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3 THE SHEPHERD • MAY 2025 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO T he District Oratorical Festi- val was held at the Assump- tion of the Blessed Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox church in Long Beach, California on March 30th where half a dozen churches sent delegates to participate. We sent three speakers from St. Spyr- idon: Maria Paraskevopoulos in the Junior division and Sia Paraskevopoulos and Hana Fitzenz in the Senior division. We are pleased to say that Sia Paraskevopoulos was amongst two who advanced to the Metropolis level which will be held on Sunday, May 11th at St. Nicholas Ranch. Good luck Sia! UNIFIED IN WORSHIP One of the many gifts that we enjoy during the Paschal season is seeing so many of our church families and guests participating in the services leading up to Christ’s Resurrection. Truly, the potency of our faith and the depth of our fellowship are best observed when our pews, as well as our parking spaces, are completely full. When we read in Proverbs that “Iron sharpens Iron,” we are meant to understand that we benefit both personally and spiritually when we regularly interact and pray with each other as Orthodox Christians. And while we are blessed to see our regular attendees, it is also import- ant to remember those who cannot bring themselves to church, the sick, the homebound, and those who have stepped away from the church. May we all take a moment to remember that a phone call or even a minor de- tour on the way to and from church can make a difference in someone’s life. We are all vessels of His grace when we minister to one another in humil- ity, compassion, and loving interac- tion. In doing so, we boldly proclaim the gospel of Christ. The Stewardship Committee: Ben De La Riva, Jim Gilpin, Bill Navrides, Timmy Paraskevo- poulos, Stephen Thiros, Nektarios Tradas, and Spero Tzathas Christ is Risen, Truly He is Risen!!! We pray that your Lenten journey was fruitful and prayerful. I would like to take this time to thank our beautiful choir for all their hard work during this Lenten season. Their voices are like angels in Heav- en. One of our choir members, Eleni Spencer, shared a beautiful prayer for choir members and I would like to share it here. MUSICIAN’S PRAYER God, / Please bless my music, that it might glorify your Name. / May us- ing it to serve you always be my aim. / Let it be a witness to Your majes- ty and love. / And remind us that You’re watching from Your Throne above. / Oh, Lord, I ask for guidance in everything I do. / And pray You’ll make my music an instrument for You. / Amen – Ramona K. Cecil Wishing all our wonderful Mothers in our Community a very Happy Mother’s Day! A mother’s love is one of the greatest feelings in the world. It’s unconditional and soothes your soul like a warm balm on a cold day. Mothers are like glue. They keep the family together! Enjoy your day! Singing His Praises, Katherine Loukatos Meck Choir Master DIVINE SERVICES SUNDAY, MAY 4: Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women Orthros 9:00 AM ✟ Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM Epistle : Acts 6:1-7 ✟ Gospel : Mark 15:43-47; 16:1-8 SUNDAY, MAY 11: Sunday of the Paralytic Orthros 9:00 AM ✟ Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM Epistle : Acts 9:32-42 ✟ Gospel : John 5:1-15 SUNDAY, MAY 18: Sunday of the Samaritan Woman Orthros 9:00 AM ✟ Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM Epistle : Acts 11:19-30 ✟ Gospel : John 4:5-42 SUNDAY, MAY 25: Sunday of the Blind Man Orthros 9:00 AM ✟ Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM Epistle : II Corinthians 4:6-15 ✟ Gospel : John 9:1-38 THURSDAY, MAY 29: The Holy Ascension of the Lord Orthros 9:00 AM ✟ Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM Epistle : Acts 1:1-12 ✟ Gospel : Luke 24:36-53 MEMORIALS APR 6: Mary Hanson 15 years Efrosini Mangel 20 years MAY 4: Bessie Lambron 40 days Stefanos Papadakis 40 days Georgia Nicoll 1 year MAY 11: Argyro Katsivas 40 days Presvytera Evangelia Makridis-Gamble 1 year Fr. Michael Markridis 39 years DEATHS APR 7: Anthony Kallas 91 years old Lemonia Rahal 90 years old APR 15: Gerasimos Georges 61 years old NEWS LOFT FROM THE 40-DAY BLESSINGS MAR 16: Theodoros Raymond Son of Todd & Anna Kramer MAR 23: Zeno – Son of Mesha & Rebecca Garibay STEWARDSHIP CORNER