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2 THE SHEPHERD • MAY 2025 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO Dear Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! I hope you had a blessed Pascha, celebrating the glorious Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I pray that the Holy Week services and the radiant Anastasi service filled your hearts with renewed faith and joy. As we now move into a new season in our parish life, preparations for our annual Greek Festival are gaining both momentum and ex- citement. Food and pastry preparations are underway for what promises to be a vibrant and joyful weekend of fellowship, hospitality, and tradition. Since January, the Festival Steering Commit- tee has been hard at work planning this year’s event. Great care has been taken in selecting the festival date to avoid conflicts with both the Rock and Roll Marathon and the feast of Holy Pentecost. The band has already been booked, and we’re implementing several improvements to the layout – most notably, relocating the pastry booth into the Church Hall to better accommodate our guests and volunteers. So far, 86 pans of pastitsio have been pre- pared, thanks to the many hands who helped with cooking, shopping, and logistics. Flyers and advertising materials have been print- ed, and generous donations were collected during our festival kickoff event. Permit ap- plications have been submitted, and subcon- tracted services have been arranged for shut- tle parking at the San Diego Unified School District offices. Each festival area now has an assigned com- mittee chair, and the Steering Committee continues to recruit volunteers to help bring every part of the festival to life. This event is a beautiful reflection of our parish’s dedica- tion, hospitality, and teamwork. During my career in aerospace, I once heard a manager say, “None of us is as smart as all of us.” That spirit of collaboration and shared strength can surely be applied to our com- munity efforts: None of us is as strong as all of us! When we come together in faith and fellowship, we can accomplish truly wonder- ful things. As St. Paul reminds us: “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” – 1 Corinthians 12:27 The cooking schedule for the remaining food preparations has been shared with the par- ish. I warmly invite you to join us in whatev- er way you are able, to support and strength- en our efforts and help ensure the success of another joyful and memorable festival. In Christ’s Love and Service, Anthony Kyriakidis Parish Council President FROM THE PARISH COUNCIL PRESIDENT WALKING IN NEWNESS OF LIFE Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and be- come as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, who- ever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.” (Matt. 18:2-5) When spring arrives in our beautiful San Diego, the purple Jacaranda line our streets telling us that summer isn’t far away. In the beautiful season of Pascha, we can feel a fresh newness of our faith moving toward Ascension and Pentecost, the birth of the Church. God renews us over and over even as our year moves ahead. May we continue in child-like faith and won- der at the Lord’s love and care for us; may we be full of curiosity in our study of the Scrip- ture and trusting in our prayer. Even though our WOW study has ended until the fall, we still have our wonderful daily book, Dai- ly Lives, Miracles, and Wisdom of the Saints & Fasting Calendar to teach us in our busy days. This book is still available in our book- store, and we heartily recommend it to all our friends in the parish. We will be sending out e-mails over the sum- mer with scriptures, encouragement, and reading recommendations as well as updates on our plans for our fall study. Please don’t hesitate to contact Kay Harkins at kayhar- kins@mac.com if you would like to be added to our list! WOMEN WORD OF THE BOOKSTORE Christos Anesti! We hope you all had a won- derful Lenten journey filled with Christ’s love and a blessed Pascha celebration. We would like to welcome Hitomi Shue, our newest Bookstore staff volunteer. Stop by after Sunday Liturgy and give her a warmwelcome! With Spring in our midst, why not think about preparing a summer reading list for your teen? A Trace in the Sand: A Tale of the Early Martyrs is a historical novel for young people originally published in the Greek language. St. Herman Press has released an English translation of the book. Meet Alex- amenos, the teenage son of a powerful Ro- man Senator who wants to know what the purpose of his perfect life is. He is cruel, rich, fears nothing, and respects no one- until the day his life is saved by a slave. This slave pos- sesses something that he cannot attain: an other worldly peace. Soon the slave’s peace is revealed with a simple drawn trace in the sand. This slave is a Christian, and his faith wakens the Senator’s household to the call of God. Definitely a great read for young adults, and would be of interest to adults as well. Brave, Faithful, and True: Children of the Bible is a book written from the perspective of a child whose story is told in the Bible. The Bible doesn’t mention many children by name, but in the stories that are there, we see courage, kindness, generosity, and faith. This book retells the stories of 12 children, 6 from the Old Testament, and 6 from the New Tes- tament. These Biblical stories are wonderful- ly written to share with children and to help them see God in Scripture. Age range: 8-14 years old. Additionally, parents reading the stories with their children will gleam new in- sights as well. Never too early to start choosing your sum- mer reading list. Happy Spring! Stephanie Mourafetis, Mary Mastorakos, Pat Tsopanoglou, Francesca Captain, and Hitomi Shue have the courage to go against the grain and stand firm toward what is good and profitable for our souls? If that’s the case, the time has come for us to stop being Cryptic Christians. The time has come to take courage and to step up to the Cross of Christ like Joseph of Ari- mathea did so all those years ago.The time has come for us to look our fears in the eye and to overcome them one by one with the courage that comes from a deepened relationship with God, girded with prayer and the partaking of the Sacraments of the Church. +A. 1 FR. ANDREW