the work that Right To Pay is doing around the world.
Sincerely,
Johann O. Koss Mary Dixon
President and CEO National Director, USA
President's Corner As May draws to a close, we find ourselves at the end of another school year and many of us had the opportunity to celebrate with our High School Seniors and recent college graduates at our Philoptochos Chapter's Annual Scholarship Luncheon. These students were honored at a first class event that highlighted their many accomplishments and I was touched not only by the special service that Father Dionysios conducted with our High School Seniors but also the genuine love and dedication to our youth demonstrated by our Philoptochos Ladies. It was wonderful to see so many of our Parishioners (about 125) attending the Luncheon. Congratulations again to all of our Graduates and thank you to the many volunteers who make this event one of the highlights of our year.
I would also like to thank the members of our Parish who attended our Special General Assembly held May 22nd to review our proposed by-law changes. We had a very productive session and that body approved the by-laws proposed by the by-laws committee with one or two minor changes. These by-laws will be sent to the Metropolis for their review and ultimately distributed to our Parishioners once approved by the Metropolis. I would like to extend a special thank you to the members of that committee, Theodora Vaporis, Fr. Dionysios and Kimmon Varsamis for the many hours spent working on this important and time consuming project.
As we approach the summer and our Festival preparations get into full swing, I hope that you all will consider contributing your talents to it's success and/or seek out other opportunities to serve our community. If you would like to volunteer, but are unsure of what to do or who to see, feel free to contact me, Fr. Dionysios or any member of our Parish Council.
Finally, I encourage everyone to take advantage of the Community Social Events that have been planned and coordinated by Presbytera Elena. They are wonderful opportunities for us all to get to know one another better and grow stronger in our Faith. Christos Anesti! Scott Graham
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A Book Riddled With Errors The book the Da Vinci Code is a murder mystery work of fiction. It opens with the curator of a museum lying dead. He was the Grand Master of a secret society known as the Priory of Sion. Meanwhile, Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor and expert in esoteric symbolism is asked to interpret a strange symbol left on the body of the victim. He's joined by a young cryptologist named Sophie, who warns Robert that he is the prime suspect in the murder. They then realize that the victim has left clues for them to follow, and as they decipher the coded instructions, they find out that the crime is linked to the search for the Holy Grail. They then link up with a Holy Grail fanatic, Sir Leigh Teabing, who instructs them on the real truth of the Grail. He cites the Gnostic Gospels and indicates that they are more reliable than the New Testament.
The most sinister part of the book is the notion that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and that his bloodline continues to this day in France. The DaVinci code reinterprets the Holy Grail as none other than the remains of Jesus' wife, Mary Magdalene. The book claims that Jesus intended Mary Magdalene to lead the church but "Peter had a problem with that," thus she was declared a prostitute and cut out of the role of leadership. According to the book, the Catholic Church has covered up this secret for centuries. We're told that Leonardo DaVinci knew all this, and used his well-known painting of the last supper to conceal many levels of meaning, including the idea that it was Mary Magdalene who was sitting next to Jesus, not St. John.
Brown implies that Jesus is not God and that what we've been taught about Him is all wrong. One line from the book is very troubling: "Almost everything our fathers taught us about Christ is false." Sadly, it is Brown's Christology which is false. While we need to speak with love, we're also called to expose error according to Ephesians 5:11: "Have
nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them." And there are many errors in the DaVinci Code. o Brown says that the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in the 1950's. They were actually found in 1947. He also refers to these scrolls as among "the earliest Christian records." These scrolls are Jewish, with nothing Christian in them.
o Brown says that "Jewish decorum" would have forbidden "a Jewish man to be unmarried." This is not true. The Essene community that stored the Dead Sea scrolls was made up of unmarried male celibates.
o Brown claims that Mary Magdalene was of royal blood, being a descendant of the House of Benjamin and that the Merovingian kings of France descend from her. In fact there is no evidence of the lineage or descent of Mary Magdalene.
o Brown asserts that there were eighty Gospels "considered for the New Testament." This is not true, making it sound as if there was a contest entered by mail.
o Brown says that Jesus was not considered divine until the 1st Ecumenical Council of Nicea. This is not true as the New Testament makes it abundantly clear that He was divine and the early church fathers attest to this fact as well, many years before the council even met.
