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Letter-From-Metropolitan-JOSEPH-04-06-21Pay Off The Mortgage Early Fund (POTMEF)
March 7, 2021
Dear Parishioners of St. Nicholas Church,
I hope this e-mail finds you and your family in good health. I am writing this letter for the
purpose of providing everyone with an update on what our Parish Council is currently doing to
plan for meeting the needs of our ever-growing parish. Thanks be to God, we have been
welcoming many new Church members over the last few years, and even in the past year
during a pandemic! We have had a strong attendance each Sunday and there is an obvious
need to plan for our continued growth.
Last Wednesday, March 3, 2021, our Parish Council met at St. Nicholas Church and one of
the topics of discussion was our long-term goal to pay off our mortgage in 5 years instead of the
8 years that is left on our loan. We are unable to start a building fund to expand our current
building or to potentially build a new one until we pay off our mortgage in full. It is for this
reason that we are making this such a focus. We voted unanimously to establish a new fund for
the purpose of paying off our Church mortgage in full. This fund will be used strictly for making
additional mortgage payments throughout the year to pay down our loan faster.
The goal is to get our church in a position to expand our physical space as soon as possible so
that our building capacity is not a hinderance to welcoming even more new church members in
the future. As we approach Great Lent and consider almsgiving, and as some may be receiving
tax refunds and/or bonuses in the coming months, we ask that you consider making a separate
donation to our “pay off the mortgage early fund,” aside from your regular tithe to St. Nicholas
Church. We will have special envelopes and a separate basket available for these donations to
be made. When writing a check or donating via PayPal, please be sure to write “POTMEF” or
“Pay Off The Mortgage Early Fund” in the memo line.
Thank you for your generous giving to St. Nicholas Orthodox Church. I am very excited about
our future and know that God will continue to guide us as we build up His church together!
In Christ,
Michael Baclig
Chairman
St. Nicholas Church Parish Council
View a printable version of this letter HERE
Welcome Back to Church
In the Spirit of love and with thanks to God, His grace has provided us to reopening our church in a measured way with strict adherence to the previous Directive From the Archdiocese. In collaboration with the Metropolitan Archbishop, Sayidna is instructing us to begin with caution by exercising prudence in the upcoming weeks, asking for our continued prayers and patience as we begin this process. Today’s Directive is meant to be a temporary and intermediate step with the hope that our gradual increase in church attendance will not require any reversal of the positive trends that have been observed recently.
Holy Eucharist (Communion) & Holy Reconciliation (Confession) may be scheduled by appointment with the Pastor and at his discretion on weekdays. If you cannot travel to speak to your Spiritual Father/Mother in person, call them to do Confession/Spiritual Discussion over the phone and then go to your local parish priest like Father John for Absolution. All who plan to receive the Mysteries (Sacraments) must be properly prepared and should first arrange their appointment with Father John.
The bishop’s instructions at this time are as follows:
- Weekend and Weekday Services (as announced) will continue to be live-streamed <Facebook.com/StNicholasAR/live> . The laity may attend up to 33% of Nave capacity, which is 60 people.
- Anyone with cold or flu symptoms (i.e., fever, coughing, shortness of breath, sore throat, or headache), or anyone with a pre-condition and low resistance to viruses, should remain at home and phone Father John for an appointment to receive the Mysteries (Sacraments) at a convenient time.
- No Choir or congregational singing. Singing has been shown to highly increase the spread of the virus. Two (2) chanters will perform the services spaced a safe-distance apart and away from the congregation.
- Everyone who attends church services must observe the practice of safe-distancing between family groups in our building.
- We are opening up the overflow doors to maximize the available space for worship while maintaining safe-distancing between family groups.
- Members of the same household shall sit together to save space. Other members and visitors should be spaced out to maintain a minimum of 6ft safe-distancing.
- The chairs in our worship space will be spaced accordingly.
- Observing safe-distancing includes while standing in line for Holy Eucharist (Communion).
- Cloth face coverings are highly encouraged for everyone. Face coverings are most essential when social distancing is difficult.
- All who attend church services are asked to wear masks, except at the moment when Holy Eucharist (Communion) is received, at which time, the Mystery (Sacrament) will be administered.
- “We will continue to offer Communion according to our Tradition, but all should allow the priest to pour the Body and Blood by opening their mouths wide and not closing their lips on the spoon.” When it is a person’s turn in line to move forward to receive the Sacrament, their protective face mask should be removed, mouth opened wide — while holding one’s breath if possible for approximately three seconds — as the Sacrament is administered; after which one’s protective mask should be immediately replaced.
- Cloth face coverings should not be placed on children younger than 2 years old, anyone who has trouble breathing or is unconscious, and anyone who is incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the cloth face-covering without assistance.
- Cloth face coverings are meant to protect other people in case the wearer is unknowingly infected but does not have symptoms.
- Hand sanitizers and masks will be available in the Narthex (Entry) and Fellowship Hall for anyone entering and leaving the building.
- Bowing will be practiced during the exchange of peace within the Liturgy [“Christ is in our midst; He is and ever shall be!”] in place of shaking hands, kissing, or hugging persons.
- At the end of the services, the veneration of the Holy Cross following the final blessing (including the veneration of icons and the Gospel Book) should be done by bowing—with a minimum of physical contact as an alternative to kissing.
