The Vine Issue 1 , 2013

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ISSUE 1 2013 THE

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Transcript of The Vine Issue 1 , 2013

Page 1: The Vine Issue 1 , 2013

ISSUE 1 2013

THE

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My dear brothers and sisters

the youth,

I’d like to congratulate you for

the 1st

issue of your new

youth magazine, The Vine.

Why this name? Let us try to

understand what our Lord

meant when He said ‘I am the

True Vine’ (John 15:1)

Jesus wanted His friends (not

only the twelve disciples, but

all of us) to know that He was

not going to desert them,

even though they would no

longer enjoy His physical

presence. His living energy—

His spiritual reality—would

continue to nourish and sus-

tain them just as the roots

and trunk of a grape vine pro-

duce the energy that nourish-

es and sustains its branches

while it develops their fruit.

Jesus wanted us to know that

even though we cannot see

Him, we are as closely con-

nected with Him as the

branches of a vine are con-

nected with its stem.

Our desire and energy to know and love Him; and to

tell others about Him will keep flowing into and through us as long as we are attached to Him, as branches

to a vine. This is why we must ‘abide’ in Him, remaining at-tached to the source of all spiritual life. May the Lord reward all the youth who worked extremely

hard to produce this wonder-ful work. May it be a source of blessing to us all.

I pray that you are all well

and full of the peace of the

Lord during this holiday. May

the Lord grant you a blessed

New Year 2014 & a Happy

Glorious Feast of Nativity.

St. Mark’s servant,

Abouna

Abouna’s Message

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Hello precious reader!

Let me first say thank you for pick-

ing me up. Today is your special day.

You happen to be one of a few to

have arbitrarily chosen me for a

read.

So- what ‘s this magazine all about?

The Vine is here to lighten up your

day with puzzles and the low-down

on upcoming haps. With more seri-

ous articles too, you're sure to learn

something wheth-

er you’re bored at

work, or pushing

your tray tables

up into the up-

right and locked

position.

The Vine will be

with you like

white on rice. Or

smell on nose.

So let's begin:

If I may, let us first take a moment to

remember the hallowing and noble

history of the 'magazine':

-In 1663, 'Erbauliche Monaths Un-

terredungen' became the first ever

magazine on this sweet planet. Oth-

er than sounding like a brand name

for industrial solvents, it marked an

important time for all, albeit only a

handful of people were literate

enough to read its contents let

alone its title. Nevertheless it was a

genesis for all. Featured articles in-

cluded how to avoid pirates on the

open seas, first aid tips for small pox

and cholera infections, as well more

helpful articles for women of age,

like "12 and unmarried: why it's

probably too late".

-Then came the proud Sir Sylvanus

Urban who in 1731 became the first

to use the term 'magazine', a word

derived from the Arabic ma-

khzan' (store-house) to refer to mag-

azines as being storehouses of infor-

mation. Lame right?

Wrong. What a wise man he clearly

was - a hero of the

print, dare I say.

Thus began a noble

tradition. One that

beat on strong toward

the current, used to

have a read of, swat

flies with, or as a

means of furthering

your social isolation by

looking busy on public

transportation so that

people won't talk to you.

You might be asking yourself at this

point, why The Vine? What's that

name all about?

Huh?

What?

What's with all these questions?

Unfortunately it takes up to 5 work-

ing days to have your queries an-

swered. But please don't let this dis-

courage you.

Also, we think you look pretty to-

day.

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TO CONTRIBUTE.

SEND YOUR ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS TO

[email protected] TO SEE IT IN AN UPCOMING ISSUE

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It has been a couple of weeks

since our Church has started

the Nativity fast – do you feel

any different? If the only dif-

ference you feel is the switch

from meat to fish and vegeta-

bles, and from milk to

soymilk; then you’re doing it

wrong!

From his book “The Spirituali-

ty of Fasting”, our late be-

loved Pope Shenouda the

third states that “fasting is not

hunger

for the

body, but

it is nour-

ishment

for the

soul.”

Nourish-

ing the

soul

needs a

lot of struggle, practice and

time. This is what our Church

provides for us during these

Holy fasts. This is also what

God provided His people to

do in the wilderness of Sinai:

“So He humbled you, allowed

you to hunger, and fed you

with manna which you did

not know nor did your father

know, that He might make

you know that man shall not

live by bread alone, but man

lives by every word that pro-

ceeds from the mouth of the

Lord” (Deuteronomy 8: 2-3)

Was God trying to punish His

people by only feeding them

after they hunger?

First we must understand the

type of food manna is.

Manna is heavenly food

that God sent to the Is-

raelites when they were

complaining about their

hunger in the wilder-

ness. It was nourishing

food, pleasant and

wholesome, nothing

compared to the food of

the earth. God wanted

to teach His people that

they didn’t need food; rather

they were in need for His

word to live. In John 6: 49-51,

it is clearly highlighted that

our Lord Jesus Christ is the

living bread, from which is

our source of eternal nourish-

ment.

Feeling Hungry?

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The Israelites were so fo-

cused on being lost in the

wilderness, they started to

worry about their future

and lose their faith in God.