o Brown also says that the divinity of Jesus was established by a "relatively close vote" at Nicea. But only two of more than 300 church leaders voted against the creed, certainly not a close vote. Incidentally, the Creed describes Jesus as "true God from true God."
o Astonishingly, Brown claims that Jews in Solomon's Temple used the services of sacred prostitutes to worship God's feminine counterpart. Brown seems to be arguing that we need to return to the worship of the goddess and the way we do that is through sexual union that leads to spiritual wholeness. This is absurd and blasphemous and reveals an appalling lack of knowledge about the Old Testament and the holiness of God that
prohibits any defiling of this sort.
o Brown claims that Emperor Constantine destroyed older scriptural texts and ordered a new Bible created which eliminated earthly aspects of Jesus' life. The fact is that Emperor Constantine had nothing to do with the compilation of the Bible. And the Gospels present many earthly aspects of Christ's life such as He hungers, He tires, He sleeps, He bleeds etc…
o Brown argues that "history is always written by the winners," which is his way of saying that the Gnostics were defeated by Orthodox Christians because they were more powerful. Church history reveals that Christians were anything but "winners." The Church has been fiercely persecuted throughout history, from the time of the Roman Caesars through Ottoman domination and most recently from Communists.
o Brown, a skeptic and unbeliever, states, "Every faith in the world is based on fabrication. That is the definition of faith-acceptance of that which we imagine to be true, that which we cannot prove." It's important to note that Christianity is a religion in and of history. It is not myth. Archaeology has verified the Bible's accuracy and reliability.
To date, over 25,000 sites have been discovered which establish the accuracy of innumerable details in the Bible.
This book, and the movie it is based upon, is not worthy of the enormous public interest which has been lavished upon it. Let me conclude with a quote from Eugene Peterson, "My dear friends, don't believe everything you hear. Carefully weigh and examine what people tell you. Not everyone who talks about God comes from God."
In Christ,
Fr. Dionysios
Daughters of PenelopeWe will meet on Monday, June 12, at 6:30 p.m. at Mykonos Grill. GOYA
By Irene Lawrence (784-5728)
GOYA met on April 30th at church to discuss upcoming events, hold elections, and even take part in a driving workshop hosted by Jennifer Corcoran. We decided to have a yard sale on Saturday, June 10th, from 8am-12 noon at the church to raise money for GOYA. Church members who would like to donate items for the yard sale should leave them on the stage in the fellowship hall. Your donations are appreciated!
We voted for GOYA officers, and the results are: Paul Mott, (President) Erin Sipsis, (Vice President) Christina Mandaleris, (Treasurer) and me (Secretary).
At our meeting we took a quiz that Ms. Corcoran had made for us. We learned a lot from it about what would happen in different driving and accident scenarios (many surprising things!). The next time we get together will be at the yard sale. GREEK SCHOOL NEWS
By Kiki Tarasidis (288-2921)
Graduation will be on Sunday, June 4, 2006. Completion Certificates will be awarded to each child that attended Greek School this year.
Greek School Registration forms for 2006-2007 will be available on the bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall. Please complete the form & return it to the church office. We are in the process of organizing the classes for the upcoming school year. PARISH COUNCIL
By Theodora Vaporis (584-6020)
The Parish Council met on April 25, 2006 and again on May 15, 2006 for their monthly meetings. Discussion and reports at the meetings included the following:
1. Treasurer's Report
2. The recent incorporation of the Church
3. The completion of the bylaws and the upcoming Special General Assembly.
4. Beautification Estimates
5. Scott Graham's representation of our Church at the Metropolis meeting in Atlanta
6. Philanthropic Donations were approved as follows:
a. $1,000 to Friends of Greek Art - This is the project headed by Governor Easley's wife, Mary Easley, in order to purchase ancient artifacts for the new Classical Collection at the North Carolina Museum of Art.
b. $1,000 to A Mother's Smile - This is a project that benefits a maternity hospital in Balti, Moldova. Balti is Greensboro's sister city. Moldova, which is the poorest country in Europe. Although this is a nonsectarian humanitarian project, Moldova's citizens are primarily Orthodox. This hospital, where 2200 babies are born each year, has
no heat or hot water. There is a campaign underway to raise $165,000 to install heat and a hot water system and we have joined other Greensboro congregations in supporting this cause.
