~Maria Angelica’s first Ballet Class~

Yesterday was Jonah’s nameday- I was too exhausted from the whole weekend to get on the computer at all, yesterday.  The weekend went like this: Friday- clean house, prepare for party, party of 5 boys spending the night- pizza, pop corn, movie, cake ice cream etc….- Saturday- bagel run for breakfast, get out the door at 9:00am with 9 kids- sleeping bags, book bags etc…Greek School- for 7 of the 9 kids, ballet for Maria~Angelica- she loves it – I have video to post, Soccer game 1, Nicholas, Soccer game 2 , Jonah, Soccer game 3, Basil- on three different fields (meanwhile Fr. had a wedding at church and a sick visit an hour away). After the games ended, I took the kids to the mall- Fr. thought I was crazy to take 4 kids to the mall by myself after such a long day but it was better then coming home and messing up my clean house! Also, I had my eye on  a few  blouses for church and  was hoping they would be on sale. The were and not only that it was Macy’s ”Shop for a Cause“day.  The kids and I passed the time very nicely at the mall. The were quite patient while I found what I needed, then I treated them to pretzels  and a few sale shirts at Abercrombie. I love to get those shirts for $9.90! Basil is really into Abercrombie and he knows I won’t buy anything in there unless it’s on clearance- that store is so ridiculously over priced. Nicholas got a  few new shirts, too. It was nice to send them off  to school in some fresh new clothes this morning. Sunday-  Church- Divine Liturgy and a luncheon – we left Church at 3:30pm, Target for Basil to use a Birthday gift card- by which time it was 5 pm. and Fr. was almost done with his hospital visits so he met us for dinner at Carrabba’s- we had a gift certificate and I didn’t have the energy to cook. By the time we got home it was 7:30pm-  baths, homework and bed- including myself! So now I am getting around to posting Happy Name Day wishes for Jonah. Fr. gave his children’s sermon on the Holy Prophet Jonah, yesterday. The OCA celebrates Prophet Jonah today- so I am not too late!

Happy Name Day Jonah! May God Grant you MANY YEARS!!!!

~The Feast Day of Prophet Jonah~

September 21st

The Holy Prophet Jonah lived in the eighth century before the birth of Christ and was a successor of the Prophet Elisha. The Book of the Prophet Jonah contains prophecies about the judgments on the Israelite nation, the sufferings of the Savior, the downfall of Jerusalem, and the end of the world. Besides the prophecies, the Book of Jonah relates how he was sent to the Ninevites to preach repentance (Jon. 3: 3-10).

Our Lord Jesus Christ, addressing the Scribes and the Pharisees who demanded a sign from him, said that no sign would be given except for the sign of the Prophet Jonah, “As Jonah was in the belly of the whale three days and three nights, so also shall the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights (Mt. 12: 40). From these words the Lord shows clearly the symbolic meaning of the Book of the Prophet Jonah in relation to Christ’s death on the Cross, descent into Hell, and the Resurrection.

Reproaching the lack of penitence and recalcitrance of the Jews, the Lord said, “The Ninevites shall rise in the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and one greater than Jonah is here” (Mt. 12: 41).

His feast day is celebrated on September 21 (Greek tradition) or 22 (Slavic tradition).

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Jonah

~Jonah’s “All About Me” Project~

Jonah was “Lord of the Day” yesterday. The classroom theme is “Medieval Kingdom- Lords and Ladies”. The “Lord of the day” sits on the throne with a crown and cape and  presents a poster about himself. Then the children all write two things they learned about the person and it is compiled into a book to be presented to the ”Lord or Lady of the day”.  I was so stressed getting this first grade project done. Jonah  was one of the first to go in his class, because our last name starts with a C, and we didn’t have much time to get it together. I found out on parent night- a week before it was due. I sifted through photos on our computer- 40, 000+ photos and then sent them to be printed- because I rarely print photos. Then I had to buy ink cartridges- because we were holding off buying those because they are so expensive. I needed to get my craft supplies organized so I stocked up at Walmart and purchased a canvas arts and crafts tote to house my 15 pairs of scissors,15 at least!  Glue sticks, Sharpies, stickers, glue gun, etc..etc..  I cut each photo with a scalloped scissors, used a foam bard to mount them all on and put a backing boarder on  each shot.  I printed each caption in blue ink, on the computer and Jonah  wrote some of his details at the top- the teacher had what she wanted printed and filled out on the top.   In the end, I think it turned out well. The one disappointing thing was that Jonah had a substitute that day….I was sad to hear this.  Part of the presentation was to practice public speaking. It would have been nice if his own teacher had been present for his presentation.

