“Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave–just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
(Matthew 20:26-28)
To Love and to Serve
Love the Lord Your God
“Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
“This is the first and great commandment.
“And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’
“On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.””
(Matthew 22:37-40)
The commonality here is love; to love God with all your heart, soul and mind, and following it, to love your neighbour as yourself. God commands us to love. To love Him, and to love all those around us, and when you love someone, how can you not help where help is needed?
God is love, and He loves us more than we can imagine. He loved us so much that He even died on the Cross for us. He shattered the bonds of Hades and brought the Gospel to those that were willing to hear it, raising us up again to Him.
Philanthropy
Philanthropy, which comes from the Greek word, “Φιλανθρωπία”, is derived as follows:
Φίλος, meaning ‘friend’ or, to love someone
Άνθρωπος, meaning ‘mankind’
Therefore, Philanthropy is the love of mankind. It is the acting of helping someone less fortunate than ourselves. It goes hand in hand with the Orthodox faith.
The Judgement of Works
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
(Matthew 25:31-46)
Morning Tea - Every Sunday
Every Sunday, after the Divine Liturgy, our Parish puts on tea and coffee, along with some light nibbles in the Parish Hall. In this way, after being spiritually renewed from the morning service, we share in each other’s company, coming together as a big family.
This morning tea is run by a group of volunteers, who roster on each week to serve the Parish, and has been a long standing tradition that we value.
To be served by brother or sister is a heart warming experience that brings people closer together. We all share in the work, helping to lighten each other’s burdens.
We welcome all people to come down, join us for the Divine Liturgy, and share in some morning tea!
Look After the Parish That Looks After You
The Church exists for the salvation of our souls. It is there for the worship of God. It is there for participating in the Holy Sacraments, in which the Holy Spirit works. It is there for prayer. It is there to renew in spirit the children of God.
Our Committee of Management do an amazing job with the upkeep of our Parish.
They have created a beautiful, grassed, outdoor area. They have done renovations on the car park. They have turned the white walls on the inside of our Church, to something beautiful, with hand-painted icons by skilled iconographer John Kalentzis, and these are just to name a few.
There is a lot of work that happens in the background, and likewise, it takes a lot to maintain a Church that has so much to give.