7. Holy Week
8. Stewardship - This is unchanged from previous months. We have 100 stewardship cards submitted and we are behind this time last year.
Please talk to Fr. or one of our Parish Council members if there is a reason you are not submitting a pledge card this year.
9. A new system for the rental of our Church Hall.
10. Other Committee Reports
11. Father reviewed the following Church etiquette:
a. We will try going back to a row by row system for Communion so please have your children sit up front if they are taking communion before Sunday School.
b. Please do not enter through the center doors from the Narthex into the Church. Please use the side doors only.
c. Altar flowers should be brought to Church by Saturday for Fr. to arrange. PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS
By Sheila Touloupas (584-1213)
A special thank you to all who volunteered during our most successful Spring Luncheon, Dinner, and Bake Sale that was held last month. A special thank you to our excellent kitchen staff-
David Valavanis, Ted Triantis, and Bill Oncea. The Ladies Philoptochos Society would like to congratulate Anthony Harrison for winning the 2006 Philoptochos Scholarship and KristenTalantis for winning the Pete Harris Scholarship. Congratulations to all our 2006 High School and College graduates. We will keep you all in our hearts and prayers as you begin your new futures.
A special thank you is extended to GOYA, AHEPA, and our chefs-David Valavanis and Ted Triantis; all of whom helped make our luncheon a successful event.
Our End of the Year Dinner Meeting will be held June 5th. Co-chairmen Edna Pappas and Minerva Ross are coordinating this special night for us. Please look for more information in the Sunday bulletins.
Just a reminder that scholarship money is available to all who apply to attend St. Stephen's Camp. Please see Father Dionysios if you would like an application or more information.
Please continue to support our Year Round Food Bank. Donations are always needed and greatly appreciated. SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWS
By Polly Anton (854-5065)
Sunday School Awards and Gifts will be handed out on June 4th in the church immediately following the liturgy.
During Sunday School lesson time on June 4th, the teachers will prepare an "Ice Cream Sundae Treat" for the students in their classrooms. I want to thank all teachers for their dedication this year -
Kelly Moye, Elaine Gay, Brier Gay, Ginah Soufia, Doris Zaharias, Barbara
Vaughan, Mary Ann Contogiannis, Hedy Thevaos and Grady Barbee.
Thank you, parents, for sharing your wonderful children with us! WEEKLY SCHEDULE OF COMMUNITY EVENTS We are posting a list of services and activities held at the church or hall on a weekly basis. It is being posted in the Fellowship Hall on the bulletin board. Events are sometimes cancelled or the times are changed and these changes may not be reflected on the calendar in the Orthodox Oracle. We want to make sure that a current list of activities is known by all.
2006 Saint Stephen's Summer Camp
Session 1: Sun.- Sat., July 9-15, 2006
Session 2: Sun.- Sat., July 16-22, 2006
Session 3: Sun.- Sat., July 23- 29, 2006
Diakonia Center , 455 Quail Ridge Road, Salem, SC 29676
Visit: www.diakoniacenter.org
Fees include a week of camp and all meals, lodging, programs & activities! $375.00-if received by or after May 31, 2006.
There will be a $25.00 discount on each additional child in your family!
