Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Today, our parish of St. Anna’s was greatly honored as I was invited to the Utah State Capitol to offer the invocation for the final day of this legislative session for the House of Representatives. Joining me was my mom, Dena Savas, Elaine Zambos and our youngest son, Dimitri Savas. I would like to thank two, fine, young Greek Orthodox men, Christopher Coombs and Niko Priskos who intern at the Capitol, and extended kind hospitality throughout the morning. I also wish to thank Chris Gamvroulas, president of Ivory Development who is no stranger to Capitol Hill, and through whom the invitation was given.
I thought it appropriate, since our parish was officially acknowledged on the floor of the House Chamber, that you are given the opportunity to read what was offered in prayer on behalf of our legislators. May the name of St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church continue to grow throughout Utah and beyond, to the glory of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
With Love in Him and a Grateful Heart,
Fr. Anthony
Prayer at the Utah State House of Representatives
Thursday, March 9th, 2017 at the Utah State Capitol
Given by the Rev. N. Anthony Savas,
St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church, Cottonwood Heights
“Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with the wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.”
This reading is from the Gospel of St. John.
Let us pray to the Lord.
Lord have mercy.
Lord, God, and Savior, Jesus Christ, you uttered, these words: “It is finished” as you hung upon your most precious, awesome, and life-giving cross. You proclaimed this to the world…not succumbing to death…for as the author of life, you proceeded, steadfastly from the Cross…liberating all who were held captive by the evil one…from the time of the Fall…
…But rather…You pronounced the end of your earthly ministry, making way for the gift of the Holy Spirit to come upon this world…and to continue the Work of the Father, through the Incarnation of the Son.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that the next chapter in God’s Salvific Plan for the human race could be written and commenced.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that You could break the chains, smash the bars and free your children from Satan’s once-eternal Prison.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that You could once again…40 Days after your Resurrection from the dead…ascend into the Heavens and reclaim Your Throne on high…the Right hand of the Father.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that Your Bride, the Church, could be established…through the Journeys of Your Sainted-Apostles, spreading the message of your Gospel, and to preach the good news of Your Resurrection from the dead.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that the gates of Paradise might be reopened unto us, thus embracing us… and receiving us back as sons and daughters… as rightful heirs to your Kingdom.
You pronounced, O Lord, “It is finished” …so that life could…begin.
Christ our God, Who at all times and in every hour…in heaven and on earth…are worshipped and glorified; Who are longsuffering, merciful, and compassionate; Who love the just and show mercy to the sinner, Who call all to salvation through the promise of good things to come…receive our supplications to bless…on this the final day of this Legislative Session, our State House of Representatives…together with all those in Utah’s public service…and also those who are served.
Lord, when our Representatives proclaim on this day, that:
“it is finished,” I pray that they may stand before You in humility…confident…that their work has been fruitful and productive…worthy of Your favor and blessing.
Lord, when our Representatives proclaim on this day, that:
“it is finished,” I pray that You accept the laws that have been authored, discussed, voted upon and accepted…are protective of Your environment and the respect of all who are created in Your holy image.
Lord, when our Representatives proclaim on this day, that:
“it is finished,” deign them to have been proper stewards of the trust given to them…through the prestige and dignity of the titles that have been bestowed upon them.
Lord, when our Representatives proclaim on this day, that:
“it is finished,” let them return to their families, careers, businesses, and lives, knowing that the great sacrifices they have made…through the time dedicated to their elected office, is acknowledged and rewarded by Your generous and loving grace.
Thank You, Lord, for Your strength, guidance and inspiration in their soon-to-be-finished efforts. For You are the fulfillment of all good things.
These things we ask of You, together with your Father Who is from everlasting…and Your all holy, good, and life-giving Spirit. Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.
Amen.
“This message is for you if you have teenagers, are related to teenagers, know teenagers, or have any influence, whatsoever, on…teenagers.” – Fr. Anthony Savas
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
While it’s true that I have often used Scriptural verses or writings of the Fathers as opening quotes to each of my pastoral messages, it is equally true that nobody will ever quote me in print unless I do it myself. So, there you go.
