Sunday School Corner

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God, Amen

If JESUS came to your house to spend a day or two. If HE came unexpectedly, I wonder what you'd do. Oh, I know, you'd give your nicest room to such an honoured guest.
And all the food you'd serve to HIM would be the very best, and you would keep assuring HIM you're glad to have HIM there, that serving HIM in your own home is joy beyond compare.
But when you saw HIM coming, would you meet HIM at the door, with arms outstretched in welcome to your heavenly visitor, or would you have to change your clothes before you let HIM in or hide some magazines and put the Bible where it'd be seen.
Would you turn off the radio and hope HE hadn't heard and wish you hadn't uttered that last word, nasty word.
Would you hide your worldly music and put some hymn books out.
Could you let JESUS right in, or would you rush about.
And I wonder if the Saviour spent a day or two with you, would you go right on doing the things you always do.
Would you keep right on saying the things you always say.
Would life for you continue as it does from day to day.
Would your family conversation keep up its usual pace, and would you find it hard at each meal to say a table grace.
Would you sing the songs you always sing and read the books you read, and let HIM know the things on which your mind and spirit feed.
Would you take JESUS with you everywhere you'd planned to go, or would you maybe change your plans for just a day or so.
Would you be glad to have HIM meet your every friends or would you hope they'd stay away until HIS visit ends.
Would you be glad to have HIM stay forever on and on, or would you sigh with great relief when HE at last was gone.
It might be interesting to know the things you would do if JESUS CHRIST in person came to spend some time with you.

(Author Unknown)
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Why do you increase your bonds? Take hold of your life before your light grows dark and you seek help and do not find it. This life has been given to you for repentance; do not waste it in vain pursuits.
+ St. Isaac the Syrian +
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Opportunity may knock once, but temptation leans on the bell.
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One day, a certain brother brought a bunch of grapes to the holy Abba Macarius. But he, for the sake of brotherly love, did not think of his own needs, but instead thought of others. He carried the grapes to another brother, who seemed to be in greater need. This sick brother gave thanks to the lord for the kindness of abba Macarius, but he also decided that his neighbour had greater need for it. So he took the grapes to another brother. This brother too, acted in the same way, until the same bunch of grapes was passed around in all the cells, which were scattered in the desert. Finally, there were brought again to the first giver, who praised God for the love and generosity of all the brothers.

The Lord guided and guarded this saint in his life of solitude and isolation, and many people went to visit him in his cell for the purpose of taking his blessings.
Saint Kyriakos ventured into the wilderness due to the persecution of the king. He lived in and share a cave with wild beasts which rested in it during the heat of the day, and took shelter in the cold of the night. Though wild, they never attacked him, but rather, loved him and were friendly to him.
Having not eaten for many days, his body became so weak that he could not stand to pray, so he asked the Lord to provide him with bodily food so that he may have the strength to stand up in reverence and pray. While he was praying for this, a wild cow approached him, screaming as if from pain. The saint noticed it laden with milk, so he took from his cave a shell into which he emptied the milk, and immediately the cow was relieved of its pain. The saint gave thanks to God for His tender mercies, and then drank from the cow's milk. This cow returned to the saint every three days, and the saint fed on its sweet milk for ten years without feeling the need for eating or drinking anything else.
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Exuses, excuses, … you hear them everyday.
Now, the devil he'll supply them, if from church you stay away.
When people come to know the Lord, the devil always loses,
So to keep them folks away from church, he offers them excuses!
In the summer, it's too hot, and in the winter, it's too cold.
And in the springtime, when the weather's just right,
You find some place else to go. Well, it's up to the mountain
Or down to the beach or to visit some old friend,
Or just to stay home and kinda relax and hope some of the kinfolks drop in.

Well, the church bench is too hard, and that choir sings way too loud.
And, boy, you know how nervous you can get when your settin' in a great big crowd.
The doctor told you you'd better watch them crowds, they'll set you back,
But you go to that ballgame, cause you say it helps you to relax.
Well, you have a headache Sunday morning and a backache Sunday night.

Well, one of the children has a cold, pneumonia, do you suppose?
Why the whole family had to stay home, just to blow that poor kids nose!

