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files/Bulletin-July-13-2025.pdf (5419kb)

Purity in Heart

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matthew 5.8). 

Purity of heart means to be free of all wicked motivations and sinful intentions, and to have no unworthy interests and self-seeking desires. It means to be totally free from anything which blinds and darkens the mind so that it cannot see things clearly and honestly. It means to be totally liberated from anything which captivates and darkens the soul so that it cannot reflect and shine with the pure light of God. In His Sermon on the Mount, the Lord has said: "The eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is sound, your body will be full of light; but if your eye is not sound, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! (Matthew 7.22–23). The pure in heart are those whose eyes are sound. 

To seek but one thing, the face of the Lord, is purity of heart. To will but one thing, the light of the Lord in the depth of one’s soul, is to live in utter purity. It is for this reason that Christ’s mother Mary is the image of perfect purity. The Holy Virgin is “all-pure” not merely because of her bodily continence, but also because of her spiritual soundness. Her heart was pure. Her mind was sane. Her soul magnified the Lord. Her spirit rejoiced in God her Savior. Her body was His spiritual temple. For this reason God regarded her humility and did great things for her. For this reason all generations call her blessed. For this reason she is “full of grace” and the Lord is with her. For she, in her simple purity, could say to God: “Let it be to me according to Your word” (cf. Luke 1).

In the spiritual tradition of the Orthodox Church, purity of heart is an essential condition for union with God. When man’s heart is purified from all evil, it naturally shines with the light of God, since God dwells in the soul. This is the doctrine of the saints as expressed by Saint Gregory of Nyssa: ". . . the man who purifies the eye of his soul will enjoy an immediate vision of God . . . it is the same lesson taught by the Word [i.e. Christ] when He said, “The Kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17.21). You must then wash away, by a life of virtue, the dirt which has clung to your heart like plaster, and then your divine beauty will once again shine forth (On the Beatitudes, Sermon 6).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           - Fr. Thomas Hopko (The Orthodox Faith - The Beatitudes)

NOTES...

• Attached to this week's email is 'The Weekly Bulletin.' Metropolitan Saba's Weekly Teachings will resume in September.
• Arabic Bible Study continues this coming Tuesday, July 15th, 7:00 PM, in the hall. 
• Join us in prayer this coming week at Saint Mary's:

Saturday, July 12th  Great Vespers at 6:30 PM.

Sunday, July 13th 

Matins at 8:50 AM, followed by the Divine Liturgy at 10:00 AM.

Coffee Hour hosted by the Azkoul and Harb Families.

Wednesday, July 16th  **No Vespers Service**

"When you throw a nail into a fire, it gets hot and starts to glow like fire. In the same way you, when you listen to divine teachings and live accordingly, will become like God."  +Saint Symeon Dajbabe

With love in Christ,

Fr. Peter

Mercy

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5.7). To be merciful is to be like God, for “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love” (Psalms 103.8). The Lord passed before Moses and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin . . .” (Exodus 34.6–7). This also is the teaching of Christ in His Sermon on the Mount: ". . . love your enemies and do good and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for He is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6.35–36).

To be merciful does not mean to justify falsehood and sin. It does not mean to be tolerant of foolishness and evil. It does not mean to overlook injustice and iniquity. God is not this way, and does not do this. To be merciful means to have compassion on evil-doers and to sympathize with those who are caught in the bonds of sin. It means to forego every self-righteousness and every self-justification in comparison with others. It means to refuse to condemn those who do wrong, but to forgive those who harm and destroy, both themselves and others. It is to say with utter seriousness, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” (Matthew 6.12).

                                                                                                                                                                    - Fr. Thomas Hopko (The Orthodox Faith: 'The Beatitudes')

NOTES...

• Please take a few minutes to read The Weekly Bulletin and Metropolitan Saba's Teaching that are attached to this email. In particular, please read Metropolitan Saba's archpastoral letter regarding assistance to those suffering from the recent terrorist attack on the Prophet Elias Orthodox Church in Dweilaa, Syria. A second offering tray will be passed this coming Sunday (July 6th), with all donations collected forwarded towards the assistance of those suffering from this attack. Please be generous in your donations and prayers. 

• Arabic Bible Study resumes this coming Tuesday, July 8th, at 7:00 PM, in the Banquet Hall. The topic continues to be the Epistles of John.      

• Join us in prayer this coming week at Saint Mary's:

Sunday, July 6th: 

-Matins at 8:50 AM; Divine Liturgy at 10:00 AM.

-Coffee Hour following the services hosted by Elena Sora.

Wednesday, July 9th: 

- Vespers Service at 6:30 PM.

**Please note: Great Vespers Service will not be held on Saturday, July 5th.

"Do you think that the man-loving God has given you much so that you could use it only for your own benefit? No, but so that your abundance might supply the lack of others."

                                                                                                                                                                                              +Saint John Chrysostom

Have a blessed and safe 4th of July Weekend!

With love in Christ,

Fr. Peter