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1 THE SHEPHERD • AUGUST 2021 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO FROM THE DESK OF FATHER ANDREW www.theshepherdnews.com The Shepherd Newsletter My Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I take this opportunity to remind you that the Fif- teen Days of August are upon us and the service of the Paraklesis to the Most Holy eotokos for health and wellbeing awaits us. On Mon- day, August 2nd at 6:00 pm we will once again begin our communal prayer to the Mother of our God. It is once again a time to join in the een day fast as we prepare to mark the season and signi cance of the e- otokos in the life of the Orthodox Church. is year our communal fast and prayer will culminate on Sunday morning, August 15th with the celebration of the Orthros at 9:00 am with the Divine Liturgy to follow around 10:00 am. e Fi een Days of August reminds Ortho- dox Christians about the place and honor the eotokos has in our theology and way of life as Christian Orthodox. As truly the Mother of God ( eo/tokos) through her intercessions, on our behalf, she can be our protectress and healer . As we ponder the awesomeness of the Incarnation of Christ, we cannot discredit or downplay the role the Virgin Mary was called upon to carry out as she gave birth to God the Word . rough her free will consent, she brought forth our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the second person of the Holy Trinity. It is with this correct un- derstanding therefore, that throughout the ages the eotokos has been sought a er and prayed through for protection and healing, blessings that have no doubt come by Him whom she brought forth, her beloved Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. erefore, keeping with the Holy Tradition of the Church, in seeking divine help through the intercession of the eotokos, we will once again gather for communal prayer as we li up our voices to her for our health and well-being. Paraklesis services will be o ered at 6:00pm on: Monday evening, Au- gust 2nd; Wednesday evening, August 11th. e Paraklesis service will also be o ered at 10:00am on: Wednesday morning, August 4th; Monday morning, August 9th; and Friday morning, August 13th. Please make every e ort to be present to help pray for the sick, the su ering and for those held in cap- tivity. You may receive a form to write/o er the names of your loved ones who need prayer for health and well-being from the narthex of the church. Please return your names to Fr. Andrew before each Paraklesis Service and more importantly, make every e ort to be present for the services to be part of the prayers for our loved ones. I am looking forward to praying with you all, all together, not only for the Orthros and Sundays Divine Liturgy but during the Paraklesis services throughout the Fi een Days of August as well. Most Holy eotokos, save us. +A IN THIS ISSUE FR. ANDREW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 1 PRESIDENT OF THE PARISH COUNCIL, WOMEN OF THE WORD, SENIORS, PANARCADIANS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 2 DIVINE SERVICES, NEWS FROM THE LOFT, MEMORIALS, STEWARDSHIP . . p. 3 GREEK LANGUAGE SCHOOL, PHILOPTOCHOS NEWS, ZATHAS FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS. . . . . . p. 4 GOYA NEWS, SUNDAY SCHOOL . . . . p. 5 PARISH CALENDAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 6 LIBRARY & BOOKSTORE . . . . . . . . . . . . p. 7 CONTACT INFORMATION. . . . . . . . . . . p. 8 The Shepherd The official newsletter publication for the parish of Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church of San Diego I S S U E 3 0 3 • AU G U S T 2 0 2 1 <<< ON THE LEFT: A long tradition is upheld on the Greek island of Tinos. Every year, on August 15, thousands of people make a pilgrimage to the island and wait in line for hours in order to venerate the holy icon of the Theotokos, inside the architecturally significant and beautiful church of the Holy Theotokos (“Παναγία της Τήνου”). In order to express penance, many faithful ascend the steps of the church on their knees. The church was built at the site where the holy icon was unearthed in 1823, after Saint Pelagía saw it in a vision. Following a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on the day of the Dormition of the Theotokos, the procession of the icon takes place. Clergy and other dignitaries come aboard a navy ship and throw wreaths in the sea at the point where the Greek battleship Ellie (“Έλλη”) was sunk by an Axis submarine on August 15, 1940, thus drawing Greece into the conflict ofWWII.