OUR CHURCH FAMILY - WELCOMING NEW MEMBERS

OUR CHURCH FAMILY - WELCOMING NEW MEMBERS Fr Luke A. Veronis “I don’t know many of the people in the church,” a lifelong member of our church told me recently. This man doesn’t come to church too frequently, yet he has been a part of our church since his birth 80 years ago. And he said to me, “There are so many new people in church. I don’t know who they are.” Since 2021, we have had 20 people join our church and become new members through either baptism or chrismation, along with the 22 baptisms of little children. Over the past three years, we have had many other individuals and families join our Church Family, whether coming back to church after a hiatus away from any community of faith or joining our church simply because they found it more vibrant, alive, and welcoming. In 2023, we have had the largest average attendance on a typical Sunday throughout the year, greater than any number since we first came here in 2005. Over the past several months, we even had two Sundays where our Church had standing room only. Glory to God for all the members and inquirers of our church, whether you are a lifelong member, a new member, or even an ongoing inquirer. We have families coming every Sunday literally from one hour east in Boston, one hour west from Belchertown, 45 minutes south and 45 minutes north. We thank God that many people are finding a welcoming home and a vibrant community of faith here in our Church Family. During a time when 30% of Americans now call themselves “non-religious,” with New England being the most secular, non-religious region in America, and with many people are turning away from God and rejecting organized religion, our community is an outlier, showing that vibrant communities can still thrive even in 21st century America! When the Church proclaims the eternal Good News of Jesus Christ, it is Good News for everyone in every generation! The Good News of great joy and unconquerable hope, a message that brings light in the midst of a world that too often seems dark and confused and even lost, and a community that helps us discover what the meaning of life is all about, is quite welcome! When the Church gathers together as a warm, friendly, welcoming Family of God, offering a community of love that welcomes all people during a time when so many feel isolated, lonely and alone, such a Church will always attract new people in our midst. When the Church comes in unity in the worship of our liturgical and prayer services in a way where we come into contact with the living, transcendent God, the Eternal One who is, who was and who is to come, the Lord Almighty, then we get a taste of what the Kingdom of Heaven is all about. Such heavenly worship will draw people in! When the Church strives to continually grow and struggles to learn the mysteries of our Orthodox Christian Faith, discovering more and more the priceless treasure of salvation, the “pearl of great price,” then people will be attracted to a faith of substance as a healthy alternative to the superficial nonsense of the world. When the Church proclaims a message of unity in a world of division and preaches a message of solidarity with one another even in our diversity we offer an image of God to a fractured world. We believe that Jesus Christ brings us together, and in Him there is no longer “Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female,” but we are all one in Him. This unity of a diverse community offers a refreshing image to a bitterly divided world. When the Church offers opportunities to live out our faith in practical and relevant ways that touch the lives of others, we all feel enriched and blessed! We are blessed by God in order to share His blessings with others, and the Church helps us bring this Light of Love to a hurting world! Our Church is the Family of God and, as Saint Paul describes, we all are “citizens of heaven,” joining the communion of saints who have gone on before us in previous generations. Let us give thanks to God every day for this special blessing we have in the Church, and let us learn to share this blessing of the Church with others. Of course, as our Family of God continues to grow, we need to be careful and conscious of keeping our connections with one another strong. As new people come into our family, we need to get to know one another. The warm and welcoming spirit many people feel when they come into our community needs to be felt by every single person. In other words, we need to continually act and grow as a loving family with one another. Since we have so many new families and individuals who have joined our community over the past several years, we are going to try something new today. I’m calling this our “Welcoming New Members and Getting to Know One Another” Sunday! We want everyone today to get to know a few new people from our Church Family. We want everyone to talk with someone today with whom you’ve never talked to before. As you walked into Church today, you received a Name Tag. You put your name on it, along with the year that you became a member of our Church. You also have a number written on your Tag. That is the Table number we want you to sit at during the Coffee Fellowship. Today, we want you to sit with people whom you maybe don’t know. Maybe you recognize them but don’t know their names. Maybe you don’t know anything about them. Thus, during the Coffee Fellowship, I want you to learn the names of those sitting at your table and then ask one another a few questions: 1) WHEN did you join the church? 2) WHY did you join this particular community? 3) WHAT do you like most from this Church? 4) WHAT more would you like the church to do? 5) HOW or WHAT are you involved in at the church? Start up a conversation and get to know some new people. Learn something new and interesting about these people. Remember, we are a family! And as a family we want everyone to feel welcomed, noticed and loved! We want new friendships to develop within our Church Family. Make a new friend today!!!