The preacher, he's too young, maybe he's too old.
His sermons, they're not fired enough, or maybe their too bold.
His voice is much too quiet, sometimes he gets too loud,
He needs to have more dignity or else he's way too proud.
His sermons, they're too long. Maybe, they're too short.
He ought to preach the Word with dignity, instead of stomp and snort.
Why, one of the members told me the other day,
"He didn't even shake my hand."
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The Coptic hymns began to develop shortly after the preaching of St Mark the Apostle in Alexandria. Early Christians were basically Jews, who lived in large numbers in Alexandria, and Egyptians. Both groups have contributed to the formation of the Coptic hymns, namely:
- The Christian Jews brought with them well established hymns both in wording and music.
- The Christian Egyptians brought with them the very deep music of the Pharaohs relating to immortality of the sprit, the one God and resurrection.
Both contributions mixed exceptionally well due to the similarity of the background of the two cultures, but mainly due to the dedication of the early Coptic Christians. That dedication was so strong that those new believers sold everything and devoted their lives to worship in monasteries near Lake Mariut first (in the forties of the first century) and then afterwards they spread to other locations.
With such devotion and zeal efforts were concentrated to establish the system of prayer, wording and music of hymns, the Liturgy, the system of hourly prayers etc.
An evidence of the early development of the Coptic hymns (basically the first two centuries) is the discovery of an ancient hymn called ‘xorinex’ recorded on musical notes near the City of Bahnassa in Upper Egypt which dates back to the third century.
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A God-fearing man whose name was Dorotheus and his wife Theopista, held a festival of commemoration for the honored Angel Michael on the twelfth day of each month.

It happened that this righteous family fell on hard times and had nothing to celebrate with for the commemoration of the honored Michael. They took their clothes to sell so that they might have a feast. Michael the Archangel appeared to Dorotheus and commanded him not to sell his clothes, but to go to a sheep-master and to take from him a sheep worth one-third of a dinar.

He was also to go to a fisherman and to take from him a fish worth one-third of a dinar but Dorotheus was not to slit open the fish until he came back to him. Finally, he was to go to a flour merchant and to take from him as much flour as he needed.

Dorotheus did as the Angel commanded him. He invited the people, as was his custom, to the feast honoring the Archangel Michael. When he went into his storeroom looking for wine for the offering, he found that all the containers had been filled with wine and many other good things. He marvelled and was astonished.

After they had finished the celebration and all the people had departed, the Archangel appeared to Dorotheus as before and commanded him to cut open the belly of the fish. He found 300 dinars of gold and three coins each is a third of a dinar. He told him these three coins were for the sheep, the fish and the flour, and the 300 Dinars were for him and his children. God had remembered them and their oblations and had rewarded them here, in this world and in the kingdom of heaven on the last day. As Dorotheus and his wife were astonished at this matter, the Archangel Michael said to them, "I am Michael the Archangel who delivered you from all your tribulations and I have taken your oblations and alms up to God, you shall lack no good thing whatsoever in this world."

They prostrated themselves before him and he disappeared and went up into heaven.
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The fruit of Silence is Prayer.
The fruit of Prayer is Faith.
The fruit of Faith is Love.
The fruit of Love is Service.
The fruit of Service is Peace.
The fullness of our heart is expressed in our eyes, in our touch, in what we write, in what we say, in the way we walk, the way we receive, the way we need.
That is the fullness of our heart expressing itself in many different ways.
~Mother Teresa~
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Six -year-old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor. He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten.

Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked! Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Brandon 's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged and kissed him, getting his own pyjamas white and sticky in the process!

That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour.

Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else ! to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him.

But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to "make pancakes" for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried.. Please pass some of this love on to others....suppose one morning you were called to God; do all your friends know you love them?

I was thinking. and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed, friendships that need rekindling or three words needing to be said, sometimes, "I love you" can heal & bless! Remind every one of your friends that you love them. Even if you think they don't love back, you would be amazed at what those three little words, a smile, and a reminder like this can do.

