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Published by Spiro Bobotas, 2019-01-04 09:42:50

January 6, 2019

January 6, 2019

SAINT SOPHIA CATHEDRAL

MIAMI, FLORIDA
Sunday, January 6th , 2018

Holy Epiphany

About the beginning of our Lord's thirtieth year, John the
Forerunner, who was some six months older than Our Sav-
iour according to the flesh, and had lived in the wilderness
since his childhood, received a command from God and came
into the parts of the Jordan, preaching the baptism of re-
pentance unto the remission of sins. Then our Saviour also
came from Galilee to the Jordan, and sought and received
baptism though He was the Master and John was but a
servant. Whereupon, there came to pass those marvellous
deeds, great and beyond nature: the Heavens were opened,
the Spirit descended in the form of a dove upon Him that
was being baptized and the voice was heard from the Heav-
ens hearing witness that this was the beloved Son of God,
now baptized as a man (Matt. 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:1-22). From these events the Di-
vinity of the Lord Jesus Christ and the great mystery of the Trinity were demonstrated. It is
also from this that the present feast is called "Theophany," that is, the divine manifestation,
God's appearance among men. On this venerable day the sacred mystery of Christian bap-
tism was inaugurated; henceforth also began the saving preaching of the Kingdom of the
Heavens.

Rev. Fr. Spiro D. Bobotas

Telephone 305- 854-2922 * Fax: 305-858-1854
Website: stsophiamiami.org
2401 S.W. 3rd Avenue, 33129

Mailing Address: 244 SW 24th Road Miami, Fl. 33129
305-854-2922

Liturgical Guide

Apolytikion for the Feast Epiphany in Tone 1

Ἐν Ἰορδάνῃ βαπτιζομένου σου Κύριε
When Thou wast baptized in the Jordan, O Lord, the worship of the Trinity was made

manifest; for the voice of the Father bare witness to Thee, calling Thee His beloved
Son. And the Spirit in the form of a dove confirmed the certainty of the word. O

Christ our God, Who hast appeared and hast enlightened the world, glory be to Thee.

Kontakion

Ἐπεφάνης σήμερον τὴ οἰκουμένη, καὶ τὸ φῶς σου Κύριε, ἐσημειώθη ἐφ' ἡμᾶς, ἓν ἐπιγνώσει
ὑμνούντάς σε. Ἦλθες ἐφάνης τὸ Φῶς τὸ ἀπρόσιτον.

You appeared to the world today, and Your light, O Lord, has left its mark upon us.
With fuller understanding we sing to You: "You came, You were made manifest, the un-

approachable light."

Cutting the Vasilopita

The tradition of baking and cutting a special "pita" (which
can mean a loaf of bread, a cake, or even a pie) each year on
January 1st is observed in honor of our holy father Basil the
Great, archbishop of Caesarea in Cappodocia-- hence its
name "Vasilopita" meaning "St. Basil's Bread." This tradi-
tion is observed in both parish churches and in the homes
of the faithful. What is the meaning of this tradition and
how did it begin? For centuries upon centuries, parents,
grandparents and godparents have related the following to
Orthodox children about St. Basil and the Vasilopita. One
year, during a time of terrible famine, the emperor levied a sinfully excessive tax upon the

Continue on Pg. 7

Scripture Readings

Epistle Reading

The Reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7.

TITUS, my son, the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men, train-
ing us to renounce irreligion and worldly passions, and to live sober, upright, and god-
ly lives in this world, awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of the
great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all
iniquity and to purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.
But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved
us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy,
by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out
upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his
grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.

Gospel Reading

The Reading is from Matthew 3:13-17

At that time, Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.
John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you
come to me?" But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now; for thus it is fitting for us to
fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented. And when Jesus was baptized, he went
up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened and he saw the
Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heav-







people of Caesarea. The tax was such a heavy burden upon the already impoverished peo-
ple that to avoid debtors' prison each family had to relinquish its few remaining coins and
pieces of jewelry, including precious family heirlooms. Learning of this injustice upon his
flock, St. Basil the Great, the archbishop of Caesarea, took up his bishop's staff and the
book of the holy Gospels and came to his people's defense by fearlessly calling the emper-
or to repentance. By God's grace, the emperor did repent! He canceled the tax and in-
structed his tax collectors to turn over to St. Basil all of the chests containing the coins and
jewelry which had been paid as taxes by the people of Caesarea. But now St. Basil was
faced with the daunting and impossible task of returning these thousands of coins and
pieces of jewelry to their rightful owners. After praying for a long time before the icons of
our Master Christ and His All-Holy Mother, St. Basil had all the treasures baked into one
huge pita. He then called all the townspeople to prayer at the cathedral, and, after Divine
Liturgy, he blessed and cut the pita, giving a piece to each person. Miraculously, each
owner received in his piece of Vasilopita his own valuables. They all joyfully returned
home, giving thanks to God who had delivered them from abject poverty and to their good
and holy bishop St. Basil the Great! In remembrance of that miracle wrought by God as a
result of St. Basil's love and defense of his people, Orthodox Christians have observed the
tradition of the Vasilopita each year on January 1st-- the date on which St. Basil reposed
in the Lord in the year 379.

HELLENIC DANCE TROUPE

On January 18-21st 2019, The Olympus Hellenic Dance
troupe of St. Sophia will be traveling to Atlanta to partici-
pate in the annual Hellenic Dance Festival. This will be
their 2nd time attending and we are very excited to open
an invitation for you to join them for a dress rehearsal
luncheon on Sunday, January 13th 2019 in the Hall of St.
Sophia! Lunch will be provided by the dance troupe dur-
ing their HDF performance. We are performing dances
from the Thracian village Bana as well as the Dodecanese island of Symi. The troupe encourages
everyone to attend this luncheon in an effort for our youth to showcase their knowledge of our
Hellenic heritage through dance.
The Olympus Hellenic Dance Troupe is asking for donations in return for the lunch provided
during their performance. All donations will go towards registration fees, costume fees, and al-
lows the youth to take part in educational seminars regarding specific Hellenic regions and the
demonstration of region specific dances. We look forward to seeing everyone after church for our
Hellenic Dance Festival Performance.
If you would like to make a larger contribution, or be involved with the Hellenic Dance Troupe,
please contact Nick Callesis (305-588-0869) or Emmanuela Prevolis (305-498-1399)

UPCOMING EVENTS

January 6th Holy Epiphany Matins 9:00 AM
Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM

Vasilopita Sunday followed by Pot Luck luncheon sponsored by the Philoptochos

January 12th Epiphany Celebration in West Palm Beach

with His Eminence Metropolitan Alexios

Matins 9:00 AM

Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM

January 13th Sunday after Epiphany Matins 9:00 AM

Divine Liturgy 10:00 AM

Festival Bake Days; January 26th, February 2nd, February 9th, February 16th


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