His Eminence Metropolitan SABA Archbishop of New York and Metropolitan of All North America His Grace Bishop Alexander
Pastor: Fr John Vazquez| fatherjohnvazquez@gmail.com | stgeorgealbany.org | 1 St George's Pl Albany
Office Hours: Mon/Fri 10am-5pm/Confessions: After weekly services or by appointment
Parish Council Leadership: Chair—Michella Rizk, Treasurer—Ranya Palmer, Secretary—Daniel Palmer, Vice Chair—Linda Grady
Beloved,
Today, a group of us from the parish will head down to St Dumitru Monastery to get a peak into life at the monastery and to dive into the refreshing waters of the rhythm of the Church. My connection with St Dumitru is that one of my classmates from seminary is a priest-monk (also called a hieromonk) there. I established a friendship with him while in seminary and it has been a wonderful blessing to maintain it. He is almost 15 years younger than me but I have no problem at all asking him for guidance and wisdom when it comes to the things of the faith and the heart.
These trips to monasteries are very helpful for multiple reasons: first, we get a chance to experience the services from a different vantage point; we are blessed to receive wonderful Orthodox hospitality—monasteries are known for their hospitality which includes wonderful food, sleeping accommodations if necessary and time for spiritually enriching discussions with either the head of the monastery or certain monastics who are blessed to speak with pilgrims; finally, we are blessed to interact with monastics—people who have dedicated their lives to prayer. All of these reasons and more serve to refresh our spirits.
Sometimes people ask what it is that monks do or, “couldn’t they be doing more for the world by actually being in the world and ‘helping people.’” This question is common and on a certain level maybe understandable, but it also falls into the common misunderstanding of the Martha and Mary story in the Gospel of Luke. We know of course from this gospel passage that both the contemplative life of Mary is essential and, along with it, the active life of Martha. St Paul, in 1 Cor 12, speaks about parts of the body—not all are eyes, not all are arms, but the differing parts of the body must work together for the body to be healthy. Our monastic brethren are, in a certain sense, the “contemplative” part of the body of the Church. Does this mean that they have no “active” part and we as Christians in the world have no “contemplative” part? No, it just means that generally they can give more time to contemplation and we in the world give more time to activity when it comes to serving Christ. Having ones who have dedicated their lives to prayer peppered throughout the world in monasteries has a profound affect on the world like leaven in bread or dye in water—prayer is truly that powerful. And when you go to a monastery you can often feel that power as you find yourself in a place that lives and breathes only Christ. It is truly refreshing—like taking a long drink of cold water on a hot summer day. Come and see.
With love in Christ,
Fr John
Services and Events
Friday, October 10th—3pm—Pilgrimage to St Dumitru Monastery in Middletown, NY
Saturday, October 11th—4pm—Board Games, 9th Hour and Great Vespers w/Bible Study to follow (Psalms)
Sunday, October 12th—8:45am—Midnight Office, Orthros and Divine Liturgy
Monday, October 13th—8:15am—Coffee with the Fathers join us at Alias Coffee as on Pearl St in Albany as we work through Hymns on Paradise by St Ephrem the Syrian
Monday, October 13th—12pm—6th Hour and Paraklesis of the Theotokos
Wednesday, October 15th—8am—1st Hour and Divine Liturgy
Wednesday, October 15th—6pm—Paraklesis of St George
COMING UP
Saturday, October 25th—3pm—YOUTH DAY
Sunday, October 26th—8:45am—M. Office, Orthros and Divine Liturgy followed by memorial for Raymond Jefferson followed by a Parish Breakfast
Sunday, November 2nd—8:45am—M. Office, Orthros and Divine Liturgy—FESTIVAL OF NATIONS
Sunday, November 9th—8:45am—M. Office, Orthros and Divine Liturgy—ALL PARISH MEETING
Saturday, November 15th—10am–6pm—NATIVITY RETREAT W/FR ANTHONY GILBERT ($20 admittance)
Click to view our Upcoming Schedule
Did You Know...that Christ is Risen!...and...
*We are having a clothes drive for those in need. We will be taking clothes donations and passing them along to the Albany City Rescue Mission down the street from us. Contribute if you are able.
*The Archdiocese is looking for a Director of Training and Development for Youth Ministry. Check out the job posting HERE.
*Our Diocesan Fall Retreat will be in Montreal October 24th-26th with guest speaker Fr Michael Gillis. Learn more HERE.
*Our Nativity Retreat this year will be November 15th with Fr Anthony Gilbert who is a PHD in Literature. He will be looking at St Gregory the Theologian's Oration 38—On the Nativity of Christ. Mark your calendars.
*We are looking for a group of volunteers to help Albany City Rescue Mission to sort clothes on Monday, October 20th. See Fr John or Melody Holman for details.
Eduction at St George
But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ 2 Pet 3.1
*Read Metropolitan SABA's weekly teaching—The Broken Church
*Sunday Education for kids ages 10 and up has started. Bring you children as they work through the Curriculum from the Archdiocese A People Set Apart—The Book of Exodus. Check out the Archdiocese Education page HERE.
*Get some caffeine for the soul with Coffee with the Fathers. Join us at ALIAS COFFEE on N. Pearl St in Albany as we study Hymns on Paradise by St Ephraim the Syrian.
*Study the Scriptures with us—Bible Study Saturday evenings at 6pm after vespers. We also are doing localized bible studies in peoples homes on Friday afternoons and evenings—in an attempt to provide an opportunity for as many people as possible to attend. Check the CALENDAR for locations.
*Click HERE for a great YouTube channel with Orthodox kids songs.
*You can view the WORD magazine online. Click HERE.
*Metropolitan SABA has an Instagram account to connect with youth and young adults—@AskSayidna.
