Christmas at Twelve Apostles’ Church
Tuesday 24th December
6.30 pm — Great Vespers
Wednesday 25th December
9 am — Matins and Divine Liturgy
We commemorate not only Christ born two thousand years ago but Christ born in our hearts. May we purify ourselves that we make our body as the Bethlehem cave and our heart as the manger that we may receive Christ.
Christ is born, glorify Him. Christ from heaven, go out to meet Him. Christ on earth; be exalted. Sing unto the Lord all the whole earth; and that I may join both in one word, Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, for Him Who is of heaven and then of earth. Christ in the flesh, rejoice with trembling and with joy; with trembling because of your sins, with joy because of your hope. Christ of a Virgin; O you Matrons live as Virgins, that you may be Mothers of Christ. Who does not worship Him That is from the beginning? Who does not glorify Him That is the Last?
Again the darkness is past; again Light is made; again Egypt is punished with darkness; again Israel is enlightened by a pillar. (Exodus 14:20) The people that sat in the darkness of ignorance, let it see the Great Light of full knowledge. (Isaiah 9:6) Old things are passed away, behold all things have become new. (1 Corinthians 5:17) The letter gives way, the Spirit comes to the front. The shadows flee away, the Truth comes in upon them. Melchisedec is concluded. He that was without Mother becomes without Father (without Mother of His former state, without Father of His second). The laws of nature are upset; the world above must be filled. Christ commands it, let us not set ourselves against Him. O clap your hands together all you people, because unto us a Child is born, and a Son given unto us, Whose Government is upon His shoulder (for with the Cross it is raised up), and His Name is called The Angel of the Great Counsel of the Father. (Isaiah 9:6) Let John cry, Prepare the way of the Lord: (Matthew 3:3) I too will cry the power of this Day. He Who is not carnal is Incarnate; the Son of God becomes the Son of Man, Jesus Christ the Same yesterday, and today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8) Let the Jews be offended, let the Greeks deride; (1 Corinthians 1:23) let heretics talk till their tongues ache. Then shall they believe, when they see Him ascending up into heaven; and if not then, yet when they see Him coming out of heaven and sitting as Judge.
— St Gregory the Theologian, Oration 38, I–II
Dear Friends
From the conquest of the Promised Land, for about 400 years, the children of Israel had no king—or, rather, God Himself was their king. Judges were raised, as the time required, from among the people to restore justice, yet always the people would turn again from following the living God. At the time of Samuel the people besought him,
Look, you have become old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now establish a king for us to judge us like all the rest of the nations.
— First Kingdoms (First Samuel) 8:5
But Samuel feared the voice of the people, for this was a rejection of the kingship of God. But the Lord said to him,
Heed the voice of the people in whatever they might say to you, for they have not rejected you but rather they have rejected Me, to bring to nought My reign over them.
In everything they did to Me since the day I brought them up from Egypt, even to this day, they have forsaken Me and have served other gods. So too they are doing this to you.
Now listen to their voice; only you shall testify solemnly to them and announce to them the custom of the king who will reign over them.
— verses 7–9
And so Samuel explained the consequences of living under a king.
This will be the custom of the king who shall reign over you. He will take your sons and put them in his chariots, and among his horsemen, and running before his chariots;
and for himself, he will appoint them as captains over his thousands, and captains over his hundreds; and to harvest his crop and gather his vintage; and to make his weapons of war and instruments for his chariots.
He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks and bakers.
And he will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves and give them to his servants.
He will take a tenth of your grain and your vintage and give it to his eunuchs and servants.
And he will take your male servants, your female servants, your finest cattle, and your donkeys, and take a tenth of them for his work.
He will take a tenth of your sheep. And you will be his servants.
Then in that day you will cry out before your king whom you chose for yourselves, and the Lord will not hear you in those days, because you chose a king for yourselves.
— verses 11–18
But the rejection of God by the people was complete.
‘No, rather it is that we want a king to be over us.
Then we will be like all the other nations, and our king will judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.’
And Samuel heard all the words of the people and repeated them in the hearing of the Lord.
So the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Heed their voice, and make them a king.’
