 The Fellowship of St. Moses the Black will be hosting its 28th Annual Conference in a virtual format on October 8-9, 2021. The full schedule for the conference is below:
Friday, September 8th Evening Events
Saturday, September 9th Morning Events
For more details and to register, visit http://mosestheblack.org/conferences/2021-conference. The Connect Conference is returning in-person this year in Dallas on October 8-10. Visit www.connectorthodox.org for more details and to register!   With the blessing of His Eminence Metropolitan JOSEPH & His Grace Bishop THOMAS, the Eastern Diocese Ministry Council is sponsoring a 5-week online workshop, led by Rita Madden, titled "Food, Faith and Fasting: A Sacred Journey To Better Health." Each workshop will include live instructional sessions followed by an opportunity for Q&A with Rita. Session topics are:
As a way to invest in the physical and spiritual health of the faithful as we head into this new year of 2021, these workshops are being offered free-of-charge to the attendees through the generosity of the Eastern Diocese Ministry Council. However, you must register in order to receive the Zoom information! To register and receive links for an individual session or the entire series, please email ritafoodfaithfasting@gmail.com with the coupon code: DMCEast.  On October 14th members of St. George Orthodox Church joined with other local Orthodox communities to help children in Philadelphia get ready for the start of a new school year. With the generous help of Tom's Shoes Focus was able to provide several thousand shoes for students in Philadelphia. It was our joy to once again be part of this wonderful way for students to start the school year with hopefully a little bounce in their step.
On the weekend of October 3-4 the St. George community welcomed Bp. THOMAS. On Saturday morning the Sunday school had breakfast with him and got to ask him questions about the vestments he wears, if he likes sports, and why he became a bishop. In the evening His Grace presided at Vespers and then joined the Parish Council for a wonderful dinner. On Sunday morning His Grace served the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy and preached on the need for us to reach out to the community around us and to love everyone we encounter and invite friends and neighbors and even strangers to the beauty of the Church. After Liturgy our parish family gathered in the Hall for a wonderful lunch provided through our communities loving hospitality.
 One of the ways that Orthodox Christians remember those who have reposed is to make Kolyva. On August 29th after celebrating the Liturgy for the Beheading of St John the Forerunner some of our parish family gathered with Fr.Joel and Anastasia to discuss the history of Kolyva and to learn to make it. It was a delicious time for everyone.
On October 18th the community of St. George hosted a Choir Workshop lead by Nadeen Nerenberg. This event, a project of the eastern PA clergy, was a chance to bring a small taste of the Sacred Music Institute to those of our parishioners who are unable to attend the regular SMI. Nadeen was a great fit for this program because she was once the Choir Director for St. George under Fr. Anthony Bassoline. The day began with the 15+ participants chanting the Supplication service of St. Raphael of Brooklyn. This was followed by a light meal and some fellowship. The 1st session of Nadeen’s presentation was a reading of an article once written by Bp. BASIL that addressed the solemnity of the choir ministry. It truly helped to set the tone as one of worship. Having addressed the spiritual side of singing in the Church the 2nd session was dedicated to understanding our physical space and preparation for singing the services. Nadeen covered such things as basic breathing exercises, how to look at the director and not always the book, and how to listen to those around us. The attendees took a break for lunch and more fellowship, enjoying the learning experience and getting to know each other. The final session of the workshop had the participants look at music from different Orthodox traditions and practice them. The goal was to show how each tradition spoke of the same faith while using different melodies; that the belief was the same even if the music was a little different. The day ended with the chanters and combined choir singing the Vespers service. Our hope is that this event can become an annual gathering here in eastern PA. Our parish was blessed to have Bp. THOMAS visit October 3 - 5. During these days he met with students from some of the local OCFs, some of our Sunday school children, our Ladies and our Parish Council. The weekend culminated with His Grace presiding at the Divine Liturgy. On Monday October the 6th Bp. THOMAS visited with the 8th grade class of St. Laurence Roman Catholic School. His Grace and Fr. Joel spoke with them about some of the similarities and differences between the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. |
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