Saint Joseph Melkite Catholic Church, Lawrence, MA.

"HIS BEATITUDE PATRIARCH GREGORIOS III, “UNPRECEDENTED BARBARITY: PEOPLE SAY, ENOUGH"
Damascus 10 May 2012

“We were praying in the cathedral chapel when a strong explosion shattered all the windows. The walls of the nave shuddered as if jolted by a sudden gust of wind; we thought it might be an earthquake.” H.B. Gregorios III Laham, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch and All the East is still incredulous, while describing to MISNA the moments of terror that accompanied the double bombing of the Syrian capital this morning. The Cathedral of Bab Sharqi, at the end of the `Via Recta' that leads to the Chapel of Ananias (a Christian martyr who enabled Saint Paul to recover his sight), is perhaps some two or three kilometres from the site of the explosion which up to now, according to a provisional estimate, has killed at least 55 and injured another 300.
“The television showed images of a huge crater, cars and buildings shattered, blood everywhere. The minibus bringing the children to our school had come that way barely 10 minutes before. It is a miracle that they were not involved,” explains the cleric, President of the Assembly of the Catholic Hierarchy in Syria, condemning “an act of cruelty without precedent in Syria, which has shown the true face of the forces at work behind this absurd propaganda war.” The Patriarch’s voice, shaking with emotion on the day of the worst attack in the country’s recent history, is also raised against the world that “is not listening to the Syrian people’s cries of distress.”
As in neighbouring Palestine, “even in this hitherto untouched corner of the Holy Land, there now runs the blood of innocent people,” warns the Patriarch, noting that “for 63 years now, the Holy Land has been waiting for peace, amid the silence and indifference of the world, which so far has only proffered empty words.” The time has come “to have done with parodies of a two-faced policy, whose broken promises and shameful interests burn like salt on the open wounds of an entire region of the world,” emphasises Patriarch Gregorios III, controversially wondering, “what would happen if, instead of in Syrian Damascus, an attack like this had occurred in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem? “The world cannot allow hatred and war to engulf the Middle East in a bottomless pit. It’s time to say enough is enough.”

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"Statement from Their Holinesses and Beatitudes the Patriarchs of Syria

We: Ignatius IV Hazim, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, Mar Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and Gregorios III Laham, Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, of Alexandria and Jerusalem, condemn the cowardly criminal act that took place in the Qazaz district of Damascus on the morning of Thursday, 10 May 2012, and condemn all acts of terrorism that have targeted different regions of the beloved Syrian land, claiming the lives of many innocent victims and wounding both civilians and military personnel, the children of this great nation.

In view of this grievous loss, we pray to God to heal the wounds of Syria and Syrians, and to restore the children of the one homeland to one another in love, openness and reconciliation, tolerance, mutual assistance and wisdom, preferring always the interest of the country to any other interest, distancing themselves from violence in all its forms, aiming for the good of our beloved country and building it again on the basis of civilized, humane, firm justice and good citizenship, co-existence and peaceful freedom of expression; all that is related to serving the nation and citizens.

With one mouth and one heart we raise our prayer to Almighty God to give rest to the souls of the homeland’s martyrs, comfort the hearts of the bereaved, preserve Syria and bring it to a haven of safety, peace, sovereignty and prosperity. In a spirit of pastoral responsibility we call on all the children of this country, both Muslims and Christians, to join us in prayer to Almighty God to protect Syrians from all danger and harm, trusting in the Lord’s saying to us: “Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

May the name of the Lord be forever blessed. Amen.

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An Arabic sign carried by a young Egyptian girl says:

(to the fundmentalist Muslim Brothers):
Grow your brains before your beards!
(Rabbi-l-mokh, abl-el-lihiya).

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+ To Deacon John Macmillan

On the Twentieth Anniversary of his Ordination to the Diaconate
Which he celebrated on April 28, 2012.
We think it's really a special occasion for us, and the Church, that we've been blessed with the presence of such a wonderful and faith-filled man for all these years.

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Download Information on The 48th Melkite National Convention:

Click Below For:
Download Form for Convention Souvenir Book
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Click Below For:
Download Convention Schedule
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Click Below For:
Download Convention Registration Form

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A Note of Thanks:
To St Joseph Guild for the lovely flowers given to the Elderly and shut-ins. This was coordinated by;

Bob and Judi Habeeb and
Bill and Cheryl Koury

Thank You.

