December 4, 2011

St. Nicholas December 6

SSSS t. Nicholas was born in a Christian family who made sure that he got the best education. After his parents died, Nicholas decided to become a monk. He soon realized, though, that God’s will for him was different. He came back to his hometown, and eventually was made Archbishop of the city of Myra. Very quickly, Nicholas became known for being a very generous, compassionate, and merciful person. He started several orphanages and hospitals, constantly gave money to the poor, and helped travelers and countless other people. If you had to pick one word to describe St. Nicholas, it would probably be “generous”! St. Nicholas spent his life helping other people with whatever they needed, no matter how big or small. In the Old Testament, God gave the people this commandment: “You shall love your neighbor as your-self” (Leviticus 19:18). Our Lord Jesus Christ also spoke this phrase several times in the New Testament, which tells us how important it is to care about other people! St. Nicholas tried as hard as he could to follow this commandment. We can take many lessons from him to help us also follow God’s commandment to love others!!

Facts About St. Nicholas

• St. Nicholas died in 330 AD, during the reign of the Emperor Constantine the Great

• The relics of St. Nicholas were taken to Italy in the 11th century, and are still there today in the city of Bari

• St. Nicholas is considered the patron saint of travelers, sailors, and children

• Our Church remembers St. Nicholas on December 6th

• The “Nicholas” in Greek means “victory of the people:

• We call St. Nicholas “the Wonderworker” because many miracles have happened through him.

• The city of Myra, where St. Nicholas was the Archbishop, is in Turkey today.

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CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICECHRISTMAS EVE SERVICECHRISTMAS EVE SERVICECHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE

8:30 PM MATINS8:30 PM MATINS8:30 PM MATINS8:30 PM MATINS

9:30 PM DIVINE LITURGY9:30 PM DIVINE LITURGY9:30 PM DIVINE LITURGY9:30 PM DIVINE LITURGY

FATHER GEORGE H. SHALHOUB

248-374-0591

December 4, 2011 Issue 299

�18100 Merriman Road � Livonia, Michigan 48152 � www.saintmarylivonia.com � Office: (734)-422-0010 �

Sunday Services

Confession: 8:30AM

Matins: 9:00AM

Divine Liturgy: 10:00AM

St. Mary’s Cultural

and Banquet Center

(734) 421-9220

Daily Confession by Appointment - Call the Church Office

“And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” Acts 11:26

The Antiochian Orthodox Basilica of St. Mary

Fr. George Shalhoub - Pastor Fr. Jim King - Director of Youth & Pastoral Outreach Programs Deacon Issa Rizkallah

313-690-2030 Deacon Dr. Dennis Bojrab Robert Harb - Parish Council Chairman Linda Lawson - Choir Director Stacey Badeen - Church Administrator Dianne Farah-Church School Administrator Arwa Ansara-Asst. Church School

Administrator Richard Shebib/Sami Azzouz - Ushers George Chalhoub - Young Adults- St. John Divine Dolly Matta - Ladies Society President Nicole Khamis - Teen Soyo President Lina Nunu - Arabic School Keith Rowe - Cultural Center General Manager 734-421-9220

The Light of Christ

AL-NOUR

PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY:

THE ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX BASILICA OF ST. MARY

Page 2 The Antiochian Orthodox Basilica of St. Mary

THE EPISTLE

The Reading is from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 3:23-29; 4:1-5

BBBB rethen, before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under restraint until faith should be revealed. So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian; for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise. I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no better than a slave, though he is the owner of all the estate; but he is under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. So with us; when we were children, we were slaves to the elemental spirits of the universe. But when the time had fully come, God sent forth His Son, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

THE GOSPEL

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke Chapter 13:10-17

AAAA t that time, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, He called her and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” And He laid His hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God. But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be healed and not on the Sabbath day.” Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrite! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” As Jesus said this, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by Him.

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PRAYER CORNER memorials

IIII am the Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Me shall never die.” (John 11:25) Dec.4-40 day memorial in loving memory of Nabiha Mousa Mufarreh offered by the family,

Thank You

OUR NEW ARRIVALS

“A Vigil Light is Burning” In Loving Devotion

FFFF or The Health and Well Being Of: Ramzi Al-Shaer,

IIII n Memory Of: Joseph Michael Mouaikel; George Abodeely;

Maxine Koury, Ken Biedron, Chakib Abboud,

HOLY BREAD OF OBLATION

Sermon On-Line

If you missed Fr. George’s sermon last Sunday, you can now listen to him or you can see the full Liturgy at

www.saintmarylivonia.com click on multimedia and go to videos

Last few week’s sermons:

The Pursuit of Virtue

By: Fr. Jim King

Success in God’s Eyes By: Fr. James King, Sr.

