John Hill has done a great job coordinating our parish recycling, but he has asked that this opportunity be open to others. And that is fair. None of our parish volunteer opportunities are lifetime appointments. :) It is important that the Orthodox Church exhibit appropriate use of the limited resources that the Lord has blessed us with. Recycling is one of those things that we need to model well. And we need someone (or maybe two folks) to help make sure that we are recycling and reusing the resources we can at St. Vladimir's. Please see Fr. Gregory if you can help!

Last year we had a small committee help Fr. Gregory and Nathan plan our St. Vladimir's day festivities. That worked very well! This year is our 35th anniversary as a parish and we'd like to form another smallish committee to help plan. We will have a lot of guests this year, including at least one bishop visiting from Russia with Bishop Peter's blessing (of course Vladyka Peter will be here too!). Please contact Fr. Gregory or Nathan if you can help. We would like to form the committee before Great Lent, which begins on March 14.

Please join us for Divine Services for the feast of the Three Hierarchs: St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, and St. John Chrysostom. As a parish with many people engaged in intellectual pursuits these three saints - the most brilliant thinkers of their times who used their education for the glory of God - are important examples for us! Vigil is February 11 at 6:00 p.m. with Divine Liturgy at 8:00 a.m. on February 12. Please join us as your personal schedule allows!

Thank you to all who donated non-perishable food items and made contributions to help those in need after yesterday's service! The Denver Broncos may have won the Super Bowl, but those in need in Washtenaw County won our Souper Bowl. If you missed it or if you left your non-perishable food items at home by mistake you have another chance this coming Sunday! Please see Marina Edwards, our IOCC Parish Liaison, to donate food or funds to those in need.

This year there is no school in Washtenaw County on February 15 - the Meeting of the Lord. This is GREAT NEWS as it gives lots of families the opportunity to attend the feast day Liturgy that morning. Please plan to join us that day 8:00 a.m.!

Please join us at Fr. Gregory's home this evening for a reception in honor of St. Gregory the Theologian, Fr. Gregory's patron saint. The reception begins at 6:00 p.m. All are welcome!

Unless you have a handicapped license plate or hang tag. Even if the spaces are open. It is immoral to take parking spaces from those who need them and this is happening too often. Please see Fr. Gregory or Nathan with questions or concerns.

This year Great Lent starts quite late: March 14 in fact. But that will not keep us from holding our annual Great Lenten Lecture Series! The inaugural lecture will be given by His Eminence Metropolitan Jonah on Sunday, February 28 (yes – a bit before Great Lent, but well within the time of the Lenten Triodion so certainly close enough!), and we are working out details for a keynote lecturer later in Great Lent. The theme of this year's series is “The Practice of the Ancient Church”. Please plan to join us each Sunday of Great Lent during our parish meal for a lecture on this theme!

According to a joint press release by the Moscow Patriarchate and the Vatican, Patriarch Kyrill and Pope Francis will meet in Cuba on Friday, February 12 - one week from today. The western media has already begun to report things about the impending end of the schism between East and West. This seems a bit optimistic, and neither the Moscow Patriarchate nor the Vatican are claiming anything of the sort. Perhaps this will be the beginning of a long process that will end the schism, and of course that would be welcome. If all can unite in truth. But for now, let us pray that the meeting will be fruitful and lead to further constructive dialogue between the two largest Christian Churches. More information can be found at the links below. Please contact Fr. Gregory with questions or concerns.

English:

https://mospat.ru/en/2016/02/05/news127862/

Russian:

https://mospat.ru/ru/2016/02/05/news127862/

Fr. Gregory's Name's Day falls on February 7 each year. This year February 7 is a Sunday and happens to be the feast of the New Martyrs of Russia. Therefore the feast of St. Gregory will be moved to February 8. The schedule will be:

February 7: Vespers & Matins 6:00 p.m.
February 8: Divine Liturgy 8:00 a.m.
February 8: Open House @ Fr. Gregory's 6:00 p.m.

Please join us as your personal schedule allows. All are welcome to the Divine Services and the Open House!