Just in case I haven't told you lately... I LOVE YOU.
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There is nothing more contrary to love than envy, and envy comes from pride
+ St. Augustine +
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I am thankful for the taxes that I pay, because it means that I am employed.
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When Abba Agathon went down to the city to sell some of his baskets and to procure a little bread, he found near the market place an old, poor cripple. “For the love of God” the cripple began to plead upon seeing the saint, ‘don’t you too, leave this wretch unaided. Bring me near to you.’ Abba Agathon picked the man up and sat him next to him in the place where he set up his baskets to sell them. ‘How much money did you make, Abba? ’the cripple would ask each time the elder sold a basket.’ ‘Such and such, the elder would tell him. ‘That’s good enough’ the cripple finally said. ‘Won’t you buy me a little pie, Abba? That would be good of you since I have not eaten since last evening.’ ‘With pleasure’ the saint told him immediately fulfilling the cripple’s request. Shortly thereafter the cripple requested some fruit. And then, some sweets. Thus, for each basket that he sold the saint would spend the proceeds, until, thanks to his patronage, all of the baskets and money were gone, without his having kept even a penny to himself. More importantly, he did all this with eagerness, even though he knew that he would go even two weeks without any bread for himself. After selling the last basket, the saint got ready to leave the market place. ‘So you are going?’ the cripple asked him. “Yes I have completed all of my work.’ “Uh, do me the favour of taking me as far as the crossroads, and you can leave for the desert from there,’ the strange old man pleadingly said. The good Agathon took the cripple on his back and carried him to the place where he wanted to go, though with great difficulty, since he was exhausted from his day’s work. As soon as he reached the crossroads and started to put down his living burden, he heard a sweet voice telling him: ‘May you be blessed, Agathon, by God, both on earth and in Heaven.’ The saint raised up his eyes to see who it was who had spoken to him. The would-be old man had completely disappeared, since he was an angel sent by the Lord to test the saint’s love.
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There's work to do, deadlines to meet,
you've got no time to spare,
But as you hurry and scurry,
always say a prayer.

In the midst of family chaos,
"quality time" is rare.
Do your best; let God do the rest:
Always say a prayer.

It may seem like your worries are
more than you can bear.
Slow down and take a breather-
always say a prayer.

God knows how stressful life is;
He wants to ease our cares,
and He'll respond ASAP-
Always say a prayer!
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As to the wording of hymns used in the early church, it began with poorly written extracts of translated Psalms. Shortly afterwards the church realised the value of hymns and praise in establishing proper worship. As a result effort of writers and poets were poured into formulating hymns and praise passages.
The Syrian Hymns: (Iraque, Syria, India) – The Serian hymns were totally dominated by the hymns of St Avram who influenced not only the eastern church but the western church also. This saint who is known as the flout of the Holy Spirit reached peaks in spiritual depths and musical talents that he lived in his hymns. During the life of St Avram the Serian hymns entered a new era in depth and excellence and his hymns are still alive in the Serian Church today.
The Byzantine Hymns: (Greece and Turkey) – This Church adopted a lot of music and hymns of the Serian Church but because of the language barrier it did not advance as rapidly as other churches. In fact it did not really begin until the end of the sixth century through Anatolius the bishop of Constantinople, Romans and others.
The Latin Hymns: (Rome) – Its music was also influenced by the eastern church but its real founder is St Ilary followed by St Ambrose who is considered the Prince of the Latin music (equivalent to St Avram of the Serian Church) with over 100 hymns related to him, followed by St Augustine and others.
In comparison with the Byzantine music, the Latin music was considered more spiritual and more realistic as it was centred around Christ and Salvation. It became the source of all western music and the basis of the Protestant hymns after the sixteenth century.
The Coptic Hymns: Historical evidence suggests that the Coptic hymns existed since the Apostolic ages. It was formulated and formalised during the foundation of the Coptic Church. Contrary to the western churches whose hymns were developed with time, the Coptic hymns remained unchanged.
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(Synopsis from: “The story of the Copts, by Iris Habib El-Masry)
Abba Demetrius, the twelfth pope, appointed Heracles Dean to the School of Emperor Decius instigated a persecution. It was intense in its cruelty. In a vicious desire to exterminate the Christians, Decius poured his venom on their leaders Abba Dionysius himself was arrested and taken out of Alexandria to the town of Taposiris, in the vicinity of Lake Mareotis. Fortunately for the Church, his secretary, succeeded in escaping, and in so doing was instrumental in saving the Pope. For as he was fleeing, he met one of the faithful, who asked him where he was going, and heard from him of the Pope's arrest and where he had been taken to. This person was on his way to a wedding, so hurriedly he went and informed the guests assembled of the news. Thereupon all of them firmly resolved to go together and try to deliver their Pope from the hands of the relentless Romans. Rising, in one accord, they went to the house where they were told he had been detained and boldly assailed it, shouting and causing uproar.