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The Parish Advisory Council
The Parish Advisory Council is now accepting nominations for new members for the 2012-2013 Parish Council. If you are interested, please speak to any members of the present council or to Father Mark.

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And so it was that the Word of God:

And so it was that the Word of God, God himself, the Son of God, who was in the beginning with God, and through whom all things were made and without whom all things were made and without whom nothing was made, became man to free man from eternal death. He lowered himself to take on our lowly nature without diminishing his majesty; remaining what he was, he took on what he was not; he united the form of a slave to the form in which he was one with God the Father. His majesty became adorned with lowliness, his strength with weakness, his eternity with mortality .The true God and true man were united in the person of the Lord Jesus so that in accordance with the requirements of our salvation, a one and only mediator between God and man might die by one part of himself and rise by the other.

St Leo Great Sermon 21, 2
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Striving for Parish Unity:
Icon By Deacon Matthew D. Garrett

Deacon Matthew D. Garrett, Iconographer

EVERY CALLING HAS A CODE OF CONDUCT:
written or unwritten – which sets out the principles for functioning ethically in that vocation. Some professional standards set limits to govern the practitioners exercise of his or her craft while others outline directions or indicate ideals to which the professional should aspire.

As Christians we have general standards of behavior, such as the Ten Commandments, and standards of be-lief, such as the Nicene Creed. We also have particular norms for believers in specific circumstances, such as clergy or spouses. In the Epistle to the Ephesians St Paul indicates a basic norm for a Christian community: the first rule for living as Church. To be “worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Eph 4:1), a Christian group must “endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph 4:3).

Mutual Submission

Preserving this unity takes work – we must “endeavor” or strive to attain this goal. It cannot simply be as-sumed. People are often astonished to find that someone has left their congregation. After all, we stood or knelt together, we lined up for the Eucharist or to kiss the cross together. We were one – weren‟t we?

Communal practices – ritual gestures, using offering envelopes or pledging in fundraising campaigns do afford us a measure of unity, but while people may be united in these practices they may be divided in other fundamental ways.

St Paul (writing before there were pledge cards or parish newsletters) indicates that the quality of the interpersonal relationships in a community is the first basis for its unity. If I sense that you ignore me or look down on me, will I want to exchange signs of communion with you? Kissing an icon or worshipping at the Liturgy express our vertical relationships in the Church – to God or the saints – but living in the Body of Christ involves horizontal relationships as well – to fellow parishioners, those in our eparchy and in the wider Church.

Horizontal relationships in a Christian community, Paul writes, should be characterized by two main qualities: humility and long-suffering. Humility in this sense is expressed in “lowliness and gentleness” (Eph 4:2), a virtue continually acclaimed in the New Testament. In the Canticle of the Theotokos (Lk 1:46-56), sung daily at orthros, God is extolled for “regarding the lowliness of His handmaiden” (v. 48) and praised as the One who “puts down the mighty from their thrones and exalts the lowly” (v. 52).

Christ Himself confronted the relationships of believers in Israel. He criticized the Pharisees for loving “the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues” (Matt 23:6) and counseled guests to take the last place rather than the first before the host gives their place to another. When we are tempted to seek preferential treatment or control of even small things in Church, we might well reflect on these passages.

Long term relationships in a parish also demands that we be “long suffering, bearing with one another in love” (Eph 4:3). Some people are simply not going to change. They cannot or will not see that their behavior might offend others. We must simply bear with them if we value unity with them, “warts and all.”

Diversity in Unity

Paul goes on to say that those who strive to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the Church do well to recog-nize and respect the variety and purpose of the Spirits gifts in the Church. In Eph 4: 11 he indicates that there are various levels of leadership such as apostles, pastors and teachers. They have these gifts, not to oc-cupy the best places at feasts, but “for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry” (Eph 4:12).

