Brothers and Sisters,
Greetings in the Name of the Lord.
This coming Saturday, August 28, St. Thomas School will begin working through Volume IV of Metropolitan Hilarion’s series Orthodox Christianity. The fourth volume is entitled “The Worship and Liturgical Life of the Orthodox Church”. It’s for sale in the bookstore. So, this would be a great time to start participating in the sessions at 4:00 p.m. just about every Saturday afternoon.
This coming Sunday, August 29, is the fifth Sunday of the month. Therefore, during Fellowship Hour, we will be having a potluck meal. That means we all need to bring food to share. We will place it in the kitchen on the bar and folks will be able to serve themselves when they come through the line. In addition, after the meal has ended, our Kitchen Coordinator, Misty Wright, will need help cleaning everything up. So, please plan on hanging around and making her life easier by washing dishes, wiping down the counters, taking out the trash, and sweeping and mopping the floor.
Our Calendar
Fasting Days
Wednesday, August 25 and Friday, August 27
Daily Services
Monday, August 23 to Wednesday, August 27
Orthros 5am;
Vespers 5pm
If you plan to attend any of the daily services, it’s generally a good idea to check the day before to make sure that the service will be offered. Sometimes pastoral situations require a change of plans and services cannot be offered on that particular day.
The Hours
This month, Seth Hart will be starting a new job! He will still be at the online chanter’s stand, offering the First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Hours every day on ZOOM. However, from Monday, August 23 through the end of September, he will be reading the First, Third, Sixth, and Ninth Hours together each morning at 6:45 a.m. Once he’s settled into the new job, then he will have a better idea of how to schedule his day and the hours.
See the emailed newsletter for login info.
Tuesday, August 24
Parish Council Meeting at 7:00 p.m.
The deadline for bringing new business to the council or addressing the council has passed, but everyone is welcome to attend the meeting.
Thursday, August 26
Bible Study at 7:00 p.m.
See the emailed newsletter for login info.
Saturday, August 28
St. Thomas School at 4:00 p.m.
Great Vespers at 6:00 p.m.
Sunday, August 29
The Beheading of the Forerunner
Orthros at 8:00 a.m.
Divine Liturgy at 10:00 a.m.
Fellowship Hour Potluck at Noon
St. Thomas School
On Saturday, August 28, Father Deacon Andrew Wilson will lead the discussion of the Introduction to Volume IV, “Worship and Liturgical life of the Orthodox Church”.
The following link will provide a summary of the covered material:
Church School
Attached, to this edition of The Happy Priest, is a letter outlining our plans for the 2021-2022 Church School year. The letter also contains assignments for each class and each Sunday. Please read all of that material carefully and, if you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns, get in touch with Father Aidan.
Fall Theological Seminar
Attached, to this edition of The Happy Priest, is a letter about The Fall Theological Seminar, as well as an event that we will be hosting the first weekend in November. Please read all the details and plan on joining us either in person or online each Wednesday evening throughout the fall and on Saturday, November 6.
Online Meeting Participation
Starting Wednesday, September 1, online participation in St. Thomas School, The Fall Theological Seminar, and any parish events or meetings that we host will be limited to folks who live at a distance from the parish (Bastrop, Burnet, and Killeen). However, in order to participate online, each of us will need to make a reservation 48 hours prior to the event by sending an email to remote.meetings@theforerunner.org. We will also need to keep our cameras on during the event. We will readily make exceptions for folks who have health concerns or other issues, but you’ll need to address that with Father Aidan (just send him an email).
Feast of the Indiction
The Liturgical Year begins on Wednesday, September 1, with the Feast of the Indiction. So, start the New Year off right by attending the Divine Services for the feast. Great Vespers will be served on Tuesday, August 31, at 7:00 p.m. and, on the morning of the feast, Orthros will be served at 4:00 a.m. and Divine Liturgy at 6:00 a.m.
Our Moment of Grace and Courtesy
Let’s be sure and pick up after ourselves when we are done with fellowship hour. Please make sure that all your plates, silverware, and coffee cups make it back to the kitchen in the Long Fellowship Hall and please put all napkins and food scraps in the trash can. If you are sitting outside, be sure that you haven’t left anything on or under the picnic tables. If you are sitting inside, check the carpet and pick up any food or crumbs. If your children are not sitting with you, please make sure that they also clean up after themselves.
—
An unworthy priest,
Aidan
The Happy Priest is a publication of Life at a Dead Run Media, which is a subsidiary of One Take Productions. Our IT Guy is Jerry Juliano (“Go, Jerry, Go!”). Our Webmaster is Seth Hart. Our Keeper of Lists is Father Deacon Andrew Wilson. Our Roving Reporter is Gray Grantham. The names of our matched set of griffins are Boris and Natasha (they keep the pigeons off our Zeppelin mooring mast) and our Spiritual Advisor is Elder Galaction of the Holy Mountain.