Amidst the tumult and the confusion that followed, some of them went straight in and carried Abba Dionysius away. Taking him to the house where the wedding was to be held they entreated him to go to safety, telling him that his Church and his people were in need of his valuable life. Accordingly, he chose two companions from among them and together they retired into the desert. There he remained until the fury of the Emperor was spent.
While in seclusion, Abba Dionysius remained secretly in touch with his own Church as well as sister Churches. From his desert abode, Abba Dionysius also addressed an exhortation on "Martyrdom" to Origen, who was then imprisoned in Tyre, where he was being tortured, in spite of his old age.

Around those raging times, St. Paul, who became the first Egyptian hermit, set out to the desert. He was a young man of twenty, very wealthy and well-educated in both the Coptic and the Greek literatures. He was of a gentle spirit and a strong lover of God.
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The Martyrdom of Saints Abadir (Apater) and Eraee (Herai), His Sister 9 Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, 10 who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us, (1 Corinthians 1:9,10)

Let us know the great goodness of God for those who sincerely take refuge in Him and who correct their past faults, by repentance, and let us not despair of our salvation.
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In truth, as it was proclaimed by the Prophet Isaiah, God washes those who are dirty with sin, whitens them as wool and as snow and bestows the good things of the heavenly Jerusalem on them. + Abba Paul the Simple +
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With GOD No mountain is too high to keep you from climbing it.
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A. In the Old Testament: Man has used music in the worship and praise of God since the very early days of humanity. It started during the days of Adam and reached a peak during the life of King David who’s Psalms and hymns are still in use today. The Old
Testament is full of references to the use of music and musical instruments
in the Jewish worship.
B. The Early Church in General: The early church was founded by the "Jewish" apostles and hence it is expected that the early church must have been influenced by the Jewish music. This music took two influenced by the Jewish music. This music took two forms; the Temple music which was vocal and the Synagogue music which used musical instruments. An evidence of such an influence is the universal use of the Jewish word ‘Alleluia’ in all churches.
Such an influence, however, varied from one church to another depending on the language, culture, music and tradition of the various nations. No attempt was made by the early preachers to dictate a uniform system of prayer on all churches. Rather they devoted their teachings to faith and doctrine and left the remaining details to individual churches to be arranged in accordance with their traditions and culture. An example of this is the Ethiopian Church which used dancing and their hymns and music totally differ from its parent church; the Coptic Church.
As to the wording of hymns used in the early church, it began with poorly written extracts of translated Psalms. Shortly afterwards the church realised the value of hymns and praise in establishing proper worship. As a result effort of writers and poets were poured into formulating hymns and praise passages.
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As the shepherd knows his lambs
God above knows who I am.
All I do or think or say,
With love He guides me every day!
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(by HG Bishop Angaelos)
As one follows the news of the world during these difficult times, there is a stark realisation of the presence of disharmony and hatred. Every day, we follow the news of attacks and the partial defeat of terror and those who instil it, while at the same time seeing the results of that terror on victims, their families and loved ones.
The nations have decided; the superpowers and heads of nations have gathered; the armies have prepared, and the world is standing hand-in-hand against terror, evil and evil doers. While we are all concentrating so heavily on the apparent enemy, we are being attacked by another more sinister, more deadly enemy.
We all feel that the terrorists are those by whom our lives are now threatened, and that it is they who represent danger; the real danger however does not come from the enemies of this life, but rather, from the enemy of the next.
While we are distracted by the acts of terrorism which recently shook the world, we are blinded to the acts of terrorism which affect and threaten our lives every moment of every day, and which are, in many cases, more harmful. In our lives and in our thoughts we are terrorised on a daily basis, merely because we try to live according to the word of God. We are terrorised by an enemy who hates peace, who hates love and who himself is threatened by the strong presence of God in this world.
The evil master-mind whom we should seek and defeat is not hiding in the mountains of Afghanistan or in any other dark place. This master of destruction is present in every deed that is performed and lacks the Christian Love taught by our Good Saviour, and that takes us further away from the glorious kingdom which our loving Father has prepared for us since the beginning. Satan holds us to ransom through the power which he has over us, and through our corrupted nature that is so ready to accept the wide path of evil as opposed to the narrow gate of salvation. He has hijacked the vehicle of freedom which was given to us by Our Lord and allows us to rise above and soar over the material levels of this world and has used this freedom to destroy the towers of faith and love that are the very foundation of our Christian lives. When destruction comes into our lives through the work of this evil maestro of wickedness and sin, we must not give up but show resilience, strength and dedication in digging through the rubble and finding the signs of life which truly exist through the presence of God in our lives. Our Lord is our Saviour. Our