There have always been a number of ministries in our Church exercised by laypeople: in worship (as chanters and readers), in education (as teachers of children and youth), in the arts (as builders and iconographers) and in administration (on community and administrative councils). In times when the clergy may have been the only lit-erate members of the community they often exercised these ministries as well as those proper to their orders. How-ever in our world today this is no longer appropriate. With sufficient training Church members are capable of exer-cising all these traditional ministries as well as modern ones such as parish web masters. Ignoring the gifts of parish-ioners is another way to destroy peoples commitment to their Church.

It is the role of the clergy, according to St. Paul, to see that their believers are afforded the training necessary for service. Ministry of one form or another is the calling of all the faithful, but responsible exercise of ministry presumes that the faithful are willing to be trained and that the pastors and teachers provide the necessary training.

In some cases local clergy can personally “equip the saints” in their parish for works of ministry. A pastor or deacon, for example, may train young men to serve at the altar. They may engage the services of an experienced chanter to train people in church singing or an effective youth worker to train others in this work. In other cases it is the wider circle of “pastors and teachers” – the bishop and his presbyters – who are called to provide more specialized training, equipping people to be clergy or catechists in local parishes. The emergence of on-line courses from seminaries and diocesan ministries can make distance learning an option for training in these roles.

True unity in the local Church as envisioned in this epistle presumes that “the saints” do what is necessary to assume the service to which they are called. It also demands that they respect the gifts and ministries given to oth-ers. Higher clergy should not infringe on the roles of one another; rather they should provide the training necessary to improve the quality of their service. Professional teachers build unity, not by boycotting the classes of inexperienced catechists, but by offering their services as master teachers.

Twice at each Divine Liturgy the priest prays that the holy gifts be given to us “for the communion of the Holy Spirit.” By coming forward to share in the Eucharist we are expressing our desire to deepen our communion with God, but also with one another. We are echoing the priests prayer in the Liturgy of St Basil, “Unite all of us who share the one Bread and the one Cup to one another in the communion of the Holy Spirit.” By the mutual respect we show one another and by our commitment to serve the Church in ministry we back up our prayer with action.
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Melkite synod Calls for Unity – Bishops Agree Reunification of Antiochian Patriarchate is Possible
A press release first issued, September 20, 1996, by Bishop Nicholas Samra then Auxiliary Bishop of Newton:

The holy Synod of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church met in Rabweh, Lebanon July 22-27, 1996 and, after studying the question of unity within the Patriarchate of Antioch, declared that communicatio in sacris = worship in common is possible today and that the ways and means of its application would be left to the joint decisions of the two Antiochian Church Synods – Melkite Greek Catholic and Greek Orthodox. The Synod of thirty-four bishops and four general superiors under the presidency of Patriarch Maximos V (Hakim) deliberated extensively on the topic of church unity particularly within the Antiochian Patriarchate which has been divided since 1724, and issued a document titled, Reunification of the Antiochian Patriarchate. This document is part of the official minutes of the Synod and was made public on August 15, 1996 in the Middle East. It includes eight points about the unity of the Churches and was sent by the Catholic Patriarch Maximos V to the Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius IV (Hazim). It emphasizes that there is an openness on the part of the Melkite Church to heal the division of 1724 and all the difficulties that followed in order to preserve our one heritage and one worship which is the fount of one belief. The Fathers of the Synod affirmed that unity was not a victory of one church over another, or one church going back to the other, or the melting of one church into the other, but rather putting an end to the separation between brothers… This unity has become possible today because of the extensive work of the Joint International Theological Commission between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches. They site [sic] four specific documents of the International Theological Commission and look forward to the study that this commission will make on the role of the Bishop of Rome in the church and in the ecumenical councils.

Emphasis is placed on church unity as it existed in the first millennium when East and West were one. The document quotes Pope John Paul II in his encyclical Ut Unum Sint – That All May Be One: The Catholic Church desires nothing less than full communion between East and West. She finds inspiration for this in the experience of the first millennium (#16). The Melkite Synod sees that the church of the first millennium could be the model for unity today.

The Synod strongly affirms its full communion with the Apostolic See of Rome and that this communion would not be ruptured.

