Thank God we have the ONLY ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CEMETERY IN MICHIGAN. There are others, but new burials are no longer allowed in any other Orthodox Cemetery in our state. What a blessing the Lord has given us! Let us take advantage of this blessing and arrange our burial plots at the earliest opportunity. St. Vladimir’s members receive a discount on their plot – and YOU CAN PAY OVER TIME WITH NO INTEREST CHARGE. Reserve your plot now – visit our parish cemetery page:

ALL CEMETERY INFORMATION
To learn more about parish membership please visit this link:

ST. VLADIMIR PARISH MEMBERSHIP

VISIT OUR YOU TUBE CHANNEL TO SEE MORE

Orthodox Detroit Outreach is in need of the following - please look for these things when you are shopping. If you can buy any of these we will collect them at the church until further notice. Look for the box near the front door. Here is the list:

Wipes of any sort (Clorox, baby wipes)
Medium sized jars of peanut butter and jelly
Loaves of bread
Cans of tuna fish and chicken
Vienna sausages
Small jars of mayonnaise
Pasta and pasta sauce
Cans of Chef Boyardee
Fruit cups
Medium sized boxes of cereal
Boxed/canned milk that doesn’t need to be refrigerated
Boxes of macaroni and cheese deluxe (the kind that you don’t need milk and butter to prepare)
Vegetable and fruit pouches
Boxed or bottled juice
Granola bars
Plastic bags to pack pantry and to-go meals in
Toilet Paper

We present here a short educational offering for both children and adults on the upcoming Sunday's principle Gospel reading so that all can better prepare for the Divine Services. Parents are asked to review the children’s portion with their children. It is very important for us to attend the Divine Services on Sundays and whenever else we are able, but in addition it is our spiritual responsibility to educate ourselves and our families in the faith. It is our hope that this mid-week offering will be an aid in this regard. Please contact Fr. Gregory with questions or suggestions.

For Adults: from the writings of St. Theodore the Studite

For Children: from the Antiochian Archdiocese (various age groups)

We will be creating a special page on our web site called “Pandemic FAQ”. This is needed because when there is a lot of stress in our lives it is easy to forget what the Church teaches, what it has done in past pandemics, or just sort of make stuff up in a pinch. The Church has gone through many pandemics – we have a plan for this. We follow the plan. And when the question is not a dogmatic one (dogmas have to do with our salvation and are not negotiable, like: “Jesus Christ is the Son of God”), we exercise obedience to our ruling hierarch. The bishop answers for whether he is “right” or “wrong” (although in most cases there is not really a provable right or wrong answer). We answer for whether we were obedient. So our part is easy. But we struggle with it, because although obedience is hypothetically easy, when we give it a try it often takes some practice before being able to execute it well. So ask a question here – we will answer the questions as we can:

https://forms.gle/LoemtnnwyekNbxzZ7

Most of us use Amazon. Why not do that shopping on Amazon Smile (smile.amazon.com) and choose “St Vladimir Russian Orthodox Church” (Location: Dexter, MI) as your charity? This is EXACTLY the same web site as amazon.com, but a portion of every dollar you spend goes to support St. Vladimir’s. It is EASY, QUICK, and PAINLESS. Click HERE to start using Amazon Smile and Support St. Vladimir’s – Thank You!

As of Monday, June 1, the Michigan Stay at Home Order has been lifted. It is now possible for up to 100 people to gather, maintaining 6-foot distance, outside. Thus, it is very likely that the late Divine Liturgy on Sundays will be held outside starting with Sunday, June 7. More information will soon be forthcoming. The early Sunday Divine Liturgy will remain closed to the public. Divine Services during the week will have some limit on the number that can attend, but it is not yet clear exactly what that number will be. Masks will continue to be required for the Divine Services inside the church. We are working out all the details with the Parish Council now and hope to share those details by mid-week at the latest. We appreciate your patience as we work out these new guidelines and how these apply to our parish.

For now, you can still sign up for the weekday Divine Services based on the previous regime and following our Quarantine Exit Plan (this can be found at the sign up link below). If the rules change you will not lose your place, so signing up now is a good idea:

SIGN UP FOR SERVICES WEEK OF 5/31/20
Let us be diligent in making sure that St. Vladimir’s is a place that gives life – not that causes death. We hope that our zeal in following the Quarantine Exit Plan will continue to help our state in our own small way to continue to exit the quarantine and never return!

“Conquer men by your gentle kindness, and make zealous men wonder at your goodness. Put the lover of justice to shame by your compassion. With the afflicted be afflicted in mind. Love all men, but keep distant from all men.”

St. Isaac the Syrian

"This is the cause of all evils: the ignorance of the Scriptures. We go into battle without arms, and how ought we to come off safe?" -St. John Chrysostom, Homily IX on Colossians.

In order to help increase the general knowledge of scripture in our parish family we present here for your edification the scripture readings for the coming week. At least one Gospel Reading and one Epistle reading are assigned for each day of the year (although during Great Lent the readings are from the Old Testament). Hearing or reading only those readings appointed for Sunday merely scratches the surface of the great spiritual wealth that the scriptures provide us. Some of the readings are easily understandable – others are less so. As Orthodox Christians we do not make private interpretation of scripture, but rather consult the fathers of the Church for their explanations to aid us in our understanding. Those wishing to have access to such explanations are asked to contact Fr. Gregory or inquire in the kiosk for further reading in this regard. Bibles may also be acquired in the kiosk.

Monday: Acts 21:8-14 & John 14:27-15:7
Tuesday: Acts 21:26-32 & John 16:2-13
Wednesday: Acts 23:1-11 & John 16:15-23
Thursday: Acts 25:13-19 & John 16:23-33
Friday: Acts 27:1-44 & John 17:18-26
Saturday: Acts 28:1-31 & John 21:15-25

Please find below several very nice articles on how to read the scripture from an Orthodox point of view.

By St. Justin (Popovich):

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/phronema/bible_how.aspx

By Bishop Kalistos (Ware):

http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/phronema/ware_howto.aspx

Our weekly bulletin, "Sunday Reading", has been posted at the following link:

http://www.stvladimiraami.org/SundayRea ... eading.pdf