Lord is our Protector. Our Lord is He who picks us up out of the darkness and the shadows of death and raises us to the glory that is His nature within us. Throughout our lives we will have tribulation and possibly even near complete destruction, but our source of life is not subject to this world, our source of life is not subject to the evil villain who controls our lives; He is the source of everlasting life, He is the source of the peace which this world cannot take away from us, He is the source which springs up through each and every one of us and gives us eternal life.
If our Lord is with us, who then can be against us? If our Lord gives us life, who can take it away? We are strong in Him and through Him; we are victorious in His strength; we are alive in His blood which He shed upon the holy wood of the cross for us; we are victorious through His resurrection and through His defeat of the source of evil itself, and that is Satan and death.
When we fall, when we are surrounded by rubble and the signs of destruction we have two options; we can revel in self pity and become convinced that we are, as he would want us to believe, without hope; or we can look around us, see the destruction, see that it is not our place, that the living should not be amongst the dead, that light should not dwell amongst the darkness and that life cannot exist where there is destruction. We need to arise we need to salvage we need to rebuild so that through our feelings and actions of repentance, through the confession of our sins, through the holy sacraments and the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ which He has left for us, we may arise, rebuild and stand once more as a soaring monument of the presence of God in this world and His victory over sin, over destruction, over death and over Satan and all that which he represents.
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The ordination
Early Sunday morning on May 10, 1959 (Bashans 2, according to the Coptic calendar), Father Mina El-Baramousy, walked out of the Papal residence preceded by the bishops, priests, and deacons carrying crosses.
Sounds of joy filled the air as multitudes welcomed him. The divinely chosen Patriarch to be, stood in front of the closed church door. He opened the church door with the key that was handed to him, while saying, "Open the door of righteousness to me, so I can come in and thank the Lord, for this is the door of God which the righteous people walk through. I thank you Lord, because you granted my prayers, and you saved and redeemed me." Then he walked through the door of the church, and knelt down in front of the Iconstasis. Metropolitan Athanasius, who was the only surviving Metropolitan of those ordained by Pope Kyrollos the Fifth, started the prayers. The bishops were invited to join in the prayer. They placed the four Gospels on Father Mina's head. Then according to their seniority, they laid their hands on him. Metropolitan Athanasius (The Deputy Patriarch) said, "My brothers, come and bless our father and shepherd, who was selected by God and His people. "Afterwards, they put the Papal garments on him, and the Papal crown on his head. He walked up to the altar and kissed it, and received the Papal staff that was placed on top of the altar.
Then, he sat on the Apostolic Chair, The Chair of Saint Mark, the Evangelist. When he stood to read the Gospel, he dared not to say, 'I am the good shepherd", but said, "Christ said, 'I am the good shepherd.'" After that, he broke into tears, feeling the magnitude of his responsibility, and showing his humiliation in front of God, Whose help he was seeking. Becoming the Pope, did not change him. He continued his system of prayers as he did when he was a monk. He regularly celebrated the raising of incense prayers and daily celebrated the Divine Liturgy.
The Lord helped him in managing the church matters, both big and small. He revived the regular celebration of many church rituals. The Lord was glorified by all of his actions and always accepted his prayers. He has been crowned and has joined the saints in Paradise. Many of the great and magnificent things that he had done have been recorded. All his sons and daughters who received and enjoyed his blessings in their lives, have recorded their stories.
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The greatness of the Virgin has been decreed in the sacred ecumenical council of Ephesus which was assembled in 431 AD. Two hundred bishops from the world were present. They formulated the prelude to the creed of the Christian Faith, in which it is cited: "We honour you, O mother of the true Light, and we glorify you, O Saint Virgin Mother of God, for you gave birth to the Saviour of the world. He came and delivered our souls".
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Be true to God always and in everything. If you say the prayer Our Father pronounce each word sincerely, with reverence, fixing your mind and heart upon God alone, not paying attention to anything or anybody around you. If you say any other prayer, say it also with all your soul, not with your heart divided, not paying undue attention to anything or anybody. + St. John of Kronstadt +
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What if God decided to stop leading us tomorrow because we didn't follow Him today...