The Fathers offered their thanks to the International Theological Commission as well as the Joint Synodal Commissions recently reestablished by Patriarch Maximos V and Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius IV. They offer special thanks to Archbishop Elias Zoghby whose 1995 Profession of Faith was the major force for reopening dialogue with the Orthodox brothers. Zoghby, the former archbishop of Baalbek and a long-time leader among the Melkite bishops, offered this brief statement in 1995 and it was subscribed to by 24 of the 26 bishops present at the 1995 Holy Synod:

1. I believe everything which Eastern Orthodoxy teaches.

2. I am in communion with the Bishop of Rome as the first among the bishops, according to the limits recognized by the Holy Fathers of the East during the first millennium, before the separation. This brief profession and its subsequent explanation became the basis for the 1996 Synods discussion on unity. The Fathers delegated the Synod Ecumenical and Theological Commission to deeply research the ways of the reunification, and discuss its canonical and pastoral implications, and to hold joint conferences and conventions to include faithful of both churches (Antiochian Orthodox and Melkite Catholic) on the path towards this unity. Their prayer is that of Our Lord Jesus Christ to his Father: that they may be one, just as we are…that the world may know that you have sent me. (Jn 17: 21-23)

The Melkite Greek Catholic Church is a patriarchal church in communion with Rome and is considered a sui juris church within the Catholic communion It follows the traditions of the Greek or Byzantine Church of Antioch. Its patriarch carries the title of Patriarch of Antioch and all the East, of Alexandria and of Jerusalem. The Church is based in the Middle East with the patriarchal see presently in Damascus, Syria. There are sixteen eparchies or dioceses in Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, Israel and Egypt. Outside the Middle East there are dioceses in the United States of America, Canada, Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico and Australia, with vicariates in Western Europe and Argentina.

This document was issued by the Melkite Greek Catholic Holy Synod, meeting in Rabweh, Lebanon, July 1996. It was released to the public on August 15, 1996 – the feast of the Dormition of the holy Mother of God. It appears in the minutes of the above mentioned Synod, dated and signed on Saturday, July 27, 1996 by the Patriarch, 31 archbishops and bishops, and 4 general superiors, whose names and titles are included at the end of the document. Reunification of the Antiochian Patriarchate

The Fathers of the Synod of the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchate convened in Rabweh, Lebanon July 22 to July 27, 1996 and studied the documents presented by the Patriarchal Commission established by His Beatitude Maximos V Hakim on March 25, 1996. This Commission consists of Archbishops Elias Zoghby and Cyril Salim Bustros; the patriarch asked them to do whatever is necessary through communications and meetings with the Orthodox Patriarchal and Synodal Commission to reach Antiochian unity through oneness of heart, and to find ways for the two churches – Melkite Greek Catholic and Greek Orthodox – to return to communion with each other and into unity within one Antiochian Patriarchate. His Beatitude Patriarch Maximos V and Fathers of the Holy Synod are happy to announce the following:

1. They thank His Beatitude Patriarch Ignatius IV Hazim and the Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church for their concern on this subject, and the brotherly announcement they gave concerning this unity in the final communique of their Holy Synod convened October 16-22, 1995. They share what the Orthodox said [at this synod] that since receiving the mutual representatives in the 1974 synod with great love, we look forward together to Antiochian unity preserving our one heritage and one worship which is the fount of one belief.

2. They all anxiously look forward to the day when the Melkite Greek Catholics and the Greek Orthodox in the Antiochian Patriarchate return to being one church and one patriarchate. They affirm to all that this reunification does not mean a victory of one church over the other, or one church going back to the other, or the melting of one church into the other. Rather, it means putting an end to the separation between the brothers that took place in 1724 and led to the existence of two separate independent patriarchates, and returning together to the unity that prevailed in the one Antiochian Patriarchate before the separation.

3. They see that this reunification has become possible today through the progress in the communion of faith that has taken place through the grace of God in the recent years on the international level through the Joint International Theological Commission between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches. This Commission produced four documents announcing the unity of faith in basic doctrines: The Mystery of the Church and of the Eucharist in the Light of the Mystery of the Holy Trinity (1982), Faith, Sacraments and the Unity of the Church (1988), Uniatism, Method of Union of the Past, and the Present Search for Full Communion (Balamand 1993). They consider their task of reestablishing communion within the Church of Antioch a part of reestablishing full communion between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches on the international level.

