Please join us on June 6, 2015 for our next IOCC parish effort. On this day at 3:00 p.m. we will make school kits according to the International Orthodox Christian Charity's guidelines. It is important to understand that there are many countries in the world that DO NOT have free education for their children. Many times children cannot attend school because their family cannot afford the tuition, or more often than not, the children do not have the requisite school supplies. The IOCC school kits provide the supplies that allow children to be educated. Join us - help others! A collection to support this effort will be taken up at the kissing of the cross on Sunday, May 31. To help support this effort or to volunteer please see our IOCC Coordinator, Marina Edwards. Parents are strongly encouraged to bring their children for this event!

Let us know you are coming by signing up at this Google Doc:

http://goo.gl/forms/5RLoYvYfRW

Vacation Bible School at St. Vladimir's will be July 13-17, 2015. More to come very soon, including how to sign up, but please reserve these dates for your children to attend this year's VBS!

Last night one of the most remarkable clergymen in our Diocese of Chicago & Mid-America fell asleep in the Lord. Fr. Paul Bassett was the Rector Emeritus at the St. George parish in Cincinnati, OH. Fr. Paul was named after St. Paul the Simple and indeed was a worthy namesake of his patron. He was a simple, pious, loving man – a true pastor of the Lord's sheep. His concern was with the salvation of others – period. And for those of us who came after him he was an example of what a true Pastor should be. He did not have a beautiful voice, he did not give erudite sermons, he did not have high educational attainments – but he lived an exemplary life in Christ and shepherded many into the Heavenly Kingdom through his sincere pastorship. And in the end this is certainly what the Lord will ask of all those who take the yoke of the priesthood upon themselves. We ask your prayers for this sincere pastor and his family. May the Lord grant him a place in his Heavenly Kingdom!

"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

This short article explains to us not just HOW to read the scriptures, but also what our goal should be in reading the scriptures. A short read and well worth it:

http://www.chrysostompress.org/reading_scripture.html

As noted in the article above we need God's help and blessing to read and understand the scriptures correctly. What better way to entreat God's help in this regard than through prayer? Please find the prayer before reading the scriptures here:

http://www.chrysostompress.org/prayer_b ... pture.html

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

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

Please keep our parishioners, friends, and those who have asked us in our unworthiness to pray for them in your prayers this coming week. Our parish prayer list can be found here:

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

PLEASE NOTE! We have removed those from the list that we believe no longer should be present there. If you requested that someone be included in this list please review it carefully to make sure we have not removed someone erroneously. If we have, please contact Fr. Gregory to have your loved one again added to the list.

This Sunday we make the first steps in constructing a memorial at St. Vladimir's to all Orthodox soldiers who have perished in defense of their faith, their homeland, and their compatriots. During the weekly parish meal we will hear from several of our veterans and those who were deeply effected by war. After these words of wisdom we will plant bushes that will surround the eventual memorial. As this year is the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II we think it is important to act now – so that we can hear from those who experienced that war. All those from World War I are gone, and on the 75th anniversary of World War II there will be very few left. It is important for us to learn from history so we do not repeat it. This is especially true of our children. Please join us this Sunday for this special event. The memorial, once completed, will be blessed on September 11 with Bishop Peter's blessing – this is the day of the commemoration of all Orthodox Soldiers.

Please join us on Saturday, May 30, for our next Children's Liturgy. The Children's Liturgy on Bright Monday was a great success, but at the request of our parents we have moved these to Saturday going forward. Our young people will sing, serve in the altar, ring the bells, prepare the meal after the Liturgy, and otherwise fulfill all tasks required for a Liturgy to be successfully executed in our parish. Following the Liturgy the young people will prepare the church with boughs and branches for the great feast of Pentecost!

The next rehearsal of the children's choir will be THIS SUNDAY following the parish meal. Please sign your children up for duties now – please see Fr. Gregory with questions.

Google Doc Sign Up:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/137Tvs8DyJyoluZ-2N0lrWu06RjLDLITO4aGzU92FSQg/edit?usp=sharing

The great feast of Pentecost is May 31. Please join us on Saturday, May 30 for a Memorial Divine Liturgy beginning at 8:00 a.m. Following the Liturgy we will decorate the parish church with boughs, branches, and flowers for the Pentecost vigil. This is a similar activity to our Lazarus Saturday church decoration in preparation for the Palm Sunday vigil. Many good memories are waiting to be had at these sorts of events. Please bring your children! It is especially important for them to participate in these sorts of activities. Now that Sally DeRoo has fallen asleep in the Lord we very much someone to lead these sorts of activities and to care for the flowers and plants in the parish church. Can you help? Please contact Fr. Gregory. All are welcome!

Our Sister in Christ Sally DeRoo headed up the interior decoration of the parish church for major holidays (and frankly – all the time). We are seeking a volunteer or two to begin to fill Sally's shoes. Please talk to Fr. Gregory if you can help. We need you – please step forward!