With Faith and Belief, Draw Near

By: Fr. Jim King

Don’t Let Your Habits Dictate Your Salvation

HHHH oly Bread of Oblation is offered, for the month of December in loving memory of Showki Salah by his wife Viola Salah and children, Dr. David Salah and Suzie Ishaq,

HHHH oly Bread of Oblation is offered, for the month of December, in loving memory of Fuad Naser and Aziz and Hilweh Naser by Salwa Naser,

HHHH oly Bread of Oblation is offered, for the month of December for the health and well being of Suhail, Ire-ne, Madlyne, Amanda & Fuad Saba, Suhail and Stephanie Saba, Faisal, Sonya, Andrew, Joseph & Yasmeen Abukhader and in loving memory of Hanna and Refka Serhan and Habib Saba.

LLLL ord, you are the physician of our souls and body. We pray

You grant the following parishioners good health and blessings: Lynn, Gerry Basila, Anthony Salah,

CCCC ongratulations and best wishes to Brian and Jehann Zaid on the birth of their baby girl, Mia Layal. Proud grandparents are Rajaee and Edna Zaid and Emad and Rana Zayed. May God bless parents, grand-parents and child.

CCCC ongratulations and best wishes to Michael and Rawan (Khoury) Freil on the birth of their baby girl Isla Liv Freil. Proud grandparents are Dr. Radwan and Nadia Khoury and Mr. and Mrs. Freil. May God bless parents, grandparents, and child.

TTTT he following parishioners and friends of the Basilica of St.

Mary have given special donations to the Church in the past few weeks: $50-In loving memory of Showki Salah offered by Viola Salah and family, $100-In loving memory of Jurious and Anise Ghareeb offered by Dr. Nabil and Isabelle Sultani and family, $100-For the health and well being of newborn baby girl, Selena Kawaja offered by her grand-parents Musa and Hala Rizkallah, $100-In loving memory of Mary Eadeh offered by the family, $100-In loving memory of aunt Georgette Al-Darzi offered by Dr. Nabil and Nahla Chalhoub, $100-For the health and well being of newly baptized Caroline Coe offered by her parents Issa and Rebecca Youssef, $100-For the health and well being of newborn baby boy Essam Julius Fouad, parents Fouad and Rozan Kazaleh, and grandparents Isam and Lily Kazaleh and Shukri and Lucy Halloun offered by great grandparents, Fouad and Nabiha Kazaleh, $100-In loving memory of Fuad Naser and Aziz and Hilweh Naser offered by Salwa Naser, $500-For the health and well being of newborn Isla Liv Freil offered by her grandparents Dr. Radwan and Nadia Khoury,

UPCOMING EVENTS FOR ST. MARY PARISHIONERS

Dec. 5-Christmas Extravaganza Dec. 18-Holy Land Christmas Concert

Ladies Society Please join the Ladies Society for their annual Christmas Potluck Dinner on Tuesday, December 6th beginning at 7pm at St. Mary’s Cultural Center. Bring your favorite food to share and don’t forget a Kroger gift card ($20 value) to help those less fortunate.

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Week of December 4, 2011

11th Annual Thanksgiving Outreach Dinner On behalf of Fr. George, Fr. Jim, and the entire Basilica of St. Mary community, we want to thank everyone who helped with our annual Thanksgiving Outreach Dinner this year, on Tuesday, November 22nd. Whether you made a phone call, served a plate of food, danced with a guest, led us in song, or offered a smile - your unique offering of love and dedication to our Livonia neighbors was truly beautiful. This was the 11th year for our Thanksgiving Outreach dinner and were blessed to host approximately 150 guests from local senior homes and two foster care homes. In addition, we also welcomed over 40 choir members from Novi High School, and approximately 65 of our own teens participated. The evening, fellowship, a prayer by Fr. George and our guest, Pastor Jim Parks, dinner, sponsored by George and Evelyn Naser and their family, choir performance by Novi High School, a church tour, and dancing with our guests in both traditional folk American music, hip-hop and even Arabic. There are many people to thank - George and Evelyn Naser for offering the dinner, Keith Rowe from the Cultural Center for always making "it" happen, Fr. George and Fr. Jim for always being by our side in love and faith , Fares Jaghab and Anthony Massad for coordinating the evening, Gus Shukeireh for offering cookies, Joey Kehdi for DJ'ing, Tony Bahu for always supporting us, Haitham Fakhouri for documenting the evening by taking pictures, and for each of you who served in your own way. God bless you all! Michael Ansara Teen Advisor

Please visit our website for details about all the Basilica of St. Mary events and activities. www.saintmarylivonia.com

The Antiochian Orthodox Basilica of St. Mary Page 5

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The Antiochian Orthodox Basilica of St. Mary

FOOD FOR THE HUNGRY

TTTT he Basilica of St. Mary is looking for donations of turkeys, canned goods or non perishable food to help the needy. Please call the church office @734-422-0010 for additional

information. This Thanksgiving Season, we are so thankful to God and for all the blessings that He has given us. If you wish to help a family in need, kindly include a $25 check per family, in your weekly envelope, payable to St. Mary’s, earmarked Food for the Needy.

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CHRISTMAS PLANTS

IIII n order to decorate our Church with Poinsettias for the Christmas Season, we kindly ask that you respond by completing the form below and enclose it in your weekly giving envelopes or by placing it in the collection

basket on Sunday.

Name: ______________________________________Amount:_____________ In memory of: _________________________________________________________ Health and well being of:_________________________________________________