4. The Joint Commission will discuss one point further, that is, the role of the Bishop of Rome in the church and in the ecumenical councils. On this subject the Fathers of the Synod adopt what was stated in the Second Vatican Council: to give due consideration to the character of the relations which obtained between them and the Roman See before separation (Decree on Ecumenism #14); and also what His Holiness Pope John Paul II said in his encyclical That All May Be One – Ut Unum Sint (#61): The Catholic Church desires nothing less than full communion between East and West. She finds inspiration for this in the experience of the first millennium. Concerning the primacy of the Bishop of Rome the Fathers declare that they are inspired by the understanding in which East and West lived in the first millennium in the light of the teachings of the seven ecumenical councils, and they see that there is no reason for the separation to continue because of that primacy.

5. Based on that unity in the essence of the faith [that existed in the first millennium], the Fathers of the Holy Synod that the communicatio in sacris is possible today, and that they accept it, leaving the ways and means of its application to the joint decisions of the two church synods – Melkite Greek Catholic and Greek Orthodox.

6. The Fathers of the Holy Synod announce they will remain in full communion with the Apostolic Church of Rome and at the same time will work out with her precisely what is required for them to enter into communion with the Antiochian Orthodox Church.

7. They commend the efforts that the ecumenical leaders of our church have made especially Archbishop Elias Zoghby who has been laboring for this more than twenty years. They thank the members of the Joint International Theological Commission for their accomplishments, and ask them to continue the dialogue on this subject. The Fathers delegated the Synodal Ecumenical and Theological Commission to deeply research the ways of the unification, and discuss its canonical and pastoral implications, and to hold joint conferences and conventions to include the faithful of both churches on the path toward this unity.

8. Finally, they ask all their faithful to join with them in prayer so that the holy will of God be fulfilled in all of us and that the prayer of our Lord Jesus Christ to his heavenly Father be accomplished: that they may be one, just as we are one…that the world may know that you have sent me. (Jn 17:21-23).
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Classes for Religious Education 2011 - 2012 are in full session now:

If your child is not registered please do so. These classes are very important for all our children for their Christian Formation
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Scholarship Applications:

To all our high school seniors and college students. There are two different applications in the church vestibule: One is for graduating high school girls, The Syrian Lebanese Women’s Club of Greater Boston Scholarship. The deadline is March 31, 2012. And the ALAA Scholarship For both girls and boys. The deadline date is March 1, 2012. Our own scholarship applications are now available. The deadline is April 15, 2012. Remember there is a Scholarship for an eighth grade Graduate entering a Catholic High School.
The Michael and Claire Hajjar Memorial Scholarship.
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To join or renew your membership in the National Association of Melkite Women:

Download, Complete and Mail this form with your check for $10.00 made payable to N.A.M.W.

"Click here: National Association of Melkite Women"

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PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS: By Rt. Rev. Philip Raczka:

O Eternal Father, You are the Lord of the Harvest who sent our Lord Jesus Christ to save us and the Apostles to spread the good news of this salvation. Look now with mercy upon our Melkite Catholic Eparchy of Newton and sustain our clergy in their vocation. Send us young men to serve the Church as priests and deacons. Inspire others to serve your Church as monks and nuns and move the hearts of all of our parishioners to serve their parishes in whatever way they are able. We praise You for all of Your blessings now and forever.
Amen

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SAMARITANS OF MERRIMACK VALLEY:

The Samaritans of Merrimac Valley is a suicide prevention center. We rely on volunteers who, through the goodness of their hearts out to help people who call our confidential crisis help lines. We are always looking for compassionate people who are willing to give 5 hours a week to befriend our callers. For more information or to sign up for training you can contact Debbie at 978-327-6671 or dhelms@familyserviceinc.com
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Disclaimer: Credit is given for any and all holy icons posted when the author is known. Saint Joseph Church makes no claim of authorship for Icons used and welcomes communication and posting of all Iconographers known.
Updates and Suggestions: All updates are done Weekly. We are in need of pictures for posting of parish functions. Thank you Faith for the updates. Suggestions and imput appreciated. For Additional Information, Weekly Updates and Corrections:

Contact Internet Ministry:
Gilbert-Joseph Gallant

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