Actually, I wanted to capture, as quickly as possible, the attention of parents, grandparents, godparents, and influential adults in the lives of our St. Anna youth. With the Fast having commenced just this week, my heart is directed towards our young people, praying that the purpose, lessons and opportunities of Great Lent are relevant in their lives.
Not that I am demanding monastic expectations from your kids, or mine, but I feel that the overall importance of the disciplines that can only be acquired through ascetic struggle are slipping away and falling into disuse.
It’s hard enough that we live in a world that does not know the simplest meaning of Lenten practices. Our daughter’s Senior Prom is on…get this…Holy Saturday evening. Is Easter thought of so casually that a school in our “local religious environment” can schedule a dance on the eve of, and ultimately reaching into the celebration of the Resurrection? Of course, that question is rhetorical – for we sadly know the answer.
Do our kids make any attempt at fasting, increased prayer or generous acts during these weeks that lead up to the Passion, Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord. Are we teaching them the value of such practices in our homes. As adults, are we taking the responsibility to be positive examples in this sacred arena?
This much I know; no matter what we teach our kids, and no matter how much they are told by other adult figures in their lives, the benefit of peer-inspiration and accountability is irreplaceable in our kid’s spiritual development. This is why we take every opportunity to bring our kids together for retreats and camps. So, let’s talk about upcoming retreats and camps!
This Sunday, following the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, you will have the opportunity to sign up your GOYANs for our annual Lenten Retreat to take place during the weekend of the 17th-19th of March. We are bringing in a dynamic youth worker from Holy Cross Seminary to lead our discussions, and our young people will remain in Heber, UT, on the Third Sunday of Lent to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, together as a gathering of Orthodox Christian kids who share a common Faith and follow common practices. Practices the world sees as silly, irrelevant, archaic and rusty.
If we don’t want our children to adapt a similar outlook on sacredness, spiritual disciplines and holiness, we best take every opportunity to let them grow in their Orthodox Christian walk. And to be sure, they’ll have a great time doing so.
If you have children between 6th and 12th Grades, see Kim Mallas after the Liturgy and sign them up!
Once we have traversed the course of the Fast and have entered into Holy Week, please make plans to have your children attend our Annual Holy Friday Retreat. Our Sunday School has planned a fantastic, fun-filled and spiritually beneficial program for our kids.
This year, we will be pre-registering our kids for the Holy Friday Retreat, due to the quality of the program and the necessary preparations for the craft (it’s a really awesome craft, by the way). Look for the Registration Form in the next Bulletin and sign up your kids!
And lastly, and most importantly, our Archdiocese Summer Camping programs are more exciting than ever. Thousands of young people gather in their respective Metropolis Camps during the summer months to reintroduce themselves to Christ, and to their peers in the most dynamic of ways.
Camp Emmanuel, Summer Camp for the Metropolis of Denver, is one of the most established and well-run programs in the Archdiocese. Within the month of June, there are two sessions; one for high school students and the second for junior high students, in the beautiful mountains of New Mexico. I will be traveling and attending camp with our Junior GOYANs to Camp Emmanuel.
There is no better way to inspire our children into plentiful lives in Christ than camping programs. In the coming weeks, we will be reaching out to all households with junior and senior high school students and informing them of the benefits of Camp Emmanuel, and camping in general. Please visit the following link to get current in all information regarding Camp Emmanuel 2017.
May the good Lord Who guides us in our Lenten journeys, and Who lifts up the children in His special, loving care, continue to encourage our youth in the ways of the Kingdom. And may they continue to love, serve, worship and honor His holy Name.
With Love in Christ,
Fr. Anthony
Remember that this Sunday is the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Bring your favorite icons from home for your children to process, and you to lift up.
Then join us for Pan-Orthodox Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers at 6:00 pm with our sister Orthodox communities.