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 March
2008 Newsletter
January
2008 Newsletter
September
2007 Newsletter
Take-home
Family Lessons
 March
9, 2008 - Forgiveness Sunday
March
16, 2008 - Sunday of Orthodoxy
March
30, 2008 - 3rd Sunday of Lent - Sunday of the Holy Cross
Church
School News
Our Church School theme this year: “Image of Christ: Becoming what we are.” will have
a triple emphasis. First,
we will learn about Jesus Christ as the image or eikon of the invisible God.
(Colossian 1.15). If
you have seen Jesus Christ, you have truly seen God.
Secondly, we will learn about how each of us has been created
in the image of God, according to God’s likeness
(Genesis 1.26,27) and we will explore what this means for us to
be fully human in Jesus Christ. Finally,
we will have a special emphasis on iconography as the visual Word of
God, — the Gospel in form and color.
What do icons teach us?
These special
emphases won’t just be taking place in our Church School classes,
but will be the focus of the Sunday take-home lessons to help you to
discuss these issues with your children.
We will also be offering parent education seminars on these
topics throughout the 2007-2008 school year.
You’ll hear more about these as the year progresses.
We commend you for
making the effort to bring your children to Church School regularly.
Pease remember
that regular attendance at the Divine Liturgy as a family is what
being an Orthodox Christian is all about!
May the Lord grant
us all a fruitful Church School year.
The icon of "Christ Blessing the Children" is
used with permission of the iconographer, Father
Tom Tsagalakis
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REGULAR
SUNDAY CHURCH SCHOOL SCHEDULE
(Ages 3
through High School) |
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10:00
a.m.
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Divine Liturgy - Families worship together
?
Why
do we have Family Worship at St. Paul's? |
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11:15 a.m.
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Students will follow the Choir for Holy
Communion.
(Teachers will receive before the Choir)
Students will exit at rear of Church, then
proceed to their classes. |
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12:00 - 12:15
p.m.
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Class dismissed. Parents are asked to wait
until class has been dismissed before calling for children. Sometimes a student needs to
be released prior to dismissal. To avoid lesson disruption, he or she should come to class
with a parent note indicating the time and reason for early release.
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Classes
will meet on every Sunday, except: December 23, 2007,
December 30, 2008,
April
27, 2008– Holy Pascha (Easter) Sunday, and May 4, 2008 –
Godparent/Godchild Sunday
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Saint Paul’s is beginning
a new class for children who are unable to participate in the regular
Sunday School classes, due to autism or some other disability.
Children who learn differently, and children with unique sensory
abilities deserve religious education too! This class will present
concepts to them on their terms so that they can get the most out of
it – their way. Poita Cernius, who has a child with autism,
will be the coordinator of this class, which will begin September
30th. The program requires
that we have a one-on-one aide for each child in the class. We
would be grateful if anyone with the following experience could
volunteer to teach or be an aide in the class: special education
teachers, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, physical
therapists, behavioral specialists, child psychologists, or anyone
who’s familiar with autism. We will provide training for
anyone who would like to volunteer and is open to being trained.
Your time commitment will be based on your availability.
We hope the program will grow so that many members of our
community will want to come and help in the classroom.
Since attentions spans are also shorter, the class will only
meet for 20-30 minutes on the scheduled Sundays.
This program is open to
children with autism or other disabilities, whether they are members
of our parish, another Orthodox parish, or are members of another
church in the local community.
To volunteer, or for more information, please leave a message
at the church office (949) 733-2366 for the Coordinator, Poita Cernius
or send an email to etibbs@stpaulsirvine.org.)
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January 8, 2006
Fr. Steve blessing the children on the
opening of our 32,000 square foot education center
See
our Education Center Page
View
and purchase Groundbreaking photos!
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CHURCH
SCHOOL STAFF
Sylvia Gizzi, Joann Cokas, Regina Blankenhorn, Penny Bradley, Connie Cunningham,
Sherie Sardis, Grace Verey, Bea Dargavel, Joanne Petas,
Andrea Britigan, Alysha Stout, Lydia Pearson, Cynthia Kateyiannis,
Nadine Iskander, Laura Brozek,
Patricia Schneider-Zioga, Kris Kouzelos,
Maria Hasircoglu, Steve Tibbs, Rob McLin, Dan
Cunningham, Dean Langis,
Suzan Kontoulis, John Britigan, George Kateyiannis, Dorothea Love, Joanne Petas, Eve
Tibbs
Church School Board of Directors:
Eve Tibbs - executive director; Dorothea Love, Suzan Kontoulis,
Joanne Petas, Mary Anne Smith, and Steve Tibbs
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Christian
Education Resources
"Christian
Education: Nurturing the Faith"
an article by our Pastor, Father Steven Tsichlis
"Why
Do We Have Family Worship at St. Paul's?"
an article by our Executive Director, Eve Tibbs
Click
here for Printable
Weekly Lessons on the Saints and weekly Gospel
readings
Religious
Education Website of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San
Francisco
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A
Few Prayers to Teach Your Children
GUARDIAN ANGEL
O Angel of God, my holy Guardian given to me from Heaven, protect and enlighten me this
day, give me strength to overcome temptations, and save me from all evil. Teach me to do
what is right, and guide me in the steps of Christ, my Savior.
ALL-HOLY TRINITY
All-Holy Trinity, have mercy on us.
Lord, cleanse us from our sins.
Master, forgive our iniquities,
Holy God, look upon our infirmities for Your Name's sake, and heal them.
A TABLE GRACE
O Christ our God, bless the
food and drink of your servants, for you are Holy always; now and ever, and
unto ages of ages. Amen.
HEAVENLY KING
O heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, Who art
everywhere present and fills all things. Treasury of Blessings and Giver of Life, come and
abide in us and cleanse us from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.
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ENOUGH TIME?
Frequently we're asked if we have enough time to teach a lesson. The answer is -
yes! Virtually every class completes their text book by the end of the year. Our excellent
curriculum is from th Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Department of Religious Education.
Designed and written by professional educators, each lesson is structured (by design) to
be about 20 minutes in the younger grades up to about 40 minutes in the older grades. Each
year's text builds on previous experiences and knowledge. So if you asked any one of our
teachers what their wish would be in the area of time with your children, it would be
consistent and regular attendance! Regular attendance at the Divine Liturgy and at Church
School is the key to "Growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
We hope to continue to see each child regularly to put in place the building blocks of
knowledge, tend the garden of faith, make friends, join in the fellowship of the classroom
community, and have fun, too.
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Photo
Archive
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Father Steven blessings the children and the classrooms on the opening
of our Education Center
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An icon of Saint Nicholas
made by the kindergarten class of Barbara Les and Suzan Kontoulis
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click for larger images
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St.
John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival 2008 Topics