Fr. George began his Orthodoxy 101 course, “Who we are and what do we believe?” It was a wonderful opportunity to learn about the development of the Church. His second part of the series, “Who we are and how do we worship?” will take place on Saturday, March 18th from 11am until 1pm. We hope you’ll come and take advantage of this great learning opportunity.

This beautiful documentary pays tribute to the Theotokos (Mother of God) and explains the importance of her role as intercessor in the Greek Orthodox Church. The origins of Akathist Hymn and other Liturgical hymns dedicated to the Virgin are described. Highlights include: A “Salutation” service celebrated by Bishop Alexios of Troas at St. Demetrios Cathedral in Astoria, NY, and a 12-year-old child chanting Byzantine hymns, with English translations.

Father George, our Sunday School children, teachers, Altar Boys, our Church Choir and parishioners gather on the solea to sing “Agios o Theos” following the Procession of Icons on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, Sunday, March 5, 2017.  Children learned the history of how Icons were restored to the Orthodox Church after a long period of banishment.  Our Icons are very important in our faith as they serve to help us worship God and remind us that Christ and the Saints were real people.  We venerate our Icons by lighting candles near them, kissing them and making our Cross.  Orthodox Christians also venerate Icons in their own homes as a daily reminder of what God has done for us through Jesus and the Saints.

Some of our Sunday School students showcase their handmade Valentine cards created in class prior to the PTO Valentine’s party where they were given sweet treats and gifts with a lot of love! The PTO party was offered to our students in love and appreciation for their wonderful Christmas pageant performance which was delayed twice due to inclement weather.

Fr. George will be offering a two-part Lenten lecture series called Orthodoxy 101. Come and learn about our faith:  Who we are and what do we believe?  Who we are and how do we worship? A great opportunity for all to learn about what it means to be Orthodox Christians.

The tradition continues! Enjoy this Spirit of Lent Choral Concert promotional video. Concert to be held April 7th, 2017 at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church.

Our Goyans participated in a Bridges Outreach opportunity on Friday, Feb. 10th at St. Barbara in Tom’s River. They helped to make over 400 bagged lunches and personal hygiene kits that were distributed to the needy on Sat., Feb. 11th. Thank you to Demos Simatos for chaperoning.

Teachers in attendance were those pictured from left to right, Georgia Barbayannis,
Angelique Tsivelis, Kally Durso, MaryLou Rivera, Afroula Kanellidis, Helen Catelanos and Helen Coutros Horan.

Our Sunday School teachers attended the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of New Jersey’s Religious Education Teachers Seminar held on February 4, 2017 at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Piscataway, NJ. Unique ideas and ways to assist teachers in better educating our children were shared through presentations and videos and discussed in question and answer sessions. St. Demetrios, Perth Amboy had the highest number of attendees! Thank you to all of our wonderfully dedicated Sunday School teachers.

The St. Demetrios Blessing of the Water and Cross Diving on 1/22/17 was featured in The Amboy Guardian. See the link below for entire article.

*Photos by Paul W. Wang

St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, Blessing of the Water Perth Amboy 1/22/17