Sunday Messenger
July 26, 2026

 Third Sunday after Transfiguration

Scripture and Feast Day Notes

There Will Be No Divine Liturgy Today
Rev. Fr. Hakob Will Perform A Morning Service at 10:30am

Isaiah 5:1-10 The Song of the Vineyard is a famous parable of disobedience and disappointed love. A man lovingly plants and tends to a vineyard, building a watchtower and a winepress and waiting for the bounty of wine-worthy grapes. Yet he finds only wild grapes, symbols of a willful Israel and Judah, and warns of the ruin that will come to pass. Discuss/reflect: God asks his people what more he could have possibly done (v.4) for them to bear worthy fruit. How would you assess the spiritual fruit in your life?

1 Corinthians 6:18-7:11 St. Paul exhorts his listeners to shun sexual immorality and respect their bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit. He reminds husbands and wives that their bodies belong to each other and that where there are difficulties, reconciliation should be sought. Discuss/reflect: We are not our own – we are God’s, bought at a price! (6:19-20) How does this faith fact change how you look at your body? At the ways you might be abusing it with excess?

Matthew 19:3-12 The Pharisees challenge Jesus with the question of divorce. He responds by referring them to the creation of marriage as recounted in Genesis where “two become one” – an indissoluble sum. Speaking against the ease with which men legally terminated their marriages at the time, Jesus preached the importance of the marriage covenant. Discuss/reflect: The Armenian Church acknowledges divorce and remarriage although a second wedding ceremony carries a penitential message. As he so often did, Jesus was posing a radically different approach to covenants –honor them! How do the disciples see marriage? (19:10) While marriages where there is abuse, addiction, chronic infidelity, etc, require intervention, many marriages might be redeemed with committed effort. Could today’s high divorce rates benefit from Jesus’ hope?

Tuesday, July 4^TH Honored The Twelve Prophets
The 12 “minor” prophets are hardly unimportant (minor being a reference only to the shorter length of their books). Written between the 8^th and 5^th centuries BC, their work teems with powerful metaphors, all pointing us to the arrogance and hypocrisy of human behavior which God endures with patient love and, at times, angry frustration. In Hosea, God’s love for the wayward Israel is compared with that of a husband for a straying wife as he promises to restore his people to covenant faithfulness. In Jonah, a smugly self-confident prophet learns, to his dismay, that God’s mercy extends to all repentant sinners, even his enemies. In Amos, we are reminded that worship and reverence for God are meaningless without justice for the poor and oppressed; social justice is the foundation for true piety. Reflection: Read Amos 5:21-24. If Amos were preaching in your church, how would he assess your efforts on behalf of the poor and needy? What can you do personally and as a parishioner to be God’s merciful hands in the world?

The Kiss Of Peace – After the gifts of the Eucharist are brought to the Altar Table, the deacon proclaims, “Greet one another with a holy kiss.”  The person giving the greeting says, Kristos ee mech mer Haydnetsav – Christ is revealed amongst us.  The recipient would respond, Orhnial eh Haydnootiunun Kristosee – Blessed is the revelation of Christ.

The Nicene Creed/ Havadamk – This is the Profession of our Faith which is recited every Sunday moments after the Gospel is read from the altar. Sometimes it is sung, but more often it is recited by the Deacons and/or the Choir.  We invite you to affirm your own “Profession of Faith” by reciting along with us.  God longs for all of us to express our faith and devotion to Him.

Agape Hour — There will not be an Agape Hour this week. Please use the time to relax and call to chat with a friend, acquaintance or family member that would be delighted to receive a call from you.

Renovations – In an effort to make the church safer and welcoming for our parishioners and guests, the lower bathrooms will be undergoing a renovation in August of this year. Please pardon our appearance during this time as the renovations will take a few weeks. While these restrooms are unavailable, please remember the restrooms near the elevator at the back of the Sunday School area are available. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this process.

Holy Badarak – Over the summer is a wonderful time to learn and familiarize yourself with the Badarak. If your children sing in the school choir, please encourage them to come sing in our church choir to continue developing their voice on Sundays during the summer. It’s ok if they don’t know many of the sharagans, they will learn. And if they can read music, they will be fine. Our senior choir members are here to help. We look forward to seeing your children upstairs with us!

FAR! – FAR’s Armenian Creative Technologies (ACT) College will celebrate its first anniversary this August! 75 students successfully completed their first year, pursuing degrees in engineering and manufacturing, computer science, and digital art.

Interest in the college continues to grow. From more than 500 applicants, just 95 students were accepted into the incoming class. Many of these talented young people will rely on financial aid through the ACT Scholars Fund to make their education possible.

If you would like to help a bright student with financial need pursue an ACT education, you can support the ACT Scholars Fund here: https://www.weareayo.org/donate-act-scholars-fund. To schedule a tour of ACT College on your next trip to Armenia, contact Sarah at sarah@farusa.org.

~~~~~~~~~~TODAY’S EVENTS~~~~~~~~~~

Third Sunday After Transfiguration
Jul 29         Breakfast on the Beach – Zoom Part 2
Aug 12        Breakfast on the Beach – Zoom Part 3
Aug 16        Feast of the Assumption of the Holy Mother-Of-God (Blessing of the Grapes)
Sep 07         Labor Day – Church Office Closed
Sep 13         Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Sep 21         Armenian Independence Day
Sep 27         Feast of the Holy Cross of Varak
Oct 24-25    Annual Harvest Bazaar