2006 Pledges:
Alexiou, Marina; Alimpich, Nadejda; Amprazis, James & Mary; Andrews, Ted; Anton, Bill & Mary; Blavos, Sylvia; Bundros, Tony & Thalia; Chamis, Nick; Chininis, Frank & Toula; Colozzi, Carl & Maria; Constantinou, Athena; Contogiannis, Ellen; Corey, Craig & Amanda; Cropper, James & Maria; Culler, Hamp & Lula; Dascalakis, Minas & Soteria; Dermatas, Alexis; Dermatas, Alex & Titsa; Dolianitis, Mike; Efstathiou, Dimitrios & Konstantia; Eustathiou, Evangelia; Fox, Art & Cynthia; Freeman, Ron & Sondra; Galloway, Ed & Georgette; Gay, Brier & Elaine; Graham, Erin; Graham, Scott & Christa; Hanna, Aziz & Violet; Hanna, Maher; Harrison, Eleni; Hatzisavvas, Diogenes & Cindy; Hattle, George & Jean Elizabeth; Havaraniak, Luba; Hudak, Marie; Katsikas, Mary; Kazazes, Anne; Kazazes, Barbara; Kontoulas, Angelo N. & Louise; Kontoulas, Cleo & Dena; Kontoulas, Dimitrios & Karen; Kontoulas, Mary; Koronis, Bill & Ava; Kotsionis, Harry & Elly; Lawrence, Kevin & Barbara; Listermann-Vierling, Fr. Dionysios & Presbytera Elena; Lundberg, David & Vasso; Macropoulos, Joanne; Mandaleris, Chris & Maria; Matsakides, Vickie; Megremis, Lampros & Theodora; Merrell; Eddie & Maria; Miller, Don & Brenda; Mott, James & Panayota; Moye, William & Kelly; Oncea, William & Jennie; Pappas, Edna; Pappas, Matthew & Stacy; Patterson, Charles; Patterson, Vasiliki; Perrou, Dimitri & Elena; Poulos, Peter; Pradetto, Thomas & Maria; Raxter, Donna; Rizkallah, Samir & Sue; Rodete, John & Sophie; Ross, Larry & Minerva; Sagos, Joanne & Larry Carroll; Sakellaris, Chris & Ardele; Schermerhorn, Tom & Theodora Vaporis; Seawell, Evalin & Tracy; Silos, Mrs. Evangelos; Sims, Leighanne; Sims, Roger & Celia; Sipsis, James & Linda; Soare, Nicolae & Sien Lian; Sonntag, Francis; Sonntag, Mark; Soufia. Mikhail & Ginah; Stuman, Jim & Catherine; Thevaos, Jim & Hedy; Thompson, Tom & Rhonda; Toompas, Art & June; Touloupas, John & Kaki; Touloupas, Katie; Touloupas,
Mary Alyson; Touloupas, Zack & Sheila; Triantis, Theodore; Tsintzos, Nafsika; Tzavaras, Aspasia; Tzouvelekas, Mark; Tzouvelekas, Nick & Debra; Varitimidis, Ionnis & Effie; Varsamis, Kimmon & Gwen; Varsamis, Megan; Vaughan, Edgar & Vicki; Vavalides, Philip & Teresa; West, Victoria; White, Ed & Elizabeth; Woltz, Van & Margaret; Woods, Terry; Xixis, Othonas & Debbie; Zaharias, Epaminondas & Doris.
If your name is not on this list, please fill out a pledge card and return it to Hamp Culler or to the office. THE TREASURER'S NOTE
By Carl Colozzi (644-0615) April 2006:
Income: $ 18,882.04
Expenses: $ 23,182.67
Deficit: -$ 4.300.63 Please indicate in the memo portion of your check where payment should be applied: pledge, candles, tray, memorials, etc. If you are using a business check, please make sure that your name is printed somewhere on the check. The Budget is based on these incomes. Thank you. Special Easter Donations and Flower Donations:
Cheryl Ciulei, George & Elizabeth Hattle, Mary Katsikas, Mary Kontoulas and Nic & Jenine Talantis.
CONGRATULATIONS
To Steve & Doreen Uwanawich, whose two sons, Joseph and Christopher, were baptized on May 6, 2006. To Viorel & Rodica Grecu, whose son, Stephan, was baptized on May 27, 2006.
To Georgios Tarasidis for being elected the 7th Grade Representative on the Student Council at Canterbury School. Georgios has also been awarded the Silver Medal for academic excellence on the National Latin/Mythology Exam. To Jack & Shannon Bishara, whose son, Rocky Jacob, was baptized on May 28, 2006.
CONDOLENCES To Ron Freeman and family, for the passing away of his father in May of 2006. May his memory be eternal!
To the family of Ramzi Hanna who fell asleep in the Lord on Saturday, May 20, 2006. May his memory be eternal!
To the family of Eleni Dermatas, who fell asleep in the Lord on Wednesday, May 24, 2006. May her memory be eternal!
June Epistle Readers 6/4 John Kalogiros, Anthony Harrison
Acts 20:16-18, 28-36
6/11 Harry Kotsionis, George Kayiales
Acts 2:1-11
6/18 Demetrios Perrou, Scott Graham
Heb.11:33-12:2
6/25 Lampros Megremis, George Hanna
Rom. 2:10-16
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