— verses 19–22
And for around a hundred years, the children of Israel were united under a king. Saul basically went mad and was followed by David who was faithful, but his son Solomon brought in worship of gods. For the sake of his father David the Kingdom remained united, but under Solomon’s son Rehoboam, the northern Kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam separated from the southern Kingdom of Judah which maintained the line of David.
And at this time, God chose for himself prophets. From roughly 900 BC to 400 BC, God called men who were outside the establishment, outside the priesthood, to warn those who have rejected God to turn back to life. For the most part they were rejected. Despite the Word of God being spoken against transgressors the warnings were not heeded and the prophets witnessed the fall of the northern Kingdom, after which the ten tribes have been lost to history, in 722 BC and the fall of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Temple and the captivity in Babylon in 587/586 BC.
Starting this Friday (20th December) our evening Bible Study will be looking at one of the most significant of the prophets, Isaiah. Active around 745–680 BC, this places him either side of the fall of the northern Kingdom. But his importance to the Church is seen not only in speaking the Word of God then, it is in revealing to us the coming Messiah.
Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: behold, the Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Immanuel.
Butter and honey He shall eat before He knows to prefer evil or choose the good,
for before the Child knows good or evil, He refuses the evil to choose the good.
— Isaiah 7:14–16
Join us as we look to deepen our knowledge of Christ as revealed through His prophet.
Come and see!
Catechism & Catechumens
There are several members of our community who have expressed an interest in fully joining the Church, either through Baptism or Chrismation depending on circumstances.
I want you to, I think everyone should be a full member of the Church, but I am also keen not to put pressure on anyone. If you want to join you need to ask.
For me there are two key requirements.
- You are a member of our community. You participate in services as well as the rest of the life of the community.
- You understand The Symbol of Faith (also called the Creed) in the way the Church understands it. Alongside this, you will understand about the Orthodox Church, her history and traditions.
To help with 2., on Saturdays, after Vespers I will start to go through the Symbol of Faith. This will only last up until 7.40 pm (Vespers usually ends around 7.10–7.15 pm).
If you are interested in joining the Church (though there’s no commitment) or are already a member but would like to know more about our Faith, you’d be most welcome to join us.
If you’d like to join the Church, but can’t make it on Saturday evenings, then please speak to me and we can make alternative arrangements for you.
[For those who would like to come to Confession on Saturdays while this programme is happening, Confessions can happen from 7.40 pm: apologies for any inconvenience.]
We serve a meal following the Liturgy on Sundays. All are welcome.
Do you, or someone you know, want to join our mailing list and receive our weekly email? Then let me know.
Sermon
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, one God, Amen.
From the dawn of Creation, God has shown great care for the creatures made in His image.
“Then God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’”
— Genesis 1:28
And for these creatures made of the dust of the earth he was most concerned that mankind had food.
“The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed.
And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. …
Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat;
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’”
— Genesis 2:8–9, 15–17
But at the dawn of our Creation, man rejects God: rejects His food and rejects His commandments. And so mankind must toil through the heat of the day of this Age. But at evening, in these Last Days, God sends out His Servant, His Angel, His Word, “to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for all is now ready.’”
And one says, “I have bought a field,” which is to say, “I will tie myself to the outcome of this Age.” And another says, “I have bought five yoke of oxen,” thus placing money—the love of money—before God. And yet another, “I have married a wife,” because he desires the fleeting pleasures of this life.
…
Read this Sermon, Come for all is now ready.
Archive of Past Sermons.
Services this week
Friday 20th December
Discussion on the Prophecy of Isaiah, 8 pm
Online only
Saturday 21st December
Great Vespers, 6.30 pm
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
Sunday 22nd December
Matins and Divine Liturgy, 9 am
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
Online session is via Google Meet: please get in contact for the details.
Please join us: all are welcome, come and see.
Attending Church
We meet at 3rd URC Scout HQ, Kings Rd, Chandlers Ford SO53 2EY. The Scout hall is behind and to the left of the URC Church. Come and See.
Can I help you?
I am here for you, you need only ask. Is there a way I can support your life of faith? Get in touch.
Can you help the parish?
Yes, absolutely. Offer yourselves to the Lord: pray! Make available to him all your talents and ask him how he would like you to use them — listen for his reply.
Your prayers!
With love in Christ
Fr Alexander
[email protected]