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The people of Fayoum, collected funds to build a new Church for the bishopric, together with a new residence for their bishop, Abba Abraam. They handed the money to our beloved saint, who instead, gave it to the needy. Some of the people went and complained to the Pope, as this was not the first time such a thing happened.
Pope Cyril V sent for the bishop. Abba Abraam who at the time was a very old man, went to see the Pope without any delay. As he walked into the room, he threw his 'Faragia' (Overcoat) on what he mistook for a laundry rope. (It was a common practice to have a laundry rope for hanging cloths, at that time.) In actual fact, it was a beam of light, which came through a pinhole in the closed shutters due to the afternoon sun. The Faragia stayed there, hanging on the beam of light. The Pope was in awe, he greeted him, inquired about his health, asked for his blessings and prayers and did not even discuss the reason for the meeting. Later on, Pope Cyril V gave Abba Abraam money from the patriarchate to pay for the projects at his bishopric. When the people of Fayoum went to see the Pope complaining that nothing changed, he told them that he could not argue with the power of God in Abba Abraam and described to them all what had happened in front of his own eyes.
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A church
I think that I shall never see
A Church that's all it ought to be
A Church that has no empty pews,
Whose Pastor never has the blues.
A Church whose Deacons always Dike
And none is proud but all are meek
Where gossips never peddle lies
Or make complaints or criticize
Where all are always sweet and kind
And all to other's faults are blind
Such perfect churches there may be
But none of them are known to me
But still we'll work, and pray and plan
To make our Church the best we can!
Page 4 A Poem I liked (thanks for forwarding this)
Theotokos, is a Greek word. It’s:
the Mother of God, Saint Mary
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Introduction
Music is the language used by the Seraphim in heaven and humans on earth to Praise God. It is the language of the soul as prayer is the language of the heart. St Augustine says "There is no emotion of the human spirit which music is incapable of expressing".
Although the Coptic hymns are very ancient they affect us so deeply to make you feel that you are actually in heaven praying with the angels.
The Coptic music inspires both the simple and the sophisticated. It offers joy, peace, admiration and fulfilment to whoever takes interest in it. All other forms of music run out of fashion with time but the Coptic hymns have provided the Copts with an everlasting means of praising God as well as of self comfort.
It is very cumbersome to try to trace back the origin of the Coptic hymns as they were not recorded on musical notes but in the minds of clergy and deacons. Thus, no one can be certain as to how the hymns were developed and to what extent they were influenced by the surrounding cultures and time. However we are certain of one thing; that they were developed through the gifts and inspirations which accompanied the Apostolic Period.
As to the value of hymns in the Coptic Church, our fathers consider that God’s praise through hymns is the means which lead to the rewards obtained in the holy Sacraments i.e. praise is essential for receiving the grace of God.
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(Synopsis from: “The story of the Copts, by Iris Habib El-Masry)
Abba Demetrius, the twelfth pope, appointed Heracles Dean to the School of Alexandria, as successor to Origan. Heracles had grown to be not only a scholar, well versed in philosophy and theology, but also an outstanding orator, and a convincing, eloquent preacher. His powerful logic, together with his quiet and engaging manner, were responsible for winning many converts to the Christian faith. Because of these qualities, clergy and people in spiritual accord elected him to be their Pope in 232 A.D. when Abba Demetrius went to his reward.
One of the people who lived in the city of Alexandria during this period was a young Sabeanl physician called Dionysius, who had gained a high repute for his love of learning. One day he encountered an old woman offering some of St. Paul's Epistles for sale. Being a constant seeker of knowledge, he bought them. Upon reading them, something within him was touched and responded to the teachings they contained.
He sought out the old woman again and eagerly asked her if she had any more such books to sell. Seeing that "Divine Grace had touched his heart" the old woman told him that if he went to see a priest, he would be given all the books on the subject freely. Acting on her advice he went to the nearest priest and openly expressed to him his desire to learn more about the “New Way”. The priest gave him more books and spoke to him about Christ, the Saviour. Soon after, Dionysius became a Christian, and joined the Alexandrian School, where he studied under the guidance of Origan, whose courage and virtues he assimilated. Abba Heracles, who was not a pope yet, was at the time also a disciple of Origan and thus he got to know Dionysius. Both of them proudly wore the philosophers' gown, and both delved deep into the Scriptures. As a result of their common interest, a strong bond of fellowship and understanding developed between the two and cemented their hearts together in mutual love and respect.
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The corner cordially congratulates Dalia and Chris Boulis On the wonderful gift Joshua Luka, May the Lord keep him in His Good name. Amen
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"AND WHOEVER DOES NOT BEAR HIS CROSS AND COME AFTER ME CANNOT BE MY DISCIPLE" (Luke 14:27).
"BUT GOD FORBID THAT I SHOULD BOAST EXCEPT IN THE CROSS OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, BY WHOM THE WORLD HAS BEEN CRUCIFIED TO ME, AND I TO THE WORLD" (Gal. 6:14).

