
St. Thomas the Apostle
Orthodox Church
With the blessing of Metropolitan NICHOLAS of Eastern America & New York
Sunday December 10th, 2023: The 27th Sunday after Pentecost

Greetings St. Thomas family,
I pray each of you is well as we continue to move through the Nativity Fast. Please take a moment to read through our most up to date announcements. We hope you will join us for our weekend services.
Reminders:
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This week, TEAM 4 will be taking care of the the rotating cleaning tasks. Team 4 includes the following families: McDowell, Carollo, and Taggart. You can find more detailed information on the cleaning rotation HERE.
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As we continue to move through the Nativity Fast, please bring food to share for Coffee Hour that is fast-friendly.
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You can access our Parish needs list HERE.
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Our Annual Parish Meeting has been rescheduled to December 17th during Coffee Hour. You can access our full December service schedule HERE.
We are grateful for all who contribute, as well as those who volunteer their time for the benefit of St. Thomas Orthodox Church. May God keep our parishioners safe, and bless these worthy endeavors.
In Christ,
Photini (Amanda)
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Note on Featured Icon;
The Icon of the Mother of God, named the "Sign" ("Znamenie")
Commemorated on November 27
The Icon of the Mother of God, named the "Sign" ("Znamenie"), images the Most Holy Mother of God seated and with prayerfully uplifted hands; at Her bosom, against the background of a circular shield (or sphere) – in blessing is the Divine Infant – the Saviour-Emmanuel. Such like depiction of the Mother of God is regarded as among the very first of Her iconographic images. In the mausoleum of Saint Agnes at Rome is a depiction of the Mother of God with hands outstretched in prayer with the Infant-Christ sitting upon Her knees. This depiction is ascribed to the IV Century. Moreover, there is known an ancient Byzantine image of the Mother of God "Nikopea" from the VI Century, where the Most Holy Mother of God is depicted sitting upon a throne and holding with both hands before Her an oval shield with the image of the Saviour-Emmanuel. Icons of the Mother of God, known under the name "Znamenie-Sign", appeared in Rus' during the XI-XII Centuries, and were called such after a miraculous "Sign" from the Novgorod Icon, which occurred in the year 1170...READ MORE...