- All of the cut Antidoron/Qurban (Holy Bread) will be handed to the Faithful by someone wearing serving gloves at the time of Holy Eucharist (Communion) and at the end of the Divine Liturgy. Do not reach into the common dish.
- Dismissal from services will be coordinated to minimize cross-flow movements of people.
- All of our clergy and laity must observe proper hygiene and respect each other’s personal space: avoiding hugs, handshakes, kissing. Also practice regular hand washing, coughing or sneezing in their elbow/shoulder, etc.
- The Church is available for personal prayer, the lighting of candles, and making offerings during the week. You may come by appointment with Father John: <FatherJohnA@att.net> (479) 871-0559.
- Our worship space will be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected; especially the highly touched surfaces and items following each service, and the doors will be opened to allow fresh air into the building. Volunteers are welcome to assist us at a time following each service. Detailed instructions will be provided upon request.
- All non-liturgical (social) and Church School gatherings will NOT be resumed at this time. All Parish Council and organizational meetings, Bible studies, and Church School Classes will be conducted by Zoom meetings to be scheduled and announced.
May God grant you all a blessed Paschal Season and an abundance of health!
In Christ,
The St. Nicholas Church Parish Council
Questions?
You may contact Father John by E-mail, Phone, Text, or Web-form.
Communion & Confession Open Again
Christ is risen! !المسي قام Χριστoς aνέστη!
It is with great joy and relief that we announce the reopening of the Mysteries (Sacraments) by Appointment.
Holy Eucharist (Communion) & Holy Reconciliation (Confession) may now be scheduled by appointment with the Pastor and at his discretion on weekdays. For those who cannot travel to speak to your Spiritual Father/Mother in person, call them to do Confession/Spiritual Discussion over the phone. Then, when you are able, come to Father John or your local priest for Absolution.
All who plan to receive the Mysteries (Sacraments) should be properly prepared and should first arrange their appointment with Father John: FatherJohnA@att.net (479) 871-0559.
We are very close to being able to re-open our doors to the Faithful. Please be patient with us. Your health and that of our community are very important to us. For now, please continue to worship with us remotely via the live-streaming services @ facebook.com/StNicholasAR/live . We will be making announcements about these things in the near future!
Love in the Risen Lord,
Father John and St. Nicholas Parish Council
Holy Week? Pascha? 😷
2020 Holy Week & Pascha Schedule
The season of Great Lent (Spring) has been very different this year. We are isolated, lonely, and depressed. We long to gather together to sing praise and supplications to our God and to partake of the Holy gifts of His Body and His Blood.
We are committed to following the guidelines set out by the pandemic experts and our lawful civil authorities for the safety and security of all life. Stay home. All Lenten services have been canceled and we are live-streaming the Sunday morning Orthros and Divine Liturgies on our Facebook page, fb.com/StNicholasAR/live/ @ 9 & 10 am so that the faithful can participate from their homes. Also, see the Holy Week schedule below. Please take advantage of these “virtual” services to participate in the worship. The Church of the boundless God is not contained within buildings built by humans anymore that God Himself. The Kingdom of God is within us. We have become the dwelling place of the uncontainable Creator of All.
Schedule
Father John has provided a working schedule for Great and Holy Week and Blessed Pascha. These will all be live-streamed on fb.com/StNicholasAR/Live/
This schedule is subject to change or significant modification, so please be patient and understanding.
- April 7-11
- No Public Services During Week
- April 12 Palm Sunday
- 9:00 Am Orthros
- 10:00 Am Liturgy
- 6:00 Pm Bridegroom Orthros
- April 13 – Holy Monday
- 6:00 Pm Bridegroom Orthros
- April 14 – Holy Tuesday
- 6:00 Pm Bridegroom Orthros
- April 15 – Holy Wednesday
- 6:00 Pm Orthros
- April 16 – Holy Thursday
- 6:00 Pm 12 Passion Gospels
- April 17 – Holy Friday
- 4:00 Pm Great Vespers
- 5:00 Pm Taking Down From Cross & Lamentations
- April 18 – Holy Saturday
- 10:00 am Divine Liturgy
- 10:30 Pm Rush Procession
- 11:00 Pm Orthros
- April 19 – Great & Holy Pascha
- 12:01 am Paschal Divine Liturgy
- 4:00 pm Agape Vespers
- No Afternoon Lamb Dinner
Here are some practical ways to participate from your own “little Churches.” →
Services can also be found on the St Nicholas Church Public Google Calendar. See it on the website StNicholasAR.org/Resources/Schedule-and-Calendar/ or subscribe to the Church Calendar to have it on all your devices!
Father John Atchison is reachable @ (479) 871-0559 & FatherJohn@StNicholasAR.org
You may also be interested in reading and listening to some of the many terrific online resources available about the Lenten Season.
- Great Lent: The Journey to the Empty Tomb (Antiochian.org)
- Excerpts from Great Lent (Alexander Schmemann)
- Great Lent, Holy Week, and Pascha (Greek Archdiocese)
- Great Lent and Holy Pascha Articles (Antiochian.org) Some broken links here, but the ones that work are worth reading.
†St Nicholas Parish Council
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