This is very similar to our

state when we get so con-

sumed by worldly matters,

and forget to get our true

nourishment. When we are

away from God we will nev-

er be satisfied or happy;

thus we become hungry for

righteousness.

The feeling of hunger hum-

bles us, and helps us re-

member that our talents,

strengths and capabilities

amount to nothing without

God’s grace. Thus, God al-

lows us to feel hunger

when we are away from

Him, because it is only

when we are humbled that

our faith in Him increases,

and His work in us becomes

complete (1 Peter 5:6).

God allowed Moses to fast

forty days so that his faith

was sufficient to receive the

Word of the Lord. God also

allowed the Egyptians to

fast three days before their

faith was sufficient for God

to intervene and move the

Moukattam Mountain. We

are also reminded that in

order for God to work in

our lives, we must have our

faithful hearts (mangers)

clean and ready for His holy

coming. May this Nativity

fast be of great nourish-

ment for your souls, and

bring much blessing to your

lives.

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Maintaining healthy habits is an important part of living a satisfying life. Life these days can get very busy and with all

its hardships, food and exer-cise become the least of our priorities. However, we need to treat our body right in or-der to use our God given po-tential, and perform at an op-timum level whether it is at

school, work, or even during our holidays. Swap Sweets for Fruits! Be careful what you put in-side your mouth. Having food that contains high levels of

fat in the absence of fresh fruit and vegetables may im-pair your performance and long term health. Be aware of the danger of too many sweets. They are high in sugar, calories and fat, which do not provide sus-tained energy. The sugar may boost your energy for a short period of time and then leave you depleted in energy. When you feel the urge to eat something sweet, instead, have a banana, orange, strawberry or any other yum-my fruits. Don’t Miss Breakfast! Nutritionists stress the im-

portance of breakfast to beat lethargy and have a produc-tive day. Healthy breakfast, such as ce-

reals that are high in fibre, fruit, and dairy foods charge you with energy and to start your day. First thing to do is to make sure not to miss out on breakfast, so that you get energy and carbohydrates,

particularly complex carbohy-drates that sustain energy re-lease. An example of an ideal breakfast would be food such as high fibre cereals, with pro-tein like low-fat milk or yo-

gurt, an egg on toast, or a fruit smoothie. In your lunch, avoid eating too much as this can make you feel sleepy and inactive. Remember, whenever you eat, leave some space in your stomach. Keep in mind that a healthy and light lunch will increase your performance in. A healthy lunch might in-clude: wholegrain bread or toast for a sandwich, chicken breast, light tuna or salmon with brown rice and vegeta-bles, fruit salad or yogurt, kid-ney beans with rice and vege-tables, ham with low fat cheese, or hard-boiled egg

A Balanced Lifestyle

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with salad. If you choose rice or pasta, try wholegrain pas-ta or brown rice as it has more fibre which makes it a

healthy option. Snacking keeps you full for longer! Healthy snacks during the day, for example every two hours, im-proves your mood, as well as boosting

your per-formance, concentra-tion, and energy. According to the American Dietetic Associa-tion, adults who eat a small snack in the afternoon are likely to get through their tasks more quickly and effi-ciently. Go for healthy snacks such as: fresh fruits, low fat yogurt, nuts and dried fruits, hummus and crackers, and popcorn. But eating healthily is not

enough on its own to gain a balanced and productive life. Physical activity also must be considered to boost perfor-

mance. Always keep in mind the equation: eating healthy and physical activity can help improve your grades.

Why is ex-ercising im-portant? The bene-fits of physical activity ranges

from be-ing fit, maintain-ing a healthy weight, reducing

stress, achieving better sleep, and increased concentration. The ideal way to eliminate everyday stress is by doing physical activity you enjoy. Exercise stimulates the brain to release endorphins, which makes you feel happier, em-powered, and kicks your stress away for up to 24 hours.

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Ingredients

½ cup oil 1 cup sugar

¼ cup soy milk 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 1 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven at 180°C.

2. Mix the oil & sugar, then add the soy milk & vanilla ex-tract.

3. In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

4. Combine the wet & dry ingredients, and then add the chocolate chip.

5. Make tablespoon sized balls & place them on baking paper, then flatten them out a bit with your palm.

6. Bake for 7-10 minutes.

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Giving your

heart to Christ

Prov 23:26

Giving Alms

Luke 11:41

Spiritual

Meetings

Mat 18:24

Communion

John 6:54

Spiritual

Readings

John 5:39

Prayer

1 Cor 7:5

Fast with self-

control

1 Peter 2:16

Fast with

your feet

Ps 119:105

Fast with

your tongue

Mat 2:34

Fast with

your ears

Prov 23:12

Fast with

your

eyes

Mat 6:22

Fast with

your

thoughts

Eph 4:17

The Train of Fasting

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SUDOKU

Easy

Extreme

PUZZLES!

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"Fasting is the single greatest natural healing therapy. It is nature's ancient, universal 'remedy' for many problems. Animals instinctively fast when ill."