*Click HERE and HERE for lives of the Saints.
*Check out our LEARN page for some great sites, podcasts and resources on the Faith.
*Once a month we have a "Youth Day" at the Church which includes kids of all ages. The purpose of these days is to offer education, fellowship, wholesome fun and a chance for the kids to "ask Abouna." Dates for the fall are October 25th, November 22nd and December 13th—mark your calendars.
Parish Prayer List
"Remember Me O Lord When You Come Into Your Kingdom." Lk 23.42
Please include in your daily prayers the following. Contact me to have someone added to the list. These are the names that will be remembered during the Divine Liturgy.
Living:
Bishop Alexander, Fr Gregory Potter, Fr Joseph, Fr Andrew, Fr Pat, Fr Meletios, Fr Terrance, Fr Michael, Dn Jorge, Dn Horia, Leila, Helen, Lew, Marsha, Mary, Anastasia, Hassib, Callie, Shannon, Jennifer, Samantha, Schuyler, Raphael and Kelly, Fayez, Rose, Justin, Anne, George, Nektaria, William, Noah and our catechumens: Jared, Max, Ryan, Kathryn and Henry. All those traveling, those suffering from illness, violence and want in this country and throughout the world and especially those in Ukraine, Russia, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and the middle east
Departed:
Fr Gregory DesMarais, Fr Alvian, Fr John, Will, Camile, Raymond, Ruth, Dolores, Agnes, Ed, Charles, Iryna, The New Martyrs of Syria those who have lost their lives and who have no one to pray for them, those who have passed in the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
"Beauty Will Save the World"
My favorite author—Fyodor Dostoyevsky—has a quote, "Beauty will save the world!" What in the world could this mean?! Well, this could be quite a big discussion but I think part of the answer is that as human beings we delight in what is beautiful and not only take delight in but find healing when we encounter something beautiful. Beauty is such a big part of our worship as Orthodox Christians. Orthodox worship engages our senses with beautiful smells, sights and sounds and this matters because God's creation is good and beauty helps us to understand this reality.
Have you ever wondered what you could do to help beautify our church. Here are some ideas:
*15-20 Icons (16”x24” $400 per icon) legacyicons.com
*Curtain for Holy Doors ($850)churchembroidery.net
*Curtains for Deacons Doors ($1500 each) churchembroidery.net
*Epitaphios of Panaghia ($1800) churchembroidery.net
*Chandelier for above Altar ($500) nioras.com
*Three Mount-Athos style Chandeliers for the nave (the space where the people stand during the service)
Sunday, October 12, 2025
THE SYNAXARION
On October 12 in the Holy Orthodox Church, we commemorate the Martyrs Probos, Andronikos and Tarachos at Tarsus; Martyr Domnina at Anazarbus in Cilicia; and Virgin Martyr Anastasia of Rome.
On this day, we commemorate the holy and blessed Fathers who came together for the second time in Nicaea, during the reign of the pious and Christ-loving Sovereigns Constantine and Irene, against those who impiously, ignorantly and foolishly asserted that the Church of God worshippeth idols, and rejected the august and holy icons.
Verses
Thy champions, O Word, with words as their weapons,
Turn to flight the foes of the venerable icons.
The Council met in 787 to refute the Iconoclast heresy, whose camp believed that all depictions of Christ, His Mother and the saints should be destroyed. The iconophiles believed that icons served to preserve the doctrinal teachings of the Church; and they considered icons to be man’s dynamic way of expressing the divine through art and beauty. The council decreed that the veneration of icons was not idolatry (Exodus 20:4-5), because the honor shown to them is not directed to the wood or paint, but passes to the prototype, or the person depicted. It also upheld the possibility of depicting Christ, Who became man and took flesh at His Incarnation. The Father, on the other hand, cannot be represented in His eternal nature, because “no man has seen God at any time” (John 1:18).
By the intercessions of all Thy saints, O Christ God, have mercy upon us. Amen.
Parish Financial Summary—Fiscal Year 2024/25
Help us Reach our Goal of $132,000—Our estimated budget for the 2024-25 Fiscal Year
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF ST GEORGE!
Giving for Week of 10.5.25—$1160
Online Donations for Week of 10.5.25—$88
Falafel Fundraiser 3.30.25—$1054
Parish Halfi 4.25.25—$9087.95
Parish BBQ 9.21.25—$1400
Broadview Bank Balance as of end of August: $43,6059.62: $35,023.23 (Operating Fund); $7160.78 (Memorial Fund); $1,136.10 (Charity Fund)
Merrill Lynch Mutual Fund as of end of October 7, 2025: $412,476
Merrill Lynch Money Market Account as of end of October 7, 2025: $38,660
Total Giving for fiscal year to date (October 24–September 25)—$90,410
Families who have contributed for fiscal year to date (October 24–September 25)—71
Families who have contributed over $5,000 for fiscal year to date (October 24–September 25)—3
Families who have contributed over $1,000 for fiscal year to date (October 24–September 25)—28
A Note to our Visitors
WELCOME!
We are blessed by your presence! Join us for fellowship after. Please note, in the Orthodox Church only baptized and chrismated Orthodox Christians who have properly prepared with confession, fasting (no food from the night before until communion), prayer and forgiveness can partake of the Holy Eucharist. All others may come forward for a blessing and receive a piece of blessed bread from the altar servers.
A Word From the Fathers
St Maximus the Confessor
24th saying of the 4th Century (100 Sayings) on Love
The long-suffering man abounds in understanding' (Prov. 14:29), because he endures everything to the end and, while awaiting that end, patiently bears his distress. The end, as St Paul says, is everlasting life (cf. Rom. 6:22). 'And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent' (John 17:3).
