Saturday, Sept. 14 – The Exaltation of the Holy Cross
5:00 PM Santa Paula Outreach Divine Liturgy
Sunday, Sept. 15 – Sunday after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
8:30 AM Matins
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy
Monday, Sept. 16 – Euphemia, Great-Martyr
8:30 AM Morning Prayer
Tuesday, Sept. 17 – Sophia and Others, Martyrs
6:00 PM Akathist* for those suffering Addictions & Mental Illness in Person and on Zoom
Wednesday, Sept. 18 – Eumenius, Bishop
8:30 AM Morning Prayer
6:30 PM Divine Liturgy
7:30 PM Firepit Social
Saturday, Sept. 21 – Saturday after the Exaltation of the Cross
5:00 PM Santa Paula Outreach Divine Liturgy
Sunday, Sept. 22 – 18th Sunday after Pentecost
8:30 AM Matins
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy
*Add first names to this prayer service by emailing niemirick@gmail.com
St. Mary’s: Sundays 8:45 AM or by appointment
Santa Paula: Saturdays 4:15 PM or by appointment
(Please resubmit or submit names to admin@ByzantineLA.com)
The Carlin Family, Michael Hefferon, Shirley Kunze, Michael Mina, Peter Mina, Fr. John Mina, Mila Mina, Lana Zimmerman, Patrick Zimmerman, Patrick O’Neill, Shannon O’Neill, Fern Bonowicz, Stephen Petach, All the sick and suffering of St. Mary’s
Collection: $937.00; Santa Paula: $703.14; Online: $915.00; Candles: $74.25; Parish Socials: $20.00; Holydays: $95.00
Total: $2,744.39 / Attendance – PSM: 58 SPO: 57
Our annual Family Day celebration pig roast potluck will be held on Sunday, September 29 following Divine Liturgy. Sign-up sheets are in the small hall. There will be water activities for children; a bathing suit or change of clothes is recommended.
My beloved sister, rejoice in the Lord. Today I received your letter full of love and piety. I threw up my hands with a fervent soul and ardent love, and I entreated the Lord with hidden shouts of my humble heart.
“Hearken,” I said, “O sweet love, Jesus my Savior, the Light above all light, begotten of the beginningless Father; the knowledge and truth, my hope and solace, my strength and might, my love and illumination; hearken and send the light of Thy divine consolation to my sister, and break the bars and bolts of her darkened and distressed soul; and with the bright light of Thy radiance comfort her heart, that her sorrows and the successive waves of temptations lessen. Yes, my sweet Christ, the Light that illumines heart and reins, soul and body, tendons and bones, mind and intellect, and the entire composition of our being; hearken unto me as I pray for my afflicted and suffering sister.”
These and many other things—tokens of my affection towards you—do I cry out to my Master. For I remember and am not unaware of your many and countless sufferings since childhood. Because of them I love you exceedingly, and amongst all of my beloved, I give the most love to you, for the first-fruits of my love belong to you.
I only ask that you do this for me as repayment for my immense love towards you: be a little more patient. And I trust that Jesus, Who has already shown so much love to us, will fulfill all of your requests even more. You will find not only peace and quiet in your soul, but also everything that is beneficial to our wretched souls will the Lord grant you. Just keep seeking with tears that the Lord’s holy will be done in the way He knows best—and not yours.
As soon as you realize that you have sinned against the Lord, add no more wounds to your bruises. But if as a human you fall again, don’t get despondent, don’t despair. For how will the loving Lord, Who told Peter to forgive seventy times seven in a day, not forgive us? …
Give up your own will so that you may find peace of soul. For the will of man is a bronze wall that blocks illumination and peace from God. Take as an example our sweet Jesus, Who was obedient to His beginningless Father unto death on a cross. He gave His body over to scourges, His cheeks to slaps, and He did not turn His face away from spitting. Do you see, my sister, how much love the compassionate Lord showed to us? So let us give up our will as well; let us forgive those who wrong us. Then with boldness we shall say, “Forgive us our debts, as we as forgive our debtors.”
For we are all human, born of dust, and we have all sinned. We are clay, we are ignorant. Clay robs clay. Clay insults clay. Clay slanders clay. Clay is haughty against clay. Clay gets rich with clay. Clay rules over clay. Clay beats clay. Clay imprisons clay. And in general: clay considers itself wiser, stronger, richer, nobler, and more honorable than clay; amassing wealth in his stupidity and ignorance of his own existence. He does not care about whence and where he is, how he was born, what his purpose is, where he will end up, what is to come after this.
So since forgetfulness and ignorance have devoured all of this self-knowledge, and a chaos of insensibility has resulted, all of us who remain unrepentant suffer here as well as in the other life. Therefore, anyone who can see better and is slightly less darkened in the mind must forgive and sympathize with his neighbor, his brother of like soul and passions. …
For this reason, my beloved sister, soul of my soul, set aside your “rights” and “wills” for the sake of my immense love towards you. Unite the good pair of patience and forbearance. Pray that the Lord will protect me as well, because I perceive that your beloved, sisterly, spiritual prayers greatly help me.
-Joseph the Hesycast writing to one of his spiritual daughters
“Whoever will lose his life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will save it.” Our Lord teaches us that following him is a loss and a gain at the same time. Devoting one’s life to the Church as a monastic, religious, or member of the clergy is a cross and is also an immense blessing. Are you being called to be this blessing to the Church? Reach out to the Vocations Office at 206-329-9219 or email: vocations@ephx.org
Saturday, September 14 –