Elson Haas, M.D. in Staying Healthy with Nutrition

ABSTINENCE

GIVING ALMS

BLESSINGS

SELF CONTROL

DEVOTION

FASTING

FORTY THREE

HEALTH

HOLY SPIRIT

HUMILITY

IMPLORE

KIAHK

MARY

MERCY

NATIVITY

WILL POWER

PRAYER

PURITY

REFOCUS

SPIRITUAL FOOD

UNITY

WORSHIP

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"Fasting is the greatest remedy-- the physician within."

Philippus Paracelsus, one of the three fathers of Western medicine

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Maze

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World Football

Controversy surrounding the

Balon D’or saga continues as

FIFA extend the voting peri-

od by a week on the night of

Portugal’s emphatic 4-2 ag-

gregate victory over Sweden

following a hat-trick from

Portugal’s Ronaldo. The Por-

tugal skipper is favoured to

win it this year due to his

scintillating form which has

seen him put away 67 goals

during the calendar year,

eight of which have come in

just five appearances in the

Champions League. This also

comes on the backend of

Sepp Blatters debatable com-

ments which he made in

front of a theatre full of stu-

dents claiming Ronaldo re-

sembled a “Commander on

the pitch who spends too

much money on his hair” be-

fore getting out of his seat

and impersonating a military

commander which is in stark

contrast to the comments he

made about Ronaldo’s rival,

Messi or as Blatter would see,

The Good Boy followed by

him revealing that he prefers

Messi over Ronaldo. Ronaldo

has now opted out of attend-

ing the FIFA Gala which will

be held in Zurich after it

seems FIFA gave contenders

Ribéry and Messi, much bet-

ter profile right ups than

they did Ronaldo which

would seem to be the final

straw for the 28 year old as

the player also says he has

no interest in meeting with

the FIFA president subse-

quent to Blatter revealing he

intended to speak to

Ronaldo in private following

his remarks.

The odds seem in Ronaldo’s

favour however as four-time

Balon D’or recipient Lionel

Messi will be out of action

until early January due to a

thigh injury which has

haunted him for the past

eight months. French and

Munich talisman,

World Sport News

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Franck Ribéry has also been

ruled out of action till the

end of November due to a

cracked rib which he sus-

tained on duty with the

French national team. The

winner of the annual award

will be announced on Janu-

ary 13th

.

World Cup Qualifiers

It was to be a disappointing

Wednesday for all Egyptian

and New Zealand football

fans as both nations bowed

out of the world cup qualifi-

ers after failing to overcome

huge first leg deficits. Egypt

had the gargantuan task of

overturning a 6-1 first leg

defeat following a stellar

performance from the quar-

ter finalists of the 2010

world cup. Egypt managed

a 2-1 second leg victory as

Amr Hassan and Mohamed

Nagy Gedo grabbed a goal

each however it was Ghana

who secured the finals spot

(Agg. 7-3). The New Zea-

land All Whites also had a

mountain to climb follow-

ing their 5-1 defeat at the Az-

teca and it seemed promising

for the All Whites after a very

strong start however the pre

match hype was short-lived

after Mexico grabbed the

lead in the 13th

minute after

a brilliantly worked move

and it was to be all downhill

from there and seemed to

get worse following a Jeremy

Brockie penalty miss. The All

Whites fought valiantly how-

ever Mexico ran away the

winners 4-2 on the night

(Agg. 9-3).

Information accurate as of

24th November 2013

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General 7 & 4 prayers (Praises of the Blessed Month of Kiahk) :

Saturday 7:00 - 10:00pm, commencing 14 Dec 2013 Nady (Summer Holiday Activities): Tuesdays & Thurs-

days 7:00 - 10:00pm, starting 24 December. Primary School

Annual Sunday School Camp 02 - 04 Jan 2014 at Motu Moana (see Medhat Gayed for more information)

Summer Competition “Come to Me” commences De-cember – the end of January

Intermediate & High School

Summer Competition commences from Fri 22 Nov 2013 - Fri 31 Jan 2014

University & Graduates

Summer Competition commences Fri 06 Dec 2013 Youth

Annual NZ C.O.C. Youth Camp 08 - 11 Jan 2014 at Pa-rua Bay Christian Youth Haven located at 1 Wharf Road, Parua Bay, Whangarei. Get your camp con-sent form and payment in by the 22

nd of December!

(Please see Fouad Youssef for more information) REGULAR SERVICES

Liturgies : Fridays (Arabic/Coptic) 9:30 - 11:15am ; Sat-urdays (Arabic) 8:30 - 10:30am ; Sundays (English/Coptic) 8:15 - 11:15am

Vesper : Saturdays 7:00 - 8:30pm followed by Midnight Praise (Tasbeha) 8:30 - 10pm

General Prayer meeting : first Tuesday every month 7:00 - 8:15pm

Family meetings (open) : Tuesdays 7:00 - 8:15pm Deacon's Hymn lessons : Tuesdays 7:00 - 8:15pm

Announcements

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PHOTO CORNER

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Hey kids!

Colour this in, rip it

off and submit it

with your name to

The Vine upstairs

and be in to win!