St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church New Orleans - Louisiana Calendar and News September 1997

The Coptic Orthodox Diocese Of

The Southern United States

St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church New Orleans Louisiana

September 1997 Church News Letter & Activities Calendar

THE MARTYRS: EXAMPLES FOR OUR LIVES

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There is no other Church that honors the martyrs as much as our Coptic Orthodox Church. It is sufficient that our yearly calendar is called the calendar of martyrs, and that we commence our history with them.

Saint Mark the Apostle was the first person to preach Christianity in Egypt, and he died as a martyr. Through the shedding of his blood, he proved that his faith was stronger than suffering, death and fear, and that there was another life in which he believed, which was to be realized through martyrdom.

Martyrdom increased in Egypt, and even whole cities presented themselves to death such as the city of Esna, the martyrs of Akhmim, and the Theban Legion. At one time, thirty thousand people of the city of Damanhour presented themselves for martyrdom. Each span of Egypt was irrigated with the blood of the Coptic martyrs who presented an amazing picture of firmness in bloodshed. For those martyrs, separation was stronger than the swords of their torturers and their ferocity, and Christianity prevailed.

Diocletian took an oath to annihilate Christianity, and that he would not cease to kill Christians until the blood reached the knee of his horse, but Diocletian died, and the Christian Faith remained as it is. Arianus was infatuated with torturing Christians with all types of tortures, but finally he became a Christian. During the reign of Constantine, the whole Roman nation became Christian, and the blood of the martyrs became the seeds of the faith. In our rite, we place the martyrs before the pastoring fathers and before the ascetic fathers, and this is because there is no love greater than this, that someone give himself up for the sake of his love for God, and his faith in Him. We do not weep over the martyr on the day of his remembrance, but we celebrate this day.

We celebrate the day of the martyr's suffering and death. It is, without a doubt, a feast day, for it is the day on which he received the crown of martyrdom and arrived in heaven. We remember the martyrs because, through their blood, the Church was established. We remember the faith of the martyrs, their courage, their brave defense of the Faith, and their endurance of unbearable pain, with amazing patience. We remember the martyrs who transformed the prisons into churches by filling them with prayers and praises. They did not leave the Church alone, but supported her with their prayers and assistance.

The Church has special feast days for the martyrs, calls churches by their names and lights candles in front of their icons, remembering how the fire of divine love and persecution was ignited in them, until they presented themselves as a ransom. When we remember the martyrs , we learn from them. We learn how to be firm in the Faith, how to take pain lightly, no matter how severe it becomes, and how to meet death with courage. The martyrs were a lesson to humanity, and they were a practical example in their lives and in their departure from this world.

As we celebrate the martyr's on the day of the feast of El-Nayrouz, on which we also celebrate the beginning of a new year, we pray that it will be a blessed and joyous year, in which we request assistance from the Lord and special grace, in order that we spend it in peace, and that we may commence it well..

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
31 August Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-12:30PM Aghapi  	1 Divine Liturgy Lafayette LA. 8:00AM-10:00AM	2 Hymnal Lesson New Orleans 8:00PM-9:00PM	3 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 9:00AM-11:00AM	4	5 Vespers&Bible Study Birmingham, AL.	6 Divine Liturgy Birmingham, AL. 9:00AM-12:30PM --------------------- Vespers, Bible Study&Midnight New Orleans 7:00PM-9:00PM
7 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-12:30PM Aghapi	8 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-11:00AM Commem. Of Archangel Raphael	9 Hymnal Lesson New Orleans 8:00PM-9:00PM 	10 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 9:00AM-11:00AM ------------------- Nayrouz Eve Vespers Coptic New Year	11 Divine Liturgy New Orleans Nayrouz Feast  Happy New  Coptic Year  1714 A.M.	12 Vespers&Bible Study Mobile, AL.	13 Divine Liturgy Mobile, AL. 9:00AM-12:00AM Aghapi --------------------- Vespers, Bible Study&Midnight New Orleans 7:00PM-9:00PM
14 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-12:30PM Aghapi	15	16 Hymnal Lesson New Orleans 8:00PM-9:00PM	17 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 9:30AM-11:00AM	18	19 Vespers&Bible Study Tallahassee, FL. 	20 Divine Liturgy Tallahassee, FL. ------------------- Vespers, Bible Study&Midnight New Orleans 7:00PM-9:00PM
21 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-12:30PM Aghapi	22	23 Hymnal Lesson New Orleans 8:00PM-9:00PM	24 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-11:00PM ----------------- Vespers 7:00PM-8:00PM	25 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 9:30AM-12:00PM Transfer of Relics of St. Stephen	26 Vespers&Bible Study The Feast Of The Cross	27 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 9:00AM-12:00PM The Feast Of The Cross Activity Day ----------------- Vespers, Bible Study&Midnight New Orleans 7:00PM-9:00PM
28 Divine Liturgy New Orleans 8:30AM-12:30PM Aghapi	29 	30 Hymnal Lesson New Orleans 8:00PM-9:00PM	1 October	2	3	4

Church News:

Announcements :

We will have a Thanksgiving family retreat in Destin from November 26^th through the 29^th 1997, and will be lead by His Grace Bishop Youssef. For more information, please call Fr. Shenouda Kalleeny at (504)433-0839.
A hymnal lesson will be held every Tuesday from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m.
A Sunday school teachers meeting will be held from 1:15 to 2:00 every Sunday.

Happy Birthday :

Michael Mounir Shalabyel ....................................... September 16
Sameh A. Sakla ........................................................ September 30
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Created 7/24/1997, Last Modified 8/30/1997