Looking Ahead at St Mary (July 13 – 21)

Beloved in Christ,

Below you will find this week’s schedule, as well as some important notes about upcoming events.

THIS WEEK: July 13 – 21, 2025

This Week: Regular Wed/Fri fasting.         

Mon, July 14 – Thurs, July 17: Fr Aaron Out of Office (see note #1 below)

Tues, July 15 at 6:00 pm – Ladies Night Out @ Thai Traditions (650 N Carriage Pkwy)

Thurs, July 17 at 5:30 pm – Parish Council Meeting

Thurs, July 17 at 7:00 pm – Ladies Bingo Night @ Central Standard

Sat, July 19 at 3:00 pm – Baptism of Theodora Marshall (all invited to attend)

Sat, July 19 at 4:30 pm – Confession

Sat, July 19 at 5:00 pm – Great Vespers

Sat, July 19 at 6:00 pm – Biblical Greek Class

Sun, July 20 at 9:00 am – Matins

Sun, July 20 at 10:00 am – Divine Liturgy w/Mediterranean Festival Check Presentation to Meaningful Life with a Thank You Coffee Hour for all parishioners.

Sun, July 20 at 10:30 am – Catechism Class

Sun, July 20 at 5:00 pm – Lord’s Diner

Mon, July 21 – Fri, July 25: Fr Aaron @ Antiochian Archdiocese Convention in Chicago, IL

Other Notes

(1) FR AARON OUT OF OFFICE: I will be out of the office on vacation Monday, July 14 – Thursday, July 17. In case of pastoral emergency, please contact Fr Mark Sultani of St George Cathedral (248-207-7631).

(2) SCHOOL SUPPLY DRIVE: As noted in a previous email to the parish, we are collecting supplies/money to buy supplies for Carpenter Place. Please see the flyer for more details. To make a monetary donation, you can give a check/cash to Joan Ferris, Justine Nightingale, or Tracy Namee by Sunday, August 10; or you can donate through our website ( Donate to St. Mary).

(3) ST ELIAS CHURCH RELIEF FUND: Many of you are aware that our church of St Elias in Damascus, Syria, was recently attacked, resulting in the death and injury of multiple people, as well as severe damage to the church building and property. In response to this, a relief fund has been set up to help the church and the victims. A letter from Metropolitan Saba regarding this matter is linked below. You can also access a link to donate here: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America

(4) TEXT MESSAGE GROUP: Our new text message system through tithe.ly is now up and running. We need anyone who wants to receive text messages from the church to sign up for this service (even if you had already signed up using our previous Remind system). You can join by following these quick steps:

– Text the phone number 855-516-9861 with the following phrase in the message box: STMARYTEXT

– Click on the link sent back to you via text and fill out your name (having your name will make it much easier for us in the future to create separate groups, such as the Parish Council, the Belles of St Mary, etc.).

– Check the box giving permission to receive texts.

– Click the “Submit” button.

Once you have done this, you should be automatically added to our text message list. Contact Fr Aaron if you have any issues.

(5) METROPOLITAN SABA’S WEEKLY TEACHING: This week, His Eminence does not have a specific teaching, but expresses his thanks for all those who have helped or will help with the St Elias Church Relief Fund (see #3 above).

(6) TEACH ME THY STATUTES PODCAST: If you would like to listen to this week’s Teach Me Thy Statutes podcast (with Fr Aaron & Jason Ewertt), you can find it here: Teach Me Thy Statutes

(7) PASTORAL VISITS: If you would like a pastoral visit for any reason, or if you know of a family member/parishioner who needs a visit, please feel free to contact me via cell phone at 204-6725.

Yours in Christ,

Fr Aaron