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2 THE SHEPHERD • SEPTEMBER 2024 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO Dear Sojourner in the Faith: As we approach the unofficial end of summer, once again we are busy with our families and friends, our children’s return to school, and, hopefully, one last big splash (somewhere) to celebrate the end of this beautiful season. Recently, on one of my daily jogs through our neighborhood, a young woman, a stranger to me, jogging towards me, stopped and intro- duced herself: she told me she was deeply impressed with my daily ritual and thanked me for being an inspiration to her and oth- ers. I was taken aback but recovered enough to introduce myself, thanked her, and then I moved (slowly) on. I was pleasantly sur- prised! Those daily rituals, whatever they might be in our lives, over time establish a foundation for our lives and the routine of it often comforts us as well. The weekly “ritual” of attending Sunday’s divine services does the same and seldom do I have anything but a pleasant and peaceful day after attending church, receiv- ing Holy Communion, and then enjoying fellowship with my many friends in the hall. My son, William, expresses the same senti- ment. Not a surprise and very comforting! So, as we near the end of summer, we ask you again to be good neighbors to “strangers” and those you know; attend church, receive Holy Communion and join us all in the hall to break bread and share fellowship. This is a weekly inoculation against despair, loneli- ness, and anomie. Furthermore, please continue to be faith- ful stewards and financially support your beloved St. Spyridon in all its missions, its ministries, and its pursuit of placing” ten thousand lights on a hill,” so that you, your family, your friends, and your community may shine in its pursuit of the “best life” – a Christian life, to fulfill the great commission of “loving thy neighbor.” So, please take a moment and reflect upon Another summer has passed and we are ex- cited for everyone’s return. Sunday School and Greek Dance will start on September 8th. We look forward to the Church being filled again with our children and we hope to be renewed by their youthful spirits. It is said that children are like arrows in the hand of a warrior and blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. We are truly blessed that our house is full of children. The youth program has selected “building the Body of Christ” as its theme for the year. We are all part of the body, we are intercon- nected in Christ, and one part has a need for all the others (1 Corinthians 12:1-26). God has given each of us a gift that we can use for building up the Body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12). In Romans 12:6–8, Paul describes sev- en spiritual gifts which have been distributed to different members. If our gift is prophesy- ing, then we are to prophesy in accordance with our faith. If our gift is serving, then we are to serve; if it is teaching, then we are to teach; if it is to encourage, then we are to give encouragement; if it is giving, then we are to give generously; if it is to lead, we are to do it diligently; and if it is to show mercy, we are to do so cheerfully (Romans 12:7-9). We each have a different gift given to us ac- cording to His grace; the key is for each of us to share our gift. As Father Andrew and Deacon Michael often remind us, simply lis- tening and believing is not enough, we need to put our faith into action. We should strive to be magnanimous people, ones who pur- sue greatness in proportion to our God given ability. But our gifts don’t have to be grand; we can all offer encouragement; we can all offer prayers; we can all listen; we can all extend a helping hand; and we can all share a kind word or offer forgiveness. Through these actions, we can feel life being shared and the connection that flows through the Body of Christ. In the story of Martha and Mary (Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28), which we heard recently and will hear three more times in the com- ing months, we are reminded over and over again of the one important thing—our rela- tionship with Christ. We are reminded to set aside the busyness of our lives and to take a moment to be present with Him. In our col- lective moments, we can be together with Him. As He has set an example for us, we can set an example for our youth through our ac- tions and interactions with one another. Our challenge is to come and see; to truly be pres- ent, to hear His message, to realize our gifts, and to share them with others. Many Blessings, Jim Gilpin, Parish Council President FROM THE PARISH COUNCIL PRESIDENT The Women of the Word has been a minis- try of St. Spyridon’s for over 25 years and has undergone a number of changes related to participants, meeting times, and leadership. The most recent Bible Study group which met Wednesdays at noon for over a decade is no longer in session. The ministry is current- ly inactive but open by God’s grace and His guidance through the Holy Spirit to rejuve- nation under new leadership. Over the past 10-12 years our ministry has worked on a clear vision of who we are and what our role is in respect to the building up of the Body of Christ in our St. Spyridon Church community. We have defined our- selves first not as an academic study group but rather as “women gathered in love around the Word of God” – the Word being not just what we hear in the Epistle and Gos- pels but Christ Himself, the Logos, with the idea being “where one or two are gathered in His Name, Christ is in our midst.” We read and studied a number of Epistles, Gospels, and Orthodox Christian books always, as they say, “over the shoulders of the Church Fathers,” guided by their inspired interpreta- tions and understandings. Our main goal was to become women who not only “hear the Word of God and keep it” (Luke 11:28) but also to work continually on growing in our faith, trying to allow the mes- sage of Christ to enter our hearts and minds in every daily circumstance, and ultimately to change us in our lives in Christ to be “bet- ter doers of the Word and not hearers only.” (James 1:22) If you are interested in becoming the new facilitator and starting a new group, con- tact Susan Miserlis at 619-243-9864 or email susanmiserlis@gmail.com With Love in Christ, +The Women of the Word Bible Study Group WOMEN WORD OF THE STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE your stewardship giving - continue to fulfill your honorable pledge made at the begin- ning of the calendar year and/or make an honorable contribution to your parish. You can do this by calling the church office or vis- iting our website stspyridon.org and clicking the stewardship button. You will not regret it. Nor will we. The Stewardship Committee John Kalas, Fr. Andrew Scordalakis Chairperson