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2 THE SHEPHERD • DECEMBER 2020 • SAINT SPYRIDON GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO By the time you read this, anksgiving will be in the past. is year, under the cloud of the Purple Tier, I found myself read- ing quotes from anksgivings past. With COVID on the rise and the “strong” messag- ing to avoid gathering with family, the quotes showed there is much to be grateful for. Among the quotes, I found this one: “ ank- fulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness.” In re ec- tion, I am thankful for my parents who have passed and the beginning they gave me. As a boy, anksgiving meant getting out of school early, jumping in the family station wagon, and traveling over the snow covered mountains to my Grandmother’s house. We would get up early and sled the snow covered hills all morning, only to return by early af- ternoon to say Grace and eat a scrumptious dinner together. It was a time to be grateful for simple things - safe travels, fresh snow, and time with loved ones. Although regulations have closed the Sanc- tuary, I am thankful for my Faith which has sustained me through these di cult times. I am grateful for Father Andrew as he strug- gles to guide us through these surreal times and to you, our community, as we try to re- main connected. I am thankful for my wife Angel and the life we share. I am grateful for our boys and their safe return home from college. I am thankful for my friends; as Os- car Wilde said, “your true friends stab you in the front.” For those, I am truly grateful! I will close with the favorite quote I came across: “Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.” ~ Maya Angelou. Ulti- mately, our gratitude is our ability to expe- rience life as a gi , to liberate ourselves from self-preoccupation. In the upcoming season of giving, I hope each of us will nd much to be thankful for, and our thankfulness will be transformed into gratitude toward others. ankful for my Blessings, Jim Gilpin Parish Council President Yes, the storage dungeon is fewweeknights and aweeken adjacent to the Kitchen. Reno anddisposalofallcabinetsand walls were prepped and RFP open, and brighter room via u lighting, aswell as heavy duty have a few finishing touches t nextcoupleofweeks. Special thanks for theirhardwo somewell-deserved breaks) fo JimLeventis,CoreyLeventis, a request forall topleasemakea cleanandorganized,whilealso that youmay“forget”behind. Πιστεύουμε ότι θα σας αρέσε στην Κουζίνα. Όλη η ομάδα π διατηρήσουμε και μελλοντικά καθαριότητα αυτού τού χώρο μας! Regards, Vlassiand theTeam FROM THE PARISH COUNCIL PRESIDENT WOMEN WORD OF THE During the month of November, we took on two very challenging but critical topics: the commandment of love and the reality of suf- fering and howwe depend on the gi of God’s enduring compassion and intervening grace. We spent two sessions on God’s Greatest Commandment of Love ~ to love your neigh- bor as yourself. In his book Churchly Joy, Sergius Bulgakov writes: “God gives us an unrealizable commandment in order to ful ll it with His grace not without us but for us; for that which is impossible for man is possible for God. e works of love and the way of love indicated by the apostle Paul in I Corinthians 13 constitute our work of the Lord.” e questions that began our discussion were: How can we even begin to follow God’s greatest commandment of love? How do we know we are acting with love? How do St. Paul’s verses in 1 Cor.13 provide a concrete guide for us where it says, “Love su ers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not pu ed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” We agreed that, above all, to even just start on the path of love, we must learn to practice patience, try to think of the needs of the other, and to pray for one another. In our discussion about Su ering and God’s Grace , we looked at trials and temptations and how God o ers us a refuge in times of su ering. We discussed how in this life we will be confronted by trials and encounter su ering - even Christ Himself met trials and su erings. In fact, He took on our su er- ings to show us the way through them to the Kingdom. We agreed that we cannot elimi- nate su ering nor can we say, “God gave it to me,” but we can ask God for the peace and strength to get through our trials without falling into temptation. In this regard, we looked at this passage from St. Paul’s 1 Cor 10:12-13: “ erefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” We were challenged to think about how do we allow God “to ll human su ering with His presence.” How does He o er us “the way of escape?” We discussed how we cannot “earn” God’s grace which He gives freely in His love, continues 3 ATaste of Greek Christmas H ANDMADE G REEK P ASTRIES FOR THE H OLIDAYS greekbake.org A F UNDRAISER OF L ADIES OF P HILOPTOCHOS A NTHOUSA C HAPTER Order online & pick up in person on December 12, noon to 3pm Saint Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church Drive through parking lot Q UESTIONS : greekbake@anthousa.org