The Church celebrates the feast of the Cross on the 17th, 18th & 19th of Tute,
That is 3 days (starting on the 27thor 28th of September), the day of the apparition of the Cross to the Emperor Constantine, and on the 10th of
Baramhat (19th of March), the day when the Empress Helen found the wooden Holy Cross.
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It is necessary to take great pains, and anyone who does not do so, cannot come to his God. For He Himself was crucified for our sake. + Abba Elias +
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The best mathematical equation I have ever seen is:
1 cross + 3 nails = 4given
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A young man was at the end of his rope, seeing no way out, dropped to his knees in prayer. Lord, I can't go on," he said. "I have too heavy of a cross to bear." The Lord replied, "My son, if you can't bear its weight, just place your cross inside this room. Then, open that other door and pick out any cross you wish." The man was filled with relief said, "Thank you, Lord," and he did as he was told. Upon entering the other door, he saw many crosses, some so large the tops were not visible. Then, he spotted a tiny cross leaning against a far wall. "I'd like that one, Lord," he whispered. And the Lord replied, "My son, that is the cross you just brought in." When life's problems seem overwhelming, it helps to look around and see what other people are coping with. You may consider yourself far more fortunate than you imagined.
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A church
I have in my hands two boxes,
Which God gave me to hold.
He said, "Put all your sorrows in the black box,
And all your joys in the gold."
I heeded His words, and in the two boxes,
Both my joys and sorrows I stored,
But though the gold became heavier each day,
The black was as light as before.
With curiosity, I opened the black,
I wanted to find out why,
And I saw, in the base of the box, a hole,
Which my sorrows had fallen out by.
I showed the hole to God, and mused,
"I wonder where my sorrows could be!"
He smiled a gentle smile and said,
"My child, they're all here with me.."
I asked God, why He gave me the boxes,
Why the gold and the black with the hole?
"My child, the gold is for you to count your blessings,
The black is for you to let go."
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Procession of the Holy Cross
The priest and deacons carrying the cross go around the altar then stand in front of the entrance to read from the psalms and the Gospel. There are many other stations where they stop in front of different icons and other landmarks in the church (the lakkan basin, and the baptistery) to read different verses of the psalms and Gospels. They also sing special hymns.