Here are the results of all the time, effort and money…

 Jonah rode his bike to school- hence the helmet but, our precious poster was driven by car.

  ~HaPpY BiRtHdAy NICHOLAS!!~

Today September 17th is Nicholas 9th Birthday!

We had a little party for Nicholas and his school friends and tonight we celebrated a little with dinner, cake an presents. A neat fact is that today is also the feast day of St. Sophia and her daughters, Faith, Hope and Love (Pisti, Elpida and Agape)  Nicholas was born on my sister’s-in-law name day- her name is Elpida. I love the 17th of September and can’t believe 9 years has passed since I gave birth to Nicholas on this beautiful day! Where have the years gone? Nicholas has made a lot of nice friends since we moved up here and I am grateful that he is happy and thriving. He is fortunate to have the same little friends in his class at school, in our neighborhood and on his soccer team. He misses his best friend, Dean but he knows that Dean and his family back home will always remain in his life. Look how happy is here with is guests. He made the guest list, wrote the invitations and is working on his thank you notes. 

 May God Grant Nicholas, Many, many, many years!!     

Eating Pizza

Opening Presents

Nicholas and his friend, Jack

~A Funny~

This morning when Maria~Angelica woke up she asked me, “Mommy, it’s ‘morning o’clock’ ? “

Al Qaeda declares Coptic priest Zakaria Botros “one of the most wanted infidels in the world”

And offers 60 million for his head. More on Islam’s Public Enemy #1. “Exclusive: Al Qaeda targets leading Arab evangelist operating in the U.S. for preaching the Gospel to Muslims,” by Joel C. Rosenberg for Flashtraffic, September 9 (thanks to Erick):

You have probably never heard of Father Zakaria Botros. But you need to know his story. He is far and away the most-watched and most-effective Arab-American evangelist focused on reaching the Muslim world, and by far the most controversial. The Rush Limbaugh of the Revivalists, he is funny, feisty, brilliant, opinionated, and provocative. But rather than preaching the gospel of conservatism, he is preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. And his enemies do not simply want to silence him. They want to assassinate him.

Last week, I had the honor of interviewing Botros by phone from a secure, undisclosed location in the United States, where he now resides. He told me that he had just learned that an al Qaeda website had posted his photograph and named him one of the “most wanted” infidels in the world. The Radicals have even put a bounty on his head. The Christian Broadcasting Network reported the figure was as high as $60 million. Botros does not know for certain. But just to put that in context, the U.S. bounty on Osama bin Laden’s head is “only” $25 million.

Why are the Radicals so enraged by an elderly Coptic priest from Egypt who is in his 70s? Because Botros is waging an air war against them, and he is winning.

Using state-of-the art satellite technology to bypass the efforts of Islamic governments to keep the gospel out of their countries, Botros is directly challenging the claims of Muhammad to be a prophet, and the claims of the Qu’ran to be God’s word. He systematically deconstructs Muhammad’s life, story by story, pointing out character flaws and sinful behavior. He carefully deconstructs the Qu’ran, verse by verse, citing contradictions and inconsistencies. And not only does he explain without apology what he believes is wrong with Islam, he goes on to teach Muslims from the Bible why Jesus loves them and why is so ready to forgive them and adopt them into His family, no matter who they are or what they have done.

If Botros was doing this in a corner, or on some cable access channel where no one saw him or cared, that would be one thing. But his ninety-minute program – a combination of preaching, teaching and answering questions from (often irate) callers all over the world – has become “must see TV” throughout the Muslim world. It is replayed four times a week in Arabic, his native language, on a satellite television network called Al Hayat (“Life TV.”) It can be seen in every country in North Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, as well as all throughout North America,Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. And not only can it be seen in so many places, it is seen – by an estimated fifty million Muslims a day.

At the same time, Botros is getting millions of hits on his multiple web sites in multiple languages. There, Muslims can read his sermons and study through an archive of answers to frequently asked questions. They can also enter a live chat room called “Pal Chat” where they are not only permitted but encouraged to ask their toughest questions to trained on-line counselors, many of whom are Muslim converts to Christianity who understand exactly where the questioners are coming from and the struggles they are having.

As a result, Botros – on the air only since 2003 – has practically become a household word in the Muslim world. An Arabic newspaper has named him Islam’s “Public Enemy #1.” Millions hate him, to be sure, but they are watching. They are listening. They are processing what he is saying and they are talking about him with their friends and family. When Botros challenges Radical clerics to answer his many refutations of Islam and defend the Qu’ran, millions wait to see how the fundamentalists will respond. But they rarely do. They prefer to attack Botros than answer him. Yet, the more the Radicals attack him, the more well-known he becomes. The more well-known he becomes, the more Muslims feel compelled to tune in. And as more Muslims tune in, more are coming to the conclusion that Botros is right and in turn are choosing to become followers of Jesus Christ. Botros estimates at least 1,000 Muslims a month pray to receive Christ with his telephone counselors. Some of them pray to receive Christ live on their air with Botros. And this surely is only the tip of the iceberg, as it represents only those who are able to get through on the jammed phone lines. There simply are not currently enough trained counselors to handle each call.

[...]He does not believe all Muslims are Radicals, but he does believe all Muslims are spiritually lost, and he wants desperately to help them find their way to forgiveness and reconciliation with the God who made them and loves them.

“I believe this is the hand of God,” Botros told me. “He is directing me. He shows me what to say. He shows me what to write on…the web sites. He is showing me more and more how to use the technology to reach people with his message of redemption.”

Jihad Watch

~Just a few of my favorite photos from our weekend retreat~

~Pictures from my weekend with  my girls from www.orthodoxchristianchat.com~

www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=57238&l=e0dd6&id=735199552

www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=57243&l=81359&id=735199552

www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=57248&l=269cc&id=735199552

I am too tired to write anything right now, so I will copy and paste what I had wrote on the board.

We had an amazing time… Meeting Emily, Beth and Tamara in person was no different then knowing them on line. It didn’t feel new or different it just felt real and comfortable. It was like I had known them my entire life. Saying hello face to face and hugging goodbye was like there was no beginning and no end just a circle.

The worship was AMAZING! I was in awe and am still basking in the peace and joy of my time at the monastery. We took lots of pictures and in fact Beth, Tamara and I went to The Greek Orthodox Monastery  of the Nativity of The Theotokos in Saxonburg, PA for the Feast Day of the Nativity of The Mother of God- the Monastery’s Feast Day. It was 50 mins south of Holy Transfiguration Monastery. www.malf.net/nattheo.htm We arrived for the last few minutes of the service. The Church was packed, with over flow under a covering outside- mostly moms with little kids- but they had a speaker so you could here the service. There were a lot of beautiful little children, a lot of the the ds’s and dd’s of Priests and Presyteras. Many people drive for hours to attend the feast day of the monastery. I met a Fr. Basil A. from Saco, Main who comes from 12 hrs away for the last 20 years, to be a the monastery with his Pres. and 7 children. The neat thing is that Emily had visited his parish, at some point,  but he was away. So now Emily will be able to go back and meet him and he is excited to meet her and he gave me the info. to put her in touch with the camp program they run out there.

At Transfiguration (OCA) we stayed in the house built for Mother Alexandra (Princess Ileana Romania) www.tkinter.smig.net/PrincessIleana/index.htm the founder of the Monastery. It was very homey and comfortable and allowed us to have time together to share meals and talk. Which we never had enough time for! We had to get to sleep eventually; the worship cycle in a monastery means you need your sleep! And your feet need a bit of a break too! I don’t feel like I even scratched the surface of all that I wanted to know and learn about Beth, Emily and Tamara! But this is just the beginning! Our hope is that we will be able to meet more of you wonderful ladies but going on pilgrimages to monasteries across the great US of A making it easier for all of us to get together. We remembered all of you in prayer and spoke of you all often during our time together. 