Why do we do that?
The church glorifies the Holy Cross, which is alive in each one of us leading us to eternal life. When we stop in front of any of the saints’ icons we praise the cross in their lives, and we also take into account that it is through the cross that they went to heaven and are glorified; they lead and we follow. Bearing in mind also, that the cross reconciled the heavenly and the earthly. As for the Archangels’ icons, although they did not suffer materialistically, they most certainly share our rejoice and victory of the cross in overcoming all the darkness and death.

Holy Cross, how I love you
(a meditation) (synopsis from St. George’s Sporting)
How happy and joyful would Queen Helena have been when she finally found the Holy Cross of our Lord and Savior under the rubble… would our lives have mountains of dust piled up into our hearts due to our anxieties, and busy life style that it hid our precious cross … and probably closed the spring of blessings …
Let the queen Helena in us, search diligently under these hills of the dust of laziness, negligence, sloppiness, … and how rejoiced we would be when we discover the cross, such glory and thrill beyond comprehension.
We get our strength from the sign of the cross We get our life from the cross
We get our pride from the cross We get our love from The Lord who stretched and opened His loving arms to bring us to Him.
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What happened to our beloved HOLY CROSS? Has history recorded the HOLY CROSS as a lost and forgotten treasure? On the seventeenth day of the blessed month of Tute, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Feast Day of the Appearance of the Honorable Cross. St Helena, a devout Christian queen and mother of Emperor Constantine, is credited with the discovery of the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Can you imagine that a once spiritless piece of lumber sent a Queen in search of its blessing? This only endears to our hearts even more, the significance of the HOLY CROSS. The story of her search and discovery of the Honorable Cross is one of enduring perseverance. When she came to Jerusalem, she inquired of the Jews in that town as to the whereabouts of the HOLY CROSS. They would not disclose to her the information she requested but instead told of an aged Jew named Judas who might assist her. At her persistence, he told her of a pile of dirt and rubbish that the HOLY CROSS could be found beneath. How did this pile of dirt and rubbish come to cover our sacred HOLY CROSS? The Jewish leaders in those days following the crucifixion, when they saw all the signs and wonders made manifest from the HOLY CROSS, wished to do away with the HOLY CROSS. They commanded all of Judea and Jerusalem to cast the sweepings and dirt from their houses over the HOLY CROSS in which our Messiah carried to Golgotha after He was condemned to death. Tradition tells us the dirt continued to be placed upon the HOLY CROSS for more than two hundred years. How frightened the Jewish leaders must have been of that wooden HOLY CROSS!
Queen Helena ordered the immediate removal of the Lord Jesus Christ's HOLY CROSS from the trash heap. She then built a church for it and consecrated the church. The actual appearance of the Cross was on the tenth of Baramhat but because this date is always during fasting, the early church fathers substituted the seventeenth of Tute, for the Feast of the Cross, which is the date of the church consecrated in honor of the appearance of the HOLY CROSS. What profound meaning has come from a simple piece of wood! Our Master was not only willing to carry His HOLY CROSS but He loved us so much that He was willing to die on His HOLY CROSS for us. The HOLY CROSS, utilized to hold the nails necessary to crucify our Lord Jesus, deserves much reverence. In dying Lord Jesus Christ gives us the example of living. The Lord Jesus Christ told His disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their CROSS and follow Me" (Mt 16:24). Self-denial is for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. If we grasp the earthly, we will lose sight of the eternal. With the faith of the thief, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Live like the Lord Jesus Christ. Reverently, with the transformed HOLY CROSS before us, love the Lord Jesus Christ.
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The corner shares in the joy Of the Risk Family (Maged, Laila, Sarah & Thomas) for their knew addition Jacob May Our Great Lord protect and keep him in His Glorious Name always, amen.
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