The nuns were fantastic and many of them gave us their personal time to share with us and enlighten us. Mother Xaratina gave us the most amazing experiences to take away with us. Her words are still resonating with me. Especially as I made my bed this morning- Tamara, Beth and Emily will know what I am talking about.

One really neat surprise, which occurred early on in my stay, was seeing a picture of Mat.’s beautiful girls in the Monastery gift shop/bookstore! It is the SAME photo we have on our header! The girls are wearing matching t-shirts with a drawing of the monastery on them. Mat., you have greetings from the Sisters and I pray that we can meet at the monastery some time, soon! I do plan to go back! The drive was EASY – 3 hrs in a beautiful setting.

So what else do you all want to know? I am sure Emily, Tamara and Beth will share entirely different memories with you all so I am looking forward to reading their memories too! I know I have more but I just answered a phone call so I will leave it here and share more later.

~September 1st~

Happy Ecclesiastical New Year!

“Let the Church New Year truly be a time of renewal and recommitment to our lives “in Christ.”  We can each be an “Olympian” as we strive for an imperishable crown with the same intensity and devotion as the Olympians we just watched and admired so much labored for gold, silver and bronze medals.  Prayer and fasting are difficult practices to “master” over time, but certainly worthy of the effort of those who proclaim themselves as Christians and hence as belonging to Christ.”

~Fr. Steven Kostoff

~Very Cool~

One religious leader for both Democratic and Republican conventions

Sunday, August 24th 2008, 4:00 AM

You may not see them on prime time television, but prayers by the clergy will very much be a part of the national political conventions unfolding over the next two weeks.

Rabbis, priests and ministers will take the stage both in Denver, where the Democrats convene this week, and in Minneapolis-St. Paul, where the Republicans will gather the week after.

As might be expected, the clergy members chosen to speak tend to be close to the party that’s hosting the convention. Most clergy go to one convention or the other. But there is one clergyman who will speak at both: Archbishop Demetrios, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church of America.

With his white beard, black robe, monk’s hood and shepherd’s staff, Demetrios cuts a distinctive figure. Even if you don’t catch him at the podium, you might well spot him in the crowd.

How did it come that he goes to both the Republican and Democratic conventions?

“It’s a tradition that goes back to 1980,” said the Rev. Alexander Karloutsos, the public affairs director of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. That year, both Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan invited one of Demetrios’ predecessors, Archbishop Iakovos.

Feeling close to both and not wanting to offend anyone, Iakovos went to both conventions. He and his successors have barely missed a convention since. Demetrios will give the invocation Wednesday in Denver and a prayer in the Twin Cities on Sept. 4.

The conventions offer a lot of visibility for what is a relatively small church. There are an estimated 1.5 million Greek Orthodox in America. But in some ways Demetrios represents the larger community of Orthodox Christians, who number about 5 million and include Russian, Georgian, Serbian, Ukrainian and other national groups.

Demetrios was visiting family this week in Thessaloniki, Greece, where he was born 80 years ago, and was unavailable for comment. But in a recent interview with the PBS program “Religion & Ethics Newsweekly,” he emphasized that his church is “not in anyway partisan.” But he added, “We are not indifferent.”

He said he will be “praying for the people who are governing.”

“We are in constant communication with them and with God, asking for His guidance,” he said.

Demetrios mentioned that he stands ready to offer not only prayers but guidance to the major party candidates. He met in June at his New York offices with Republican John McCain and is expected to meet there soon with Democrat Barack Obama as well.

Demetrios has an understanding of Orthodox Christianity that might be valuable to both men. Many of the nations that have emerged from communism are reasserting their Orthodox heritage. In fact, the leaders of both the Russian and Georgian churches have been important in promoting peace after the recent military clashes between the two nations.

Karloutsos said he saw no problem in having the archbishop offer prayers at both the Republican and Democratic conventions, even if it is something that doesn’t happen in most other church denominations.

“If His Eminence went to only one convention, now that would be a problem,” Karloutsos said.

religion@nydailynews.com